Dallas, Texas

Clearing his throat as he changed for dinner and turning toward Sue Ellen as she sat at her vanity, touching up her makeup, JR broke the silence that they'd fallen into, "Sue Ellen?" waiting for her to turn and face him, he then asked the question that had been weighing on his mind all afternoon. "What exactly did you say to that woman? You know, when you were alone with her today. She didn't look nearly as upset coming out of that meeting as she did when Harve and I left the room". Sue Ellen's actions and reactions earlier had surprised him and it was slowly eating away at him that he had no idea what her motive for asking for alone time was, what was said in the conversation or what the outcome was, for either woman. He knew it was an awkward and slightly risky question to ask, especially now, in an awkward silence, but he was curious, he wanted to know and he didn't want to have to wait to find out, especially since she was no stranger to keeping her thoughts and feelings locked inside her. Looking up at her husband from where she was seated, Sue Ellen sighed, she didn't quite understand him sometimes, "why do you want or need to know that? Is it not enough that she was happier?" pausing, she then saw the look on his face and knew that she had to finish, he wasn't satisfied with rhetorical questions. "Look, I may not like her and I may not condone what she did or what you did with her, but I'm not a terrible person. I won't go into detail, it's really not necessary, but if you must know, I started off by letting her know that I didn't appreciate any of this; not just the blackmail, but the original action and original consequences. I still find it particularly disturbing and disgusting that I somehow ended up involved in your dirty little secret…" deciding not to dwell on that part too much, she paused for a moment, sighed to herself and then continued, changing the direction of her explanation.

"That poor child doesn't deserve any of this, it's not fair and I would have felt awfully guilty if I just sat back and said nothing, allowing her to think that today's loss was the end of the world and her life is over, therefore, there's no reason for her to try and better things. That's not the case and her son deserves a better life than that. I haven't been exactly where she is, not really, but mother to mother, I understand what helplessness feels like and I wanted to make sure that she understood that even if she felt that this was necessary, it wasn't. There's help out there for women like her, she knows that, she was at a DOA sponsored event and she received her prenatal care through a non-profit clinic; there are many other services available to her, she's not alone in the world, I just wanted to make sure that she understood that. I told her to contact her parents and attempt to rebuild a relationship with them, even if it meant apologising and taking responsibility for things that she didn't want to, because no matter what, she needs some support, emotionally, financially and in other ways, and from what I understand, that ex-boyfriend of hers is not a good long-term choice. I also told her to set goals for the future, so that she doesn't end up in a downward spiral wondering what she got herself into. One of the goals I told her to aim for was to finish college if she could, obviously not immediately of course, because it's not reasonable to expect to be able to do that right now, but at some time in the future, going back and finishing would do wonders for her self-esteem and future career choices. I wanted her to understand that just because she feels like she's in a terrible situation right now, doesn't mean that it will always be that way, and she has the power to change certain things in her life if she really tries. I suggested that she meet with a charity for young mothers and children, one that helps them through all of these challenges, that's what those organizations are there for, to help. Essentially, instead of punishing her for what she did, even though I so desperately wanted to yesterday when I found out about all of this, I just wanted her to know that this isn't all there is; she doesn't have to resort to blackmailing wealthy men in order to support her son, it doesn't have to be this way. She seemed a little confused as to how I knew all of those things about her life, but she also appeared receptive to that advice and that confirms to me that she really was a naïve opportunist when she sent you that card; I honestly believe that she had no idea what messing with JR Ewing meant. Now, again, that doesn't mean that I approve or like anything about this situation, but as I said, I'm not a monster and the I would never purposely rub salt in the wound. Ultimately, it came down to me telling her that she's a mother now, she's responsible for more than just her own life and part of being a responsible mother and adult has to do with doing everything she possibly can to make sure that her son is happy and healthy. She needs to be a better person, for herself and for her son, and lying, blackmailing and living a dependent and borderline abusive lifestyle is not the way to do that. Of course, I said it in the least judgemental and most empathetic manner I could, which answers your question about why she didn't seem as upset after her meeting with me as she did during our group meeting. That child is not your son and for that I am so thankful and you should be too, because I don't know whether I would have been able to forgive a betrayal like that, I'm still having a hard time with the situation as it is, even without a biological connection to that child. The fact is though is that although I hate what that woman did and what she put us through, something inside me, call it maternal nature or just empathy, I don't know, but something inside of me was telling me that I couldn't just allow the situation to end like this, not with an innocent child involved. Does that satisfy you?" unsure of what else to say, she just ended her explanation and then turned back to her mirror to finish getting ready for dinner. It was difficult to explain how she felt, because she hadn't entirely forgiven him for his actions and she wasn't sure how she felt about him, their relationship, or the situation as a whole, but as a mother, in the moment, she'd felt strongly enough about the situation before her to say something, so she had, it was that simple.

Walking up behind his wife and placing his hands on her shoulders, JR made eye contact with her reflection in the mirror and then spoke, "yes darlin', and I love you for thinking that way, you're truly a much better person than I am…" Flinching uncomfortably as his hands touched her shoulders, Sue Ellen gave him a weak, unconvincing smile and then moved to stand up and walk away; his whole demeanour was too much for her right now, she couldn't deal with the assumed normalcy in their relationship, not when she was so conflicted about how she actually felt. "I'm ready for dinner", wanting to get away from the privacy of the bedroom and into a more public space, she hurriedly spoke and then walked toward the door and as she did, she silently confirmed her considerations from the previous night. It was too much to be close to JR right now, pretending that things were ok, because they weren't, not entirely; so, for the foreseeable future, she would sleep alone in the guest room, she needed time to think and consider everything.

To be continued…