Fraternal Attraction

"Do you want brothers or sisters someday?," asks Bart, squatting down to Teddy's eye-level. After one last glance into the spider monkey exhibit, Teddy shakes his head.

Rather, he tries to shake only his head; in reality, Teddy’s whole upper body twists back and forth like a corkscrew. "No way. I want a monkey!"

Bart laughs. "What would you do with a monkey?"

"Duh," says Teddy, explaining the most obvious thing in the world . "Teach him to talk. Then he could tell me about his home in the jungle and his tribe.”

Bart cocks his head. "And how would you teach a monkey to talk?"

Rachel nudges Bart. "Enough with the inquisition, doctor," she mutters, fanning herself with a zoo map. “The poem this morning was enough stimulation.” Sweat slithers down her arm. "I wish it weren’t so damn hot."

Bored, Teddy produces a colored pencil and thrusts it out in front of him. He brings it closer and closer to his nose until his eyes begin to cross.

Rachel snatches away the pencil. "Don't do that, Teddy! You’ll ruin your vision."

Bart leans in with a faux-whisper, "Actually, there's no proof of that."

Rachel throws up her hands. "Stop trying to raise my son!"

"Well I want to have some relationship with..."

Bart’s protest fades away. Teddy knows to disappear whenever his Mom’s angry. Or tired. Or drinking grape juice.

At the rhinoceros exhibit, Teddy rises up on his tip-toes. Nothing. Except… he spots motion in the moat between the exhibit and the sidewalk. A monkey is knuckling his way down the passage.

It looks up and meets Teddy’s eyes. Screeching, it lifts its arms up and down. Up and down.

Teddy thinks for about three seconds. He hops up onto the railing, and slides into the moat.