Ant watched on amused as Lisa continued to fuss over Dec like a mother hen.

"Are you comfortable Dec?" She asked "can I get you anything?another cup of tea?do you want a cushion to rest your elbow on?anything else to eat?"

"Christ Lisa" Ant laughed "give it a rest will ya?he's not dying ya know,but you're gonna kill him with kindness at this rate"

"Shut up Anthony" Lisa scolded "he's here to be looked after and that's exactly what I'm going to do whether you approve or not"

"Um...I'm fine Lisa" Dec muttered,feeling slightly afraid that he might be coming between the couple "thanks anyway"

"You must be tired?" Lisa smiled "just say if you want to go to bed,don't feel like you have to stay up for our sake"

"Yeah" Dec sighed "I am pretty wiped out actually,it's been a long day,a long week in fact,I might leave you two to enjoy some alone time"

"Now you listen here Declan" Lisa replied "don't you ever feel like you're in our way,that couldn't be further from the truth"

"Well" Dec smiled "you haven't seen each other for a week,it's only natural that you'd want to spend some time together now"

"That can wait" Lisa stated "can't it Ant?"

"Yeah,of course it can" Ant replied kindly "I was only teasing you about being fussed over.Lisa wants to look after you and so do I,anything else can wait"

"If you're sure?" Dec asked politely.

"Of course I'm sure" Ant replied "that's why you're here after all isn't it?now then,if you want to go to bed,that's fine,you're bed is already made up for you...er...I assume it is?"

"Of course it is.It's always made up" Lisa smiled towards Dec "ready and waiting for whenever you need it,you know that"

"Thanks guys" Dec smiled gratefully "yeah,I'm ready to hit the sack now,but I...um...I might..."

Dec trailed off awkwardly,not quite knowing how to voice what was on his mind.

Ant picked up on the issue immediately.

"Don't worry kidda" he smiled "I'll come up with you and give you a hand with anything you need,it's not going to be easy getting into bed with a fractured elbow and that dodgy thumb"

"Thanks" Dec smiled,feeling immensely grateful at that moment for how he and Ant were always so in tune with each other.

They proceeded up the stairs and into Decs bedroom with Ant helping Dec in any way he could.Out of his clothes and into his pyjamas,putting toothpaste on his toothbrush and anything else that was needed.

Dec didn't have the energy to take a shower or even freshen up like he usually would after a long journey,that would just have to wait until morning,sleep was all he wanted right now.

Dec kept plenty of clean clothes at Ants house for when he stayed over unexpectedly,in fact he had a whole wardrobe full in his bedroom as well as ample toiletries in the en suite bathroom,but Ant still offered to go to Decs first thing in the morning to pick anything else up that might be needed.

"What else could I possibly need?" Dec laughed "half of my belongings are here"

"Yeah,good point" Ant replied "still,if you think of anything,just let me know and I'll pop down in the morning"

"Ok,thanks" Dec smiled,as he cautiously got into bed as Ant held the duvet back for him to climb in.

"What about the sling?" Ant frowned "doesn't that have to come off at night?"

"No" Dec replied "the doctor said to keep it on all the time at the moment,even when I'm in bed"

"Oh" Ant exclaimed surprised "that's not going to be too comfortable for sleeping in then is it?"

"Unfortunately not" Dec sighed "but I'd better do what the Doc said"

"Good little patient that you are" Ant grinned "do you want a pillow to rest it on?"

"Yeah,thanks,that would be good" Dec replied "luckily I sleep on my back anyway,so hopefully it won't be too bad"

"Ok,good" Ant smiled as he finished gently tucking a pillow under Decs injured arm "now,I think you're all set,anything else you need?do you need to take some of the painkillers?"

"Not until morning" Dec replied "I was given something for the pain at the hospital"

"Ok" Ant smiled "I'll get you a glass of water in case you get thirsty during the night,then I'll leave you in peace"

"And you moaned at Lisa for fussing over me" Dec grinned.

"Shh,don't tell her" Ant winked "There is one more thing you need to take care of though"

"What's that?" Dec asked curiously.

"Your mother" Ant stated.

"Oh God" Dec sighed "that never even crossed my mind"

"Well" Ant replied gently "if the press get wind of this and she hears about your accident through them instead of you...let's just say,I wouldn't like to be in your shoes"

"Ok" Dec nodded "I'll call her first thing in the morning"

"Good" Ant smiled,as he pulled the duvet up under Decs chin "how many times must I have tucked you into bed over the years?"

"Loads" Dec laughed "but ninety nine percent of those were because I was drunk"

"Yeah" Ant grinned "at least it's a bit different this time"

"Yeah,unfortunately" Dec yawned.

"Ok kidda" Ant smiled "I'll let you get some sleep now,but tomorrow I want to tell you about an idea I've had for the next series of Saturday Night Takeaway"

"Tell me now" Dec mumbled sleepily.

"No,it can wait till morning" Ant insisted "you can barely keep your eyes open,you'll love it though"

Ant could see that Dec was almost asleep already,the fact that Dec didn't even say goodnight just confirmed that fact.Ant turned the light off,closed the door quietly and made his way downstairs to his girlfriend.

"How's he doing?" Lisa enquired.

"He's ok" Ant smiled "very tired though,a good nights sleep will do him the world of good,I missed you"

"Yeah,sorry babe" Lisa smiled as she hugged and kissed Ant affectionately "I missed you too,I was just worried about Dec,now I've seen he's ok,you have my full attention"

"Bed?" Ant asked with a cheeky glint in his eye.

