“Large-mouth… bass…?” Caelan gaped, his attention swinging like a pendulum between Dusty and the fish. “I caught a large-mouth bass?! Are you fucking kidding me? That’s what that is?!” He pointed to the fish where it lay on the bottom of the boat. Dusty scooped it up from the ground, holding it out for display. Now that it was hanging vertically, Caelan could see how long it was compared to Dusty. Not very long, no, but heavy. It was a fat fish. The best fish he ever caught, if he dared to say so himself.<br/><br/>Caelan was grinning from ear to ear. He never thought he could be so happy, especially not over something that he had never done or wanted to do before. Caelan approached Dusty, elation radiating off of him like pheromones, and grasped his shirt in both hands. He kissed Dusty hard on the mouth, his fists slowly tightening against his chest. “Thank you.” He smiled, his face practically all pearly whites, and found the toolbox that Dusty had gestured to. Caelan crouched down, rummaging until he found pliers.<br/><br/>“I caught a fish.” He selected a pair and bounced up, staring at Dusty with a look of realization on his face. “I am a goddamn fisherman. You better watch out, buddy, these waters are going to be empty, my friend. Just you wait.” Caelan laughed as he teased the man, trying to avoid bringing the pliers to him.<br/><br/>Was he still a fisherman if he couldn’t get the hooks out of the mouths of his catch? No, he wasn’t. He wasn't a wuss, either.<br/><br/>He stood beside Dusty now, moving in without much instruction. Dusty had taught him how to hook a shrimp. Surely, he could unhook a fish. He moved slowly, gently grasping the swell of the hook as he maneuvered it back through the fish’s lip. Once it was free, Caelan set the pole down and made sure the hook wouldn’t snag either of them. He opened the cooler and looked expectantly at Dusty. “Well, don’t be suffocating my catch, now.”