"Hello, master."
Chemotherapy was a son of a bitch but it did have its perks.
On the rare days his body embraced sleep, his mind had been afflicted by vivid dreams. They were usually fond memories warped into a fantasy, as if he could turn back time and wipe out the pain he had inflicted upon those he loved. Sometimes, his daddy was there and it was so real he could smell the cedarwood and oil.
There were even mystical dreams of a pretty little blonde in a skimpy pink crop-top and coordinated pants. He liked blondes - hell, he liked blondes, brunettes, redheads all the same - but this little blonde was special. With her arms folded and a blink of her eye, she promised to grant his every wish. Unfortunately for him, there were certain limitations: Jeannie wasn't real and the wishes wouldn't last beyond his slumber.
"Hi, Jeannie."
"You don't look well today, master," she sympathetically remarked and two delicate lines of concern creased between her brows. "What can I do to make you more comfortable?"
"Get me out of this place to start with," he miserably complained. The white walls did little for his complexion and the stench of disinfectant set his nostrils on fire. He hated hospitals, he always had done. He could still envision the look of disapproval on the nurse's face when he declined the invitation to stay with John Ross after his appendectomy. What kind of father wouldn't want to stay by his son's bedside?
The cold, detached environment disappeared in an instant and J.R. basked in the warmth of the Texas sunshine as he floated on an inflatable in the Southfork pool. "Better, master?" Jeannie blinked in a Bourbon on the rocks and the hyperactive squeals of children serenaded him from the distance.
J.R. stretched lazily like a cat and smiled, "Thank you, honey."
"Do you have a wish today, master?" Jeannie floated by on her own pink inflatable and a pitcher of Miss Ellie's sweet, homemade lemonade. She lived - and loved - to serve her master but she secretly enjoyed the days when he relinquished control to her most of all.
"Not today, darlin'," he replied with shut eyes and a hum of satisfaction. His muscles didn't ache in the body of his youth the way they did in that damn hospital bed. J.R. had never been the kind of man who dealt with sickness well; it was one of the uncontrollable phenomenons in life. Doctors offered up promises of remedies and nurses soothed his pains but he was still alone and closer to death than he liked to be.
Jeannie visibly contemplated her options. They had been all around the world - Capetown, Paris, Dubai - and quite literally around the planet in a rocket and matching orange astronaut suits that felt oddly familiar to Jeannie, yet why she couldn't pinpoint for sure. "I could show you another wonder of the world, master."
J.R. smirked in amusement, "There are only seven, honey."
"Oh, master, don't be so silly. There are twenty-three that we know of," she informed him with a humoured smile.
Ordinarily, Jeannie transported him to the past - she rewound time to a cherished memory, or sometimes to historic world events - but this time Jeannie introduced J.R. to the future, of sorts. They were in Louisiana, one of his father's old haunts where he would take J.R., Gary and Bobby to fish and hunt. John Ross was there and he didn't look much different from how he usually did, except maybe a little older. Three boys assembled around the fire and listened with intent while Jock relayed a story from J.R.'s childhood. This was one of his fondest wishes; that Jock would have known John Ross better and vice versa. He hoped the chemotherapy would possess the potency to ensure he, too, would meet John Ross' children and maybe even be a prominent presence in their lives.
Just as J.R. adjusted to the new normal, the atmosphere started to fade away. "Time to leave, master," Jeannie warned him in a soft tone. She hated to cut the wish short but there were times when her master drifted a little too comfortably into the otherworld.
"Huh?" J.R.'s eyes opened wide to be welcomed by that Miss Texas smile.
Sue Ellen wiped his brow and planted a kiss on his forehead as he regained consciousness, "Hello, darlin'. That must have been some dream you were havin' there." J.R. moaned sleepily, wiped out by the medication. "When all this is over with, I want to hear all about - - Jeannie, is it?"
"Not jealous are you, honey?"
"Of a pretty little blonde?" Sue Ellen retorted with a raise of her brow, "Not me." While J.R. fell back into his slumber, Sue Ellen blinked away the tears and caressed his cheek in her hand. She hoped and prayed for the day he would overcome the reckless disease that ran wild in his body, yet doubted the day would ever come.
