Graduation day. Getting a college degree and finally being able to live your dream. Exactly what 22 year old Ben finally accomplished. He is now a professional novelist and all the hard work he’s done since middle school has finally paid off. Having grown up in a small home in Vancouver, Canada, deep in the forest gave him much inspiration.

But, as happy as the day could be for Ben, it’s the start a tragic day that he will never forget. It happened at the graduation party.

After dinner at the graduation party everyone made a toast including his professor, Professor Dawson.

“Ben was one of the hardest working students in my class,” he sad. “Very bright, and he deserves everything he worked for. His future holds great things. Congratulations, Ben.”

Everyone raised their glass and drank. As Ben was about to drink from his, Professor Dawson tapped him on the shoulder.

“Here Ben,” he whispered. “I made this specially for you in the chemistry lab.”

“Oh thanks,” Ben replied.

A smirk spread across Professor Dawson’s face as Ben drank the chemical mixture.

Suddenly, there was a puff of smoke and Ben the human disappeared and was replaced by Ben the frog.

”Ah!” Ben shrieked. “Professor Dawson, what did you do to me?”

“Its just too hard to watch you succeed, Ben,” Professor Dawson replied.

“My baby! My poor baby!” Ben’s mom cried. “How could you do this to my only son? Can we reverse this?”

“A girl,” Professor Dawson replied.

“Kiss me,” Ben told all the teenage girls.

“Oh no. It can’t be just any girl,” Professor Dawson said. “She has to really love you to turn you human again. But that is quite impossible.”

“Are you saying my son can never find love?” his mom asked.

“Yes,” Professor Dawson admitted. “No girl would ever want to kiss a slimy frog.”

Ben sat there in front of everyone he knew.They had come to celebrate one of the greatest days of his life and now they looked liked giants. It was hopeless. Now, all there was left to do was go to the nearby pond and plan to spend the rest of his life catching flies. Or still the hope that he’ll find the perfect girl and they’d fall in love so he could resume his normal human life.

Then, carried by his mother and followed by the rest of his family, Ben was taken to the nearby pond and set on a lily pad.

“Promise me you’ll find a girl and become human again,” his mom told him.

“Don’t worry ma, I will,” Ben promised.

He watched his family walk away with tears in their eyes. Sadly, he began to catch flies with his tongue. Hs blue eyes shone in the sunshine as he hopped from lily pad to lily pad.

He spent many lonely days in the pond after his family left him there. He watched the sun rise and set each day, thinking how he could be spending countless hours writing furiously instead of catching flies which tasted like dirt. But one day, he met a girl frog who found him quite attractive, so he thought he’d check out if she really loved him and could turn him human again.

“Hi,” she said. “My name is Annie. What’s your name?”

“Hi,” he replied. “My name is Ben.”

“You’re cute,” she continued.

“So are you,” Ben replied. “Look Annie, I’m not really a frog. I’m a human being. If you really like me, you could kiss me and I could turn back to normal.”

“But then you’ll leave,” Annie told him.

“Yeah I would,” Ben sighed. “But I have to get back to my life.”

“I can’t let you kiss me and walk away,” Annie said. “But you are so cute and charming that I want you to be my friend.”

“Okay I...,” Ben trailed off. “Who’s that girl?”

Ben was staring into the distance and Annie looked out to see the direction his face had turned.

“Oh her?” Annie asked. “That’s Lily. Her parents died in a car crash a few years back and she buried them here. Now she brings flowers to their grave everyday.”

“Lily,” Ben repeated slowly. “Well, it was great talking to you Annie. I think I’ve found the love of my life.”

He was enchanted, he was in love. As he hopped towards Lily, he watched her light blond hair blow gently in the breeze, he couldn’t take his eyes off her.

She was planting some tulips by her parents grave when Ben suddenly landed beside her. “Hi.”

Startled, she jumped backwards, not knowing where that voice came from. She looked around curiously.

“Down here,” Ben said.

“Oh my! A talking frog!” Lily cried.

“No. Oh, I’m sorry,” Ben apologized. “My name is Ben and I’m actually human. My professor turned me into a frog. But I think you’re hot.”

Lily laughed, despite her awkwardness talking to a frog.

“Oh that’s really charming for you to say,” she replied. “But I can’t talk to strangers. I have to go.”

Ben sighed as he watched her leave. She was definitely the girl for him, no one else could steal his heart like Lily did. She was sweet, and pretty. Even though she didn’t show that he charmed her, he could definitely prove it.

The days continued as everyday, Lily came by the pond. Ben began to turn on the charm as he sweet talked her and gave her roses whenever she came to see him. They had great, indepth conversations that made Lily realize how great Ben really was.

“So you’re really human?” she asked.

“Yes,” Ben replied. “My professor was so jealous of how smart I was in his classes that he made me a potion on the day I graduated and it turned me into this.”

“And can you reverse it?” Lily asked.

“A girl needs to kiss me,” Ben replied. “But only if you’re truly in love with me. I mean, you swept me away when I first saw you and I don’t know. If I swept you away from all this time together then maybe we could-oh, what am I saying, I’ve got-to stop-talking-now.”

He suddenly stopped talking and turned bright red as he was blushing from his talking habit. Lily laughed.

“You’re a talkative fella,” she observed.

“Yeah I am,” Ben said shyly. “Its a horrible habit I’ve developed.”

“But we’ve spent so much time together,” Lily said. “I shouldn’t have judged you when we first met. I’ve gotten to know you and I’ve made a decision.”

She picked Ben up.

“But will I change?” she asked cautiously.

“No,” Ben assured her. “You’ll stay human.”

“Okay,” she sighed. “I love you Ben.”

She kissed him gently and the kiss was passionate. She set him down and there was a puff of smoke and suddenly, Ben was standing on his two feet. He was human once again.

“Oh wow,” Lily sighed. “Your eyes are even bluer when you’re human.”

“Thank you Lily,” he said. “I’ll meet you back here in a few hours. I have to do something before I tell my parents about this.”

Later that night, Ben and Lily walked to Ben’s home.

“Wow. Nice place,” Lily complimented.

“Thanks,” Ben replied.

He knocked on the door, and when the door opened, his parents and all his family members cried with joy. There were moments of chatter before the truth was told.

“Who’s the girl?” his dad asked.

Lily stepped forward, her hand in Ben’s.

“Everyone, this is Lily,” he announced. “She’s the girl that stole my heart and turned me human again. Lily, there is something I need to ask you since you saved my life.”

He dropped to one knee and pulled out a diamond sparkler.

“You won me over and I am crazy for you,” he said. “Will you marry me?”

“Oh my gosh,” his mom sighed. “I can’t believe my son found love.”

“Oh Ben,” Lily sighed. “Yes.”

Everyone in the room cheered as Ben slipped the ring on Lily’s finger and kissed her softly.

Then, after a whirlwind romantic summer wedding, Ben and Lily drove off into the Vancouver sunset and lived happily ever after.