Title: One Touch is All It Takes

Pairing: Daniel/Betty

Rating: K (or G)

Summary: Sometimes, a touch is worth a thousand words.

Timeline: AU; Takes place after the episode "I See Me, I.C.U." but before "Giving Up the Ghost".

Disclaimer: I'm sorry to say that I neither own the show nor any of its characters.

A/N: This is just a one-shot that I came up with when I couldn't sleep. I guess I'm pretty late, though - all of the great stories for "I See Me, I.C.U." seem to be posted already! lol

Anyway, for those who are following my other story, I just want you to know that this fic is in no way tied to "Snuggling Charles Dickens", which will definitely be finished up (Yes, I really mean that, lol).

I hope everyone enjoys this, and Happy Thanksgiving to all who are celebrating!

One Touch is All It Takes

11:30 p.m.

Betty noted the time as she stared at the wall clock hanging behind the nurse's station. Two hours had already passed since Mr. Meade had passed on, and yet, it still felt as if the whole event unfolded just ten minutes ago.

But that was the funny thing about time. In moments like this, time had an interesting way of becoming muddled and almost forgotten amidst the chaos and emotion. After a while, it wasn't easy to tell if ten minutes or ten hours had already passed.

Betty understood this strange concept all too well. This was the third time in six years that she lost track of time over someone's death. First, it happened when her mother died, then it happened when Santos passed, and tonight, she was experiencing it again now that Mr. Meade was gone.

And so were his children. Time kept moving on, but they didn't even notice.

It wasn't until a nurse came into Mr. Meade's room at 11:20 that they realized the lateness of the hour and decided to leave.

Ten minutes had already passed since they exited the room, but Betty decided to wait and see if she could be of any more assistance. Patiently, she stood in the hallway of the intensive care unit and watched as Alexis and Daniel talked quietly with two doctors. Betty didn't want to interfere – she knew they were probably discussing private matters, such as funeral home arrangements and other important details.

Finally, Daniel nodded to his sister and separated himself from the group. Betty watched as he walked over and stood outside the room where his father had just been. Daniel watched stoically as the nurses shuffled in and out of the room, taking equipment and other items with them.

Seeing that Alexis was still preoccupied, Betty decided this was the best time to talk privately to Daniel before saying goodbye. Slowly, she approached him as he continued to stare blankly into the now empty room.

At first, Betty wasn't sure what she would say to Daniel when she got to him. For the past hour or so, she had simply stood next to him, holding his hand in complete silence. In difficult times, it seemed easier for her to impart comfort with gestures instead of words. And now, as she approached Daniel, Betty realized that finding the right words was harder than ever.

However, she didn't have to wait long to figure out what to say. As soon as she stood next to her friend, he spoke up.

"This is weird, Betty," Daniel replied, as he continued to stare straight through the glass wall into the room. "Just a few hours ago, my dad was in here, and now, it's just empty. It's just another room."

Feeling unsure about what to say, Betty stood silently next to Daniel as her gaze followed his into the room. Then quietly, she looked up at him and placed her hand gently on his shoulder, hoping once again to convey more comfort than any words ever could.

Daniel immediately understood the gesture. Taking his eyes from the room, he looked at Betty and gave her a small nod. In return, Betty gave Daniel's shoulder a light squeeze as she stared into his deep blue eyes.

If pictures were worth a thousand words, then so were Daniel's blue eyes. After one year of working so closely with him, Betty had observed that Daniel's eyes were truly windows into his mind and heart. If he was happy, mad, or even scared, she could see it first and foremost in his eyes, even before any words were spoken.

And at that moment, he was wordlessly expressing a mix of emotions to her – sadness, regret…and even fear. As she continued to lock eyes with him, her heart sank as she absorbed every single sentiment. If only I could find the right words…

"Um…Daniel?"

The connection was broken as Daniel looked away from Betty to find his sister addressing him.

"I'm sorry to interrupt, but here's your coat." Alexis handed him his black woolen coat and placed a hand on his arm. "I need to finish filling out some paperwork and making some other arrangements. You can go on ahead without me. I'll catch up to you at the house later."

"But I can wait."

Alexis shook her head. "It's already late. And you've been up a lot longer than I have. Go on ahead. I'll just take care of this."

For once, Daniel wasn't in the mood to argue with his older sibling. He simply nodded his agreement and let it go.

Turning to Betty, Alexis smiled warmly. "Betty, I just wanted to thank you for everything that you and your family did tonight. It really means a lot to Daniel and me." She gently squeezed Betty's shoulder. "I didn't get to talk to your father earlier, but please tell him thank you for us."

Betty nodded and smiled. "You're welcome, Alexis. I'll make sure my father knows what you said."

Daniel watched as his sister bent down to hug his friend. Although it was said in a whisper, he could distinctly hear Betty telling Alexis, "Take care of yourself…and take care of Daniel for me."

"I will," Alexis assured her.

It was enough to make a lump form in Daniel's throat.

Turning away, Daniel slipped on his coat and shut his eyes momentarily. Most people would have been touched to witness that kind of exchange, but this wasn't entirely the case for Daniel. To him, it was just another signal of what was to come. Things were about to change, and he wasn't ready for it – any of it. It was just too much to take in one night.

"Daniel?"

