Title: Ugly Company Politics

Author: teagrl

Rating: T

A/N: This fic will run in same the direction that the original soap on which Ugly Betty was based on (Yo soy Betty, la fea)—eventual Daniel/Betty that is . Thus, I am attaching here a warning so that readers acquainted with the soap do not lambaste me for the incorporation of those elements. The only creativity here will be in linking up those events to the Ugly Betty storyline (so this will be a long fic) and hopefully staying true to the characters of the ABC series. Nothing belongs to me, everything belongs to ABC and Gaitan from which this lovely story originated--I just do it for the love and challenge of it. Thanks for reading; I would love to see what you all think. :)

Post-Sofia's Choice

Ch. 1: The Reinstatement Revisited

Betty exited the elevator steeling herself. It had been Friday when she had resigned MYW and after much rumination over the weekend, she had yet to come up with the bravery to tell her family about the recent turn of events. She hadn't even told Walter. Actually, she hadn't even talked to Walter, making excuse after excuse to avoid seeing him over the weekend. Had Hilda been less concentrated on her father's papers and Justin's incipient cold, Betty was sure she would have noticed something.

The relief she felt at that came not without a gallon of guilt. Now that she had no job, she really had no excuse not to take a more proactive role with her father's immigration issues. Betty made a mental note to offer her sister some help, after coming clean, of course, and, of course, after getting this meeting with Bradford Meade over with.

The snap back to reality was enough to make her stomach turn. She really hadn't expected that call on Friday, but really after that Sofia incident it was only expected that Bradford have some words with her.

She would take it with dignity, she resolved after she had identified herself to Mead's secretary, who despite having seen her once before still adopted a pinched expression, as if she was smelling something foul, even while she nodded in recognition. She led Betty to the luxurious office and told her to wait. Betty nodded and the secretary quietly exited the room.

Betty decided to stay standing. Her eyes poured over the room's leather chairs and mahogany desk before coming to rest on a family picture off to the side. The reminder was enough to make her bite her lip. There were no excuses, she reprimanded herself. She should have told Daniel that night when she called like she had planned to. She should have just blurted it out despite the lightness and warmth in his voice that spoke volumes of how he felt about Sofia. The implicit feeling in his voice was enough to make her second guess what she herself had seen and transform it into a simple gut feeling. Even if her gut feeling was right, Betty had thought then, there would be no chance that he'd have believed it.

And yet, she hadn't even tried. At worst, she would have done her job as a friend and at best, Daniel's disappointment then would have been nothing in comparison to the painful humiliation he would endure in front of national television. The expression on his face as he left the studio was enough to wring her heart and make her eyes moisten. No one deserved to be the object of such an underhanded publicity ploy.

The door on the wall opposite her opened and Bradford Mead's imposing figure walked in. Betty's head snapped up and she forced herself to meet his eyes head on.

"I received word of the letter of your resignation," he said simply.

Betty blinked, her words coming in hurried, nervous tones. "I didn't want to work at MYW any more, I don't agree--"

"And what about Mode?"

"Mode?"

"You only worked at MYW for a few days, technically according to the paperwork you still are a Mode employee."

Betty was silent for a moment. Daniel's face floated up once more in her memory. He had left. Taken a plane from JFK and left because she hadn't made the right decision.

"Should I write another resignation letter the, as a Mode employee?"

"Why?"

She was taken back by the question, but plowed on. "I-I think it's for the best. Given all--that has happened and my own," she sucked a calming breath. "My own--involvement--"

"Involvement?"

"Well, my um, my inability to stop Sofia...Sir. To warn Daniel."

The older man tilted his head slightly to the side. "I'm not sure I'm following you."

"I should have stopped him," Betty blurted out animatedly. "I suspected something for the first day I worked at MYW. I was going to tell Daniel, but he had already proposed and--"

"I see," Meade interrupted cryptically. "I suppose that you think that I will fire Ms. Reyes too?"

Betty looked up at him, confusion marking her features. "Yes."

"Then it will surprise you that I will not do such a thing. Not because I didn't want to," he said pointedly. "But because Daniel asked me not to."

The new information made her gasp. "He still loves her," she murmured almost inaudibly.

But not inaudibly enough. "Whether he does or doesn't is really none of my business and I wouldn't bring it up if it were simply that," Meade said sharply. "Daniel, in fact, said the whole stunt was business. That MYW would have the biggest opening sales of any magazine and if the numbers thus far are any indication, he is right."

"I'm sorry," she said tentatively, still puzzled by the new information. "But I-I just don't see what this has to do with me."

"I'll be blunt then. You've done well here, Betty. I know what a big help you have been with Daniel and I would be sorry to see you go after all the work you've done."

"But, Sir," she ventured. "I-I heard that Daniel...left, who would I be working for? Wilhelmina--"

"Wilhelmina will not be getting Daniel's position," Meade said almost dismissively. "I am having a friend of Daniel's brother, Mathew Eckett temporarily take the helm of Mode. Since he is new, he will need the expertise of someone much more familiar with the magazine. I'd like for you to be the one to help him."

Betty looked at him mutely.

Meade turned to look out the window to the busy street below.

"Daniel will come back," he said. "If his reaction is any indication, this experience is a blessing in disguise. I need you to be here helping things run smoothly until he does." Meade turned back to her fixing her with a steely gaze.

"What about Amanda?"

Meade looked at her quizzically. "Amanda?"

"The person who took my place. She was the former receptionist."

"She'll go back to her previous position. Will you, Betty?"

Betty looked away, imagining her sister's face when she broke the news that she had quit. The image was enough to make lift her head and give Meade a shaky smile. "All right," she said finally.

"Good. I suggest you head to your desk, then," he looked at his watch. "Your new boss will be expecting to meet you in an hour."

Betty's eyes widened in surprise. "An hour! But--"

"Thank you, Betty," Meade interrupted and the weight of the words made her pause momentarily. She met his gaze squarely and saw a hint of weariness before it was concealed behind his usual professional facade.

All she could do was nod wordlessly before exiting the office.

TBC