One and a half weeks had passed and today was the day when Ryan was to be discharged from the hospital. Evan and Stella had both been discharged within two days but the doctors had decided to keep Ryan under observation for a longer time, seeing that his injuries were much more severe and they wanted to make sure that there weren't any underlying internal injuries in his head.

Ryan was absolutely delighted at being able to go home today and I couldn't help but laugh at the goofy grin on his face.

Everybody was still here in New York. Jenny and Evan had been inseparable ever since he was discharged and their public display of affection was making everyone else in the house sick. It was safe to say that they were beating Aiden and Mia's scores now.

Noah and Sophia were making the best of this opportunity and visiting every tourist place they could find in New York. Even I was surprised at the number of new and fascinating cafes that they had discovered in this time period.

Mia had just hit her first trimester three days ago and her pregnancy was now getting the best of her. If you needed to find that girl the only place to look was in the kitchen or her bedroom. As for Aiden, I was surprised to see him act like a loving and caring boyfriend. Yup, I said boyfriend. They both had made it official last week finally. I only needed to give Aiden an earful once but that's beside the point.

Everyone was staying over at my house and Michael was determined to make the house look like my parent's home again. He and Victoria had fully taken over that project. And Stella couldn't be any happier to help them as best as she could.

Wondering about Jack? He was in London with his soon-to-be wife Zoey and his little angel who was just a week or two away from coming into this world. I was happy for him and his new family.

As for me, Alex and Luna, for the past week we had been taking turns to stay the night with Ryan at the hospital and they were extremely happy that Ryan was finally getting discharged. You see sleeping on the hospital couch wasn't exactly the best experience, for them, not for me though. Ryan didnt let me sleep anywhere else but beside him on the bed. And it was safe to say we had annoyed more nurses here than we would like to admit. But hey, you gotta do what you gotta do to stay close to each other.

Speaking of Katherine's case, that she-devil was six feet under now and wasn't going to bother us ever again. Nora and Jared had traveled over to New York and Nora's statement had buried the case once and for all. Apparently, she had some recorded calls that she showed the police and they had affirmed that Katherine was indeed the offender here and that I had killed her in self-defense. We had all been extremely happy when we had received the news. And the best thing that came out of all of this was that I got to spend some more time with my childhood friend. Jared and I had caught up on a lot of things, and yeah, everything was good again. I was happy finally.

Coming back to the present, I was sitting with Ryan on the hospital bed as Alex talked to the doctor. After a few more minutes Alex entered the room and we looked over at him expectantly. " Dr. Ritsburg says we can go now. " Ryan cheered excitedly and quickly got up from the bed. I laughed at his childish antics and got up too.

He looked at me happily and threw his arm around my shoulders, " We're going home, baby. " I smiled and rested my head against his shoulder. Together we walked over to the elevator and entered it. Alex pressed the button for the ground floor. " Will we have to make any kind of payment at the reception? "

I shook my head calmly, " No Pops, the payments are all done already. " Ryan frowned over at me, " You paid for the hospital expenses. " I looked at him and cocked my head to one side, " Nope, your insurance covered the most of it. I just paid for the nightly expenses. " His eyes widened, " Nightly expenses, for almost two weeks? How much was that? "

I glared at him, " That's none of your concern, Mister. " He glared right back at me, " This is my hospital expenses we're talking about, babe. It is my concern. How much did it cost you? " I scoffed, " If you even say you want to pay me back, I'm gonna break up with you. " He cocked his eyebrows at me, " Really? " I chimed, " Yup! " Shaking his head in amusement, he said, " Babe, be real, please. Tell me. " I groaned, " Oh for fuck's sake, Ryan. It's not that big of a deal. It was just a couple thousand dollars! " He shot me a bewildered look, " How many thousands are we talking about? "

I shook my head, " I don't remember. " He groaned again and Alex chuckled at our couple banter. " Eve, please baby. Tell me. " I glared at him, " Ryan, calm your ass down. If you really want to return me the money then do it when you'll be a millionaire in a couple of months from now. " I smiled mischievously as the confusion on his face doubled, " What the hell is that supposed to mean? " He asked wearily. I simply grinned at him and stepped out of the elevator as it came to a halt on the ground floor.

Alex laughed and stepped out after me and Ryan trudged along. " I hate it when you talk in puzzles. " I laughed, " I love you too, babe. " I laughed again at seeing the pout on his face.

Just as we stepped outside the hospital, millions of cameras and microphones were pointed in our direction. I sighed and rolled my eyes at the sight of these news-hungry pests also known as paparazzi. 

" Miss Sandford, is it true that your own aunt tried to attack you last week? "

"Miss Sandford, is your family okay? " 

" How are you doing, Tiana? Is everyone okay? "

" What happened to your aunt, Tiana? "

I was surprised to hear them ask me concerned questions for the first time. They weren't asking attacking questions for once and they weren't even being pushy. They were all gathered up around us but were still maintaining their distance. I was amused and happy to see them act like this. A genuine smile made its way across my face and I decided to answer their questions. " Guys, I appreciate your concern but please, we just went through a very tough time and would just like to rest for a while. Thank you for asking about my family, they are all good now, by God's grace. " 

One of the lady reporters smiled at me happily and then shifted her eyes to Ryan. " And who is this, Tiana? Are you two together, because you look like a beautiful couple. " A slight blush crept up my cheeks at her words and I ducked my face to hide it from them. Ryan chuckled from behind me and his arm tightened around my waist. And of course, my blush wasn't as small as I had thought because they all noticed it, and smirks and giddy smiles spread over all of their lips. " Congratulations, Tiana, you make a wonderful couple. " One of the reporters said in a happy tone. Shaking my head, I simply smiled at them brightly, " Thanks. " After a few parting questions and jokes, they let the three of us pass through to the parking lot. I was extremely happy after my first positive media experience. They should always be this nice and understanding then they would probably get more photos and questions from us, hmm. 

We quickly made our way over to the parking lot and I pulled out the keys from my pocket. Clicking the key button I unlocked the car and the shiny beauty came to life. It was a shining  Bugatti La Voiture Noire in black color with a navy blue interior. Ryan's eyes widened and he whistled appreciatively at the black ride. " Flexing, are we, babe? " He asked in a mocking tone and I winked at him. " Welcome to my world, love. " He laughed at my words and Alex chuckled.

We all got inside the car and I drove out of the hospital parking lot and towards home. " Jesus, look at this traffic, dad. It's worse than LA. " Ryan mused. Alex chuckled, " When I used to visit Sam here and then later when I and your mom used to do some weekend gigs in the Queens, we could hardly ever halt a taxi. We used to always stick to the subway. "

I laughed at his words, " I know. It's hard for the tourists to get a taxi here. The locals know the tricks. I've lived here my entire life and so I don't even notice these things anymore. " Alex nodded his head in agreement with my statement.

35 minutes later, we finally reached the house and I pulled up into the garage. We got out of the car and I walked over to Ryan's side. Alex nodded over to me knowingly and I smiled back as I understood his cue. He grinned, gave me a thumbs-up, and walked away towards the entrance leaving us behind.

Ryan looked around at the cars in the garage and his eyes twinkled in appreciation. " You've got some cars over here, Sunflower. Each one's a jewel. " I pouted, " Yeah, but my baby's still in Seattle. " He grinned at me, " All the more reason for you to come back with me. " I looked at him mischievously, " Or you could stay here with me. " He laughed and shook his head, " We'll see, babe, we'll see. "

I lead him over to the entrance of the house and he looked around in awe of the huge building. " We were good in Seattle, babe. At least I never realized how stinking rich you really are. " My feet froze in place and I snapped my head in his direction. " Ryan, I'm not..." He laughed and stopped me before I could finish my sentence. " Shh, baby I'm playing with you. I don't care how much money you have or don't. I love you for who you are on the inside and nothing else matters to me. " I smiled through the small tears that had formed in my eyes, " Thank you. I love you too. " He smiled and took my hand in his.

Together we walked inside the glass foyer and the beautiful interior of the house came into view. Ryan gasped at the sight. " This is like a fucking resort. " I laughed at his words, " This is basically Mom's design. I just did small refurbishing here and there. " He smiled, " Well then, she did an awesome job, Eve because this is a sight to behold. "

After removing our shoes in the shoe closet near the front door, because I didn't like shoes inside the house, we walked inside the main hall.

" Where is everyone? " Ryan asked looking around the big space in confusion. I was feeling all giddy with excitement on the inside but I still maintained my oblivious facade on the outside. " The boys must be in the game room. " I said cooly. He looked at me in amazement, " A game room? " I shrugged, " What, you know I love Xbox. " He shook his head at me and chuckled.

