One More Smile

5.

New York, New York
Tuesday, Sep. 3

Monday's kindergarten orientation had gone over well at Silver Hills Elementary. Celestine met a plethora of new kindergarteners, some of which weren't even in her classroom, and they'd spent the majority of the orientation playing together on the school's playground while their parents met their teachers. Mrs. Park, Celestine's new teacher, was a short, middle-aged, Korean-American woman who had been teaching for many years, easing Beyoncé's worries about leaving her child in a new environment for eight hours every day. The parents were given another tour of the large elementary campus and got to know their children's teachers and preferred teaching styles. Beyoncé felt confident that Celestine would enjoy the school year with Mrs. Park and her new friends.

When Tuesday morning rolled around, Beyoncé was up bright and early for Celestine's first day. She prepared a few frozen french toast sticks in the microwave and laid out Celestine's uniform — a navy blue skirt, a white shirt, white stockings, and her baby blue sweater. She couldn't wait to see her baby in her uniform.

Once Celestine woke up, Beyoncé wasted no time getting her ready for the day. They brushed their teeth together and washed their faces before getting dressed and enjoying the breakfast that Beyoncé prepared. After breakfast, Beyoncé brushed Celestine's brown curls into a neat ponytail and placed a navy blue bow in her hair. The entire ordeal was exciting for Beyoncé, though Celestine was nothing but a bundle of nerves. She'd enjoyed orientation with the other kindergartners, whose names she hadn't even remembered, but she still had yet to warm up to her new teacher and come to terms with the fact that she would be without her mother for most of the day.

"Mr. Julius is here to take us to your school. Grab your backpack," Beyoncé told her.

Celestine grabbed the light pink backpack from the sofa and slowly walked over to Beyoncé, who grabbed her hand and led her out of the apartment. When they got outside, they saw Julius standing beside the SUV, and Onika waving from the passenger window.

"Beyoncé, I have to take pictures of you and her for her first day! Stay right there!" Onika smiled, holding her phone up.

Beyoncé and Celestine posed awkwardly next to one another while Onika snapped a few photos, laughing quietly at their awkwardness. Once she finished, Julius helped them into the truck, and Beyoncé frowned in confusion.

"Why's there a car seat?" She asked.

Her eyes landed on the pink and black booster seat in the back of the truck. Onika turned around with a smile.

"It's a booster seat. Children are required by law to be secured into a car seat or booster seat if they're under the age of eight," she told her.

"How do I...?"

"Here, let me help you."

Onika reached back and helped Beyoncé strap Celestine into the seat. Once everyone was inside with their seatbelts fastened, Julius began driving. Onika greeted Celestine and spent most of the drive turned around in her seat so she could talk to her and Beyoncé. Before they knew it, they were pulling into the busy Silver Hills parking lot. Julius helped the women out of the truck and Beyoncé grabbed Celestine's hand, leading her into the school with Onika in tow. They headed to the kindergarten classrooms and followed a few parents into Mrs. Park's classroom, where she was greeting everyone.

"Good morning, Celestine! It's nice to see you and your mom again. Are you ready for your first day of kindergarten?" Mrs. Park asked with a warm smile.

Celestine clung to Beyoncé's leg, not bothering to reply. She wasn't ready to separated from her mother, and the reality of her situation seemed a lot scarier when it was actually happening.