Fadi walked up to the big fence at the zoo. Through the bars he saw something enormous. "Look!" he said.
Fadi pressed his face to the glass. His eyes grew round. "How big is that animal!" he shouted. The father crouched down beside him.
That is an elephant, the father said. Elephants are kind. They only eat grass and drink with their trunk. Fadi grinned and sprouted an imaginary trunk from his nose.
Fadi wiggled his nose and pretended to spray water everywhere. The elephant nearby lifted its trunk and sprayed water right at the glass. Splash!
Fadi started waving at the elephant. The elephant turned its head and looked right at him. Hello, little friend, it seemed to say.
Then the elephant let out a deep rumbling sound. BOOM. It vibrated through the floor. Fadi stopped waving and took a small step back.
He glanced over at his father. Is it mad? he wondered. The father put a hand on his shoulder. It is just saying hello, he said gently.
Elephants are gentle, the father explained. They eat grass all day. They are not like the cheetah that eats meat. Fadi nodded slowly.
Fadi looked at the elephant again. Its ears were flapping softly and its trunk swayed like a slow dance. He let out a breath he did not know he was holding.
Now Fadi waved at the elephant again. Big and friendly, he thought. The elephant stood still and listened.
The elephant lifted its trunk once more and puffed out a little cloud of dust. Fadi laughed and jumped up and down.
Time to go home, the father said. Fadi gave the elephant one last wave. Goodbye, big friend. The elephant watched him leave.
At the gate Fadi looked back one more time. The elephant was lying down now, chewing slowly. It looked peaceful.
On the walk home Fadi held his father's hand. He kept practicing his trunk with his nose. Rumble rumble, he made quietly.
That night Fadi dreamed of a giant grey friend. The friend rumbled softly and sprayed water that tasted like rain.
In the dream the elephant looked right at him and said, Come back soon, little friend. Fadi smiled in his sleep.