A Trip to Tucson
Disclaimer: I do not own Ugly Betty.
Rating: PG-13
Pairing: Daniel/Betty
Summary: Betty moved to Tucson to be with Henry but does it work out in the end? Could Daniel change her mind?
Author's Note: I'm a huge Daniel/Betty shipper and this is my first fanfic ever. Just want to keep the Detty love alivewith my little contribution. Reviews would be much appreciated.
Chapter One
Daniel was getting restless. It had been almost five hours since he boarded the plane to Tucson and there were still two more hours left on this flight. He kept looking out the window hoping to see sand dunes rather than clouds. He was so preoccupied with thoughts of Betty that he barely noticed the blond, leggy flight attendant who kept accidentally brushing up against him from one direction or another.
It was just yesterday when he received a call at the office from a sobbing Betty informing him that she just had a huge fight with Henry and was currently residing at a roadside motel somewhere in Tucson. Without even asking another question, Daniel promptly told Betty that he would be on the first flight out to Tucson the next morning. He kept his promise. He got off the phone with Betty and immediately the flight. It was a Friday and there weren't any important meetings that he couldn't reschedule. He was swirling his drink around as his thoughts drifted to the day when Betty informed him of her plans.
Flashback
It started out as an ordinary Monday for Daniel. As per usual, Betty walked into his office with coffee and bagel in hand. He was busy looking through some articles to be included with the next issue. He looked up quickly and thanked Betty. After a few moments, he noticed that Betty still hadn't left. Next thing he knew, she handed him a white envelope.
He stared at it for a good ten seconds, realizing what it could be but hoping that he wasn't right. He ripped it open, quickly ran through the short letter and looked up at Betty in disbelief.
"Are you serious?" he asked, steel blue eyes staring at Betty making her feel slightly uncomfortable.
"Yes, Daniel. I know, it's sort of sudden but I've been thinking about it for a while." She played with the buttons on her cardigan, obviously feeling nervous.
"But you never discussed it with me."
"Daniel, I'm giving you two weeks notice. I'm sure you'll find someone decent to fill my position."
"That's not what I meant, Betty. Are you not happy with the job?"
"No, of course not. I love it here. I mean, it didn't start out that way but this place has grown on me. Daniel…Henry called from Tucson this weekend and he asked if I would consider moving there. He wants to see if it can work for us in Tucson."
"What? And leave your family and friends and…me?" Daniel's eyes were full of hurt as he said the word "me". He felt their friendship was special enough that she would have discussed with him at length before making such a decision.
"I know what you're saying but I talked to my family already. They're upset to say the least but they also know how stubborn I can be. Daniel, I just want to give it a try for a couple of months. I'm not saying I want to move there permanently. It'll be like a trial run to see if it could work."
"A trial run? But you don't have to quit your job and give up your life here to do that, do you? I mean, you can just take two weeks off and go there for a vacation. That should be enough time for you to figure out if it could work." Daniel also knew how strong-headed Betty was and tried to sound supportive. In actual fact, he would love to just shake some sense into her and say that it won't work. That she would miss her family, Queens and him too much.
"Two weeks isn't going to be enough!" Betty argued and Daniel was prepared for it.
"Okay, how about a one-month leave. You have been rather miserable since Henry left. Besides, you haven't taken a vacation since last summer so you're due for a break. But you must come back after one month to re-evaluate things. I need you here Betty and your family also deserves some consideration," Daniel offered.
"Really? You mean, I could come back if…if it doesn't work out. Not that I expect it not to, you know." Daniel could sense that she was starting to waiver about the whole idea but he was willing to play along. This was the third time since she started working at Mode that he had let her go. He wasn't so sure about saying yes this time around. He hoped he was right because he would be devastated if Betty were to leave him for real.
It had been almost three weeks since she left. Daniel had not heard from her till that phone call yesterday morning. By the end of week two, Daniel was starting to fear that things were going smoothly and that she would decide to move there permanently. Receiving Betty's call gave Daniel a sense of relief but it also worried him that she was unhappy and he couldn't be there to comfort her immediately. He was tossing and turning in bed all night wonder what went wrong and whether he could convince her to come back to New York.
An announcement from the captain interrupted his thoughts. He looked out the window and saw the deserts. They were about ten minutes away from landing. Daniel felt his heart beating faster. It would be difficult for him to contain his emotions when he sees Betty for the first time in weeks. This was the longest he had gone without seeing Betty. He was quite sure by now that life would be torture without Betty by his side. He simply had to bring her back to New York and make her stay there.