"What? When did this happen?" you ask yourself, "Why wasn't I invited?"
Or perhaps you were in science class and the teacher asked you to pick a partner. You hurried over to your BFF, but she had already chosen someone else. "Sorry," she tells you as she turns away.
And just like that, your world turns upside down.
What is going on? Are you still friends?
You want things to be the same again, because it's hard to be off-balance. It's hard to look at your friend laughing, while you're feeling hurt and betrayed.
Take a deep breathe. It'll be okay. Let me share a couple of ideas that may help you get your relationship back on track.
First of all, give your friend some grace. Sometimes people hurt each other without even realizing it. Try looking at the situation objectively. Could there be an innocent reason why these things happened? Could it be your friends didn't invite you that day because they thought you were already busy? Would it be possible that the other girl in science class asked your friend to be a partner with her first, and your friend didn't want to hurt her feelings? Most of the time there's an innocent reason why something happened.
Try talking to your friend as a friend. Don't automatically "go to the dark side," and begin making accusations and hurling insults to get revenge for your hurt feelings. Instead, ask her why you weren't included, or tell her how disappointed you were when you didn't get to be her partner. Find out the true facts.
More than likely, you'll find out she cares for you, and she wasn't intentionally trying to hurt your feelings.
But what if?
What if you do find out she was trying to exclude you? Ask her why. Maybe there was something you did that unintentionally hurt her feelings. If that's the case, make amends...even if she misinterpreted your actions.
It's always better to be kind than to be "right," especially when it comes to repairing our relationships with our family and friends.
The best way to have a friend, is to be one.