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Chapter one
“He’s an unofficial emotional support dog.”
Milo dropped flakes of food into the aquarium, then moved on to the cage next to it. Flopsy, the rabbit, wiggled her nose at him as he put food into her plastic bowl. Next to Flopsy’s cage was Piglet’s. The hairless guinea pig moved to the front of the wire cage and stared at Milo.
“Good morning, Piglet.” He filled Piglet’s bowl. The classroom pets changed from year to year, but this was Piglet and Flopsy’s second year. He hoped they’d both make it through to summer break. It was always hard on the kids to lose an animal. He didn’t like it much, either.
The classroom door opened, and the principal, Rachel, came through it with a woman and a child.
“Good morning, Ms. Rachel.”
“Hi, Milo. I have a new student for you.”
Milo smiled at the boy. Like his mother, he had incredible green eyes and a headful of dark, wavy hair. “Welcome.” He approached the woman. “I’m Milo Buchanan.”
She looked at him for a moment, then took his offered hand and gave it a light, brief shake. “Wilda Carson. This is my son, Caleb.”
Milo knelt in front of Caleb. “Hi, I’m Mr. Milo.”
Caleb put an arm around Wilda’s leg and buried his face in her hip.
She patted his dark hair. “He’s shy.”
Milo smiled. “How do you feel about dogs?”
Caleb looked at him.
“Go check out Frenchie. He’s the class mascot. He’s by my desk.”
Caleb looked up at Wilda and got a nod, then crossed the room to the French bulldog lying in a furry blue bed next to Milo’s desk.
Rachel watched him for a moment, then spoke quietly. “This will be Caleb’s first experience with school. Wilda has been homeschooling him since August.”
“Okay. Why are you enrolling him now?”
Wilda took a moment to answer. “I’m not sure it’s the right thing to do, but I’m hoping it will prepare him for first grade next year.” She looked at Caleb for a moment. “He…doesn’t speak.”
“He’s non-verbal?”
“Not exactly. He can speak. He just hasn’t since his father died eighteen months ago.”
Milo glanced at Rachel. “I see.”
“I hope this isn’t a mistake.”
Rachel put a hand on Wilda’s arm. “If anyone can get through to Caleb, it’s Milo. He’s wonderful.”
Milo cocked his head. “She’s slightly prejudiced when it comes to her teachers.”
Wilda nodded. “I’m more concerned with the other kids. I don’t want him to be…teased. Maybe worse. That’s what I’m worried about.”
“That doesn’t happen in my classroom. The school has a zero tolerance for any negative behavior along those lines.”
Rachel smiled. “This is a safe place, Wilda. We’ll take care of Caleb. It’s also an open classroom. Parent volunteers are always welcome and encouraged.”
“So, I can come check on him.”
“Of course. Would you like to go finish the paperwork and leave Caleb here to get to know Milo?”
