The sun shone brightly and Lizzy's mother had dressed her up in a blue skirt and white blouse, done her hair in pretty little ponytail. Just the year before her sister Jane had worn the same clothes on her first day of kindergarten, and now Mrs. Bennet was fussing about getting a picture of Lizzy and Jane together.
"One, two...smile, girls!" The camera clicked, and Mrs. Bennet straightened with a smile. Her stomach was getting bigger, Lizzy noticed, and pointed it out to Jane.
"She's having a baby, Lizzy," Jane replied, patting her younger sisters head.
The brunette frowned, thinking. "Did she swallow it, Janie?"
"Oh, my pretty girls!" Mrs. Bennet cooed over the picture. "Wait until Daddy sees this!" She put the camera into her purse and herded her children into the car. The drive seemed to take forever, and Lizzy couldn't seem to stop bouncing in her seat to get a look out the window. She'd never been to school and Janie said it was so much fun and everyone was so nice. Janie had a lot of friends, and maybe Lizzy could make some, too.
Lizzy stared in amazement at the tall building. It was brown with big windows, and there was slides in the yard! "Well, here you are my girls," Mrs. Bennet sighed, helping the girls put their bags down in the schoolyard. She kissed Jane on the forehead, leaving a smudge of bright pink, and then she kissed Lizzy, and Lizzy rubbed at her forehead, wondering if she had the same pink mark. "Be good, I love you, and Daddy and Mommy can't wait to see you after school."
Jane grabbed Lizzy by the hand, waving over her shoulder to their mother. "Come on, Lizzy!" They ran towards the play equipment and Lizzy followed Jane up the ladder and down the slide.
"Let's go again, Janie!" Lizzy tugged at her sister's hand.
"I want to play with my friends, Lizzy," Jane replied and ran over to the swingset. Lizzy frowned. Who could she play with, if not Janie?
As Lizzy surveyed the kids playing around the yard, a boy stepped in front of her. He was a little bit taller than her, with brown hair and brown eyes. He tilted his head to the side. "Who are you?"
Lizzy stuck her chin up. "My name is Elizabeth."
The boy pointed to where Janie was on the swingset. "She called you Lizzy."
She put her hands on her hips. "Elizabeth."
He smiled at her, mischievous. "Nice to meet you, Elizabeth." He tugged on her ponytail and took off in a run.