Twenty-three

Hello, it's Kirsty again.
You won’t believe what happened today!
I have been keeping an eye on Maya, and trying to stop her being mean to people. And mostly it’s worked, because none of the Year 3s have been hit by stones recently. But Maya has barely spoken to me in weeks.
Well, Miss Price kept me behind at break time. I thought she might be going to shout at me because I’d spilled paint on the lino during art. But she didn’t! She said that she’d noticed that I’d been looking out for Maya and that it was kind of me and would I be sure to carry on because Maya was going to need a friend!
I hadn’t been looking after Maya at all. But Miss Price thought I had.
Then, it was break time. So, I went outside. And, of course, I couldn’t stop thinking about what Miss Price had said. Was I the closest thing Maya had to a friend? If that was true then Maya was in trouble, because I wasn’t her friend at all!
It made me feel bad. Uncomfortable.
I went to find Maya. Because now I know that there really is something wrong and not just me imagining it.
She was sitting by the tree, where she usually sits. And she was just staring up at the sky. Looking at nothing.
‘Hello,’ I said.
She didn’t say anything.
‘What are you doing?’
‘Nothing,’ she said.
‘Do you want to come and play?’ I asked.
She looked at me as though I’d offered to run over her dog.
I left her to it after she swore at me.
I feel bad now. I know there’s a problem. I know that Miss Price wants me to help. But I don’t know how. How can you be friends with someone who doesn’t want to be your friend?