One sunny morning, Kirusha went to the swimming pool.
He was very excited.
“I’m going swimming!” he shouted.
Kirusha took his swimming things and ran to the pool.
Before getting into the water, he found his favorite swimming float.
It was a big yellow duck-shaped float.
Kirusha put it around his waist.
Now his little body was inside the duck float.
He looked in the mirror.
“Ohhh!”
Kirusha laughed.
He looked just like a big duck!
“Quack! Quack!” he said.
Just then, something funny happened.
A mama duck was walking across the road near the pool.
Behind her were five tiny baby ducklings.
Tap-tap-tap-tap!
The little ducklings followed their mother in a neat little line.
Kirusha watched them.
Then he waddled behind them.
“Quack, quack!” he whispered.
The mama duck walked one way.
Kirusha walked another way.
But the baby ducks saw Kirusha.
They stopped.
They looked at Kirusha.
They looked at their mother.
Then they looked at Kirusha again.
“Peep?”
The little ducklings were confused.
Kirusha looked like a big yellow duck!
“Quack!” said Kirusha.
The baby ducks thought,
That must be Mama!
And they followed him.
Tap-tap-tap-tap!
Kirusha walked toward the swimming pool.
The baby ducks followed.
Tap-tap-tap-tap!
Kirusha stopped.
The baby ducks stopped.
Kirusha walked again.
The baby ducks walked again.
Kirusha giggled.
“Oh no! They think I’m their mother!”
He walked faster.
The baby ducks walked faster.
Kirusha ran.
The baby ducks ran too!
“Wait! Wait!”
Kirusha jumped into the pool.
SPLASH!
The baby ducks stopped at the edge.
“Peep! Peep! Peep!”
Kirusha looked at them.
Then he slowly floated across the pool.
The baby ducks followed him around the edge.
Wherever Kirusha went…
the baby ducks went too.
Kirusha moved left.
The ducks moved left.
Kirusha moved right.
The ducks moved right.
Kirusha turned around.
The ducks turned around.
Kirusha laughed and laughed.
“You are following the wrong duck!”
Finally, the mama duck came waddling over.
“Quack!”
The baby ducks heard her.
They looked at Kirusha.
Then they looked at their real mama.
“Ohhh!”
They quickly ran back to her.
Tap-tap-tap-tap!
Kirusha smiled.
“Bye-bye, little ducks!”
The baby ducks gave one last little,
“Peep! Peep!”
Then they followed their mama away.
Kirusha looked down at his yellow duck float.
He smiled.
“Maybe I should stop wearing this near ducks.”
Then he thought for a moment.
“Unless…”
He put on his best duck voice.
“QUACK!”
And jumped back into the pool.
SPLASH!
Kirusha laughed.
And somewhere nearby, a very confused duck looked around.
“Quack?”