" Rebecca, where is everyone? " I asked one of the staff members. She smiled politely at us. A little too politely at Ryan, if I must add, making me narrow my eyes at her. " Oh um, Miss Johnson, the boys are upstairs in the music room, Miss Jenny is in the library, Miss Sophia is in your study and Miss Mia is resting in her room. The others are also in their rooms. " I nodded my head curtly at her. She turned to walk away but not before throwing a flirtatious smile at Ryan. I scoffed, " Her ass is so fired if she keeps mentally undressing you like that. " Ryan chuckled, " Aww, my baby's jealous. " I glared at him before pulling him towards the stairs.

We made our way up the stairs but I stopped in the middle to stare at the sidewall. " What's wrong? " Ryan asked. I smiled and shook my head, " Nothing, they just removed her photos from here and I like it much better now. " He smiled and we climbed the rest of the stairs. I guided him towards the music room which just next to my bedroom. I turned to throw Ryan a mischievous look, " That's my bedroom. " His grin quickly turned devilish, " So what are we doing going inside that one? " I giggled at his words and placed my hands on his chest.

" Ryan James Matthews, I love you with everything I have in me. And to show that love and to wish you a very Happy Birthday, I got you a surprise, " I beamed at him. His eyebrows shot up in surprise, " Fuck, it's my birthday today? " I facepalmed at hearing him say that. He chuckled and held my hand away from my face and planted a soft kiss on my lips. " Anyways, so here is your surprise," I giggled excitedly and opened the door to the music room.

" Surprise, " Everyone shouted the minute we entered the room. Ryan took in a sharp breath as the decorated room came into view. The entire room was decorated in the theme of music and coffee. Weird? I know, but what can I do when my man only loves these two things and nothing else. " Oh wow, that's my favorite theme. When did you plan all this, you sneaky little shit? " He wrapped his arms around me and I squealed happily. " Everyone helped. " Ryan chuckled and together we walked inside the room.

Everyone came forward and wished Ryan with hugs and claps on the back. Cherry ran up to her brother and threw her hands around his neck. Ryan laughed and hugged the little girl tightly, " Hey, my little princess. How are you? " She beamed up at him, " I'm good. Happy Birthday, Ry-Ry. I missed you so much." Ryan smiled back brightly. Chris tugged at his jeans and pouted seeing that Ryan only had Cherry in his arms. I laughed and walked forward to lift him in mine. He passed me a toothy grin and kissed my cheek making me chuckle at his cuteness. Ryan laughed and pinched his cheeks lovingly making him giggle.

Ryan's smile didnt fall from his face even once as he happily cut the cake with everyone and laughed cheerfully. I couldn't stop smiling at his delightful appearance. Everyone gave him gifts which he opened up like a little child. The kids laughed along with him when he shred the gift wraps to pieces just to get to the gift faster.

" What did you get your man, Miss Johnson? " He wiggled his eyebrows at me making me laugh. " I have a gift for you but I didn't gift wrap it, Ry. " He pouted slightly and I laughed again. " Hold on. I'll be right back. " He frowned at me as I skipped over to the exit.

" You ready? " I asked them. They nodded with a smile on their face and I beckoned them to follow me inside the room.

I entered the room again and smiled over at Ryan. He frowned first at me and then at the person behind me. " Ryan, this is Mr. Foster, Jack's dad and the owner of the record label I am signed with. " His eyes widened slightly and he walked forward to shake Mr. Foster's hand who returned it with a smile on his face.

" Um, Eve, I think I'm still at a loss here. "
I chuckled at my poor clueless boyfriend's words and looked over at Mr. Foster. He smiled over at me and nodded slightly.

" Mr. Matthews, I'm here to make you a deal, are you interested? " He asked a very confused Ryan.

Oh, this was gonna be so much fun.

********

• Author's Note •

Hey, everyone. I hope you all are doing well. I just wanted to say that I'm experiencing a panorama of emotions right now. I'm sad that this story is coming to an end now but I'm also over the moon because it is so close to hitting 1K. I just want to thank you all who have been reading this story dedicatedly and giving me their immense support all this while. I love you, guys. Have a beautiful day ahead. 

Much love

M :)