Facing the cheerful crowd, a warm comfortable filling enveloped her from head to toe, as she heard a confident voice whisper inside her, “You did it, girl! A newborn Lillia is here.”
It was nearly sunset when Lillia sat on the bus, close to Olivia, busy playing on her phone.
As the young girl slouched on her comfy leather seat, enjoying the sunset landscape, Olivia turned to her and smiled. “Did you like our journey? Was it lovely?”
“Yes, Olivia, I did. Only that maze inside! It scared me out of my skin!” responded Lillia, smiling.
“Oh my dear friend, that is what we call an adventure. You feel a lot of excitement and horror at the same time,” replied Olivia confidently.
“Then I guess I would prefer to daydream if all real adventures are like these!” puffed Lillia, stretching her arms.
“Lillia, every one of us has his daydreams. It is our magical escape towards a word better than ours. I even daydream sometimes. But you know something,” stated Olivia whilst looking at her earnestly, “Dreams never change our real life. No one can change you, only you, but only if you believe you can do it.”
Then she pointed at the breathtaking sunset and nodded. “Look at the sun, Lillia. As you see, everyone will tell you that it has faded and that’s it, but, tomorrow the same sun will come back and with much more radiant sunlight.”
“That’s exactly you, Lillia. You are like that, people think that you have faded, that you’ve given up fighting for a better future. However, whenever you feel tetchy or bland, never let it take up on you.”
She continued talking, while still holding Lillia’s hand tightly. “Don’t let anyone or anything make fun of you, Lillia. It’s your life, your concrete dreams. Do you remember what Miss Adams told us last week? A real adventurer must face…”
“Trials and perils,” interrupted Lillia.
“Yeah. So, it’s time for you to face the music, my friend.”
The following day, as Miss Adams, the English literacy teacher, was busy explaining the lesson; Lillia hesitantly raised her hand and mumbled, “Miss Adams, would you mind if I talk about my adventure in Lolly Land? I think it is related to the lesson.”
“Sure, Lillia,” replied the teacher heartily. “That sounds interesting. You have permission to speak as long as you want.”
Slowly, the young girl padded towards the whiteboard. She took a deep breath and began to talk.
The first words she said were mutters, making her bow her head down with embarrassment. Her face turned red as she heard the titters of her friends.
She felt a knot in her throat. Her mouth repeatedly opened and closed, however nobody could hear her as her words were lost beneath her whispers. Her heartbeat was so rapid that it vibrated loudly in her ears as the students’ chortles taunted her in her head.
Unexpectedly, as she raised her head, she noticed Olivia beaming at her. She abruptly arched her back and spoke quickly.
In the beginning, she could still hear her companions chuckling, but then everything grew silent.
The longer she talked, the more silent it became. There were no more giggles. No whispering. Nothing. Only her voice occupied the room. Lillia talked loudly and said things she had never imagined herself saying.
The young girl grew more confident as she spoke. From the corner of her eye, she caught the sight of her teacher gaping in surprise.
She chatted about her adventures and her dread in the maze.
As she described the figure inside the maze, a huge “WOW!” emerged from the class.
A few minutes later, her story came to a halt. For a brief moment, everything was silent when, in a daze, the classroom blasted by loud cheers.
All the students standing up cheered her name loudly while the teacher stepped to her smiling and announced, “Lillia, I have nothing to say! The way you talked made me shudder in astonishment.”
“Thank you, Miss Adams,” simpered Lillia, her face etched with joy as she caught the sight of Olivia waving to her, a warm smile widened over her gentle face.
Facing the cheerful crowd, a warm comfortable filling enveloped her from head to toe, as she heard a confident voice whisper inside her, “You did it, girl! A newborn Lillia is here.”
