Chapter One
“What should I wear tomorrow?” I ask myself, standing in front of my closet. It’s a huge decision because I’m about to start fifth grade!
I shuffle through my closet and drawers. My hand reaches out to a dress to examine it. Polka dots are my favorite, but is that what I should wear for the first day?
I put my hands on my hips. Maybe I should ask Stanley what he is going to wear since he’s in my class this year. I know we’re going to have so much fun working together like we did on the egg-drop project in fourth grade. I wonder what amazing new things we’ll do together!
My head is filled with too many ideas, so I give up looking for clothes. I decide to grab my notebook and review all my big plans for the new year. I’ve already jotted many ideas for the Sea Musketeers, like multiple fundraisers and matching T-shirts. As soon as I bend over to pick it up, my dog, Ramona, intercepts and licks my face. Then she softly growls, letting me know she’s ready to play.
“Okay, girl,” I say, clapping my hands together. “Let’s go!”
I grab her squeaky dinosaur toy and toss it across my room. The stuffed toys with the crinkly paper inside are her favorites. Ramona always insists on playtime, which is more than okay with me.
I’m tugging with Ramona, who is fiercely holding the toy in her mouth, when I hear the door open. It’s my brother, Nick, and he’s holding Mom’s phone.
“Hey, Stella,” he whispers, “it’s Dad. He wants to say hi.”
I grab the phone from Nick. Dad usually calls twice a month on Sundays, but he’s been on vacation in Mexico for a whole month. We weren’t expecting to hear from him for a while.
I awkwardly say, “Hi … Dad. How’s Mexico?”
“¡Hola, mi amor! México está increíble. I’ve been riding my bike and eating great food. You’d love it.”
I sigh. That does sound incredible. Mom hardly ever goes on vacation, and when she does, it’s for a few days or a week. Never a whole month. But I guess that is possible when you only have to worry about taking care of yourself.
He continues, “But enough about me, I wanted to wish you buena suerte con el nuevo año de escuela.”
“Really? Thanks, Dad!” I’m surprised he remembered that school is starting soon.
“De nada. You’re getting so big. Mi princesa is in fourth grade!”
I feel my ears turn roja with frustration. There is a huge difference between fourth and fifth grade. The biggest is that it’s my last year before middle school and I’m no longer a baby. Instead of getting mad, though, I just correct him.
“It must be all the sun.” He chuckles. “Of course, fifth grade.”
We talk for a couple of minutes more and then we say our goodbyes. That’s a typical phone call from my dad. He’s like a little ghost crab. They are fun-looking crustaceans but hard to spot and disappear quickly. Sometimes they say something that pinches at your feelings, too. However, at least he called. He doesn’t always remember the start of the school year.
Thankfully, my thoughts are interrupted by a soft scratching noise. Ramona is pawing at the door.
“C’mon, we better take you outside,” I say, standing up.
I’ve barely opened the door when Ramona darts out of my room and down the stairs. Before I leave, I walk over to Pancho, my betta fish.
“We’ll be back. You stay put, please.”
He waves his fins in agreement. I giggle. That Pancho is one well-behaved fish.
Chapter Two
Mom is knitting on the couch when I come downstairs. I put her phone down on the coffee table, and she greets me with open arms.
“Hola, mi niñita.”
She can always sense when I need a hug. This, along with her amazing albóndigas, my favorite dinner, is why Mom is the best parent anyone could want.
“¿Qué necesitas?” she adds, asking what I need.
“Ramona needs to go on a walk, I think.”
“Say nothing more.” Mom rises from the couch and searches for her shoes.
Meanwhile, I find Ramona’s leash and harness. Ramona is only twelve pounds, so it’s easy to clip her in. We found her on a dog-rescue site and adopted her on my tenth birthday. We’re not exactly sure what kind of dog Ramona is. She looks like a chihuahua, but shaggier and bigger. Nick likes to call her baby Chewbacca. All I know is, she is super sweet and loves to cuddle.
I spy Nick sitting at the kitchen table. He’s reading his PSAT workbook. That’s a big test you take when you’re in tenth grade before you take an even bigger test in eleventh grade. The p stands for “pre,” but I’m not sure what SAT stands for. All I know is that it sounds like it will be a lot of work.
