A/N: Wasn't last weeks eppy sad , I did enjoy the Detty speech by bradford before he died and the Detty hand hold at the end anywho heres the epilogue I hope you all enjoyed this story as much as I enjoyed writing it I love watching UB but I never thought I'd be inspired to do fanfiction its an awesome show and who knows when and if there will be Detty on the show, keep your fingers crossed ,lol. Votes are in and there will be a sequel I've included a summary and title for the next part of this Detty series at the end of this epilogue and I'll try to get the first chapter up by thanksgiving weekend .
Super Thanks to : All he read , reviewed , added to my alerts or me to their favorite list whether you reviewed just the first the last or in between your reviews were appreciated and inspiring.
midnight 1987- I realize the last chapter was a bit rushed but all those events had to happen to set up the epilogue which kinda sets up the sequel, thanks for reading
-P.Rom
Epilogue
Six months later
Betty sat up in bed stretched and touched the heart shaped locket hanging from her neck she opened it and looked at the pictures inside . On one side was her as a little girl with her mother and the other side was a picture of her and him, Daniel, at the previous year's Christmas party. She didn't remember taking the photo, because she was so focused on hiding from Henry.
"Betty breakfast is ready...you ok?"
Hilda said noticing the expression on her sisters face as she walked into the room.
" I miss him Hilda.."
" I know sweetie..."
Her sister said putting an arm around her. Betty wiped her tears and put on the brave face she'd put on everyday for the past six months since Daniel left.
" I'm ok...what did Papi make?"
"Your favorite, blueberry pancakes"
" Sounds yummy , I'll be down in five"
"Ok"
Hilda said leaving the room. Betty sighed and got up from her bed allot had changed for her over the past few month's . Daniel leaving, Alexis taking over Mode and the several firings that followed, including her own ,of anyone loyal to Daniel , Wilhelmina or Bradford. Her new job and move out of the city, Hilda's engagement and impending wedding in the upcoming month .
She thought back to seeing Daniel's face for the last time as the elevator closed . She remembered standing there in shock, until she realized she was holding something. It was a gift from her secret admirer , Daniel.
The gift was in a medium sized box and wrapped in the same design paper as the other two and also like the other's a card was attached on top. As she started to read it , in her mind she could hear Daniel's voice speaking the words.
"For someone truly specially , kind, wonderful, loving too many words to describe why I've fallen in love with you , enclosed is something already in your heart and something I hope can have a new place in your heart, love , Daniel"
Tears started to appear in Betty's eyes as she teared off the wrapping paper and opened the box. Inside lay a golden heart shaped locket with "Betty's heart" inscribed on its surface, next to it was a key and the photograph of her and Daniel. She took the key and opened the locket, inside was a picture of her and her mother, probably given to Daniel by her father. She took the second picture and placed it inside the locket.
" It can...Daniel...it can..."
Betty said closing the locket and clasping it across her neck. He really had fallen in love with her and now he was gone and she was left heartbroken.
Betty snapped out of her reverie , got dressed and went downstairs. Ignacio , Hilda , Justin and Santos were already seated at the table. Betty took her seat and quietly ate her breakfast. Her family tried to strike a conversation, but as always their efforts were futile, Betty stayed silent. A car's honking could be heard outside and Betty quickly got up and placed her dishes in the sink
"Henry's here gotta go to work, bye! "
Betty waved and quickly went out the door. Henry as well as two other people were sitting in a car waiting for Betty She walked up to the car and got in the front seat.
"Morning Betty"
"Morning Henry,hey Sam, Linda,"
Betty said flashing them all a fake smile
"Sup , Betty"
" Hey"
Her coworkers replied.
Betty buckled her seat belt and Henry started the car. They drove for about fifteen minutes ,Betty occasionally answering questions when asked but, mostly staying out of the morning carpool conversation.
" Did you guys hear hear the rumor about Wayne selling the magazine?"
Linda said .
" No way, are you serious whats gonna happen if he sells?"
Sam said worried about his reporting job.
"It's just a rumor..." Betty said
" But what if it's not Betty , there's no way you'd be fired but, what about the rest of us?"
"Who says I wouldn't be fired too?"
" Are you kidding your stories bring in like seventy percent of the magazines revenue!"
"Actually ,its eighty six point five percent"
Henry said.
" I guess.." Betty said distractedly twirling her locket around her finger.
There was an awkward silence in the car , then Linda quickly changed the subject to the recent, office romance , gossip. Betty tuned her out and stared out the window till they approached the building of "Wayne Publications". Henry parked and Betty quickly gathered her things and got out of the car. She walked into the buildings main floor and was immediately approached by her assistant , Julie.
"Morning Ms. Suarez , I've got your coffee and Wayne ordered a staff meeting at ten"
Her assistant said following her into the elevator.
"Thank you Julie and you can call me Betty"
"Right, I'm sorry""
"It's ok..."
