Thought Bubble

Salmon and Bear

Sweat glistened on my skin as I continued to reel it in. The ache in my arms screamed at me to give up, but determination pushed me forward.

I've been here for hours, this fish isn't getting away.

The water around splashed against the jagged rocks as I pulled back even further to reel the fish. Suddenly, as if it had surrendered it's life, the fish stopped fighting against the hook.

Once it rears its head out of the river, disbelief washes over me as I realize I had caught a salmon on my second fishing trip.

"Jack! I caught one!" I call out to my son who had been sleeping in the van after I hadn't caught anything for the first hour of us being here.

Jack emerges from the van, rubbing the sleep from his eyes, and stops when he notices the giant fish in my arms.

"Well don't just stand there, get the camera!" I exclaim in excitement.

The rush of the river rustles behind me and I take it as the water smashing against the rocks.

Jack comes back, walking forward while setting up the camera in his hands. I get into position for the picture when Jack finally looks up and his face pales.

"Son, what's-"

"Dad, don't move." He looks at me then at something behind me.

Curiosity gets the better of me and my once excited mood disappears when I see the grizzly bear creeping up behind me.

"Jack, slowly back away and start the car." I say in a low voice. He stays stunned in his place and I could see his hands trembling. The water continued to announce the slowly advancing bear's tracks and with every splash, my heart nestled itself deeper into my stomach.

"Jack please we don't have much time. Go and start the car. I'll be right behind you." I tried again and this time he listened.

He backed away, with his eyes still on the bear. When he reached the car, he threw the camera inside and closed the trunk. He went around to the driver's seat and seconds later the car hummed to life.

I took one look back and saw the bear just a few feet away from me. I slowly turned to face the bear, and it stopped to watch my next move.

Its eyes darted down and I suddenly remembered the now dead salmon in my arms.

I made a quick plan in my head and prayed that I would make it out alive.

With all the strength I could muster, I threw the salmon towards the bear and it landed by its paws.

It stopped in its tracks and stared at me before it bent its head down and began to sniff the fish.

I slowly back-pedaled away from the bear who was now biting into the fish. If I could just make it out of the water and onto dry land, I'd  run to the car and leave.

I take a peek behind me and notice that I was just a few steps away from the shore. When I look back, the bear once again lifted its head and was staring directly at me.

As if time had stopped, the bear and I stood there, in the water, staring at one another.

"Dad..." I heard Jack say behind me and the bear shifted its gaze from me to my son.

I took one more step back and the rustling current of the water alerted the bear.

As the bear began to lift its paw to take a step forward, I turned around and decided to run the rest of the way.

The last thing I heard was my son's voice yelling out and the pounding of the bear's paws against the water.

I am so proud of this one. I got this prompt idea from a friend and I started it last month, but never finished it.

I'm now done with it and I honestly love it. I could literally feel my heart pounding as I wrote it. I also love the fact that it's open ended so you can decide the end of the story.

Did he make it out alive, or was the bear fast enough to catch him?