fear

Story·Kaidince Edwards, age 12 — A girl's dare to microwave a plastic fork at school coincides with an unrelated oven explosion, leading to evacuation and her eventual confession to the principal.

Story·Brian Qi, age 10 — A shy girl dreads her first rock-and-roll class until she discovers her best friend is there, transforming her terror into joy.

Story·Maeve Brett-Vasko, age 12 — A young soldier who can see death timelines on people's palms sacrifices himself to save his best friend during a fortress battle, transferring his gift to her.

Story·Meg Simpson, age 10 — A twelve-year-old faces peer pressure when her best friend Lauren shoplifts and tries to involve her, leading to difficult choices about friendship and integrity.

Story·Jon Breed, age 13 — During a military coup in Sierra Leone, a fifth-grader shelters with his embassy family, finding and symbolically discarding a bullet that represents the violence surrounding them.

Story·Jane Westrick, age 12 — A young climber encounters a cougar on a mountain ledge and saves herself by singing the same lullaby she once used to tame her childhood cat.

Story·Becky Shafer, age 13 — After surviving a plane crash, a boy struggles with trauma while his friend's family hobby store faces closure, both learning to face uncertain futures.

Story·Lucy Strother, age 9 — A tall, insecure fifteen-year-old faces pressure to cheat on a state test from a classmate, but finds courage through her childhood teddy bear to do the right thing.

Story·Lisa R. Neher, age 13 — A nervous girl drives to her school play audition, battles stage fright, performs her monologue, and finds relief in having tried her best.

Story·Emily Heninger, age 11 — A seven-year-old girl reluctantly tries water-skiing again on the Mississippi River and finally succeeds, discovering the joy she'd been missing.