Betty said forcing a smile. Wayne, her boss and owner of the newspaper she worked at as well as the other publications in the building, had insisted on Betty hiring an assistant just a week before. So Julie was still learning the ropes. Betty saw no need for an assistant but hired Julie anyway to please Wayne , plus Julie, an aspiring writer, reminded her of herself.
She got off on the third floor , Julie following after her , and into her office. She took the coffee from Julie and handed her an envelope .
" These are the newest fan letters , could you organize them by date and pick three short enough for me to answer for next weeks paper, you can take your time and put them on my desk when your done, thanks"
Julie took the folder and went to her desk. Betty was finding it harder and harder to find tasks for Julie.She was so used to throwing herself into her work. So having an assistant to do some of that work would take some getting used to . Especially since it meant going home earlier and having to face her family. They all seemed to pity and fawn over her when she was home it was like a constant reminder of him leaving.
She glanced at her clock and saw that it was five to ten. She grabbed her coffee off the desk and headed for the conference room. Most of the Staff was already there talking amongst themselves. Henry waved her over to sit next to him, but she pretended not to see him and walked over to take a seat next to Christina who had taken a job as the fashion columnist . Betty noticed Wayne wasn't in the room yet which was odd , because he was always the first one there.
As she sat down Wayne walked in with a serious expression on his face. This was also odd, since Wayne was usually pretty laid back.Wayne took his place at the head of the room and started to speak.
" Thank you all for coming, I've got a pretty big announcement to make ..."
The room which had a few whispered conversations going on suddenly became silent .
" I've decided to and have sold this newspaper as well as the other publications"
As soon as he said that the room erupted in murmurs.
"Don't worry none of your jobs will be affected"
Wayne said. It was like the whole room let go a breath they were all holding in.
" Who bought it?"
Betty said , asking out loud what everyone else in the room was thinking.
" All I know is the last name is Winters, Your new boss will be stopping in later to meet you all...It was a pleasure to work with you all , but It will be an even greater pleasure to finally retire "
Wayne said his normal personality coming back.
Everyone started to get up some shaking hands with Wayne others giving him an friendly hug goodbye. Betty walked up to Wayne giving him her first genuine smile in months and hugged him. They'd gotten close over the last six months . He was like a second father to her, he had recognized Betty's talent and started off her career as a writer she would be forever indebted to him for giving her the opportunity to start over after Mode.
" Thank you so much for everything , Wayne "
"Take care Betty , I know you'll go even farther, this is just the beginning for you "
Wayne said giving her his trademark wink before walking away to break the news to the other publications.
Betty worked in a daze for the next couple hours. Her thoughts were on the new owner. What was he or she gonna be like? Would their jobs really all stay intact? This job was enabling her to help pay for Hilda's wedding, she couldn't afford to lose it. Before she knew it four hours had passed and it was almost time to go home. Julie walked into her office and announced that the new owner was arriving any moment now to meet the staff in the conference room.
"Thank you Julie, you can go home now if you want"
"Thanks Betty, have a goodnight"
" You too "
Betty said as Julie walked out of the office. She took a nervous deep breath and preceded to walk toward the conference room. She ran into Christina and shared her anxiety's with her about meeting the new boss and owner of the company.
" It'll be alright Bet-ty , your the heart of this newspaper the new boss would be crazy to fire you"
Christina said in her heavy Scottish accent.
The two walked into the conference room and took their seats. The room was bustling with conversations on who and what the new boss would be like. The room became silent as a man walked in . Betty couldn't believe it when she saw his face it was him, Daniel. Where her eyes playing tricks on her was it really him, her questions were answered when he began to speak.
" Hello everyone I'm Daniel Winters, Your new boss."
It was him Daniel was back ! Betty's heart began to beat faster as , shock ,confusion, happiness and anger began to come over her all at once . Then everything went black as she fainted ,falling out of her chair .
Daniel scanned the room for Betty as he walked in noting the shock on her face. He walked to the front and introduced himself , then he saw Betty's eye's roll to back of her head and her body start to fall. He ran over to where she was and caught her . Others came over and crowded around the two.
"Move back, move back give em some space"
Christina said . the other staff members moved back and Henry came closer to see what was wrong.
" You too Henry, Daniel's got her "
Christina said . Henry looked at the way Daniel was cradling Betty and immediately knew any effort he continued to make toward a future with Betty was entirely futile now that the love of her life was back.
" Betty, Betty wake up!"
Daniel said gently caressing her face . She stirred and looked up at him.
" Daniel..."
"Yeah it's me... are you ok?"
" I'm fine "
Betty said entangling herself from his arms and standing up.
" What are you doing here?"
Betty said her initial shock now turned to confusion then anger.
" I'm the new owner"
" I know that , why'd you come back now after all this time and here ,did you know I worked here!"
" Can we go talk somewhere less public?"
Daniel said noticing the entire staff staring at the new boss and coworker arguing.
" No,I want answers now!"
Betty said. She couldn't believe he had waltzed back into her life like this, like he hadn't left her heartbroken six months earlier.
