The Boy Who Bounced

• Kimberley Loh, Grade 3
• Short Story
• 2019

THE BOY WHO BOUNCED

In Lollipop Land, everybody has a round, hard and sweet head with a stick leg to hop on, until baby Bouncy arrived. He had no leg. In horror, not only he was paralysed he was rubbery and gummy. People kicked Bouncy so hard from one family to another because he was different and one day he landed in China.

Bouncy ended up stuck in a bamboo tree. He was camouflaged to the bamboo, unfortunately he was spotted by a furry black and white panda and thought “Mmmm this looks so different to my usual bamboo,” and gobbled up Bouncy. In horror, Bouncy thought this would be the end but luckily he just got stuck in the panda’s throat. Panda coughed so hard that Bouncy bounced to Africa.

Slowly coming around to consciousness, Bouncy realised there was a person staring at him. He had very dark tattooed skin and was wearing a wooden mask, holding a skeleton head with horns on a sceptre. Bouncy was terrified. He screamed on top of his voice “Witch Doctor!” All of a sudden, Bouncy leg popped out and so he quickly hopped back to Lollipop Land.

All Bouncy needed was a scare from the witch doctor. Now, he could lives happily with his family. He understood to keep the harmony in Lollipop Land, he would need to blend in with everyone. If he feels bored deep in the night, he would secretly tuck in his leg and bounced off for new adventures.