yelled at before I even made it to the stop sign. I had my fingers crossed all the way. There were already a bunch of kids waiting, including the older ones who took over the back of the bus. I sat near the front ’cause they were super rowdy and picked on the little ones back there.
The bus pulled up, and I was one of the last ones on board and got a seat right near the front. I wiped the rain out of my eyes and looked out the fogged window. Mom and Dad were standing in the driveway with an umbrella over their heads, watching me.
I made a face, but Mom blew me a kiss with both hands and I mimed catching it. Hopefully, no one else saw it but me. The bus gave a hiss of air and a squeal as we started rolling forward, and I settled back in my seat. Another day won for me.
The best part of first grade was we had recess twice still, but we didn’t have to nap after lunch. On rainy days, instead of going outside, we either went to the library or we watched a movie. Today it was a movie, ’cause we’d gone to the library the day before. The dark and gloomy weather outside made the room extra dark.
I liked The Lion King though, even the scary part where Mufasa died. Thunder outside joined the stampede on the screen, and there were a couple of girls crying. They were hugging Ms. Bell ’cause they were scared. A lot of what went wrong was Simba listened to the wrong people.
A knock at the door distracted me, and I glanced over my shoulder to see a pair of police officers standing there. That was weird. Was there a show and tell today? But when I looked at Ms. Bell, she wore a frown. With care, she stood and made her way over to the door. Then she went outside with the officers.
I went back to watching the movie, but a couple of minutes later, Ms. Bell tapped my shoulder and I stared up at her. She did a curling motion with her fingers to tell me to go with her, so I got up. I didn’t want to miss the next song, it was funny, but at least I knew what happened next.
In the darkened hall outside the room, the officers stood waiting. I stared up at them. I’d never been this close to a police officer before. They were awesome.
“Kellan Traschel?” the lady officer asked, and I nodded my head.
“Am I in trouble?” I glanced at Ms. Bell and buried the urge to hide behind her. There was another woman in the hallway, but she hung back. Like the officers, she wore a long coat, and they were all damp from the rain.
The male officer squatted down and shook his head slowly. “No, son, you’re not in any trouble. But we do need you to come with us.” He motioned to himself and the other officer, then to the lady behind him.
“Why?”
Ms. Bell made a soft sound, and I jerked my gaze up to find her wiping her eyes. Fear ballooned inside of me.
“Oh, sweetheart,” she said, then put her hands on my shoulders. “Can I tell him?” The question wasn’t directed at me but to the officers. I leaned back into Ms. Bell. I didn’t know what was going on.
The woman stepped forward and gave me a smile. “Of course,” she said. “And I’m here for you, Kellan. I need you to know that.”
I didn’t know who she was, but before I could ask, Ms. Bell turned me around and, like the officer, she squatted until we were at eye level. “There was an accident, honey…”
She said a lot of words after that. A lot of words.
Mom and Dad had been in a car accident with Nana. They were all dead.
I couldn’t quite work out what dead meant. I mean, we’d had a goldfish and it died, but we got another one just like it. Did that mean I’d get a new mom and dad just like them?
I didn’t want a new mom and dad.
At some point, I started crying, and Ms. Bell hugged me for a long time. Then I had to say goodbye to her. To the classroom. To my friends. Ms. Stephanie, the lady, was there to take me with her. The cops walked us all out. I had my jacket, my hat, and