Chapter 27

The morning was spent much as the previous days had been; sitting around waiting for news and tests, but there seemed to be a more optimistic tone to the group. Ignacio seemed better each day, and had various doctors coming in to check on him, as well as therapists to check his strength and figure out his base lines to map out a plan for his recovery. However that morning everyone was especially happy when Ignacio asked for everyone's attention. "I have something to show you." He said cryptically, and then proudly showed them that he could lift his left hand off the bed on his own and hold it out for a few seconds. His surprise was met with a round of applause and even a whistle from Daniel. It was a small movement, but the meaning was monumental. Hilda had cried of course and Elena immediately kissed Ignacio, telling him how proud she was of him. Justin came up and hugged him, as did Austin, and Betty kissed him on the cheek, repeating how proud she was. Bobby and Daniel both came up to pat him on the shoulder and told him how happy they were for him. It sent everyone into the rest of the day on a high note.

Betty and Daniel tried to keep the PDA to a minimum, but they couldn't hide it no matter how hard they tried. They were unknowingly holding hands or caressing in small ways that only couples do. When sitting together Daniel immediately rested his arm behind her, sometimes pulling her in close, and no matter where they were they were right next to each other. There was such a different vibe in the air around them, even if no one was any the wiser from the way they said goodbye the night before, it was still obvious to anyone seeing the couple that they were indeed more together than they had previously been. Something was definitely different, but everyone kept the smiles and smirks to themselves in an effort to not embarrass them and also because nobody wanted to steal Ignacio's thunder from his wonderful improvement that morning.

The group of seven stood in the hallway, debating where they should go for lunch. The snow had actually been melting quickly from what they could tell, no doubt from the bright sunshine and temperature increase. Of course this could cause other problems, but it gave everyone hope that perhaps instead of cafeteria food, they might be able to venture to a nearby restaurant. Just as everyone was agreeing that maybe it would be a good idea to get some fresh air and a change of scenery, their attentions were strayed to yet another loud commotion down the hallway coming from the elevators.

"Mandy! Come on!" Marc shoved Amanda off the elevator and had bumped into a cart just by the door that rolled its way down the hall crashing into the wall causing the loud noise that drew everyone's attention, but the duo didn't notice the damage as they entered the floor. "You can't back out on me now! I know sick people freak you out, and well old people too… but this is Ignacio! We know him. It won't be so bad, I promise." He kept his hand on her back, urging her forward, and balanced a bouquet of rather colorful flowers in his other hand. They were dressed fabulously as always, decked to the nines in their winter gear that was definitely more fashionable than functional.

"I know Marc, it's just that my grandpa had a stroke just before he died. This is kind of freaking me out!"

"Awe, sad. Don't worry your pretty little head, we'll pop in and say hello and if you can't handle it, we'll go! We'll grab some soup or something for lunch. How does that sound?"

Amanda nodded her head in agreement as they rounded the corner to come face to face with the group standing there wondering what was going on.

"Marc! Amanda!" Betty lunged forward just as she had done the night before and hugged them. She had texted Marc the hospital and room details as he had requested, but didn't expect them to make a visit so soon. "I'm so glad you're here!" They hugged her back, but didn't let the moment last too long as far too many people were watching and it was making Marc uncomfortable. Justin approached him next, and Daniel said hello to Amanda, then the rest of the group followed suit.

"Well, if I had known it was going to be a big affair, I would have dressed up for the occasion!" Marc joked.

"We were just getting ready to head to lunch. Come with us! It'll be fun!" Hilda suggested.

"Oh, I don't know…" Marc started.

"Come on guys, you're here and we're here, and we all have to eat. Join us, it'll be fun." Daniel said sternly which caused Marc to look at him with slight trepidation, but he agreed.

"Oh what the hell? It's not like I want to get back to the office anytime soon." He rolled his eyes.

Amanda seemed pleased and without many noticing let Marc say hello to Ignacio first then as soon as she said hello she said goodbye and walked back out to the group which actually made Ignacio laugh, another good sign. After Marc said his goodbyes and Ignacio thanked him for being there, he came out to join them again.

"Alright, come on bitches, I'm starving!" Amanda stated then took Marc's arm and started leading the group back to the elevators. Daniel and Betty shared an amused look and followed behind everyone else, walking arm in arm.

After some debate as to where they should go and in what vehicles to accommodate everyone they decided on a nicer restaurant a little further away, but it would offer a quiet atmosphere for them and honestly Marc was about to throw a hissy fit at possibly being forced to eat something greasy and/or from a diner. His new job had definitely been spoiling him. Fortunately they were all used to this so didn't think too much of it, besides Daniel offered to buy, feeling like it was one of the few things he could do to help at the moment for the family. They deserved a nice meal out at the very least.

