[ WP ] Fishing alone on a boat off the Florida Keys , you 're having a great day . Beer in hand , suddenly something tugs hard at your line . You reel it up and up and up and you freeze as you pull it out of the water ...

It was a hot Saturday morning late in July. The sun rose high in the sky, scorching Mark and I. The sun burned our pale Irish skin to a nice burning rosy red. I did n't mind though. Any day fishing with Mark was worth it. We had been out in the boat for a few hours, not catching anything. We sipped on Pabst Blue Ribbons while the waves bounced the tiny boat up and down. 
 
 Every once and a while, a larger than usual wave would break on the side of the boat with a cracking *'' Smack! `` * sending a spray of cool ocean water onto us. It felt amazing i'll tell ya after being out there scorching all day. The harsh rays of the sun reflecting off the water roasted us fast. 
 
 I started to doze off for a few minutes when my reel began screaming. Line began racing off my reel quicker that a jackrabbit. I quickly snapped back into reality, dropping my cigarette to the ground, setting the hook in place. Jerking the rod back hard, I set the hook and began reeling in the line. 
 
 *'' Mark! Ey! I got something good here! `` * I gasped after feeling the tugging beast below dive deeper, taking yards of line with it. 
 
 Mark raced over to my side of the boat, striking another Marlboro and placing it in my mouth, we looked at each other with a sense of wonderment. I focused back on the fish, taking a firm stance, locking my back, slightly arching my legs, I had a feeling I was in for the long haul. 
 
 The sun began to settle when I almost had given up. It had been nearly five hours and still no sign of the fish. We chalked it up to being a large shark potentially, hoping it would n't break the line and this would be another one of those one that got away stories. Still, I kept my composure. My arms arched each time the fish dived down. My legs buckled each time I desperately tried reeling back in the lost line. Inch by inch I would gain the line back and land this bastard. 
 
 The sun sat upon the horizon, painting the sky in a chalky orange and red. Sweat was beating down my brow, My body ached to give up. That's when the line went calm. I peered over the side of the boat, noticing a dark shape emerging from the depths. Mark raced over, shining a flashlight over the edge, illuminating the cloudy sea. I pulled up hard, the shape grew larger with each pull. With a final pull, bubbles began breaching the surface. 
 
 *'' Come on Brian! The bastards almost here! `` * Mark squealed, jumping up and down in place, nearly spilling his beer over himself. 
 
 *'' Mother of god....'' * I whispered to myself, my Marlboro nearly dropping out of my mouth. 
 
 Breaching from the water, hooked to the line was a tangled mess of a white dress with rosy red roses dotted on the fabric. Two tiny arms and legs followed along with a bobbing head with dark soaked black hair. A little girl floated along in the water, staring at Mark and I. We both looked at each other, unable to contemplate what we were seeing until we were snapped back into reality. A little high pitch giggle came from beyond the boat along with cheerful splashing. 
 
 *'' Hey boys, you up there? `` * a squeaky voice called out. Mark and I dashing for the crews quarters, never looking back. 

