The jungle was bright and buzzing that morning, the sun sprinkling golden rays through the tall trees. Birds chirped happily, a waterfall sang in the distance, and the air smelled like ripe fruit and fresh leaves. CUTIS woke up earlier than usual, stretching his arms wide and patting his belly.
“Hmm…” he murmured, looking around. “I’m hungry. But today, I’m not just eating fruit. Today, I’ll cook!”
He stood proudly, hands on hips like a chef.
From the nearby tree, baby monkey peeked down, rubbing his eyes. “Huh? Cook? You? Since when do monkeys cook?”
CUTIS turned with a grin. “Since today! Watch and learn, baby monkey. I’ll make a jungle feast!”
Baby monkey climbed down, giggling. “Feast? CUTIS, last time you tried cooking, you burned the bananas!”
CUTIS crossed his arms, pretending to be offended. “That was an experiment! Every great chef has a failure before success!”
Baby monkey snickered. “Then this is going to be super funny again.”
CUTIS ignored him and began gathering ingredients. He picked up ripe bananas, wild mangoes, coconuts, and even a few strange-looking berries he wasn’t entirely sure about. “Step one,” he declared, “collect only the best and most delicious food in the forest.”
Baby monkey watched, still skeptical. “Those berries look suspicious…”
CUTIS waved his hand dramatically. “Nonsense! They’re colorful — that means they’re tasty!”
Baby monkey raised an eyebrow. “Or poisonous.”
CUTIS paused, then shrugged. “Cooking requires bravery!”
He spread his “ingredients” on a flat rock, which he called his “kitchen counter.” He tied a leaf around his head like a chef’s bandana, puffed out his chest, and said proudly, “Chef CUTIS is now open for business!”
Baby monkey clapped sarcastically. “Bravo, Chef CUTIS! What’s on the menu?”
CUTIS twirled a stick like a spoon. “Today, I’m making Banana Jungle Deluxe! It’s a secret recipe — sweet, crunchy, and full of surprises.”
“Full of mistakes, maybe,” baby monkey mumbled under his breath.
CUTIS began mashing bananas in a coconut shell with a stick. SPLAT! Some of the banana flew right into baby monkey’s face.
“Hey!” baby monkey shouted. “Watch it!”
CUTIS giggled. “Oops! My assistant seems upset!”
“I’m not your assistant!”
“Fine, my food taster!”
Baby monkey rolled his eyes. “That’s worse.”
CUTIS ignored him again, mixing in pieces of mango and splashing in coconut water. He stirred dramatically, pretending he was on a cooking show. “Ah yes, the flavor must sing! The texture must dance!”
He tossed the bowl into the air and caught it with flair — except he didn’t really catch it. The bowl flipped upside down and landed right on his head.
Baby monkey fell over laughing. “HAHAHA! The great Chef CUTIS wears his food now!”
CUTIS pulled the coconut shell off, sticky fruit dripping from his fur. “This is called creative presentation, thank you very much!”
“Sure,” baby monkey wheezed between giggles. “You’re a genius!”
CUTIS sighed but smiled. “Fine, fine, maybe I’ll try again. Let’s make it better!”
He scooped the fruit back into the bowl, added more mango, and sprinkled the mysterious berries on top. “Now it’s perfect! Time to cook!”
“Cook?” baby monkey blinked. “You mean… heat it up? How? You can’t make fire!”
CUTIS grinned proudly. “Oh, I can. I watched Dad do it once.”
Baby monkey gasped. “Oh no…”
CUTIS picked up two stones and began striking them together. CLACK! CLACK! CLACK! Tiny sparks appeared, and CUTIS puffed up his chest again. “See? Easy!”
But instead of catching fire, the sparks hit his pile of dried leaves and — POOF! — a cloud of smoke exploded into his face.
He stumbled back, coughing. “Agh! My eyes!”
Baby monkey couldn’t stop laughing. “HAHAHA! Chef CUTIS, your kitchen’s on fire!”
CUTIS blinked through the smoke, his fur covered in soot. “It’s called smoky flavor, baby monkey! Totally intentional!”
