Milo grips his mom's hand tight. His shoes scuff the sidewalk. A big yellow school bus rumbles past. 'Ready?' she asks. Milo shakes his head.
The classroom door swings open. Laughter and chair-scraping pour out. Milo hides behind his mom's leg. A girl waves from inside — her purple sneakers peek over the threshold.
Inside, the room buzzes. Kids chase paper boats across the floor. Milo peeks out from behind his mom and sees — a girl on the other side of the room gives him a little wave.
They walk in together. Along the wall, cubbies flash rainbow colors — pink, green, yellow, blue. Milo counts them as they go. One, two, three...
In the corner, Milo spots it — a soft blue rug piled high with picture books. He tugs his mom's hand and points. That's the one.
His mom squeezes his fingers once. Lets go. Milo stands still. The girl with the purple sneakers climbs onto the blue rug. She opens a book about a sleepy dragon.
The girl pats the rug beside her. Milo takes one step. Then another. His hand brushes her shoulder. She looks up and grins.
'This dragon snores,' she says. Milo giggles. He sits down beside her. The girl turns the page.
The dragon lets out a rumble in the story. Milo leans in closer. The girl points at the picture. 'Watch,' she whispers.
Milo doesn't look at the door anymore. He looks at the dragon. He looks at the girl. He looks at the page. Again.
