Jack awoke slowly. He was aware of the hard ground below him and the heat of the morning, and he could feel the sleeping bag had been pulled up to his chin. He stirred, and then pushed the thick cover down, immediately relieved when the cooler air hit his naked chest.

He stretched his arms up over his head and opened his eyes. It was bright out, but he could tell it was still early. There was one very important thing missing though: Ennis. Jack sat up and looked around, as though he might find him huddled in a corner or lost under a piece of clothing. He frowned, reached for his pants, and then was immediately reminded of the previous night. Blood rushed to Jack's face, and his stomach did a flip. Had it been a dream? Because it certainly was too good to be true.

The memory brought a slow sleepy smile to his face and he felt his dick start to tingle, so he wiggled into his pants as quickly as he could, not wanting to get distracted this early in the morning by an erection. Jack couldn't ignore the warm feeling he felt in his chest, though. He felt like a new man, brighter and more alive, happier than he'd ever been. He'd never known a person could be so happy; he was like a balloon that was either about to burst or simply float away. But Jack wanted neither to happen, not before he got to Ennis.

He threw on the shirt he'd been wearing the day before and crawled out of the tent, wincing slightly when he moved from the soreness he felt in his backside. He hadn't realized how sore he still was, had forgotten about the pain in the wonderful pleasure, but now it was back, not sharp…just a dull tenderness.

"Well, damn, looks like we won't be doin' that again, at least not today."

Ennis was sitting on one of the logs, cooking breakfast in the cast iron skillet, when Jack crawled out and then stood. Ennis looked up when he heard the rustling. At first he seemed slightly surprised at his presence, but his expression changed. He gave Jack a shy smile and looked back at the food he was cooking. Jack's own smile widened when he saw Ennis' shy look; he didn't think he'd ever loved him more than at that exact moment—cooking breakfast, clothes he'd been wearing the night before slightly askew, hair the slightest bit mussed, cheeks flushed—he was a vision.

Jack pushed away the urge to simply stand there and stare at him all morning and forced his feet to move towards the fire—not that they had to be pushed too much. He sauntered over to the log and sat down next to Ennis, close but not too close. He yawned slightly and stretched some more, raised his arms up above his head again.

"Mornin', cowboy."

Ennis gave Jack a quick sideways glance and then turned back to the food sizzling over the fire.

"Mornin'." He mumbled.

Jack smiled. He was really amused at how bashful Ennis was being—it was heart warming. He laughed and gave Ennis a playful shove, felt a surge of desire come up when he felt strong muscle underneath his fingers, but pushed it away—for now.

"Hey there, why so shy? Ya weren't shy last night."

Ennis eyes went wide and he shot Jack a surprised look.

"Cut it out." He gave him a shove back, slightly harder than Jack had done, but there was no anger behind it.

Jack laughed. "I'm only speakin' the truth, asshole." On the word "truth" Jack gave Ennis another shove, this one the hardest of the three. Ennis threw the fork he was using to stir into the skillet and turned full towards Jack.

"Oh yer getting' it now!"

He grabbed Jack by the shoulders and pushed him over the back of the log, pinning him to the ground. Jack started laughing, despite the small amount of pain he felt when they hit the ground, and started trying to free his arms so he could punch Ennis on the side, or at least grab him and pull him closer. They rolled around in the dirt, rough housing, acting like two boys rather than the middle aged men they were, until finally Jack pinned Ennis' arms above his head, held him to the ground by straddling his chest. They were both breathing hard, smiling hard.

"You give up? Or d'ya want me ta really inflict some sufferin'?"

"I let you win."

"Bull shit."

They looked at each other for a minute, the first time they'd done so since the previous evening when they'd been laying in each other's arms. Jack realized suddenly, the extremely suggestive position they were in, but surprisingly, didn't feel the immediate need to rip off his clothes. He enjoyed the simple relaxed contact they were making, the way they were behaving like two friends, two old friends. Jack was reminded, even though he'd known before, that Ennis really was the only friend he'd ever had, the best friend too.

At the same time, Ennis raised his head, and Jack lowered his, and their mouth's came together. It was a gentle, reassuring kiss, a kiss that said nothing had changed since the night before, or because of the night before. They were still the friends they'd been, and they were still the lovers. The kiss lingered for a minute, Jack opening his mouth, their tongues meeting, slowly swirling around each other. And then, with a slight lick on Jack's lip from Ennis, they parted and they were looking at each other again, smiling. There was silence for a moment and then Ennis lifted his hips a little.

