Leaving Wyoming
Chapter 1
Language: english!
Disclaimer: The Brokeback Mountain Characters belong to Anni Proulx
Summary: The story starts after Ennis’s divorce. Jack is leaving him, and Ennis is leaving Wyoming searching for Jack, even though he isn’t aware of that.
Feedback: Is appreciated. Please let me know, what you think.
Once again I want to thank Torry torry28 she's the one who translated from German and Jackie
jackien1968 for helping her and me a lot. Without the two of them, there would be no english version!
Author’s note
Leaving Wyoming was my second BBM story and my first longer one.
I began it in September ’06. Reading it again and seeing it in English is a little bit like travelling back in time. I saw Brokeback Mountain for the first time in March ’06, when it came out in Germany, and it left me so full of emotions. I had fallen in love with two cowboys and a wonderful story and film; at the same time I was sad and confused, thinking what they could have done, what could Jack have done for a better ending.
Leaving Wyoming Chapter I
September 1976 ( Two years after the divorce)
Ennis Del Mar woke early like he did every morning before the alarm clock went off. One glance at the dial indicated it was only 5:45 am. He closed his eyes again.
He had a dream of Jack. One of many. It had been a good dream.
He saw Jack’s smiling face in front of him; a feeling came over him just like the one on Brokeback where they were together so many years ago.
He pressed his face into the pillow and the alarm finally went off tearing him out of his reverie.
He switched it off. Alma was the one who always woke him; now since the divorce, he acquired his own alarm clock so as not to be late for work. It was a simple old-fashioned mechanical one, so loud it could give you a heart attack.
He had no use for the more modern battery-operated digital ones, he’d rather get tossed out of bed with the ungodly noise this one made.
Today, he had a day off so he allowed some extra time for sleeping in. At afternoon he was scheduled to report at a ranch, they were looking for a foreman. He got the tip from one of his coworkers on the ranch where he had worked for a few weeks as a substitute foreman.
If he was honest with himself he could not picture himself as a foreman. So far he felt comfortable just being an instructor, at his current job he seldom had to take full responsibility as a chief, he could always save important decisions until the boss returned to take charge.
His coworker Mike had insistently talked to him. He had told him that the owner wanted to establish a cow and calf operation. Ennis said he was going to talk to the owner, partly to do his colleague a favour and partly because he was interested in cattle raising.
He had accumulated a few years of knowledge about running a cattle ranch and was proud of what he accomplished at his last job with his then chief.
He also noticed that Mike had his own goal and was sharp for Ennis’s job.
With a sigh Ennis finally got up and went to the bathroom to wash up.
Then he dragged himself to the kitchen to heat the water for his morning coffee.
In the kitchen cabinet he found a couple of slices of bread; he fried some eggs and sat down with his cup of black coffee.
His thoughts traveled back two years to when he saw Jack for the last time.
1974
Ennis had sent a postcard to Jack about his divorce from Alma. Jack had misunderstood and took it for a sign; he did not hesitate to jump into his truck and drive 14 hours straight to Ennis.
Ennis shook his head when he thought about the pain he saw in Jack’s eyes when he realized he made a mistake and it did not mean what he so hoped for - that Ennis had chosen him.
And he didn’t even give him any time at all, because he had his girls for the weekend.
Before Ennis could react Jack had gotten back in his truck and drove off.
For days after Ennis blamed himself, but what could he have done different, he had his daughters with him.
At the next meeting Jack didn’t show up. Ennis waited the whole day at their appointed place at Oak Creek. Finally he drove home without seeing Jack.
The entire week after, Ennis racked his brain trying to figure out what was wrong; there was no news of Jack.
He could no longer stand not knowing and for the first time he called Childress Texas.
Jack’s wife Lureen answered the phone; she asked who he was.
He told her “Ennis Del Mar, I’m an old fishing buddy of his.”
Then she said, “Oh, yes, well then I can tell you,” and she told him that Jack came back about three months ago very disturbed from one of his spontaneous trips. “He stayed drunk for three days straight until he passed out. After that he tried going back to work but he had a steady alcohol level or he was baked. Two weeks after that he told me he was leaving” she sniffled and went on: “Day before yesterday he called me from somewhere up north, New England, Vermont, Pennsylvania some such place, and asked for a divorce.”
