Leo sat on the bench. His sneakers tapped the pavement. Tap. Tap. Tap.
The taller kids pump the swings high. Whoosh. They disappear over the monkey bars like giants. Leo stays seated.
A red kite dived down and got stuck in the highest branches of the oak tree. The bigger kids jumped and stretched, but it was too high.
One boy bumped his head on a low branch and held it. Ouch! The kite flapped right out of reach.
Leo noticed a narrow gap between the tree trunk and the fence. Only a small body could squeeze through.
He crouched and crawled — squeeze, shuffle, slide — into the dark green space behind the trunk. The older kids watched with their mouths open.
A twig snapped. Then another. Leo emerged from the other side holding the kite like a found treasure.
The kite dropped onto Leo's head and stayed there like a tall hat. Everyone stopped and stared.
Then the biggest kid started giggling. Soon all of them were laughing with their hands over their mouths. Leo peeked out from under the red tail and smiled.
Leo shook the kite free and held it up high. The next afternoon, he ran toward the swings with the red kite bouncing against his leg. He pointed out the narrow gap to the smaller kids.
