WARNING! Major shocks in this chapter. Ennis does things NEVER expected but I stand by them and although they may seem OOC for Annie Proulx's Ennis, they are part of the evolution of Ennis in this story. Please review!

Ennis sat on the bed wondering what the hell he was doing. For the first time in his life he was staying in a nice hotel, one with clean sheets, a mint on the pillow and a bellhop to carry your bags to your suite. He had seen a chandelier for the first time in his life. In a little while, he would be going to a wedding, in a reception hall where they probably had flowers and candles on each table. And he was going to this wedding with another man! What had possessed him to agree to this?

The door to the bathroom opened and out stepped Drew in a black suit, white shirt and emerald green tie. There was a little green handkerchief poking out of his breast pocket. Drew patted down his jacket and walked over to Ennis giving him a "What do you think?" look. He spun around slowly, letting Ennis see his new suit from all angles.

"Well?" Drew asked.

Ennis blinked.

"Really?" Drew said disappointed. "I would have thought you would at least like the way the pants hugged my butt."

Drew turned around partially and tugged the tail of his jacket up to demonstrate his point. He thought his bum looked good in dress pants. He knew Ennis was not fond of the suit but even Drew was pleased with himself today. An arm snaked around his waist and the ground was suddenly pulled out from under him. Drew landed on the bed with a thump. Before he could let out even a gasp of surprise, Ennis was on top of him, tongue already seeking entrance. Maybe Ennis liked suits more than he let on. Drew nearly grinned into Ennis' kiss. This was exactly what he had wanted to do yesterday while he watched Ennis try on suit after suit. He had even been ready to take it a step farther and do naughty things to him the change room. Not that Ennis would have ever let him but the thought had crossed his mind more than once. When Ennis began to undo the button on his pants, Drew pulled himself out of his daze.

"Wait! Ennis, stop. We'll be late for the wedding."

"So?"

"So? Mike will never let me hear the end of it if I'm late for his wedding because we were fooling around."

"How's he going to know?"

"Because you're wrinkling my suit! Up! Up! Up!"

Ennis rolled over with a displeased grunt. Drew quickly got to his feet and began smoothing down his suit, looking himself over in the full length mirror. When he deemed himself looking absolutely not dishevelled, he turned to Ennis and frowned.

"Why aren't you dressed?"

"What am I wearing?"

Drew rolled his eyes and pointed to the closet. Ennis pulled out the hanger off the rail and headed to the bathroom to get cleaned up. Drew heard the water running and guessed that Ennis was shaving. While he waited, Drew sat on the edge of the bed and tugged on his shiny black shoes. Giving them a final quick polish, he looked himself over in the full length mirror and decided he was ready. Next, he walked over to the desk and tried to figure out what he should write in the card. He tapped his pen against his lips a few times, wrote a few words, tapped his pen, wrote a few more…

The bathroom door opened and Ennis came out wearing dark grey dress pants, a white shirt and a navy blue cashmere sweater.

"I think they forgot to pack the noose," Ennis said "and the jacket."

Drew laughed and turned around to admire Ennis' ensemble. Maybe Mike wouldn't notice if they were a bit late… No! The way Ennis looked right now with the way Ennis has kissed him a little while ago, there was no way they would only be a little late.

"I didn't get you a tie or a jacket."

"Ain't I gonna need one?" Ennis asked confused.

"Honey, you called it a noose. You tugged at it the entire time it was on yesterday and that was only 10 minutes. There's no way you'd last the entire night. You didn't look too happy with the blazers either and there wasn't enough time to have one tailored to you. Besides," Drew said, coming to stand in front of Ennis and running his hands appreciatively down Ennis' chest, "you look perfect."

They kissed again. Short and sweet this time, much to Ennis' displeasure. Drew pulled Ennis over to the desk and asked him to sign the card. Once he was done, Drew tucked the card into an envelope and tucked it into one of the pockets on the inside of his jacket.

"Ready?" Drew asked.

Ennis shrugged. As ready as he was ever going to be, he figured.

"You alright?" Drew asked, giving Ennis' hand a squeeze under the table.

Ennis glanced around, checking to make sure no one was paying attention to them before squeezing back. So far, it hadn't been too bad. The place was fancier than Ennis could have ever imagined, there were linen tablecloths, fresh flowers and candles on each table and even the chairs were dressed up in some sort of white dresses with a big satin bows on the backs. Ennis felt like a sore thumb. Luckily, Mike and Angie made their big announcement shortly after Drew and Ennis sat down so all the attention was immediately drawn to the newlyweds and Ennis felt a little more at ease, blending into the background. Angie's mother, of course, had made a scene and a small bout of chaos ensued. This Mike quickly calmed everyone with the promise of an open bar after dinner which would be served at once if everyone would please sit down. This worked for the guests however it caused a mild panic attack with Ennis. Why were there so many forks and spoon next to his plates? He used less cutlery in a week. As the soup was served, Ennis eyed the spoons nervously. Drew gently tapped him with his elbow and picked up the furthest spoon from his plate. Ennis did the same and all was well again. The rest of the meal had gone on without further incident.

