The Zombie Who Loved Oranges

Lila lived in a house with the most magnificent palm tree in the whole backyard. Its long green leaves swished and swayed in the breeze, like they were dancing to music only trees could hear. Every afternoon, Lila would sit beneath the palm and read her favorite books about magic and adventure.

One warm summer day, Lila spotted something strange near her palm tree. A shuffling figure emerged from behind the trunk. It had messy hair, droopy eyelids, and arms that swung loosely at its sides. It looked exactly like the pictures Lila had seen of zombies in her brother's comic books!

Lila's heart beat fast, but she didn't run away. The zombie didn't look scary at all. In fact, it looked confused and a little sad. It took one step forward, then another, heading straight toward Lila's favorite orange tree on the other side of the yard.

"Hello?" Lila called out softly.

The zombie froze. It turned slowly and blinked at her. Then it pointed a shaky finger at the orange tree.

"Oh! You want an orange?" Lila asked.

The zombie nodded enthusiastically.

Lila giggled. She ran to the orange tree and picked the biggest, brightest orange she could find. She held it out to the zombie, whose eyes grew wide with delight. The zombie took the orange and held it close like it was the most precious treasure in the world.

"I'm Lila," she said. "What's your name?"

The zombie looked at the orange, then back at Lila. It made a soft sound that almost sounded like 'Zom'.

"Zom?" Lila smiled. "Nice to meet you, Zom."

Every day after that, Zom would shuffle out from behind the palm tree, and Lila would share her oranges with him. She learned that Zom wasn't a zombie at all — he was a magical creature who lived in the space between worlds, and he only visited when he was feeling lonely. The oranges gave him magic to go back home feeling happy.

Lila learned that sometimes things that seem scary might just be lonely and need a friend — and a sweet orange can fix almost anything.