Florida server Avabellee has a freaky story she’s posted online and probably will also be telling for the rest of her life.
“All my co-workers are like, ‘What the f—- are you doing?'” says the Florida-based server. And it’s possibly the most valid question of 2026 (so far).
Avabellee (@beileavaa) was minding her business, doing her job, when a table came in. Everything was normal, except for the baby orangutan doll. It wasn’t a plush stuffed animal; it was a “lifelike” monkey doll they’d named Michelle.
“They treated this thing like it was an actual human baby,” says Avabelle. She notes that in the moment, the interaction wasn’t funny at all. It was downright humiliating.
The server says they had the hostess bring a high chair for it to sit in, and they were “cuddling it like a real baby.” But it’s what comes next that really drives home the message of her in-video text. It says, “Being a server is literally a humiliation ritual.” Why? Because her table wanted her to take the fake monkey-baby’s meal order.
‘Michelle, What Do You Want?’
Avabellee says she proceeded to ask what “Michelle” wants, and one of the diners asked for some seedless watermelon. Then they noticed the braids Avabellee was wearing in her hair, and they asked her to braid the doll’s hair, the server recounts.
Her clearly mortified answer? “I could. Maybe not now.”
Then, the meal went on, and the guests proceeded to ask for face wipes and a diaper since they forgot to bring an extra. Then, the “mom” asked for a refill for her sweet tea. She also requested that Avabellee “give [Michelle] a tour of the restaurant,” alleges the server.
Unfortunately, Avabellee doesn’t think on her feet. Instead of saying something like, “No babies in the back,” she’s taking instructions: Support the “baby’s” head and bottom.
Then she’s walked back to the drink station with the primate on her hip.
After the fact, she says she thought, “It was the dumbest most humiliation ritual of all,” she says. Her co-workers were also appalled.
They’re Not The Only Ones
In the service industry, it seems the horrors never cease. Take Nev’s (@nevealeigh.rose) experience: “I once had to sing an anime doll happy birthday and i got posted on instagram,” she writes.
While commenters are overwhelmingly offering advice to forgo the tip and grab her manager, some say it’s not that easy. “Everyone saying they wouldn’t have done it has NEVER been in a situation like this it’s so awkward help [cry-laughing emoji x 3),” says Elissa Grandpre (@elissagrandpre).
Even so, there’s always something truly wretched to consider: “This might be worse than when someone pooped straight on our floor,” offers Giasarchived by way of commiseration.
What Social Contract?
It’s tempting to imagine what Emily Post might say if presented with a fake-monkey-baby being treated like a real-human-baby situation. But a quick survey of that website doesn’t seem to have a category for inanimate dinner companions we’re pretending are real.
Still, some people use real-looking fake babies to help deal with things like loss, anxiety, and sadness says Dr. Gail Saltz. These babies are called “reborn” or “memory babies.” They’re handmade and designed to feel and look like a real baby.
While it might be unsettling or creepy for some to consider, the doctor says, “It’s not that these doll owners think the doll is a real baby, but it affords them moments when they are comforted and can pretend they have a real baby, to themselves and to the world.”
She also said that she’s heard of women adopting a live monkey because “monkeys have great intelligence and many human qualities.”
No word on monkey dolls.
BroBible reached out to Avabellee via email and TikTok direct message. We will update this story when we hear back.