When the fish took the bait, Ellie jerked back on the fishing pole, just like Jack taught her. “I think I got one.” For five minutes, she fought the fish, guiding it away from a fallen tree, out from under a rock, and finally to the surface. It was as if she’d been fishing all her life. When the bass was within arm’s reach, Jack snagged it with the net, and grabbed the scales.
“Five pounds, four ounces,” he said. “Golly, that’s a whopper.”
“What should we do with it?” she asked, eyes wide with excitement.
Jack scratched his head. “We could have it for supper,” he offered, “but bass isn’t the best eatin’ fish.”
“Or we could just let it go.” Ellie looked as if the thought of killing such a beautiful animal broke her heart.
“I like your suggestion better,” he said, sensing her apprehension, and got ready to release it back into the water.
“May I?”
“Be my guest.” Jack handed the fish to Ellie. She took it by the mouth, leaned over the side of the boat, and lowered it gently into the water. It lay there for a second, motionless, then with a splash of its tail swam away and descended into the murky depths.
“What’d I tell you?” Jack beamed.
“You’re amazing, you know that?” She sat down, and her eyes settled on him. “How’d you know there’d be a fish there?”
“I’ve been fishing these waters for as long as I can remember.” Jack took off his cap and ruffled his hair. “From the time I was old enough to walk, I would go with my mamaw and papaw. In fact, I learned everything I know about fishing from them.”
“Do they still fish?”
He shook his head. “They passed away a few years ago. But they loved being out on the water.” A school of minnows caught his attention. “I guess that’s why I like it so much.” Jack was silent then, concentrating on catching a fish of his own.
* * *
The next evening, Jack and Ellie stood on the bank near the dam, skipping rocks. After the advice his mama had given him, Jack was cautious around Ellie. The last thing he wanted was to fall in love only to have his heart broken at the end of summer. But it wasn’t enough to dissuade him from spending time with her.
“Do you have someone special back home?” Jack asked as he hurled a stone across the water’s glassy surface.
“You mean like a boyfriend?”
He nodded his head.
“Well, there’s this one guy, Michael. He and I go to school together. We’ve gone out a couple of times, but he’s not my boyfriend.” She side-armed the last rock, watching it skip three times before disappearing beneath the surface. “What about you?” She set her gaze upon him. “With those eyes and that accent, I bet you have to fight the girls off with a stick.”
Jack smiled, amused as he bent over and grabbed another handful of stones. “Nah. Girls around here aren’t interested in a guy like me, except for maybe Sara.”
“Sara Coffee?”
Jack snapped his head at her. “Yeah, how’d you know?”
“She’s been helping me with my algebra,” Ellie explained. “My mother wasn’t satisfied with the A minus I got this year, so she thought having a tutor come over for a few hours in the mornings would be a good idea.”
“Ouch,” said Jack. “No offense, but your mother sounds like a drill sergeant.”
“You have no idea.” Ellie rolled her eyes. “So you and Sara, huh? Yeah, I can see that,” she said after a moment. “The two of you would make a cute couple.”
“If you say so. But in case you were wondering, we’re not.”
“Could have fooled me,” she teased.
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“Nothing. It’s just that the way she goes on about you all the time, I figured…”
“Don’t get me wrong,” said Jack. “Sara’s a nice enough girl, but she and I are just friends.”
