by Vladimir D.

I could only hear the birds chirping and flying through the tree branches and leaves. The little box in front of me didn’t seem too interesting. It was a simple wooden box, covered in dirt.

Before I arrived here, in the middle of nowhere, I had been playing hide-and-seek with my friends. Perhaps they were still somewhere around here… or not. I wasn’t too bothered by that, honestly. After some time, the small box started to gain my interest. I’m not sure if it was actually glowing or not, since many people told me that everything I see or say doesn’t sound real, but I really wanted to open it. And so I did.

A bright light fell upon me. Was it the box? When I took a look at it, it was now gone. A little frog stood in its place. It had a nice hat and fancy boots. “Greetings, friend!” It said, and right after, it continued “I apologise for my rudeness, but I must go. Please leave the box alone next time.” And so, it disappeared. I thought it was another dream of mine, but the little frog had left a red pinecone behind. I took it and ran back home to show it to my friends, who laughed at me, as always. Still, I knew it was my little gift, from the little frog in the little box, for little me.