Dallas, Texas

"Only five months to go, I bet you can't wait", Sue Ellen politely nodded and responded to the questions and comments, however she wasn't so sure that Marilee meant them in a sincere way. It was almost as if she were waiting for Sue Ellen to admit that she was just another money-hungry woman, like she wanted her to say it aloud to prove a point. Sue Ellen wasn't going to give her that satisfaction though, it wasn't true and she certainly didn't want anyone else thinking the same way that Marilee did; she loved JR and she would have even if he weren't rich. She had loved Clint, and he wasn't at all wealthy, but none of these people knew that; to the average Texan, she was just another beauty-queen who married above her. However, in the company of these women, she wasn't the first middle-class girl to hook a man worth substantially more than she; the DOA ladies weren't all born into wealth no matter how much they liked to pretend they were. Their conversation was interrupted by the sound of two men yelling and arguing, something Sue Ellen had come to expect at the Ewing barbecue, it was as if they attracted drama; Sue Ellen had flashbacks to last year, though she was happy that neither JR nor Bobby seemed to be the ones involved this time. "You stole my oil; my woman; everything; you ruined my life Jock Ewing!" the crowd gasped as a drunken man pointed a gun at Jock Ewing; it wasn't the first time this had happened, but it didn't make it any less shocking. Before Sue Ellen could ask anyone what was happening, the drunken man was tackled to the ground and Miss Ellie was mumbling something to her husband. Sue Ellen wasn't sure what was going on, but she knew that it wasn't random, the elder Ewings looked fed-up and the Ewing sons looked angry; but none of them looked surprised. As the crowd dispersed and went back to socialising, Sue Ellen heard murmurings that helped her figure out who the man was; 'Digger Barnes' and the phrase 'Barnes-Ewing feud' told her all she needed to know. She may not be a Ewing yet, but she knew that there was a long history between the two families; one she'd casually ask JR about at a later point in time, right now didn't really seem like a good time to ask JR anything, he didn't look very happy or like he was in the mood to talk.

Sue Ellen watched JR move around the room as he readied himself for bed; it was something she loved to do, just sit and observe; it fascinated her for some reason. She sat on the end of his bed and listened to him rant about Digger and the rest of the Barnes family. She knew that her waiting game would work, and it had; he hadn't been in the mood to talk earlier and she didn't nag him to explain how he was feeling; her mother had taught her that men didn't appreciate women doing that kind of thing. It had only taken a few hours for JR to calm down a little and start to explain what had happened and why he was upset. "My daddy owes that man nothing; he did everything for Digger Barnes and that drunken idiot repays him by trying to kill him, multiple times. I once asked daddy why he puts up with Digger Barnes, and you know what he said? He said that he didn't know where he'd be without Digger; well I know, my daddy is a better oilman than Digger Barnes ever was, and he could have done it all on his own; Digger just happened to be there in those early years. It's the same with that son of his, Cliff Barnes, he's a total loser too, he likes to think that he can compete with me, but he's wrong. I humour him, let him think that he's competition; but we both know that he's not. I suppose it's tradition, daddy vs Digger, me vs Cliff; of course, it's not much of a fight", he let out a small laugh and then sighed, he knew that letting Digger Barnes get to him was pointless, and it was even more pointless to let Cliff Barnes get to him. Cliff wasn't any threat to him and he hadn't even been at the barbecue today, but he was still on his mind. Sue Ellen played her role well, listening and offering small words of encouragement, but never overstepping her boundaries; JR realised more and more each day what a good wife she would make and how much he loved having her there just to listen and do those small things for him, it was new and it was comforting. By the end of the night, her encouraging words combined with his self-confidence meant that he was feeling like his old self again, ready to take on the world and win. With Sue Ellen by his side, he was sure that he would one day own Dallas; maybe the joking promise he'd made to her on Halloween two years ago would come true; together they'd be the king and queen and no one would stop them.

Austin, Texas

"But I don't look good in yellow, I want a different dress", Kristin whined as Sue Ellen sighed; Lucy was never this difficult to deal with, she loved when Sue Ellen gave her fashion advice. Sue Ellen thought about it for a moment, this was her day and she wasn't going to let her sister ruin it. Making use of one of her mother's manipulative lines, she spoke, "do you want to be a bridesmaid or not? Because I'm sure Lucy would have no problem sharing the role of flower girl with you" Sue Ellen glared at her younger sister and Kristin was silenced. As much as Kristin disliked the dress, she wanted to be a bridesmaid, she liked to think of herself as more mature than she actually was; being the flower girl was childish, and that wasn't how she wanted people to see her. Sue Ellen was glad when Kristin stopped talking and accepted her decision, it meant there was one less fight; the wedding party had been one big headache so far. Truthfully though, she was a little disappointed that Kristin had so adamantly said that she wanted to be a bridesmaid and not a flower girl. Sue Ellen had already had a hard time with the wedding party numbers and accepting that her photos were going to appear unbalanced. JR had only wanted Bobby as his best man, but Sue Ellen wanted Paula, Kristin and Lucy on her side; with both Paula and Kristin as bridesmaids and Lucy as a flower girl, the whole procession was going to look uneven. It was something that had been difficult for her to overcome, though she realised that she was lucky in her life if that was the toughest decision she had had to make so far. Being engaged to JR Ewing was a blessing, she didn't have any real worries of her own and the ones she did have were trivial in the grand scheme of life. Sue Ellen sighed and calmed herself as they left the bridal salon; 'five months, five months, five months', she kept repeating in her mind. Only five more months until she no longer had to worry about what her sister and mother thought; five more months and she would be free of her old life and the pressures of having to please her mother, no longer Sue Ellen Shepard, she would be Sue Ellen Ewing, and she couldn't wait.

To be continued…