Ennis said, “I’m sorry ma’am,” and after a hasty goodbye he replaced the phone in its cradle.
Ennis was in search of a job, so he drove east.
Restless, he never stayed long in one place.
In the next two years Ennis had worked on seven different ranches and with each new job he moved closer to the East Coast.
He had no idea why he drove east; maybe it was because Jack had once told him that the people in the New England states were more tolerant and because he, without realizing it, was looking for Jack.
1976
Ennis glanced at his alarm clock on his nightstand. He was to present himself to the ranch foreman at two o’clock in the afternoon.
The present foreman, with whom he had spoken on the telephone, had set a date and had given him directions.
The ranch, he had explained to him, sat in the easterly direction from the little city called Middletown.
The elderly foreman also informed him that he was ready to retire and his boss was looking for his replacement and that he would narrow down the choice.
It had just dawned on Ennis that he never even asked for the name of the Rancher.
His current job location was about 30 minutes in a westerly direction from Middletown, so Ennis decided to make a stop there on the way to the ranch.
Ennis was looking around in the shop especially geared to horses.
The store had a large assortment of things needed on a ranch.
He was admiring a saddle he especially liked when he accidentially looked through the window.
A jolt of shock went through him thinking he saw Jack Twist . A dark haired man had just disappeared into the store across the street from him.
Ennis shook his head to dispel the vision of Jack.
He thought about the past two years and the number of times he would see a stranger from a distance resembling Jack, and for a minute he believed it to be him.
Ennis turned his gaze back to the saddle, gently ran his fingers across the smooth leather, sighed deeply and returned the saddle back to the shelf.
*
Ennis parked his truck in front of the farmhouse. He stepped out and stuffed his shirttail back in his jeans. Next to the barn he saw an elderly gentleman walk towards him.
He extended his hand to Ennis in greeting and said to him,
“You must be Ennis Del Mar? I’m the foreman here, Peter McLeod. For you, Peter.”
They shook hands.
“Come along Mr. Del Mar, I show you around.”
“Ennis.”
“Ok, Ennis it is, come along.”
Peter led him over to the corral behind the barn where a couple of calves where grazing, and to the stables where only two pregnant cows stood. Ennis inquired about the lack of cattle and Peter told him they where out on the pasture.
Peter tossed out a few fact-finding answers about cattle operations and the organization of a ranch. Ennis asked about some details and the work routine.
Between the questions and answers from Ennis, Peter was impressed by the well-experienced man before him; he also liked his quiet demeanor. And he was sure the other ranch hands would respect him.
As they moved on to the barn an elderly woman came out of the house, wiping her hands on her apron.
Peter called to her when he spotted her, “Ms. Twist, do you know where your son is? I’d like to present this young man to him.”
Ennis heard the name and his head buzzed, was he mistaking what he heard?
Did Peter just call this woman Ms. Twist?
Must be another of my hallucinations.
The woman walked over to them, giving Ennis a friendly smile, and shook his hand.
When Ennis introduced himself to her he saw that she raised her eyebrows slightly.
Then she looked over to McLeod and told him, “Jack went to town, he should be back shortly.”
Ennis was stunned, he could not believe what he just heard, the enormity of her words. That can’t be. But didn’t Peter address her as Ms. Twist, and she called her son Jack?
As if from a long ways off Ennis heard the woman ask him if he would like to sit on the veranda and have a cup of coffee.
Ennis nodded and followed her to the house in a trance. For a minute he thought he should make an excuse and leave.
But McLeod had started to talk about the cattle so he sat down while she went inside to brew the coffee.
Just at the time Ms. Twist brought the coffee pot and the cups on a tray, a pickup truck drove around the bend. He parked right next to Ennis’s old Ford pickup.
Ennis watched Jack step out of his truck.
While Peter kept talking, Ms. Twist pouring the coffee, he watched Jack walking towards the veranda. Suddenly Ennis felt very ill; he wanted to flee the scene as he saw Jack’s steps slow down, then stop.