Baby monkey clutched his stomach, laughing so hard he rolled on the ground. “Oh no—stop—I can’t breathe!”
CUTIS finally got the smoke under control and presented his creation: a mushy pile of fruit with mysterious purple spots and a faint smell of… burned leaves.
“Tada!” CUTIS said proudly, holding up the bowl. “The first-ever Jungle Banana Deluxe! Try it!”
Baby monkey froze. “You want me to eat that?”
CUTIS nodded with confidence. “Of course! You’re my official taste tester.”
Baby monkey slowly leaned forward, sniffing it suspiciously. “It smells… strange.”
“Strange means unique!” CUTIS said cheerfully.
He watched eagerly as baby monkey picked up a small piece with trembling fingers and popped it into his mouth.
There was silence.
Then baby monkey’s eyes widened. His cheeks puffed out. He made a funny face like he had swallowed something sour.
“Uhhh…” CUTIS asked nervously. “How is it?”
Baby monkey squeaked, “HOT! It’s spicy! Why is it spicy?!”
CUTIS looked shocked. “Spicy?! There’s no chili here!”
Baby monkey pointed at the purple berries. “Those berries! They’re fire berries! They make your tongue burn!”
CUTIS’s jaw dropped. “I thought they were sweet!”
Baby monkey ran in circles, fanning his mouth. “Water! Water! My tongue’s on fire!”
CUTIS panicked and handed him a coconut shell filled with water — but instead of water, it was more coconut milk with banana bits in it.
Baby monkey gulped it down… and his face twisted again. “CUTIS!!! That’s not helping!!”
CUTIS scratched his head. “Oops. Wrong bowl.”
The chaos continued for another few minutes — baby monkey running around with his tongue out, CUTIS chasing him with random fruit yelling, “Eat this! It’ll fix it!”
Finally, baby monkey dunked his face into the river with a loud SPLASH! and came back up panting. “Ohhh, my poor mouth…”
CUTIS, embarrassed but trying to stay cheerful, said softly, “So… you didn’t like it?”
Baby monkey glared for a second, then burst out laughing again. “Didn’t like it?! CUTIS, that was the funniest meal ever!”
CUTIS blinked. “Funny?”
Baby monkey nodded, giggling. “You looked like a smoky banana! And I sounded like a dragon!”
CUTIS laughed too, rubbing the back of his head. “Okay, maybe I’m not the best chef yet.”
“Not yet?” baby monkey smirked. “You mean never!”
CUTIS grinned mischievously. “Oh yeah? Let’s see you do better!”
Baby monkey puffed up his chest. “Fine! I’ll make Monkey Mango Delight! Watch and learn, Chef CUTIS!”
He began mashing mangoes and bananas together wildly, but the fruit flew everywhere — splatting onto trees, rocks, and CUTIS’s face again.
“Hey! You’re worse than me!” CUTIS laughed.
“Cooking is messy art!” baby monkey declared proudly.
Within minutes, both of them were covered head to toe in fruit — sticky, sweet, and laughing so hard they could barely stand.
When Dad came by, he froze, eyes wide. “What in the jungle happened here?!”
CUTIS saluted. “We were cooking!”
Dad blinked. “Cooking or starting a fruit war?”
Baby monkey giggled. “Both!”
Dad sighed but smiled, shaking his head. “You two are impossible… but at least you’re having fun.”
CUTIS pointed at his messy “dish.” “Want to try some, Dad?”
Dad looked at the sticky pile suspiciously. “Uhh… maybe later.”
Baby monkey whispered to him, “Don’t. It’s dangerous.”
Dad burst out laughing.
The sun began to set, painting the sky orange and pink. The two little monkeys sat side by side, still covered in fruit but smiling.
CUTIS nudged his little brother. “You know, even if I’m a bad cook, we make a great team.”
Baby monkey giggled. “Yeah. A great, messy, team.”
They both laughed again as the jungle echoed with their joy — two silly monkeys, one smoky kitchen, and a memory they’d never forget.
