The moon had been up for a long time but he slept on and the fish pulled on steadily and the boat moved into the tunnel of clouds.
You work now,fish,he thought.I'll take you at the turn.
“I'll rest on the next turn as he goes out,”he said.“I feel much better.Then in two or three turns more I will have him.”
I'm tireder than I have ever been,he thought,and now the trade wind is rising.But that will be good to take him in with.I need that badly.
It has more nourishment than almost any fish, he thought.At least the kind of strength that I need.Now I have done what I can,he thought.Let him begin to circle and let the fight come.
“Fish,”the old man said.“ Fish,you are going to have to die anyway.Do you have to kill me too?”
He took hold of the line carefully so that it did not fit into any of the fresh line cuts and shifted his weight so that he could put his left hand into the sea on the other side of the skiff.
After a while the fish stopped beating at the wire and started circling slowly again.The old man was gaining line steadily now.But he felt faint again.He lifted some sea water with his left hand and put it on his head.Then he put more on and rubbed the back of his neck.
Just then he felt a sudden banging and jerking on the line he held with his two hands.It was sharp and hard-feeling and heavy.