The First Bubbles

The rubber duck floated alone in the bathtub. The water was smooth and quiet. A little bit boring.

Then —

pop!

— a tiny bubble appeared.

Duck blinked.

Where did that come from?

Pop! Pop!

Two more bubbles floated up, round and wobbly.

Duck paddled closer. The bubbles sparkled in the light. They tickled Duck's yellow belly.

Pop pop pop pop pop!

Suddenly, bubbles were everywhere — small ones, big ones, some stuck together like shiny grapes.

Duck's eyes went wide.

"My mission is to squash all the bubbles!"

Duck dove forward —

squish!

— and pressed one bubble with its orange beak.

The bubble went

pffft

and disappeared.

But then...

bloop bloop bloop!

Three new bubbles popped up right where the old one had been.

"What?!"

Duck squashed another bubble with its belly —

smoosh!

Bloop bloop!

Two more appeared.

Duck paddled faster, squashing left and right.

Squish! Smoosh! Pop!

But every time Duck squashed one bubble, two or three new ones bounced up, giggling and wobbling.

Soon the whole bathtub was filled with more bubbles than before.

Duck stopped paddling. Its little chest went up and down, tired and confused.

"The more I squash... the more they grow!"

Duck floated in the middle of a sea of bubbles, frustrated and still.

What was Duck supposed to do

now

?