His job as her assistant didn't offer the greatest salary, but it wasn't like he had been completely cut off from his family's funds. He still had his savings, a nice severance package, and still held stock in the company, so money was not a worry for him. He wanted to earn his own way professionally, but knew he couldn't give up absolutely everything as he needed a safety net. His move had been brave but also offered a very high rate of failure. He didn't make the decision to follow Betty to London lightly. He had thought of almost everything. The hardest part had actually been all the paper work involved with moving, including getting permission to even work in the country, which had been helped by the fact that one of his grandparents was born in the UK. They had passed away before he was born so he never met them, but he silently thanked them when it did speed the paper work along. Suffice it to say, things had been much easier for him than it was for most. He wasn't able to completely escape using the Meade name to help him, and it certainly helped when the large group showed up without a reservation, as did Marc's, which of course he proudly pointed out to everyone, multiple times.

Lunch was extremely pleasant, and everyone was at ease, joking with each other and catching up. Screams had been made when Amanda showed off her ring and told the story of how Tyler proposed to her. They hadn't actually been together too long, taking time away from one another for a few months while he bettered himself and got back on the wagon and did some intensive therapy to deal with the trauma over what happened to Wilhelmina. After a few months he came back better than ever, especially with Claire's help, and when he ran into Amanda again he took the opportunity to ask her out once more to show her that he was better. After that things went pretty fast and Amanda had never been happier. Betty and Daniel were both extremely pleased for her. It was good to see her this way. Daniel made a note to himself to check in with Tyler while he was here. They didn't have much of a chance to really get to know each other before he had left, and he wanted to sit down with him and really talk at least once.

Little did Daniel and Betty know that they had become somewhat of a feature of the meal themselves. They had always been in tune with the other, but this new form of connectedness was beyond anything anyone had seen before. They worked like one mind, almost never needing words to know what the other was thinking or wanted. They sat close but still managed to keep propriety, sometimes holding hands beneath the table or keeping their legs touching, but when their food came it was definitely a sight to see as they immediately began trading parts of their meals, until they both had what they liked and squeezed hands quickly to show their satisfaction to the other. It was almost like a dance, and they were in their own world smiling at the other as they displayed their little culinary waltz. When they finally looked up they saw that everyone else had stopped what they were doing to watch the couple's exchange, mouths dropped or smiling contentedly at them.

"What?" Betty asked looking back and forth to everyone, a small blush coming up on her cheeks. Daniel just stared at his plate preparing to dig in, preferring not to meet anyone's eyes. It jolted everyone into fits of giggled and more smiles.

"Nothing!" Hilda said, unconvincingly.

"Come on, the food is getting cold." Bobby tried to help. Conversation picked up again, but everyone kept looking over to watch the two, and they knew it now, trying to keep their composure. Marc and Amanda seemed genuinely concerned and interested in what was going on with Ignacio and it meant a lot to the family. It was nice to know that more people truly cared for him, and it warmed Betty's heart in a way she never expected. When the meal was almost over and everyone was debating about dessert Amanda suddenly stood up, placed both hands on the table to gain everyone's attention.

"Okay ladies, time to powder our noses!" and she meant for all the women to follow. Hilda stood up and immediately came over to Betty and nearly dragged her out of her seat.

"Ow, hey! I'm trying to eat! Hilda!" Betty looked back to Daniel pleading for help but he could do nothing to help and tried not to laugh at the comical display. Hilda grabbed onto Elena with her other arm and Amanda dragged Marc to his feet too, leaving Daniel, Bobby, Justin and Austin at the table unsure what to do or say now that half the group had left. Daniel knew it was probably an ambush on Betty for information, and it could definitely have been more subtle, but he just hoped they wouldn't be too pushy. He knew Betty though, she would only say as much as she was comfortable with, and he was comfortable with however much information that would be. He trusted her judgment and if he was honest he trusted this group of people. Marc and Amanda were certainly wild cards, but they were also his friends and he knew they wouldn't do anything to truly hurt them, not intentionally at least.

The ladies and Marc all shuffled into the women's restroom and upon entering they circled around Betty.

"Okay, spill!" Amanda, Marc, and Hilda said in unison.

"What do you mean?" Betty tried to feign ignorance.

"Oh no, don't you even try. You better tell us everything." Hilda said, crossing her arms.

"We want all the details!" Marc said.

"All the juicy ones anyway." Amanda corrected.

"What are you guys talking about?" Betty tried to keep her voice calm.

"You and Daniel!" "Something's different!" "You did the nasty didn't you?" they spoke over each other, but Betty couldn't hold back the blush rising to her cheeks. There was no hiding it. They knew.

"I… we… um…" Betty looked down to her feet trying to figure out what to say. "Ow!" Hilda had hit her on the arm.

"You didn't go there to work did you?" she asked sounding amused. Betty couldn't look her in the eye. "I… um…."

"Come on Betty! We all know you two are joined at the hip, so spill it!" Marc said crossing his arms now. He hated to admit it but this was the most intriguing and entertaining thing that had happened in quite some time. She met his eyes and her face was completely red now.

"You did do the nasty!" Amanda shouted triumphantly.

"Amanda!" Betty shouted back.

