Once upon a squishy morning, on Flavor Island where the trees smelled like cinnamon toast and the rivers gurgled with lemonade, there lived a girl named Ava. Her hair bounced like springs, and her pockets were always stuffed with treasures—smooth pebbles, crinkly wrappers, and one very confused ladybug named Lulu.

One day, Ava’s tummy rumbled like a sleepy bear. Grrrroooowwwl! She skipped to the Sweetheart Market, where the air smelled of warm vanilla and the floor was sticky like a lollipop left in the sun. "I’ll take one rainbow cupcake, please!" she said, pointing at the tower of frosting.

The baker, a round man with a mustache like a caterpillar, wobbled as he reached for the cupcake. Wobble-wobble! His elbow knocked over a jar of sprinkles. Clatter-splash! The sprinkles rained down like confetti, landing in Ava’s hair and on Lulu’s tiny wings. The ladybug sneezed. Pfft!

Ava’s fingers twitched. Her toes curled inside her shoes. The cupcake was RIGHT THERE, but the baker was still sweeping sprinkles. Swish-swish. Her chest felt like a balloon filling with fizzy soda. Puff! Puff! Then—BOOM! Her arms flailed, her voice squeaked like a squeezed rubber duck, and she wailed, "I WANT IT NOWWWW!"

The market went quiet. Even the lemonade river stopped gurgling. Ava’s face burned hotter than a marshmallow over a campfire. She stomped her foot—THUD!—and a cloud of sprinkles poofed into the air. Lulu tumbled off her shoulder and landed in a pile of gummy bears. Squish!

Then, a tiny voice piped up. "Ava?" It was Lulu, her wings dusted with pink sugar. She wiggled her antennae. "The cupcake’s still there. But… your shoe is untied." Ava blinked. Her shoelace was indeed flopping like a sleepy snake. She bent down to tie it, and as she did, she noticed the baker’s hands shaking. A sprinkle had landed on his nose, and he was trying not to sneeze. Aaaah… aaah…

Ava giggled. The balloon in her chest deflated with a pfffft. She picked up Lulu and plopped her onto her shoulder. "Sorry, Mr. Baker," she said, handing him a gummy bear. "Want a snack while you work?"

The baker’s mustache wiggled like a happy caterpillar. He handed Ava the cupcake, extra sprinkles on top. Plop! She took a bite, and the frosting melted in her mouth like sunshine. Lulu nibbled a gummy bear, and the market filled with the sound of crinkling wrappers and happy sighs. Even the lemonade river started gurgling again.

From that day on, when Ava felt the fizzy balloon in her chest, she’d take a deep breath—sniff-sniff—and remember the cinnamon toast trees, the sticky floor, and the baker’s sneeze. And sometimes, the best way to feel better was to make someone else smile first.