Dallas, Texas

Following JR outside onto the driveway on Saturday morning, Sue Ellen was eager to see exactly what the surprise waiting for her was. JR, Bobby and Jock had come back from their bonding time last Sunday with the briefest of explanations, they'd been in town, though whether they were at the office or elsewhere was still a mystery to her. JR hadn't come home appearing to be drunk, guilty or overworked, so she hadn't been too concerned about his exact actions, especially not since his father was watching his every move more closely than ever. However, now, almost a week later and with the three Ewing men giving each other knowing glances at breakfast, she was beginning to wonder exactly had happened between them and what they knew that she didn't. Stopping in her tracks as she laid eyes on her husband's surprise, she put her polite beauty queen acting skills into practice, "a new car? JR, you shouldn't have. You spoil me too much", her response appeared to be one of flattered graciousness, however, deep down, her real reaction was anything but; she couldn't understand why JR would do this to her, but she was smart enough to not make a scene in front of the family. "That's a real family car, don't you think?" Jock appeared behind them and gestured toward the large, brown station wagon parked in the driveway. It appeared that he was truly excited to have such a car at Southfork and his reaction only confirmed to Sue Ellen that lying was exactly the response she needed to put forward, because even if she hated it, it would be rude to say so so openly. "Mercury Colony Park. Great American car, perfect for your growing family", through gritted teeth, Sue Ellen continued to smile and act interested in the obnoxiously large and terribly unattractive car as Jock went on and on about the features and benefits of such a vehicle. Truthfully, it was exactly the opposite of anything she would have chosen herself and she couldn't believe that JR had really thought it was a good idea to replace her sleek Fiat convertible with this monstrosity.

Knowing the way Jock could be and hearing the car salesman spiel he was giving right now, she sensed that even if JR hadn't chosen this particular car himself, he hadn't had the heart to tell his father no and now, she was the one paying the consequences for his hesitation, something she wasn't at all pleased about. JR was no stranger to buying her large gifts and this wasn't the first car he'd bought her and in the past, she really hadn't minded the surprise aspect of the whole thing, however, now, with his obvious lack of sanity or taste, this was a step too far and it irritated her. The first time he'd given her a car had been just after they'd returned from their honeymoon, he'd surprised her after one weekend with a trip to a dealership and allowed her to choose the car of her liking; it had seemed like a nice, generous gesture and she'd been appreciative of the gift. The second car she'd had during their marriage had been a surprise, just after her accident last year, a replacement for her ruined car; she'd been thankful and pleased with the gesture then too, however, this time, the whole surprise aspect annoyed her. "My old car?" she had a bad feeling that they'd probably sold her old car, however, she was still holding out hope that it was being stored somewhere in a garage on the ranch, in case she wanted to use it at a later date; "sold it. That little sports car was nice, but it's not suitable for the mother of John Ross Ewing III. Babies and children come with a lot of stuff you need to bring everywhere with you; you'd have been frustrated with the lack of space sooner or later. Trust me", it appeared that Jock was now speaking for JR and Sue Ellen sighed; when it came to his father, JR really didn't know when to push his own opinion and put his foot down. "Can't have my grandson being uncomfortable", cringing internally as her father-in-law spoke, Sue Ellen couldn't help but be a little angry at how assumptive and brazen he was; of course he had the right to want a grandson, but to make it so widely known that her child be a boy seemed rude and uncalled-for. She had no control over the sex of her child and although she'd received confirmation and reassurance from both JR and Miss Ellie that another Ewing granddaughter would be just as accepted and loved, she found that hard to believe when Jock said things like that.

She worried about her relationship with JR if she did give birth to a daughter, not a son. It wasn't that she didn't believe JR wouldn't love his daughter just as much, she didn't doubt his love for their child one bit, however, she did worry about Jock's negative influence on his eldest son when it came to the topic of heirs. The way Jock spoke about the Ewing heir almost seemed as if he cared more about titles and legacies than the actual humans involved and with JR always eager to please his father, always wanting his love, Sue Ellen worried that he would pull away from their relationship if she didn't deliver the thing his father wanted the most. Not saying anything, about the car or the inappropriate comments in reference to John Ross Ewing III, Sue Ellen remained falsely pleased, only changing her expression when JR presented her with the keys and suggested a drive around the ranch to get a feel for her new vehicle. His suggestion took her by surprise, though it really shouldn't have, it was her car after all, but with the surprise came relief too, it pleased her that he was offering her an opportunity to leave the family for a little while because she wasn't sure how much longer she could keep up the happy, grateful act. Now that she hadn't been using her acting skills so often in her daily life, it was more difficult for her to portray an entirely different persona to what she was really feeling; she was still very capable of pretending, but it took more effort and thought, because her honest happiness didn't provide many opportunities to practice. "A test drive sounds perfect", giving Jock, JR and Bobby a polite smile, she followed JR over to the driver's side door and stepped inside when he opened it for her. If JR was any bit the caring, understanding husband he had been acting like the past few months, then she hoped that they would be able to discuss things like adults and the outcome of their little drive would prove more positive than the past few minutes. They needed to talk about the whole situation: Jock, the baby, JR's ability to say no and finally, the car, because she was beginning to feel overwhelmed by the pressure and expectation again and being overwhelmed and sad had never proved to be a good combination in the past.

To be continued…