Just a Monkey Man; part 3 of 'The Urban Jungle'

He stood in front of the door, his jaw open. His goal, his dream,
what monkeys' spent their lives searching for, and he had found it
after only one evening. He must be the cleverest monkey in the
world.

Timothy stepped inside. He slowly wandered around, sticking to the
walls so not to be trampled. He hadn't expected humans to be here, but
then he supposed that in the end they were only big monkeys
themselves.

Looking to the other side of the room, he could just make out a wooden
barrier about three and a half feet in height. A lot of humans seemed
to be waiting there. Perhaps that was where the peanuts were. But he
didn't want to risk their stamping feet and strange tempers. He needed
to be sure, he needed a better look. There was a wooden beam to his
side; he scrambled up it to the rafters above.

There were eight tables that Timothy could count. Most of them were
surrounded by humans laughing and drinking. There seemed to be a queue
of sorts, but it was squashed flat, or perhaps there were lots of
little queues, with people pushing and shuffling. He squinted, there
was a sign at the front. He could just make it out: 'Free peanuts with
every drink.' Timothy sighed. How was he going to get a drink? But he
wasn't going to let this get him down! No matter how much effort this
would take, it would be better than working for Mr Stickley.

It was strange though that there weren't any monkeys here, proper
monkeys. Timothy hadn't actually thought about it, but all the peanuts
in the world wouldn't mean much if...

And that's when he saw her.

Her limbs were long, her fur was the colour of a forest fire: red at
the tips, but burnt ash underneath. The air curved and wavered at her
presence. Her eyes, like Timothy's were surrounded by white rings, but
unlike Timothy's these blazed yellow at the edges, before dying into
the crimson flames and black smoke of the rest of her fur.

Yeah, Timothy thought, she's hot!

She was on the beam, laying on her back. Occasionally she would take a
peanut from the pile at her side and place it in her mouth. For the
rest of the time she would just lay there, whistling and waving her
tail, or she would fiddle with her toothpick, though never put it in
her mouth. What she certainly wasn't doing was paying Timothy any
attention whatsoever.

Timothy sat for a full five minutes staring. It would be to tempting to
say he had been undressing her with his eyes, only monkeys like these
generally don't wear clothes, and the sight of a monkey without fur is
generally disturbing (which is why humans do wear clothes).

He shaked his head from side to side. He couldn't just sit here, he had
to make his move. Timothy took a step forward. Bethany looked up then
leapt, not away but straight at him! She knocked into Timothy, who fell
backwards, but luckily not off the beam to which he now gripped on
tightly.

She held her tooth pick in one hand towards his throat, as though it
was a rapier. "Who are you?" she demanded, "What are you doing here?"
Timothy just stared doe faced at her. She looked at his face, then
dropped her weapon and sat down laughing.

"I'm sorry!" she said with the little air she had left. "I must look so
silly. I'm just not used to visitors up here." Timothy sat up, still a
little shaken. He looked at the abandoned pile further down the
wood.

"Where did you get the..."

"Oh, what's you're name?" she interrupted.

"Timothy," he replied, "Timothy Monkey."

She grinned. "I'm Bethany. Bethany Monkey."

Timothy smiled at her in amazement, then leapt and hugged her. "You
must be," he said clenching her in his arms, "my long lost
sister!"

Bethany squirmed and spoke in a choked voice. "Err.. Timothy, I think
Monkey is quite a common surname in..."

Timothy let go and looked down. "Oh yes," he said disappointed.
"Still," he said perking up, "maybe it's better this way, eh?" and
nudged her sharply in the ribs. She drew back and hissed. Timothy
looked at her blankly, then sat down on the beam.

A crunch from Bethany's mouth reminded him of his original question.
"How did you get the peanuts?"

Bethany, laid down once again, peered slightly over the edge, looking
down at the big people. "They drop them."

"The humans?"

"Yeah."

Bethany crunched on another peanut. As she bit down, a bell rang three
times. She swore under her breath, and looked to Timothy. "Not much
time left," she said. She scoffed down her last few peanuts, pulled
herself to her feet and then ran down the vertical beam to the
floor.

Timothy scrambled after her, trying to keep up as she darted through
the tree trunk legs to gather the bounty of the forest floor. Timothy
even managed to pick up some peanuts himself: seven in total, a whole
week's wages. The forage was on, they avoided the competitors, the
predators, and the indifferent, until one bent over and said:

"A actual monkey! This is taking the..."

The man behind the barrier swiveled his head so quick his neck made a
cracking sound. The edges of his mouth pulled themselves into a scowl.
"That scrounging monkey's back!" he said slurrily through his
teeth.

Bethany stopped dead, and looked behind her. She caught a glimpse of
the barman striding into a back room. "Timothy," whispered Bethany,
"we've got to get out of here!"

"Flaming scrounging monkeys!" The war-cry rippled throughout the room,
and over the barrier jumped the barman, carrying a large and menacing
broom. "Get back where you came from!"

