Blacky the Bear lived in a peaceful forest called Champakvan. He ran a grocery shop from his house and all the animals would come to buy from his shop. Timmy the Deer and Jumpy the Monkey were Blacky’s best friends and everyone knew about their friendship.

Baddy the Fox had just moved to Champakvan and he rented a house next to Blacky’s house. The day Baddy moved in, Blacky went to see him. “Can I help you, Baddy?” he asked. 

“Thanks for the offer, Blacky, but I have just finished unpacking,” said Baddy, out of breath from all the moving. 

“You are new to this forest, so do let me know if you need any help,” said Blacky, being kind and friendly to his new neighbour.

“Thank you, I will. After all, a neighbour is your companion in good and bad times,” said Baddy, thanking Blacky.

Blacky then invited Baddy to his house for tea and biscuits. “I would like that. I’m feeling tired after all this work,” said Baddy, and the two went to Blacky’s house for tea.

This became a habit, and Baddy would drop by for tea almost every day. This went on for more than a month. 

“Blacky, we hope you won’t forget your old friends in your excitement of making new friends,” teased Timmy and Jumpy.

“Can that ever happen? Ours is an unbreakable bond!” said Blacky, and they all laughed.

Just then, Gogi the Pigeon came with Blacky’s electricity bill. Blacky opened the bill and was shocked to see a huge amount.

“What is wrong, Blacky?” asked Timmy.

“Gogi, are you sure this is not someone else’s bill?” asked Blacky.

“Let’s check the name on top. It’s yours only,” said Gogi, reading the envelope.

Jumpy took the bill and looked at it. “It is your bill, Blacky,” he said.

“But this bill is for ₹4,000,” said a shocked Blacky. “You know how careful I am while using electricity. I never leave the fan or lights on when they are not needed. Normally, my bill is for  ₹500. I never get such a huge bill!”

“Oh, I’m sure such bills are common for rich people like you,” teased Jumpy.

“This is more than what I pay in four months,” laughed Timmy.

“This isn’t funny!” exclaimed Blacky. “I can’t believe I got such a huge bill.”

His friends then realised that Blacky was upset and they fell silent, thinking of how to solve this problem.

Timmy went to the electricity department office to check if there was a problem with the meter reading. But everything was right, and the meter showed a much higher reading than usual. 

Blacky paid the bill, but began to be even more careful about using electricity. He only switched on the light and fan when he was in a room, and made sure to switch everything off when he left. Despite this, the next month’s bill was equally high. 

Blacky went to Baddy to see if he had a similar problem. “Blacky, the government has increased the price of electricity. That’s why your bill is so high,” said Baddy.

“Is your bill also high, Baddy? How much was it for this month?” asked Blacky.

“Oh, it’s always high but I pay it without thinking. Now, I really have to leave to meet someone,” said Baddy, and left the house hurriedly.

A few days later, Jumpy and Timmy were walking on the back lane to go to Blacky’s house. They noticed a wire going through a window into Blacky’s house. “Jumpy, do you see that wire?” asked Timmy.

“Yes, it’s an electric wire and it’s going from Baddy’s house to Blacky’s,” replied Jumpy. 

Jumpy and Timmy decided to ask Blacky about it.

Blacky had no idea about why there was a wire connecting the two houses. His friends were sure something fishy was going on. “Maybe this is how your electricity bills reached ₹4,000,” said Jumpy.

“But how is this possible?” asked Blacky innocently. “Why would Baddy do that?”

Timmy and Jumpy were sure that Baddy was up to no good. They went inside the house and looked at the electricity main board. There was a wire coming from Baddy’s house going into Blacky’s electricity board!

“Blacky, have you let Baddy inside your house and left him alone?” asked Timmy. 

“Never. He usually sits in the shop with me,” said Blacky. “Oh, there was just one time when I had to buy things and was expecting a courier. I left my keys with Baddy and had gone out for a few hours.”

Timmy pulled out the wire from Baddy’s house. “It is clear now why your bills have been so high!”

The friends scolded Blacky. “One should not be so careless, Blacky,” said Timmy. “You should have noticed this wire before!”

“I’m going to file a complaint with the police,” said Jumpy. 

“I’m going to drive him out of Champakvan,” said Timmy angrily. “There’s no place for cheats in our forest.”

“Wait! Let us first talk to Baddy,” said Blacky, trying to calm his friends. Just then, Baddy came to visit Blacky.

“Did you steal from your innocent neighbour?” asked Jumpy as soon as Baddy entered.

Baddy’s face became pale when he heard this. “Don’t you feel ashamed of yourself?” asked Timmy. “Blacky has been so nice to you since you moved here!”

Baddy began to shake with fear and began apologising. “Blacky, I am so sorry. I misused your goodwill and stole from you. Please forgive me. I promise I will never do something like this again!”

“If someone regrets his mistakes and is truly sorry, we should accept his apologies and forgive him. Come friends, let us all have tea together,” said Blacky.

Baddy felt even more ashamed of his behaviour and promised that he would never cheat again. He paid Blacky back and decided to be a kind neighbour like him