"You're heavy."

Jack laughed and got off Ennis. "Well what'd ya expect?"

Ennis shook his head, still smiling, and then sat all the way up.

"Ya need ta brush yer teeth too."

Jack's eyes went wide. "Well aren't you jest full a' compliments today."

"Jest tellin' the truth." Ennis gave what could only be described as an evil grin, and Jack laughed hardly believing what he was seeing.

"Ennis Del Mar, you are one funny sonofabitch. And while we're on the topic, I should let ya know that yer fly's undone."

Ennis looked down, zipped up.

"And don't go thinkin' you couldn't use a little minty fresh mouth wash as well. I was jest bein' a gentleman."

"Fuck you."

The two men laughed and sat down, each eager to eat.

Jack put down the plate that had recently held a good serving of eggs and canned ham, and leaned back against the log. He was sitting on the ground, legs stretched out in front of him, boots crossed at the ankles. He took in a deep breath, felt content now that his belly was full. Ennis was just finishing his own food (it always seemed like Jack ate faster) and set his plate down on the ground as well. He was sitting on the log adjacent from Jack, and was intently looking at him.

"You get enough ta eat?"

Jack smiled and patted his stomach. "Think so. But knowin' me, I'll be wantin' more in a little while."

Ennis laughed and took a sip of the coffee he'd brewed, balanced the cup on the log where he was sitting and then walked over to Jack and lowered himself next to him. He was looking at Jack's mouth.

"Been watching ya eat."

Jack smiled knowingly. "Oh yeah?"

"Makes me hungry fer somethin' else…"

Ennis cupped the side of Jack's face with one hand and pulled his mouth to his. Their lips came together as natural as anything, as though they'd been doing this for their entire lives. Jack snaked his arm around Ennis' waist, pulling him close, started to feel his desire build. Ennis held Jack's face in both of his hands, holding him there, not letting their faces come apart. He was kissing Jack urgently, like he couldn't get enough of his tongue, like he couldn't get enough of his lips. Jack's heart started racing, but at the same time, he felt like he was having his face eaten. He tried to speak, tried to tear his mouth away slightly.

"Ennis, Ennis…"

Ennis didn't stop, mumbled, "What?" into his mouth.

Jack brought his own hands up to Ennis' face, pulling him away slightly.

"Ennis, ya don't have ta attack me, here. I'm not goin' nowhere. Just take it easy."

Ennis was breathing hard, and looked away, down at the ground. Jack felt like maybe he'd offended him, and ran the back of his hand over his cheek.

"Just wanna go slow now, okay? I can barely breath when ya do that."

The truth was, Jack wanted to attack Ennis' mouth just as much, but he wanted to enjoy these moments, wasn't sure where they would go from here, and honestly, knew that if they took it much farther, Jack would be getting' into territory he wasn't so comfortable going, not after the previous night and with the soreness he still felt.

Ennis looked back at Jack, eyes full of some emotion, pain of pride, Jack wasn't sure.

"I just…I've never…" He looked away again, obviously struggling with his words, the fight inside him apparent from the clenching and unclenching of his jaw.

Jack grabbed Ennis' face between his hands this time, and brought their mouths gently together, a soft consolation, a gesture to let him know that he understood, he understood what he was trying to say so he didn't have to say anything if he didn't want to.

"How 'bout we get cleaned up or somethin'. I'm feelin' pretty ripe. I haven't showered in a couple days, and we've been out here in the heat workin' n' all."

Ennis nodded, but didn't move, which was okay with Jack—he was hesitant to leave Ennis' touch also, felt warm and safe so close to him.

"There's a lake that connects ta the stream just a little ways north a' here. We could go there."

"Oh yeah, I think I saw that yesterday when I was wandering around…"

He stopped, not wanting to bring up the subject of why he'd been wandering aimlessly for hours the day before. All was well now, and he didn't want to give Ennis any reminders.

Ennis gave him a knowing look and a soft (apologetic?) smile. He untangled his arms from around Jack and stood up.

"All right, let's get to it then."

Jack stood, slowly, nodding, and then proceeded to follow Ennis around making sure camp was all set and all their food was cleared, and the fire was doused, before they got some things and started out towards the lake.

