J.R. frantically paced, his sense of déjà vu stronger than ever. The hospital remained the same - the sickly smell of death clashed with detergent, the white walls still caused an ache in his temples and pretty, little nurses raced by him in the skimpiest of outfits. It had been three years since John Ross' birth and the only difference was that J.R. was left to wait alone for news of his wife and new-born child. His father had remained true to his word; J.R. and Sue Ellen were banished from Southfork, banished from the entire family and the only one who hadn't succumbed entirely to his will was Pam, who frequently dropped by to monitor Sue Ellen.

"J.R.," she sprinted from nowhere, as if brought to life by his line of thought. "How's Sue Ellen?"

"No word since we got here," he shook his head, offended by the lack of communication from the hospital staff. Little did J.R. ever imagine the day when Pamela Barnes would be a friendly face but her presence permitted a subtle lift in his confidence. "Did Sly call?" His personal secretary had been the only employee to follow him from Ewing Oil to Ewing Energies.

"Yes," Pam confirmed. "I called Bobby and the ranch. He and Miss Ellie are on their way now."

"Daddy?"

Gently, Pam shook her head. Even she had been surprised at Jock's dispossession of his heir. Father and son hadn't communicated in weeks, nor had Miss Ellie been able to resolve the divide. "I'm sure he'll be here, as soon as he hears. What happened?"

"I don't know. One minute she was fine and the next..." J.R. could still hear her heartbreaking whimpers of pain as he drove her to the hospital. Her waters had broken and the cramps were unbearable; her sobs had almost provoked his own. "The doctors won't let me in, there's some sort of complication." Information had been thrown at him, fast and furious, and J.R. failed to process it, let alone comprehend the consequence. The caesarean section Sue Ellen had endured when John Ross was born had been cause for concern and the doctor had warned J.R. to be prepared, for what he didn't know. "They've been in there for hours." The unknown had always been a source of insanity for him, a man who thrived on the know-how and control of whatever situation he found himself presented with.

"Is John Ross with Kristin?" Pam's mind wandered to the absent party.

"I should probably give her a call, let her know what's going on," he admitted, with a nod of his head. In their estrangement from the Ewing family, Kristin's support had been unwavering. "Would you mind?" He requested, "I'd like to be here, in case there's an update on Sue Ellen and the baby." Pam readily scuttled off to the nearest row of payphones and scraped the bottom of her purse for loose change.

"Mr. Ewing," a nurse finally collected him from the waiting room. "Please follow me." J.R. worriedly chased after the nurse in the direction of a private ward, which was deadly silent. His heart pounded, awaiting a noise or any hint of life. Finally, the healthy cry from a pink-wrapped bundle stole his attention and his heart. "Your wife will remain unconscious for the next few hours, due to the sedative so I'm afraid you can only be here for a minute. The doctor will speak with you in a moment."

Once she departed, J.R. clambered toward his new-born daughter, the perfect mix of him and Sue Ellen. Her beauty-queen porcelain complexion, deep hazel eyes and round, cherub cheeks were an undeniable Ewing appearance. "Hello darlin'," his hand reached inside the crib and tenderly caressed the baby's cheek. She was another spoonful of sweetness added to his life, like her mother. He could only have been happier, if Sue Ellen were conscious to share the moment with him. Still, she wasn't as deathly in appearance as she had been the day John Ross entered their world.

"Mr. Ewing," an unknown voice interrupted his momentary daze. "I'm Dr. Burke, I operated on your wife." J.R. straightened his suit, prepared for whatever news came his way. "I'm happy to report your wife and daughter are in perfect health. Please, don't be concerned by the machines. They're simply here to monitor your wife's recovery. This isn't her first caesarean, so I assume you're aware of the procedure; she won't be able to leave the hospital for a few days and she'll need plenty of rest once she does." He folded Sue Ellen's medical record, "I understand you and your wife hoped for a natural birth. Unfortunately, we've found the majority of women who have experienced a caesarean section previously will find it difficult to have a natural birth."

"All that matters is that they're both healthy," J.R. clarified, "Thank you, doctor." As Dr. Burke departed, his mother arrived. "Mama."

Guilt poured from his mother, who he hadn't seen since his father banished him from Southfork. "J.R., how's Sue Ellen?" Her eyes fell to her unconscious daughter-in-law and the cherished bundle in the crib beside her. Miss Ellie prayed it wouldn't be a repeat performance from Sue Ellen's last labour.

"She needs her rest," he ushered his mother out of the hospital room where Bobby and Pam lay in wait, hand-in-hand. "Sue Ellen and the baby are both fine. She won't wake for another hour or so, and the doctors still have plenty of checks to make with the baby. Mama, why don't you call Lucy and let her know that it looks like the girls will be dominating the next generation of Ewing's?" It hadn't even registered for Miss Ellie that the baby had been wrapped in pink.

"Girl, huh?" Bobby grinned, eager to witness how his brother would handle a daughter in adolescent rebellion.

"Have you thought of any names?" Pam pondered aloud, smitten at the idea of another niece.

"If he had any sense, he'd name her after his mama." The familiar boom of his father's voice broke the circle of family members and Jock analysed his son, his head raised above all others. "Some consider the continuance of a family name an offer of respect." Determined to avoid the awkwardness, Jock formed his most masculine stance, "Junior, can I have a word?" While their family continued to coo over the newborn, J.R. stepped outside with his father. "I realise I may have been hard on you and Sue Ellen. In her condition, stress should be avoided at all costs and my actions did little to help. Wisdom comes with experience but there's still the odd moment when even someone as old as me makes a mistake and I own my mistakes, I always have. Family is of the utmost importance to me and I could never deny you as my son, or Sue Ellen and either one of your children."

"It's all in the past now, dad…" J.R.'s awkwardness beamed, like a beacon in the dark.

"But, it's important you know how sorry I am," his father insisted, so intently that J.R. silenced himself to listen. "All your life, I've pushed you to seek independence. Now that you've finally become your own man, I tried to hold you back. I don't expect you to understand why, not yet anyway." Jock's shame was palpable. "I've been a husband and father more years than I care to remember. When you ran off to Alaska, only to move back and create a home of your own... I suppose, it awakened an old insecurity of mine that I've lived my life for the most part. When you created your company, I saw it as a betrayal to the legacy I built for you and your brothers. Now, I realise I was wrong," he admitted, "I realise it was your chance to make me proud... and you did, J.R.. Here, today, you've made me proud and I'm sorry that I wasn't man enough to let you know it before."

"Thank you, daddy." J.R.'s thumb wiped the residue of tears from his left eye, emotional by his father's admission. "You'll be happy to know, Sue Ellen and I did discuss names and we certainly had one in mind. Like you said - Elle, after mama."

"She sure would appreciate that," Jock smiled.

In that moment, J.R. smiled to himself and reminisced a conversation he had once shared with his mother's father in one of his earliest memories. He had professed life to be like a kaleidoscope, where the smallest shift in can rework the pattern of a life from birth to death, and J.R., though never particularly sentimental, had to concur when he recalled how their lives had transformed. The lone bullet from Kristin's revolver had set a whole new life in motion for J.R., the exact opposite of its intention, and J.R. would never dismiss the revolution that flesh wound had introduced into their lives.