**AUTHOR'S NOTE: This chapter doesn't have a lot to do with the plot, but it's a transition into her leaving the hospital and coming home. *******

Bobby wheeled me out the room, down the hallway and to the elevators. When we rolled out the front door of the hospital there was a large black SUV surrounded by a gaggle of Merry Men. My eyes prickled with happy tears. Lester was holding a giant Teddy Bear and smiling ear to ear. Tank was holding three boxes of Tasty Kake doughnuts. Cal and Hal were standing with huge bouquets, while Ram and Manny were each holding girly gift bags with hot pink tissue paper peeking out the top.

"Guys!" I called to them, trying to get up. Bobby put a hand on my shoulder and shook his head. I sat impatiently as he wheeled me right up to the door. Lester shoved the giant Teddy bear into Bobby's arms and picked me up hugging me tightly to him.

"Beautiful, I am so glad to see you out of that damned room." He kissed me lightly on the lips and embraced me again. Tank cleared his throat signaling his turn. I was carefully passed around, each one hugging me and telling me how much they missed me.

We piled into the SUV and made our way to my apartment. Bobby sat next to me in the middle seat, his arm protectively over the back, while Lester sat on the other side of me holding my hand and kissing it every few minutes. We took the elevator in two shifts, and stood in front of my apartment door as Bobby pulled out my keys.

"Using my keys?" I asked, perplexed. "I didn't think you guy did that."

"Steph, if we had keys we would have used them before." He smirked, pushing the door open. "Welcome home, Bomber."

I walked in, Lester's arm protectively around my waist so that I didn't fall. I stopped as I reached the living room. My mouth dropped open.

"What did you do?" I asked, taking in the entire room.

My sofa, which had been a side of the road find, had been replaced with a chocolate brown soft leather sofa with coordinating throw pillows. There was a rug centered in the room in front of a beautiful entertainment center that housed a new TV and various entertainment appliances. Side tables and a coffee table accented the room. There were lamps, and even coasters. Art work covered the walls. Some of it were prints or photos that had been reframed. Others were paintings that I had always loved. There was one large framed photograph hanging over the sofa. It was me, completely surrounded by all the guys. It was from a weekend away at Point Pleasant last summer. Everyone was smiling, NOT in black and looking at the camera.

I looked back at the guys who stood smiling. I continued into my apartment, Lester still at my waist. The kitchen had been redone, the linoleum replaced by a soft gray tile. The appliances were new and a brightly colored. I opened the fridge and cupboards. They were filled with everything a stocked kitchen would have. The cookie jar sat on the counter next to Rex, who was also sporting a new cage.

"Hey Rex." I tapped the glass. He crawled out from one of his new brightly colored tubes, flickered his whiskers and ran back in. "I missed you too."

"Guys?" I leaned against the counter top. The carpets had been replaced, the walls painted.

"We wanted to do something nice for you." Ram said, walking up and pulling me to his side causing Lester to scowl. "Come see the rest of it."

He led me to the bathroom, which was now a beautiful sky blue with silver and white accents. The preformed tub and shower combo had been replaced with a large square Jacuzzi tub with multihead shower perched high on the wall. Even the toilet and sink had been replaced with sleek and modern fixtures. Huge incredibly white thick towels hung on a silver scrolled towel rack. I reached over and touched it. It was so soft that I had to rub it against my face. It smelled like lilacs and vanilla.

"I did the same thing." Ram laughed. "Now, let's check out the best room in the house."

I giggled, slowly making my way to the bedroom. He opened the door and I gasped. It was beautiful. The bedding was soft and feminine, and looked like if I lay down I would never want to get up. Pillows were placed strategically up against the headboard which was a deep natural wood carved with delicate swirls. Matching bedside tables and dresser were sparsely decorated with personal items. I turned and stopped. There in the corner was the chair. I covered my mouth with my hand as a quick pain shot through my heart.

"What's wrong, Steph?" Ram asked, leaning down and looking into my eyes. "Are you okay? In pain? Do you want me to get Bobby?"

"The chair." I whispered.

"Uhh...yeah." Ram stood, his hand rubbing the back of his neck. "It looks good there doesn't it."

"It's his chair." I closed my eyes for a minute and sighed. "Everything is beautiful."

We walked back to the living room. The guys were standing, waiting as if I was going to either explode or collapse. I smiled and they relaxed. They had piled their gifts on the dining room table that was sitting in the corner of my kitchen. The giant Teddy bear flopping to one side.

"Thank you so much. It is all so beautiful. You really didn't have to do this though."

"We did." Bobby walked up and embraced me, whispering so that only I could hear. "This is nothing compared to what you have done for us. Remember what I told you. We awe you more than we could ever give you."

"Thank you." I whispered, pulling him tightly against me and kissing his cheek. It was at this moment that my stomach growled. Laughter erupted, and the feed the beast jokes started.

"We have to get back to work." Tank said, pulling me out of Bobby's embrace and hugged me. "Bomber, if you need anything, or if these idiots irritate you just call me. I am glad you are ok, and home. I'll stop by later tomorrow." He kissed my forehead, lingering for a moment before whispering quietly in my ear. "I love you, Stephanie."

"I love you too, Pierre." I whispered back. Kissing his cheek. He smiled, shaking his head and waved to the guys who slowly filed out after big hugs, kisses and promises of visiting. Lester and Bobby were the only ones left.

"I'll make some dinner." Lester winked as he passed me and began in the kitchen. "Do you want to lie do for a bit?"

"Yeah." I sighed. "I don't want to sleep, but I just want to lie down."

"Come on, Steph." Bobby took my hand and helped me into the bedroom.

I sat gently down on the bed, sighing as I melted into the mattress. Bobby smiled, and pulled out a small suitcase from under the bed. He rummaged through it a bit; I'm assuming to make sure everything was there, before zipping it back up and pushing it back under the bed. Opening the closet, he pulled out a small bedroll.

"Bobby, you aren't sleeping on that." I shook my head. He looked at me and smiled.

"Me?" he laughed. "This is for you." He winked and tossing the bedroll to the floor. He plopped down next to me and laid back. "Jesus, this feels good."

"You have been sleeping in a chair for the past month." I smacked his chest playfully. "A bathtub would have been more comfortable."

"I don't mind sleeping in a chair. I've slept in way worse." He put his hands behind his head and closed his eyes. "But this…this is amazing."

I kicked off my slippers, curled up next to him and put my head on his shoulder. The bed was amazing. It contoured every inch of my body. I sighed which kind of sounded like a moan.

"Yep." Bobby laughed. "I hear that. This bed is that good."

I laughed, smacking his thigh playfully. He kissed the top of my head and hugged me to him. We sat curled up until Lester called that dinner was ready. Bobby picked me up and carried me into the kitchen, setting me down in front of the table.