Good Morning, Gorillas (5 page)

While all the gorillas napped, Jack sneaked the book out of his pack. He found the gorilla chapter. He read softly to Annie:

“What?”
Annie said loudly. “
Sign
language? A
special language
?”

Her voice woke Bu-bu and Ho-ho. They sat up and rubbed their eyes.

“So?” said Jack.

“Morgan’s secret
rhyme
!” said Annie. “Don’t you remember?” She repeated the rhyme:

“Oh … yeah!” said Jack.

“I even know a little sign language,” said Annie. “In school, we learned how to sign
I love you
.”

Annie held up a closed hand. Slowly she lifted her thumb, index finger, and little finger. She showed the sign to Bu-bu and Ho-ho.

“I—love—you,” she said slowly.

The small gorillas looked curious.

Jack made the sign, too.

“I—love—you,” he said to Bu-bu and Ho-ho.

The two little gorillas stared at Annie and Jack. Then both of them held up their hands. They tried to make the same sign.

“They love us, too!” said Annie.

“Wow,” said Jack. He glanced over at Big Guy.

The silverback’s eyes were open! He was watching them. Jack quickly closed the book. To his relief, the giant gorilla turned over.

“Well,” Annie said with a sigh, “I guess that does it.”

“We spoke a special language,” said Jack. “We talked with our—” Before he could finish his sentence, Bu-bu pushed him.

“Whoa!” said Jack.

Ho-ho held his little arms above his head. He reared back and charged at Jack. With a flying tackle, he knocked Jack over.

“What’s going on?” said Jack.

“They want to play with you!” said Annie.

Bu-bu jumped on Jack and put him in a headlock. Jack broke free from the two small gorillas. He jumped up and dashed into the forest.

Bu-bu and Ho-ho charged after him.

Annie carried Little Guy and followed. She laughed as the small gorillas looked for Jack.

Jack hid behind a tree. He pushed his glasses into place. He waited for Bu-bu.

In a moment, she walked by.

“BOO!” Jack shouted, jumping out.

Bu-bu screeched and leaped straight up in the air. Jack cracked up laughing.

Bu-bu didn’t laugh, though. She bit her lip. She hid her face behind her hands.

“Ohhh, Bu-bu,” said Annie. “Don’t be scared.”

She gently put the baby on the ground. She reached out to comfort Bu-bu.

Bu-bu wrapped her arms around Annie’s neck. She buried her furry head in Annie’s shoulder.

“Jack was just playing,” said Annie.

Bu-bu raised her head. She looked at Jack over Annie’s shoulder.

“Friends?” he asked softly.

Bu-bu stuck her tongue out at him.

Jack laughed. Bu-bu showed her teeth in a big smile.

“Friends!” said Jack.

Just then, Ho-ho started screeching. Jack and Annie looked around. Ho-ho was pointing into the bushes.

“Where’s Little Guy?” said Annie. She and Jack dashed around the shrubs.

The baby had crawled to a tree. He was looking up at a branch.

A huge, sleek cat with black fur was sitting on the branch. His pale green eyes stared down at the baby gorilla. He looked hungry.

“
A black leopard,
” breathed Jack.

The leopard leaped lightly down from his perch. He faced Little Guy. The baby looked scared.

“No!” cried Annie.

She ran over to the baby gorilla and scooped him into her arms.

The leopard let out a snarl. He lowered his head and started slowly toward Annie and the baby.

Jack panicked. He didn’t know what to do at first. Then he remembered Big Guy’s act. Jack took a deep breath. When he let it out, he made a loud hooting sound.

He tore out from the brush. Hooting like a silverback, he ran between Annie and the leopard.

Jack grabbed a tree limb and shook it. He ripped leaves from branches.

He cupped his hands. He beat his chest.

“WRAAGH!”
he roared.
“WRAAGH!”

Then Jack leaned over and charged back and forth past the leopard.

Finally, he threw himself on his belly. He began bashing the ground with his palms. He bashed and bashed and bashed.

“Jack!” Annie called. “Jack!”

Jack looked up.

“He’s gone,” Annie said in a quiet voice. “The leopard’s gone. He left a while ago.”

“Oh,” said Jack.

He sat up.

He pushed his glasses into place. He looked around. Then he smiled.

