“Ooooh, watch out, Bella. Another dog coming,” her dad said suddenly. “Want me to take the lead?”
Bella shook her head. “No, I’m sure he’ll be good. Heel, Sid.” She pressed the button on the extending lead that made it go short again and patted her leg, calling encouragingly to Sid. He pattered over to her at once, tail wagging. He’d seen the other dog and he wanted to sniff at him, but Bella was calling.
“Oh, good boy!” Bella rubbed his ears and drew him over to the side of the path so that the lady with the dog – a huge Weimaraner – could get past. But instead, the lady stopped and smiled.
“Have you just got your dog? I haven’t seen you out walking him before.”
“Yes, we adopted him from Redlands, the shelter,” Dad explained.
“He’s very sweet! And so well behaved. It’s lovely to see you training him to walk properly with you,” she added to Bella. “You’re obviously working really hard with him. Have a nice morning!”
And she walked on, leaving Dad and Bella staring at each other proudly. Then they both started telling Sid how fabulous he was. “You little star, Sid! Did you hear what she said?”
Sid stared up at them, wondering what all the fuss was about. All he’d done was stand still…
Chapter Five
Bella had chatted to Sarah a few more times since the new girl had stuck up for her on Monday with Megan and the others. But to be honest, she wasn’t really looking forward to bringing her home for tea. Mum had been fine with it – she’d said it was good to have lots of different friends, and that it must have been hard for Sarah to start a new school in the middle of the year.
Bella knew that was all true, but it didn’t make Sarah any easier to talk to. She was quite shy, Bella decided. She seemed to spend most of her break and lunchtimes reading on one of the benches in the playground. Bella had stopped to talk to her whenever she’d gone past, but Sarah just wasn’t all that chatty.
So the walk home from school was a bit awkward. Mum did her best, asking Sarah about why they’d moved (because her mum had got a new job) and whether she liked her new flat (yes, but she wished they had a garden). But it was hard to keep the conversation going, and Bella couldn’t help wishing that she was back being friends with Megan again, and that it was Megan who was coming home to tea instead.
As they walked into the front garden, the sound of barking greeted them. “I can hear Sid,” Mum said, laughing. “He can always tell we’re coming, Sarah. He gets all excited – it’s lovely. Although I have to say, he’s far more excited when it’s Bella or Tom coming than he is for me!”
Sarah nodded and she suddenly looked a lot less shy. “I can hear him, too,” she said, laughing. “That squeaky noise! And a sort of scrabbling?”
Bella giggled. “He’s trying to dig under the front door,” she explained. “He always does it, even though you’d think by now he’d have worked out he never gets anywhere. Hey, Sid!”
Mum slid the key in the lock, and before they knew it Sid was waltzing delightedly about on the front doorstep, dashing from Bella to Mum and back again. He sniffed at Bella and licked her fingers lovingly. Then he shot over to Mum to make sure she knew he loved her, too. He was so excited that it took him a few seconds to notice Sarah. But then he spotted her and went into his funny meeting-new-people pose.
“Oh, look, he did this when Gran came over!” Bella smiled at Sarah. “He goes all shy – watch him.”
Sid put his head on one side and looked up quietly at Sarah, peering at her through his big white eyebrows and scraping one paw on the tiled doorstep.
“It’s like he wants to ask you to dance, but he’s not quite brave enough,” Mum said, laughing. “Do you like dogs, Sarah?”
“I love them!” Sarah’s eyes were sparkling, and she looked hopefully at Bella. “Is it OK if I stroke him? Will he mind?”
“Oh no, he’s really friendly,” Bella said proudly. “Look, Sid, this is Sarah. He loves being tickled under the chin,” she added.
Sarah crouched down and petted Sid, scratching him under the chin so his eyes closed blissfully, rubbing his ears, and then running her hand all down his spine so that he wriggled in delight.
“Wow, he loves that!” Bella said. She frowned at Sarah. “You’re so good with him – but I thought you didn’t have a dog?”
“I don’t.” Sarah looked up at her sadly. “But back at my old house we lived really close to my grandad, and he’s got a gorgeous dog. Alfie. He’s a collie cross. I used to go on walks with him and Grandad all the time.”
“You must miss him,” Bella said, thinking how much she would miss Sid, and she’d only had him a week. “Oh, and your grandad, too, of course.”
“Yeah.” Sarah nodded sadly. “Grandad emails me photos, but it’s not the same.”
“Come on in, girls, you’re still standing on the doorstep! What about something to drink?”
Somehow that made Bella and Sarah shy with each other again – Mum fussing around, asking Sarah if she’d like apple juice or squash, and maybe a biscuit? It showed up how much they didn’t know each other. Once they both had drinks, Bella took Sarah and Sid upstairs to her room. Otherwise she had a feeling they’d sit at either end of the sofa and not know what to say.
Sarah sat on the beanbag with Sid in front of her, eyeing her biscuit.
“Don’t get it anywhere near his nose,” Bella warned her. “I’m training him, but he’s not an angel. He loves biscuits.” She picked up a little tin from her desk. “Do you want to give him one of these? They’re chews – they’re supposed to be good for his teeth.” She handed one of the little bone-shaped chews to Sarah and watched her feeding it to Sid.
Sid gobbled it down, and then flopped on to the floor, resting his nose on Sarah’s feet, just in case she felt like giving him another treat.
“He really likes you,” whispered Bella.
“I like him, too.” Sarah glanced up at her shyly. “Thanks for letting me come over. I-I was a bit surprised when you asked me. I mean, because you’re friends with Megan and Lara and Chloe.”
Bella shrugged. “Not at the moment I’m not. Megan’s hardly spoken to me all week, and Lara was so horrible about Sid, I don’t think I ever want to talk to her again.”
Sarah shuddered. “I don’t really like her. She … she just knows the absolute meanest thing to say. The best way to make people miserable.”
Bella stared at her. “What did she say to you?” She’d never noticed Lara picking on Sarah.
Sarah shrugged, hunching up her shoulders. “Stuff about how I’d never have any friends here,” she muttered. “And Megan asked why didn’t I go back to my old school.”
“Megan did?” Bella murmured, feeling shocked.
“Mmm. That’s why I was so surprised when you asked me round. I thought you were like them.” Sarah looked at her sideways and added, “Sorry.”
“I don’t like Lara and Chloe much, either. Megan isn’t usually like that, though…” Bella nibbled her thumbnail. “Well, she is sometimes,” she admitted. “But she’s fun as well. And most of the time she’s nice.” She sighed. “Anyway, why did you stick up for me, if you thought I was like Lara?” she asked suddenly.