While they walked, Ennis told him a little about the area.

"You been ta the Tetons before?"

"Yeah. A couple a' times. But not this area. We was more north when we went, up near the Montana border, near Lightening Flat. That's when I was with the local rodeo circuit. My daddy never took me up ta the Tetons, even though they were closer. He took me up ta the Bighorn's once when we were visitin' his brother out near Greybull."

He looked off in the distance, memories of his father spinning through his head. He shook them off and turned back to Ennis.

"Anyway. What were you sayin'?"

Ennis shrugged. "Wasn't sayin' anythin' important."

"Everything you say's important, cuz ya don't say much. So go on."

Ennis smiled at the man walking beside him.

"This area we're in, to me's one a' the best places in the whole Teton Range. It's unknown ta most tourists, only the locals know about it. Brokeback's jest one a' the mountain's out here, but it's still my favorite. Don't know why."

Jack was silent, was reminded of the story, knew they had to talk about everything, but didn't feel like bringing it up at the moment, wanted to just listen to Ennis talk.

"We're just a little ways from the Snake River Valley, and it's real pretty up there, but still…I think I like the quiet of this area. It's never occupied, it's peaceful, it jest…is."

Jack nodded, thought he understood what Ennis was trying to say. There was no fuss about this area, it was still outside the range of the main Grand Teton National Park, there were no signs of the outside world, except for the few old trails, and the abandoned campsite where they were staying, but even those had probably only been used by long ago cowboys on cattle drives or with herds of sheep.

A shiver went down Jack's back, as another reminder of the story struck him hard. He pushed it away.

"We almost there, Ennis? I don't remember walkin' this long yesterday."

"Yeah, I think we're just a few more minutes from the lake."

Ennis stopped. Jack was surprised by the sudden lack of movement at his side, so also stopped, looked back at where Ennis was standing with his head turned up, hands out in front of him in a hushing gesture.

"What is it?"

"You hear that?"

"No."

"Listen…"

Jack was quiet, didn't notice anything different at first, the only sounds around being the normal chatter of the woods. But then he did hear something, it sounded like running water, but it was rushing, not just trickling, not a stream. It sounded more like a raging river.

"Is it the river?"

Ennis shook his head. "Don't cut this far west. We musta gotten off the trail, musta passed the lake I mentioned."

Jack sighed. "Well I thought it felt like we'd been walkin' forever. Should we go back?"

Ennis was quiet for a moment longer, still listening intently, and then a huge smile appeared on his face.

"No this is even better. I remember seeing it on a map a long time ago, but I forgot 'bout it. Looks like it'll be new ta both you and me."

He started walking again, heading west in the direction of the running water.

"Ennis, wait!" Jack called after him. "Where are we goin'?"

Ennis kept on; didn't turn around, but yelled back over his shoulder. "Waterfall."

Jack stood a moment longer, not sure if he'd heard what Ennis had said, then chased after him, not wanting to fall too far behind.

"Did you say waterfall?" He was panting from the near jog it had taken to catch up with Ennis.

"Yep. The Hidden Falls. I knew they were 'round this area, jest didn't think they were this close."

He turned and smiled at Jack, who could do nothing but smile back and pant. It was totally unbelievable. He hadn't even known there were waterfalls in the Tetons. They'd always seemed like some fantasy from a tropical island. He'd never seen one before, and he'd never imagined bathing near one. It didn't seem real and he didn't think he'd believe it till he saw it. And then they were there.

They came to a clearing that led to a slight drop off, not too steep. Below them there was a water hole that opened up to a stream, most likely the stream that wound around the area, it's main source being the Snake River. But the main attraction was the cascading falls. It wasn't quite what Jack had imagined, though he hadn't been sure what to expect. When he thought of waterfalls he always pictured something like Niagara Falls or a lone stream spouting down the side of a tropical rock or something. Surprisingly, this fit in perfectly with their surrounding, didn't look out of place at all.

The falls went up about 200 feet, and disappeared into the thick veil of trees and the bulk of the mountain. It wasn't a straight fall though, it weaved and curved down through the evergreens at a slant, splashing over rocks, until the very bottom, where there was an overhang and the water poured into the pond. All was quiet except for the water, or at least nothing could be heard over the rushing noise. It was one of the most beautiful things Jack had ever seen.

He turned towards Ennis and saw that he was equally captivated with the sight.