Jack couldn’t stop smiling. He had scared off a leopard!

Bu-bu and Ho-ho stared at Jack with awe. Annie looked at him with awe, too.

“When did you learn to do
that
?” she asked.

Before Jack could answer, he heard a rustling in the brush. Then Big Guy stepped out from the shrubs.

The giant gorilla walked silently over to Annie. He took Little Guy from her and put the baby on his back. Then he touched Annie’s cheek gently.

Annie grinned at him.

Bu-bu and Ho-ho ran to Big Guy and clung to his legs.

The giant gorilla barked at the small ones, directing them to come with him.

As he walked past Jack, Big Guy stopped.

Huh-huh-huh,
he said in a low voice. He reached out toward Jack.

Jack ducked.

But the silverback patted him on the head. Then he and the small gorillas moved out of sight.

Jack felt as if the top of his head were glowing.

“Wow,” he whispered. “Did you see what he just did?”

“Yeah,” said Annie. “He must have watched the show you put on. He was proud of you.”

“Well, he was proud of you, too,” Jack said modestly.

Annie nodded, smiling. “I guess it’s time to leave now,” she said.

“Leave?” said Jack.

“We have to say good-bye now,” said Annie.

“Good-bye?” said Jack. He didn’t want to say good-bye to the gorillas. He loved them. They were totally great.

“Yeah,” Annie said softly. “Come on.”

She led the way back through the shrubs, around the trees, to the clearing.

They found all the gorillas awake. Some were stretching and yawning. Others were munching on grass or leaves.

The baby was back in his mother’s arms. Bu-bu and Ho-ho were chattering away to their moms.

They’re probably telling them what I did,
Jack thought.

He and Annie walked over to Big Guy and stood in front of him. The other gorillas gathered around.

“We have to go now,” Annie said to all of them.

“We have to say good-bye,” said Jack.

“Thanks for letting us be a part of your family,” said Annie.

She and Jack held up their hands and waved. The gorillas looked sad. They murmured soft sounds.

Big Guy lifted his hand in the air as if he were about to wave. But instead, the silverback raised his thumb, his index finger, and his little finger.

I love you,
the giant gorilla signed.

Jack couldn’t believe his eyes.

Annie signed back,
I love you.

Jack signed, too.

The silverback stared at them for a long moment with a gentle, shy look. Then he turned away and gave a short bark to his family.

All the gorillas lined up behind him. The baby’s mother held her baby close. Ho-ho rode piggyback on his mom. Bu-bu held her mom’s hand.

The silverback started away from the clearing. The others followed.

Bu-bu was the only one who looked back. She screeched and waved at Jack and Annie. Then she walked away, out of sight.

Jack couldn’t talk. His heart was too full. He took a few steps in the direction of the gorillas.

“Hey—” Annie said softly. “You’re going the wrong way.”

Jack looked back at her.

“The tree house is over there,” she said. She pointed in the opposite direction—at the tree house peeking out from the fog.

Jack sighed. Then he turned and started to follow her out of the clearing.

“Oh, don’t forget this,” said Annie.

She leaned over and picked up Jack’s backpack from the grass. She handed it to him.

“Thanks,” he said.

They kept walking.

“And don’t forget
this,
” said Annie. She picked up Jack’s jacket from under a tree. She handed it to him.

“Thanks,” said Jack. He tied his jacket around his waist. They kept walking.

“And don’t forget
these,
” said Annie. She pointed to the flashlight and umbrella. They lay on the grass under the wide, mossy limbs of a fat tree.

Annie picked them up and carried them herself.

It started to drizzle again just as she and Jack got to the rope ladder. They climbed up into the tree house.

When they got inside, they looked out the window. Jack hoped to catch one last glimpse of the gorilla family.

But there was nothing to see. A white mist covered the cloud forest.

Annie picked up the Pennsylvania book. She pointed to a picture of Frog Creek woods.

“I wish we could go home,” she said.

Suddenly, a joyous screech rang out. The happy, wild sound shot through the white mist, through the cool rain, straight into Jack’s heart.

He opened his mouth to answer the call of the gorillas. But it was too late. The wind began to blow.

The tree house started to spin.

It spun faster and faster.

Then everything was still.

Absolutely still.