Summary

As the story opens, Mia Winchell is 13 years old. She's thinking about a day when she was in the third grade and realized that most people didn't see the world the way she did. She was at the blackboard and was supposed to be working a math problem in front of the class. There's only a little time left in class and she hopes she can stall long enough so that others don't see how much trouble she's having. She sees some colored chalk and decides on a way to stall longer. She picks up pieces of colored chalk and begins to write. Her teacher tells her to stop. Mia says the problem would be easier if she used “the right colors.” Her classmates laugh and Mia is surprised. She'd expected support.

Mia then says that each number has a color, and...