The Not-So-Scary Garden Friend

Leo loved summer evenings. Fireflies danced like tiny stars, and he could hear the familiar *thwack* of his baseball hitting the glove. But tonight, something strange rustled behind the old oak tree.

A green face peeked out. It had messy hair and wore tattered clothes. Leo's heart thumped. Was it a... zombie?

But this zombie didn't moan or shuffle. It smiled shyly, holding up a dusty baseball glove. "Play?" it rasped.

Leo blinked. This zombie wanted to play baseball?

"Okay!" Leo called back. "But first, what's your name?"

"Zom. Just Zom."

They played until sunset. Zom wasn't scary at all — just clumsy and funny. He tripped over his own feet trying to catch fly balls. Leo laughed so hard his stomach hurt. But when other kids peeked over the fence, they gasped and ran away.

Zom's shoulders slumped. He shuffled toward the woods, head down.

"Wait!" Leo rushed inside and grabbed his pet goldfish, Goldie. Her bowl glowed with shimmering light whenever magical things happened. Leo whispered, "Goldie, how can I help Zom?"

Goldie swam in circles, creating rainbow bubbles. Each bubble floated to Zom and popped into sparkles. One landed on Zom's glove, making it shine like sunshine. Another sparkled on his green face like friendly glitter.

The other kids stopped running. They watched, wide-eyed.

"He's not scary," Leo called out. "He's just different — like how Goldie is different from us, but still beautiful."

Zom threw a perfect pitch. One boy caught it, grinning. Soon, all the kids joined the game. Nobody cared that Zom was green. They only cared that he could throw a curveball that made everyone cheer.

That night, Leo understood something wonderful: Sometimes the scariest-looking things are just friends we haven't met yet. And a little courage — plus a magical goldfish — can turn fear into the best game ever.