"Yeah," Ennis said after a moment.

"It might get a little uncomfortable for bit," Drew said tentatively.

Ennis gave him a questioning look.

"This guy approaching us is a little... enthusiastic. Don't let him scare you, he's harmless but a little flirty and annoying. Try not to punch him in the face."

"No promises," said Ennis.

Drew had to laugh. They stood and waited as they watched said man and a few others approach them. Drew greeted them each with a hug. Ennis stood back and out of the way for the moment but all the while keeping a firm eye on the men putting their hands on his man. The guy Drew had warned him about was lingering longer than necessary. Why was he touching Drew's chest? At this rate, this asshole would be lucky if Ennis just punched him in the face. Luckily, Drew awkwardly disentangled himself and gave Ennis a smile. Then he began his introductions.

"Okay, so this is Mark, Darren, Justin and..."

"Who is this gorgeous thing?" The touchy man interrupted as he finally caught a glimpse of Ennis.

"Down, boy!" Drew warned.

"I'm sure he doesn't bite."

"No, but he might kick you ass," Drew said. "Behave."

"Don't I always?"

Drew rolled his eyes. "Ennis, this ridiculous man is Peter. Everyone, this is Ennis."

"Pleasure to meet you, Ennis," Peter flirted. "Where has Drew been hiding you all this time? You are delicious! You've got the whole sexy, brooding thing going."

Ennis' eyes went wide and he glanced around to make sure no one had heard. His jaw was clenched and his hand curled into fists.

"Back off, Peter." Drew warned again, all the humour was gone from his voice this time.

"I'm just trying to be nice," Peter said. "No need to get your panties in a twist. Okay! I know that look, I'm just going to go over to my table now. See you around."

What a strange man, Ennis thought.

"Sorry," Drew said quietly. "He's the campiest. Everyone else is much more subtle."

"Sorry, Drew," Mark said. "We tried to stop him but he made a beeline as soon as he saw you."

"No harm done," Drew said.

The two couples they had been sitting with had gone off to other tables to chat with other guests so Mark and Darren, who were also couple, sat down and to catch up with Drew and get to know Ennis. Justin had gone off to make sure Peter didn't get in any more trouble. Drew was talking about the farm and the difference between living in the country and the city but Ennis wasn't really paying attention. He was busy noticing how many people were noticing Drew. A few times, someone's gaze lingered longer than necessary on Drew but a well placed glare quickly averted their eyes. Ennis looked over at Drew who was listening intently to a story Darren was telling. He looked like Drew. Sure he was wearing a suit and it looked great on him but Drew always looked great. What the hell was everyone staring at? He looked around trying to find something or someone else worth looking at but the sound of Drew's laughter brought his attention right back to his Drew. His Drew. Ennis felt a strange puff of pride within him. He slid his hand beneath the tablecloth and rested it subtly on Drew's knee. He felt the small gasp of surprise then, Drew continued his coversation as if nothing had happened. Ennis turned his attention back to the conversation. It would be impossible to get everyone to stop looking at Drew but as long as they stayed away from him, Ennis could handle that. Drew's hand crept under the tablecloth and came to rest atop of Ennis'. Yup, thought Ennis, he could definitely handle this.

The rest of the party went by without any further trouble. The rest of Drew's friends were very ordinary. Ennis even managed to hold a conversation with a group of them who were interested in the happenings of a typical day on the farm. When the newly weds came over, neither had a chance to wish them congratulations. Angie squealed that she was SO excited to finally meet the man who made Drew happier than he had ever been and squeezed them both in a tremendous hug! Both men blushed and Mike shook his head and pinched the bridge of his nose. Thinking quickly as always, Drew distracted her with an invitation to dance while Mike and Ennis made small talk. Well, Mike made small talk and Ennis tried his hardest to answer in sentences rather than single words. After the dance Angie was disappointed to hear that they were leaving the following day. Drew invited them to come down and visit whenever they would like on the condition that Angie try her hardest not to embarass him. Angie smiled a little too innocently and agreed.

"That wasn't so bad then," Drew asked as they waited for the elevator up to their room.

"No," Ennis had to admit. "Not so bad."

"Tired?"

Ennis shook his head.

"You want to go to a bar and get a drink?"

Ennis shrugged. "If you want."

"Well, there is this one place I wanted to take you..."

"Ok," said Ennis.

"It's... It's not a regular bar." Drew said tentatively.

"If they have beer then I'm good."

"Ok but you need to tell me if you want to leave. OK?"

