click
The door to my cage is propped open. I can’t stop staring at it.
My door. Open.
The giant box has been moved, and it’s open too. The humans have pushed it up against my doorway.
If I walk through my door, I enter their box.
The zoo lady, whose name is Maya, is here again.
Click. Yogurt raisin.
Click. Tiny marshmallow.
Click. Ripe papaya.
Click. Apple slice.
Hour after hour, click after click.
I look over at Ruby. She waits to see what I will do.
I touch the box.
I sniff the dark interior, where a ripe mango awaits.
Click, click, click.
I have to do it. Ruby is watching me from between the bars of her cage, and this box is the way out.
I step inside.