Smart Girl

Krista Reid was five years old. She knew she was five because she had just had a birthday and everyone had come to her birthday party. There had been pink balloons and her cake had been pink and white. Mama had curled her hair and she had worn a pink and white frilly dress with a big bow on the back. Grandma had bought her the dress. She and Mama had argued about it; Mama hadn't wanted Krista to wear it, but Grandma had showed it to her already and Krista wanted to wear it more than anything in the world. It made her look like a real princess. The dress Mama had bought her was nowhere near as pretty. Grandma didn't even get mad when she got ice cream on it, and grass stains from playing with her friends. She just said Mama would fix it.

Now that she was five, she had chores. Mama made her help sweep and she had to help make her bed. She had to pick up all of her toys by herself. Daddy said she was too young for chores but Mama said it was impor-tent. Krista didn't mind her chores. She liked being old enough to do chores. Her brother Kenny, who was just two, was still a baby and he didn't have any chores but he liked to help Krista put the toys away. She was teaching Kenny how to put his toys away, too. She only had chores at her house, and only if Grandma wasn't there because Grandma would argue with Mama about it.

Grandma and Mama argued a lot.

Krista woke up for school. She was in kindergarten and she loved her school. She had a lot of friends and her teachers, Miss Joanna and Miss Rhonda were very nice. Miss Rhonda reminded her of her Mama; they had the same kind of curly hair and big smiles. Krista thought Miss Rhonda was very pretty. Her Daddy probably thought so too because whenever he came to pick her up, he spent a long time talking to her and making her laugh. He didn't do that with Miss Joanna. Miss Joanna would frown a lot at her Daddy but she was still nice.

She asked her Mama if she could have some toast with jam. Mama said she could but she had to eat an egg, too. Krista didn't want to, but Mama said. But then Mama said she could wear her favorite blue jumper, the one with the Bustin' Bunnies on it. Bustin' Bunnies was Krista's favorite show to watch. Those bunnies were the best, and Krista had every single one. She asked if she could the small ones to school but Mama said no. Krista stuck some of the small Bunnies in her backpack, which also had Bustin' Bunnies on it, when Mama wasn't looking.

Krista couldn't wait until she was big enough to walk to the bus stop by herself. It was just down the block from their house and she hated waiting for Mama get Kenny ready. Mama would put him in the stroller with the big tires and it took a long time because Kenny didn't ever want to get in it.

School was great. They were learning a lot about reading. Krista thought she was going to be reading like a grown up in no time because she was really smart. Everyone said she was smart. Krista couldn't wait to read like a grown up because then she could read all the new Bustin' Bunnies books she had gotten for her birthday by herself. Right now Mama and Daddy would read to her at bedtime. She liked it better when Daddy read the books because he did all the voices. Mama just read the story in her regular voice, no matter how many times Krista asked her to do the voices like Daddy.

At lunch recess time Krista shared her Bustin' Bunnies toys with her friends. They sat in the grass and played with them. Krista got to play with her favorite Bunny, Poppy, because they were her toys and she was in charge. Camille got mad when she had to play with Forest because he was green and she didn't like green and ran away. So Krista played with that one too, doing the right voices for both. When the bell rang, she and her friends ran for line up. It was only after they had returned to class and Krista was putting her Bunnies back in her bag that she realized she had left Poppy behind.

The rest of the day passed too slowly. Krista was distracted by losing her Poppy and couldn't wait until the end of the day so she could go find her. She agonized over the big kids recess because what if one of them found it and took it? Mama would be so mad. She had ants in her pants and as soon as the bell rang to release them, instead of going out to the front of the school to catch her bus, Krista ran outside to the yard to get her Poppy toy.

Only she couldn't remember where exactly she had been playing. She ran to the spot she thought it was and cast around, looking for her toy. She didn't see it. She moved in larger circles, searching for the tell-tale pink Bunny, small enough to fit in her palm. She became convinced that one of the big kids had found it and now it was in their pocket. She decided to go in another big circle before giving up.

It was as she was making her slow way back that she looked down and saw it. Poppy! Her Poppy! Happiness bubbled inside and she snatched it out of the grass, hugging it to her chest. Now she could go. Clutching Poppy tightly, she ran as fast as she could across the lawn and around the to the front of the school. She didn't realize something was wrong at first because she was so happy she found her Poppy.

Coming through the fence, as she crossed the front lawn of the school, she was surprised to see that no one was there. The bright yellow buses that always parked at the curb in front of the school were gone. The steady stream of the cars of the grown ups picking up the kids were absent. There were no teachers anywhere, or grown ups, or any kids. Krista turned around in a circle, looking for someone, anyone. Why had the bus left without her? Didn't they know she wasn't there? It was so quiet. Krista never knew that school could be so quiet.

