Kays Translations

Chapter 87 – A Short Story: The World Reflected in a Soap Bubble

Suddenly, I felt like blowing bubbles.

It’s a bit embarrassing as an adult, but blowing bubbles is genuinely fun, so I always kept a set on hand from the 100-yen shop.

When no one’s around, I go out to the garden and blow bubbles, watching them float among the blooming flowers. It’d be really embarrassing if anyone saw me, but there’s something beautiful and delightful about watching the bubbles float up into the sky.

The memory made me want to do it again, so I bought another bubble set using 1,000 yen repeat order.

Just your standard bubble solution in a slightly slimmed-down version of those traditional probiotic drink bottles, along with a wand for blowing.

I opened the lid and dipped the wand into the liquid. The amount is important, so neither too much nor too little is good.

I took a deep breath, placed the wand to my lips, and gently exhaled. With one soft breath, a flurry of bubbles floated into the sky. It was such a beautiful scene.

I handed wands to Mimi and Kirara so they could blow bubbles too.

“What is this sorcery? Some kind of combination of water, light, and wind magic?!”

Kirara exclaimed, eyes wide as she watched the iridescent bubbles shimmer in the air. Yeah… no, it’s not such advanced magic…

Maybe they don’t have this kind of play here?

Even if they do, Japanese-made bubble solution is on a different level—super durable, and capable of producing continuous streams of bubbles.

Kirara runs lightly, chasing after the flying soap bubbles.

Now that I think about it, bubbles just make you want to chase them, don’t they?

“I made a really big one!”

Mimi became absorbed in seeing how big a bubble she could make.

To make larger bubbles, you need to load up on a lot of liquid, so it is better to blow downwards—but that makes the bubbles stretch out, and when they pop, the splash is bigger.

“Eek!”

Looks like she got sprayed—she let out a surprised squeal, then burst out laughing.

Bubble after bubble floated into the sky. At first, they were rainbow-colored, but as the solution thinned out, the colors faded, until eventually they looked monochrome.

It’s fun to exhale slowly and steadily to see bubbles of the same size form one after another.

The soap bubbles float softly in the air, gradually becoming thinner and then disappearing with a whoosh. This is different from the way they pop when they hit something. The soap bubbles float in the air, gradually becoming thinner and thinner, and their presence fading away, and there is something so poetic about them as though they were some kind of quiet spell.

Maybe, when a bubble disappears, it’s like a tiny, ephemeral world fading out of existence.

The company that makes this bubble solution is based in Fukuoka, if I remember right.

I saw it on a TV documentary or something a long time ago. Apparently, during the earthquake disaster, this company sent their bubble sets to the affected areas.

　

If my memory is correct, they didn’t send it to an organization—but to a regular person.

That person had ordered bubble solution for some reason, and the company noticed from the address that they were in a disaster zone. So they sent them a whole bunch of bubble sets, asking them if they would be willing to distribute them to others.

And that person handed them out at an evacuation center.

You play with bubbles outside. And not on rainy days.

So, people had to go outside on sunny days and look up at the sky, watching the bubbles float.

The children surely smiled when they saw them.

And just imagine how much that must have helped ease their hearts.

Something so simple, really.

But looking up—just simply looking up—is surprisingly difficult in everyday life.

Blowing bubbles reminds me of that.

I remember hearing a story about a CEO in the city who made it a daily habit to spot at least one bird flying in the sky each day. Living in the countryside, though, that’s something I accomplish as soon as I open my front door—so it never really stuck with me.

Well, either way… it feels good to look up at the sky.

And I think the deep breathing from blowing bubbles helps too. You inhale deeply, and exhale slowly and steadily.

And gazing at the blue sky, I feel a little moved.

　

Even my floaters seem to have been cured!

I feel rejuvenated.

I wish I could send some of this bubble solution to the children who went through that illness.

You only need a straw-like thing to blow with—maybe a wheat straw would work?

If we need to make a large amount, the solution becomes the issue. But I think I’ve made it myself before. I think I used sugar to make the bubbles more durable. Would giving out dish soap be a problem? Well, it’s just for play, so maybe it’s fine…

Next time Luna comes over, I want her to try this too. I don’t know if Jude-san would blow bubbles, but I’m sure he’ll play if Luna asks him to.

I think this as I watch the two of them playing with smiles on their faces, their hands sticky with bubble solution.

Even if it’s something that will pop and vanish one day, The fact that it exists here and now—That itself is a blessing.

Alright, once we’re tired from playing, let’s go wash our hands and have a snack.

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