“Do you want to go on a walk with us?” I ask Nick. Ramona walks over to him like she’s inviting him, too.
He gently pets her head. “No, I have my first study group this week. I should try reading this more.”
I wink. “You mean text more.”
Nick pushes away his phone and sticks out his tongue at me. He takes frequent breaks to check his phone for texts from Erika, his first official girlfriend. Then he looks back at his thick study guide. By the size of that book, I can tell he really does have a lot of reading to do.
Seeing Nick studying makes me wonder if I should prepare more for Mrs. Chen’s class tomorrow. Mrs. Chen is going to be my fifth-grade teacher. I’ve never met her before, but I’ve seen her in the hallways at Arlington Heights Elementary. From what I can tell, she seems more serious than my previous teachers. That’s probably because she teaches fifth grade and not one of the little-kid grades. At least I hope so.
Thankfully, Mom reappears ready for a walk and says, “Should we ask Linda if she wants to join?”
Linda is our next-door neighbor and a close family friend. I clap my hands together. “Yes! Maybe she can join us for dinner, too?”
A few minutes later, the five of us stand outside Linda’s place. It’s five if you include Ramona and her dog, Biscuit. As she locks her front door, Linda says wistfully, “I’m going to miss these impromptu walks.”
Linda recently decided to move to an apartment. Somewhere where she doesn’t have to worry about shoveling snow or climbing stairs. Thankfully, she’s only looking at places close by. Mom says I should be able to walk there with Ramona when I’m a little older, too.
Mom gives Linda a side hug.
“We will visit you all the time. Remember, you’re welcome at our place whenever.”
I pull Mom’s shirt and wiggle my eyebrows at her.
“Oh, and please join us for dinner, too,” Mom adds.
I grin, satisfied that she understood me.
Linda replies, “I’d love to join you all, but I have dinner plans with my family. They’re helping me with the apartment search. Next time, I promise.”
The five of us walk down the street side by side. For a second, I wonder how many more of these walks we will have until Linda moves. Linda is someone I can really talk to, and she can sense when something is on my mind. She won’t be as easy to reach when she lives farther away. That thought pops out of my mind almost immediately because I feel a giant yank in my right arm. It’s Ramona trying to chase a squirrel.
Now, as I try to pull Ramona back, my only thought is that she needs to take some behavior lessons from Pancho. Luckily, Biscuit pounces at Ramona, inviting her to play with him instead of the squirrel. She agrees, and they begin to wag their tails at warp speed. I squeal with delight. Seeing the two of them gently paw at each other is one of the cutest things I’ve ever seen. Even cuter than a puffer fish.
Chapter Three
The next morning, I’m filled with excitement as we leave for school. I’m dressed in a shirt with tiny polka dots, which looks fun and slightly more grown up for my first day as a fifth grader. At least I think so. I’m sure Mrs. Chen will appreciate how mature I look.
“Bye, Ramona,” I say as I scratch her ears. I double-check her water bowl before we head out.
It’s hard leaving Ramona alone at home, but I love that she waits excitedly by the door when we return. Before Ramona, I had been wanting a dog of my own for years. That’s why it feels amazing to see her so happy to greet me, because I feel the exact same way inside. Except I don’t slobber all over her. Plus, Ramona has someone who walks her once a day, so she isn’t by herself the whole time.
On the ride to school, I wish that Nick could drive me, because he looks like a cool older kid and not like a parent. However, high school starts before elementary, so that’s impossible. I do like having a fun beat to shimmy along to with Mom. Salsa music matches my enthusiasm for the new school year. When Mom drops me off in front, she says, “Que tengas un buen día en escuela.”
To which I reply, “Have a great day at work.”
I walk toward the building with a strut. From the outside, I may look as cool as a sea cucumber, but on the inside, I’m as eager as Ramona at mealtime. I’ve been waiting for this. I just know school will be way easier now that I’m one of the oldest and tallest kids. I’ve also had five years of experience if you include kindergarten. This makes me a bona fide expert at Arlington Heights Elementary.
“Hi, Stella!” says my best friend, Jenny, running toward me.
