Jaws Junior

• Noah Brown, Grade 6
• Short Story
• 2015

“Home time children! Have a good weekend and be safe,” called Mrs Blake, Tom Jackson’s teacher, as the bell rang. He had just received a three out of ten for his presentation on ‘My Best Adventure’. He hadn’t rehearsed it well. “You were rubbish!” exclaimed Nelson Bullnut, a supposed friend.
Tom climbed off the school bus and through the gate. His mother was cooking (as always), an extraordinarily exquisite dinner. The smells of food where overwhelming. He did his homework, which was to write a detailed movie review about his favourite film. His was Jaws. Even though he was afraid of sharks in real life, he still enjoyed the movie.
After he finished, he went to get his rowboat, fishing rod and pocketknife. He loved fishing from his little, wooden boat, out on the gargantuan salt-water river that lead to the mighty ocean. He pushed the little boat out onto the river, then climbed aboard. As the boat slid into the great blue-green expanse of water, he realised he’d made a BIG mistake! The current was so immense that it swept his wooden boat away towards the sea!
The vessel was spinning in all directions; it was incomprehensible to know where he was as the boat spun ever faster and Tom became ever more nauseous.
He knew to wait for help to come, but he was petrified nonetheless and then something hit his boat with the force of a torpedo! The water all around him swirled and frothed. He cursed loudly as he felt the foam start to submerge him half way into the water. His stomach took an immense lurch as he stared into the round eyes of a great white shark!
The profile of the shark was just like the one in Jaws and he was the one who was going to be eaten. He was up for a fight but knew he would lose. Then the shark breached ten feet from the water and fell back in with a mighty KASPLOOSH! The tail of the almighty beast whipped like a crane. It pounded Tom’s leg and with a supersonic crack like a lion-tamer’s whip, his leg broke. It stuck out at an odd angle and as he screamed, the shark submerged him. Tom struck out and gouged at the shark’s eyes and nose (which it didn’t seem to like); it then bit straight into his left shoulder. He screamed but all that came out of his mouth was a large quantity of bubbles. He knew his life was over, he knew he would... “Wait!” he thought, “My pocketknife!” He grabbed his knife and dug it into the shark’s flesh. It swam hastily away. At that moment some warm hands closed around his wrist. He blacked out, exhausted and in so much pain.
Tom lay back in his hospital bed and closed his eyes. One thought buzzed in his head as he lay there. At least for once, he would have a great story for school.