The River Why Page #5

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message in the paper for me.

(Eddy) "Will the girl

who ran from the guy...

"who recited

Izaak Walton in the tree...

"please contact Gus on

the other river he named.

[chuckling] "He has your

pole and your fish...

"and wants

to return them.

"He's totally harmless

but urges you...

"to bring

a loaded gun if scared.

As long as you come.

Thank you."

[chuckles]

[soft lively guitar music]

(Kernie) Gus! [kids shouting]

We want to go fishing.

It's time

for another lesson.

Hey, guys. Can we

do it another time?

I just- I just don't

really feel like it.

[all chanting] Fishing.

Fishing. Fishing.

Let's go fishing.

[chanting continues]

Let's go.

Here we go.

(man)

Very nice.

Hey, hey.

Gimme.

Stop. It's snagged.

Gimme.

What?

It's snagged. See?

Oh, man.

Whoa,

whoa, hey!

Hemingway,

come here.

Come here. Hey!

Do you wanna

catch this fish?

[shouting]

[cheering]

[soft lively music continues]

Just get right here.

That's the spot, okay?

Just head west. Just

head west, all right?

There you go.

Good luck.

How's it going?

Yeah, I fish out here

everyday with 'em.

Those are good.

Good luck.

How's it going?

Uh,

Yeah.

Uh.

Good luck.

[soft guitar music]

[walla]

[soft guitar music continues]

[fire softly cracking]

See, I read that I should bring

a loaded gun with me, so...

I took your advice

to the letter.

I believe you have my pole.

Right.

And a fish.

Wait, wait, wait. I

- I get the pole and the fish, but...

what's this?

The belly reel that goes with the

- the pole.

And how'd you know

I'd come for them?

[chuckling softly]

I didn't.

Everything in the world

made me think you wouldn't.

There is something

I should tell you.

About that day.

I never ran.

Huh?

I never ran away.

I was barefoot.

So I...

hid in the woods and...

I saw you climb

above that pole...

where I hooked

the steelhead.

And then,

I stepped on an orange...

and this.

See, when you came

crashing along...

you came from upstream.

Uh-

And the orange-

Huh? And the orange

and this, this telescope...

this telescope

were downstream.

Now, I mean, come on.

It doesn't take

Sherlock freakin' Holmes-

Okay.

Okay, okay, okay.

Just listen to me

for a second.

Spying on me.

While I was-

Okay, wait,

hu- Hold- No-

While I was-

Hold on.

Just give me a second.

Okay, I admit

that is my telescope.

And I'm s-sorry that I

was spying on you, but...

really, I was just

wandering around...

looking for a place

to swim and then...

there was you.

This beautiful girl.

And you were fishing.

And the "here

goes nothing" way...

you chucked

that hazel pole...

into the water, and the way you

dove in and swam after it, I-

I just knew that you had some

way of looking at things...

some way of looking at life

and the world...

which is exactly the way

of looking at things...

that I've been trying

to look at things.

I n my whole life,

I've only met two people...

who have ever

looked at things...

any way close to that way.

My little brother...

and a philosopher

who talks to his dog.

And with both of them it

was love at first sight, too.

But I'm not sorry.

When you see

the most amazing...

beautiful thing

you've ever seen...

you don't think about

what's right or polite...

or tell it to cover up.

Because you can't

stop looking.

You s-

You're just helpless.

[chuckling]

What's so funny?

I'm sorry.

[chuckling]

You.

I n a tree.

Spouting off stuff like...

"Oh, good scholar"

and that "God never made...

"a more pure,

innocent recreation...

than angling."

[chuckling]

I like that, Gus.

Can I ask you

a question?

Yeah.

What are you

doing here?

This is my cabin.

Shouldn't I be

asking you that?

No.

Not here, here.

I mean-

Here!

Here.

Alone.

Fishing.

What are you doing here?

Here here?

Here here.

[breathes in and exhales]

Fishing.

You know, I saw you

in Portland.

You did?

Where?

I saw you rescue that trout

from that filthy creek.

I guess you could

say it made me...

curious.

[soft guitar music]

So, I drove

up here...

to see

what I could see.

And I ran

into this little boy...

who called himself

Hemingway. [chuckling]

And he

immediately...

launched into this

epic tale...

about a giant fish that

he caught with help...

from a certain

superhero named Gus.

Who spent seven

minutes under water

before he wrassled the

fish with his bare hands.

Bullshit.

I know.

That's what

I figured.

But I could see

in his eyes...

what little Hemingway

thought of you...

and it made me

even more curious.

[crickets, running water

and soft guitar music]

You know,

I must have read...

that Fishing

Dutchman's article...

like, 8000 times.

I knew

it was you.

And this time

I came to see you.

And you know

what happened next?

Yeah.

You do?

Yeah.

[soft guitar music continues]

(Eddy) You threw his

prize fish in the fire?

(Gus) It wasn't just any fish.

He was Nijinsky.

(Eddy) That went over

real well, I'm sure.

[Gus, chuckling]

Uh, not really.

I haven't even spoken

to either of them since.

I don't even know why I came out here.

Guess I just needed to get away.

Your parents seem like

an interesting match.

I nteresting is a kind word for it.

[clicking]

[reel whirring]

[lively guitar music]

Bravo, Nijinsky.

(Gus, off)

There are two stories...

of how Nijinsky

found his way...

onto my parents' mantle.

The one that landed

my father his book deal.

And the one

that's the truth.

Both versions begin

the same way.

With an epic struggle...

between a determined

young fly fisherman...

and a giant steelhead.

Little did

either of them realize...

that their true nemesis...

was lurking somewhere

down river.

[soft guitar music]

[mumbling]

[whirring]

[snap, whirring stops]

(Gus, off) It was my

father's worst nightmare.

A mere plunker of worms...

had cost him

his prized Nijinsky.

Whoever this crude

interloper was...

he would have

to be dealt with.

You-

(Gus)

Man to man.

had best refrain from that pole

and defend yourself.

Because one of us

is going in that river...

in search

of my fish!

(woman)

So be it, slicker.

But I

guaran-goddamn-tee ya...

It ain't

gonna be me.

Come on

and fight me!

Come on and fight me! Come on.

[reel whirring]

Oops.

[grunts]

[splashing]

(Gus, off) As my father

watched the woman...

reel in Nijinsky

for herself...

he had no idea...

that she would become

his lifetime adversary.

[thump]

She would also

become my mom.

[Henning, laughing]

Looks like you could

use a little warming up.

(Gus, off) My parents

came to an understanding.

The story would be told as

maybe it should have been.

After all,

my father reasoned...

she did cause his

six-pound tippet to snap...

and he had spent all that

time tiring the fish out...

making it easy for Ma

to just reel him in.

So the deal was sealed.

H20 would have his story.

But never again...

would they use anything

resembling reason...

in their discussion

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