A World of Stuffies - Book 1 of Stuffy World

Ava

I woke up feeling refreshed from the very good dream I had during sleeping time. Even though I had a strange situation yesterday, today will be better. I stretched and yawned, then I got out of bed and looked out the window.

I was relieved to see that no one was looking out their windows straight at me. Yesterday, a girl stuck her head out the window and glanced at me. At first, I thought the girl was just taking in the view.

But then I became sure that she was spying on me after she spent two minutes not moving her head while looking at me. I was just taking out my stuffy after I had cleaned the stuffy to let the stuffy dry off.

The girl stared at the stuffy, at least I thought that was what she was staring at, I'm unsure because it was quite a long distance from my window to hers. I was unnerved by the way the girl stared at me.

The girl looked both excited and nervous. I tried guessing why she would have stared at me, but only came up with that she was just bored and saw my stuffy. She might have just been interested in buying the same stuffy as mine.

Which is very unlikely.....but that's all I have, I'll just have to believe it. That's okay though, I think today will be better than yesterday. What are the chances that the same girl would stare at me again?

I went down to the kitchen to get myself some breakfast. Turns out my parents aren't awake yet. I got out some milk, eggs, and salad. I wolfed them down and looked out the kitchen window.

The weather was so nice today that I decided to go outside and take a walk. Maybe that would take my mind off things since my mind kept on wandering to the girl who stared at me yesterday.

I went to grab my shoes and jacket and ran outside. Today I was taking my stuffy Lucille for a walk. Lucille is my favourite stuffy, she is a seal. I brought her to a store. I thought she was pretty cute.

I wanted to let Lucille take in the view. So I kept walking, humming to myself. Then, I stopped. It was the girl who looked out her window again, and she was walking towards me.

I didn't know what to do, so I kept walking, trying to be as relaxed as possible. I haven't done anything wrong. Maybe this girl just wants to ask me where the place is. With that thought, my stance relaxed a little.

I got closer to the girl, I could see that she was holding two stuffies in her arm. Well, that crossed out the guess that the girl might just want the same stuffy as mine. Then the girl came directly in front of me.

"Hello. My name is Ava. How can I help you? Are you lost?" I said, trying to keep my voice neutral. "Hello, Ava. I'm not lost." The girl said while studying my stuffy Lucille. "Then how can I help you?" I asked.

The girl hesitated for a moment, then said, "Yes, I think you can help me." She looked at my stuffy again. "May I borrow your stuffy?" The girl asked. "What for?" I asked, feeling suspicious. "Oh. Just to take a look." She said, looking a bit nervous.

"Do you want to buy the same type of stuffy as mine?" I asked, trying to find a reason why she was interested in my stuffy. "Oh, what? Um, yes! I mean, yes. I do. May I borrow it?" The girl said.

"I guess so. Don't drop her." I said, curious what the girl will do to the stuffy. "Okay! Thank you so much!" The girl looked much happier. She took Lucille from me and studied the stuffy.

Then she looked at me and mumbled, "Can you please give the stuffy and me a moment? I just need to.......study the stuffy more closely." "Oh, um, sure, I guess," I said. I walked behind a house and quietly spied on the girl.

The girl said to the stuffy, "It's alright. I won't hurt you. I just want to help you. This is Pandy and Teddy. They're from your world too. They told me how you guys all need help. I'm willing to do that."

The stuffy stayed still. Then the girl leaned down to listen to something. Then she said, "Thank you for trusting me! I will try to ask Ava to let you unite with Teddy and Pandy. You guys must miss each other!"

Then I saw the stuffy move, just a little. I froze behind the house. No, that couldn't have happened. I must have seen it wrong, my eyes just aren't working. "Okay. I will try. Just don't tell Ava about it yet." The girl said, "We don't know if she supports us or not."

The girl called out to me, "Ava! You can come back!" I walked back to the girl. "Hi. I just remembered something. I don't even know your name." I said. "Oh, so sorry for not introducing myself. I'm Lulu. Nice to meet you, Ava!" Lulu said.

"And I was just wondering, did you notice anything, ah, unusual about Lucille?" I asked. Lulu gaped at me before answering, "Um.....No. Of course not. How...how? That's impossible. Were you spying on me?"

I blushed. "N-no," I said, but it was obvious that I was lying. Lulu narrowed her eyes at me, "I guess you're very confused right now. Lucille, Teddy, and Pandy, I think we should tell Ava. And don't move or answer."

"Um, who are you talking to?" I asked, feeling very confused. Lulu looked at me, "No one. Let's go to your house." "But...Why? My parents are home." I said. "Fine, I know a place where they can't find us. Come." Lulu said.

Lulu walked off, and I followed her. We arrived at a small garden. "This is the Phoenix's secret headquarters," Lulu explained. "What is the Phoenix?" I asked, feeling even more confused.

"Right, you don't know anything." Lulu sighed. "I know math, language, and tons of other things!" I said, feeling offended. "Yes, I know. Let me tell you. I think it's time you know the truth. Then maybe we can help them." Lulu said.

Before I could say anything else, Lulu started talking, "Pandy and Teddy and Lucille had a planet called the Stuffy World. They were happy there. But one day, a monster attacked them and burned down the homes of the stuffies. Some escaped to the Human World and became a toy for humans."

I stared at Lulu, "B-but....that's not possible. They're just toys." Lulu sighed, "I guess you don't believe me. I'm sorry, you've missed your chance. Come on, let's go. Teddy, Pandy, Lucille."

"You're not taking Lucille away from me!" I tried to snatch Lucille. But to my surprise, Lucille started running away from me and into Lulu's arms. "H-how did that happen?" I said, feeling very astonished.

Lulu didn't answer me, but she walked away with Lucille, Teddy, and Pandy in her arms. "Wait! WAIT!!!!" I shouted. "What?" Lulu stopped walking, she icily looked at me. "I-I believe you," I said.

"I'm very sorry," Lulu said, "But you've missed your chance. I told you the truth, and you didn't believe it. I've even taken you to the secret place of the Phoenix. This is all a mistake."

"No, no, it's not. I wish to join....this club." I said, feeling desperate. "No," Lulu said simply and started walking again. Before I could say anything else, Lulu walked away until I couldn't see her anymore.

I slowly walked home, my thoughts whirling. I was telling the truth when I said I believed Lulu, but this all seemed so impossible. I've never even seen a stuffy move or talk before.

But now I've lost my favourite stuffy Lucille. I started to feel very very depressed. I mumbled to myself, "No, you cannot feel stressed. Be strong! Make a plan. I have to find Lulu to get Lucille back."

I kept walking until I got home. I decided to go and take a walk again tomorrow and see if I can find Lulu's house. I just wanted Lucille back. I sighed as I saw my home. I went inside and prepared for tomorrow.