Little Yuri was not happy.
She sat on the ground, her tiny arms crossed, her face scrunched up in a deep pout. Big, angry tears rolled down her cheeks as she stomped her little foot.
“Mamaaa! Nooo!” Yuri screamed at the top of her lungs.
Mama Monkey sighed, trying to stay calm. “Yuri, sweetheart, what’s wrong?” She reached out gently, but Yuri shrieked again, turning her head away.
“SO NASTY!” Yuri wailed, sticking out her tongue dramatically.
The other baby monkeys stopped playing and turned to watch. Some giggled, while others whispered, “What happened to Yuri?”
Mama Monkey knelt beside her stubborn little one. “Yuri, my love, I just cleaned your face! You had banana all over it.”
Yuri huffed. “But I liked it there! You wiped it off with a WET LEAF! So NASTY!” She shivered dramatically, as if the horror of being wiped clean was too much to bear.
Mama Monkey tried not to laugh. “Oh, my silly girl. I was just trying to help.”
Yuri shook her head furiously. “No more wet leaves! No more cleaning! I’m never getting washed again!”
Mama sighed and thought for a moment. Then she grinned. “Okay… but if you don’t get clean, I guess that means no more cuddles.”
Yuri gasped. “No cuddles?”
Mama nodded. “Nope. Only clean monkeys get cuddles.”
Yuri hesitated. She loved cuddles. Slowly, she sniffled and looked up. “…Can I have one more wet leaf? But gently!”
Mama Monkey laughed and hugged her messy little drama queen. “Of course, my love.”
And just like that, Yuri was clean—and back in her mama’s arms, right where she belonged.
