Thursday morning soon arrived and Ant had informed Dec he would be leaving at 11am after a final therapy session.

The two of them woke up beyond excited,neither of them could wait for 11 o'clock.Ant had packed everything the night before,he wanted to be ready to go the minute Dec arrived.He'd had breakfast and packed his last minute things like his toothbrush and hairbrush.He then decided to take all his luggage to reception so he was good to go once Dec was there.

His team of therapists as well as other staff members had gathered at reception.They had all grown very fond of him during his time in the facility and were keen to be there to see him off.

Doctor Bruce handed Ant a sheet of paper

"Here's your schedule" he said

"Thank you" Ant replied glancing at the list of times and dates that his various therapists would be visiting him to continue with his treatment plan.

"Please make sure you're always in during those times" Rosie said half jokingly.

"Oh I surely will be" Ant winked at her "I'll be waiting for you"

He turned around suddenly when he heard a car pulling up.A huge smile spread across his face and he actually felt his heart leap as Dec climbed out of the car,waving and smiling.

Dec ran into reception as fast as his short legs would carry him and threw his arms around Ant who clung onto him tightly,

"You're finally coming home" Dec whispered into his ear before giving him a gentle kiss on the cheek,

"Yep" Ant replied,tears threatening to spill over his long eyelashes once again.

Doctor Bruce spread his arms and rubbed both of their backs,

"Come on you two,let's get you home where you'll have plenty of time to carry on with your bonding session" he joked.

"Yes let's" Dec smiled

Some of the staff helped with Ants luggage,piling it neatly into the boot of Decs car.

"Well,good luck Ant" Rosie beamed "you should be so proud of yourself,you've worked so hard to get back on track and take your life back and that's not easy as we all know.We are all so happy we were able to help you,you're a very special person Anthony and we wish you all the health and happiness in the world"

"Thank you" Ant replied,now happy to just let the tears fall,he hugged all of the staff members one by one,thanking them individually for everything they'd done.

"I'll see you next Friday for your home session" Rosie smiled.The doctors had decided to give Ant some time and space to settle back in at home,or at Decs home as the case was,before he continued with his therapy.

"Of course" Ant cheerfully agreed.

Everyone then hugged Dec,telling him what a fantastic friend he was and how important he was to Ants recovery.

Ant and Dec then got into Decs car,waving enthusiastically at the staff as they drove away.

Once they'd left the grounds and were waiting to pull out onto the busy main road,they turned and smiled at each other.Ant placed the palm of his hand behind Decs head and pulled him closer towards him,kissing him on the forehead without saying a word.They both knew that after everything they'd been through,there was no need for words at this precise moment,a look and a gentle kiss said it all,Ant was about to start the next phase of his life with Dec by his side.They both felt more content than they had in months,years maybe.

Dec pressed a button to start the CD player,unbeknownst to Ant,Dec had compiled a mixture of songs he wanted to dedicate especially to his best friend.

As the first chords to The Rembrandts 'I'll be there for you' played out,Ant turned towards Dec grinning.They both then started to sing along at the tops of their voices,feeling every word.When their favourite part of the song came on,they turned to each other,well Dec as much as he could manage while keeping his eyes safely on the road ahead and belted out the lyrics:

No one could ever know me

No one could ever see me

Seems you're the only one who knows

What it's like to be me

Someone to face the day with

Make it through all the rest with

Someone I'll always laugh with

Even at my worst,I'm best with you,yeah

They both loved that verse,thinking it summed up their friendship perfectly,they felt it could have been written especially for them.

Ant sighed and relaxed further into his seat,

"Dec" he said

"Yes mate?"

"Even at my worst,I'm best with you" Ant stated seriously,almost whispering.

Dec could feel the tears welling up in his eyes yet again,he seriously didn't know it was possible for one man to cry as much as he had the last few weeks.

As they pulled up at traffic lights,he turned to Ant,eyes still glistening and lovingly repeated the title of the song

"I'll be there for you.........always"

They spent the rest of the journey singing along to the CD Dec had put together,Ant so touched by his choice of songs 'count on me' by Bruno Mars 'lean on me' by Bill Withers and 'run' by Leona Lewis amongst others.

