Aspen, Colorado

Having spent the majority of the morning in bed, gone into town for lunch and then returned to the cabin for an afternoon of uninterrupted couple time, Sue Ellen was extremely content with the way her life was as she and JR boarded their evening flight. Things were excellent between her and JR and although in the past she had been saddened by the idea of leaving their honeymoon state to return to the reality of their life in Dallas, this time, she wasn't upset. She had loved the time she and JR had spent together, but in the back of her mind, she was also counting down the hours until she was able to see John Ross again. She loved her husband, she loved her son, she loved being a wife and a mother, and she was excited to get back into that routine again. Watching her look out the window as the plane took off, JR smiled smugly and contentedly to himself, he was one lucky man and his past self was one huge idiot for not realising it sooner. Sue Ellen was the perfect mother to their son and the perfect wife for him, she truly aimed to please and with the willpower Patricia had instilled in her, when she aimed to do something, she usually achieved it. He'd originally been sceptical about her seeing Doctor Williams to discuss her issues, but he was a convert now, she really was trying to not only be a good wife and mother, but be a better person for herself too and that pleased him. He wanted to see her happy and he'd tried to help her in whatever way he could, but at some point, his efforts weren't enough and professional help was needed. Whatever the doctor was doing in those appointments appeared to be working and as long as he wasn't pushed into attending with her, he was one hundred percent supportive.

In his subconscious, he knew that he would probably benefit from seeing someone about his confusing, unfair and somewhat traumatic childhood and the way that it had affected who he was as a person. However, a stronger belief in his mind was one his father had repeated throughout his lifetime; he was a Ewing man and Ewing men were strong men, not weak. Gary had been emotional and weak and his father had hated that, no way was he going to start showing that side of himself any more than he already did, which unless he was with his wife and occasionally his mother when he showed concern for his wife, wasn't very often. His father supported him being a better communicator, a better husband and a better father, but he couldn't imagine him honestly supporting or encouraging him to really get in touch with his emotional side and as much as he wanted to separate himself from his father, he really did care what he thought of him. Seeing Sue Ellen happy and productive was enough for him to ignore his father's opinion in some respects though, because even if it was by the advice of a stranger and he didn't necessarily trust the psychobabble he was probably peddling to his wife, he couldn't deny that therapy was working wonders for her. If only for the positive results he had observed as an outcome from her time with Doctor Williams, he would always support personal choice when it came to attending those sessions; it wasn't something he would do, but he wasn't going to stop or discourage her from seeking help.

Dallas, Texas

Running up the stairs as she heard the distressed sounds coming from the nursery, Sue Ellen immediately felt guilty for leaving her son for two days. She had no idea whether he had been crying for five minutes or five hours, but even the thought of him crying for five minutes while she was away doing something enjoyable was enough to make her feel immensely guilt-ridden. "Shhh, little John, you're ok baby", rubbing his back and whispering to him, Miss Ellie stood in the nursery as she attempted to calm her fussy grandson. He had eaten, been burped, had his diaper changed, been rocked, swaddled and laid down, picked up and held by she, Lucy and the baby nurse, and now, she was attempting to rub his back to relax him, but from his shallow breathing and shrill cries, it wasn't doing much good. Noticing Sue Ellen standing in the doorway, looking heartbroken, lost and probably blaming herself for his distress, Miss Ellie silently walked over and handed her grandson to his mother, "he's just in the middle of a growth spurt. It's completely normal for him to be unsettled", she was trying to reassure her that she wasn't a terrible mother, but from the look on Sue Ellen's face, she wasn't sure she'd succeeded. "My poor baby", with all the love she felt for him, Sue Ellen held him to her and cuddled him, hoping that even just her maternal presence would calm him a little; however, when his distress still didn't appear to lessen after a few minutes, she began to worry. "Should we call Doctor Danvers?" she didn't know what was wrong with him or what to do about it, but she knew that she would never get over the guilt if something really was wrong with him and she hadn't taken the necessary steps to fix it. "I don't think it's necessary, his behaviour isn't unusual, all babies go through fussy periods, I would know, I've raised four of them. However, if you would like me to call Doctor Danvers, I will". Not feeling it completely necessary, his temperature and behaviour really were quite normal for a baby, they were ever-changing, not just physically, but emotionally too, Miss Ellie decided that if Sue Ellen needed to hear it from a doctor to feel better, then she would assist her in doing that. She understood what it was like to be a first-time mother and she would do whatever she could do to help Sue Ellen to feel comfortable in her position as a mother; having confident and happy parents would only benefit John Ross and she really wanted him to have a good life.

Following his wife up the stairs, at a quick pace, but not quite as fast as she managed, even in heels, JR entered the nursery just in time to hear his mother explaining that she didn't feel a doctor was necessary right now, but if Sue Ellen wanted one, then she would call. Making the decision for her, he spoke, "call him. I don't care what it costs or what he's doing, I want him here within the next half hour", not prepared to take any chances with his son's health or his wife's emotional state, he knew that getting the doctor to Southfork was the best thing right now. Even if his mother was right and John Ross was behaving completely normally for whatever biological changes were happening within his body right now, he knew Sue Ellen needed to hear it from the doctor himself and secretly, so did he. He put on a brave face and acted tough, but underneath the façade was a softer, more vulnerable part of him, a part of him that worried almost as much as Sue Ellen when it came to their son's wellbeing. He knew he would never forgive himself if something really was wrong and he had ignored the signs, so instead of doing so, he asserted his power and directed his mother to call the doctor.

To be continued…