"Last one in's a rotten egg." Ennis muttered, and then he took off down the rocky slope, hopping from foot to foot, sliding on loose dirt, and finally landing at the grassy bottom near the edge of the water and where he began stripping off his clothes.

Jack was awe struck, almost too shocked to move—but not quite. After a brief moment of hesitation, he took off down the hill too, a little slower, though trying not to be, trying to show he was feeling as reckless and fearless as Ennis, but at the same time not wanting to break his neck. He got to the edge of the water just at Ennis got his pants all the way off and dove in. Jack pulled off his shirt and hopped around trying to get his boots off. He unzipped his jeans, kicked them off and then finally mimicked Ennis' move and dove in headfirst.

The water was colder than he expected and it was a shock, making him gasp. He realized too late that gasping under water wasn't the smartest thing, and he inhaled what felt like a whole gallon of chilly pond water. He came up fast, broke the surface and immediately started coughing and choking. He felt a hand smack him on the back a few times and then he was spitting out what he'd inhaled. He coughed a couple more times, wiped his nose, and then turned to face Ennis.

"You all right?" Ennis had to talk loudly with the noise of the falls.

It took him a second to get his voice back, but he nodded, finally got his vocal chords to work.

"Yeah." He let out a weak laugh, then yelled back. "Guess I didn't expect the water ta be so cold."

Ennis backstroked away a little distance, never breaking his gaze from Jack's.

"It's not that bad. You'll warm up to it."

Jack ducked underwater, braving the chill, and then came back up, slicking his hair back from his forehead with his hand. He swam a little closer to Ennis.

"I can think a' somethin' that'll warm me up."

Ennis' face lit up in surprise and embarrassment, but Jack could see his words running through his mind, and then Ennis swam away. He got close to the falls, right next to the overhang where the water was streaming down into the pool, then stopped.

"Come over here, it's amazin'!" Even yelling, Jack could barely hear him, but knew he was calling him over.

He met Ennis in front of the falls, water misting and splashing into their faces. He realized that the water was fairly shallow by the falls, his feet easily reached the ground—he could feel the sand squishing between his toes—and then Ennis grabbed his arm and pulled him underneath the cascading water.

The rush of water falling down was intense and amazing. It was cold, but not freezing, and it soaked Jack's hair, sweeping it over his eyes. He tried to think, tried to see and hear and experience the sensation, but it was difficult under the forceful stream. After a few seconds he realized he was laughing, felt the laughter in his chest and the smile on his face, but couldn't actually hear the noise.

Suddenly he was being tugged by the arm again and then all he could see and taste was Ennis. His hands were on Ennis' wet chest, then running up his neck and over his cheeks, parting his hair, so he could touch his fingertips to his forehead. Ennis held tightly to Jack, held their bodies close, legs touching, dicks pressing into each other.

Jack slowed the kiss, lessened the intensity, Ennis following suit, until they were just pressing lips together and pulling apart, together, and apart. Finally the kiss ended, and Jack took a minute to look at his surroundings. They were directly under the overhang, inside a little rock cove. The rock was glistening from the constant moisture, and little clumps of moss clung here and there. It was quieter underneath the overhang, allowing him to hear his own breathing and Ennis'. He turned his eyes back to Ennis, saw that he'd had never stopped looking at him, and then brought their foreheads close together, keeping their eyes locked.

Neither one spoke, but words flew between them. Looks that told volumes, looks that expressed how they felt, even though they'd only known each other for a few weeks. Surprisingly, Ennis was the first one to break the silence.

"I wanted ta say sorry 'bout the way I was kissin' ya earlier, guess I got a little carried away."

Jack smiled, brought his hands up to either side of Ennis' face, to hold him close, foreheads still touching.

"No apology necessary."

"I've just…I've…"

"You don't have ta say anythin'…"

"I wanna say it. I'm afraid if I don't I never will."

Jack shut his mouth, ran his hands down from either side of Ennis' face to around the back of his neck, still holding tight, but giving him room.

"I've never felt…I dunno, I've never needed somethin' bad like this. I've never felt like I wanted to…ah, fuck it."

He looked down, but the words had not been lost on Jack. He tugged on Ennis' chin.

"Hey."

Ennis looked back up, meeting his gaze.

"I wanna kiss ya under the waterfall."

