When Love Takes You In

Author's Notes: I forget who's review it was that expressed some concern about forgetting about Jack's rape. Don't worry, I haven't forgotten. I have plans…. Plans that I hope actually come down on paper in the next chapter actually. Jack and Ennis have kept it in the back of their minds up until the near future and it will soon come front and center.

And I'm glad ya'll liked Nurse Holly. There will be more of her in the future. Yay!

Oh yeah… and in my story I'm spelling Alma Jr. beau with a K…. so it will be Kurt. No real reason except that I know a Kurt and so I'm used to it being spelled that way…

Dislaimer: Yeah yeah…. Annie Proulx is a genius, not me. I'm just using Ennis and Jack for a while…

Chapter Six

The first night had been fun and relaxing, kissing and fooling around without expectations for more. In a silent agreement, they knew and decided to wait for more healing before making Jack contort his body for any sexual positions.

But morning came and Monday along with it. As much as Ennis wished he could stay home and just lay in bed with Jack, he knew that if he didn't work they wouldn't have a bed or house to stay in. And thinking of beds, Ennis needed to fix their bed at some point.

Jack stayed home, bored as hell and trying to find something he could do to make the time pass by. He settled for cleaning up the house, Ennis had never been the best housekeeper. With Jack and Lureen both working, they shared the household responsibilities so Jack knew his way around a cleaning cabinet.

By three in the afternoon, Jack had been able to fill three garbage bags and found socks behind and under the couch. After the house was fairly clean (except for the garbage bags he couldn't carry on crutches) he decided he'd be able to completely unpack his things. There was more room now to put everything.

When Ennis arrived home, he was surprised to say the least.

"Didn't realize brought me home a maid." He whistled appreciatively and hung his hat on a nail by the door.

"Got bored. There's garbage for you to take out. Now… don't go expectin' me to be your new housewife though." Jack answered as he greeted Ennis.

"I could get used to coming home to you everyday." Ennis said, going to get the garbage bags to bring outside.

"Yeah, well this is temporary until I'm back on my feet and can get a good ranch job." Jack called through the thin walls.

"Yep." Ennis grunted, taking all bags at once. He tossed them haphazardly outside and came back into the small house. It was almost shack-like from the outside, but the previous owners had made the inside look homey and livable. And with Jack here now, he figured he wouldn't have to give up this house. He thought he was gonna have to sell it and had already started looking at smaller places. He'd almost settled on a small trailer without even a proper working toilet.

Ennis shook his head to free it from all thoughts. He was worn out, making up for all the work he'd missed and wanted to sit and relax.

He smiled mischievously when he saw Jack standing on his good leg by the couch. He walked over, lightly tackled Jack and brought him down to the couch with him. Then he reached over on the side table to grab his cigarettes and ashtray. That's how they stayed and relaxed for the next hour.

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Alma Jr. pulled up to her father's house. He'd been out of town the week before for reasons that nobody but he knew. She knew her father's work schedule for the next month or so and he wasn't needed out of town at all.

She was happy to see his truck pulled into it's normal place. She was also surprised when he wasn't outside to greet her. Usually his sharp ears heard her pulling up and he always came out to welcome her.

Alma Jr. got out of her car and walked towards the house. She laughed softly as she stepped around the garbage bags. Her father was not the neatest person. She froze when looked up and saw her father through the window. He was laying on the couch, locked in an embrace with another man. A shift and she could see the man's face. It was different, but a flash of memory reminded her. She'd only met him once that she could remember from inside her dad's truck. The name she'd never forget after listening in on an argument between her parents at a Thanksgiving dinner so many years ago. Jack Twist. She knew who this man was to her father and she'd been preparing for this moment for a long time… when her father could no longer hide and she could no longer pretend she didn't know. She could confront him with her knowledge of what was going on.

She braced herself and entered the small house, going straight to the small living room.