"Bed!" Lisa confirmed,as the couple made their way upstairs giggling,to make up for the time they had spent apart.

"Don't forget to call your Mam" Ant reminded Dec the next morning as the duo sat in their pyjamas,eating breakfast at the kitchen table.Lisa had already left for work before Dec got up,he had slept for a solid ten hours and felt much better for it.

Dec reluctantly made the call,knowing what drama his mother was likely to make out of the situation,which predictably she did,with lots of sympathetic cooing down the phone line.

"My poor baby" must have been uttered at least five times by the caring parent and after twenty minutes of trying to convince her that he was fine,Dec finally hung up the phone.

"How is she?" Ant grinned,knowing exactly what Anne's reaction would have been.

"Fussy" Dec shook his head affectionately.

"Ah,she just loves her baby" Ant joked.

"Yeah,a little bit too much sometimes" Dec frowned.

"Aww,give her a break Decs" Ant replied "a mother can never love her child too much"

"Yeah,I guess" Dec sighed,quickly changing the subject "anyway,I vaguely remember you saying something last night about an idea for the next series of Saturday Night Takeaway?what's that then?"

"Oh yeah" Ant grinned "it's brilliant,you'll love it"

"Out with it then" Dec replied impatiently.

"Well,you know the producers have this new idea where we do an undercover section pranking celebities?it's pretty elaborate and would involve us going to America" Ant informed him.

"I'm always up for that" Dec smiled "tell me more?"

"Well" Ant continued "it involves us pranking Simon Cowell"

"What?" Dec laughed "how the hell are we going to do that?"

Ant and Dec had by now become firm friends with the music mogul since first meeting him on Pop Idol.Ant wasn't sure why this idea had popped into his head,but now it had,he loved it and really wanted to see it through.The thought of pranking unassuming celebrities was right up their street,they knew it would be brilliant,although there were plenty of opportunities for things to go wrong.

"We audition for American Idol" Ant stated proudly.

"Umm..." Dec mumbled "don't you think he might recognise us?"

"We're gonna be in disguise you fool" Ant rolled his eyes playfully "I've not thought of all the ins and outs of it yet,it's just an idea that came to me on the way back from Wales,got to run it by everyone first"

"It could work" Dec smiled,but nothing more was said on the matter,not for the time being anyway.

Decs injuries healed nicely and he completed the rest of the current series of Saturday Night Takeaway with his arm in a the sling and his thumb in a splint.He got plenty of sympathy though,especially from the female fans,which he was only too happy to admit that he really enjoyed.

The boys were given a few weeks off to recharge their batteries,before getting back to work on the next series.Planning for it always started months in advance,there was always so much to do,plan,and film and before they knew it,they were on a plane to America to film their prank on Simon Cowell.

They were nervous,but excited on the long flight over,talking endlessly about how it would go and all the things that might go wrong,of which there were a hell of a lot.

Once they'd tired of talking about that subject,for now at least,Ant obviously had something else on his mind.

"Guess what?" He grinned.

"What?" Dec replied casually.

"I'm thinking about proposing to Lisa" Ant announced proudly.

"Really?" Dec squealed in delight "when?where?"

"I don't know yet" Ant smiled "haven't thought it through,but once I've decided on a plan of action,you'll be the first to know"

"I'd better be" Dec grinned "it'll be brilliant,you guys getting married,aww I'm so happy for you Ant"

"She has to say yes first" Ant laughed.

"Of course she will" Dec smiled "she's put up with you this long hasn't she?"

"Yeah,I guess she has" Ant nodded.

"Ant and Lisa getting married" Dec beamed "I can't wait,a big wedding and piss up is just what we need"

"Any excuse eh Decs?" Ant laughed.

"Absolutely" Dec replied cheerfully "get the champagne in and you'll need a best man won't you?"

"Oh yeah,I guess I will" Ant teased "let me know if you think of anyone who will be up for the job?"

"Very funny" Dec frowned,not a hundred percent sure that Ant was joking.

"You're getting ahead of yourself Decs" Ant laughed "I haven't even asked her yet"

"Well,get on with it then" Dec insisted.

"Umm...in case you haven't noticed Declan" Ant replied "we're on a plane,thousands of feet up in the air,above the Atlantic ocean and Lisa isn't even here,not the best time to propose"

"When we get back then" Dec insisted "she'll be so happy"

"Hope so" Ant smiled.

Just a couple of days later and after much meticulous planning from the Saturday Night Takeaway crew,Ant and Dec were standing outside the doors to the room where the auditions for American Idol were being held.

They were dressed in ridiculous baggy clothes which took them back to their PJ and Duncan days,as well as adorning fake beards and bandanas that would make Axl Rose proud.

They had been practicing their American accents for weeks and now the time had finally arrived to put their plan into action.They only prayed that Simon wouldn't immediately recognise them and all this time,effort and money that had been spent on the prank would have been for nothing.

It had been decided that Dec would go in first and knowing that Simon,as well as the other two judges,Paula Abdul and Randy Jackson,were just on the other side of the door,didn't help with their nerves.

Paula and Randy were actually in on the joke,but that didn't make it any easier.

Dec took a deep breath.

"I can't believe how nervous I am" he frowned "what if he recognises us?"

"We just have to hope he doesn't" Ant replied "my stomach is doing somersaults"

Once Dec was called into the room,he fleetingly stared straight into Ants eyes.

"This is it then" he stated cautiously.

"Yep,this is it" Ant nodded "good luck"

"Good luck to you too my friend" Dec smiled and the pair hugged casually "see you in there"

It was time to put the long awaited plan into action!