He led Ennis back towards the falling water, grabbed tight onto his hand, so he'd be able to find him in the disorienting rush.

Water pouring down. The roar in his ears. Hands on his face, and then the feel of lips, lips so fine and perfect, better than any woman's he'd ever kissed, on his. He couldn't hear anything; he couldn't see anything; all there was, was the feel of Ennis' lips, his hot breath and his tongue and the cold, cold water. Time stopped, his heart stopped, his breathing stopped, everything stopped except that kiss, that kiss that had so much behind it, that had the words Ennis had spoke and the words that he hadn't been able to say. It seemed longer than seconds, but seconds were all it had been, and then everything returned and Ennis was pulling them back into the cove.

"That water's pretty intense. Nearly stopped breathin'."

Jack nodded, still staring at Ennis' mouth. "Yeah."

It hadn't been the water that had made Jack stop breathing. He swam closer to Ennis and once more brought their mouths together, he couldn't get enough of Ennis' mouth, thought he'd never be able to get enough. He ran his hand down his chest, loved the feel of the wet hair under his fingers, and then let his hand go underwater, reached for what he'd felt pressing up against him.

He grabbed Ennis in his hand; his dick was surprisingly warm for the water being so cool. Ennis gasped and broke the kiss then looked Jack in the eye. Jack met his gaze and slowly began to pump his hand up and down, up and down. He saw Ennis' eyes go dull with sensation and he felt his own cock stiffen considerably. He kept his slow pace, though, and Ennis' hips started moving with the rhythm. Their eyes were still locked in place. Jack's heart swelled at the helpless expression on Ennis' face, he'd seen it the night before, and here it was again. It still amazed him; this tough as nails man was powerless at Jack's touch, the thought made shivers run up and down his spine.

"Jack," It was almost a whimper.

Ennis finally broke their gaze, closed his eyes, moaned, and let his head roll back. The sight of Ennis with his neck bared, glistening with water, moaning was too much, and he had to stop, get his breath back, get his senses back, before he could continue.

Ennis raised his head, saw Jack breathing hard in and out. Jack could feel Ennis looking at him and opened his eyes.

"Sorry." He started moving his hand again, but Ennis reached down and stopped him, wrapped his own fingers around Jack's, two hands holding his dick.

"This time, it's 'bout you, okay?"

Jack felt a new wave of fire go through his body, and then Ennis grabbed him gently by the shoulders and backed him up against the rock wall. Jack sucked in a breath when his skin touched the cold stone, but it wasn't a bad sensation, it only aroused him more.

Ennis kissed him on the mouth tenderly, then made a wet trail down his jaw until he reached his neck. He licked and sucked on one spot, right where Jack's neck and shoulder met, and at the same time he reached down and wrapped his own hand around Jack. Jack's breathing got heavy and fast as Ennis' strokes quickened and then slowed and then picked up again.

Ennis kissed back up his jaw until their eyes locked again. He removed his hand from Jack for a minute and positioned himself so that his dick fit right in next to Jack's and rubbed against his leg. He started to move his hips slightly, thrusting, rubbing his dick back and forth. He let out a moan and then took Jack back in his hand, his other arm pressed against the wet rock wall for leverage. Jack rocked in time with the thrusts Ennis was making with his hips. He wrapped one arm around his waist, making their connection tighter, hardly allowing room for the water, and then threw his other arm around his neck, pulling Ennis all the way against him. Jack pressed his face into the crook of his neck and breathed in his smell, took in the sounds of his breathing and panting as he thrust against him.

"Jesus, Ennis…" he moaned into his skin.

Ennis gasped and pumped faster, moving his hips with the time of his hand. Jack raised his head and bit Ennis earlobe, then licked down his jaw line, ending with his face back in the crook of his shoulder.

It was amazing. He felt Ennis all over him, like a blanket, felt his warmth, felt his breathing, could feel the beating of his heart against his chest. Jack clung tighter to Ennis, was squeezing his eyes shut, was about to come, could feel it, was moving his own hips with each pump, grinding into Ennis as best as he could.

"Oh, god Jack, oh god."

Ennis' voice brought him back to the moment, and he lifted his head, brought his mouth to Ennis', and then brought the arm that had been around his neck down to grab Ennis' hardness. Ennis shuttered at his touch and after a couple pumps of Jack's hand, came furiously, his whole body shaking. The sight of Ennis' eyes squeezed shut, mouth open in a perfect circle, was too much and Jack let go too, letting out a cry, giving one more thrust of his hips.

