Austin, Texas

"JR?" looking at her husband as the Ewing jet levelled and her thoughts moved away from the view out the window and back to what had happened earlier in the day, Sue Ellen spoke. "Yes darlin'", moving over to the bar to make the two of them some large, well-deserved drinks, JR looked at his wife sympathetically as she spoke his name; the day had to have been harder on her than it was on him, so he was there to help her in any way she needed. "What are we going to do with Kristin? She's not necessarily an innocent party and heaven knows I can't stand her sometimes, but spending a little time alone with her did make me feel a little bad for her. No matter how much she wants to pretend that she's grown, she's still really only a child and I can't bring myself to say that she deserves the same harsh treatment as my mother. Now, I don't mean I want to adopt her or simply redirect the money you were sending to my mother to her instead, but I don't want her to end up hating me because she feels like I ruined her life", mostly concerned about that specific possibility, she looked at her husband for guidance. She and Kristin weren't close, but they were closer than she and her mother, at least at this point in time, and although she disliked her mother and at times, disliked her sister, she didn't want to purposely hurt them or instigate drama; she would react and defend herself, but she did not want to be the catalyst. "Why do you think she'd hate you? Did she say something to you?" looking at his wife quizzically, JR was annoyed that Kristin would distrust his promise to not allow her entire life to fall apart just because he was mad at her mother. He didn't hold any particular feelings for his young sister-in-law, but from their conversation earlier and from the simple fact that although he could be nasty and vengeful when he was angry, he wasn't a complete monster, he knew that it wasn't fair to punish her to the same extent that he was punishing Patricia. "No, not as such. It's just, I don't know, I got the feeling when I was alone with her that she was worried. I'm sure my mother didn't exactly tell her her plans and we didn't really detail any of our plans in front of her, so I can assume that even being as intuitive as she is, the lack of facts is probably unnerving for her to deal with", sighing, she took the drink JR passed to her and waited.

"Darlin', your sister is going to be just fine, trust me", speaking with an air of authority, he hoped that she did just trust him and didn't question him. Truthfully, he wasn't quite sure what he was going to do with Kristin from now on, but in exchange for what she knew of Patricia's plan, he had promised that she wouldn't be left to fend for herself. What that meant, he wasn't making any promises about, however, he knew that he'd unintentionally set himself up as the second most important adult in her life, so if Patricia was no longer able to support her as she had in the past, and he intentionally cut off her financial help, he knew it wouldn't end very well for her. Realistically, although Kristin was skilled at manipulating and was well able to hold her own in situations where conflict arose, she was also still a minor and treating her as if she were an adult would all be too much for her at some point. Knowing that and having some social conscience, especially now that he had a child of his own, he knew that he couldn't allow her to live in poverty in the event that Patricia decided not to help herself and kept struggling on a small amount simply to keep up appearances. If requested nicely by Kristin herself, he would take a little pity and find her a nice boarding school, one far, far away from Texas. Patricia didn't deserve anything, but he couldn't quite bring himself to ruin a child's life too, and besides, she would probably benefit greatly from a new life, away from the dysfunction and disparity of her family. That was all still a hazy plan though, he didn't know how Patricia was going to react to his actions or how she would treat Kristin now, so he couldn't really start to make any solid, permanent plans for her, and honestly, he didn't particularly want to either. He was sick of funding their lives, but hearing Kristin speak about her school had somehow affected him and made him realise that by making a promise years ago, back when he was just Sue Ellen's boyfriend, he'd locked himself into a lifetime of commitments, even if unintentionally. He needed a little time to consider his next move, but luckily, he had the advantage in the situation, so he wasn't worried, and if he wasn't worried, then Sue Ellen had no reason to worry either.

Surprised, but encouraged by his tone of voice, Sue Ellen raised her eyebrow and spoke, "do I even want to know what's going on in that mind of yours?" Laughing in response and sitting back down, drink in hand, JR then shook his head, "no, I told you, trust me". Grinning, he then patted his lap and spoke again, "now, unless you want to spend the rest of this flight talking in circles, worrying about your sister, analysing your conversation with your mother and generally just getting frustrated, I suggest you come over here", looking directly at her, he hoped that she took his hint. Leaving her mother's house, she'd been wound up pretty tightly from the energy and reality of their confrontation and although JR found her newfound take-charge attitude appealing, he also realised that she needed a little time to collate her thoughts before she did anything else. However, knowing how she could be, he was aware that although he needed to allow her time to voice her thoughts and vent her frustrations, he also had to put a stop to that process before it went too far. Honestly though, that was fine with him, there were many more things he would rather be doing during their time alone together. "No", shaking her head at the idea of choosing analysation of the past over enjoying the present moment with her husband, she stood, "I like your idea better", walking over to him, she took his drink out of his hand and placed it next to hers on the table before sitting down in her favourite place, his lap. Feeling the shift in atmosphere and emotion, she leaned down and kissed him softly before pulling back, "I love you. Thank you for coming with me today", although she found him exerting control over other people very attractive and appealing, and she knew he enjoyed it too, their morning had been quite a personal confrontation and she wanted him to know that she truly did appreciate his presence and support. "Anything for you darlin', I love you too", knowing that she needed to hear him say those words more often and truly meaning them, he looked into her eyes as he spoke and then kissed her. Allowing their feelings for each other to guide their actions, it was clear to both JR and Sue Ellen that although they'd been through a lot, as individuals and as a couple, they were now strong and happy, and that was all either of them really wanted; things were good.

To be continued…

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