They had lunch at a deli, where Mia and Connor ordered sandwiches and Alexis had a bowl of chicken noodle soup. The server forgot to bring crackers to go with the soup, and she made a second trip to bring them with an apology. “Is there anything else you need?” she asked Alexis.
“No, thank you.”
The server smiled at Mia and Connor. “You have a very polite little girl,” she said, including them both in the compliment. “Cute as a button, too.”
Connor murmured a thank you.
Mia supposed she should get used to people thinking they were a family. It would happen whenever she went out in public with Connor and Alexis. Because there was no need to correct strangers, she should simply learn to take such comments in stride.
It still felt funny to hear it, though.
They arrived at the school a few minutes early, which gave them time to look around a little from the car. The grounds were tidy and well-groomed, with a large playground filled with play equipment. The children they saw wore uniforms: khaki pants and navy, red or white polo shirts for the boys; khaki pants or skirts or a navy-and-red plaid jumper with navy, red or white polo shirts for the girls.
“It looks like a nice place,” Mia said to Alexis, half turning to study the child’s expression.
“Why are they all dressed alike?” Alexis asked, craning to see the children on the playground. She had already unbuckled her seat belt and she knelt on the backseat, her hands propped beside Mia as she leaned forward to peer out the windshield.
“They wear school uniforms here. Everyone dresses alike to show that they go to the same school.”
“We didn’t wear uniforms at my school in Springfield.”
“You’ll get used to it. Even most of the public schools around this area require uniforms. It just makes things easier for the parents and the students because they don’t have to worry about what clothes to choose every day.”
“Oh. Okay. Can I get a red bow for my hair like that girl has?”
“Absolutely.”
Connor had been riffling though the paperwork he’d brought with him, double checking to see that he h
ad everything he needed. As if a sudden thought had occurred to him, he lifted his head and looked at Mia and then Alexis. “I just realized…What name did you use at your school in Springfield?”
The child looked a bit confused. “Alexis. My friend Madison called me Lexi.”
“No, honey, I meant your last name. Your aunt said you use your mom’s last name, Caple, but your birth certificate says Alexis Marie Hayes, which is the same last name as mine.”
Mia tried not to frown. Brandy certainly hadn’t made things easier for her daughter. Why on earth hadn’t the woman just told Connor he had a child? But because she felt a little guilty being critical of his late ex-girlfriend, she suppressed the thought without comment.
Alexis shrugged. “My grandma did all the papers at my school there. I don’t know what she wrote down.”
“What last name did you write on your schoolwork, sweetie?” Mia asked, trying to clarify things for her.
“Caple. The same as my grandma.”
Seeing that Connor was biting his lip, as if trying to decide how to handle this, Mia spoke again, “Would you mind very much if you use Alexis Hayes here? I know it will seem strange to you at first, but it would make things much easier for your daddy. For you, too, in the long run.”
“Alexis Hayes?” Tilting her head, the child wore a look of concentration as she repeated the name beneath her breath a couple of times. “Okay,” she said after a moment. “But I might forget sometimes,” she added, looking a bit worried.
Mia reached over to squeeze her hand reassuringly. “You probably will. But that’s okay. I’ll help you practice writing it when we get home.”
“Alexis Hayes,” Alexis repeated again, as if committing the name to memory. She glanced sideways at Connor. “It’s a nice name.”
He smiled at her, looking relieved that the issue had been settled so easily. “Yes. It is. Shall we go in now? It’s almost time for our appointment.”
Just under twenty minutes later, Alexis Marie Hayes was an official first grader at Sunshine Academy. Connor signed the necessary paperwork authorizing Mia to pick up Alexis at school and to be given full access to her information. Mia would be allowed to talk to the administration and the teachers on Alexis’s behalf, just as Connor would, and her name and number were entered as emergency contact information beneath his own.
The principal, a kind-eyed, brusque-voiced woman named Mrs. Montgomery, personally took them on a tour, chatting easily the entire time. She told them about the parent-teacher organization that she was quite sure both Connor and Mia would want to join, and the monthly assemblies at which students were recognized with rewards for good grades and good behavior. She showed them the pristine cafeteria with its colorful muraled walls, and the media center filled with books and computers and whimsical mobiles dangling from the ceiling.
“This will be your classroom, Alexis,” she said, stopping at a door with a glass pane through which they could see a young woman standing in front of about twenty students at desks. “Your teacher’s name is Miss Chen, and I think you’re going to like her a lot. Everyone does.”