Good Night, Hic Hic
Bruno tried all the tricks, but he still couldnât get to sleep. He tried counting sheep. One, two, three, four, five...Five little sheep came over the green hill. They looked like clouds with legs. One, two, three, four, five...Five little sheep rolled down the other side.
Wheee!
What fun! They rolled faster and faster. At the bottom, they all landed in a wooly heap. But not for long. They jumped right up and ran to the top of the hill again for another roll.
Wheee!
Now Bruno was even less sleepy. He tried a different trick. He closed his eyes and pretended his bed was a boat. It was a rowboat floating in the water. The boat rocked from side to side.Bruno yawned. He was getting sleepyâvery, very sleepy. Then he opened one eye. The boat was speeding down a river! It was heading for a waterfall!
Wheee!
âMom!â Bruno called. âMom! Mom! Mo-o-o-m!â
Mom peeked in the bedroom door. She looked really sleepy. âWhat is it, Bruno?â
âI canât get to sleep.â
âThatâs because youâre yelling. Good night,â she said.
âI wasnât yelling!â Bruno said. âMom? Mom!â
Mom came back. âWhat is it, Bruno?â
âI wasnât yelling,â Bruno said. âI was calling.â
âAll right, all right,â Mom said. âTry counting sheep.â
âI did!â Bruno said. âIt was too much fun!â
âOkay. Try singing a little song,â she said.
âThen Iâll be singing,â Bruno said. âHow can I get to sleep if Iâm singing?â
âNever mind,â Mom said. âGood night.â
Mom went back to bed. Bruno lay in the dark for a while. Then he got up to use the bathroom. When he got back to his room, he tucked in all his stuffed animals. He hopped into bed. Then he got up again to check the lid on his box of pencil shavings. Yesterday the box had spilled all over the floor. Dad got mad. Heâd wanted to vacuum up Brunoâs collection of pencil shavings!
Bruno lay in the dark. âSleep?â he whispered. âSleep? Where are you?â
Sleep said, â
Hic
.â
Bruno sat up. âSleep?â
â
Hic
.â
But it wasnât Sleep talking. It was Bruno. Bruno had the hiccups.
âMom!â Bruno called. âMo-
hic!
â
This time Dad came. âBruno! Pipe down!â
âI canât sleep. Iâve got the
hic
.â
Dad brought Bruno a glass of water. âDrink this,â he said. âIt should do the trick.â
Bruno drank all the water. He gave Dad the glass and said, âThank
hic
.â
Dad sat on the bed. âOkay. Hereâs another trick. Hold your breath for as long as you can.â
Bruno took a deep breath. He counted in his head. One, two, three, four, five...He counted all the way to forty-seven. Then he gasped for air.
âVery good,â Dad said.
â
Hic
,â Bruno said.
âDo you know itâs eleven oâclock?â Dad said. âMomâs already asleep.â
âI canât
hic
it,â Bruno said.
âI know. But Iâm tired and want to go to bed myself. Hereâs one more trick. Stand on your head.â
Dad turned on the bedroom light. Bruno got down on the floor and put his head on the carpet. Dad lifted Brunoâs ankles in the air. Bruno was standing on his head! He looked around the room. It seemed funny that the books on his bottom shelf were on the top shelf now. The floor was the ceiling,
and the ceiling was the floor. Bruno felt like an astronaut! His head grew heavy, and his feet grew light. His head was filling up with blood. It was getting bigger. And BIGGER! Soon he wouldnât be able to get his shirts on! Soon his head would be too BIG for the neck hole!
âStop!â Bruno cried.
Dad let go of his ankles. Bruno tumbled to the floor. â
Hic!
â
âOkay,â Dad said. âOkay. I know one last trick.
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