Dallas, Texas

"The head and shoulders are out, that's the hardest part. One more big push and you'll be able to meet your son or daughter", it was almost as motivating for JR to hear the words as it was for Sue Ellen and in waiting in nervous anticipation, he realised that the small aversion he used to have for the word 'daughter' no longer existed. If Doctor Krane announced that their baby was a girl, there would be no disappointment on his part; the whole day had taught him that life, female or male, was precious and took a lot of hard work to make it into the world. It now struck him that it would be incredibly wrong for him to feel anything negative toward his wife or child if she were a girl, it wasn't something anyone had any control over and women were absolutely not as weak as he had believed. The world had changed since his father was a baby, since he was a baby and would absolutely change again by the time his future child was of age to start working at Ewing Oil. Perhaps by 1990 when their child started college, or 1994 when they graduated and were starting their career, marriage, or whatever it was that they planned to pursue, perhaps the world would look like a much different place. It then struck him that 'perhaps' was the wrong word, because he knew the world wasn't static, it was always changing, it would be different, no matter whether he was ready for it to change or not. The thought of raising a child for the now and the future was both odd and completely common sense; he was one of three sons, but alongside his natural ability to succeed in the oil business, a lot of what he knew was because of what he'd been taught. He was the one very successful Ewing son and it wasn't only because of him, it was because of his father too. If he wanted his own child, son or daughter, to be successful, then it was not only going to be based on their natural ability, but what he taught them and he was determined to do a good job.

During the labour process, he hadn't actually looked at what the doctors were focusing on, his attention was mainly directed toward Sue Ellen's upper half, encouraging and giving her something to focus on between contractions. However, hearing that the head and shoulders were out, he found himself mildly curious about it, though not curious enough to actually look, the blood on Doctor Krane's gloves was enough to put him off making any move toward satisfying that curiosity, he wasn't that brave and even he could admit it to himself. "One, two, three…" upon hearing Doctor Krane counting again, JR's attention moved back to his wife and before he knew it, there were tears welling in her eyes and turning toward the doctor, he knew exactly why. Holding up the smallest, pinkest, little baby either JR or Sue Ellen had ever seen, it was as if the world stopped for a moment, as if no one but the three of them existed; they were a family, nothing and no one could change that. Neither of them needed it to be said, they could see it for themselves, but Doctor Krane said it anyway, "congratulations Mr and Mrs Ewing, you have a beautiful, healthy little baby boy", and quickly suctioning his mouth and nose and then wiping the gunk off him, she then placed him onto Sue Ellen's chest. Standing awestruck for a moment at the perfect image of his wife and his son, their son, John Ross Ewing III, JR's thoughts were brought very much into the present moment at the loud, almost shrieking cry. "No, what's wrong?" looking up at the doctor in panic, Sue Ellen's euphoric excitement and pride was disrupted by the pained cry of her child; she felt something she had never felt before, she felt protective in an almost primal way, she needed to shelter and comfort her son, because it pained her to hear him distressed in any way. Shaking her head and smiling, Doctor Krane spoke, "nothing's wrong. He's a baby, he'll cry for many reasons, it's how he communicates his needs prior to learning how to speak; in time, you'll probably be able to distinguish which need requires your attention simply from the way he cries, however, right now, crying is his natural instinct, he needs to get used to using his lungs in the outside world. It's much different out here than it is in the womb and just as it's a new experience for you, it is for him too". Satisfied by what the doctor was saying, Sue Ellen turned her attention back to her son, admiring and appreciating every little thing about him and trying her hardest to comfort him, even if she wasn't entirely sure of what she was doing. He was tiny and fragile, so his cries reverberated throughout his whole body, but even shaking and crying, he was the most beautiful little boy she had ever seen and she found herself falling more and more in love with him every second.

Having known that it was happening, but been too distracted by her new baby to really take notice, Sue Ellen was then a little surprised when Nurse Wilson handed JR a pair of scissors to cut the umbilical cord and then asked her to gently push. It wasn't as if she didn't realise that the placenta was still there, Doctor Krane had explained that in their appointments and earlier in the day, it had just completely slipped her mind and after the amount of effort it had taken to deliver her son, a gentle push for the placenta was nothing. Refocusing on her newborn son and the way her husband was looking at both of them with love and pride, she began to cry; she really had everything she had ever wanted now and she couldn't imagine having it any other way. Waiting as her son was weighed, measured and had an identification bracelet put on him, Sue Ellen was anxious to have him back with her, though she allowed Doctor Krane to hand him over to JR first. In all the excitement, JR hadn't actually had a chance to hold John Ross just yet, but from the look in his eyes, she had no doubt that he wanted to and as she watched her husband and son interacting one-on-one for the first time, she felt herself falling even deeper in love with both of them. "He's perfect. Congratulations darlin', and thank you", gently sitting down on the side of her bed, JR placed a light kiss on her forehead and did the same to his newborn son before handing him back to his wife, "I love you, both of you". It was clear to him that she was anxious to touch and hold their son again and it pleased him to see the pure love she had for him; he hadn't really been totally aware of it until this point, but this was exactly what he'd always wanted and he finally had it. He was a very lucky man and he felt blessed to be in the position he was in; everything was perfect.

To be continued…