Justin's sweet face appears at my back. "Ms. Reed?" Characteristic huskiness. "Can I read this to you?" His fingers are splayed across the pages of a Henry and Mudge book. Henry and Mudge have such a kindred relationship. Henry is a boy, Mudge a dog, and they do everything together.
"Of course!" I lead him to a quiet corner, and we settle onto the carpet.
"Henry and Henry's... b--ig... d-o-g Mudge... where... war... were... p--party?" He looks at me.
"That's a big word, isn't it? Let's split it up. What does this part say?" The word is "playing," so I cover up "play" and leave "ing" in full view.
"Ig... ing?" We