I begin to say, “What did you do yesterday…” when I notice someone much shorter than me standing directly by my side. I look over. She has glasses and a short haircut, and, by the look on her face, she appears ready to burst with excitement.
“Umm, do you need something?” I ask.
“WOW.” She beams from ear to ear. “You’re Stella Díaz, right?”
I raise my eyebrows. “Yes…?”
She squeals. “I’m Gabby Torres! I’m in third grade, and I want to be a Sea Musketeer one day, just like you.”
Gabby points over to a few friends of hers. They wave excitedly together.
“We’re all fans,” Gabby adds.
The Sea Musketeers is an organization I started with my friends the summer before fourth grade. Our mission is to protect the oceans and lower plastic consumption. We do fundraisers and wrote our own pledge to reduce ocean plastic. Last spring, we presented to the city council. It was scary to present in front of serious-looking grown-ups, but amazingly, they agreed to have our school district commit to the pledge and cut plastic use by 50 percent. Afterward, there was even an article in our local newspaper. Mom had it framed because it’s “muy especial.”
Jenny grins at me. I can tell she’s amused. She’s a Sea Musketeer, too.
Gabby continues, “And I’m already learning everything I can about the oceans and how I can protect them.” She opens her backpack, pulls out a little journal, and starts reading.
“Like, did you know the ocean gives Earth an oxygen-rich atmosphere to make it possible for land animals to live?! Isn’t that amazing?”
I shrug knowingly. “That’s why the oceans are so important.”
Gabby leans forward. “I knew you would.”
Jenny looks at her watch and gasps. “Stella, we really need to get to our classes.”
The corners of Gabby’s mouth turn downward a little. “Oh … okay.”
But then as quick as an on-off switch, she enthusiastically waves. “Nice to meet you Stella and Stella’s friend! Next time I want to find out how I can join the Sea Musketeers.”
We hear Gabby and her friends say goodbye in unison as Jenny and I walk away. I’m roja at first. I’m not used to having that much attention on me, but it quickly fades away. I mostly feel on top of the world. When I was in third grade, I was too shy to talk to anyone except for my family and Jenny. I was surprised if anyone knew my name. Now in fifth grade, I still can be occasionally a little shy, but I’m also apparently a celebrity. At least to Gabby and a small group of third graders.
I walk Jenny to her class and then walk across the hallway to mine. I remember how awful it was in third grade when we were in different classes. But now, it doesn’t feel as bad. Plus, we still can eat lunch together.
The bell rings as I take my seat beside Stanley in the front row. I’m glad I have at least one best friend in my class!
I sit up very tall as Mrs. Chen calls attendance. When she does, I smile extra hard and project my voice loudly. After she reviews the classroom policies, I’m sitting on the edge of my seat, waiting for what’s next. Then Mrs. Chen stands up.
“Let’s not waste any time and begin our very first project. You’ll be working in pairs.”
I glance over at Stanley. He gently elbows me.
“Partners?” he whispers.
I give him a thumbs-up.
But to my surprise, Mrs. Chen starts assigning individual numbers. Oh no, this means we will be working in random groups! Random groups can be scary because you never know who you’ll be paired up with. My heart races as she walks around the room saying “One, two, three … four” and so forth. I really hope I get to work with someone I like. She gives me the number three, and I hold my breath until I see my friend Isabel has the same number. Whew!
Mrs. Chen raises her arms. “Okay, find your partner.”
As I walk over to Isabel, I frown when I see Jessica Anderson. She used to bully me in our third-grade class. Back then, she called me “Stella Stares” because I was afraid to speak out loud and would look wide-eyed when I was trying to get my words out. Thankfully, Mom taught me how to ignore her. It became especially easy in fourth grade, when we had different classes. However, it might not be the same now that she’s in Mrs. Chen’s class with me this year.
When I sit down next to Isabel, I look over to see who Stanley is paired with. My mouth drops as wide as a bigmouth fish. I can’t believe it. It’s Jessica Anderson! Poor Stanley, I think to myself, because Jessica may be mean to Stanley because he’s one of my closest friends. Stanley also knows how much she used to pick on me, so it might be hard for him to talk to her. At least I think he does. But then something even more surprising happens. Jessica and Stanley are both … smiling.
Copyright © 2023 by Angela Dominguez
