On a day off, the parents decided to take their little son to the zoo. The weather was warm and sunny, and the boy was glowing with joy — he had long dreamed of seeing animals not in pictures, but in real life. They walked along the paths for a long time, looking at the bears, lions, giraffes. The boy excitedly asked about everything he saw, and the parents smiled and told him how each animal lived, what it ate, and what made one species different from another.
They stopped by the elephant enclosure, then looked at the flamingos, then watched the monkeys play in the trees. The family was already about to move on when suddenly the boy stopped sharply, looked up, and shouted happily:
— Mom, look!
He darted off and ran to a large glass enclosure. Behind the thick glass sat a huge orangutan with dark, heavy eyes. The boy, feeling neither fear nor danger, pressed his little palm against the glass and waved cheerfully with the other hand.
— Look, Dad! He sees me!
The parents laughed, took out their phone, and started recording. The orangutan slowly stood up, walked closer and… placed his massive palm exactly against the boy’s little hand on the glass. People around them were touched — someone whispered, “What a touching scene,” someone filmed a video.
The boy smiled happily.
The parents were amazed too — it seemed like a nearly magical moment.
But suddenly a zoo employee ran up to them, pale, almost shouting:
— Get the child away from the cage! Immediately!
The mother jerked her son back, he got scared and started crying, and the father asked in confusion:
— What’s going on? He just copied the kid’s movement…
And at that moment they learned with horror that the orangutan’s actions were not a cute game, but…
Continuation in the first comment
The employee exhaled heavily, looking at the orangutan, who was now furiously hitting the glass with his huge palm, as if trying to reach the one who had stood so close just a few seconds earlier.
— This… this is not a greeting, — he said in a trembling voice. — A few days ago his baby died. He is under the heaviest stress. This gesture is an attempt to hit, grab, harm. From the outside it looks cute, but in reality he perceived the child as a threat… or a replacement for his own baby. Right now we ourselves are afraid to approach his enclosure.
The mother hugged her son tighter, the father frowned, looking at the glass that was still shaking after the blows.
— Could he break the glass? — the father asked quietly.
The employee nodded:
— The risk is small, but not zero.
The parents hurriedly led the boy away, calming him and not even looking back. And the orangutan still sat by the glass, breathing heavily, as if still not understanding why that small silhouette suddenly disappeared.
