Chapter 1: Red Sneakers

"Harry! Come on! The bus is going to be here in a few minutes!" I yelled up the stairs.

"Almost ready, Mommy!" my oldest son shouted back from his room. "Can't find my red sneakers!"

Any other parent might have pointed out that his perfectly serviceable white sneakers were sitting in the shoe rack next to the back door, but understanding Harry's need to have things just right, I ran up to help him find the shoes that he had been planning for weeks to wear on his first day of kindergarten.

On the way to join the search I heard my husband speaking softly to our younger son Van in one of the rooms on the second floor. I found them in the large music studio we had installed when we first moved into our house just over two years prior so Darren could start his own label thanks to our dear friend, Mrs. Donovan. My talented husband was slowly but surely building CallaCriss Studios' reputation and stable of artists, and I couldn't have been more proud.

Now, though, he and Van were playing a game that they had started about six months ago when our son was a year and a half old. Darren would push a piano key and Van would push the same one, then Darren would add another and Van would repeat the pattern. Van could now remember about a half dozen notes, and when he lost track, he would press as many as he could, making a horrendous "chord" that made both of my musical guys laugh hysterically.

I poked my head in the door, smiling but desperate. "Dare? Can you come help Harry find his red shoes? If he doesn't get moving, he's going to miss the bus. And you know how excited he's been about..."

Darren lifted Van off his lap and said with a matching grin, "He definitely inherited your low thrill threshold, honey. Come on, Van Man. Let's go help Harry."

Van ran out the door and nearly collided with his brother who had just appeared carrying his red shoes in his hand with a broad smile. "Found 'em, Mommy!"

"Great, honey! Let's make sure you've got everything."

Harry, always ready for a last-minute double-check, started listing what he needed as he hurried down the stairs, "My lunch box, my backpack, my..."

Darren scooped up Van and grabbed my hand, lifting it to his lips as we followed more slowly. "He certainly comes by his personality traits honestly, Rhi."

"Looks like you, acts like me, Dare. There's no denying that he's ours," I agreed with a chuckle.

When we got to the front door, Harry was standing proudly with his hand on the knob, backpack settled on his shoulders, lunch box in his hand, wearing his new jean jacket over his color-coordinated outfit, sporting the crucial red sneakers - tied and on the correct feet - and a huge grin on his face. "I'm ready, Mommy."

"Almost, sweetie. You forgot one thing."

Harry's brow immediately furrowed in thought as he looked down at himself trying to figure out what he had left behind. A smile slowly spread on his face and dropping his lunch box, he started toward us with his arms open. "Hugs! I forgot see-you-soon hugs!"

We all laughed, and I gathered this miniature version of Darren in my arms, squeezing him tightly. We both said, "See you soon!" then pulled back and smiled into each others' eyes, exclaiming, "Jinx!" with a laugh. Darren and I swapped boys so my husband could bid farewell to his mini-me, and then we held Van and Harry close enough so they could hug as well.

As usual, Van clumsily but fervently wrapped his chubby arms around his brother, but Harry just gave him a quick squeeze. Darren kept reassuring me that our older son's...unenthusiastic response to Van was because of the difference in their ages, but it worried me. I wanted them to have the warm sibling relationship that Darren had with his brother Chuck, not the wary detente that I had with my brother Kevin.

We were encouraging the boys to interact, but trying not to push, hoping that as Van got older, he and Harry would be more inclined to play together. Harry was never mean to Van, he just wasn't...interested in his brother.

Right now, he was exceptionally interested in the arrival of the school bus, which conveniently stopped in front of our house since we lived on a corner lot in the middle of our neighborhood. Harry picked up his lunch box after Darren set him down, and was basically vibrating until I nodded at him with a smile. He burst out the door and we followed at a more sedate pace, greeting the other families who were also waiting at the end of our driveway.

Harry started jumping up and down, shouting, "It's coming! It's coming!" as the bus turned onto our street. The older kids tried to act nonchalant, but it was easy to tell by their spotless outfits, shiny new shoes, and bags stuffed with supplies and lunches that everyone was excited to get to school.

They all lined up to board the bus, and Harry looked back to smile and wave. He mouthed, "Love you!" Darren and I waved back, mouthing, "Love you more!" Van started to wave as well, but Harry had already turned to take that first big step into this new phase of his life.

Putting his arm around me to give me a squeeze, Darren asked, "Can you believe it, Mommy? Our Little Guy is going to..." trailing off when he started to smile at me, and he realized I was unsuccessfully trying to hold back tears.

Knowing exactly what I was worried about, Darren tried to comfort me. "He'll be fine, honey. He knows what to expect, and his teacher knows that he's a...planner. Smile and wave, Rhi. He's going to think he's done something to upset you."

I nodded my head determinedly and wiped my cheeks as subtly as I could. We all turned back to the bus, finding Harry in one of the windows toward the front. He was looking at us with a confused expression, but smiled when we all started waving again. He waved back as the bus pulled away, and...our oldest son was now in school.

Darren pulled Van and me into a hug, whispering comforting words into my ear until I got myself under control. When I pulled back, both he and Van were smiling broadly at me and gave me pecks on the cheek.

As we walked back toward the house hand-in-hand, Darren said with a wry grin, "Just think...it will only be three years until we have to do this again."