Upon hearing the familiar voice and feeling a tap at his shoulder, he opened his eyes. Turning around, he found himself staring once again into his friend's large brown eyes.

"I…suppose it's time for me to take off, too." Betty hesitantly started.

Daniel glanced towards the entrance doors to the I.C.U. before looking back at Betty. "Is Henry waiting to take you home?"

"Um…no," she shook her head. "He went home a while ago. I told him that I was going to stick around here for a while. So, I'm going to catch a taxi."

"You don't have to do that, Betty. I can take you home."

Usually, Betty would have had no problem taking her friend up on his offer. But at the moment, she felt bad about making him go out of his way just for her sake.

"But it's kind of late. You'll be going out of your way to take me back to Queens. You don't have to do that," she reasoned quietly.

"It's not a problem, Betty. I don't mind," Daniel replied, feeling disappointment at her hesitation.

Looking at Daniel, Betty could see the sincerity in his eyes. Despite his own troubles, he really didn't mind going out of his way for her tonight. But Betty wasn't completely surprised. That was Daniel's special nature. He always went out of his way for people he cared about, and once again, he was making an effort for her.

"Okay…but are you sure?" Betty inquired again. "You'll be taking two – "

"It's fine, Betty. I'm sure."

Betty smiled gratefully at him. "Okay then."

With his hands stuffed in his pockets, Daniel gave her a tiny smile before gesturing to her which direction they should go. As they started to walk, Betty felt relieved. Somehow, seeing that smile on Daniel's face lifted the cloud of awkwardness that hung over them, especially over her.

But to Betty's chagrin, the moment ended just as soon as it started.

As they walked through the corridors, down the elevator, and into the town car, there was nothing but silence between them as they stared towards the front or at their feet. Every so often, they would glance at each other, but when they caught each other's gaze, they would exchange polite smiles and look away.

After three minutes of silently sitting in the town car and looking out the window, Betty realized that she had to stop being a coward. She was so concerned about saying the right thing to Daniel that she ended up not saying anything to him at all. If there was ever a time that she wanted to converse with her friend, it was now. As Betty glanced over at Daniel staring out the opposite window, she knew she would regret it if she left the car without talking to him. They always shared meaningful conversations in the past. Certainly, tonight was not the night to go without one.

"Daniel?"

Slowly, he turned his head from the window and looked at her.

"You really haven't said much since we left the hospital. I was, you know…just wondering if you wanted to talk."

"I'm sorry, Betty," he replied, pursing his lips. "I didn't mean to be so quiet. I was just thinking about…different things – like my family."

"Oh," she answered, looking down at her lap. "I understand."

Another pause ensued before Daniel spoke up again.

"Look at that."

Looking up, Betty followed Daniel's gaze out the left window. The lights from the various city buildings twinkled in the distance, along with the lights from the bridge – the same bridge where she and Daniel had hung out together just months earlier.

"I still remember when we stood on that bridge. That was really the first time that I allowed myself to talk openly about Alex's supposed passing." Daniel turned to look at Betty. "It's kind of ironic, isn't it?"

Betty searched his eyes in an attempt to understand his meaning. "Ironic? What do you mean, Daniel?"

Turning from her, he looked again out the window towards the bridge. "Well…just a few months ago, I was still grieving over the passing of my brother. He was the one part of my family that was missing – the one part that I wanted back. But now, he's back…and my parents are gone. It's funny the difference a year makes."

Betty continued to watch Daniel carefully as he turned away from the window to look back at her.

"It's almost as if my family takes up two sides of a coin, Betty – Alexis on one side, and my parents on the other. No matter how much I flip that coin, I'll never be able to get both sides." He paused before looking up at her again. "I guess that's the way the universe works, right? Some families aren't meant to be whole...like mine."

Hearing Daniel's voice reduce into nothing more than just a raspy whisper was hard enough for Betty to take. But it was even more painful for her to hear him talking so hopelessly about his family.

For a split second, Betty pondered whether or not she should deliver one of her pep talks, but as she watched Daniel gazing once again towards the cityscape, she realized that he wasn't looking for one at the moment. He just wanted to unburden himself while someone listened.

Sometimes silence can be just as meaningful as any conversation, she mused as she looked down at her lap.

And so, they sat in silence. Quietly, Betty continued to watch as the city and bridge lights rolled by outside the window. After taking a moment to reflect, Betty looked down and noticed that Daniel's hand was stretched out in the seat between them. She gazed at it before looking at Daniel, whose face was still turned towards the view outside.

Tentatively, she reached over and laid her hand over his. Without turning his attention from the window, Daniel slowly drew his hand away, leaving Betty to feel both perplexed and embarrassed.

Oh, God. I shouldn't have done that. It was only appropriate in the hospital.

But she was wrong in her assessment. As soon as Daniel had pulled his hand from underneath Betty's palm, he reached out and replaced his hand atop of hers. Gently, he pressed down and allowed his fingers to crisscross tightly with hers.

For a minute, Betty smiled softly as she studied their intertwined hands. The winter weather was certainly not being kind to either of them. She could feel the roughness and dryness in their hands as they remained clasped together on top of the leather seat. And yet, it didn't matter. It was the most comfortable feeling in the world.

And neither of them wanted to let go.