Disclaimers: See Part One
A/N: This WAS supposed to be a one-shot, but it went just a tad farther. Reviews are greatly accepted. Thanks again to my muses at I-C for the inspiration for this story.
Part Two
Betty stood in front of Henry's apartment door later that evening, a plate of Christmas cookies in her sweaty hands. She was more nervous than she'd been her first day at MODE. Henry had been undeniably pleased when she had called him earlier to let him know she would come over and watch "Rudolph" with him. Betty had tried not to act too snarky on the phone with him, the memory of him and the model kissing at the party still fresh in her mind. But she remained cool to him as she told him she would be there later on that night. Betty had dressed casually in black drawstring pants and a sweatshirt over her Mexico t-shirt, not sure if you were supposed to dress up to go watch tv at a friend's house. She knocked on his door and waited. A minute later, she heard the sound of the lock disengaging as Henry opened the door.
"Hi." Betty said nervously.
"Hi." Henry said back, adjusting his glasses, "You look great." Betty laughed nervously as Henry stood aside to let her in. She walked inside his apartment as she heard him close and lock the door. She looked around as she felt Henry's hands on her shoulders.
"Let me take your coat." Henry said. She shrugged out of her coat and handed it to Henry. He hung it up on a peg near the door and turned to her. Betty held out the plate of cookies.
"Here, I made these. In case we got hungry or anything." Betty stammered. Henry took the plate from her as their fingers brushed. Henry smiled down at her.
"Thanks." Henry said softly, "I'll just go put them in the kitchen." Henry walked into his kitchen as Betty wiped her sweaty hands down the sides of her pants. She looked around the living room just as Henry came back in.
"Henry, where's your tv?" Betty asked. Henry looked at her intently as a blush slowly creeped across his face.
"Um...it's in the bedroom." Henry finally said, "I usually only read or listen to music here in the living room."
"Your...bedroom?" Betty squeaked out. Henry bit his lower lip as he studied Betty.
"It's fine." Henry said, "I can just move it out here. It's not a big deal..."
"No...no...that's ok Henry." Betty said, "Wherever you're comfortable is fine with me."
"Are you sure?" Henry asked.
"Yeah, it's totally fine." Betty said, sounding more sure than she really was. Henry smiled nervously and took her hand.
"OK. Follow me then." Henry said as he led her back to his bedroom. Betty's heart was beating so loudly in her ears she thought they could probably hear it in Long Island. She followed Henry through his apartment and her breath caught as she entered his bedroom.
Yes, the tv and dvd player were in there. Betty dimly noticed those as her eyes were drawn to the bed against the wall facing the television. And what a bed it was. Henry had a king sized platform bed. The cherry wood gleamed in the soft glow of the lamp in his bedroom. The curved headboard was piled with oversized pillows in black and red, matching the thick comforter neatly made up on the bed. Henry turned to her and patted the right side of the bed as he sat down on top of the comforter on the left side. Betty toed off her shoes and sat down next to him. She stretched out on the bed, arms supporting her as she straightened her legs out in front of her. Henry propped himself up against the headboard as he studied her.
"Comfortable?" Henry said. Betty nodded. She sure didn't look comfortable to Henry.
Betty finally seemed to relax somewhat as the opening credits for "Rudolph" began. She scooted back further on the bed,
relaxing her arms somewhat as she settled in to the program. Henry studied her as Rudolphs' story began. God, she was
so incredibly beautiful! Her hair fell over his comforter in soft waves as she reclined further onto his bed. He reached
across and pulled two pillows out, nudging them behind her shoulders.
"Here." Henry said as he tucked the pillows behind her head. "That should feel more comfortable." Betty looked at him over her shoulder and Henry felt his breath catch in his throat.
