Shark (Attack)

This is a very brief short-story about well, you know.

I pulled on the anchor, waiting to feel it be released from the grip of the sea floor. When it finally let loose, the momentum jerked my arms and I nearly lost my footing. The deck was still wet from when I had rinsed it down this morning. Those damn seagulls always find a way to s**t on my boat. I pulled, one hand over another, until I could see the blurry figure of the metal anchor in the water down below. Once it was there, I held it way out, being sure not to let the suspended anchor slam into the side of the boat. I leaned over the edge and pulled up hard. The seas were especially choppy today, so I knew the anchor would be swinging back and forth violently until the moment I pulled it out of the water. As it breached the surface, a wave passed under my boat and I slipped again on the wet deck. This time I was not able to catch myself. I twisted in an attempt to get my upper body back onto the boat, but in doing so I directed my ribs right into the railway that was supposed to keep me onboard. The pain was sharp, and my eyes closed while my entire face squeezed into a grimace of pain. The next thing I felt was the rush of salt water onto my face.

I had fallen in head first. The pain from slamming into the metal railway ached to an unbearable intensity. I had plenty of breath but I could barely move without sending a singeing pain through my torso. I carefully and slowly righted myself so that my head was above the water. As I surfaced, I could feel the sun’s warmth return to my face. I could stay above water, but barely. My left arm clutched my side, as if it would ease the pain in any way. My right arm paddled furiously to fight against the rough seas. I was so concerned with the pain that I didn’t notice my boat getting further away. I positioned myself vertically in the water, the salt assisting my buoyancy, and begin to swim towards the boat. My legs kicked hard, splashing water and trying to contest the relentless waves. I was reluctant to kick very far away from my body, for the fear of the abyss below made me want to curl up and keep from being too extended.

I squinted at the boat, the salt water splashing in my eyes made it very hard to see. I paused momentarily to catch my breath, knowing that the current wasn’t very strong in this area. I wiped my face with my right arm while kicking at the ocean below. I knew that wiping wouldn’t help with the water, but it was to help process the situation that I had found myself in. I scanned around to look for any boats nearby that might be able to help me. I turned in the water, using my right arm to rotate my body. As I turned, I saw two fins, one larger than the other, emerge from the water about twenty feet away. I knew what it was. The word screamed in my head, like a cartoonish satire of the deadly situation. I paused for a moment, dumbfounded, and then proceeded to paddle furiously towards the boat. It was much farther away now. I wasn’t sure if I was slowing down or if the current was taking the boat away, like the sea slowly pulling a lifeline out of my hands. I didn’t care where it was because I knew exactly what it planned on doing.

There comes a point when you accept the inevitable. It’s going to attack me. It’s going to try to kill me. I didn’t stop swimming, but I knew. The teeth clamped down faster than I could have ever prepared for, right down on my right leg. It was an odd burning sensation at first. The pain grew beyond comprehension after that. It began to shake its head back and forth. It was destroying, devouring my leg. I looked back helplessly. I could see its outline in the water. The gills protruded dominantly as it shook. I began to consider the fact that I might die. It ripped further into my leg, the water surrounding beginning to mask its entire body in a sea of red. I felt the teeth clamp down on something hard, which I realized was my femur. I sank down in the water, giving up. The red, salty water first filled my mouth, tasting like salty copper, and then passed my nose, cutting off my last breath.