Boyscapade

They rowed their dad’s Boston Whaler away from his river-front window. Once out in the St Lawrence they started the engine on the third pull of the thin, greasy rope. After the second pull Toby said, “You gotta turn it on, doofus!” It was a point Casey conceded. He flipped the switch. With the third pull, the outboard came alive.

There was loud hooting, and then shushing, and then six stinging high-fives. Then there was the wind in their hair, and the roar of the big outboard, and the moon-lit wake spreading silver behind them as they sped along.

When they got to Pirate’s cove, Casey switched off the engine and they glided in sudden silence between the banks.

They baited their hooks with worms . This was a time they knew to remain silent.

Ralph was near the bow; his heart pounding with the quiet and the darkness. It was so weird in the small boat, it all seemed haunted somehow. He wasn’t going to mention this to his two big brothers, however, and when he felt his rod suddenly jerk violently, it was a shock to his soul and he almost screamed like a girl, but he resisted.

All three boys saw the huge fish jump. It was the very fish they had come for. The boat began to move as the huge catfish they named “Stanly” tried for the depth of the river. They had none of them expected this. They wanted to catch Stanly. They had come here to do just that, but now the boat was picking up speed, and little Ralph was struggling to reel it in.

“You can do it!” the boys yelled.

Both boys knew they were in trouble. How to explain?

Ralph saw future stardom.


299 words