They stood motionless for a few minutes, pressed against each other, catching their breath, allowing their surroundings and their senses to slowly return. Eventually, Jack ran both his hands up Ennis' back and tangled them in his hair. It was almost brown when it was wet, not as dark as it probably had been when he'd been younger, but still striking. He kissed Ennis' chin and then met his lips. Ennis wrapped his arms around Jack and held him tight in a fierce bear hug. Jack held back. Their mouths separated, and Jack's face found its place back in the crook of Ennis' neck.

For a few seconds the words, "I love you," were dangerously close to slipping out Jack's mouth. The phrase felt so natural for this moment, it told exactly what he was feeling, but…Jack was afraid of what might happen if he did say them, was afraid he might frighten Ennis off, or worse, not hear them said back. He wasn't really sure about Ennis' own feelings, knew he felt something strong, but was it the same love he felt? Jack couldn't be sure. He wanted to say yes, but he honestly couldn't be positive. But what, if not love, was it that had this man pressed against him, his arms wrapped tightly around his body?

"I think my fingers are getting' kinda pruney. We should probably dry off." Ennis voice was right in his ear, and sounded oddly tender for the words he was saying.

Jack just nodded and then pulled back. They kissed once more, quickly, but with no less feeling than the lingering ones.

The last cross through the waterfall was just as intense, rewetting their hair and refreshing their bodies after the sex. Then they were away from the cove and swimming towards the edge of the pond, the roar of the falls growing less overpowering the farther they got. They laughed when they got onto the grass and realized they hadn't brought anything to dry off with. So instead they found a couple rocks big enough to sit on, and laid themselves out under the sun to bake. Ennis grabbed the food he'd brought, had made them both two peanut butter sandwiches and also brought along a jar of Vienna sausages, two apples, and a couple of beers.

Ennis passed the food to Jack and they both dug in. It wasn't the finest food he'd ever had, but Jack still thought it tasted better than any of the stuff he'd had in fancy restaurants while out on business meetings. It was almost as good as Junior's home cooking—almost. He decided to tell Ennis that, and Ennis just laughed.

"Peanut butter sandwiches compared ta Junior's fine dinin'? No way."

Jack took another big bite of his sandwich and then continued talking, even though the peanut spread was sticking to his mouth and making his words hard to understand.

"Ah din't say it wuz behr. Jes close." He swallowed. "Maybe it's jest the atmosphere and the company that makes it so good."

Ennis smiled at him and they continued eating and talking. They talked like they did before everything had happened, before Ennis had found the book, and before he'd invited Jack up to the mountains. They talked about common enough subjects, both steering clear of anything that came close to their odd situation and relationship.

"Junior's had some good news. There's a possibility that they might have a little boy by the end a' this year."

Jack sat up and took a swig of his beer to clear his throat. "That's great! Fantastic! Is it fer sure?"

"No, it's still a maybe, but it's lookin' pretty good."

Jack shook his head. "I know Junior'll make a great mom. Congratulations, looks like you'll be a grandpa."

"Well, at least I'll feel more like one by havin' a grandkid that's actually around."

Jack told Ennis about how they'd finally gotten the McGuire tractor company to merge.

"Is that good?"

"Yeah, sure, if ya care 'bout that sorta thing." He stretched and then scratched his head.

"I dunno. I'm getting' so tired a' that damned business. But it's got Lureen busy, which makes the both of us happy. The less time we have ta spend together, the better it is."

The talk of his marriage put a damper on their discussion and brought things suddenly, harshly to reality. Jack was having an affair. With a man. Like in the story.

"Things jest keep gettin' closer and closer ta truth. How much more's it gonna get?"

Jack suddenly thought on how Leroy had read the story, how soon the whole town may know, and he felt a huge fist of steel clench inside his stomach. This was no good, and he didn't want to have to face it, but he'd have to sooner or later, so why not make it sooner?

"Ennis there's things we need ta talk about."

Ennis was looking down making circles on the rock with his hand. He'd finished eating and was quiet, but finally looked up and met Jack's eyes.

"Yeah, all right. So talk."

Jack should have known that Ennis wouldn't be the one to start the conversation.

"I don't really know where ta start."

