Bubba had always been alone. Other insects moved in twos and threes and fours, but he had never seen anyone who looked quite like him. Black beetles, with their shiny backs, rolled balls of dirt along in a group, their chatter loud and peppered with laughter. Bees buzzed around, moving from flower to flower, humming pleasantly as they sucked nectar. Dragonflies hovered over the pond, teasing each other. Grasshoppers held hopping competitions all the time. Termites worked together, calling out to each other as they ate into tree stumps. Crickets swapped stories at night. Even the red ants, who rarely spoke a word because of how serious they were, looked content as they marched in straight lines, transporting food. Pale-green baby aphids grew on a stem, watched over by their caring mother. Bubba had never known that kind of care. He had opened his eyes for the first time to find himself on the underside of a leaf, with no insect for miles. He had been so confused. Have you ever felt that way? Not sure what to do because your parents weren’t there to guide you? Think about how you got through that. Bubba had waited and waited and waited until a group of ants had come along. He had followed them at a careful distance until he had come to the place that he now called his home. Now, he spent most of his days eating and looking for her: