This time, the moving felt easier. He didn't feel like he was giving up on anything. He was simply going to stay with Misha, Ivo, and Jami, and all he needed to take with him were clothes, books, and personal hygiene equipment.

Though his father had wondered why things couldn't continue the way they were, with him living at home and dating Misha, in the end, he seemed to understand. Misha had gotten on Asko's good side and Joni thought they had probably bonded during their plotting against Chris. It didn't stop Asko from giving Misha 'The talk' before his move.

So basically it was just; You better treat my son well, and Misha assured him that of course, he would and then they drank a shot of brandy together, patting each other on the back. Joni wondered when his dad would stop treating him like a girl, why wasn't he offered a glass of brandy with them? Not that he liked that drink, but that wasn't the point! Misha had said that it was because he had already been sleeping at that point, but Joni still considered it a poor point, they could have woken him up! Misha then reminded him that he wouldn't have wanted to take the risk of waking him and then possibly getting his head bitten off.

When they started packing Joni's car on a Sunday morning, Misha was amazed at the quantity of his luggage that mainly, according to Joni, contained clothes. Even though the blond had made room for Joni's clothes in his wardrobe, he knew just by looking at the five full bags that they would never fit. Luckily there was Dima's room which, with their younger brother's blessing, Joni intended to use as his study room.

Joni also had his laptop and his high school books, pens, and calculator, everything one needed for studying. The whole Sunday went by arranging things, well, almost entirely arranging, it was easy to get sidetracked when Joni was involved. Misha tried to help with sorting out Joni's clothes, but it soon became clear that he was only in the way, apparently placing the clothes in the wrong order.

The brunet tried to explain to him about his order; there were casual clothes, school clothes, party clothes, and formal clothes, and they needed to have their shelves while Joni explained all this to him, Misha pretended to listen while finding something more interesting in his boyfriend's bags; his underwear. Deciding to be helpful, Misha started arranging the boxers on his bed, even folding them neatly.

"Do these have a designed purpose, too?" He asked with a grin. "I mean, casual and formal, party and... sex?" Misha couldn't help teasing the other man, after all, he even seemed to have underwear enough to last for at least a month or longer without having to do laundry. Joni glared at him, he was blushing slightly, though unsure why. He walked over to Misha and snatched a pair of tight black boxers from his hands.

"You just don't understand," he huffed and yelped when Misha pulled him over onto his lap.

"Don't I?" The blond whispered in his ear, gently kissing the earlobe while his hands hugged Joni's waist. Joni still held the boxers that had a red dragon on the side. "I haven't seen those on you yet," the older man whispered.

"Oh, there are lots you haven't seen," Joni grinned and pecked his lips softly, trying to get up to continue arranging, but Misha didn't let him. Joni snickered and Misha quickly pulled him onto the bed on his back, swinging the pile of underwear down onto the floor and out of the way.

"Hey!" Joni protested but released another snigger when Misha leaned closer to kiss him.

"Hey," the blond whispered in a husky voice. "Hey, roommate," he grinned and leaned in for another kiss. Joni relaxed underneath him and dropped the piece of underwear from his hand onto the floor with the rest bringing his hand up to Misha's hair, and the kiss continued gently. Misha's hand slowly moved the hem of his shirt upwards, breaking the kiss and gazing into his eyes and Joni could read the lust behind the blue orbs. "They are still packing Jami's stuff... They won't be back for a few hours..." Misha whispered and Joni grinned.

"Want to get naked?" Joni whispered and it was Misha's turn to grin.

"Very," he said and quickly pulled his shirt off.

"Close the curtains..." Joni asked, he didn't want to risk being seen by Misha's overly curious teenage neighbor that had some gay man fantasy because it wouldn't be the first time she'd tried to spy on them.

Stealing another kiss and grinning at him, Misha got up to do just that. Joni watched the blond and his muscular chest, smiling to himself, he was almost in the right state of mind, almost...

**^^**^^**^^**

When Jami moved in a day later, it became evident that the two Finns shared a love for clothes. Luckily there was Dima's room and his empty closets so that Joni and Jami could share them for the clothes that didn't fit in Ivo's and Misha's rooms.

The house was alive again, the first week went by fast with rearranging things in the house. It felt weird to Misha, the changed atmosphere, the change in Ivo, the change in Joni and himself, and Jami's presence in their home. They had never really celebrated Christmas while it had been just the three brothers, not properly. Back in Russia, they celebrated Christmas in January, and after moving to Finland... Well, they had had some poor excuse for a Christmas tree on the first two Christmases that they had lived there and Ivo had thought that it might cheer Dima up, who had been quite reserved then, mourning the loss of their parents.

Then one year Ivo had come home with decorative Christmas elves that in the end had proven to be a gift from a woman he had been dating and who had considered it horrific that someone didn't enjoy Christmas time. So then there had been those ugly elves all over the house whose mere sight had made Misha shudder, but the elves didn't end up having a long life. A year later, just before Christmas Eve, they had an "accident" that made them all fall and break into pieces.

This time it was different, Jami declared himself an enthusiastic Christmas person, he wanted a real tree in the house and he cleaned, hell, the small man even got Ivo to do Christmas cleaning and Misha was amazed. Joni and he were planning to go to Joni's parents on Christmas Eve, while Dima would spend it with Linda's family, and then by Christmas day, it would be all six of them together.

Joni's focus was still on his studies, but he had seen his agent and agreed to return to work in January, his first assignment was for a jeans campaign and negotiations for a sportswear campaign were also on a good way and now they were planning his training schedule with Misha. Everything was slowly falling into place. Joni continued with therapy less frequently and Misha finally confessed to him that he had nightmares. Now that they were living together there was no point in hiding things.

Jami, on the other hand, was somewhat depressed about the argument with his family. Joni figured that it was why the smaller man kept himself busy cleaning around the house so much. Joni had never enjoyed cleaning all that much, of course, he liked keeping things tidy, but... If he could pass the cleaning on to someone else, he did. He had somewhat lazily offered his help, but luckily for him, Jami had answered that he liked cleaning (as crazy as it sounded to Joni) so it was fine and Joni could continue concentrating on his things.

Two weeks before Christmas, Jami's twin brother Leevi came to visit. They weren't identical, Leevi was taller than Jami, around Joni's height, he wore glasses and his hair was blond, but there were similarities as well, the shape of their faces and noses, even their eyes so it was easy to recognize that they were brothers. Jami joked that it was Leevi's fault that he was so short, that the twin had stolen all the crucial nutrition while they were in their mother's womb.

Leevi seemed like an okay guy, he didn't have any problems with Ivo and even came to the conclusion that of all the guys he had seen with his brother, Ivo was a major improvement, especially after the married middle-aged man that their parents did not know of. Leevi swore that he would put in a good word for him with their parents. Jami's mother was already on the verge of giving up when she understood that their son had no intentions of visiting them, let alone joining their traditional family Christmas if his boyfriend was not accepted. Leevi's visit seemed to cheer Jami up slightly, at least he gave up on the rather obsessive cleaning which had started to annoy the three other men.

Of course, there was still the issue with Chris, the small threat that the man would still someday return in one way or another didn't disappear, it couldn't, not completely, while Chris still existed and they had to accept that and continue regardless. Adam, however, would continue to provide them with news on Chris' condition, and before Christmas Joni got a new update on that matter.

**^^**^^**^^**

Adam had arrived to spend Christmas in Finland with his wife, who had traveled earlier up north with their baby and one of their friends. Adam had decided to go visit Chris on the same trip, it was Christmas after all and he wanted to see how he was coping. He still kept his hopes up, praying in his mind that he would meet the friend he had thought he knew and not the violent monster that he had briefly turned into.

There were other inmates and their loved ones in the visiting room and Adam sat down to wait as they brought Chris there. His friend had lost some weight, that was obvious, the bruises were healed mostly but there remained a small scar on top of his broken nose. Chris, however, seemed calm and even smiled at the sight of him.

Adam took the receiver and waited for Chris to do the same.

"Merry Christmas," he greeted and Chris grinned and nodded.

"Is it?" He asked and then chuckled. "Nah, just kidding, Merry Christmas, I'm glad to see you."

"How have you been feeling? You've lost weight?"

"Ah yes, the doctors advised me to hold back from training because of my ribs, but it looks like I can start it up again after Christmas if I remember to take it easy, they said..." Chris shrugged. "So how are you man, how's the baby? It was a boy wasn't it?" He asked and Adam smiled. It was the first time Chris had asked anything about the child.

"Yes, he's growing up fast, he's already five months old," Adam explained studying his friend who nodded and smiled.

"Going up north?" Chris asked.

"Yeah, Suvi is already there with Aaron," Adam answered and Chris was quiet for a moment.

"Big family Christmas again?" He asked then, looking into Adam's eyes, tapping his fingers against the table. Adam sensed that his friend wanted to ask if Joni would be there, the smile on his face faltered, but he tried to keep it up.

"Nah, just Suvi's folks, siblings, and their grandparents."

"Oh, I see..." Chris frowned. "Seems like ages ago, doesn't it, since we were there together?" He chuckled but it had no real joy behind it. He sighed, shifting his gaze to the table and then to Adam.

"It does," Adam admitted sadly. "I brought you a present, I think they'll give it to you later."

"It wouldn't happen to be a file inside a cake?" Chris again tried to joke and then he grinned. "Sorry I didn't have time to buy you anything," he winked. "When I get out, I'll get something for your kid, it would be nice to see what he looks like."

Adam felt uncomfortable, he knew that Suvi wouldn't ever want Chris near their child, she wouldn't welcome Chris back into their lives. "I'll send you his picture if you like?" Adam offered.

"I would, thanks."

"How are the other inmates? Has there been any trouble lately?"

"They're okay, I've been left alone mostly but... I made a new friend actually." Chris grinned.

"Oh... a good friend?" Adam asked carefully.

"We have things in common," Chris winked. "Two gay men, sharing a mutual interest, yes we get along real well, we understand each other."

"I see..." Adam cleared his throat. "Well, you seem to be doing better, that's great to see."

"Yes, I've also taken part in some counseling. So don't you worry my friend, I'll get back on my feet just fine." Again Chris grinned and Adam smiled hesitantly.

"Was Joni happy about getting the pictures back?" Chris couldn't help but ask then.

"What do you think?" Adam asked in return and frowned.

"So yeah... Well, I hope... That he is fine and all that... I know you're going to call him so tell him Merry Christmas from me and to his folks as well... " Chris took a pause and grinned again. "Oh what the hell, tell his new boyfriend Merry Christmas as well, I'm in a good mood after all," he winked. "Time for forgiving and loving and all that, right?"

"Right..." Adam again felt weird, with Chris it was impossible to tell if he was sincere or not.

"I can change, you know... trust me. I need to change, once I get out I won't plan to return to a place like this. Ever." Chris stated, with a serious expression.

"I know you can change if you truly want to," Adam nodded looking into his eyes in a searching way which made the other smile.

"I want to," Chris assured. "I hope you'll keep in touch, you could write me letters and I'm going to hold you to that promise of your kid's picture."

"Sure, I'll write and I'll send you one" Adam promised. "You take care of yourself now, time will fly by sooner than you know."

"I know, I'm counting on it." Chris smiled. "You take care as well and enjoy your Christmas!"

When Adam left, he felt slightly better. Chris wanted to change and he had seemed a lot different than before, so perhaps it was possible. When Chris would eventually get out, Adam wanted to try and help his friend to get back into normal life, to make sure that he could.

Later, Adam did indeed call Joni. He told him about the meeting, saying that Chris had seemed calm and even sensible. He hesitantly told him that he had gotten the impression that Chris had met someone in jail, a friend, possibly a lover and that Chris had also wished him well and a merry Christmas. Chris wanted to change and Adam said he believed that his friend was honest.

Joni, on the other hand, was beginning to tire of the news of his ex. He didn't know how he felt about the innuendo that Chris had met a new lover. He wanted Chris to move on, if it meant that it was with someone he had met in jail, then good for them both, as long as he would never have to deal with Chris again. He couldn't change the past, he couldn't make it disappear, but he couldn't keep worrying about it either, end of the story.

Joni decided not to mention Chris's possible boyfriend to Misha either, knowing that the blond would instantly start to analyze the subject, probably assuming that Chris was lying, that it was just another plot. They didn't need this stuff anymore and Joni had other intentions for their Christmas than wondering about his ex.

**^^**^^**^^**

By Christmas, everything had settled. Jami was on speaking terms with his parents, but not enough to spend Christmas with them, since Ivo wasn't invited. Ivo on the other hand still irritated Misha at times but that was nothing new. Joni still lost his temper occasionally and behaved like a brat in Misha's mind, but it wasn't anything that he wouldn't have expected.

They had lived together for three weeks and only once had Joni wanted to sleep in Dima's bedroom because of a silly argument that made Joni insist that Misha didn't understand anything. Other than that, they were hardly able to keep their hands off each other, and pretty soon it was Jami who suffered from it the most, Ivo also snored at times and Misha got the barber earplugs as an early Christmas present.

Misha's nightmares also stopped, or at least they weren't quite as frequent or hopeless, once he had even been able to kick Chris' ass in the dream and woke up feeling quite smug about it, of course realizing that it was only a dream but still, it was some kind of victory as far as nightmares were concerned.

They had heard that Chris' appeal hadn't gone through, and his sentence and his compensation claims remained the same; at least there was some justice in that.

Christmas ended up being more enjoyable than it had been in years. Joni was happy to be with his family and happy with how well Misha seemed to fit into it. Children knew people best, Joni thought as he watched Misha interacting with them, his siblings had never really connected with Chris, of course, there had been the language issue, but Chris had never even really bothered to try. Now the twins were all over Misha, they were fascinated by his height and strength and Misha didn't mind answering their sometimes silly questions. At Christmas, Misha even connected with Sini, who had been somewhat intimidated by the tall Russian before. Now, when the blond agreed to carry her around piggy-back, while she played the princess on a horse, it was instant love.

They stayed the night since it was Joni's parents' wish and Asko perhaps needed to see that Joni wasn't running away with Misha forever. When they lay in bed together, side by side that night, fingers idly playing with the others', Joni smiled at the blond.

"Can we celebrate New Year's Eve just with each other?" He asked with a whisper. Ivo's friend was throwing a party to which they too were invited and they had thought about going without having settled anything yet.

"Sure, if you like," Misha answered and smiled back at him, studying him in the darkness.

"There's something that I want to give you but I'd rather give it when we're completely alone," Joni explained.

"Oh?" Misha made a small sound. He suddenly had ideas and hopes of what that could be, but he didn't want to seem too eager in case he was wrong. "What is it? Or is it a surprise?" He finally asked out of curiosity and Joni was silent at first before leaning closer to kiss him.

"I think you know..." The brunet whispered. "I just... for me to be able to relax, I need to know that there's no risk of someone suddenly bursting in the room and..."

"Ah..." Misha got the hint. "Yeah... Ivo can have that... timing issue..." Misha replied, suddenly slightly out of breath. Though they had a lock on their door, Ivo, being the idiot that he sometimes was (Misha thought), could come knocking on it at the worst timing, asking if they wanted to come downstairs to play poker with them or something similar. That thought put aside, Misha now remembered their first time quite vividly and started feeling quite hot. A week, now all he had to do was wait a week, he could do it, but it would feel like a long week knowing what was waiting for him at the end of it. "Yes... alone together... Sounds far better than a party by Ivo's crazy friends, I can't wait..." Misha murmured, kissing Joni again.

"I can't either..." Joni whispered back and moaned into the kiss that followed.

**^^**^^**^^**

The weather outside was rather depressing, you could hardly believe that it was December the thirty-first when you looked out of the window; there wasn't a hint of snow anywhere, instead, there was a gray sky and light rain. Neither of them felt any jealousy while Ivo and Jami got ready that evening to leave for the party.

"You sure you don't want to join us?" Ivo asked while putting on his shoes.

"Oh yes, very sure," Misha assured.

"Okay, so see you guys next year," Ivo winked and laughed at his lame joke.

"Yeah, have fun!"

"We will and