So yeah, I've been really shit at updating this story, or any of my stories for that matter. I just wanted to take a moment to say that I'm sorry for the delay as I've been busy with real life. I decided that instead of posting one update, then maybe another a month down the line, I would just complete this story.

So there's a few chapters going up tonight. I've decided to skip a few days on each chapter because it's mostly rehab stuff and it' pretty boring I think but I have tried to keep it simple to follow by posting dates.

Thank you for your patience and thank you to everyone who's read and reviewed. Almost done!

D x

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Chapter Thirty Seven

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1st of November,

Sunflower Building,

Seattle Medical Rehabilitation Centre,

Seattle,

Washington,

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Teddy stretched out in his hospital bed as best he could without ripping his stitches. He was more sore today than he'd been previously; his entire body ached externally and internally and the vacant spot which once held his ear had been poked and probed by doctors all morning which had resulted in a major headache. There were talks about Teddy potentially getting a reconstructed ear organised for him, a procedure which required doctors to remove cartilage from his rib cage to be sculpted into a new ear. However, Teddy wasn't really interested; he did not want the surgeons to operate on his tired body again for the sake of vanity. As it stood, he'd rather have no ear than spend any longer in hospital than needed. Besides, symmetry was overrated these days.

Slowly, he tried to sit himself up so that he could better watch the television hanging on a bracket in the top left corner of his room, trying to take the mind off the pain somehow as he waited for the nurse to come and give him his next dosage of pain relief.

'Grey's Empire is on the brink...'

Click.

'...shares in the company are unstable...'

Click.

'His influence in the business world is so great that his absence from GEH has cause global financial chaos...'

Click.

'…Mrs Ana Grey's spokesman has insisted that she has nothing to say at the current-'

Click.

'...we hope a speedy recovery to Christian Grey and his family.'

Teddy clicked his television off and groaned. Of course every channel had something to say about dad. It was ridiculous how influential dad was to the global economy. His period of absence and near death experience would rightfully so caused shareholders and fat cat politicians to panic about their own stability and security.

It seriously fucked Teddy off about how people worried more about dad's fortune and empire than the man himself; surely the priority was his father's life and not the bullshit money he was worth? And who the hell was approaching mom and asking for a statement? What sort of lowlife cretin would harass their family right now? Their lives were plastered over every single news article. Surely it was common sense that no statements would be given at the current moment? What else was there to fucking say?

Feeling his temper rising, Teddy picked up his mobile phone and saw he'd a few text messages from Ryan and Gail and, of course, Mom. None from any of the kids Ted hung around with yet. In fact, no one who Teddy used to party with seemed remotely interested in his life or where he was. Talk about disheartening.

"Turn that frown upside down, Mister," Sophie Taylor suddenly called as she fluttered into Teddy's bedroom like a beautiful summer butterfly. Her strawberry blonde hair was wavy in a messy mid length bob, a quirky floral tea-party dress floating to her knees. Someone needed to tell her that, in Seattle, sandals and summer clothes ran the high risk of jinxing the weather and causing the usual rainstorm to begin, "I brought you some of Gail's chocolate sponge cake."

"Ace," Teddy smirked when he saw Sophie place a tuppaware tub of chocolaty goodness on his bedside unit, finding new motivation to sit up and interact, "The food here is utterly shit. I've been craving Gail's cakes for days. How are you?"

"I'm good, Tedster. Really good, actually," Sophie grinned excitedly, walking straight over to Teddy's left hand side, away from his IV drip. She held out her hand and wiggled her fingers, "Notice anything different?"

Teddy took a moment to study her delicate pale female hands, remembering with a pang of hunger how she'd used them to pleasure him that night he'd lost his virginity to her. As swiftly as that memory overcame him, he recalled with a sudden stabbing sadness how she'd slapped his cheek with that very hand when she'd needed to drive him to the ER after he'd cut himself too deep. When the pain of losing Stephen so tragically had suffocated his young mind.

That particular memory felt like a lifetime ago and looking back Teddy struggled to remember those actions and emotions as his own as though he were a totally different person to the man he was now. This experience with the Esposito family had aged him and shaped him and, if Teddy was being honest, this was the happiest he'd felt in what seemed like forever.

