Lumi sat on her bed, a brand-new backpack beside her. "First grade tomorrow," she whispered, a little fluttery feeling in her tummy. It wasn't a bad flutter, but a nervous one. What if no one wanted to play with her?

The sun peeked through her window the next morning. Lumi slowly got out of bed. "Time for school, sweetie!" called her mom. Lumi took a deep breath. She could do this.

Hand in hand with her dad, Lumi walked towards the big, red brick school building. Lots of other children were there, some laughing, some holding hands too. Lumi squeezed her dad's hand a little tighter.

Inside, the classroom was bright and colorful. There were tables with tiny chairs, shelves filled with books, and a friendly-looking teacher with a warm smile. "Welcome, everyone!" she said. Lumi found her name tag on a chair.

The teacher, Ms. Lily, asked everyone to draw their favorite animal. Lumi carefully picked a blue clay stick and started shaping a fluffy cloud-sheep. She loved how the clay squished between her fingers.

Across the table, a boy with bright, curious eyes was building a tall, wobbly tower out of colorful clay blocks. He looked up and smiled at Lumi. Lumi smiled back, a little shyly.

Suddenly, one of Kai's blocks wobbled too much and tumbled to the floor. "Oh no!" he whispered. Lumi quickly reached down and picked it up for him. "Here you go!" she said.

"Thanks!" said Kai. "That's a great sheep!" he added, pointing to Lumi's creation. "Your tower is amazing!" Lumi replied. Soon, they were giggling as they tried to add a tiny clay bird to the very top of Kai's tower.

When it was time for recess, Lumi and Kai ran outside together. They chased butterflies, swung on the swings, and even found a shiny pebble. School wasn't scary at all; it was full of fun and new friends!

That evening, Lumi told her parents all about Ms. Lily, her fluffy cloud-sheep, and her new friend, Kai. Her tummy still fluttered, but this time it was with excitement for tomorrow, and all the new adventures first grade would bring.