Later, I became the deputy director of the zoo. I didn’t
enough experience to be the full director yet, but it didn’t really matter.
The animals spread the news: [Berry is the director! Wow!]
[Does this mean we’ll never be hungry again? Aww, Berry, you’re my hero!]
[Will Berry still give us baths? Heds are so soft.]
I smiled to myself as I drove the tour cart, inspecting the entire park.
“White Egrets, stop pooping in the swan pond!”
“Polar Bear, why are you staring at the penguins next door? Don’t even think about it!”
“Monkey King, stop shaking your butt at me! I’m not interested! And we are never, ever getting together!”
My voice echoed through the park, and the parrot on my shoulder relayed my commands in the chat.
When I passed the tiger enclosure, looking at the empty cage, I would sometimes feel a pang of sadness.
Tiger, are you doing okay in the wild?
Suddenly, the chat pinged. A new member had joined. It’s worth mentioning that the chat name had been changed to “Berry’s Harem.”
All the members of the harem turned their attention to the new member.
The new member spoke: [What the hell? Where am I? Wasn’t I just chasing a deer in the mountains?]
The chat was filled with a joyful energy.
Then, the Tiger King asked cautiously: [How’s the zoo? And just to be clear, I don’t care about Berry. I’m just asking about the zoo.]
[Berry is basically the director now. She misses you a lot. And it seems like she knew you a long, long time ago, but you just don’t remember her. And you were so mean to her!] SkyScreecher replied.
TigerClaw: [Mean? That foolish human. When she was a kid, she almost got herself killed in the lion’s cage. And when she grew up, she came back here meddling in things, almost getung herself killed by those bad humans. I had to be mean to her. If I was mean enough, maybe she’d learn not to be so foolish!]
I froze. My heart warmed, and a lump formed in my throat.
So that was why you were so mean to me. You wanted me to stay away from the danger.
MonkeyKing: [Hey, hey, hey, what’s with this weird atmosphere? Primates and felines can’t be together! Berry and I are the ones who are meant to be!]
He called out to the parrot: [Parrot, help me tell Berry I want to confess my love to her!]
[She’s the most beautiful human girl I’ve ever seen.]
[She has stars in her eyes.]
[I’m the Monkey King of Mount Emei. Come with me to Mount Emei and be my queen-]
My mouth twitched. You really can’t hide your teenage monkey angst, can you?
I floored the gas pedal and drove to the monkey enclosure. I announced on the spot, “From this day on, the Monkey King’s banana rations are cut in half!”
[NO!]
The sun set, the evening sky a cascade of colors.
I drove the tour cart, leisurely making my way forward.
Like the soaring egrets, the playful elephants, the leaping monkeys, and the tiger walking in the northern winds…
Everything was bright and beautiful. All was well.
