The Zombie Who Loved Green Things

Lily discovered the secret pool behind the old palm tree on the hottest day of summer. The water sparkled like diamonds, and she couldn't wait to jump in!

But someone was already there.

A green figure sat by the pool's edge, munching on something from a garden patch. Lily froze. It looked like a zombie!

"Go away!" Lily shouted, grabbing her brother's old plastic sword from the ground. "I'm not afraid of you!"

The zombie looked up with sad, crinkly eyes. "Please don't hurt me," it whispered. "I'm just hungry."

Lily lowered her sword. "You can talk?"

"Everyone thinks I'm scary because I'm green and wrinkly," the creature said, holding up a leaf. "But I'm not a zombie. I'm Zim, the garden sprite. I got stuck in this form after sleeping in a spinach patch for a hundred years."

Lily giggled. "You slept in spinach?"

"Best bed ever!" Zim smiled, showing crooked but kind teeth. "Want some? It's magical spinach. Makes you swim like a fish."

He offered her a bright green leaf. Lily took it hesitantly—then popped it into her mouth.

Suddenly, she could breathe underwater! She dove into the pool and swam with the fish, while Zim cheered from the surface.

"Can we be friends?" Zim asked when she emerged, dripping but grinning. "Everyone runs away before I can explain."

Lily looked at the lonely garden sprite. "Being different doesn't mean you're scary, Zim. My mom says the best friends are the ones you don't expect."

That afternoon, they played tag around the palm tree and had swimming contests in the magical pool. Zim showed her how to make flowers bloom by singing to them, and Lily taught him how to do cannonballs.

Sometimes, she thought, the scariest-looking things turn out to be the most wonderful friends—if you're brave enough to say hello first.