Monday morning was a cold winter morning. It was also a school day.
It should be a normal boring day in school but to Annie, it was like a new adventure. She knew how school was like, yet her life as a high school freshman (should it not be called freshgirl?) felt distant. It was like she was going to explore some unknown land that she had only read about previously on maps and in guidebooks. Now she was going to experience that land for the first time.
The thought filled her with both excitement and puzzlement. Excitement, for the adventure that awaited her. Puzzlement, because she should have experienced this before. She had been in high school for several months already, had she not?
Breakfast was already on the dinner table below. Toast with butter and jam. Poached eggs and fried bacon. A nearly empty pot of what smelled like coffee.
Maybe she could get a cup of warm milk instead.
Annie went into the kitchen and wished a bright 'good morning' to Big Sis. The short-haired sister was busy cramming food into a lunch box. The little girl took one of the hanging mugs and poured some milk from the fridge into it. Then she placed the mug into the microwave to heat.
It looked like Big Sis had taken all of yesterday's leftovers. That meant that Annie would have to prepare her own lunch. Canned goods should be in the corner cupboard. She felt like tuna today. Bread was under the cover on the counter. Bread knife from the cutlery drawer. And butter was already out on the counter.
"Tuna sandwich?" Big Sis asked.
"Yes." Annie removed the milk from the microwave and took a sip.
"Want some cucumber with it?" Big Sis offered half of one from the fridge.
"Sure," Annie accepted. As she reached for the cucumber, Big Sis suddenly pulled back.
"Better let me slice it for you," Big Sis said, "You still have to prepare the tuna."
"Okay, thanks." Annie opened the can of tuna and drained the brine. She took a bowl from the dish cupboard and fork from the cutlery drawer to mash the tuna with.
"Tomatoes?" Big Sis asked as she looked in the fridge.
"Yes, please," Annie said as she spread butter on the bread. When she was done, she saw that her sister had sliced the cucumber and tomato for her.
The older sister jerked with a start when Annie slid next to her. Marie carefully put the knife in her hand down.
"Sorry," Annie said as she collected the sliced cucumber and tomato. "Where's the lunch boxes?"
"Here," Big Sis answered as she opened a cupboard above the counter, "Pink unicorn or blue truck?"
"Blue truck? Do we have a brother I don't know of?" Annie glanced at her sister's plain red lunch box. "Don't we have a plain one like yours?"
Marie hesitated for a moment. "I could give you mine."
"That's too much trouble," Annie decided, "Besides, you already have gravy in yours. Just give me the pink unicorn."
Marie handed Annie a pink lunch box with picture of a unicorn on its cover. Then she took her own lunch box and went out to the dining room.
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