Being with dad and Taylor and Sawyer and Reynolds around a campfire in Canada eating a pair of rabbits Taylor had trapped...it had been so long since he'd been in the company of a group of honest and healthy individuals. Those people had wanted him there and Teddy had allowed himself to drop his walls completely and be exposed to the other men without the constant fear of being judged and ridiculed. It made him realise how much he'd loved hanging out with his father again and Teddy was now honestly kicking himself for not making an effort with his dad as he'd hit his teens. God Teddy loved his dad.

Sophie wriggled her fingers and one sparkled brightly under the light of Teddy's lamp. Instantly, he focused on the beautiful gold banded diamond ring twinkling like a star, a gorgeous piece of equipment for an equally gorgeous woman.

"A ring," Ted said, in shock, "Wow. You're engaged?"

"I am," Sophie replied, the excitement palpable, "Mitt asked me last night. There's a really lengthy process still to go though."

"How?" Teddy asked and then fixed her with the most sincere smile he could muster.

"He's Buddhist," Sophie explained.

"So he's a virgin?" Ted joked.

"No, no, he's... Well, he's not very traditional, hence why he gave me a ring right now. It's his parents who are a lot stricter. They don't know we've been living together all year. They think he's been living with a male flatmate. Because they're from rural Cambodia," Sophie attempted to explain to Teddy, although all the information she was giving him literally was falling on deaf ears.

Teddy was struggling to focus on anything other than the fact that Sophie was taken officially now. He could no longer have her. She'd been picked off the shelf whilst Teddy had been a childish prick and partying away his money without a care about anyone around him.
But then, why should he have a woman like Soph?

He'd minimal qualifications and his reading abilities were far below average. He hadn't been a nice man and Sophie deserved the best in life and if she felt that that was Mitt then Ted was happy for her, no matter how much his heart broke at the idea.

"Has Taylor spoken to you about it yet?" Ted asked, realising that Taylor's absence since Ted had woken up was most probably because he knew Mitt wanted to propose and he'd given the Cambodian man his blessing to do so.

"He gave Mitt his blessing a few weeks ago," she confirmed, "when we first came here," Sophie added and then smiled, staring at her ring, "Isn't it great, Ted?"

"'Swell, Sophie. I'm happy for you. Both of you," Teddy promised. She looked so happy and her smile was incredibly contagious, "How's Taylor doing?"

"He's a little better. Floored with his medication though. He cant stomach most pain meds."
"Seems like a pretty shit quality for a marine," Teddy quipped, angry at Jason's cowardice. He should have spoken to Teddy about the proposed engagement but instead he'd hid.
"It was different times when he enlisted," Sophie shrugged, "Besides...dad always says that Morphine is for people who get shot and when he was in the Corps he'd no intention of being shot," she chuckled, "How's your family doing?"
"Fucked if I knew," Ted laughed, "Dad's recovering, mom is running the shots and Phoebe's Phoebe. Nothing new to report in that front. At least as far as I know. I don't get a lot of visitors between physio and resting; I'm surprised I'm even awake right now actually. You must be worth the energy, huh? "

"No I'm not. You need to rest," Sophie insisted before pulling a hand held games console from her handbag, "I came to tell you about the engagement first…but I also brought you this. I know the television is pretty grim right now. One channel was talking about a global financial depression because your dad nearly died."

"That sort of talk goes straight to Dad's ego," Teddy said light heartedly.

Sophie laughed and nodded because she knew as well as anyone else just how much Dad loved his own importance. One reporter had once referred to him as the Messiah of the Economic Market and Ted remembered how he'd lorded it around the Mansion so much that even mom was joining in with the security team and pretending to shoot him behind his back.

It made Teddy smile and then laugh but laughing hurt his stitches so he quickly stopped and yawned, "You're right. Thank you for this," he nodded towards the games console on the bedside cabinet, "It'll give me something to do between naps."

"Perfect," Sophie smiled, pulling his blanket over him a little. With the hand which now supported an impressive engagement ring, she caressed his cheek and bid him good night even though it was barely past noon.

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6th of November,

Grey Mansion,

Grey Estate,

Seattle,

Washington

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"Ana," Danni called just as Ana walked into the house from visiting Christian and Teddy. The mansion was starting to feel like a refugee centre. Luke, Danni and the Sawyer girls had moved in to keep them safe whilst Welch ran the investigation with the police. Reynolds family were here too, although he was organising flights for Craig and Mei to get away from the USA for a bit now that he was feeling less fragile. Gail was recovering from her own operation now that Jason was safe, and she had Sophie and Mitt living in her cottage. The Taylor's goddamn bulldog was also back and trotting around the house like a Lord. And of course there was the army of security outside their property making the mansion impenetrable.

