Thursday, October 6, 2011

Bitesize fiction. Soap bubbles

He stood leaning on the fence, watching the world go by about him, in no hurry to go anywhere and with absolutely nothing to do. The mild autumn sun was beginning to set in the distance, still sending golden rays over the world.

A plane was tracing a white line on the sky, looking like a little ant with a tiny reactor on its back. He followed the trail upwards, tilting his head back until his hair tickled the back of his neck, shading his eyes with one hand. The plane soon reached the rich foliage of a tree and disappeared behind the yellowing leaves.

He sighed deeply, as if that little incident had been very disappointing and started tracing the outlines of the clouds instead. The edges towards the sun were a bright white, while the outer rims were a bit darker. They almost looked dirty and he smiled, wondering if the cloud janitor was slacking off again.

Suddenly, a little soap bubble drifted by. The world looked distorted reflected in it and for a few seconds, there was a swirling rainbow on its surface. And then a silent pop and all that was left of the bubble were a few soapy droplets.

Soon enough, an entire flock of bubbles of all sizes came dancing and colliding in the breeze. "Isn't it funny, that they all turn out round, no matter what shape you use to create them?" he commented.

"Indeed," came the reply and a hand slipped into his. "Friendship does that to people."

He smiled and closed his eyes.