A Helping Hand

"Hello? Is someone there?"

A faint knocking shook Jack out of his trance of sadness as he frantically wiped away his tears and tried to reply in the happiest tone possible.

"Yes, I'm here" he answered with a subtle sniff.

" I saw you crying and you came here and I wanted to see if you are okay."

" I am alright."

"Are you sure? You didn't look happy."

Burning with curiosity, he opened the cubicle door very slightly and peeked through the crack to see who was trying to console him. A small girl with short brunette hair and hazel eyes stood on the other side: he quickly re-entered the stall.

" My name is Katie Hilfer, what's yours?"

"I am Jack" he replied through tearful gulps.

" Why were you crying?" she questioned, noticing the red tinge that was all over his face. Slightly widening the gap of the door, he held back the sniffles and began to explain.

" I just wanted to be his friend and he was a meanie. I didn't do anything bad to him. This is unfair, I don't want to go outside. I want to go home. I miss my Mummy so much."

" Do you want to be my friend?"

Jack was struck with confusion. Why did she want to be his friend?

" Are you sure? I'm boring."

" No you're not, you are very fun," she retorted, " I'm very sure."

"Erm, okay." he replied, stepping out of his safe space to properly see his new friend.

She was wearing navy blue shorts which went way past her knees and a crimson soccer shirt, representing a team that Jack had never seen before.

" I love soccer . I like to play it, watch it or think about it!"

Jack was never fond of sport but was open to new games he could play. He thought that he would have to like soccer or she wouldn't want to be his friend but quickly realised that this wasn't the case. As she questioned his interests with such intrigue he went on and on about the piano, his toy cars and his drawings he would make every day.

"Could you draw me?" Katie asked with a huge smile - Jack knew exactly what to do once recess was over.

He drew the best he ever had before with careful detail, the two of them on a hill with a red parrot in between. A bright yellow sun rested in the corner of the page, lighting up the light blue ocean which had found a new home in the sky. The grass which smothered the mound they stood upon was teeming with butterflies and bees.

As he furiously scribbled away, Katie watched closely with delight. Jack must have been concentrating so much they he didn't realise it was home time. Reluctant to leave, he picked up the final colouring pencils and filled in the gaps until his masterpiece was complete.

He handed it over to his highest bidder; they both gazed at it in adoration. A few minutes later, Katie's parents arrived and she gave Jack a very energetic wave as she left - her smile lighting up the entire room.

Maybe school wasn't as bad as it seemed.