Little Crocodile Duba doesn’t like to talk.
Duba hid himself in the bushes and didn’t want to see anyone.
“Duba! Duba!” Chipmunk stood on tiptoes outside Duba’s window and called out, “Come out and play, okay?”
Chipmunk called for a long time, but there was no movement inside. “Duba must be hiding,” Chipmunk murmured to himself.
The berries in the bushes had ripened, red like little lanterns, sweet and sour when put in the mouth. Chipmunk knew Duba loved berries, so he decided to find him in the bushes.
“So you really are here.” Chipmunk squeezed into the bushes and saw Duba sitting there eating berries. “I finally found you.”
“I don’t like to talk,” Duba turned away, refusing to look at Chipmunk.
Chipmunk wasn’t upset at all by Duba’s words. “If you don’t like to talk, then let’s just eat berries together.”
Chipmunk sat down beside Duba, and the two of them ate until their mouths were bright red.
Duba hid behind a big tree, wanting to be alone.
The little wolf came and knocked on Duba’s door, but there was no answer. “Duba must be hiding somewhere,” the wolf muttered.
A group of singing birds had recently moved into the treetops. Their songs were so beautiful that anyone who heard them would be enchanted. The wolf guessed that Duba must have gone to listen to the birds sing.
“I found you,” the wolf said as he ran to the big tree, pulling off the large leaf covering Duba’s face. “Let’s see where you can hide now.”
“I don’t like to talk,” Duba gave the wolf a sidelong glance.
“Okay, let’s just listen to the birds sing together without talking.”
The wolf leaned against the tree trunk like Duba, closed his eyes, and listened intently to the birds singing.
Duba crawled into a cave, not wanting to deal with anyone.
The elephant came to Duba’s house, looked everywhere inside and out, but couldn’t find Duba. “Duba must have hidden somewhere by himself,” the elephant mumbled.
This season, the cave was shielded from wind and rain, warm and comfortable. The elephant thought, Duba must have gone into the cave to take a nap; he sure knows how to enjoy himself.
“Of course you’re here,” the elephant said as he reached the cave entrance and heard Duba’s sweet snoring. “No matter how well you hide, I can still find you.”
“I don’t like to talk,” Duba said, annoyed that the elephant had woken him up.
“We won’t talk. I’m here to take a nap with you.”
The elephant lay down next to Duba, and soon the cave was filled with the sound of their snores, one long and one short.
Duba didn’t think it was fun at all. No matter where he hid, his friends could always find him.
Feeling discouraged, Duba returned home. As soon as he walked in, Chipmunk, the wolf, and the elephant all followed him inside.
His friends smiled and said, “Now it’s our turn to hide, and you have to find us.” With that, they all scattered and hid.
Thank you for reading! ” Sitestorys “
