It was a very cold Monday winter morning and Kamakshi was getting ready for school. Oh, why do Mondays come so quickly, she thought to herself. But at least she would meet her friends again, so that was something to be happy about.

She had woken up a little late this morning. It was so difficult to wake up early in winter. She had to hurry, or else she would miss the school bus. She wore her navy blue skirt and tucked in her white shirt, which was her very smart uniform. She then peeped under her bed looking for something, wildly swinging her arms and pulling out all kinds of things. She found a ball, one of those glowing bouncy ones. 

She found a pencil that she thought she had lost. She even found a half-eaten cookie. 

But she did not find that one thing that she was looking for. Why, why, why? When she was already getting late.

Just at that moment, her mother came into the room with a glass in her hand; it was Kamakshi’s favourite, milk with cocoa. 

“What are you doing, Kamster,” Amma asked her looking at all the things that she had pulled out from under her bed, “Your school van will be here anytime now. Hurry up.”

But Kamakshi continued to investigate looking for things under her bed. In fact, now she was on all fours and pulling out more things. It was missing, just as she had feared.

“Amma, I can’t go to school today,” she finally announced. Though she loved to be at home, she also loved school. And now she felt sad. 

“Why not? Did you not complete your homework?” Amma asked as she sat down next to her. 

“No, I have completed all my homework. I always do,” Kamakshi said. “Is there some period in school today that you don’t like,” Amma wanted to know.

“No, Amma. I can’t go to school today because I have just one sock. I can’t find the other one. Everyone will laughE at me,” Kamakshi said, sticking her leg out. 

Holding her face in her palms, she sat there thinking about how she would miss her favourite Art and Craft period in school. 

Amma put down the glass of milk by her bed and took Kamakshi into her arms. “How about we team up and try and find your missing sock? Two pairs of eyes are better than one,” Amma said. Kamakshi nodded her head.

Kamakshi and Amma giggled as they got down on all fours and attempted to search for the missing socks. They looked under the table and behind the chair. They looked inside the laundry basket and inside every cupboard. They even looked inside their dog Sasha’s mouth! Sasha was not happy at all with this.

Alas! The missing sock was nowhere to be seen. It had mysteriously gone missing. And just as they were going to stop their search, they heard a little noise. 

They looked up and down and everywhere around, and saw that the noise seemed to be coming from the corner of the room. 

In fact, the noise seemed to be coming from a crumpled piece of cloth lying in the corner of the room. Upon walking closer to it Kamakshi squealed, “Amma, there it is, my white and blue sock.”

As Amma and Kamakshi observed it closely, it seemed that strangely enough, her sock had now grown a head, a face and two little ears. 

“Oh no,” Kamakshi said and closed her mouth with her hands. Her sock had now come to life. Like magic. Or was it something else? The mornings were getting colder and it seemed that a squirrel in search of some warmth, had borrowed Kamakshi’s sock and made it his home.

Amma said, “We need to take the squirrel out of the sock. But the poor thing looks so scared.”

“Don’t do that, Amma,” Kamakshi said, “It is alright to go to school with a single sock. And maybe if I take the squirrel along, my teacher won’t scold me.” 

And so into a brown wooden basket the sock and the squirrel were placed and Kamakshi got into her school van wearing just one sock.

At the bus stop, the children crowded around her and peeped into her little basket. The squirrel still looked scared and refused to bring out his head.

At school, Kamakshi walked up to her teacher and explained the story behind her single sock. The teacher smiled` at Kamakshi and asked, “So, what is the name of your new friend?” 

Thinking for a bit, Kamakshi answered, “His name is Socker, and don’t you think that is just perfect?” 

“Perfect,” the teacher agreed and Kamakshi walked with her basket to leave Socker in the playground, while she went back to her class.

“Will you be alright alone till school gets over,” Kamakshi asked in a sad voice. The sunG was out by then and Socker didn’t seem cold or scared anymore and Whoosh! he popped out of her sock.