"Oh, dear God..." Jay cradled his face in his hands, too embarrassed to look at his lover any longer. "Why do we let them come to these things? We know they're going to act like this, they always do."

Jeff grinned in response. "Aw c'mon, they're having fun! Besides, they look kinda cute playing around."

"Cute?" Jay raised his head to give Jeff a dangerous glare. "Cute is what Adam is when he's asleep, and therefore not talking. Cute is what he is when he's confused because he's got the map upside down. Playing fucking air guitar, however, is not cute. Especially when he does it in front of all our co-workers."

"Well, I think it's cute."

"I think it's fucking humiliating. And Adam's quite restrained, comparatively." He nodded at Adam's dancing companion. "I don't know how you're ever going to show your face in the locker room again. You really should take his AC/DC albums away."

"Are you crazy? He'd chew my hands off." Jeff glanced over at his brother, who was having great difficulty staying upright in his inebriated state, but who nevertheless managed to get five successive hops in his terrible Angus Young impression before his leg gave out beneath him and he collapsed in a heap on the dancefloor. Watching his sibling, Jeff felt an ache of pride cross his chest in spite of Matt's idiotic antics.

"You need a boyfriend, that's what you need. Then people would associate you with him instead of with Matt, and him doing this sort of thing wouldn't matter. Unless you dated someone equally goofy, that is." Jay sighed heavily. "Of course, that still leaves me stuck with Jimi Hendrix over there..."

Jeff carefully skirted the subject of boyfriends. "Doesn't matter to me anyhow. I think it's pretty entertaining when Matt acts up like this. Free cabaret. All we need to do now is get him in drag."

"Don't you dare say that in front of Adam. I swear I'll kill you if he shows up at one of these parties in a dress," Jay threatened, grabbing his glass and tossing back the last of his drink. "Anyway, I've had all of this I can stand. I'm going to drag him away before he starts telling people intimate details about our sex life, like he did last time...it was weeks before people stopped sneaking leashes into my bags."

"Yeah, but you got some cool stuff out of it..." Catching the look on Jay's face, Jeff relented. "Okay, okay, I'll stop!"

Jay picked up his jacket and checked his pockets for his keycard, then paused. "Really Jeff, I don't know why you turn away everyone who asks you on a date. Trust me, having a boyfriend around can seriously improve your day, awful dancing notwithstanding. It'd be nice to see you with someone occasionally. Even though you've got Matt around, I worry about you being lonely."

Lowering his eyes, Jeff fiddled with his nails, immediately on the defensive. "I appreciate the concern, Jay. I'll think about it, okay?"

"Sorry man, I don't mean to intrude. It's just that you don't look very happy to me, and I care about you. Subject closed, I won't mention it again." Looking back at his boyfriend, Jay started to panic. "Oh God, he's starting to strip... I've got to get him out of here. I don't know if I'll see you again before you leave, so you guys have a good Christmas, alright? Take care."

Jeff raised his glass to Jay, something Jay didn't see as he was already halfway across the dancefloor, hurriedly grabbing Adam's hands and trying to distract him from his intended strip routine. Adam didn't seem too interested in being distracted until Jay pulled his head down and whispered something in his ear, and then he was suddenly transfixed.

"The manacles?" he asked with the stereotypical drunk's lack of volume control, causing half the room to stare at Jay's bright red face as he dragged an unresisting Adam from the party. Matt tried in vain to entice him back.

"Adam? Where y'goin'? C'm'ack here... we're havin' fun!" He tried one last-ditch attempt. "Everybody's doin' a brand new dance now... come on baby, do the locomotion... Adam? Adam!" His face was a picture of drunken disappointment. "Aw, nuts."

Having decided that having seizures on the dancefloor was no fun without someone similarly afflicted, Matt made his way back over to the table where Jeff sat, falling over only twice on the way.

Matt flopped into the seat next to his brother, a silly grin plastered all over his face. "Hey Jeff. You wanna dance wi'me?"

Jeff quickly moved his drink and Jay's empty glass out of the way as Matt slumped over the table, chin falling on his arms as he gazed up at his amused sibling. "No thanks, I think the show's over now Adam's gone. I'm not the type to strip in public."

Matt grinned even wider. "Liar..."

"Apart from that one time you swore you'd never mention again. Besides, us dancing together might make people suspicious, especially with your roving hands."

"Me? Rovin' hands? Never!" Matt asserted, with enough vigour that he nearly fell off his chair.

