Once upon a time, in a cozy little kitchen, a kind old woman decided to bake something special. She mixed flour, sugar, and spices together, rolled out the dough, and carefully shaped it into a little man. “You’ll be delicious!” she said with a smile, popping him into the oven. But when she opened the oven door—surprise!—out jumped the Gingerbread Man, alive and full of energy. “Run, run, as fast as you can! You can’t catch me, I’m the Gingerbread Man!” he shouted as he dashed out the door.

The old woman chased after him. “Come back here!” she called, waving her rolling pin. But the Gingerbread Man was quick, and soon he was far ahead, laughing and skipping along.

Down the road, the Gingerbread Man met a cow grazing in a field. The cow sniffed the air and licked her lips. “You smell tasty! Come here, little Gingerbread Man,” she mooed. But the Gingerbread Man just laughed. “Run, run, as fast as you can! You can’t catch me, I’m the Gingerbread Man!” And off he went, leaving the cow trotting behind him.

Next, the Gingerbread Man came across a horse drinking from a stream. The horse perked up his ears and neighed, “What’s this? A snack running by? Stop right there!” But the Gingerbread Man didn’t stop. “Run, run, as fast as you can! You can’t catch me, I’m the Gingerbread Man!” he called, sprinting away with the horse galloping after him.

The Gingerbread Man was feeling unstoppable. “Nobody can catch me!” he boasted, zipping past trees and hopping over rocks. But then he came to a river. The water rushed by, too deep for him to cross. He stopped and scratched his frosting-covered head, wondering what to do.

Just then, a sly fox appeared. “Hello, little Gingerbread Man,” said the fox with a sly smile. “I heard you’re quite the runner. But you’ll never make it across this river on your own.” The Gingerbread Man frowned, not completely trusting the fox. “What do you mean?” he asked.

“Well,” said the fox, “I can carry you across. You can hop onto my tail. I promise I won’t bite.” The Gingerbread Man hesitated, but he really wanted to keep running. “Alright,” he said, climbing onto the fox’s tail. The fox began swimming smoothly through the water.

Halfway across, the fox turned his head. “Oh dear, my tail is getting wet! You’d better climb onto my back instead.” The Gingerbread Man thought it over. “Fine,” he said, moving carefully onto the fox’s back. The fox swam on, but soon said, “Oh no, my back is sinking! You’d better climb onto my nose!”

The Gingerbread Man was nervous now, but he climbed forward, balancing on the very tip of the fox’s nose. And then—snap! The fox tipped his head and gobbled the Gingerbread Man up in one quick bite.

The river was quiet again, and the sly fox smiled as he swam to the other side. “What a clever snack,” he said to himself.

And so, the Gingerbread Man’s adventure came to an end. But next time you're running off in a hurry, remember: not every helper is as kind as they seem!