Dallas, Texas

"Daddy, I'm telling you, it's not going to work any other way. You can't give me another job or more important tasks here at Ewing Oil without annoying JR and disrupting the way things are now, and I'm telling you, I'm not interested in prolonging what I know is a role that's going to come to an end sometime in the near future anyway. Please, let me move on, I want to be a rancher, I love the land and the animals and I'm not stupid, I do have a college degree and I took plenty of economics, accounting and math classes to get that degree. You said it yourself when you offered me the opportunity to make ranching my future, with the right training and experience I'll be well capable of doing so when the time is right. What I'm trying to tell you now is that I think the time is right. Southfork Ranch and Ewing Oil are your companies right now, but in the future they'll belong to me and JR, Ewing owned and Ewing run, individually, not jointly; we all know what the future of our family businesses look like and we're all happy with that picture. I don't understand why it's so unexpected and incomprehensible to you that I don't want to waste my time treading water at a company that will never be mine when I have a company closer to home and closer to my heart that will one day be mine. Daddy please, this is about my happiness and fulfilment just as much as it is business; I don't want to be JR's target again and I have no interest in being his adversary. There will always be a bit of brotherly competition when it comes to overall profit, but I can deal with that as long as it's not the same vicious competition it turned into when I first started working here at Ewing Oil. I don't think it will be though, because JR doesn't want the ranch, he only cares for Ewing Oil, and luckily for him, I'm happy to put all of my effort into the ranch. It's a win-win situation and it's one we've already agreed on moving toward, really daddy, this is just me stepping down and stepping up a little earlier than planned".

Trying to explain to his father why compromising further and taking a more active role in Ewing Oil wasn't a good idea, Bobby hoped that his father was actually listening rather than just pretending to listen all while having already made up his mind on the issue. It wasn't fair to him to force him to do something that he was explaining in a calm, collected manner he didn't want to do any longer and wasn't interested in discussing ways around it anymore. It also wasn't fair to JR; he had originally assumed his oldest brother was just spiteful and bitter about his entrance into Ewing Oil, their father's positive feedback about his work and his quick progress up the ladder toward a meaningful position, however, after working at the ranch, it became clear to him how JR felt about Ewing Oil. Just as JR loved almost everything about the oil business, he had found real joy, passion and satisfaction in working on the ranch and it had given him a sense of perspective when it came to understanding why his brother would feel threatened, annoyed and angry when he'd come along and inserted himself into the way things were run. It was wrong to think and he felt guilty when he did catch himself thinking it, but he was glad that there were two Ewing owned businesses and only two Ewing sons interested in running those businesses. He liked his brother Gary and at times he did miss him a lot and wish things were different, so he felt bad after moments of selfishness like when he felt relieved and happy at his absence from Ewing life. The reality was though that as it was, the plan for the future was near perfect when considering the number of separate Ewing entities and the number of willing and capable Ewing sons available. They had made the plan months ago and all three Ewing men had agreed, so he didn't understand exactly why his father was making such a drama about it now. They didn't need to compromise again, they already had the perfect plan organized and ready to enact.

"Ok, let me think about it and I'll get back to you with my decision sometime this week. I know you're free to hand in your notice and leave Ewing Oil at any point you wish to, that's your right as a an employee, but as the current owner of Southfork Ranch, I don't have to agree to employ you full-time, you do understand that, don't you?" Listening to the tone of his father's voice change from tired and resigned to gruff and derisive, Bobby nodded his head warily and waited for his father to make the next move. He understood the legal position he was in, he had sought legal advice before he had done anything, including even mentioning his plan in passing to anyone, and he knew his father was correct, to a point at least. There was nothing stopping him from refusing to change their employment agreement at the ranch just yet, however, he was locked in to his promise of current part-time training, further continued training and future ownership, and as far as he was concerned, that was enough. Besides, although he didn't like to acknowledge it very often, he was definitely aware of his status as his father's favourite son, the son who could manage to somehow convince Jock Ewing to say or do things he wouldn't ordinarily do. It might be hard work to get what he wanted, but just by being who he was, he knew he had a slight advantage and right now, he didn't care whether it was selfish to be happy about his status.

Sensing that his father wasn't going to continue speaking until he received confirmation that he understood the first part of his response, he then nodded again, more confidently this time, before answering. "Yes sir, I understand both of our rights and I am respectfully asking for you to just consider what I'm asking before automatically turning down my request, so thank you for agreeing to do that". Unsure of what else to say and receiving no verbal response from his father, he then felt awkward as the room descended into silence and after a few moments, he decided it was best to leave things as they were for the moment. "I guess I'll go now then. Thank you again for considering my request", waving his hand awkwardly, because his father hadn't extended his hand for a handshake or a pat on the back, he then stood, turned and left the room. He wasn't entirely sure what was going on in his father's head right now but he hoped his emotive speech had been enough to have some positive impact on his appeal.

To be continued…