A yellow star sticker floated down from the sky and landed on Willow's sneaker. She looked at the sticker, then at the school doors.
The sticker pressed itself to her shoe. Willow looked at the school doors, then back down at the yellow star. Her mother squeezed her hand gently.
Willow tried to step forward, but her shoes stayed stuck. She watched children chase floating bubbles. One landed on her nose with a soft plip.
Her thumb found the sticky edge of the yellow star sticker. She tugged at it slowly, wondering if it would come off.
A girl with pigtails waved. 'Do you like stars?' she asked, holding out a shiny yellow sticker from a sheet.
Willow nodded. The girl peeled a star from the sheet and pressed it onto Willow's backpack, then pointed toward a circle of cushions inside.
Willow's fingers loosened from her mother's palm, one by one. She took a shaky step toward the circle of cushions.
The sticker on her backpack glinted in the sunlight. The floor looked a little less scary.
Willow sat down in the story circle. The teacher read aloud, and her finger traced the yellow star on her backpack over and over.
She listened to the words, her finger still finding the star. The story was about a little seed that grew into something bright.
When the book closed, Willow clapped her hands — the loudest clap of all.
Willow looked at the star on her backpack, then at the teacher, and grinned. She did not want to leave.
