The Zombie Who Loved Padel

Lily's golden retriever, Buster, was the best dog in the world. But he needed a friend. Someone who would run and play with him every day.

One autumn afternoon, Lily found an old green mask in her attic. It had crumbling edges and paint that looked like peeling skin. "A zombie mask!" she giggled. "This will be perfect for Halloween!"

She put it on and shuffled around the backyard like a zombie. "BRAAAINS!" she moaned, holding her arms out stiffly.

Buster didn't run away. Instead, he wagged his tail so hard his whole body wiggled. He barked happily and jumped around her, thinking they were playing a new game.

Lily's neighbor, Sam, peeked over the fence. "What are you doing?"

"I'm a zombie!" Lily said. "Want to play padel?"

Sam's eyes lit up. His family had a padel court in their backyard, and he'd been looking for someone to play with. "Yes! But you can't be a zombie AND play padel properly."

"Watch me!" Lily challenged.

They grabbed their padel rackets and started hitting the ball back and forth. Lily discovered something amazing: being a zombie actually helped her game! She shuffled slowly toward the net, surprising Sam with her unpredictable movements. She let out zombie groans when she hit difficult shots, which made them both laugh so hard they could barely breathe.

Buster ran between them, barking at the ball and sometimes catching it in his mouth, which only made them laugh harder.

"You're not scary at all," Sam said, wiping tears of laughter from his eyes. "You're the funniest friend ever."

Lily pulled off the mask. "Being scary is boring. Being a friend is way better."

From that day on, they were inseparable. Lily, Sam, and Buster formed the best team. They even invented a new game called "Zombie Padel," where you had to shuffle like a zombie between shots. Other kids in the neighborhood joined in, and soon the whole street was filled with laughter and the thump-thump-thump of padel balls.

Sometimes the best friendships start with something silly. And sometimes, the most unexpected things — like a zombie mask and a game of padel — can bring people together in the most wonderful ways.

Lily learned that you don't need to be scary to be special. You just need to be yourself — even if yourself is someone who shuffles and groans while playing padel with her best friend and her wonderful dog.