Dahlia and the Garden of Light - Chapter 15: Chapter 15

One Monday, Dahlia came to school quiet and pale. She didn’t touch her lunch. Didn’t laugh. Didn’t draw.
Amy noticed right away.
She tried everything: silly jokes, bad doodles, even a piece of her cookie with the most chocolate chips — nothing.
During quiet time, she crept her mat closer.
“Wanna talk?” she whispered, voice barely louder than breath.
Dahlia blinked slowly. “I had a dream.”
“The bad kind?”
Dahlia gave the faintest nod. “Worse than usual. Everything was burning. My house. My brothers. You. I tried to fix it but…” Her voice cracked. “My flowers just crumbled.”
Amy scooted even closer and slipped her a folded napkin. Inside was a scribbled crayon drawing: two stick figures, one with curly hair, the other glowing yellow, standing on a giant monster’s head. It read: Team Sunbloom Forever.
Dahlia stared at it, eyes wide.
“It’s just a dream,” Amy whispered. “We’ll beat it. We always do.”
Dahlia’s hand trembled slightly as she clutched the napkin.
“Why are you always so brave?” she murmured.
Amy shrugged. “I’m not. I just… hate when you’re sad.”
Dahlia smiled weakly, a flicker of light returning to her cheeks. “You’re my favorite human.”
Amy grinned. “That’s because I haven’t turned into a monster. Yet.”
Dahlia giggled, soft but real. “If you do, I’ll plant sunflowers on your horns.”
They held pinkies under the mat. Just for a moment.