Dallas, Texas

"…although it doesn't seem like it, you're actually very lucky that you showed symptoms. Seventy percent of infected women show no symptoms and left untreated, the consequences can be a lot worse than what you're experiencing right now, especially in pregnancy", Doctor Krane handed Sue Ellen a box of tissues as she spoke and waited for Sue Ellen's crying to subside before she continued her explanation. She empathised greatly with her patient and knew she probably didn't want to hear the supposed positive side of her condition, because really, from Sue Ellen's point of view, there was nothing positive about the whole situation, but medical ethics meant that she had a responsibility to inform her of the necessary details. "With a short dose of antibiotics, the infection should be cured within a week and the chances of you or the baby being negatively affected greatly decrease because of the early action. I know it's probably the last thing you want to do, but you need to speak to Mr Ewing and make sure that he and anyone else who you or he have been sexually involved with get treated, even if they have no signs or symptoms. Otherwise, the infection can be passed back and forth between sexual partners. I also strongly advise practicing abstinence during the next two weeks and after that, unless you're one hundred percent sure that your relationship is sexually monogamous, I advise you use protection". Sue Ellen sat quietly and listened as Doctor Krane, her obstetrician, laid out all the facts for her and she felt physically sick as she got confirmation that her suspicions and worst fears were not just figments of her imagination. No, not only had JR had cheated on her, but he'd managed to involve her in his dirty little secret too, and if she hadn't been in the thirty percent of women who did show symptoms, his actions could have seriously endangered both her health and the baby's health.

She was angry, upset and humiliated and although she'd been crying just moments ago, she suddenly felt different, no longer did she want to express her feelings through tears, no, now she felt a strong urge to throw something across the room, or more specifically, throw something straight at her lying, cheating, disgusting husband. "I understand, thank you doctor, I'll be sure to tell him that and you don't have to worry about me, I don't plan on making myself sexually available to anyone, including my husband, for the foreseeable future; I don't need anyone but my baby… Is that all for today?" she nodded and then coldly and abruptly ended their conversation; her emotional wall had gone up and she didn't feel like discussing it any further. Doctor Krane checked her notes as Sue Ellen ended their conversation, and although she would have liked to discuss the emotional effects Sue Ellen was feeling, it didn't seem as if Sue Ellen would be willing to participate in that right now, so it could wait until their next appointment, "yes, I believe so. Unless there's anything else you'd like to ask me?" Sue Ellen shook her head as the doctor asked her, speaking in a tone as if she were hinting and waiting for her to start crying again, though she wasn't in the mind-set for that now, she hated her husband too much to cry over him. "Ok then, I'll see you again in two weeks for your twenty-week check-up", she handed Sue Ellen a pamphlet and wrote her a prescription before shaking her hand and leaving the room to allow her to change back into her clothes.

"One one-way ticket to Austin please, preferably tonight", Sue Ellen looked at her watch as she waited for the travel agent to search for available flights; it was just after three in the afternoon and she figured that she had enough time to return to Southfork, pack a few things, confront JR about his cheating and then leave. She couldn't stay, she just couldn't. She hadn't quite figured out exactly how she was going to approach the subject with JR, but she knew she had to, she couldn't just bury her head in the sand and ignore her negative feelings like she usually did, because this was a bigger issue than just an argument between two married people. Any number of other women were involved and as much as she hated those women for sleeping with her husband, a married man, they deserved to know that they were possibly infected, even just for the good health of society. "There are two flights available, six o'clock or eight o'clock tonight", Sue Ellen thought about it for a moment and as much as she wanted to leave Dallas as soon as possible, six just seemed too soon, "eight o'clock will be fine. Thank you", she handed over her driver's licence for identification and paid for her ticket in cash before leaving the travel agency.

Miss Ellie stood in the newly painted and wallpapered nursery with a catalog in one hand and a tape measure in the other as she measured and imagined each potential piece of décor, thinking about where it would go, how it would fit in with the rest of the room and what purpose it served. Most of her thoughts led her toward one conclusion though, a lot of things that were marketed toward decorating a nursery and planning for a new baby had little purpose other than being visually appealing, not that she minded though, she couldn't wait to have another grandchild. She was brought out of her thoughts by the sound of a car door slamming outside and walking toward the window, she spotted Sue Ellen walking determinedly into the house; she didn't really know how she knew, but she knew, something was very wrong. "Sue Ellen?" she met her daughter-in-law at the bottom of the stairs and although Sue Ellen appeared to be acting more calm and collected than she had just a moment ago, it didn't escape her notice that her eyes were shifting between focusing on their conversation and focusing on the grandfather clock in the foyer. "I'm sorry Miss Ellie, I'm fine; the traffic was terrible and I suppose that made me a little irritable, but I'm home now and I think I'm going to go and have a little nap before dinner, I'm feeling a bit tired", she lied and gave a quick explanation for her mood before excusing herself from the conversation.

"Miss Sue Ellen?" Teresa knocked on the bedroom door and waited for Sue Ellen to answer, though part of her wished that the younger Mrs Ewing wouldn't answer, she didn't like being the bearer of bad news and that's exactly what she was right now. Sue Ellen sighed and stopped her packing for a moment as she heard Teresa outside the door, she didn't exactly want company right now and with the phone having rung about half an hour earlier, while she was 'napping', she was fairly sure what the message was. "I'm sorry to disturb you Mrs Ewing; Mr Ewing's secretary called earlier and she said that his meetings were running late and he'd asked her to call you to tell you that he was sorry, but he wouldn't be home for dinner tonight", she spoke quickly and apologetically and waited for Sue Ellen to dismiss her. Sue Ellen sighed sadly, an automatic response to the news that her husband would be working late again, but she soon came to her senses as she realised that she didn't have to feel sad, she was angry at him, "thank you Teresa", she nodded and closed the door. Walking over to her small suitcase, she finished packing her things, enough for at least a week because she didn't really know what her plan was, all she knew was that she needed some time to think and collect her thoughts and she couldn't be around JR right now.

As she methodically packed her suitcase, she reflected on the situation, things never just stayed consistently good for them, they were on a constant rollercoaster ride of ups and downs, and right now, they were headed straight down. The week before Christmas had been like a nightmare, but the holiday break had been like a dream come true; she'd had a loving and attentive husband and she'd really believed that things were on the up for them again, but then he'd gone back to work and they'd returned to reality. Everything had really come crashing down today though, because instead of her doctor telling her tests had shown that the uncomfortable sensations she'd been experiencing were due to the UTI she assumed she had, the tests had instead brought much worse news. A few minutes later, she pulled a monogrammed notepad and pen out of JR's nightstand drawer, wrote him a quick note containing number of unpleasant words, and then stapled it onto the pamphlet Doctor Krane had given her, leaving him with no question as to why she was leaving, or by the time he read it, why she had left. Walking downstairs, she instructed Raoul to put her bags in her car before she returned upstairs to get ready for cocktails and dinner. As she changed and reapplied her makeup, she planned exactly how she was going to explain her sudden departure to her in-laws without arousing suspicion just yet. Selfishly, she gained a little bit of joy as she imagined JR in a few days' time when he inevitably had to explain to Jock that his wife's trip wasn't as temporary as she'd made it out to be and she wasn't planning on returning, at least not right away, and that her motivation was all because of his actions. She normally thought that Jock was too hard on his eldest son, but today she found herself not caring one bit whether JR was sad or not, he deserved every bit of punishment that he got.

To be continued…

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