Ennis nodded and Drew went to ask the front desk to call them a cab. 10 minutes later they were standing in front of a pretty regular looking bar. Instead of going in the front door, Drew lead Ennis to a side door and up a flight of stairs. At the very top there was a red door and a man wearing black leather pants and a very tight shirt. Drew handed him a card from his wallet which was carefully inspected then handed back. The doorman pulled open the red door and they were let in.

At first sight, Ennis thought it looked pretty normal to him. Pool table, dart boards, bar, barstools, tables, chairs, booths, dance floor... Nothing out of the ordinary here.

"Drew McGrath," the bartender called out waving them over. "Well fuck me!"

"You wish, Alex," Drew said with a grin.

"I do, you know," Alex replied with a wink.

Ennis frowned. What was with the people in this city?

"I thought you had fallen off the face of the earth." Alex continued. "Where the hell you been?"

Drew ordered Ennis a beer and himself a Coke as he told Alex about his parents and the farm and so on. Ennis looked around again and noticed there were a lot of men here. There were usually at least some women at all the bars he'd been to. But this place only had men patrons. And they were awfully cheerful and touchy for a bunch of men in a bar. A whole bunch of them were dancing. Together!

His thoughts were cut short when a beer, a coke and a cue ball were pushed their way.

"Who's your friend?" Alex said.

"This... this is Ennis," Drew said shyly.

"Boyfriend?"

Ennis nearly gagged on his beer. The look on his face was somewhere between shock and horror. Drew looked at him a little torn. On the one hand, he didn't really know what to answer and on the other hand, he wanted to comfort Ennis but he knew better than to try and touch him in public.

"Ok, forget I asked," Alex said quickly. "So, Ennis, I take it you've never been to a gay bar?"

Ennis' mouth fell open. He looked a bit like a deer caught in the headlights. Drew shot Alex a look to please shut up and go away. Understanding immediately, Alex did just that without another word. Drew was feeling guilty, nervous and panicky. He wanted to wrap his arms around Ennis and calm him down, tell him it was ok but at the same time he wanted to beg for forgiveness and hoped Ennis wouldn't hate him.

"I was trying to tell you," Drew said. "Do you want to go?"

Ennis couldn't answer. He was in a gay bar. A GAY bar with men who liked other men! Who knew a place like this even existed? How could there be a bar like this and no one know about it? He was already imagining and angry mob with torches and pitchforks waiting for them outside. But Drew had been here before and he was ok. There were lots of men here who were ok and didn't seem to be afraid at all. Most of them were just normal men, nothing particularily "queer" about them. How was this possible?

"Ennis?" Drew said tentatively. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have brought you here. We can go. I'll just go pay Alex."

"No," Ennis said, snapping out of his thoughts and seeing the droop of Drew's shoulders. "We can stay."

"Really?"

"Yeah, they have beer," Ennis said taking a sip. He knew Drew well enough to know that Drew had a reason for bringing him here. He didn't know why yet but he knew Drew wouldn't have brought him if he thought Ennis couldn't deal.

"Thank you," Drew said quietly. No need to state the obvious. They understood one another.

They went over to the pool table. Drew broke then sank 3 balls before he missed. While Ennis cleared the table, Drew noticed how many people were noticing Ennis. That brought a smile to his face. Ennis really had no idea how good looking he was. In some ways, it made him even sexier. Drew felt the warm fuzzies in the pit of his stomach again. He felt like the luckiest man in the world and yet a small nagging voice at the back of his head was telling him that this wasn't real, and he didn't deserve this happiness. Shaking his head from those thoughts, Drew gulped the rest of his coke and with a word to Ennis went back to the bar for a refill.

"Drew?" Said a man sitting at the bar. Drew recognized him and groaned inwardly.

"Hey Seth."

"Where have you been hiding?"

"I moved back home."

"Hard times? You can come stay with me. I'll take real good care of you."

Drew gagged a little at the thought. "No, thanks. I'm good."

"You know," Seth said leaning forward, "we haven't seen each other in awhile. You and I should go somewhere quiet and catch up. My place is nearby."

Drew took a step back and bumped into someone. Turning his head to apologize, Drew was relieved to see that it was Ennis.

"Hey, back off buddy," Seth said to Ennis. "Drew and I were just going to head out."

Oh God, Drew thought. He didn't care much if Ennis broke that creep's face or even if they got kicked out of the bar. He just hoped to God that Ennis didn't believe what this moron had just said. Drew was very surprised when Ennis' arm wrapped protectively around his waist. Drew turned his head to give his gratitude for the rescue when Ennis did something that absolutely blew his mind.

"The hell you were, buddy," Ennis said with a withering glare.

Then, turning his attention back to Drew he gave him a quick peck on the lips. Drew was so surprised that he just stood there with his mouth hanging open while Ennis waved Alex over, handed him back the cue ball and a few notes. Then Ennis lead Drew out of the bar and down the stairs, all the while never removing the protective hand at the small of his back. All the way back to the hotel, Drew remained speechless.