"Well it better be you, because if that's Pat Patterson's hand on my thigh I'm going to go over there and slap the shit out of him."

"Think yoursel' lucky, Heyman tried to corner me wi'mistletoe earlier - gross!"

Jeff looked sideways at Matt. "Actually, I find him kinda sexy..."

Matt stared, although he could have just been trying to refocus all the Jeffs into one. "Tha's sick. You're a twisted, twisted man." The silly grin was back. "Course, I'm still gonna fuck your brains out when we go to bed."

Jeff's thighs and abdomen tensed as a shiver of lust ran through him, but he was secretly glad that Matt was so drunk he'd doubtless pass out as soon as he got into bed.

"Matt!" Jeff's voice was full of outrage.

"What'd I do?" Matt shouted back as he walked towards the kitchen and the source of Jeff's yell.

"Did you put bells on my dog?!"

"What dog?" Matt asked, walking through the door. "Ain't nobody here but us reindeer."

"See, that was going to be my next question," Jeff stated, tapping his foot on the floor as he saw the antlers on his brother's head, which appeared to exactly match the ones on Liger. "What the hell are they?"

"They're antlers on elastic," Matt told him, snapping the elastic strung under his chin for emphasis, "and I happen to think they're cool."

"I happen to think you're a fucking moron..." Jeff mumbled, bending down to slip the antlers off Liger's head.

Unable to resist such a tempting target, Matt slapped Jeff's ass hard, too busy falling around laughing when Jeff jumped a mile in the air to notice his eyes narrowing.

"Oh, you little bitch..."

Matt yelped as Jeff dropped the antlers and lunged at him, taking off through the living room and making it as far as the couch before Jeff tackled him and twisting as he fell so that he landed on his back. A split second later, Jeff had straddled him and was tickling him mercilessly.

"Help! Help! Cruelty to animals!" Matt yelled between giggles, trying unsuccessfully to throw Jeff off him. After a moment, he gave up and took a good firm grip on his ass instead. "Okay, I'll make it up to you. I'll kiss it better."

Jeff stopped tickling him, and pushed his ass back into Matt's massaging hands despite the little sad voice inside him. He felt his breathing speed up and his cock start to respond, and he had to work hard to get his mind back to the issue at hand.

"Matt, why did you put bells on my dog?"

"Because Witty wouldn't stay still long enough," Matt told him seriously, before whining when Jeff slapped his hands away.

"Go and get them off him, Matt, they're confusing the hell out of him." He clambered off and folded his arms, glaring at his brother.

"Aw, but can't I..."

"Now, Matt."

Matt grumbled under his breath about Scrooges and Grinches, then obediently left the room calling, "Here, Rudolph..."

Jeff smiled and shook his head at Matt's childishness, sitting himself down on the floor next to the pile of presents he'd put there to be wrapped before they saw their relatives. He quickly became so engrossed in his task he barely even heard Matt's comments on his way back through the room as he headed upstairs, catching only the words 'fucking spoilsport' and 'bah humbug'.

Being so caught up in wrapping gifts, Jeff lost track of time and was surprised when he finally looked up at the clock and discovered it was only a few minutes until Christmas Day. They had a strict rule about not opening presents before they went to bed, so he knew that after only a few hours sleep, he and Matt would be fighting each other to get down the stairs first, desperate to lay hands on the packages under the tree which had been driving them both insane with curiosity ever since they'd got home.

They'd spent hours with the gifts the night they'd got home, shaking them, squeezing them, prodding them, trying to work out what was in each of them. Matt had shaken one of his a little too enthusiastically, and the ensuing clatter had suggested that whatever was inside the package was, as Matt had put it, 'undefuckable'. He'd looked so adorably pissy and offended with the present that for a moment Jeff had wanted to go over and kiss him silly, before reality had set in on him again and he'd decided that he really didn't want to go anywhere near Matt.

Feeling his mood begin to sour, Jeff was grateful for the living room door slamming open, thinking that the foolish behaviour Matt usually lapsed into at this time of year might help distract him from his longing.

He was right. It took a few seconds before his brain accepted the sight in the doorway but once it did, Jeff burst into a fit of hysterical giggles.

"Little boys who laugh at Santa don't get any presents," a gruff voice informed him sulkily.

"Matt, what the hell are you wearing?"

