•Ask Inanimate Insanity Pre-K• (DISCONTINUED AND BEING REDONE!)

You Spice Up My Life! *one-shot*

*It's Pepper's first day at preschool and she worries she may not fit in with the rest of the gang. Unbeknownst to her, that's further from the truth: since she meets someone that make her worries about fitting in go away*

. . . .

"Alright, you're all set in. Follow me, I'll show you where the class is." The secretary, Mr. Brian, announced at the front desk, getting up from his chair with a smile.

Pepper's stomach did loop-de-loops as she hung onto her mother's dress as they were directed the way to Pepper's new class. With Mr. Brian leading the way, Pepper trailed behind and got a good look at the building for the first time. 

The hall's theme was something that caught her eye: palm trees made of paper were on the walls, vines on the ceiling, and fake tiki masks were on the doors. Pretend torches with fake fire made from colorful sheet paper were glowing in the hallway, even if it was somewhat sunny outside. The more she stared at her new surroundings, the more she became interested in wondering what was all this about.

"So I hear you just moved here, yes?" Mr. Brian asked and Pepper quickly hid behind her mother, still moving forward as her bashfulness eased her way from chatting with the man.

"Mhm, all the way from India, in fact," Pepper's mother, Black Pepper, instead responded to him calmly, though her rough accent came out rough whilst speaking English. "Things were rough back home and we'd thought we'd start fresh here. It's been awfully different here compared to back home, but we've been trying to settle down for a while. So far it's going steady: my husband's spice business is expanding and the people here are lovely and I'm hoping my little Pepper makes friends easily here at preschool." 

"Oh, I'm sure the kids will love to have a new playmate! The class is currently in the middle of playtime, so it'll be a great time for her to interact with the other kids." Mr. Brian commented.

"I don't wanna, I want to go home... my real home..." Pepper thought to herself with a frown, daring not to look at the man and just at her mother, something she could still think of that reminded her back home.

They finally arrived at the room and Mr. Brian opened the door. Since she first got the layout of the room  Black Pepper went over to Pepper's assigned cubby and hung her backpack, while Pepper still shyly hung onto her dress.

Pepper got a good glimpse at the room while her mother was busy talking to the man: and one thing for sure it was big. The walls were painted plain brown but also had wallpapers that mimicked hilly grasslands with cylinder eccentric mountains. There were two tables in the middle of the room with pictures of a yellow lightbulb and a chicken leg hanging above and a counter with an attached sink in the far corner. Bulletin boards displayed pictures and stickers made by the kids hung around the place, their giggles and conversations made the room hum with learning.

But what Pepper saw were loads of activities she could do: a reading corner with beanbags filled with shelves of books, a big carpet featuring the alphabet, art easels, a smaller cubby filled with various clothes and accessories, a water table, and so so many toys. She felt some interest in the place and wanted to play, but retreated behind her mother once she saw others: those others being children.

The other children... didn't look like her nor did they dress how she was so used to seeing others wear. Back home, Pepper lived in a community where everyone was under the same belief and dressed the same, they were like a family in a way. But, when her family moved, it was clear her family stuck out more from everyone on their street. From comments to the way people stared at her and her family: she knew they weren't that welcoming nor nice. She'd missed home: where everyone looked and was treated the same.. and no one was treated differently