A Barrage of Bugs

Forget the bugs...

The first bug to whack Trey on the head while he was fishing jolted him awake. For an hour he had been relaxing in the shade with his baseball cap pulled down over his eyes, fishing line in the water.

He shot upright and took off his hat, looking for the culprit so he could nip this attack in the bud. Trey wiped at the spot where the bug struck but there was no sign of blood from him or the bug.

Just as he settled in again for another rest, another bug – this time larger –smacked his forearm.

A chill shot up and down Trey’s spine.

Something wasn’t right about the encounter, both encounters actually. He couldn’t quite place what the problem was, but he packed up his gear and started to pull in his line when another two bugs hit his cheek at the same time.

As he pulled the line in, it resisted.

Another bug flew directly into his nose, and another on his neck. They weren’t mosquitoes but they weren’t flies either. The line was still resisting and tugging at his line. Three bugs buzzed his head but didn’t land. He reeled in more line but he definitely had something on the end, and it all seemed so surreal.

He made feeble attempts at swatting the bugs away all the while trying to hold on to his rod and reel and pull it all in. Four more bugs flew around him but didn’t land. The dilemma he now faced was real: cut the line or continue to be assaulted by these killer bugs?

On the one hand, the bugs seemed to be attacking him relentlessly. And it was getting worse. The bugs alone should have been enough to cut his line and head for the car a hundred yards away.

On the other hand, he never expected to catch fish when he went fishing today or most days. He was at the little lake to relax. That’s it, to relax.

The real reason he didn’t cut the line and get to the car was because he wanted to see what was on the other end of the line. Since he hadn’t put a hook or bait on, he was dying to find out what was out there that would grab his line and not let go. Whatever it was, it was worth his while to see.