Ant awoke first the next morning.He hadn't really slept that much throughout the night,and evidently neither had Dec.
His deep sleep had lasted no more than a couple of hours at most.Ant knew this from the amount of time Dec had spent tossing and turning restlessly,not to mention the several times he'd got out of bed to go to the toilet,the generous amount of alcohol he'd consumed the previous day obviously having that unfortunate effect on him.
He glanced over at Dec,just glad he was currently asleep!He was about to quietly make his way to his own room to have a shower and get dressed when he paused for a moment.He had no idea what mood Dec would be in when he awoke or how he would be feeling.
Would he be happier now the funeral was out of the way or still desperately sad?Ant genuinely had no idea but he was slightly worried that Dec would wake up and be upset that he wasn't there like he would be expecting,so he took the pen and notepad from the desk and wrote a quick note
"Decky,gone to my room for a shower,back soon,Ant x"
He placed it on Decs bedside table where he would hopefully see it the minute he woke up.
Sure enough,a few minutes after Ant left Dec began to stir,stretching and yawning wearily.
He immediately glanced at the place where Ant had last been laying and sighed before rolling over and spotting the note.He smiled to himself at Ants consideration,such a simple but deeply appreciated gesture,Dec knew exactly what Ant would have been worrying about and loved him all the more for it.
'He needn't worry about me' Dec thought to himself although he knew and totally understood why Ant had every reason to worry.
Twenty minutes later,Ant reappeared in Decs room,fully dressed with hair still wet.
"Hey buddy,you're awake" Ant smiled
"How did you sleep?"
Ant obviously already knew the answer to that question.
"Not so great" Dec sighed
"Yeah I'm not surprised" Ant sympathised "you've really been put through the wringer lately.It'll get better Decky,I promise it will,just hang in there.Now do you want some breakfast?could order room service?a full English always goes down well eh?"
Ant had also noticed Dec hadn't been eating well either which was extremely unlike him,the only time he was ever off his food was when he was ill.All he'd done since they'd been in Newcastle was pick at any food placed in front of him and it hadn't gone unnoticed by Ant that he had lied to Anne on more than one occasion when she'd asked him if he wanted something to eat,telling her he'd already eaten which Ant knew just wasn't true.Dec adored his Mams home cooking so this worried Ant considerably.All he could do was hope that now the funeral was over with, Dec would start getting back to normal.
"Not really hungry" Dec sighed
"Come on Decky,you've got to eat something.I tell ya what,I'll order breakfast and you can just have what you want"
Half an hour later Dec was still in bed when there was a knock on the door.
"Room service" a cheerful voice loudly announced.
Ant opened the door and pulled the trolley into the room,thanking the staff member.
"Hmmm smells great doesn't it?" Ant peered hungrily at the generous plates of sausages,bacon,mushrooms,fried eggs,baked beans and toast as well as jugs of freshly squeezed orange juice and pots of steaming hot coffee.
"Can't wait to get stuck in,looks almost as good as me Mams"
He placed a tray on the bed in front of Dec then sat down next to him.
"come on,tuck in" he encouraged
