Tayson sprinted across the sunny playground. The metal slide gleamed like a silver mountain. His sneakers thumped against the rubber mulch as he raced toward it.
But then he stopped in his tracks. Behind the curved metal slide stood a girl holding a giant bubble wand. Soap dripped from the silver ring as she turned her head and saw him watching from behind the slide.
Tayson clutched his backpack strap and peeked out from behind the slide. A bubble drifted past his nose, shimmering in the sunlight. He reached for it, but it landed on the fence and burst.
Elea giggled and blew another bubble from the giant wand. It floated up toward the wooden swing set, catching the afternoon sun. Tayson fidgeted with his white shoelaces, watching it dance and swirl in the warm air.
Tayson climbed the ladder, his sneakers scuffing the metal rungs. At the top, he looked down at the playground. Elea was surrounded by a swarm of bubbles.
"Can I have one?" he called down, but his voice cracked on the last word. Elea pointed to a bubble shaped like a star that drifted up toward him.
Tayson reached for the star bubble, but it popped against his fingertips with a tiny squeak. He gasped, then laughed—a loud, surprised laugh that made Elea jump.
"Again!" he yelled from the top of the slide. Elea blew a dozen bubbles at once. They filled the air around the slide, bouncing like rainbow marbles.
Tayson and Elea stood side by side on the red rubber mulch, blowing bubbles until the playground filled with floating spheres. "My name is Elea," she said, offering him the wand.
Tayson took the giant wand from her hand, their fingers brushing. He blew a single bubble that floated straight up into the bright sun, glowing gold as it rose above the playground.