Flash fiction: Beneath the leaves

It started with glowing tomatoes.

Big. Red. Too perfect. People said Mang Carding’s vegetables were the best—always fresh, healthy, and huge.

One afternoon at 5:00 PM, Ma’am Liza, his child’s teacher, visited his house. She had always wondered why his garden was so special.

 “What’s your secret?” she asked.

 Mang Carding smiled. “Good soil, rainwater, homemade fertilizer… and one last thing.”

 He handed her a tomato. “Try it.”

 She took a bite.

 A few seconds later, her breath hitched. Her skin twitched.

Tiny leaves began sprouting from her arms. Vines coiled beneath her blouse. She stumbled back, eyes wide with terror—green already spreading through her veins.

The next morning, Mang Carding’s vegetables looked even healthier.

Another teacher would visit soon. After all, everyone wanted to know his secret.

The garden wasn’t just feeding people.

It was using them.