Austin, Texas
"I think the lace sleeves on the first one are lovely, but the shorter train on the second one is more appropriate for the outdoor setting", Patricia and Ellie sat in the bridal shop and gave feedback on each dress, "yes, I agree with Patricia, we wouldn't want the bottom of your dress to get dirty or torn". The bridal consultant listened to the two women and went to find a third dress that combined both aspects that they liked, leaving Sue Ellen sitting alone in the dressing room, feeling lonely and unsure. Unsure of where she and JR stood in their relationship, unsure of whether she should even be here right now, trying on wedding dresses for a wedding that she wasn't sure would actually happen. It had been a week and she and JR still hadn't spoken to each other, it was as if he was upset with her for her actions, but he didn't want to confront her; as they'd left Corpus Christi for Austin, he'd given her a quick explanation, saying that he was protecting her, but that really just confused her more. "I think you'll love this one", the bridal consultant re-entered the room and held up a beautiful off the shoulder dress with a tiered skirt. It had lace, a few sparkles and had a ball gown style skirt that was round and pretty, without the length of a long train; even in her melancholy mood, it was perfect, this was the dress, she had to try it on and show her mother and Miss Ellie. She couldn't stop smiling as the bridal consultant buttoned the back of the dress, something inside her had been triggered, she could already imagine herself walking down the aisle wearing this dress to marry JR; whatever problems they had now, they could fix them, she was certain. Patricia and Ellie let out a collective gasp as Sue Ellen walked out of the dressing room, just from the smile on her face they could tell that this was the dress and as they looked at each detail, they were convinced of that fact.
Dallas, Texas
JR and Jock walked into the Southfork living room, just in time for pre-dinner drinks; JR was surprised to see Sue Ellen sitting with his mother, in the middle of a conversation, not having noticed that the men had arrived home. "Good evening mama; Sue Ellen, you didn't tell me you were coming, I would have met you at the airport or sent a car", he wasn't sure why because just a few days ago he'd been mad at her, but now, he just wanted to kiss her and forget their problems. She had come all the way to Dallas, that had to count as her making the first move to apologise, though he knew that he also had something to apologise for, he wasn't as good at conceding, he preferred when other people said they were wrong before he would admit anything. "I invited her, we went wedding dress shopping today in Austin; I invited Mrs Shepard to join us too", JR sucked in a breath as his mother spoke, Patricia was here too? That was the last thing he needed, "…but unfortunately she couldn't make it". JR let out the breath he'd been holding and spoke, "oh, well darlin', give my best to your mama when you see her", he didn't really mean it and they both knew it, but neither of them was going to speak badly of Patricia in front of Miss Ellie, "I will", Sue Ellen nodded. JR walked over to the drinks cart, "can I freshen your drinks?" he asked, wanting to make an effort and wishing he could get Sue Ellen alone right now, he wanted to make things right between them and get back to the way things were before. He knew that she wanted the same thing; he could see it in her eyes.
Sue Ellen wasn't surprised when JR casually invited her to go for a walk with him after dinner, it was exactly what they needed, time alone together to sort out their problems; she was determined to go back to being the happy couple they had been before that weekend. "I'm sorry I didn't call first; your mama insisted that I come back to Dallas with her and stay for dinner; I didn't really have much time alone", they walked along the fence line of the paddocks next to the house, "I'm not upset with you, in fact, I'm glad my mama insisted, it gives us time to talk". He reached down and found her hand, "Sue Ellen, about that night…" Sue Ellen didn't know why, but she felt the need to interrupt and apologise before he hurt her anymore, although she could see that he was sorry, she still wasn't sure that he didn't still think those things of her and she wanted to make her position clear before he said anything more, "no, JR, I…I'm sorry. I think I just had too much to drink and got a little carried away. I shouldn't have acted like that, I know I was wrong". JR had been sure that there would've been more of a fight and he couldn't believe she was being so passive and apologising, though he didn't mind, at least he didn't have to lecture her about ladylike behaviour, "and I'm sorry that I said those things to you. I was just surprised, but I know that I must have hurt you, I didn't mean to". Sue Ellen listened to his words and decided that she didn't want to ask him why he said what he did, she didn't want to fight any more, "thank you. Can we please just forget the whole thing and go back to the way we were before?" JR looked at her, she looked emotionally exhausted and ready to move on, he wasn't going to start an argument with her, especially when she'd just apologised to him and taken most of the blame, something he loved other people to do, "nothing would please me more right now". Sue Ellen smiled widely, just happy that things were good between them again; he leaned down and kissed her, hooking his arm around her waist and pulling her closer to him as they deepened their kiss; it felt good to be like this again, happy and carefree.
Austin, Texas
The next few months passed quickly and without any real drama between the couple, Sue Ellen felt blessed to have such a good life and she made sure that the Ewings knew how grateful she was. She always politely thanked them for their hospitality even after they told her that she was practically family and didn't need to keep thanking them for every little thing. The wedding was almost completely planned, there were a few last minute details that would be sorted closer to the date, but as far as major planning went, they were basically finished. Sue Ellen still continued to take regular trips to Dallas though because JR liked having her around when he came home from work mid-week; it wasn't a problem for Sue Ellen, she liked being at Southfork, and it wasn't as if her life in Austin was busy and important. It was coming up to Labor Day weekend and the annual Ewing Barbecue, something Sue Ellen now enjoyed a lot, despite the inevitable drama that seemed to occur every year. JR had assured her that he would not be the one that ended up in the swimming pool this year, at least not because of Bobby, he couldn't guarantee that no one else would be upset with him though. He and Bobby had been getting along with each other fine now that they didn't have to work together in every aspect. Jock had made sure Bobby did his summer work experience at Ewing Oil in a separate office, training him to do the basics before he learned anything else, last year had been enough to put off any father from forcing his two sons to work together, at least for now.
To be continued…