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The Casket of Fictional Delights

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Bubble

by Katy Wimhurst

Flash Fiction Playful, Thought-provoking

In the park, she watched it float up and up, the largest bubble she’d ever seen. A massive orb glinting with hints of rainbow colours. She couldn’t work out where it had come from. This didn’t surprise her. She had little idea of many things these days. A few years back, so much had seemed clearer. Now the world fell on her in an odd way. And today she was in the park, watching an enormous bubble drift into the sky.
“Bubble,” said a voice. The woman turned to see a man with white hair and a bearded collie on a lead. ‘Bubble,” he said again, as if making sure the word sounded real.
“Yes.” She offered him a gentle smile.
“I don’t know,” he said. “I mean, you don’t always know…”
“You don’t.”
They both stared up at the bubble. It was high now, moving across the face of a cloud.
“Only came to the park on a whim today. Normally walk the dog by the river. Now I’ve seen the bubble,” he said.
“You have.”
“Sounds silly, but I don’t want it to vanish from view. Ever,” he said.
“It will.”
“I know. I don’t want it to.”
“No.”
They stretched their heads back, gazing. The bubble got smaller and smaller, shrinking to a dot in the sky.
“Imagine. Something so big, improbable, marvellous, becomes…a point in the distance,” he said.
“That’s perspective,” she said.
“That’s everything,” he said.

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About Katy Wimhurst

Katy studied social anthropology, then did a PhD on Mexican Surrealism. She’s worked in publishing and had fiction published in ezines and magazines, including Bust Down the Doors and Eat All the Chickens, Theguardian.com, Café Irreal, GlassFire, Serendipity and DogVersusSandwich. She won the Tate Modern short story competition.

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Starting in June and through to the end of September  The Casket of Fictional Delights presents more Susan Tate adventures.  Enjoy following a year in the life of Susan Tate the quirky librarian who lives in Canterbury with her cat Charles Dickens written by Joanna Sterling, read by Menna Bonsels and illustrated by Michael N Green.

There are many other short stories and flash fictions available to read and listen to in our Stories and Podcast sections.

Joanna & The Casket of Fictional Delights Team

 

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Text & stories © Joanna Sterling 2022
Stories © various authors
Editing by Joanna Sterling & Alyson Faye
Audio by Menna Bonsels
Brooch photography by Mark Colliton
Other photography by Rosie Marks
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