"Mom, we need supplies!"
"What kind of supplies?"
"Three cookies, one blanket, and a very brave squirrel!"
Carlos looked up again.
"A squirrel?"
Mateo nodded solemnly.
"Yes. The aliens are terrified of squirrels."
"Why?" Carlos asked.
Mateo considered the question for a moment.
"Because squirrels know their secrets."
The answer made absolutely no sense.
And somehow, that made it funnier.
Carlos smiled.
Mateo continued.
He explained that the missing car had been taken by a giant marshmallow monster who lived inside the couch.
The creature had demanded an impossible ransom.
"One million invisible pizzas!" Mateo declared.
Elena shook her head, laughing.
"That's a lot of pizza."
"It gets worse," Mateo warned.
He pointed dramatically at the pillows.
"The monster says the pizzas must have extra cheese!"
By now, Carlos had lowered his phone.
Mateo crawled under a blanket and emerged with his hair sticking up in every direction.
He pretended to be the marshmallow monster, speaking in a deep voice that sounded more like a sleepy frog.