"Quite a mix of songs there Decky" Ant smiled

"Yeah" Dec giggled "pretty soppy,but you know me,I can't help being soppy,but I listened carefully to the words of each and every one of them and they all sum up perfectly how I feel about you and our friendship"

"You're perfect" Ant beamed "and I love you mate"

"I love you too" Dec replied as 'you've got a friend in me' by Randy Newman played out,causing Ant to dissolve into fits of laughter,he could only ever associate that song with the Toy story movie!

They soon pulled into the driveway leading up to Decs home.As he put his key in the door,Ali came running towards them,throwing her arms around Ant.

"Ant sweetheart,I've missed you so much,you're looking so well" she hugged him tightly and he returned the gesture

"Welcome home" she smiled

"Well,I'm not exactly home yet" he laughed

"Anthony" Ali scalded "this will always be your home too,you are welcome here anytime.Me,you,Dec,the baby,Rocky and Hurley will always be one big,happy family,no matter what"

"Thanks pet" Ant smiled "it really means alot" and with that,Rocky came rushing out of the living room,attempting to leap up at Ant,not accepting for a minute that his tiny legs weren't capable of jumping more than a few inches off the floor.He refused to calm down until Ant had bent down and scooped him into his arms,giving him the attention he demanded.

"Hey buddy" Ant laughed,while stroking his head

"You see" Dec grinned "a complete family,even Rocky thinks so"

They all piled into the living room,agreeing to leave Ants luggage in the car until later.

They spent the day chatting,laughing and planning the future,so happy in each others company.Later on Dec and Ali cooked a delicious meal,well Ali did and Dec tried to help but was more of a hindrance.

Ant sat at the kitchen bench, thoroughly enjoying their company and just happy to be amongst the people he loved again,chatting away to them as they cooked.They wouldn't let him help,they were determined his first evening home would be relaxed and carefree.

They moved over to the dining room table where Ali served the meal,all the worries of the last few weeks seeming like they hadn't even occurred,for a little while anyway.

They all sipped on water and juices,no one even missing the alcohol.

Dec and Ali had discussed the issue beforehand,agreeing to never drink while they were with Ant,for the time being at least.Ant had assured them it wasn't a problem and he needed to get used to being around people drinking sometimes as those situations would always occur,but Dec and Ali swore they would do everything in their power to make things go as smoothly for Ant as possible,he was more important than any alcoholic drink after all,they even joked about how much healthier they were likely to become because of it.

Once dinner was done and everything cleared up,Ali announced

"I'm going to bed now,need an early night,I'll leave you guys to it,Goodnight my two sweet boys"

She hugged each of them tightly,kissing Dec full on the lips and Ant on the cheek.

"Goodnight pet" Ant smiled "and thank you for everything"

"Goodnight darling" Dec beamed.

Ali blew them both a kiss before retiring to her bed.

The boys made themselves comfortable on the sofa where the conversation was soon flowing freely as it always did when they were together.They chatted and laughed until late into the evening.

"This is actually the happiest I've felt in months" Ant announced "years maybe"

"Good" Dec replied "I'm so happy to hear that although I will always regret not realising how much you were struggling sooner,I'm so sorry for that"

"Hey" Ant snapped "you have absolutely nothing to be sorry for,none of this is your fault.I just became an expert at hiding things from everyone,but from now on things will get better and I swear I'll never keep anything from you again"

"Good" Dec smiled while rubbing Ants back "ready for bed?you must be exhausted?I know I am"

"Yeah,I'm ready for a good nights sleep" Ant had thankfully been sleeping better since being free of all painkillers and alcohol.

"I'll help you get your bags" Dec offered.

They both carried a suitcase each up the stairs,stopping outside the room Ant always stayed in,usually when he'd been too drunk to even stagger the few steps home.

"In you go" Dec said while placing his hands on Ants shoulders.

As Ant opened the door and gazed around the familiar room,he burst into fits of laughter,

"Oh my God Dec,what have you done?" He panted,trying to catch his breath in between uncontrollable giggles.

Dec had,with a little help from Ali,completely covered the room in Ant and Dec memorabilia.