Ennis shrugged but kept quiet, leaving all the words to Jack. Jack took in a deep breath.

"Okay, what's goin' on? I mean, what is this between us?"

Ennis was silent.

"And what about the story? Aren't we…I dunno what I'm tryin' ta say." He paused briefly. "What's happenin' in the story is happenin' ta us."

Ennis rubbed his neck and looked over in the direction of Jack, but kept his gaze low.

"I don't think I care much about the story. I don't really like it, ta be honest."

"It's not really a question of likin' it…it's about us."

"No it's not about us, it's about two people that are similar ta us."

"But they've got our names and our lives!"

"I know that. But they're still different."

Jack was silent. He didn't feel like this conversation was going anywhere, and was starting to get annoyed.

"All right, fine they're different, but…are they so different now?"

Ennis was quiet for a minute. "I don't know what ya mean."

"Ennis!" That was it; Jack was pissed off. "What the hell? You know exactly what I mean, and I don't understand how ya can go from one extreme ta the other! Yer fuckin' confusin' that's what I think. One minute ya wanna tell me things cuz if ya don't yer afraid ya never will, and the next yer completely denyin' that there's anything goin' on here."

Jack sat up straight. He'd gone from fairly calm to seething in under a minute.

"Well, maybe I wasn't thinkin' straight then."

"So the things ya said, that was all jest a bunch of bull shit?"

Ennis shrugged and gave Jack a disinterested look.

"Wouldn't be the first time there was bull shit between us." His voice was quiet, but deadly, his words stabbed right into Jack's heart and twisted.

Jack was silent. "That was low, Ennis."

"Well, I'm sorry but it's the truth."

"You are a fuckin' asshole, did you know that?"

"I'm jest tellin' it like it is."

Jack couldn't believe that this was the same man that he'd spent the night with and then had made love behind the waterfall. That man had seemed too good to be true. Jack let out the breath that he'd been holding. So now it all came back to reality. Jack's voice was shaking. He was angry, but he was also extremely hurt. He made sure to measure his words out when he said them, so Ennis would know exactly what he was saying.

"So how is it, Ennis?"

Ennis stared down at the rock underneath him. "I'm not no queer."

Jack was silently nodding his head. He should have expected this; he should have known that it would come sooner or later. He thought he'd be prepared for it when or if it did, but he certainly didn't feel prepared at the moment. He was as angry as he'd been that one time they'd fought, the one time they'd come to blows, he tried to keep the anger out of his voice, tried to keep from yelling but it was no good.

"Well, that's jest great Ennis. In case you forgot, an hour ago we were in the water fucking, so ya better learn ta deal with that or move on!"

"I don't wanna talk about this. I didn't wanna talk about it ta begin with."

Jack hopped off the rock and stormed to the edge of the water where his clothes were laying, he picked up his jeans and put one let in, then the other.

"Ya know, at first I did wanna talk about it, but I can see now that that was a big fuckin' mistake. So, I'm glad ya don't wanna talk! I could give a shit about what you think, right now. In fact, I wouldn't wanna talk to ya, if you were the last person on earth."

Ennis got off the rock, walked over towards Jack.

"That's real mature, Jack. Ya sound like a four year old."

Jack zipped up his pants, threw his shirt over his shoulder, not bothering to put it on.

"And you sound like a stubborn asshole."

He walked back the way they came and started making his way up the incline. Ennis followed him and grabbed his arm, gently.

"Come on, Jack."

"Leave me the fuck alone!" Jack pushed Ennis' hand away roughly and Ennis stumbled backwards, surprised by the intensity of his anger.

Jack stood panting, looking in Ennis' direction.

"I'm outta here."

He turned around and continued climbing, finding rocks and roots that he could make a footing of. He was seeing red; he wanted to kick Ennis' ass, but he knew that nothing good would come of violence at the moment. He made it to the top of the incline and heard Ennis call behind him.

"Good, I'm glad to see ya go! It was stupid ta invite ya up here in the first place!"

Jack kept walking, heading back to their campsite, hair still slightly wet, chest bare, sweat forming on his back from the intensity of their fight and from the energy it had taken to climb up the hill. He realized after a second that he'd forgotten his hat, but he wasn't going back for anything, wouldn't turn back. He didn't turn when Ennis called his name a few seconds later, didn't go back, even though his voice had sounded pleading and even though his heart told him he wanted to.