It was crowded and noisy…but oddly enough Ana was enjoying the buzz. Under other circumstances it would have been relatively pleasant to hear the house so lively. Phoebe was playing with the Sawyer girls and coaxing them to be youngsters once more after the hell they and their mother had endured. It reminded Ana just how wonderful her youngest child was; that despite Teddy's ability to make himself centre of attention, even as a youngster, Phoebe had never gone off the rails and had been a consistent support to Ana when her mental health nosedived after Stephen's death.

"Are you okay, Danni?" Ana smiled as she placed her handbag down on the kitchen counter and fixed the feisty Mrs Sawyer with a welcoming smile.

"I'm fine but I need to go to work," Danni explained and shook her head, "I don't want to but I'm supposed to be doing the hair of my friend Cara. She's getting married later tonight and I just can't not do it."

Ana nodded and smiled, "That's fine though; just make sure you take one of the security team with you."

"Would you be okay just keeping an eye on the girls and Luke?" Danni asked, and Ana could see how conflicted she was to be leaving her family for even just a few hours, "The girls are with Phoebe in the games room and Luke's lazing around in the living room."

"It's fine," Ana smiled, "I'll leave the girls to play and then I'll have Stonehouse get everyone pizza for dinner."

"Thank you," Danni nodded and sighed, "I'll have my phone on me at all times and I can come back here if there's any issues whatsoever."

"There wont be any issues, honestly," Ana reassured her, walking over to grab a cup of tea and a biscuits. She was tired, today's visit with Christian had been incredibly difficult as it was the start of his physiotherapy. He'd been angry, sore, frustrated and Ana knew that he felt cornered and patronised. At one point he'd told everyone, including Ana, to fuck off.

However, Ana knew it would get easier. Every website and forum she'd researched Christian's injuries and physiotherapy plans had said that the road was long and would be agonising but, eventually, it would become easier and more durable.

She checked on everyone before sitting down in the living room to have her cup of tea, Luke laying down on the chaise longue quietly.

"Hey, Sawyer," she called and he looked over and gave her a nod, not saying a word, "Blink once if you're okay."

Luke blinked, and then closed his eyes and went back to dozing. Ana sighed and relaxed back against the plush pillows of her sofa. It was nice to get a little peace and quiet, the door to the living room closed to keep out the bustle of the busy house.

She must have also fallen asleep because when she woke, her stomach gave an almighty growl to remind her to get that pizza ordered. Stretching, she looked over and saw Luke sitting up and staring directly at her, white as snow.

"Are you okay, Luke?" Ana asked, frowning.

"I feel shick," Luke muttered, looking unnerved before Ana for the first time in their working partnership. He was sat on the edge of the chaise longue, one hand on his stomach and the other hovering around his wired shut jaw.

Shit, Ana thought, was he going to choke in his own vomit?!

Maybe he just felt sick?

"Luke, are you going to actually be sick?" Ana asked, walking over to him and sitting beside him. At first, he shook his head slowly but then nodded and covered his mouth with his hand as he stood.

"My jaw," he panicked then began heaving.

"Okay, don't panic sweetie," Ana said instantly, taking his elbow and pulling him to the centre of the room away from Christian's favourite shag rug to where the floor was stone since there didn't seem to be enough time to head to a toilet.

"Phoebe?" Ana shouted through to her daughter, stroking Luke's back as he kept heaving. Her daughter came shortly after being called, thankfully, like her father and consistently level headed when it was required.

"Yes mom?" Phoebe smiled, then winced when she saw Luke gagging, "Is he okay?"

"He's going to be sick. Can you help me?" Ana asked. Gail was a vomit sympathiser who was having a tough time dealing with her husband's nausea symptoms so Phoebe was the best person for the job; she was medically trained and carried her First Aider's qualifications proudly.

"You need to stretch out his cheeks," Phoebe said quickly, demonstrating with her own and coming over to help keep Sawyer in a position where his face was completely down staring at the ground.

Ana did just as she was asked, putting her fingers in to Sawyers mouth and pulling his cheeks out just as he began to be sick.

