He Called the Woods Home, part 3: The Catfish and the Girl
(Editor's Note: This is the third installment in a continuing fiction series by Richard Simms. The stories revolve around Roy Boone, a teenager with a passion for the outdoors. Go here for the previous installment of "He Called the Woods Home," and please watch for future installments here on NewsChannel9.com/Outdoors.)
"I like to fish," Sally Ann said shyly. "I don't ever catch nothin', but I like sitting by the water and wishin'."
Roy wasn't sure how to respond, or if he could. It almost seemed like Sally Ann might be hinting at something, but he was afraid it was all in his head... maybe it was just his own wishful thinking coming out. Standing at their side-by-side lockers, arranged alphabetically in the school hallway on Friday afternoon, Sally Ann Barrett had asked Roy Boone what he was doing this weekend.
"Nothing much," he answered with his head down, too shy to look Sally Ann in the eye.
He thought she was about the prettiest girl in his class. She wasn't a cheerleader or anything. She didn't wear fancy clothes or short skirts like lots of the other, more popular girls did. But he still thought there was something special about her long auburn hair, just a few light freckles and deep brown eyes.
But Roy wasn't very good with girls. He was more scared of them than he was of that rattlesnake he ran up on a few weeks before.
"You can't be doing nothin' ALL weekend," she coaxed, barely glancing up as she put her algebra book away in exchange for a history book.
"Well, my Grandpa said yesterday that he hadn't had any fresh fish in a long time. I might ride my bike down to the river and do some catfishin' tomorrow," he said, figuring that would end the conversation quickly.
Instead, that's when she allowed as to how she likes to fish.
"I hooked a big one once," Sally Ann went on. "He pulled so hard I thought he was gonna pull me right into the river. But instead, my line just broke."
"You needed to set your drag a little looser," Roy said.
"What's a drag," Sally Ann asked.
That's when he knew that she probably didn't really fish too much. But maybe it also meant something else. Maybe she really was dropping a hint. But the little alarm bells in his head still rang out a warning, asking, "Why would she like you Roy?"
He knew the real bell, the tardy bell, was about to ring, so he slammed his locker shut and ignoring the bells in his head, he blurted out, "I'll probably be down by the old barge tie-off on the River Road about eight o'clock in the morning. If you want, come on down."
Then the tardy bell rang and he rushed off to class before Sally Ann had a chance to answer.
That evening Roy sat on the front porch with Grandpa. The old man was doing a lot better, getting well past the heart attack that almost sent him to God's Glory Hole a couple months back. But he said he still wasn't up to sitting on the riverbank.
"I might get back to the river soon," Grandpa said. "But fer now, I think I'd best do most my settin' in this rockin' chair. Anyway, didn't I hear you say something to your Mom about how Sally Ann might go fishin' with ya," he asked with a raised eyebrow.
"Aww, she won't come," said Roy as he wound new fishing line on his favorite reel. "She was just braggin' about how she liked to fish, and how she almost caught a monster once. She was probably just making stuff up. I bet one of her friends just dared her to talk to me or something. You know how girls are."
Rocking slowly behind Roy, where the boy couldn't look up and see him, Grandpa grinned big, detecting the undercurrent of "wishful thinking" in his grandson's tone.
"Don't sound like much of a dare to me," said Grandpa. "Got to be lots tougher things to do in the world than talk to you about fishin'. You gonna take an extra fishin' pole just in case?"
"You know I always take two anyway Grandpa," said Roy. "There ain't no reason for me to take more than that. I just hope I can bring you home a couple of catfish."
"I hope so too," mused the old man. "Them doctors said I'm supposed to cut back on fried stuff. But you know, if it ain't fried, it ain't fish. I done lived past where I was s'posed to anyways. If it's fresh fried catfish that sends me to the Glory Hole, I'll just figure, 'What a way to go," he said with a gleam in his eye and a smile in his heart.
In bed, Roy tossed and turned. All he could think about was Sally Ann. Was she just having fun with him, or was there any chance she would show up on the riverbank in the morning? He knew exactly where she lived in town. He'd ridden his bike by her house many times, hoping he'd catch a glimpse of her. It was just a short walk for her to the barge tie-offs. It was nearly 1 am before he could stop thinking about auburn hair and freckles and finally drift off to sleep.
