فَلَمَّا جَاوَزَا قَالَ لِفَتَىٰهُ ءَاتِنَا غَدَآءَنَا لَقَدْ لَقِينَا مِن سَفَرِنَا هَـٰذَا نَصَبًا
Falammaa jaawazaa qaala lifataahu aatinaa ghadaaa'anaa laqad laqeena min safarinaa haazaa nasabaa
They journeyed on, and then Moses said to his servant, ‘Give us our lunch! This journey of ours is very tiring,’
When they had gone further, Musa said to his young companion, "Bring us our meal — this journey of ours has truly worn us out."
Hunger turns the story here: the fish had slipped away at the rock and neither man had mentioned it, and asking for the midday meal is what brings it back. Commentators note that weariness is reported only after the two pass the meeting-place, reading that as the mark of a stretch walked for nothing. Musa, who had said he would travel for ages, is halted by an ordinary appetite.