"Matt's not here, he had to nip out for a while," 'Santa' said, "but he asked me to pay a personal visit. Said he wasn't really sure whether you'd been naughty or nice this year, so I ought to check for myself. So, little boy, wanna come sit on my knee and tell me how good you've been?" He sat down in one of their big armchairs and patted his lap invitingly.

Still sniggering at Matt's red velvet jacket and pants, and the hat with a long white beard and moustache attached, Jeff walked over and perched delicately on Matt's knee. He almost purred in contentment when one of his brother's strong arms was wrapped around his back, the hand falling across his hip and its fingers stroking Jeff's abdomen through his pants, while the other hand rested on his thigh.

"I notice you haven't left a glass of sherry out for me... maybe you should give me something else instead." The effect was slightly spoiled when Matt had to fight a sneeze, the itchy beard tickling him half to death.

"Like what?" Jeff asked, his melancholy mood momentarily forgotten.

"Well... sing me a song."

Jeff blinked, and wracked his brain for a second before the perfect song occurred to him. Mischief written all over his face, he began his rendition of a well-known children's favourite. "Hey Santa Claus, you cunt, where's me fuckin' bike? I've opened all this other stuff, there's nothin' there I like..."

"Ho ho fucking ho. I was thinking of something more along the lines of 'Santa Baby'," Matt told him grumpily, using both hands to shove him to the floor, where Jeff landed with a thump.

"Ow! Santa, you bastard, you've bruised my ass now! First Matt, now you, my ass'll be black and blue before the holiday season's over..." Jeff pouted and rubbed at his sore rear end.

"Aw, let me help you with that, little boy," Matt said with a leer, slipping off the couch and over Jeff's body until he'd pressed Jeff back to the floor.

Jeff watched enthralled as Matt's face grew closer and closer, even the silly fake beard not enough to disguise Matt's full, soft lips, and the seconds as they approached his own seemed to take forever. He felt like he was burning with the anticipation, and he shifted his gaze a little to look into Matt's eyes, the sparkle of impishness in them lighting up the dark depths and bringing Jeff's longing back to the surface.

Trying to keep his emotions under control, he pushed Matt away and hauled himself to his feet, quickly turning away so Matt couldn't see his face.

Matt pulled himself back up into the chair, yanking the hat and beard off and watching Jeff with concern. "Jeff? Did I do something wrong?"

"No, no, it's not you, Matt," Jeff said, attempting to pull himself together and taking a deep breath. "I'm just not really sure if I can do this anymore."

"What? What's wrong, little brother?" Matt's voice sounded heavy, but Jeff told himself it was just surprise.

"I'm not so little anymore, Matt," Jeff said quietly. "I don't want the same things now that I did a few years ago."

"Come and sit down, Jeff. Talk to me."

Hesitantly, Jeff turned around and went to sit in the chair next to Matt, keeping his eyes on the ground for fear he wouldn't be able to keep his resolve if he looked at Matt's face.

"I know you haven't been happy lately, Jeff. Hell, everyone knows. Even Adam asked me last week if you were okay, and he's about as insensitive as you can be without being a brick. I didn't want to push you, but God, if I'd known it was this serious... are you sure it isn't anything we can solve?"

"I don't think so." Jeff finally looked up, and he was shocked at how visibly shaken Matt was. He gave him a wan smile. "Come on Matt, it's not the end of the world. You don't get anything from me you couldn't get from someone else."

"Yes I do," Matt said, looking so downcast Jeff almost threw his decision aside. "I don't understand, Jeff. Tell me what it is you want. Whatever it is, I'll do my best to give it to you."

"Matt, you can't. We'll both be happier this way." Even as he said it, Jeff wasn't sure that was the truth.

"Aren't you even going to tell me what it is I'm not capable of? If I'm not good enough, I'd at least like to know why." Matt felt he'd like to be angry, but after such a sudden blow he didn't have the energy.

"I'm not sure I can explain properly..." Jeff sighed and shifted in his seat. "Well, when I was a kid, all I wanted was a big brother to look up to and to protect me, and you gave me that. Then when I was in my teens all I was really interested in was achieving as many orgasms as humanly possible, and you sure as hell gave me that. We've had an awful lot of fun. But I'm all grown up now Matt, I want bigger things.

"I want to settle down. I want someone to love me completely, and let me love them back. You've got a couple of years on me, you must know how I'm feeling. Thing is, I can't help wanting that from you. And if I don't get out now, then when the day comes that you find the man for you, it's going to kill me to see you leave. I can't keep on going through life wondering if today's the day you tell me you've fallen in love with someone."

