Once upon a time, in a place where clocks had no hands and the sun played hide-and-seek all day, there was a land called the Land of Suspended Time. Here, the trees grew lollipops, the rivers flowed with lemonade, and the clouds were so fluffy they made you giggle just by looking at them. The air smelled like warm cinnamon toast, and if you listened closely, you could hear the giggles of the clouds bouncing like popcorn in the sky. Pop! Pop! Pop!

In this land lived a girl named Victoria. She had hair as wild as a bird’s nest after a windy day and a smile that could melt even the grumpiest of rainclouds. But Victoria had a secret: her words sometimes got stuck in her throat like a stubborn piece of candy. When someone asked her a question, her cheeks would turn as red as a strawberry, her toes would curl up like tiny snails, and her voice would disappear faster than a scoop of ice cream in the sun. Pffft!

One morning, as Victoria was skipping through the Tickle-Tall Grass (which, as you might guess, tickled her knees with every step—hehehe!), she heard a sound like a tiny trumpet playing a wobbly tune. Toot-toot-ta-doo! She followed the sound until she reached a clearing where a little bird with feathers as bright as a crayon box was stuck in a puddle of jelly. The puddle smelled like overripe bananas, and the bird’s wings were covered in a sticky, gooey mess. Squelch!

"Oh dear," Victoria whispered to herself, her heart pounding like a drum. She wanted to help, but the words just wouldn’t come out. The bird looked up at her with big, watery eyes and let out another sad toot. Victoria’s hands trembled as she reached out, but then—SPLAT!—she slipped on a jelly-covered leaf and landed right next to the bird. The goo squished between her fingers, cold and slimy, like a bowl of pudding left in the fridge too long.

The bird let out a surprised cheep! and then—giggle-giggle!—it started laughing! Victoria’s face turned even redder, but then she laughed too. The sound of their laughter mixed with the pop-pop-pop of the clouds, and suddenly, the words in Victoria’s throat loosened up like a knot unraveling. "Let’s get you out of there!" she said, her voice as clear as a bell.

Together, they wiggled and jiggled until the bird’s wings were free. The bird flapped them happily, sending drops of jelly flying everywhere—plop! plop!—like tiny raindrops. Victoria giggled as a glob landed on her nose, sweet and sticky. The bird chirped a thank-you and flew off, leaving behind a trail of sparkles that smelled like bubblegum.

From that day on, Victoria still felt her cheeks warm up sometimes, but she didn’t let her words hide away anymore. She learned that even the tickliest, stickiest, wobbliest moments could turn into something wonderful—if you just let yourself laugh. And in the Land of Suspended Time, where the clouds still giggled and the grass still tickled, Victoria became known as the girl who turned shyness into a song. Toot-toot-ta-doo!