Max loved playing with his friends and, in toys, he loved building structures from Legos. One day, he was going to his friend Emma’s house. He could barely contain his excitement. His mother had to go on errands to a place near Emma’s house, so it would be easy to drop off Max and give him enough time to play.

When they rang the doorbell, both the mothers greeted each other and before they knew it, Emma and Max ran off to play with their toys.

After playing for a while, Emma went to bring some snacks, and while she was away, Max accidentally broke her favourite toy, a beautiful porcelain doll. Max became scared. He didn’t want to upset his friend nor did he want to get into trouble, so he quickly hid it under the bed where he was certain that no one would find it.

Emma arrived with a tray full of snacks for them. They ate together, but Max was too nervous to enjoy. Suddenly, Emma realised that she could not see her doll anywhere, although she remembered keeping it there before leaving to bring the snacks. Max pretended he didn’t know what happened to the doll.

At first, Emma was very upset and searched everywhere for her beloved toy. Max felt dreadful. But before he could say anything, his mother arrived to get him.

That night, Max felt terrible about keeping the secret and he couldn’t sleep. He kept thinking about Emma’s sad face and the broken doll. Finally, after much tossing and turning, he decided to confess and tell Emma the truth.

In the morning, he told his mother first and she assured him that they would go to Emma’s house that day after breakfast and tell them the truth.

When Max and his mother arrived at Emma’s house, Max felt nervous. As they rang the doorbell, his mother laid a soothing hand on his back and gave him an assuring smile, encouraging him.

Emma and her mother were happy to see them, but a little surprised since they had already visited the day before. They all sat together and chatted about everyday things.

Finally, Max took a deep breath and what came out in a trembling voice was, “Emma, I have s-something to tell you. I’m so sorry, but I accidentally b-broke your doll when we were p-playing.”

At first, Emma was dumbstruck, hurt and then surprised, but also relieved to finally know what happened. Emma’s mother smiled and encouraged Max to be honest and brave to admit his mistake. She helped them glue the doll back together, and, although it wasn’t perfect like before, Emma was happy to have her toy back.

On the way home, Max got an ice cream as a treat from his mother. Max felt so relieved. And he firmly believed honesty is the best choice, even if it’s hard to admit our mistakes. By telling the truth, Max showed that he valued his friendship with Emma and respected her feelings.

From then on, Max and Emma became even closer friends, and Max knew that he could always count on Emma to forgive him and support him, just like he did for her. The moral of the story is that honesty builds trust and strengthens relationships, and it’s always better to tell the truth, even if it’s difficult.

Published in Dawn, Young World, September 7th, 2024