The Bettermost Drabblefest: Please Join In!

[jpwagoneer1964]

FALL 1990

Ennis stands  in front of the mirror, pulls some change from a glass bowel on the dresser, deposits the coins in his jeans, then fastens the snaps on his shirt, Jack next to him still shirtless after they showered, opens a small door on their dresser, pulls out a bottle of cologne, opens the cap.

"Jack!.....whut er ya doin'......whut is that stuff?" Ennis looks at Jack apprehensive.

"Just some ol' stuff I had ta make me smell good...." Jack sticks the bottle under  Ennis's nose. "Don't cha like it...?"

".....It's all right Ah guess....just that....."

"Just what Ennis?"

"Just..."

"Ennis?"

"Aw hell.....Jack.....ain't nuthin' wrong with the way ya smell....least when ya start out clean 'n washed......put that stuff on an you'll stink up my truck...Huh?

"You'd rather I didn't use it?" Jack looks at Ennis.

"Use if ya want....just don't want ya stinking up my truck is all."

Jack replaces the cap in the bottle, twists it tight, tosses it back in the door, then reaches his arm around Ennis, squeezes tight, presses his face against his, plants a wet kiss on the cheek. "Wouldn't want ta stink yer truck up now would I?"

Ennis flustered. "Good....see....see that ya don't" Then leans into Jack.

to be continued

[Lumière]

Hello ... Thought I'd dabble today. 


If only...


Ennis lay down quietly on the bed and cradled his aching head in both hands.  It’d been a long day at the ranch and he was drained and sore.  It wasn't long before his thoughts began to drift. Like a well-greased engine, the wheels of his mind turned and turned over events past, present and future. 

By this time next week, he thought, Alma Beers would become Alma del Mar, his beautiful, blushing bride.  Almost immediately, he felt the heaviness descend to the pit of his stomach.  There was no turning back now… He could see Jack laying in the tent, half-dressed, his body clothed in the yellow gleam of light from the campfire.  How beautiful and inviting he’d looked just then… Like a bee lured by the sweet scents of a rose blossom, he’d been unable to resist the force that pulled him to Jack’s side that night.  If ignorance was bliss, then there were no words to describe what he’d felt in Jack’s warm embrace..

Ennis ran his trembling hands through his hair in frustration.  The pain in his head now throbbed with a vengeance.

If only he'd had the good sense to walk away that summer night ... If only…

[fernly]

Sense


   Sometimes, Lureen thought, she didn't have the sense God gave a goose. Here Jack was, after driving for days all told, back from hunting, not that she had much sympathy for a man being tired out from waiting for some animal to walk into his bullets, but Jack had gone from that part of his trip over to his folks' place, helped them for a week with the brunt of calving season, and she wasn't so far removed from ranch living not to know how wearing that was. But still she'd gone ahead and told her folks, sure, they'd join them for dinner, since Grandma Newsome was visiting over from Dalhart.
   So they were driving to the restaurant, the decision to go out to dinner each night of her visit another in a long string of slaps from Grandma Newsome at her mama's cooking, to spend a few hours that would seem like years with a woman who wore out Lureen at the best of times, and she had to love her, or at least she was supposed to. Jack was just fullfilling an obligation.
   “I appreciate this, honey,” she said, reaching across Bobby, giving Jack a quick squeeze on his arm, stretched out tense to the wheel.
   Jack shook himself like he was waking up, Lureen thinking he'd been concentrating on driving, sleepy as he was. He glanced at her, smiled, said, “Sure enough, wouldn't think of leaving you on your own to sit through three courses of advice, with an extra helping of good ol' common sense for dessert.”
   They both broke out laughing, Lureen relieved that maybe this evening wouldn't be so bad after all, knowing she could look across at Jack and know someone else was feeling the same as her, Jack amazed that he could still laugh, and pretend, when every sense was straining north, where Ennis was.
   

[MaineWriter]

For today:

• police report
• cops and robbers
• the slammer

Have fun...

L

[mariez]

Wow - I'm in drabble heaven!

......
Jack nodded yes. “It’s an easy promise. I’d promise something serious too, if ya asked.”

Ennis looked at him, his eyes sorrowful. “This’ll do for now,” he said softly.

Oh, Leslie.  That was so skillfully done, such a natural flow to their conversation - and then this ending.  Sob.

....
"Aw hell.....Jack.....ain't nuthin' wrong with the way ya smell....least when ya start out clean 'n washed......put that stuff on an you'll stink up my truck...Huh?

