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How is Jerry connected to the boys in the story?

The only connection Jerry has to these boys comes from the fact that he was swimming at their regular beach.  When his mother went off to the touristy beach that she and Jerry used to both visit on earlier vacations, Jerry went to the "wild bay" where some older, local boys shortly came to play.  They were old enough that they seemed like men to Jerry, and he ardently wished to be accepted by them.  When they began to swim through the tunnel in the rock, he panicked that he could no longer keep up (and thus fit in) with them, and he began to clown around in a feeble and childish attempt to retain their attention.  After seeing this behavior, the boys left him behind and went away, wounding his pride and causing him to cry.  This experience prompted Jerry to spend the remainder of his vacation training to swim through the tunnel that the boys had already conquered.

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