"Timothy!" cried Bethany, and Timothy ran. Bethany looked around
furtively as the barman was running towards her, and spotted what she
was looking for. She leapt between his legs, and grabbed a peanut left
languishing on the floor. Bethany put the nut in her mouth. The barman
turned and showed his teeth. He swung, but Bethany jumped the sweep of
his broom, and caught onto his arm. She scrambled to the top of his
head (making sure to poke him in the eye with her foot), then made a
giant jump off it, landing outside the door.

Timothy was waiting, his face caught between a worried frown and a
michevious smile. "Are you mad?" he asked. Bethany smiled widely, then
yanked his arm to the left. She grabbed onto the drain pipe and climbed
up it. Timothy followed, just in time to avoid the angry barkeep
storming out the door. They ran accross the top of the buildings,
leaving the barman to shake his broom at the sky.

Bethany stopped after a few roof tops. Timothy ran into her, knocking
them both over. Quickly they pulled themselves to their limbs before
they slid off. They sat on the roof for a few moments, staring at the
lights of the street.

"Does that happen often there?" Timothy asked. He had started gently
touching her on the elbow.

"All the time," replied Bethany with a smile.

Timothy nodded, then stretched his arms, yawning. He put his right one
round Bethany.

"Hey!"

Timothy withdrew his arm. "Sorry."

"Don't worry." They sat silently for a few moments more. Bethany
glanced round and smiled, then snapped her head back. She yawned
herself. "I better be finding somewhere to sleep."

"Oh I know a place.."

"See you tommorrow night!" Bethany sprung from her resting place onto
an ajoining roof. Timothy watched her leave. She paused to wave, and
then she was gone.

Timothy laid against the tiles of the rooftop, and looked up at the few
stars that could escape the glare of the street-lamps. Both glinted in
his eyes

***

"Errr yes, I believe Mr Stickley is free tommorrow at-" The phone
slipped out of Anne's paws. She growled , then pounced on it, her mouth
ending close to the speaker. "Urm sorry about that. Yes, Mr Stickley
will be available for a meeting tommorrow at two. Yes. Goodbye." She
picked the phone up with her jaws, boundered up on top of Timothy's
desk and desperately tried to reunite the receiver with the rest of the
phone.

Timothy capered through the window and landed in front of Anne.

"Where have you been?" she asked, leaving the phone in a puddle of
drool.

Timothy smiled, and then gave Anne a big hug.

"Hey, get off!"

"Sorry Anne, I just had to thank you!"

"What?"

"I found it, I found the Urban Jungle."

"But...."

"But what?"

"It's not a really place! I made it up so you would.."

"Oh Anne," cried Timothy. He looked at her for a few seconds, then
smiled. "You're far too modest! Thank you thank you. What can I ever do
to repay you?"

"You could start by doing your job and operating the phone!"

"Oh I shan't be doing that any more" Timothy said, and then skipped
towards the door of Mr Stickley. He gave it a little knock, then gave a
little giggle.

"Come in," intoned the deep voice of Mr Stickley. Timothy leapt, pulled
down the handle and swung with the door. He flew through the air and
landed on Mr Stickley's desk, knocking over a cup off coffee and
spilling it over the papers Mr Stickley was reading.

"Timothy Monkey!" yelled Mr Stickley at the top of his voice.

"Yessir" Timothy responded with a grin.

"How dare you? You are over two hours late for work, having left poor
Anne to do your work for you! That alone gives me enough cause to dock
you today's peanut. Then you have the insolence to come bounding into
my office and the incompetence to knock over my beverage in the
process. You, my simian employee, are one step away from being fired,
so if..."

"I quit!" Timothy interrupted, giving a mock salute, then breaking down
in giggles.

"You quit?"

"Yessir!"

"YOU quit? You are quitting? So, little Timothy, where are YOU going to
get food from if not I?"

Timothy giggled once more. "I get it for free."

"For free?" Timothy nodded emphatically. "Where?" Mr Sticklet
demanded.

"The Urban Jungle!"

Mr Stickley placed his fingers to his forehead in wonderment. Then
realisation hit him. "Ah yes, it is... a bar, a place where people go
to.. spend and have... fun." He shut his eyes, hunched his shoulders
and trembled at the thought. "Very well, Timothy, go to your 'bar'." He
stared at the papers on the desk for a few seconds, at the accounts and
bank statements, all the money... "To be quite honest with you Timothy,
it will be shame to see you go."

Timothy looked taken aback. "Really?"

"Yes. I have always said to Anne that you were an exceptional employee.
Perhaps, perhaps I never quite treated you as well as I should-"

"Well, I know I could be a little annoying at times-" Mr Stickley
nodded gravely. Timothy continued: "-but I'm still leaving!"

"Then know this! If you leave you may never come back here. Never! Do
you hear me, Monkey?"

Timothy scrunched up his face, leant towards Mr Stickley and then with
a bright smile stuck his tounge out. Mr Stickley attempted to swipe him
with his hand, but by the time it reached where Timothy should have
been, the monkey was already out the door.

Mr Stickley breathed deeply. His face had reddenned, and he started
tapping with increasing force upon the desk. After a minute he picked
the phone.

"Anne?" After a few seconds, and a few knocks and bangs, an answer
came.

"Yes... sir?"

"Put me through to directory inquiries."