" Bet-ty , I don't think this is the appropriate place "
Betty took a look around at all the starring faces.
" Ok, where did you have in mind?"
Daniel took her hand and led her out of the conference room to the elevators . The ride down to the main floor was silent and awkward especially since Daniel was still holding her hand . Neither attempted to break the hold nor did they know what to say or do there was so much they needed to discuss.The elevator dinged signaling the arrival at the main floor.
Still holding her hand Daniel led Betty outside to a red sports car . He opened the passenger door and walked around to the drivers side.
" No town car?"
Betty asked surprised at the form of transportation in front of her.
" You gonna just stand there and admire my car or are you going to get in?"
Daniel said from the drivers seat. Betty got in put on her seat belt and Daniel started the car. They drove in silence for about ten minutes till Betty finally spoke.
" Why'd you leave like that ?"
Daniel sighed he'd gone over and over what he'd say to her when he came back but it all went out the window when he couldn't figuire out how to start.
" I had to..."
"Ok , where you've been for the past six months?"
" Everywhere, The night I left I went to England then from there to Russia, Prague, India, Mexico , Columbia, Brazil ,Italy then back to the United States "
" When did you come back?"
Betty said referring to the states.
" Four months ago..."
"Oh"
Betty said crushed that he'd been back for four months and was now contacting her. She didn't feel like asking anymore questions so she stayed silent
" We're here..."
Daniel said . Betty looked around and realized they were in Queens not too far from her old neighborhood.
" What are we doing here?"
" You'll see "
Daniel said taking her hand as she got out of the car. They walked for a little while then stopped. Betty looked around and immediately knew where they were.
" We're across the river..."
Daniel stared out across the water for awhile then turned to Betty.
" This is where I first fell in love with you.."
" Daniel..."
" Betty... I'm sorry I left the way I did ..everything was just so overwhelming , my dad , my mom and Alex coming back the way he did it was all too much...I..."
" You really hurt me when you left like that , Alex coming back hurt me too ,Daniel , I lost my job if it wasn't for Wayne I'd be broke and unemployed"
" I know , I'm sorry...I never meant to hurt anyone especially you..."
" Why did you come back now, if you've been back for four months!"
" After I left Italy I thought back to what Alex said about a person changing I knew I couldn't come back to you without really proving that I had really changed."
"You didn't have to prove it to me Daniel, I could see it ,I didn't care what Alex said, I believed in you"
" I know but I also had to prove to myself that I could make it without any help, so I cut ties from my family and gave away my inheritance and everything I owned except a few pair of clothes and three hundred dollars, I changed my name and started from scratch. I got a business loan and started with one small magazine then two than three and buying Wayne publications is my fourth ."
"Did you know I worked there when you bought it?"
"Yes and no, I found out after my first meeting with Wayne I saw you but you got on the elevator before I could catch up with you, I knew then I had to buy it from Wayne.
" Why didn't you contact me when you found out I worked there"
"I dunno... I guess I was..scared..."
" Scared of what"
" That...that you'd hate me"
" Daniel...I could never hate you...never"
" Does that mean you forgive me... for leaving..."
" I don't know..."
Betty said subconciously twirling the chain of the locket around her finger. Daniel noticed the locket and his face lit up.
" Your wearing the locket, can I see it "
" Yeah..."
Betty said confused. She took it off and handed to Daniel.
Daniel pulled out an identical key to Betty's and opened the locket. When he glanced inside his smile got even brighter.
" Your lying.."
" Excuse me "
Betty said confused even more
" You love me and you forgive me"
Daniel said confidently.
" I don't know what your talking about?"
Betty said turning away. Daniel moved closer to her and gently turned her around to face him.
" I'm not going to leave again...if thats what your afraid of"
"No...your wrong"
" I know you love me...you put the picture in the locket and me in your heart"
" I...Is.."
Betty struggled with the words. She knew what her heart wanted to do and say but her mind was another story. She put her head down and Daniel ,moving even closer ,gently lifted her head up to look at him.
" I love you Betty Suarez and I promise to never leave and break your heart ever again"
With that said Daniel leaned in and passionately kissed Betty. She hesitated at first then gave in to the kiss , it was like the first one many months ago but with more passion and longing. She wrapped her arms around him pulling him deeper into the kiss. A few minutes later they both pulled apart breathing deep and shallowed.
" Wow..." Betty said
" Yeah..."
Daniel said brushing a piece of her hair from her head. He closed the locket he was still holding and gently placed it back around her neck.
" If you leave like that ever again...I'll throw you in the river..."
Betty said her Queen's attitude coming out.
" Never"
Daniel said pulling her into another kiss.
They stood in each other's arms in the place their romantic journey had began it had been a long journey , a journey that had brought them back to the The endroit across la rivière .
A/n: Thanks again for reading my story please review and I hope you all go on to read the sequel
-P.Rom
Sequel info :
Title : For Better or Worse
Summary : Daniel and Betty are getting married . Can they survive the rocky road to the altar or will things from their past and their present tear the couple apart.