Roy was on the riverbank just before eight o'clock. He used worms dug out of the compost heap the evening before to catch some bluegill. There were always bluegill hanging around the big steel pillars covered with thick green algae. A few bluegill stayed there all the time, but this morning, there were lots. Every time he cast a worm out, it couldn't sink far before he'd feel the tiniest "tick" on his line, a signal to set the hook and reel in more catfish bait.
Not only were the bluegill plentiful today, they were big. He was afraid they might even be too big for good bait. He knew they would be great for frying. But he also knew that Grandpa liked fresh catfish more than any other fish that swims. As he dropped the last of a dozen big bluegill in his wire basket he glanced at his watch. It was now well past eight. He didn't want to, but he couldn't help peering up the trail that led to the riverbank from the road, hoping he'd see auburn hair bouncing his way. All he saw was an empty trail.
"I knew she was just messing with me," thought Roy. "I knew she wouldn't come."
But when he sliced the first big bluegill in half with his pocket knife, he did so with a little more vengeance than necessary. Blood squirted on to his shirt and he knew he'd pay for that from his mother later. Except for plentiful catfish bait, the day was off to a pretty lousy start.
He cast his cut bluegill out as far past the barge piling as he could. His Grandpa told him long ago that the river channel dropped off real deep there and the big blue cats like to come up out of the deep water searching for food. It took a long time for his cut bluegill heads to settle to the bottom. He propped his two rods in the rocks and settled back to wait.
That's when he heard two other rocks click together behind him. He turned around and like in a dream, she was there.
He glanced up the trail behind her, expecting her to have company, but it was empty.
"I'm sorry I'm late. Momma made me clean up my room before I could go anywhere. Caught any yet," asked Sally Ann as she plopped down on a rock beside him.
All Roy could do was stutter out a feeble, "No."
"Well what's that in that basket," she asked, sounding a little impressed. "Looks like you've done pretty good to me."
"Oh, that's just bluegill for bait," he said, getting over his shock just a little. "We... I mean, I'm fishing for big catfish. My Grandpa will eat bluegill, but only if that's all he's got. He really wants some catfish. Did you bring a fishing rod?"
"No, I don't have one of my own," Sally Ann said. "My daddy lets me use his when we go. But he's never bought me one of my own. He's bought some for my little brothers," she said with a frown. "But not for me."
Then the riverbank grew silent with Roy a little angry at her father, but at a loss for words. Sally Ann just sat back seemingly enjoying the view of the water, and occasionally stealing a glance at the shy boy at her side.
The silence grew louder and longer, until one of Roy's two fishing rods bounced once, twice and then bowed down hard. Roy was quick on the trigger, grabbing the rod and setting the hook hard. It was a good fish, but the way it pulled he could tell he'd caught bigger. But he'd never caught one with Sally Ann Barrett looking on so he did a little over-acting. He held the rod high to give it a little extra "bend," and played the fish slowly.
Just before he got the fish to shore however, the second rod bowed down. It was a good thing he'd jammed it in the rocks well or he's sure it would have shot out into the river.
He looked at the rod, and then at Sally Ann, and then again at the bowed rod with the drag singing and line peeling off the reel faster than he'd ever seen before. In an instant he had a decision to make... hand Sally Ann the rod he had with the hefty catfish already worn down and go for the one with "the big bite." Or, let "a girl" have the big bite.
If it had been anyone other than Sally Ann, the decision would have been easy. But he found himself in a quandary when he looked over at the auburn-haired girl sitting there in tight blue jeans looking a little bewildered. But with her eyes full of wonder and excitement -- his decision was made.
He nodded at the second rod, blurting out, "Grab it Sally Ann before it gets dragged in the river."
She acted fast, picking up the rod and immediately pointing it straight at the fish.
"No, don't do that," Roy screamed, dragging his catfish up the rocks. He paused to toss it up the bank so it couldn't flop back in the water and then scrambled toward Sally Ann. Before he could even think what he was doing, he had has arms around her, helping her hold the fishing rod.
"You don't ever point the fishing rod straight at the fish," he coached. "You hold it up high so that the rod bounces and bends. That's what helps keep your line from breaking. The bend is your friend," he said.