"Keep him forward," Phoebe instructed, leaning Sawyer a little more forward when he shifted the position Phoebe originally placed him in.

The force of the vomit trickled through the gaps in his teeth and Ana felt it on her fingers too. Thank God Christen wasn't home to see this; his beloved stone flooring becoming coated in Sawyer's stomach content.

"That's it, Luke. You're alright," Phoebe assured, rubbing his back to try and keep him calm.

Ana noticed that he was crying and her heart broke for him. He eventually stopped physically being sick but the residue that couldn't escape his wired jaw was making him gag; it couldn't have tasted nice.

"Mom, you go help clean him up. I'll get the mop out," Phoebe said instantly, actually volunteering to clean up the sick herself.

Thank God for her selfless daughter.

"Okay, come on, let's go rinse your mouth, Luke," Ana soothed, pulling her bodyguard back through to the kitchen where Gail was cleaning the hob, "Gail can I get Teddy's Gatorade bottle filled with water please? Maybe stay out of the good living room too. Luke's been a bit unwell."

Gail paled but handed Ana the water bottle as well as a basin so Luke could sit at the table and rinse out his mouth.

He used the bottle top to aim for a gap in his teeth, squeezing the bottle and spraying water into his mouth like a jet. He did his best to rinse but the taste was making him gag again which was made worse when he just swallowed instead of spitting.

Luke was crying again, covering his eyes with his hands.

"I hate 'is," he tried to say, crying hard as he just had a complete and utter breakdown in the kitchen.

Ana grabbed him on instinct and brought him to his feet. She wrapped her arms around his neck and let him bend down against her shoulder, crying against her, "You're doing so well. It's okay, Luke."

"I can't talk. I can't shing. I hurt. I hate this." Luke croaked, "Eveyone'sh joking about it. It'sh sho hard."

"Oh Luke," Ana soothed, "You're okay. You're alright. It's only another few weeks. You'll be okay."

Luke nodded and pulled back, wiping his blue-green eyes. He was an exceptionally handsome man but to Ana he was probably her best friend. Like a little brother almost.

"Come on. You've got sick on your clothes. I'll run you a bath and you can relax."

"I shouldn't," Luke started but Ana shut him up.

"Danni asked me to keep an eye on you. You're having a bath and then you can take a nap and then when you're awake, we'll all have dinner and watch a movie together. No one talks during movies."

Luke nodded, his eyes welling up again. Ana took his hand and led him up the grand staircase to her and Christian's en suite. The bathtub in there was, really, the size of a hot tub. When the kids had been younger, Ana remembered all four of them sitting in their swimming costumes to wash up after a messy day painting. It had been so much fun, one of these little family moments which a mother cherished the memory of until her deathbed. Ana remembered Phoebe squealing in hilarity as Ted gave Christian a bubbly beard, her little boy wearing his goggles just because.

She began pouring the bath and left Luke to it, checking in on Eden and Isla Sawyer who were playing with a styling head. Phoebe was just finishing cleaning up the living room and Gail, bless, was trying to act like the knowledge of vomit in the living room wasn't bothering her.

Ana was about to go and help Phoebe when she received a phone call from Christian's Therapist, Flynn.

"Hello, Mrs Grey speaking," she answered, going into the conservatory to take the call in privacy. Flynn had become an active part in Christian's therapy sessions because, apparently, learning to use his arm again was as much a mental battle as it would be a physical one.

"Hello, Mrs Grey. It's John. I just wanted to give you an update on Christian's progress and behaviour today. I know you expressed concerns to the nursing team about his frustrations with the therapy program."

"He was incredibly short with everyone this morning," Ana agreed, having never been spoken to so rudely by Christian.

"I know, Ana," John agreed, "He's asked me to speak to you today regarding an incident which occurred."

Ana felt her stomach turn, "Has something happened?"

"Mr Grey has asked me to inform you that he has pushed one of the faculty members. The situation isn't serious, the nurse in question isn't wanting to make an issue of the situation but Christian's been given a yellow card for the incident; the hospital do not take that sort of thing lightly," John sighed, and Ana could imagine the man squeezing the bridge of his nose, "He felt it would be better if you heard it from me. He's told everyone to fuck off and he's demanding to be left alone but…yeah, I thought I'd do what he asked and give you a forewarning before you visit tomorrow."

Oh fifty…