The day was gloomy, as was Poppy's spirit, and summer officially came to a close.

No more long days at the pool with her BFF, Charlie. No more playing Xbox until her eyes dried up. No more Just Dance and sleepovers and late nights.

The world might as well be ending.

"Poppy, love, wake up!" Mom poked her head in the doorway to make sure her daughter arose from her blissful slumber.

Mom was Poppy's definition of beautiful. Her ruby hair cascaded down her back in glorious waves, her blue eyes always shone with mischief, and her round figure was just plump enough to work as the perfect pillow on movie night.

Poppy groaned, choosing to ignore her mother and focus on rolling over and burying her face in her pillow.

"Come on, darling, you don't want to be late for your first day. Fifth grade! Queen of the school. May I ask what on Earth you will do with that kind of power?" Mom's tone was light, and Poppy could tell that her mother was about to laugh. The world ending was not funny!

"Not funny, mom," Poppy croaked, her throat clogged with sleep.

"Is too funny. I made pancakes, so I expect you to be ready and downstairs in fifteen," Mom's tone was no-nonsense, and Poppy groaned again.

It was a groaning sort of day.

Poppy dragged herself out of her warm nest of blankets and walked towards her closet. The perfect first day of fifth grade outfit sat on the shelf: a cropped- but not too cropped- purple shirt, jean shorts, and the small golden necklace her mom had given her for her birthday.

Poppy just didn't feel like getting dressed for school. She didn't really feel like going to school and listening to the school expectations she already knew.

But it had been at least five minutes since her mom had left Poppy's room, and so she needed to get dressed to avoid getting grounded.

Poppy went through her normal morning routine at seven times the normal speed. She got dressed, brushed her teeth and hair, and ran downstairs right as her mom was sliding the pancakes off the griddle.

"Just in time," Susan remarked, smiling in Poppy's direction. 

"Thanks for breakfast," Poppy said, settling into her chair as her mom poured her a glass of orange juice. It must be a really special occasion if Poppy was going to get to drink out of one of her mother's fancy glasses.

"Are you ready for fifth grade?" Mom asked, trying to make conversation with her moody daughter.

"I don't know," Poppy sighed. "Charlie and I aren't in the same class, and I don't know who I'll know in my class. Will I make friends, or will I be alone all year?"

Poppy looked down at the granite breakfast bar to prevent her mother from seeing how upset she was. It wasn't like Charlie was going to find new friends right away either, right? Poppy couldn't be all alone in these thoughts.

"You won't be alone, love. I'm sure there will be some nice girls in your class this year. And I know this is a sensitive subject, but you could be friends with boys too."

"You know I can't be friends with boys, mom. Everybody will think we're dating, and then the world would really be over." Poppy really couldn't see how on Earth her mom could make this situation better. There were too many things fighting against Poppy.

"Why do you care about everything everyone else says, love? The only thoughts that matter are yours. Be my beautiful, bold girl today, okay? Everything else will fall into place, I promise."

Poppy nodded, looking into Mom's eyes. 

"Alright," Mom moved to stand up, "let's get in the car, and take on the day. We decide what happens."

Poppy smiled at her mom's speech and moved to grab her backpack. She slipped her phone into the front pouch, not bothering to check social media, and joined Mom in the old Volkswagen.

"Am I going to Dad's house this weekend?" Poppy asked as she fastened her seat belt. 

Mom hesitated before answering Poppy's question. "Your dad is going through a little bit of a rough patch right now, so we decided that it was best that you stayed with me this weekend."

Poppy smiled, but she knew what Mom meant. Poppy wasn't stupid; she knew about her dad drinking. It just hurt that he didn't think he could not drink long enough to spend time with her.

Mom pulled into the parking lot of Mater Dei Elementary School and turned to Poppy in the backseat.

"Ready?" she asked, a hopeful smile lighting up her blue eyes.

"Ready," Poppy responded, finally feeling excited for school.

Mom gazed at Poppy a little longer before turning back to the front and killing the engine.

Poppy waited for Mom to open the door and help her out of the car before swinging her backpack onto her shoulder.

Mom hugged Poppy before pushing her towards the school's doors, a sappy smile on her face.

Everything would be fine. Poppy even had a plan of attack for the day, after talking to Mom:

1. Walk into class and find seat quickly.

2. Look around for other GIRLS in the area. Preferably ones that weren't weird.

3. Talk to those girls.

4. See Charlie at recess and lunch.

Poppy walked past the principal, who was holding the door open for the incoming drop-offs- and into the foyer of the school.

The ceiling was high, and the colorful tiles still hopscotched across the floor. Poppy didn't know why she assumed the school would change just because she had, but she was in the double digits now. It was only natural to assume that everything would change.

"Poppy!" Poppy immediately turned and was crushed in a hug by her best friend forever, Charlie.

"OMG I missed you so much!" Poppy squealed, hugging Charlie back.

"I can't believe you got Mrs. Banks," Charlie pouted. 

"I can't either," Poppy agreed. "I hope she's not as mean as everyone says."

Charlie offered a reassuring smile, and nodded along with Poppy's wish. Poppy knew Charlie was just trying to be nice, but she appreciated the gesture nonetheless.

The warning bell rang over the loud speakers, signaling the time for the students to go to their classes.

Poppy waved goodbye to Charlie, who blew a kiss, and turned towards the dreaded Mrs. Banks's classroom.

There might as well have been a giant storm cloud over the door.

Poppy took a deep breath, and walked into the classroom.

Word Count: 1081

Total Word Count: 1081

This is one of the shorter chapters I have planned out, but right now I'm honestly trying to get a feel for writing a children's story lol. Hang in there!

Let me know what you're thinking! Constructive criticism is always appreciated.

Thanks for reading!

CJ