"Thanks." She whispered as she snuggled into the pillows. Henry thought he could die right now a very happy man. Betty scooted the pillows furthur back against the bed as she tucked her legs underneath her. She was almost propped up against the headboard as she watched the screen. Henry's palms were beginning to sweat as her nearness began to affect him. Henry knew he had to clear the air about something and waited for the first commercial. When the screen faded and the first commercial came on for holiday sales at a local store, Henry cleared his throat.
"Betty, I wanted to talk to you. About the party." Henry said. Betty sat up and looked at him.
"Last night...that girl...I didn't ask for her to...you know..."
"Kiss you?" Betty said cooly.
"Yes." Henry said, "Then when I went to look for you to explain, you were gone." Henry said.
"I just didn't see any more reason to stay." Betty said, glancing away. Henry tentatively put an arm around her as he reached over and guided her face back to his.
"Why Betty?" Henry asked.
"Well, I just didn't feel like staying anymore...and you looked like you were having fun and..." Henry stopped her.
"Betty, were you jealous?" Henry asked incredulously, hope swelling inside him. He looked down at Betty.
"I...um...I think Rudolph's coming back on." Betty said as she turned back to the television. Henry kept his arm around her as the program started again, however his mind was only half on the story of the little reindeer and his friends. Betty had been jealous!! Henry would be his last dollar that's why she ran out of the party. He remembered the flash of hurt and anger he'd seen on her face as the elevator doors had closed on her. Never in a million years would he ever have thought a woman would be jealous over him. But Henry didn't want to cause her an ounce of hurt or confusion. He knew she was still with Walter and would never put her in any more situations like the one at Halloween with her and Walter. Henry watched the wistful expression on Betty's face as she watched Rudolph and Clarice falling in love. He knew that feeling only too well. As another round of commercials started, Henry tightened his arm around her.
"Betty, what I was saying earlier..." Henry started.
"Henry, you don't owe me any explanations." Betty said, "Really it's fine." Henry turned slightly so his face was hovering over hers. Betty had reclined completely on Henry's bed and her head was resting comfortably against his pillows. Henry had a slight advantage over her, she couldn't easily move. Henry made good use of her relaxed state beside him to take his chance and explain to her.
"No, Betty I do owe you an explanation. I came to the party because I wanted to see you. To spend time with YOU. I knew you and Walter are still together, but I can't help the way I'm starting to feel for you. You make a room sparkle when you enter it. You make me laugh more than I ever have before. I know it's wrong to tell you how I feel when you're with someone else, but..." Henry stopped as Betty moved closer to him.
"Just so you know, that girl wasn't the one I had been wanting to kiss at that party." Henry whispered as he lowered his lips to hers. When they were only a breath apart, the volume on the tv grew louder, scaring the two of them apart. Betty laughed nervously as Henry found the remote between them and lowered the volume. Betty sat back up and propped herself up on the headboard as the show started again.
As the show wound down to its' conclusion, with Rudolph saving the day for Santa and Christmas, Henry noticed that Betty was no longer watching, but staring down at her hands in her lap. He reached over and squeezed her shoulder as she looked over at him.
"Betty, what is it? What's wrong?" Henry asked. Betty looked back down at her hands.
"I broke up with Walter." Betty whispered. Henry looked at her in surprise. He knew he shouldn't feel good about her news, but he couldn't help the chourus of angels he heard singing in his head. But he also knew Betty was upset, and he wanted to be her friend first and foremost. His feelings would come later. He scooted over the bed until he was right next to her. He put his arms around her shoulders and pulled her close to him as she rested her head on his shoulder.
"Betty, if you want to talk about it, I'm here." Henry said softly. Betty nodded against his shirt. She took a deep breath and looked up at Henry. His brown eyes looked kindly down at her as she explained.
"I don't love Walter anymore. I still care about him as a friend. I always will. But I was staying with him because it was safer that way and everybody loved Walter. I thought that meant that I was supposed to too. But Walter and I are different people than we were when we first got together. He was my first boyfriend and I guess I thought that meant more than it does now." Betty said. Henry rubbed her back gently and comfortingly.
