😺 The Hiccup Kitten

Mochi the kitten had the hiccups. "Hic!" Every time she hiccupped, she bounced a little bit into the air. "Hic!" Bounce. "Hic!" Bounce.

"I'll help you," said her big brother, Tofu. "Hold your breath!" Mochi held her breath. Her cheeks puffed out. Her eyes went round. She turned a bit pink. Then: "HIC!" She bounced right onto the sofa.

"Drink some water upside down," said the goldfish, blowing a bubble. Mochi tried to drink upside down. She got water up her nose instead. "Hic!" She bounced onto the bookshelf.

"Count to ten," said Grandma cat, knitting in her chair. "One, two, three, hic! Four, five, hic!" Mochi bounced onto the curtain rail. Now she was very high up, holding on with all her claws.

"Let's try a surprise," whispered Tofu. He crept behind the curtain. He waited. Then he jumped out. "BOO!" But Mochi had seen his tail sticking out. "I know you're there, Tofu. Hic!"

Everyone sat down, tired. Mochi climbed down slowly. "I give up," she sighed. She lay in her basket and looked at the ceiling. She wasn't thinking about hiccups at all. She was thinking about fish, and sunbeams, and string.

A minute passed. Then two. "Hey," said Tofu. "Mochi. Your hiccups have stopped!" Mochi sat up. She waited. Nothing. No hiccup. No bounce.

"Hooray!" everyone cheered. Mochi was so happy that she laughed. And when she laughed, she let out a tiny, happy, very surprising... "Meow-hic!" Everyone laughed so hard that Grandma dropped her knitting.