An Ant and Dec duvet set adorned the bed with caricatures of their faces on the cover and pillow slips,the same picture was on the ceiling light shade and bedside lampshade.A rug with a smiling picture of them lay on the floor,lots of Ant and Dec toys and knick-knacks were spread around including two teddy bears,one with Ants name on the T shirt and the other with Decs name.Ant and Dec mugs sat on the bedside table alongside an Ant and Dec alarm clock.A huge heart shaped cushion was propped against the headboard which stated 'I love Ant and Dec' underneath a gorgeous picture of them hugging cheek to cheek.

Dec had also placed loads of photos of the two of them all over the room,filling up any space he could find on the shelves,windowsill and cupboard tops.

The pictures of them were adorable,all of them showed them hugging,cuddling and laughing at various award shows and filming of TV shows,going right back to their Byker Grove days as well as private photos that were for their eyes only,not for public viewing.

As Ant glanced around the room joyfully,taking it all in,Dec sat down on the bed,watching Ants reaction to his silly surprise.

"It's amazing,you're amazing" Ant laughed

"Glad you like it" Dec laughed back "this will always be your room no matter what"

He stood up and hugged Ant before making his way to the door

"Goodnight Ant,see you in the morning,sleep in as long as you like,just try and get a good nights sleep,love ya"

"Love you too" Ant smiled "and thank you for everything"

"You're welcome" Dec smiled.

The next morning Ant stirred sleepily,wondering what time it was.He was surprised when the Ant and Dec clock showed it was 11.45am.They'd gone to bed just before midnight and Ant couldn't believe he'd slept for almost twelve hours.Being the insomniac he was,he was usually lucky if he achieved three or four hours sleep a night.

He knew Dec and Ali would have been tiptoeing around him,trying to keep as quiet as possible so he could sleep.

'Love them' he thought to himself.

He threw on his dressing gown and made his way downstairs where Ali was relaxing on the sofa,reading a magazine with Rocky curled up on her lap.

She looked up as she heard Ant come into the room

"Morning gorgeous" she smiled "I'm guessing you slept really well?"

"Apparently I did" Ant grinned "it's been years since I've had such a good nights sleep,in fact I don't think I've ever slept that much at once.Where's Dec?"

"Oh,he just had to pop out,he'll be back in about ten minutes" Ali smiled "help yourself to whatever you want,tea,coffee,juice and there's plenty of breakfast stuff,or should I say lunch stuff?"

"Thanks" Ant replied

"We will be having lunch at about 1 o'clock though,so maybe don't fill up too much" Ali advised

"Ok Mam" Ant teased cheekily "I'll just have a cuppa then"

A few minutes later,they heard Decs key in the door and Ant immediately recognised the manic scratching and scuffling sounds before Hurley came bounding towards him,jumping up at his beloved owner and licking his face while his tail wagged furiously.

Ant fell to the floor,cuddling his beloved pet while stroking him,gently nudging him and rubbing his belly while they rolled around on the floor together.

"I've missed you so much buddy" Ant smiled while kissing Hurleys head.

"He's missed you too by the look of it" Dec stated "he's yours for the next two weeks"

"Great" Ant replied joyfully "we've got some catching up to do haven't we Hurley" but Hurley was soon wandering off in search of his tiny canine friend.

Ant and Dec spent the next couple of weeks together,going for long drives to the countryside where they could then walk the dogs in peace as there weren't so many people around.They also spent many evenings cooking fabulous meals together,both wanting to spoil Ali during her pregnancy.Decs complete inadequacy at being able to cook anything vaguely edible still amused Ant no end,so he generally put Dec in charge of chopping vegetables,a task that he took very seriously,always displaying the diced food in front of Ant proudly,usually just causing Ant to shake his head at him in mock despair or dish out a cheeky slap on the bum!

They spent the rest of the time watching films and TV and just hanging out together.It was just like when they were two bachelors sharing a flat although they were both older and wiser now with alot more life experience under their belts.And of course Dec and Ali always made sure to give Ant his privacy during his therapy sessions or phone calls with his doctors!

One evening after Ali had gone to bed,Ant turned to Dec

"Dec"

"Yep?" Dec smiled warmly at him

"You know this time with you and Ali has been absolutely wonderful,I've loved every minute of it.Just being here with you guys,I appreciate it so much,everything you've done for me,I adore you both" Ant informed him.

