The Goldfish Who Pitched Dreams

Leo sat on the bench, watching the other kids play baseball. He loved baseball more than anything—the crack of the bat, the smell of fresh grass, the way the ball soared through the air like a shooting star. But Leo had no team. No friend.

"Aren't you going to play?" asked a tiny voice.

Leo looked around. No one was there. Then he spotted it—a tiny orange goldfish in a glass bowl on the bench beside him.

"You can talk?"

"I'm Finn," said the goldfish, swimming in excited circles. "And I can do more than talk. Watch!"

Finn flicked his tail, and suddenly the baseball on the field began to glow. It spun into the air and turned into a butterfly, then a shooting star, then a rainbow.

"How did you DO that?" Leo gasped.

"Baseball is magic," Finn bubbled. "You just have to imagine it. All those kids playing? They're not just hitting a ball. They're hitting their dreams into the sky."

Finn told Leo that every baseball holds a wish inside it. When you hit it far, you're sending your wish out into the universe. "What would you wish for?" Finn asked.

Leo thought hard. "A friend."

Finn smiled—which a goldfish does by wiggling his fins. "Then pick up a bat and make your wish fly."

That afternoon, Leo stepped onto the field for the first time. The other kids stopped to watch. Leo could feel Finn's magic swelling inside him. When the pitch came, Leo didn't just see a baseball. He saw a glowing wish, a golden opportunity.

*CRACK!*

The ball soared higher and farther than any ball had ever gone. It kept going up, up, up, until it disappeared into the clouds.

The other kids rushed over. "That was amazing! You're on our team!"

Leo looked at the fishbowl. Finn winked at him.

That day, Leo learned two things: sometimes the best friends come in small, scaly packages, and baseball really is magic—especially when you have someone to share it with.