The Jade Monkey
Rain pattered overhead as Micah stared out the water-dropped window, flicking the blinds’ string at the glass.
Plink, plink, plink.
It was the second rainy day, and while Micah loved his Buggy, there wasn’t much to do at her big, old house that always smelled like soup. She had a TV, but it was old and the picture wasn’t great. It only had an antenna, and with the rain, the signal didn’t come in and the picture kept freezing.
Micah sighed.
Plink, plink, plink.
“Would you stop that tapping, hon?” Buggy called from the kitchen. She was sitting at the table, working on her crossword.
Micah let the string fall. Hopping down from the window seat, he walked into the kitchen. “Buggy, I’m bored.”
“I’m sorry, hon. You want to help me with my crossword?”
“No, I don’t really like crosswords. And the rain is making the TV freeze.” Micah sighed again and plopped down at the table. “Do you have any games or anything?”
“Hmm?” Buggy looked up from her puzzle, glasses perched on the end of her nose. “I’m sure I do. Probably up in the attic someplace. The door’s locked, but I can get you a key.”
She finished jotting down her answer in precise print and set her pencil down. She found the old, rusty attic key in a junk drawer overflowing with paper clips, twist ties, and old receipts. Handing it to him she said, “Just be careful up there. I have a lot of junk.”
“Okay.” Micah took the key. Climbing the steps two at a time, he hurried down the hall to the attic door.
He slipped the key into the lock and turned. The door creaked open, revealing a steep, narrow, wooden staircase leading up into darkness.
The rain was louder up in the attic, and the air smelled stale and dusty. He shivered and flipped on the lightswitch, casting a strange orange glow over the attic.
Stacks of cardboard boxes sat in the corners, and old sheet-covered furniture stood like ghosts among tubs of Christmas decorations and old luggage. Micah shook off the crawling feeling on his skin and searched for some games.
He unearthed a box of games hidden underneath an old dusty hat box. Micah lifted the hat box out of the way--it was heavier than it looked--and set it aside. Game pieces rattled as he rummaged through the box of old board games with strange titles. Most were faded, yellowed, and covered with pictures of people in outdated clothing.
“Nothing.” Micah sighed and sat back on his heels. His elbow hit the hat box and knocked it over, spilling the contents all over the attic floor.
Something landed with a thunk.
Nestled in a pile of old silk scarves and tissue paper was a light green figurine. Micah frowned and picked it up.
It was a carved monkey, small as a baseball, but heavier. Micah bounced it in his hand for a moment, weighing it. The stone gleamed at him. It looked like jade and felt cool to the touch.
Ignoring the board games, Micah picked up the fallen hat box and put everything back. Putting the monkey in his pocket, he went back downstairs.
As Micah walked into the kitchen, he was greeted by the warm smell of chocolate chip cookies baking. His stomach rumbled.
“I thought cookies might cheer you up,” said Buggy, spooning batter onto a cookie sheet. “The first batch will be done in a few minutes.”
“I wish they were done now,” Micah said.
Buggy chuckled. “Just give it a few--” The timer buzzed. “Huh. I guess they’re done now.” She frowned for a moment, then shrugged and pulled the cookies out of the oven.
“Did you find any games?” Buggy asked, offering a cookie.
Micah took one, and bounced it back and forth between his hands, blowing the steam off, before taking a bite. “Not really. I just wish it would stop raining so I could go outside.”
No sooner had the words left his mouth, than the rain stopped. Micah whooped and grabbed another cookie as he ran to the door.
Buggy lifted her eyebrows as she looked out the window. “Well, I’ll be…” A funny look crossed her face. Micah didn’t notice.
“Thanks, Buggy!”
The days that followed were some of the best and luckiest Micah ever had. It seemed all he had to do was speak, and whatever he wanted, came true.
His favorite movie was on television.
He received a new pair of soccer cleats from his uncle, “Just because.”
One morning, a tree house appeared in the big maple tree in Buggy’s backyard. When Micah asked about it, Buggy seemed as surprised and confused as he was.
“Maybe a neighbor built it during the night?” she suggested. She eyed Micah closely, eyebrows knit together.
Micah ran outside and climbed the rope ladder into the tree house. Sunlight filtered through the open windows, and there were a couple of squashy bean bag chairs sitting in the middle. A little crate of snacks and comics was tucked into the corner.
Micah put down the little jade monkey--he carried it wherever he went--and made himself comfortable on a bean bag chair with a snack and a comic book.
After a while, boredom hit.
