Julia skipped down the sidewalk. She was happy to be done with school for the day. She couldn’t wait to get to the playground. She was meeting her friends there.

But as Julia skipped, she noticed something. Her shadow was getting bigger. It was taking up the whole sidewalk.

Julia’s mom had told her about shadows. They changed size depending on the sun. When the sun is high, shadows are short. That happens in the middle of the day.

When the sun is low, shadows are longer. That happens late in the afternoon. Julia knew it was normal for her shadow to be long. But was it normal for it to be so wide? It seemed like it was growing by the minute.

Julia slowed down. She kept watching her shadow. It was definitely getting bigger. It was starting to look like something besides a girl. A monster? Julia shivered.

Julia stopped moving. But the shadow did not! It was moving faster. And it was growing. It took over the whole street. Its darkness covered everything.

Julia ran. She screamed.

And the shadow kept coming.