"You did!" Hilda hit her again, obviously excited. Betty looked to Elena, but she wasn't saying a word, not wanting to push but definitely wanting to hear this.

"Fine! Yes! We did." She crossed her arms in defiance looking to everyone. "And it was great!" she nearly shouted which caused everyone to shriek and clap excitedly. Hilda pulled her in for hug.

"Oh Betty! I'm so happy for you! Did you tell him how you feel?" she pushed.

"Yes, and he said he loves me too." She said more softly looking down as if remembering the moment he had told her.

"Yeah no shit Sherlock!" Marc said. "He quit Mode and followed you to London. If a guy did that for me…" he looked off to the side looking both wistful and sad at the same time.

"So… was it hot?" Amanda asked in that inappropriate tone she always had, to which Betty blushed again and simply nodded.

"He always was a great kisser." She said, sounding nostalgic.

"It's true." Hilda admitted and Betty's eyes flashed for a second then remembered back to that Fashion week Hilda had worked at. It was a long time ago, but Betty had forgotten about it. That was old Daniel she reminded herself.

"I remember this one time Daniel called me up and asked me to come over in just my corset and a trench coat, and…" she continued on in details that were increasingly uncomfortable until Marc clamped his hand over her mouth while everyone else voiced their disgust at her oversharing.

"Amanda! God, I don't need to hear this!" Betty had literally put her hands over her ears in an effort to block out Amanda's little story.

"Well, I mean this is Daniel Meade we're talking about. You've barely scratched the surface in this department, trust me." She reminded Betty, and she had to admit she had a point. Of course this was all the old Daniel when he had been with Amanda that way, but in some ways it did scare Betty a little. She felt completely safe with him and knew he wouldn't push her to do something she was uncomfortable with, but then even Betty had a certain adventurous nature when it came to such things and she knew that whatever happened between them would be okay because they loved each other. Amanda had been more of a means to an end for him, and until he learned how to treat a woman and really be with one woman he had admittedly used her. They had worked their issues out and now considered each other real friends, but still Betty didn't need to know the details. She didn't want any outside pressure or commentary to affect their relationship in any way.

"But guys, please please please, don't say anything to anyone yet, please! This just happened last night, and we haven't even really been able to talk about it yet. I mean it's not just about us, this is a really delicate situation." She started to lower her voice. "I'm his boss. If this got out before we know how to go about this, it could be really bad! This isn't Mode. I could lose my job! He could lose his. And I can't just promote him now, because if it came out later that this happened then it would look really bad. He's just starting over, if this ruins his chances of moving up before he's even been able to do much of anything I could never forgive myself! There's just a lot to figure out before we start going around telling people! We haven't even defined what this means exactly!" She looked back and forth to them, pleading with them with her expression.

"Wait, just last night? You mean to tell me you weren't getting it on across the pond?" Marc and Amanda didn't seem to buy it, but could also see her point. They didn't want them to lose their jobs, even though it was a really juicy secret. However, secrets can be more fun.

"Okay, okay." Hilda said, and rubbed Betty's arm to comfort her. "We won't say anything, but Betty you need to talk with him and figure this out. This type of stuff always finds its way out, trust me, I know." She looked over to Marc and Amanda making sure they understood that if they said anything she would come straight to them all with one look.

"I won't say anything." Elena held up her hands, reassuring Betty.

"Fine! We won't either, but we better get a heads up when we are allowed to talk about it. Gossip still runs rampant at Mode and don't blame us if this gets out with the way you two act together." Marc said in a somewhat joking manner.

"Thank you." Betty blew out a breath feeling extremely relieved. "Now can we go back to lunch before they start to think something is really wrong?" She gestured towards the door and they all started ushering out of the bathroom, but Hilda pulled her back for a moment, and wrapped her in a hug.

"I'm so happy for you Betty. I knew he loved you. I'm just glad you finally came to your senses." She whispered to her.

"Thank you Hilda. I don't know what this makes us now, but it's enough just to know how we feel." She smiled at her.

"Plus we needed some good news." Hilda admitted. Betty smiled shyly, but with a twinge of sadness thinking of her dad. "Don't worry, Betty, it will all be alright." She stroked Betty's hair and they shared a moment of just being there smiling contentedly, knowing that the other sister was happy.

"Come on, we better get back." Betty ushered her out of the bathroom to rejoin the group. When they returned they discovered that Daniel had ordered a chocolate cake for the table, the men at the table having already dug in to their slices. Betty clapped as she sat back down and Daniel handed her a slice, their fingers lingering as they passed the plate and gently smiled at one another. She could tell he was curious about what happened, but she smiled reassuringly and he knew that she would tell him later when they were alone.

Nobody noticed a woman sneaking out of the women's bathroom just moments after the group had left it, phone pressed firmly to her ear as she hurried to the coat check, telling the person on the other end

"You'll never guess what I just heard…"

Hope you liked it! Let me know by leaving a review. Much love fellow Detty fans. X's - Ashlee