Even with two of them however, it was a struggle to pull the rod tip high. He realized this was an incredible fish. But it was also when he realized his arms were actually around Sally Ann Barrett. He was close enough to smell that auburn hair and feel her soft skin.
Sally Ann screamed and struggled again to keep the rod tip high as the fish made another huge, drag-peeling run. Roy continued to help hold the rod. He could feel the power and knew that the catfish out there in the deep was far bigger than any he'd ever seen before. He wanted desperately to take over the battle on his own. Grandpa would be proud if he could land this beast, and even prouder of all the fine filets it would put in their freezer.
But Sally Ann squealed with delight, exclaiming, "Oh my gosh! How big do you think it is Roy?"
He couldn't answer except to say, "It's bigger than anything I've ever caught before."
By now Sally Ann had figured out how to hold the rod, and the initial awe-inspiring runs were done. Now the battle would just be a drawn out tug-of-war and a battle of wills. Roy realized that to remain wrapped around Sally Ann would just be weird, no matter how much he liked it. He reluctantly backed off and said, "He's all yours now."
Sally Ann turned bright eyes his way and with a knowing smile said, "Thanks for helping."
Roy kept coaching. He wasn't sure how long it took. He only knew that when they finally saw the beast roll up just on the edge of the rocks, they both let out a gasp.
"Oh my gosh Roy," screamed Sally Ann. "How are we going to get him?"
Roy didn't answer. He just waded into the river to his thighs. When Sally Ann was able to pull the huge catfish close, he used both hands to grab its lower jaw and drag it ashore. The beast clamped down on his hands and Roy grimaced in pain. Then it tried an alligator roll, nearly breaking Roy's wrists, but he knew better than to jerk his hands free or the skin would be sandpapered to a pulp. The big fish finally calmed down and relaxed its grip so Roy was able to let go. He stepped back to admire the sleek, steely blue river monster lying on the rocks.
The other catfish he'd reeled in still flopped. He knew Sally Ann's fish was too big to eat. Heck, how in the world could he ever put it on his bike to get it home? He'd have to call his father to bring the truck.
Before he could say what he was thinking, Sally Ann said, "It's beautiful. I want to let it live. I want to let it go. Let's get it back in the water."
Roy thought briefly about the many pounds of fish fillets, but then the other fish flopped again and he said, "Yea, you're right. No reason to kill a fish like that."
He gingerly unhooked it, and then he lay on the rocks beside the massive catfish. Roy was 5'3" - or 63 inches. The fish was just about six inches shorter than him. Then he grabbed it by the lower jaw again with two hands while Sally Ann did her best to hold its tail. This time they both waded into the river with the huge fish. It was tired from the battle as well and lay quietly under the surface, gills absorbing oxygen, life returning to its marble-sized eyes.
Roy tore his gaze away from the huge fish and peered into Sally Ann's eyes as she admired her catch. He knew that he might live to be as old as Grandpa and never see, much less catch such a magnificent catfish. But in Sally Ann's eyes he saw reverence -- an appreciation for the wildness of the splendid creature, mixed with her own great pride. Roy knew she was pretty on the outside, but right then he realized she was even prettier on the inside.
She finally glanced his way and two tiny dimples he'd never noticed before popped into her cheeks as she gave him a wide-eyed smile.
The fish rolled, forcing Roy to release his grasp. Then with a mighty surge and a huge splash, the beast disappeared back into the depths. Water dripped from their faces. Both were speechless at what had just happened, but Roy raised his hand to give her a high five. Instead Sally Ann waded forward and gave him a hug that lasted long enough to go well beyond "friendly." Soaking wet and a little slimy, they both were perhaps happier than they had ever been in their lives.
Remembering his iPhone in his tackle box, Roy almost cried when he realized that in the excitement, they forgot to snap a picture of the huge fish. But he still had the other smaller catfish, even though it really wasn't that small. Already slimed from the monster fish, Sally Ann didn't mind holding Roy's catfish up for a picture.
Roy admired it and couldn't wait to show the picture of Sally Ann and the catfish to Grandpa. He couldn't wait to tell the old man about the fierce battle, the auburn-haired girl who caught it and how, even if he didn't reel it in, he had perhaps still landed the biggest catch of his life.