The Lightning Goldfish

Lily loved her little goldfish, Sparkle, more than anything. Sparkle lived in a glass bowl on her nightstand, swimming in circles all day long. But Lily had a secret fear—she was terrified of thunderstorms.

One hot summer evening, dark clouds gathered outside Lily's window. Thunder rumbled like a giant tummy, and suddenly—FLASH! A bolt of lightning lit up the whole sky.

Lily hid under her covers, trembling. But then she heard something strange. Splash! Splash! Splash!

She peeked out from her blanket and gasped. Sparkle was swimming through the air! Every time lightning flashed, Sparkle could swim right out of her bowl and glide through the room like she was in the ocean.

"Come with me!" Sparkle seemed to say with her sparkly tail. "Swimming is fun anywhere!"

Lily reached out her hand, and somehow, she could swim too! Together they glided out the window, floating higher and higher. Lily wasn't scared anymore—she was having an adventure!

They swam past the oak tree, where squirrels were watching in amazement. They circled around the church steeple. And when the biggest lightning bolt of all flashed—CRACK!—they did a happy loop-de-loop in the sky.

"Being brave is like learning to swim," Sparkle seemed to tell Lily. "You just have to trust yourself."

When the storm passed, they floated back to Lily's room. Sparkle settled into her bowl, and Lily snuggled into bed. From that night on, Lily never feared storms again. She knew that even scary things could bring magical adventures, especially with a best friend by your side.

And sometimes, when lightning flashed, Lily could still see Sparkle doing a little swim of joy.