"But I've grown up, and I've grown apart from Walter. I'm looking for something else in my life now. Something that Walter just can't give me." Betty said. Henry held his breath as he asked;
"So, what is it that you're looking for?"
"Someone who respects who I am as a person. Someone who'll laugh with me when I mess up. Someone who sees me, the me I've become and doesn't care that I'm not a fashion trendsetter. Someone who doesn't care that I don't like sushi. A person who doesn't laugh when I come to work dressed as a butterfly. The person who makes my palms sweat and tongue tied every time he walks into a room." Betty finished softly. Henry's eyes widened behind his glasses.
"Betty..." He said softly.
"And I was jealous." Betty said as Henry moved closer, "I was so jealous I couldn't think straight. All I wanted to do was get out of there as fast as I could..." Henry put a finger to her lips as he looked down at her. He knew he was falling helplessly in love with her more every day, but he didn't want her to feel insecure at this tenuous juncture in their relationship.
"Betty, you don't ever have to be jealous." Henry said, "I didn't want to kiss that woman at all."
"Really?" Betty asked.
"Not when I've got the woman next to me who I do want to kiss." Henry said, "Very much." He whispered as he leaned down and gently pressed his lips to hers. Henry leaned down, pressing Betty gently into the pillows as his mouth began a gentle assault of hers. Betty's arms looped around his neck as she tugged him closer to her, wanting to reassure herself that she wasn't dreaming. She could feel Henry's hands splayed across her back, pulling her nearer. Their kisses became longer, breathing more difficult, as they finally reluctantly broke apart.
"Henry...I..." Betty started.
"I know Betty. Me too." Henry said as he pulled back from her, "But it's too soon. I want to get to know you, really know you before we take that leap. I want to have long romantic dinners and walks in Central Park. I want to call you every minute and stay up late for hours talk about nothing. I want to send you flowers for no reason and romantic cards just to watch you smile and blush." Betty grinned, blushing.
"Just like that." Henry said, kissing the tip of her nose. They held each other close, talking about their lives before they met. Henry told her about growing up in Tucson, and Betty told him about growing up with Hilda. They laughed and whispered and kissed throughout the night. After a few hours, Henry had finished a story about a science project gone wrong in high school and looked down at Betty. She was sound asleep. Henry gently pulled his arms out from under her and went to his closet. He pulled down his extra comforter and wrapped her up in it. He moved her over to the right side of the bed as he pulled his comforter out from his bed. He slid her glasses off her nose and folded them, placing them on the nightstand beside her. He took off his own glasses and slid in under his comforter. He pulled her against his shoulder as he turned off the television and the light.
Betty woke up the next morning slowly. She listened for the sounds of her dad moving around downstairs in the kitchen or Justin singing through the hallway. She was met only with silence as she found herself surrounded by strong arms and resting against a nicely muscled shoulder. She looked up fuzzily into Henry's face.
"Good morning beautiful." Henry whispered. Betty blushed to her hairline.
"Good morning to you, handsome." Betty whispered back, causing Henry to blush similarly.
"How did you sleep?" Henry inquired.
"Wonderfully!" Betty exclaimed, "I could get used to this." She gasped at the words that she'd just spoken as she pulled on her glasses quickly. Henry's expression grew soft.
"I could too, eventually." Henry replied. He leaned over and softly kissed her. Betty wrapped her arms around him as she pulled him closer. They kissed like that for a moment before Betty's stomach growled in protest.
"Hey, no body was talking to you." Betty said looking down. Henry laughed and grinned widely at her.
"Come on, let's get you home so you can get changed. I'm taking you out for breakfast." Henry said as he swung his legs out of bed. Betty smiled at him.
Two hours later, they had found the diner that Henry had been telling her about. As they waited for their food, Henry reached over and gently squeezed her hand. Betty had never thought about it before, but she realized sitting in this diner across from the man she was falling in love with, she had just made her own Christmas Miracle.
The New Year would be very interesting indeed!!!!!!!!!
THE END