I was really tired after our history class. My classmate Emily was holding a large book in her right hand, and in her left hand, she had her library card. I was curious because the book looked interesting. I asked her where she found it. She said, “Oh, I got it from the library. It’s a new book, I assume.”
Intrigued, I decided to check the library from top to bottom, but sadly, I couldn’t find it. While walking home, I saw a boy wearing a black hood, holding the same book in his left hand, with his right hand in his pocket. He spoke softly, asking, “Do you want this book?”
I exclaimed, “Oh my! I’ve been looking for this! Sure, I’d love to take it with me!”
The boy smiled and handed it to me. A couple of hours later, I sat down in my chair and opened the book. To my surprise, there was no writing, only pictures of a little girl. In every picture, she looked sad and depressed. I wondered why. Suddenly, my closet door opened with a loud BANG!
I quickly turned to look and saw a little girl—she was the same girl from the book! I was utterly shocked. I opened the book again and confirmed it was her. She softly asked for a glass of water and said, “Oh, little Andy! You look just like my little sister. But we don’t have time for this…”
Though confused, I acted like I understood what was happening. I slowly went to the kitchen, filled a cup with water, and brought it back to her. But when I returned, I found her sleeping, appearing like a child. I thought she might be changing forms because of being on Earth.
I gently placed the cup down and picked up the book, flipping through its pages. I found one picture where she was smiling. Her eyes sparkled with happiness. I stared at it for a long time until, suddenly, the smile vanished from her face.
Disturbed, I placed the book back on the shelf and went to bed. The next morning, both the book and the girl were gone. I felt sad but remembered her words: “Oh, little Andy! You look just like my little sister. But we don’t have time for this…”
An idea struck me—it seemed ridiculous, but I thought she might have been talking about my mom. I dismissed the thought but remained curious. I carefully cut out a picture of the girl from the book and went to the kitchen to show it to my mom.
She looked at the picture with sad eyes and said, “It’s your lost aunt, Natalia.”
I was shocked! I asked her how Natalia went missing and what her past was like. My mom explained, “She disappeared in the library. My step-parents hated her so much, and she was always depressed.”
Feeling a deep sadness, I closed the book for good and never opened it again.