In "A Day's Wait," Schatz's father manages to shoot two of the covey of quail despite the difficulty of shooting while balancing on the ice and the springy brush. He says that he is particularly pleased to have found a covey so close to the house and that there are so many of the covey left for him (and perhaps his son) to shoot another day.

The shooting episode comes about halfway through the story and provides the only relief from the sick room for both the father and the reader. Although the father does not believe that his son's life is in danger (and does not know at this point that Schatz thinks he is dying or the mistake he has made), the boy's anxiety is contagious, and the story has an oppressive atmosphere.

As so often in Hemingway's short stories, the protagonists repress their true feelings and concerns, with Schatz trying to put a brave face on what he believes are his last hours while forbidding others from approaching him for fear of the danger to them. The cold and clarity of the outside world, sparkling with freshly frozen ice, and the excitement of hunting the birds provide a welcome respite from the tension.