It’s fall and the leaves are on the grass. It’s the season that I hate. When I wear a jacket it’s hot and when I don’t wear one it’s cold. I hear kids talking as they jump in brightly colored leaves. My cousin says that there is always magic in fall. You just have to find it. I don’t believe her though. 

 

“Honey, come in!” my mom calls. I turn back to start running, but I trip over a pile of leaves. 

 

“Oww!” I shout. At home, I put ice on my leg but it’s already so cold in here. I just want to relax but I have school. But I can’t stop thinking about what my cousin said. I mean I know I said that I don’t believe her but I do really want something magical to happen to me.

 

And that too in Fall. When I say magical, I don’t mean it has to be all unicorns and rainbows. I want it so that maybe I can make  some friends. And for the leaves to stop falling on top of my hair. All I want is a miracle. 

 

For dessert, I have pumpkin pie and after dinner, I go to bed early. I usually sleep at 8:30 but today I’m sleeping at 7:45. Alia, the cousin who told me about the magic, gave me something. I don’t know what it is though. She told me to find out for myself. 

 

It looks like a box, but I know that there is more to it. I mean there has to be. But that night I don’t find anything. In the morning it’s so sunny. I turn to my other side and see that the box is glowing. And suddenly it falls. I get out of the bed as fast as I can.

 

But the box doesn’t even have a scratch on it. I see an opening that wasn’t there yesterday. “Alia,” I call. “Come here!” 

 

“Coming,” She responds. I can hear her skipping to my room. “Ah, so I see. You’ve opened the box,” she says with a grin. 

 

“Uh yeah I did. This wasn’t there yesterday,” I point to the opening. 

 

“Well open it up! What are you waiting for!” She says. The grin is still there. Now I start to think that this is a prank. But I open it anyway. There is a bracelet in there. 

 

“So put it on!” She says, jumping up and down.

 

“It’s just a bracelet. Nothing to get excited about,” I say. She stops. She moves her head toward me. And she moves closer.

 

“Just a bracelet! Just a bracelet! It is not JUST a bracelet. It is magical. Put it on and you will see!” She says a little too aggressively.

 

“Ok, ok. I will.” I put on the bracelet. It glows bright pink. I can’t see Alia anymore. But the last thing I hear from her is, “If you want to come back to this world, Ashley, just take the bracelet off. 

 

She fades away. Or maybe I do. But I don’t have much time to think about that because I fall down with a thump. I see people, and lot’s of horses. The sky is a bright orange and surrounding me is a grey playground Everybody is going to make fun of me! 

 

But no. They help me get up. And I was right, it isn’t all unicorns and rainbows. Well here and there you can spot some fairies chatting with each other. But otherwise it’s fine.

 

I make friends almost instantly. It feels so nice to have a friend. That’s when I remember I didn’t eat breakfast. I’m starving. “Hey Lilac where can I eat breakfast?” I asked my new friend. 

 

“Over there,” she says pointing to a pink and blue building. “Pancake Boom. And if you bring someone along, you can get the special addition!” She seems so excited for a simple pancake. I wonder why.

 

“Hello girls!” a booming voice says. But there is no one around. It’s so dark. “Welcome to Pancake Boom. And today what would you girls like? Perhaps a special addition?”

 

“Yes, yes please!” Lilac says running around.

 

I look for somewhere to sit. There are only 3 chairs and a table. As I start to sit down something says ouch. “Get off me! Where are your manners?” someone says.

 

“I’m sorry! I didn’t know you were sitting there. I thought that chair was empty!”

 

“None of these seats are empty. You have to wait until one of us gets up,” the same person says. I don’t know what to do. People who are invisible? Waiting in line for seats for possibly hours? 

 

So I get up, and run as far as I can. I storm out of the Pancake shop.

 

I fall down in a little hole. I look around. It looks like a cave. When I get up, the lights turn on. A magical land! It’s miniature and it looks nothing like this place. It’s so beautiful. I sit down on a chair to relax. But almost immediately the lights turn off.

 

I start to run out of the cave, when I suddenly trip and fall!. I can’t get up. “HELP,” I call out. No one answers. That’s when I remember what Alia had said. I take off the bracelet and I am back in my room. Alia comes in. 

 

“How was it,” she asks. 

 

“Kind of different for a magical land. Definitely not what I was expecting. That’s for sure!” I respond. I can’t believe she would do this to me. On the way to school a bunch of people ask if the spot next to me is taken. And at lunch everybody is inviting me to sit with them.

 

I wonder why they are being so nice to me. On the way back I realize something. They were being nice to me all along. I just had to look closer. And being in a bad situation made me look better at everyone. 

 

When I get back home I run into Alia’s arms. “Thank you Alia, thank you so much,” I say, hugging her tight. 

 

“You’re welcome, Ashley.”