Once George was full with Maggie's delicious food, he couldn't help but revisit the strange events from earlier that evening. The Man in the Yellow Hat hadn't mentioned it since, and he seemed to be avoiding eye contact with George throughout dinner. Maggie, meanwhile, seemed particularly cheerful and was smiling even more than usual, which was saying something. Whatever was going on, George simply couldn't let himself stay in the dark any longer.
He helped clear dishes from the table and then grabbed Ted by the hand rather assertively, leading him down the hall until they stood before the door again. Expressing himself with very insistent noises and pointing at the room, George made his question known well enough. He could see the Man in the Yellow Hat understood his meaning.
Ted swallowed before he began. "Well, George, you're probably wondering what exactly happened here this afternoon. Is that right?" he asked hesitantly.
George jumped up and down eagerly and clapped his hands. Finally, he was going to get answers!
"I was afraid of that," he thought he heard Ted mutter under his breath. "Um, I'm not sure how Maggie wants to handle this…"
So it WAS about Maggie! George knew it all along, his powers of observation and deduction were amazing!
Ted paused thoughtfully for a minute, his mouth drawn in a thin tense line. Then, out of nowhere, a look of brilliant enlightenment spread across his face, and the twinkle returned to his eye.
"All right, here's what happened, George. Maggie and I were having…"
George waited breathlessly for the inevitable answer: nightmares!
"…Banana splits!"
His chubby face fell open in an expression of total shock. Banana splits? Right before dinner? In bed? Without him? There were so many things wrong with this, he didn't even know where to begin. His mouth stayed frozen in a giant, gaping hole.
Ted chuckled. "That's right, George. They were very special banana splits. The kind only married people can have. Sorry we didn't invite you, but you understand, right?"
Was George supposed to? It was nothing like what he'd expected, but he couldn't exactly argue with it either. The Man in the Yellow Hat had never lied to him before, so George had no reason to doubt him now. If he said they were having special, married-people-only banana splits, then that must've been what happened.
He barely nodded to Ted, who chuckled again, smiling fondly down at the monkey. "How about we go make you a banana split that only monkeys can have?" he suggested enthusiastically. George liked the sound of that – an exclusive dessert for him, too! Who could complain about a world where everyone had their own customized dessert dishes?