“I wish I had someone to talk to.”
“I can help with that,” said a voice.
Micah jumped and yelled. Standing in the middle of his tree house was a strange-looking boy with a big forehead underneath spiky black hair. His ears stuck out like two coins on either side of his head, and there was a slight green glow about him.
“Who are you?” Micah demanded.
The boy laughed. “Funny you should ask. I’m the reason for all of your wishes coming true.”
“My wishes? What are you talking about?”
The boy smacked his forehead. “The tree house? The cleats? Don’t tell me you haven’t figured it out yet.”
“Figured out what?” Micah looked down. The jade monkey was gone. “You? But… how?”
“Magic, enchantments, spells. ” The boy counted off on his fingers. “The usual, you know. Now, come on, make another wish and make it a fun one. My last master was incredibly boring.”
“Who was your last master?”
“Micah!” Buggy’s voice called to him from the back door. “I need your help moving the sofa!”
“One second!” He turned back to the green boy. “So you’re saying, whatever I wish will come true? Anything?”
“Well, I can’t bring people back from the dead. And I can’t predict the future so forget about the winning lottery numbers.” He screwed up his face. “There’s more…” he shrugged. “I can’t remember everything.”
“Anything at all?” Micah’s brain turned over, counting all the possibilities. He heard Buggy call to him again, but he ignored her. “Where do I begin?”
The jade monkey walked over to an empty bean bag chair and plopped into it. “Take your time,” he said, and flipped through a comic book.
“How about --”
“Micah, didn’t you hear me?” Buggy called from the bottom of the ladder. “I need your help.”
“Coming!” Micah scowled and climbed down the ladder. “Sometimes I wish you’d leave me alone,” he muttered.
Buggy had already gone back inside the house when Micah swung down from the rope ladder.
“Buggy!” he called, running through the door. “What do you need?”
Silence.
Weird. He walked through the kitchen and pushed open the swinging door that led into the dining room. It was empty too.
“Buggy? I thought you needed help?” Micah wandered the entire house. No sign of his grandmother anywhere. His stomach twisted.
He went back into the kitchen and stopped when he saw the boy sitting on the countertop, swinging his legs. “Problem?” the boy asked with a wicked grin.
Micah narrowed his eyes. “My grandma is gone. Did you do something?”
“Me?” The boy raised his eyebrows innocently. “I serve my master. I can’t do anything unless someone wishes it.”
“I didn’t…” Micah stopped, eyes wide. “No.”
“Yes.”
“That wasn’t a wish! I just wanted her to stop yelling at me! Bring her back!”
“That’s what I forgot to tell you!” The boy smacked his forehead. “I can’t undo wishes once they’re made.”
“What?!” Micah grabbed the boy’s shoulders and shook them. “You have to! I wish I never said that! I wish she was back!”
The boy just shook his head. “No can do, pal.” He rubbed his hands together. “So about your next wish, I say we go big!”
Micah’s panicked eyes narrowed. “You can’t be serious!” He paced the kitchen floor, ignoring the boy.
“I’ve always wanted to conjure something big like a tiger, or maybe an elephant.” He tapped his chin. “Wish for that!”
Micah, who wasn’t listening, suddenly stopped in the middle of the kitchen. “I’ve got it!” He walked over to the boy and poked him in the chest. “I wish I had never found the jade monkey.”
The boy’s eyes lit with surprise. He scowled. “Fine,” he said and snapped his fingers.
Micah came thundering down the steps from the attic with a dusty board game in his hands and walked into the kitchen. He was greeted by the warm smell of chocolate chip cookies baking. His stomach rumbled.
“I thought some cookies might cheer you up,” said Buggy, spooning batter onto a cookie sheet. “The first batch will be done in a few minutes.”
“I wish they were done now,” Micah said.
Buggy chuckled. “Just give it a few minutes. Did you find any games?”
Micah shook the game. “I hoped you could teach me.”
Buggy laughed. “Sure thing. Did you find anything interesting up there?” She lifted her eyebrows.
“You wouldn’t believe me if I told you.” Micah said, setting up the game on the table.
“You found the monkey, didn’t you?”
Micah froze. “How did you know?”
Buggy shook her head. “I never liked that monkey. A sneaky, little trickster, if you ask me.”
The oven buzzed, and she turned to take the fresh, warm chocolate chip cookies out to cool. “What did you wish for?”
Micah laughed and sat down at the table. He explained everything to his grandmother as they played and ate chocolate chip cookies.