Chapter 1: The Day the Laugh Went Missing
Charlotte loved to laugh. It was a bright, bubbly sound, like a handful of happy little bells jingling all at once. Sometimes it was a quiet giggle that tickled in her throat, and other times it was a loud, booming HA-HA that made her whole body shake. Her laugh was as much a part of her as her bright blue eyes and the little gap between her two front teeth.
But this morning, something felt… wrong.
Charlotte woke up feeling a little bit silly. She remembered a funny dream about a talking cat wearing a tiny hat, and a smile stretched across her face. She reached for her laugh, ready to let it bubble out, but… nothing happened.
She tried again. She thought about the cat in the hat, picturing its bewildered furry face. Still nothing. Just a quiet puff of air.
Charlotte sat up in bed, a frown creasing her forehead. This was strange. She tried a little “hee-hee.” Nope. Then a bigger “HO-HO-HO.” Still just air. It felt like trying to sing a song but having no voice.
She poked her tummy, remembering how that usually made her giggle. Silence. She made a funny face in the mirror, crossing her eyes and sticking out her tongue. Not even a tiny snort escaped her lips.
Panic started to flutter in her chest like a trapped bird. Where was it? Where had her laugh gone? It was usually right there, ready to pop out at the slightest funny thing. Now, it was as if a part of her had simply vanished. The world suddenly felt a little quieter, a little less bright, without the sound of her happy little bells. Charlotte knew one thing for sure: her laugh was missing, and she had to find it.
