When the Toy Whale Surfaced- 適合初級的英語短篇故事

Milo lifted his fishing pole over the low harbor rail. Cool salt air touched Milo's cheeks. He wanted a small silver fish for tonight's soup. A wooden crate of lobster stood near his boots. Beside it, a street vendor washed buckets with seawater. Wind pushed tiny waves against the stone wall. Milo cast once, but the hook caught the crate edge. He pulled lightly; the crate slid and hit the buckets. Water splashed out and rushed across the wooden planks. The running water found a gap between boards. It poured below and struck an old rope coil.

The coil tightened and stopped the sliding crate halfway. Buckets shuddered, but they stayed upright after that quick jerk. Still, water kept streaming through the gap below Milo. A plastic toy whale floated up from the dark space. Light glittered on its wet blue back. Milo leaned down and set the whale on a step. More water followed and ran toward the open bay. The vendor chuckled and lifted the crate away from danger. Milo checked his line, then dropped it back into water. Thin water kept sliding under the boards toward the tide.

米洛把釣竿提過低矮的港口欄杆。鹹鹹的涼風輕輕碰觸他的臉頰。他想釣一條小銀魚做今晚的湯。腳邊放著一箱龍蝦。旁邊，一位路邊攤販用海水清洗水桶。風把小浪推向石牆。米洛甩竿，但魚鉤勾到箱邊。他輕拉一下，箱子滑動並撞到水桶。水濺出，沿著木板一路衝出去。流動的水找到木板縫，往下傾瀉並擊中一卷舊繩。

繩子收緊，半路擋住了滑動的箱子。水桶抖了一下，但在那快速一拉後仍直立。水仍從縫隙流下米洛腳下。黑暗的縫隙中，一隻塑膠玩具鯨魚浮上來。光線在它濕亮的藍背上閃動。米洛彎身，把鯨魚放到台階上。更多的水繼續朝開放的海灣流去。攤販笑了笑，把箱子抬到安全處。米洛檢查釣線，然後又把它放回水裡。薄薄的水流在木板下滑向潮水。