“Uuuuugh!!” Tim woke up in excruciating pain. “Where am I?” Tim had no idea how he had gotten there. Tim was a kind gentleman who liked country music. He had a plump Irish wife named Debbie, and they had a goldendoodle puppy. Tim thought back to where he had been the other night. But only flashes came to his head: Shouting. Feelings hurt. Running out of the house. Getting on a boat at the last minute. Tim noticed that only one other person–the captain– was on the boat. It was a small boat with a small cabin; it was supposed to be a one night trip. Tim soon dozed off, exhausted from the argument. When he woke up, he immediately fell right back down. He noticed handcuffs, one end attached to the railing on the boat, the other end clasped to his left ankle. Luckily, Tim noticed his pocket knife just out of reach from him. “I could cut myself free!” he thought. Tim reached as far as he could while lying down, but he still could not reach it. “Darn!” Tim angrily shouted. He looked out into the water for a long while, and noticed a shark's dorsal fin. He needed the knife, now! As the shark came closer, Tim decided what to do. “ARRRGHHH!!!!” You could hear the snap of Tim's ankle, as he broke it over the railing. As soon as he grabbed his knife, the shark dove back into the water, out of sight. Just then, Tim saw a piece of paper stabbed into the deck floor with his knife. The note said. “Whale sharks won’t eat you”. “Damn!” In frustration Tim threw his knife off the side of the boat. He then noticed writing on the back of the note: “I WILL.” It was in terrible handwriting, like that of a kindergartner learning to write. Tim heard footsteps coming from the cabin. None other but the sailor appeared. “Should have kept the knife,” said the captain in his raspy voice. That was the last thing Tim ever saw.
Parker’s story won the short story contest held during Term V.