TBC
Language: english!
Disclaimer: The Brokeback Mountain Characters belong to Anni Proulx
Summary: The story starts after Ennis’s divorce. Jack is leaving him, and Ennis is leaving Wyoming searching for Jack, even though he isn’t aware of that.
Feedback: Is appreciated. Please let me know, what you think.
Once again I want to thank Torry torry28 she's the one who translated from German and Jackie
jackien1968 for helping her and me a lot. Without the two of them, there would be no english version!
Author’s note
Leaving Wyoming was my second BBM story and my first longer one.
I began it in September ’06. Reading it again and seeing it in English is a little bit like travelling back in time. I saw Brokeback Mountain for the first time in March ’06, when it came out in Germany, and it left me so full of emotions. I had fallen in love with two cowboys and a wonderful story and film; at the same time I was sad and confused, thinking what they could have done, what could Jack have done for a better ending.
Leaving Wyoming Chapter I
September 1976 ( Two years after the divorce)
Ennis Del Mar woke early like he did every morning before the alarm clock went off. One glance at the dial indicated it was only 5:45 am. He closed his eyes again.
He had a dream of Jack. One of many. It had been a good dream.
He saw Jack’s smiling face in front of him; a feeling came over him just like the one on Brokeback where they were together so many years ago.
He pressed his face into the pillow and the alarm finally went off tearing him out of his reverie.
He switched it off. Alma was the one who always woke him; now since the divorce, he acquired his own alarm clock so as not to be late for work. It was a simple old-fashioned mechanical one, so loud it could give you a heart attack.
He had no use for the more modern battery-operated digital ones, he’d rather get tossed out of bed with the ungodly noise this one made.
Today, he had a day off so he allowed some extra time for sleeping in. At afternoon he was scheduled to report at a ranch, they were looking for a foreman. He got the tip from one of his coworkers on the ranch where he had worked for a few weeks as a substitute foreman.
If he was honest with himself he could not picture himself as a foreman. So far he felt comfortable just being an instructor, at his current job he seldom had to take full responsibility as a chief, he could always save important decisions until the boss returned to take charge.
His coworker Mike had insistently talked to him. He had told him that the owner wanted to establish a cow and calf operation. Ennis said he was going to talk to the owner, partly to do his colleague a favour and partly because he was interested in cattle raising.
He had accumulated a few years of knowledge about running a cattle ranch and was proud of what he accomplished at his last job with his then chief.
He also noticed that Mike had his own goal and was sharp for Ennis’s job.
With a sigh Ennis finally got up and went to the bathroom to wash up.
Then he dragged himself to the kitchen to heat the water for his morning coffee.
In the kitchen cabinet he found a couple of slices of bread; he fried some eggs and sat down with his cup of black coffee.
His thoughts traveled back two years to when he saw Jack for the last time.
1974
Ennis had sent a postcard to Jack about his divorce from Alma. Jack had misunderstood and took it for a sign; he did not hesitate to jump into his truck and drive 14 hours straight to Ennis.
Ennis shook his head when he thought about the pain he saw in Jack’s eyes when he realized he made a mistake and it did not mean what he so hoped for - that Ennis had chosen him.
And he didn’t even give him any time at all, because he had his girls for the weekend.
Before Ennis could react Jack had gotten back in his truck and drove off.
For days after Ennis blamed himself, but what could he have done different, he had his daughters with him.
At the next meeting Jack didn’t show up. Ennis waited the whole day at their appointed place at Oak Creek. Finally he drove home without seeing Jack.
The entire week after, Ennis racked his brain trying to figure out what was wrong; there was no news of Jack.
He could no longer stand not knowing and for the first time he called Childress Texas.
Jack’s wife Lureen answered the phone; she asked who he was.
He told her “Ennis Del Mar, I’m an old fishing buddy of his.”
Then she said, “Oh, yes, well then I can tell you,” and she told him that Jack came back about three months ago very disturbed from one of his spontaneous trips. “He stayed drunk for three days straight until he passed out. After that he tried going back to work but he had a steady alcohol level or he was baked. Two weeks after that he told me he was leaving” she sniffled and went on: “Day before yesterday he called me from somewhere up north, New England, Vermont, Pennsylvania some such place, and asked for a divorce.”