"Hi Daddy, Mr. Twist." She said loudly and cheerfully.

"Fuck!" Ennis jumped up fast as lightning, Jack scooting to the far end of the couch.

"Alma… why didn't you knock?" Ennis asked, shuffling from on foot to the other. Alma smiled softly.

"Daddy, I never knock."

"Yeah." Ennis mumbled. "Listen, Alma. This ain't what it looks-"

"Daddy, it's exactly what it looks like. I know… I know about Mr. Twist. I heard you and Mama fighting about him and I remember how he hugged you that one time Francine and I met him. It's nice to meet you again, Mr. Twist." Alma Jr. nodded over to Jack on the couch. She caught herself spending too long a gaze on his stitched up face and quickly looked away back to her father.

Jack smiled a greeting and then turned to Ennis also.

"So just about everybody in Riverton knows, right?" He asked. Ennis silenced him with a glare.

"So, uh… Alma. Does your sister know? And.. What exactly do you know?" He fixed her with sharp look, trying to gauge her thoughts and feelings.

"Well, I know you don't go fishin' on your fishin' trips and I think I know that you're… in love… with each other." Alma said carefully, knowing that the wrong wording or tone of voice could put her father on the defensive. "Francine doesn't know anything, I think. It's nothing I ever brought up with her."

"Well, why- uh- how come you never said nothing'?" Ennis asked.

"Daddy, you never said anything to me about it, so I figured you didn't want me to know… and so I pretended I didn't." Alma shrugged.

"Guess you weren't as careful as you thought, huh?" Jack asked in a sarcastic voice. Ennis, already on the wire, snapped back at him.

"And everybody in Childress don't know nothin', is that right Jack?"

Jack snapped his jaw shut, not bothering to hide the surprise and hurt that Ennis had just caused him then.

Ennis regretted his words as soon as he spoke them and took a small step toward the man on the couch.

"Shit… Jack I-… shit." He stopped and just spun on his heal, backtracking his way out of the house. The next thing heard was the wheeze of Ennis's truck as he pulled out and rove away.

Alma watched the exchange guiltily, feeling as if it were her fault they argued.

"Mr. Twist, I'm awful sorry. I thought it would take some pressure off him if he knew that I knew and that I still love him." Alma tried t apologize. She sat on the couch with Jack.

"It's Jack… and don't aplogize. Yer father is a damn stubborn mule and doesn't like surprises. He'll be back once he settles with the situation." Jack told her, calming her fears.

"Mr.- sorry… Jack. What is the situation? Why are you suddenly here and what happened to you?" She gestured towards his leg, avoiding looking right at the stitches and scars covering half his face.

"Some of the wrong people got a hold of me. Ennis drove down to Texas and brought me up here." Jack explained as vaguely as possible. Alma thought she knew what Jack was not saying. She'd seen plenty of violence on the news and in movies towards men who liked other men.

"Maybe I should go. I'll be back to morrow. He'll learn eventually that I won't stop loving him. He'll always be my Daddy." Alma said, standing up. Jack nodded, grabbing his crutches and standing up with her.

"I'm sure your acceptance means a lot to him. It does to me." He smiled at her. They said their goodbyes and she left him alone, waiting for Ennis to return home.

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It wasn't until late that night, after Jack had already gone to bed, that Ennis returned home. He stank of liquor and smoke and could barely walk from he truck to the house. The slamming of the front door and then the stumbling of Ennis into the bedroom startled Jack awake.

"Ennis?" He mumbled, still half asleep. Ennis fell onto his stomach on the mattress and pushed himself up on his elbows.

"I'm s'rry. I… I's wrong an'- an' I said stupid an' I'm s'rry." Ennis slurred. Jack rolled onto his back and looked at Ennis.

"You're drunk. Go to sleep."

"I don' wanna hurt you, though. An' I did…. An'… mmm… you smell good." Ennis trailed off and his head fell slowly onto Jack's chest as he drifted into a drunken slumber.