Dec sensed a 'but' was about to follow Ants kind words.

"But?" He enquired

"But it's time for me to stand on my own two feet,I'm ready now" Ant confidently announced

Dec smiled at him

"Of course,I'll miss having you here,but I understand,that's probably the best thing for you right now,the next step of your recovery.Will you please stay until the weekend at least?" Dec pleaded "we can watch Britain's got talent together"

"Of course" Ant smiled "I'll go home on Sunday"

They hugged closely,both of them determined to make the most of their last couple of days together as housemates.

On Saturday evening,Ant,Dec and Ali sat down to watch the pre recorded episode of Britain's got talent that Ant was still a part of.Soft drinks and nibbles in abundance on the coffee table.

The boys laughed and chatted about the acts,telling Ali little snippets of information that wasn't shown on TV.

Then Andrew Lee walked onto the stage.

"Oh God" Dec groaned,throwing his head back and closing his eyes "I'm not sure I want to watch this"

Ant patted Alis leg

"just wait till you see this pet,it's brilliant"

"Ah" Ali connected what she was seeing on screen with the boys bits of information "this must be the knife thrower?my poor baby came home rather shaken that night,he was visibly affected by it"

"Poor baby" Ant teased,nudging Dec.

All three of them watched the act on tenterhooks even though the outcome was obvious.

"Poor baby" Ali whispered again as she kissed Decs cheek.She perched on the edge of her seat as Andrew hurled a sharp blade towards her husband which landed on the protective board with a thud.

Dec let out a sigh of relief both on screen and where he sat on the sofa.They all chuckled at Ants joke about Dec needing toilet roll as they walked off stage with Ants protective arm around Dec.

"Glad you were there to give him a cuddle" Ali laughed

"Me too" Dec moaned,shaking his head "I was extremely close to shitting myself,I really would have needed that toilet roll"

They all laughed as Decs phone started beeping

"Here we go" he giggled "they'll all be desperate to take the piss out of me,they'll be loving it"

The first text was from Decs mum Anne

"I don't like people throwing knives at my baby" it stated with a crying face emoji.

Dec laughed and showed the message to Ali and Ant.

"You see,at least someone cares about her baby" Dec teased

"Aww Decky,we all care about her baby" Ant joked before practically jumping on top of Dec,tickling him all over and smothering his face in kisses.

Ali joined in from Decs side,knowing tickling was pure torture for him.

"Stop it you two,I can't stand it" Dec screamed,tears of laughter rolling down his cheeks just as Rocky and Hurley decided they wanted to get in on whatever this was,paws excitedly scratching up at Dec and slobbery tongues licking his face.

"I need a wee,I need a wee" Dec begged,sounding curiously like a five year old.He didn't really need to go,he was just desperate to get them to stop.

"No he doesn't" Ant giggled "he's lying"

"Stop please" Dec pleaded,Ant and Ali could now see how exhausted he was becoming so both flopped down either side of him.

Dec was strangely weak from all the exertion but was still smiling and undeniably happy.

As the dogs now snuggled up to each other at his feet,he placed one arm around Ali and kissed her cheek,then placed the other arm around Ant and kissed his cheek,

"My family" he sighed

Ali and Ant both leaned further into Decs chest and he held them close.He kissed them both again,this time on their foreheads and closed his eyes,thinking about how the last few weeks will now be a distant nightmare as he'd promised Ant they would be the day after that awful crash when their worlds had started to fall apart.

"Love you both" he whispered

"Love you too" Ant and Ali replied at the same time while happy and relaxed in his arms.

They spent the rest of the evening happily snuggled into Decs chest,warm and safe in his comforting embrace.

Eventually they all felt tiredness catching up on them and made their way to bed.

Dec stood in the doorway to Ants bedroom,watching as he packed his things neatly into his suitcase.

"Home tomorrow" Dec said sadly "I'll miss you so much,I've loved having you here"

"Aye,I'll miss you too mate" Ant replied "but I'm only going three doors down,I'll still see you every day"

"You'd better" Dec smiled

"Of course I will" Ant insisted "you know I don't want to go a single day without seeing you,come here"

Dec walked over to him and Ant pulled him into a big bear hug,holding him tight as Dec buried his face into Ants chest.