She wasn't afraid at first. She would just go inside to her class and tell her teachers she was still here. Maybe one of them would give her a ride home. She wondered if it would be Miss Joanna or Miss Rhonda. But the great doors of the school were locked. Krista tugged and tugged at each one but they would not budge. She thought about what to do and decided to try getting inside a different door.

She made her way around the school to the back, where they came out for recess. Those doors were locked, too. Krista tried two more doors that she had used before but they were also locked. She thought for a few minutes and decided she would try all the doors. So she walked around again and tried every single door she found, but they were all locked up.

This was bad news, Krista thought. She went around to the front of the school and thought about what to do next. There were houses across the street but she didn't know anyone who lived there and she wasn't allowed to knock on people's doors unless she knew who lived there. She wondered if Mama knew she was still at school. Mama was going to be very mad at her for missing the bus.

Krista began to feel scared. She had never been alone before and she couldn't find a trusted grown up to help her. She couldn't understand why the teachers had locked all the doors. But they locked their doors at home too so robbers couldn't come in and steal their things so maybe that was why. Maybe she should knock. One of the teachers might hear her knocking and let her in. So she went back to the main doors and started knocking. She knocked and knocked but no one came. They were all probably in their classrooms and couldn't hear her. It never occurred to her that the teachers and staff had all gone home.

Krista was still holding Poppy in her hand and she looked down at her favorite Bustin' Bunny. What would Poppy do? She was brave and she was the leader of the Bunnies. She thought that Poppy would probably think of something smart to do. Poppy would probably hop to her own house. Krista decided she would do what she thought Poppy would do. But she wouldn't hop because she was a human and not a Bunny. She would walk.

So she started away from the school and walked the same way the bus would drive when taking her home. She knew where to turn because she was smart. She walked to the end of the street and kept walking. She knew where the next turn was too but it was a lot longer to walk than riding on the bus. She was going to be very late and her parents were probably going to be upset. Grandma wouldn't be upset; she would tell Krista she was the smartest little girl for knowing the way home. Krista felt good thinking about Grandma telling her that. If Mama got mad at her, Grandma would tell Mama to stop being mad because Krista was so smart.

She was still walking when a car stopped next to her. Krista looked over and saw a man looking at her. She looked away. He was not a trusted grown up and she should not talk to him. She walked a little faster.

The man rolled down the window and said "Are you okay? Are you lost?"

Krista shook her head at him and kept walking. The man got out of his car and came around to her. "Wait, wait a second," he said, holding his hand out with the flat part facing her. It meant stop. "Honey, where is your mom? Or your dad? You're awful young to be walking on this busy street."

Krista had stopped walking and didn't know what to do. She was not supposed to talk to someone who was not a trusted grown up but she was also supposed to be polite to people. "I'm not lost, I am walking home." She said.

The man looked up and down the street but there was no one for him to talk to. There weren't many people. "Where do you live?" he asked.

"I'm not s'posed to tell you that," Krista replied.

"Do you go to the school nearby?" the man asked.

"I go to Ridgeville El'mentry." Krista told him. "I missed the bus and now I have to walk home."

"Okay, okay. Do you walk home a lot?" he wanted to know.

"This is my first time. I know the way," she smiled proudly, "It's because I'm smart so I know how to go the right way."

"I bet you're very smart." the man said. "But maybe we should call your parents. I bet they're real worried about you. Do you know their number?"

Krista thought about it. She had learned her Mama's number but she couldn't remember. She thought about her Daddy's number. And she thought about Grandma's number. She could remember that one. She told the man. He had pulled out his phone and was dialing it when another car screeched to a halt next to his car. It was Mama's car. She didn't even park, just jumped out of the car and ran around to her.

"Krista!" she was shouting. "Krista, oh my god!" and then she had swept her up into her arms and was hugging her really tight. "Oh my god. I was so worried."

The man was saying something to her Mama about how he had just found her walking by herself and had stopped to make sure she was okay. He said he had kids and grandkids and that she looked too young to be walking down the street alone. Mama thanked him over and over, kissing Krista's head.

They got into the car and Mama started crying. "I was so scared, Krista." she said. "I thought something happened to you." Mama called Daddy who sounded so relieved and told Krista that he loved her.

Mama asked her what happened. Krista told her, showing her Poppy, which she still had clutched in her hand. "I found her, though!" Krista said happily. "I thought she was lost and I would be so sad if I lost her. You don't understand, Mama. Poppy is very impor-tent to me."

"I know, honey. She really is. I'm so glad you found her." Mama said, wiping tears away. ""Let's go home, okay?"

"Can I have a cookie when we get home?"

"Yes, baby." Mama agreed, and that's what they did when they got home.