"You'd rather I didn't use it?" Jack looks at Ennis.

"Use if ya want....just don't want ya stinking up my truck is all." .....

LOL!  But so sweet - Ennis loves his Jack just the way he is. 

Hello ... Thought I'd dabble today. 
.....
Ennis ran his trembling hands through his hair in frustration.  The pain in his head now throbbed with a vengeance.

If only he'd had the good sense to walk away that summer night ... If only…

Hey, Milli - always such a treat when you drabble! Great to see you. You've captured Ennis's frustration so perfectly - I've always imagined this is exactly how he felt. 

.......   Jack shook himself like he was waking up, Lureen thinking he'd been concentrating on driving, sleepy as he was. He glanced at her, smiled, said, “Sure enough, wouldn't think of leaving you on your own to sit through three courses of advice, with an extra helping of good ol' common sense for dessert.”
   They both broke out laughing, Lureen relieved that maybe this evening wouldn't be so bad after all, knowing she could look across at Jack and know someone else was feeling the same as her, Jack amazed that he could still laugh, and pretend, when every sense was straining north, where Ennis was.   

I love this Fern.  There had to have been these nice moments between the boys and their wives - but those moments  were always tinged with longing.   

Thanks, all!
Marie

[mariez]

Je Ne Sais Quoi

She smiled at the sight of her lips in the mirror, still red and slightly swollen  - this was one rodeo cowboy who could do more than ride a bull for eight seconds, that's for sure.  Most boys were intimidated by her, but not him, no sir; she'd love to play a little game of cops 'n robbers with this one. 

But that wasn't all.  There was something ……something she couldn't put her finger on…. the way those sweet baby blues turned from bright and lively to sad and distant when he thought she wasn't looking….a story waiting to be told.  Well, no matter; she loved a mystery – and a challenge.  And this one was worth it. 

She just hoped he thought of her as more than a one-shot thing. 

~~~~~~~
130 Words

[MaineWriter]

Sage, Wyoming
April 1953

“Ed, I think you should contact the police—file a police report. Let them know what happened.”

“Eleanor, I’m telling you, keep out of it. It’s none of their goddamned business.”

“Of course it’s their business! A man has been murdered! This isn’t a game of cops and robbers, this is real!”

“Fucking pervert is what he was and the world is well rid of him.”

“Edward, how can you say such a thing? Earl was a neighbor and has lived in this town for years. He never did anything against you.”

“Eleanor, I’m telling you again, keep your fucking nose out of it. It’s none of your goddamned business!”

Ennis Del Mar watched as his father drew his arm back, a murderous rage in his eyes. He couldn’t bear to watch and ran to his room, burying his head in his pillow, hoping to stifle the sound of his crying. He knew that if his father heard him bawling, he’d get whupped  too.

(168 words)

[MaineWriter]

For today, give these a go:

• calendar
• precise
• menthol cigarettes

L

[mariez]

Sage, Wyoming
April 1953

“Ed, I think you should contact the police—file a police report. Let them know what happened.”

“Eleanor, I’m telling you, keep out of it. It’s none of their goddamned business.”

“Of course it’s their business! A man has been murdered! This isn’t a game of cops and robbers, this is real!”

“Fucking pervert is what he was and the world is well rid of him.”

“Edward, how can you say such a thing? Earl was a neighbor and has lived in this town for years. He never did anything against you.”

“Eleanor, I’m telling you again, keep your fucking nose out of it. It’s none of your goddamned business!”

Ennis Del Mar watched as his father drew his arm back, a murderous rage in his eyes. He couldn’t bear to watch and ran to his room, burying his head in his pillow, hoping to stifle the sound of his crying. He knew that if his father heard him bawling, he’d get whupped  too.

OMG, Leslie.  You've written this so well that I can picture it clearly - and I wish I couldn't.  Great job.

Marie

[mariez]

Empty Schedule

Riverton, Wyoming
December 1984

He was pleased with himself as he unwrapped the charms from the tissue paper.  Linda Higgins at the gift shop said they would be just the right thing and he thought so, too.  He smiled as he ran his fingers over the tiny hearts; still his little darlins, always would be. 

His brief moment of pleasure began to slip away when he spotted the small calendar inside the bag.  He flipped through it aimlessly, pretending to focus on the birds pictured on each page while trying to ignore all the empty days, weeks, and months that stretched out before him. 

~~~~~~~
100 Words