Ennis said, “I’m sorry ma’am,” and after a hasty goodbye he replaced the phone in its cradle.
Ennis was in search of a job, so he drove east.
Restless, he never stayed long in one place.
In the next two years Ennis had worked on seven different ranches and with each new job he moved closer to the East Coast.
He had no idea why he drove east; maybe it was because Jack had once told him that the people in the New England states were more tolerant and because he, without realizing it, was looking for Jack.
1976
Ennis glanced at his alarm clock on his nightstand. He was to present himself to the ranch foreman at two o’clock in the afternoon.
The present foreman, with whom he had spoken on the telephone, had set a date and had given him directions.
The ranch, he had explained to him, sat in the easterly direction from the little city called Middletown.
The elderly foreman also informed him that he was ready to retire and his boss was looking for his replacement and that he would narrow down the choice.
It had just dawned on Ennis that he never even asked for the name of the Rancher.
His current job location was about 30 minutes in a westerly direction from Middletown, so Ennis decided to make a stop there on the way to the ranch.
Ennis was looking around in the shop especially geared to horses.
The store had a large assortment of things needed on a ranch.
He was admiring a saddle he especially liked when he accidentially looked through the window.
A jolt of shock went through him thinking he saw Jack Twist . A dark haired man had just disappeared into the store across the street from him.
Ennis shook his head to dispel the vision of Jack.
He thought about the past two years and the number of times he would see a stranger from a distance resembling Jack, and for a minute he believed it to be him.
Ennis turned his gaze back to the saddle, gently ran his fingers across the smooth leather, sighed deeply and returned the saddle back to the shelf.
*
Ennis parked his truck in front of the farmhouse. He stepped out and stuffed his shirttail back in his jeans. Next to the barn he saw an elderly gentleman walk towards him.
He extended his hand to Ennis in greeting and said to him,
“You must be Ennis Del Mar? I’m the foreman here, Peter McLeod. For you, Peter.”
They shook hands.
“Come along Mr. Del Mar, I show you around.”
“Ennis.”
“Ok, Ennis it is, come along.”
Peter led him over to the corral behind the barn where a couple of calves where grazing, and to the stables where only two pregnant cows stood. Ennis inquired about the lack of cattle and Peter told him they where out on the pasture.
Peter tossed out a few fact-finding answers about cattle operations and the organization of a ranch. Ennis asked about some details and the work routine.
Between the questions and answers from Ennis, Peter was impressed by the well-experienced man before him; he also liked his quiet demeanor. And he was sure the other ranch hands would respect him.
As they moved on to the barn an elderly woman came out of the house, wiping her hands on her apron.
Peter called to her when he spotted her, “Ms. Twist, do you know where your son is? I’d like to present this young man to him.”
Ennis heard the name and his head buzzed, was he mistaking what he heard?
Did Peter just call this woman Ms. Twist?
Must be another of my hallucinations.
The woman walked over to them, giving Ennis a friendly smile, and shook his hand.
When Ennis introduced himself to her he saw that she raised her eyebrows slightly.
Then she looked over to McLeod and told him, “Jack went to town, he should be back shortly.”
Ennis was stunned, he could not believe what he just heard, the enormity of her words. That can’t be. But didn’t Peter address her as Ms. Twist, and she called her son Jack?
As if from a long ways off Ennis heard the woman ask him if he would like to sit on the veranda and have a cup of coffee.
Ennis nodded and followed her to the house in a trance. For a minute he thought he should make an excuse and leave.
But McLeod had started to talk about the cattle so he sat down while she went inside to brew the coffee.
Just at the time Ms. Twist brought the coffee pot and the cups on a tray, a pickup truck drove around the bend. He parked right next to Ennis’s old Ford pickup.
Ennis watched Jack step out of his truck.
While Peter kept talking, Ms. Twist pouring the coffee, he watched Jack walking towards the veranda. Suddenly Ennis felt very ill; he wanted to flee the scene as he saw Jack’s steps slow down, then stop.
TBC