"Oh Ennis…" Jack ran his hand through Ennis's hair, soothingly. He took the blanket and spread it to cover both of them.

He knew Ennis felt guilty over everything that had happened, not just what he'd said before walking out. Ennis felt responsible and guilty for everything that ever happens to his loved ones. He never told anybody, not even Jack, and so it gets held inside. Jack needed to figure out how to make Ennis talk about his own feelings or he was likely to do something he'd really regret.

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The next day, Alma Jr. showed up right before Ennis came home from work and he paused when he saw her standing in front of the house waiting for him.

"Alma." He nooded his head to greet her.

"Daddy, I feel bad for making you and Jack fight." She said. Ennis stopped her.

"That's not yer fault. That's mine." He took on the blame, opening the door for Alma. They botyh entered the house together and Jack greeted them both warmly.

"You'll always be my Daddy and I love you very much no matter who else you love." Alma assured Ennis.

"Thank you. I- uh… I guess… well, that means a lot to me, darlin'." Ennis mumbled as he offered her a cup of coffee. She accepted it and the three went to sit in the living room.

"But… that wasn't the reason I came yesterday."

"So what's the occasion?" Ennis asked.

"Me… well, me and Kurt."

"Kurt? I thought you was seein' uh… Troy."

"Daddy, that was two years ago." Alma laughed lightly.

"Troy still playin' baseball?"

"I don't know what Troy's doin'. I'm seeing Kurt now." Alma reiterated for her father. Jack laughed silently with amusement.

"So what's Kurt do?" Ennis smiled playfully.

"Works up in the oil fields."

"So he's a roughneck. I guess since you're nineteen, you can do whatever you want, huh?"

"Sure." Alma smiled into her coffee.

"So what about you and Kurt?" Ennis asked, hand absently finding Jack's beside him. It didn't go unnoticed by Alma and then Jack's startled pulling away at first and then finding his way back to Ennis. She looked up to her father's face.

"We're gettin' married."

"Married?" No matter how often you wonder about your daughter's future, realizing that she's all grown up still shocks a father.

"Congratulations." Jack leaned forward to shake Alma's hand , excitedly.

"It will be in the spring. Francine will be singing and Monroe's gonna cater the reception. I was hoping you'd be there." She looked hopeful. Ennis decided to have some fun and make her sweat.

"Spring? Well… I'm supposed to be at round up.. Up on the Tetons…" He pretended to be thinking about it. He jumped a little when Jack elbowed him in the ribs and he looked over and gave a small wink so that he wouldn't think Ennis to be a total ass.

Alma politely smiled at her father and quickly looked back down to her coffee.

Ennis groaned a little as he lifted his old body from the couch. He walked over to the fridge in the open kitchen, both Jack and Alma wondering what he was up to. He rummaged around until he found what he was looking for. He knew he had an old bottle of wine stored in there.

"I guess…" He started as he got down three un-matched cups and started pouring "… they'll have to find themselves a new cowboy. My little girl is gettin' married." He handed her and Jack their cups.

Alma glowed with happiness as the three drank their wine.

"Thank you, Daddy."

End chapter

Wow! 105 reviews so far! Well… 105 at the time that I started typing this. Ya'll make me feel so awesome and loved and… yay! So I thought I should thank ya'll again…. Well the reviewers since the last time I posted a thank you.

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Kathryn Merlin- thank you for expanding on your original review. These things didn't happen… yes it's an AU fic… they could have if circumstances had been different for Ennis and Jack. But since they didn't… that's why we have fanfic. J

Jakesdream- thanks. I was so worried about that transition chapter. I'm really glad you like the little role reversal too.

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Saint Anger- As you can probably tell… I don't like Lureen or Bobby that much. L I figured as cold as Lureen was about Jack's death in the book and movie, that's she'd be the same way in this situation and not get too worked up about Jack's… preference.

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