Relieved to have reached the end of his explanation, Jeff let out a long breath. "You'll get used to it, Matt." He wasn't sure what response he expected, but he was taken aback to hear Matt laugh.

"Did it never occur to you I might have fallen in love already?"

Jeff jumped to his feet, a wave of nausea sweeping over him as he turned his back on Matt and paced to the other side of the room. "Jesus Christ, Matt, I don't need to hear this right now. I don't want to know who he is, I don't want..." He stopped short when he turned around and walked right into Matt. He hadn't even heard him get up.

"Did it never occur to you I might have fallen in love with you?"

Jeff took a step backwards, not sure he'd heard right. "What?"

"You never thought I might love you too? God, I can't tell you the number of times I've been inches from blurting it out."

A tiny smile crept onto Jeff's face. "Really?"

"Yes, really." Seeing Jeff smile brought a matching expression to Matt's face, the same way it always did. "I always stopped myself because I thought I'd scare you away. At one time I felt kinda like you must now, but in the end I decided I'd just have to be as much fun as I could, make you want to stay for as long as possible. Must have worked."

Jeff stared for a second, completely dumbstruck, then he bolted at his brother and wrapped his arms around him, hanging on for dear life. He felt the future which had looked so dark a few moments before unfold ahead of him, full of promise, when Matt immediately brought his own arms up to twine around him. As many times as they'd hugged in the past, this time he felt like their souls were bleeding into each other. Neither of them could have said how long they stood there, but when they broke apart they both knew the complexion of their relationship had changed.

"You're so silly sometimes," Matt said affectionately, placing a chaste kiss on Jeff's cheek and taking his hand. "Come on. It's Christmas Eve and all I want to do is curl up in bed with the man I love."

"It's Christmas Day," Jeff contradicted absently as Matt pulled him towards the staircase.

"Whatever. I still want to curl up in bed with the man I love."

All Jeff could do was grin stupidly. "I love you too."

Matt yanked him close and kissed him again, this time on his forehead. "I've wanted to hear you say that for a long time. Now, are you going to walk up those stairs, or do I have to sling you over my shoulder?"

"Aren't you a bit too old for that sort of thing, Santa?" Jeff asked, beginning to recover from his pleasant surprise.

"Old? I'll show you..." Matt threw his smirking brother over his shoulder and started up the stairs.

"This is all Adam's fault, you know." Jeff glared at his drinking companion.

"Adam's fault?! How the hell is this Adam's fault?!" Jay spluttered.

"If Matt didn't have a partner in crime, he wouldn't do this shit."

"It's NOT Adam's fault! It's your fault!"

"It is not!"

"Yes it is, I told you not to mention that stupid drag idea in front of him!"

"Well, he didn't have to listen to me."

"I swear, Hardy, one of these days, I'll give you the kicking you deserve..."

"Pfft, the hell you will. What's this party for again, anyway?"

"Week After New Year Party. Duh."

"Fine. That almost makes sense. Doesn't explain the one planned for next week though."

"End of the Second Week in January Party."

"Jesus... who comes up with this shit?"

"Matt, actually."

Jeff sighed. "I wish I could deny that... I don't know how he dreams up this stuff, I only suggested he come in a dress."

"Well, you know Adam and Matt, never ones to do things by halves." Jay warily glanced over at the dancefloor, but hurriedly looked away again when he caught sight of his lover's behaviour.

"Ain't that the truth. Mind you, it seems to be going down well with the rest of the guys." Jeff nodded over at the crowd gathered around Matt and Adam.

"Yeah. I think they like the garters."

"Has to be said though, Matt and Adam still can't fucking dance."

"God, no. They look like hippos on speed."

"In dresses."

"Yeah. You know, I'm kind of surprised how much effort they put in on this." Jay waved a hand at the costumes being worn by the aforementioned hippos.

"Matt made the headbands out of the silly antlers he bought over Christmas. He had a hell of a time finding the ostrich feathers." Jeff shook his head. "I still can't believe he fucking did this... how could he show me up like this?"

"I thought you said it was cute when they did this sort of stuff?"

Jeff grinned. "Things have changed."

"Time to drag them away, do you think? They're going to break their necks in those heels."

"Yeah, definitely. Okay, into battle we go..."