Bluffing

                                                      

Bandages cover Liam’s face as he looks up at Gabriella from the hospital bed. He tells her that he only ran away from the bear so it would “come after [him] instead of [her].” Nodding he head she knows she has enough “bluffing left in her” to get herself throw the day. In Gail Helgason’s short story Bluffing Laim, Gabriella’s boyfriend gets attacked by a grizzle bear. The question is if he is a hero or a coward for running from the bear leaving Gabriella stranded face to face with a grizzle. Liam and Gabriella are not in love, all he ever talks about is how he wants to leave for “three months…[to] Yosemite” or even new Mexico without Gabriella. They would get in fights that ended in Gabriella “grabbing her pack back” and strutting “as fast as she [can]” away. When they were face to face with the grizzle bear “every cell in Gabriella’s body yearned to turn and flee” but her “inner force held her” there; Liam listening to his inner force turned and ran to save himself. In a situation like that nobody would have time or the metal strength to make a decision like he said he did to save her. Always “staying in the lead” Liam doesn’t even walk with Gabriella, coming across as extremely narcissistic.  Liam loves himself and the outdoors ten times more then he will ever love Gabriella and that is why he's a coward just trying to save himself.