Austin, Texas

"Talk to him, just talk to him. He really just may not realise how you feel", Sue Ellen went over and over the words in her head. Jack was probably right, JR wasn't exactly good at starting the conversation and talking about his feelings, and if she were completely honest with herself, neither was she. She probably didn't help the situation by passively sitting by and saying nothing, letting him think that everything was fine. They'd both missed out on normal love and emotion as children, both coming from families with deeper issues than the happy image they portrayed to the world; it wasn't easy for either of them to express how they really felt or deal with their own emotions in a healthy way. Sue Ellen was determined to change that though; she wanted them to get back to how they were in the beginning, happy and in love as well as connected more deeply than they were at the moment. It had taken her a week to finally decide to approach the subject, she was sick of dinners where they hardly spoke and when they did, it wasn't the same. She hated feeling that when he kissed her it was because he felt obligated to, not because he really wanted to. Their whole relationship was strained, probably caused by the never-ending marriage questions and JR's attitude toward the whole thing, as if he couldn't get away from the subject quick enough; but that wasn't totally to blame, at some point, they'd stopped sharing a real emotional relationship and she hated how that made her feel. They had a date on Thursday evening and she decided that she would broach the subject with him then; it was almost mid-December and she wanted to enjoy the holiday season, last year had been wonderful, they'd had so many romantic moments and she desperately wanted to feel like that again.

Returning home from a shopping trip, she stopped outside the front door, listening closely to the conversation; "you'll tell Sue Ellen that she can't see me anymore? I don't think you quite understand who holds the power in this agreement", JR was at her house and she had no idea why. She placed her shopping bags quietly on the front porch swing and pressed her ear to the door, wanting to hear the conversation but not wanting to make her presence known yet. Her mother said something, but she wasn't close enough or facing the door for Sue Ellen to hear exactly what it was. She heard JR though, "no, you listen to me. In case you've forgotten, I am the one who is paying Kristin's tuition and I am the one that is funding Sue Ellen's nice lifestyle, which I am sure you benefit from; I don't have any problem with those things, but let's be clear, I am the one that holds the power here. I love Sue Ellen and I want us to be happy and completely committed when we get engaged, but right now, it's quite difficult with the constant hovering, interfering and ridiculous rules. All it takes is one phone call and you lose everything. Don't doubt my love for Sue Ellen, that will never change, but be warned, you do not want to mess with me, because I will always win". Sue Ellen could almost feel the anger though the door; she had no idea what her mother had done, aside from her never-ending interference, but that had been going on from the moment they started dating, that wouldn't make JR react like this, it had to be something more. She predicted that JR was just about ready to leave and she really didn't want to be caught snooping; collecting her shopping bags and taking her keys out of her purse, she entered the house, loudly enough to make her presence known, but hopefully not obvious that she had been outside long enough to hear their fight.

"JR", she acted surprised, it wasn't too difficult, she had been surprised to hear his voice earlier, "what are you doing here?" JR was quick, he didn't want her to worry about his hostile relationship with Patricia, it would only upset her and their relationship didn't need any more distractions, "well, I know we're going to see The Nutcracker on Thursday, but I couldn't resist coming to see you a little before Thursday. I remembered that last year you were a little sad that you missed the tree lighting ceremony in Zilker Park, so I've come to take you to dinner. Then we'll go see the tree lighting and the trail of lights", he really did want to spend time with her, even if it wasn't quite the same as what they'd had before. It would be much easier for them to be happy together if everyone would just stop interfering in their lives. Sue Ellen looked over at her mother for confirmation that she could go, she knew that with dinner, the tree lighting and looking at the lights, they probably wouldn't be home by her new ten o'clock curfew. Reluctantly, Patricia nodded, realising that JR was right, he did hold the power and if she wanted to keep receiving the benefits, she had to stay on his good side, especially since he and Sue Ellen weren't married yet. "No later than midnight, I mean it", she directed her look at JR and he decided not to argue, he didn't want to upset Sue Ellen, though he did find it ironic that any man of his age would be taking orders about curfews from his date's mother, it was just so unlike anything he'd ever experienced. Excitedly, Sue Ellen ran up the stairs to change outfit, completely forgetting about the argument she'd overheard and the conversation she needed to have with JR. For tonight, all she wanted to do was enjoy the evening with her boyfriend, maybe things would sort themselves out and she wouldn't need to say anything, it was wishful thinking, but she didn't care.

To be continued…