Jack sat there looking at Bobby on the other side of the table trying to figure out where to start. Finally, he decided to just dive in and hope he didn't hit a rock.
"Well, Son, I've got something to tell ya, but, I'm not sure how."
"Let me guess, you and mom are getting a divorce, right?"
Totally stunned, Jack couldn't do anything but stare at Bobby for a minute. Finally, he was able to gather his wits that'd scattered to the four winds at that statement.
"What gave ya that idea, Bobby?"
"Oh, nothing much just a few things here and there. Like the fact that mom has turned pretty cold on ya lately. The fact that y'all have been fighting almost constantly since I was 8. Oh and let's not forget the fact y'all've been sleepin' in separate bedrooms for the last three years. Think that about covers it."
Stunned for the second time in as many minutes, Jack's mouth opened and closed so much he started looking like a fish. After a bit he was able to finally find his voice again.
"Wow, talk about a sucker punch out of nowhere. I'm real sorry ya had to even notice all that, Son. Guess yer momma and I haven't exactly been keeping it low profile like we thought. But, thing is, that's not what I wanna tell ya. Ya remember me telling ya bout a guy name of Ennis Del Mar?"
"Yer old fishing buddy?"
"Yeah, that's the one. Well, thing is, his oldest daughter, Junior, Alma Jr actually, but, everyone calls her Junior, well, she came to see me today,"
"All the way from Wyomin'? Wow, she must've had a real good reason to come all that way."
"She sure did. See her daddy, my fishin buddy, has become majorly depressed and she says no one can figure out why." Actually, ya do know why, ya just can't tell him that ya dumbass. It's all yer fault he's like that. "Anyway, she came to see if I could maybe do something to help. Said she thought of me cause I've known him since before alla ya kids were born and she thought maybe I could help. So, I told her I would at least try and, well, I wanna leave tomorrow morning. I just wanted to let ya know what was goin' on."
Listening to Jack and nodding occasionally, Bobby decided to ask the one question that had been bugging him for a long time. So, when Jack finally wound down he figured that he might as well ask as he might not get another chance.
"Sounds real good, Daddy," he said. "I appreciate ya letting me know and all, but, I've gotta question I need to ask ya and I want the truth. Ya always told me that we gotta tell the truth cause lies get caught too easily and can cause problems. And I want ya to know that no matter what yer answer is I'll love ya anyway cause yer the best dad any kid could ask fer."
Whoa, Jack thought, where the hell is this coming from?, but, all he said was "Sure, Son, go ahead and ask, I'll tell ya the truth. Ain't never lied to ya before have I?"
"No, sir, ya surely ain't. Well, here goes. This fishin' buddy of yers. He's more than a fishin' buddy, ain't he?"
Damn, Jack thought, wonder if there's a record for the number of times a person's been shocked in one day. But, he can't mean what I think he means. Can he? Does he know? He can't know. I haven't given anything away, have I? Racking his brain he can't remember ever giving anything away. "What makes ya ask that, Bobby? Have I done anything to give ya that impression?"
"Actually, Daddy, ya have. Nothing major mind ya. Just a lot of little things I've noticed over the years. Like the fact that most of the time you just kinda drifted through life till it got near the time fer one of yer fishin' trips then ya'd kinda start to rev up. When ya'd get back ya'd be smiling and laughing and all. Recently though ya'd come back looking like ya'd lost yer best friend or something. Just got me to thinking' is all and I started to put the pieces together. I'd hope ya'd tell me if I've got it wrong, but, I don't think I do. I gotta tell ya though, even if ya tell me I'm right I'll still love ya anyway. I just want the father I used to have. The one that was always smiling and laughing not the one I have now. I just want ya to be happy, Daddy. I know ya ain't happy with momma, tell ya the truth, I ain't very happy round her, but, she's my momma so I put up with it."
Damn, Bobby's as smart as I always knew he was. What the hell've I been doing to him all this time? "Wow, Son, I never realized how much I was hurting ya. Ya gotta believe that I wouldn't hurt ya fer the world. I'm more sorry than I can ever say fer the way I've treated ya."
"I know, Daddy, and I ain't sayin' that I blame ya fer any of it. I know yer gonna tell me that I shouldn't be talkin' that way about my grand pappy, but, I just can't stand bein' around that idiot. I figure most of the blame is on his shoulders cause I've seen the way he treats ya when he's around. But, ya still ain't answered my question yet."
"Well, Bobby, ya sure got me over a barrel on this one. Never thought I'd have to tell ya like this, but, yer right. Ennis and I are more than just fishin' buddies. Thing is he and I, well, we been in love for twenty years now since we was both nineteen." He went on to give a very edited version of the Brokeback story. Telling about how they met, became friends, fell in love and then went their separate ways. About how they both ended up getting married because it was expected of them. And about how he had never wanted kids. "But, I want ya to know, Son, that I wouldn't trade ya fer anything in this world. First time I laid eyes on ya when they brought ya out to me, I was the proudest man in the world. And Ennis, he has two girls and he'd kill the first person told him he'd have to trade them fer anything. Only problem is, Ennis and I have hurt a lot of people over the years. His wife, your momma and you kids. We never meant to, but, we did. Ennis, though, he's had the toughest time with it." And he went on to tell Bobby the story of Rich and Earl.
