A/N: Hi guys! Thanks for the reviews! And I know Betty's apartment isn't quite as big as I describe it in this section, but just roll with it...

Summary: When the unexpected happens, the one man Betty pushed away ends up being the one she needed all along.

Takes place after the events of "Back in her Place", so early January 2010. Hilda doesn't lose the baby in my story (I thought that was so random...)

"NO!" Betty jerked herself awake instantly, beads of sweat on her forehead. "Matt?" she asked aloud, hearing some light footsteps approaching her bedroom.

Fresh tears stung her eyes as she tried to calm herself down. She started to cry softly after she could hold back no longer.

"Betty?" a familiar voice asked from outside her room. Daniel leaned his ear against her door, hearing some light shuffling and then a quiet reply, "come in."

He opened the door, the light from the kitchen illuminating her dark bedroom. She sat on the middle of the bed, knees pulled to her chest. She looked so small and fragile wrapped up in the large comforter.

"I heard you yell...I just wanted to make sure you were alright," he told her.

Betty stared back at his silhouette in the doorway, only able to see his disheveled hair and the outline of his face. But somehow, she already knew the look he had in his eyes. She'd seen it so many times since that day at the memorial service, a look that told her he was scared she would fall apart. Maybe he had reason to worry.

"I had a bad dream," she replied softly, wiping her tears away. "Do you wanna talk about it?" Daniel asked her gently.

He watched as she shook her head slowly, "not right now," she answered, resting her chin on her knees.

"Okay," he said, hand still on the doorknob. "Well if you change your mind...you-"

"Wait," she stopped him, sitting up a little more. Daniel paused, and she beckoned him over, scooting over in the full size bed. He left the door ajar, making his way over to Betty and sitting beside her.

He'd been staying with Betty on and off for the past couple of weeks, just so she wouldn't be alone all the time. He didn't like the idea of her crying alone in her bed, but by the looks of things it didn't seem like he was doing much good. Daniel looked into her misty brown eyes, wishing he could put some life back in them.

"I've had this dream before. It was just different this time," Betty began. "Matt and I are at the airport together, he's about to leave. I tried to stop him but he kept walking further and further away. I yelled but he couldn't hear me. And then he was gone. That's when I woke up," Betty finished, wiping a lone tear from her cheek.

Daniel rested a hand on her shoulder, rubbing it gently. "I hate waking up and realizing he's not really here," her teary gaze finally met his again, and he felt a lump form in his throat.

"I'm sorry...I know this is difficult. If I could take some of your pain away, you know I would," Daniel told her softly, gliding his thumb along the back of her neck.

"I know," she sniffled. He leaned toward the nightstand, grabbing a tissue box and handing it to her.

"Thanks," she pulled a few tissues out of it, blowing her nose. "How do you think the grief counseling is going? Is it helping at all?" Daniel was curious. He'd found the counseling useful after his father died, so he had offered to pay for as many sessions as she needed.

"I think it is. Thanks for suggesting it," she sniffled again with a sigh. "You know it's no problem, Betty," he answered soothingly.

"I need to get my mind focused on something else. I think I'm gonna come back to work on Monday," she stated simply.

Daniel's hand paused on her back momentarily. "What? Are you sure?" he was shocked to say the least.

Betty nodded, glancing in his direction. "Yeah. You've been more than understanding about giving me time off...if I had any other boss, I would've been at work days ago," she grabbed another tissue.

"Yeah but you don't have any other boss. Don't feel pressured into coming into work any sooner than you'd like," Daniel explained.

Betty gave him a small grin. "Thanks Daniel. But I think I need to. I need to get back to doing normal things. I'm ready," she tried to convince him.

Daniel looked into her eyes, faintly seeing a hint of the spark that resided there when she talked about work. He didn't want to say no and knew he had to trust her when it came to things like this.

"Okay," he conceded. He never did stand a chance against those eyes of hers.

"Daniel, I'm sorry," she said after a few moments, her moist brown eyes full of regret.

"Sorry? For what?" he wondered as she gazed down at her hands. "For what I said. Before…when I was angry with you. I didn't mean what I said about Molly. I know how much you-"

"You don't have to apologize for that," he told her.

"No. I do…it was wrong of me. I didn't mean to hurt your feelings. Molly was a great person," Betty said, clearing her throat. Daniel looked over at her, and saw the raw honesty in her eyes.

"There's nothing to forgive. You were upset but…" he let out a sigh. "I think there may have been some truth to what you said."

Betty's eyes got wide at his statement. "No there wasn't. You loved Molly," she reminded him.

Daniel nodded, "You're right. I did love Molly. And I'll always love her…but- I don't know if I was in love with her," he admitted, slightly amused at Betty's stunned expression.

"Daniel I don't know if you're thinking clearly," she said, watching a small smirk appear on his features.

"I am," he replied, his blue eyes stuck on hers.

She shrugged, "if you say so."

"Why do you say it like that?" he wondered, leaning against the headboard.

"Because," her eyes followed his movement, "the only reason I said that stuff about Molly is to make you mad. I didn't really believe it was true," she revealed.

Daniel raised an eyebrow, "it had to have come from somewhere, though," he leaned his head to the side thoughtfully.

Betty shrugged, "well, okay. Maybe at first I just thought you wanted what you couldn't have…I thought you were trying to one up Connor or something…"

"I can see how it might've looked that way," he acknowledged.

"But the more I saw you together, and the way you talked about her convinced me that you did love her," she stated, pulling her legs to her chest and glancing back at him.

Daniel nodded, breathing deeply. "I don't know. I think I rushed into things with Molly. Of course I don't regret any part of our relationship, but I was just so ready to get married, and have the perfect little family that I…fell in love with a dream," he confessed, the light from the kitchen hitting his eyes.

He blinked a few times, returning his attention to her. He'd thought she hadn't seen the fresh moisture form at the corners of his blue eyes, but he was wrong. Betty knew it was difficult for Daniel to come to terms with his feelings, especially voicing them aloud. She felt his eyes on her, no doubt watching the wheels in her head turn.

"You want to try to go back to sleep?" he asked quietly, studying the pensive look on her face.

Betty locked her eyes with his. She didn't want to be alone. "Will you stay with me?"

"Okay," he replied after a moment. She heard him adjusting the pillow behind his back and moved slightly closer to him, unwrapping herself from the comforter so he could get underneath.

Daniel lay on the pillow next to her, watching as she rested her head on his chest. Betty felt him tense up initially, but then felt his arm wrap around her, resting it on her back.

He relaxed against her and pulled her a bit closer, feeling her arm drape across his midsection. She quietly listened to his heart, allowing the steady beat to lull her into a restful sleep.

Daniel stared at ceiling for awhile until his eyelids got heavy, ignoring the nagging thought in the back of his mind that told him lying in bed with his best friend didn't quite feel as wrong as it should have.

Always love to hear what you think :o) Thanks!