Shark Attack

• Ayaan Imran, Grade 5
• Short Story
• 2022

The heat flows over me as I take a bite of my tuna sandwich. I realise the clouds are becoming darker, so I decide to sit up and look around. As I’m turning my head I see some teenagers throwing my stuff in the water! I run as fast my legs can carry me. I’m too late. They’ve thrown everything which I had. I decide to go into the water to get it, but pass a sign which says “do not enter this water”. I start swimming for about 30 metres and reach for my stuff, but when I'm reaching I see a shark fin miles away.“Oh no” I gasp and realise a shark is in the water with me. Isn’t this a beach? Why's there a shark? I haven’t gone that far I thought in my head. I decided to stay still because a lot of movement attracts sharks. But it was too late. The shark had sensed me and it had started moving towards me! Right now it was going slow, but when it got confident it started moving at very fast speed. Then I realised staying still is going to do nothing, so then I panicked and started swimming very fast. If only I had taken swimming lessons, I could have swam away so easily. Anyways, no time to think about that. I swam as fast as my hands could move me but the shark was 70 metres away. I think fast and then realise I can call for help since I have my… oh no. I must have dropped my phone when I panicked! What will I do now? The shark is really close now. I want to give up since I’m very scared. This is the end right? I ask in my head. SWOOOSH! I see something small is flying in the air but it’s very far. After a while I saw it more clearly, it’s a… helicopter! I’m actually being saved. But when I see the helicopter hover above the water, I warn them to land it closer to me. I don’t think they have seen the shark yet. I have to swim over there myself. “Are you okay kid?” The grown up asks. “Well almost” I say. “Why? He asks. “Cause there’s a shark in the water!” I shout. “A-a shark? He stammers. “Yes,” I responded. “We have to get out of this water as soon as possible,” he says. “Sure,” I say as I jump into the helicopter. As soon as I put my belts on, we start going into the air. But when we’re about to fly off something hard hits the helicopter. The helicopter gets out of control. And heads towards the water, going deep down. All of them locked inside. All hope is lost, and I say my last words. Then suddenly I wake up on the beach, it turns out it was a dream. But a very realistic dream.