In the original Brokeback Mountain Story

Jack and Ennis's days had become comfortably routine

While the dogs babysat the sheep

the guys had plan of how

to make the best of

their nights

Stay In Touch

By Mike157

1

That brief but severe snowstorm in August caught them all by surprise. Ennis was shocked when he made his way down from the flock expecting supper, only to find Jack taking down the tent, starting to break camp.

Jack explained that Joe ordered them and the sheep off the mountain and said another even bigger storm was headed their way.

Very suddenly Ennis and Jack were faced with the early end to the sheep herding job, and a whole month short of pay.

Ennis cursing to himself, went to a little clearing a short distance from the campsite to try to figure out what he was going to do with this bitch of an unsatisfactory situation. Especially now with short pay, what was he going to say to Alma?

Soon, Jack, always happy-go-lucky, carrying his lariat over to where Ennis sat brooding over the latest news. Speaking in a gentle voice, "Come on cowboy, time to get going". He couldn't see Ennis's blood boiling inside. In a playful move, Jack attempted to get him moving by lassoing Ennis. Ennis in his sullen mood was not to be played with.

That ended up with them both rolling on the ground in a sort of wrestling match. In the heat of tumbling around, Ennis got a nosebleed. Seeing his own blood triggered him over the edge, his anger exploded in the only way he knew, with a powerful right slug that landed hard to Jack's jaw.

Ennis sat up sopping up his blood with the sleeve of his shirt. Jack, struggling to his feet, staggered off moaning, holding his aching bruised face. Minutes passed. Ennis, feeling bad that this had gotten out of hand, went to him.

"Get-the-hell-away-from-me!" Screamed Jack!

Eventually they got all the camping gear packed up and headed slowly down the mountainside with the fattened sheep.

Even though the route was mostly downhill, it still took three long almost wordless days. Ennis tried a number of times to get Jack back to his cheerful talking way. Jack's voice, the few times it did come were flat and unemotional and concerned only sheep herding duties.

The eerie silence had Ennis's guts tied in knots and sure made the trip seem to go on forever. He could look over and see Jack, but it seemed weird, that person there seemed to be oblivious of his attempts to get things back to normal. Inside Ennis's head he was asking himself what was going on? Why is there such a knot in my stomach? It makes no sense. This was just some guy I worked with? It shouldn't be happening? Why should I even care? Why?

Finally, they arrived back at the sheep pens. Grouchy old Joe Aguirre was there overseeing the loading, in his usual foul mood, bitching that "Some of those sheep didn't never go up there with you and the count not being right" certainly didn't lift their spirits either.

At least his biting words "You ranch stiffs, ya never no good" gave Ennis a small measure of comfort that somehow he and Jack were somehow still on the same side of something.

Finally the sheep herding was over, Joe and them darned sheep were history, they have their pay, even though the amount is shorter than they expected; With some money in their pockets it got them both in somewhat better moods, and now they began to talk again.

Over supper and a couple beers, Jack asks "Ennis are you thinking of doing sheep herding next year for Joe? Shaking his head he answered firmly, "NO! That's not a job for a newly married man."

Ennis then asked about Jacks plan. Jack replied, "I guess I'll help out at dad's ranch in Lightning Flat. But shit, he don't even pay enough for my cigarette money. It's really too early to go home. I wonder if there is some kind of short term job around?"

Ennis replied, It's it's almost round up time." His own answer surprised himself, got his mind spinning. "With some luck, I could just have a little more wedding money. Good idea!" He smiled.

"Lets check the bulletin board at the feed mill, see if there is any help wanted."

Sure enough, posted there was an announcement for:

Roundup Cowboys Needed

Generous pay, good food

Employment about two months

No horses required

A call to the ranch foreman gave the good news they were seeking. The guy said to be there in a couple days and they'd both be hired, and for better pay than they were getting herding the sheep. Ennis, somewhat joking, "Oh, since you have the truck, would you mind if I ride along?" Jack answered smiling, "Well sure, no problem".

Slapping his palm on the table, Ennis shouted "Damn, just when I thought the worst. Lets do this! But first I gotta to call Alma n'let her know what we're gonna do."

At around 5 PM he made the call. Alma's mom answered in a bored sounding unemotional voice, said Alma was not home, that she'd have her call back, probably be a couple hours.

Still keyed up, Ennis had to sit there leaning on the phone booth waiting for her call while Jack went to the dinner down the street. A while later Jack appeared with a burger, fries and a Coke for Ennis who was still waiting, sitting uncomfortably on the ground by the phone booth.

Jack announced, "I'm going to get the truck gassed up now, 'cuz that service station will probably be closing soon." Left Ennis to eat and wait alone again.

Ennis grouched nervously as several other people made calls on that phone, "It must be the only dang pay phone in town!" He prayed that Alma wouldn't call right then and get the busy signal.

Finally, the phone did ring. He grabbed the receiver, there was Alma's voice. Cheery sounding as he'd remembered, but she came across as surprised. Ennis did his best to explain why the sheep herding job had ended so early and the resulting short pay cuz of the snowstorm on the mountain. To that she didn't reply anything.

He said they were headed west for temporary work in the usual fall roundup. He added the wedding would have to wait till that work was done in a couple months. In fact, he thought it strange that she didn't seem to have any comment or a reaction when he said the marriage would have to wait.

All she seemed to talk about was how everything needed money.

She added that her mom and dad liked Ennis at first but were very concerned that he didn't have a regular good paying job. Telling her that she would be in for a very rough life with Ennis delMar. She said her dad said, "It's just as easy to love a rich man as a poor man".

"Besides, the judge's son has a brand new car and offers to take me out any time I want."

The phone call abruptly ended, had taken even more of a chill when she said that "We should stay in touch" instead of the "I love you" Ennis was expecting at the end of the call.

Ennis hung up the phone and shuffled, like the weight of the world was on his shoulders, slowly across the street to where jack was waiting in the parked truck.

Jack's very first words were, "Wow, what the heck happened Ennis, you look like hell?"