Chris sat back in the recliner in Lance’s living room, observing his friends with a small smile. Lance and Joey were working together, stringing the lights onto the tree while Justin stood by and directed them – not that his “suggestions” were all that appreciated. Still, they joked and laughed as they finally felt like the world wasn’t on their shoulders anymore.

Yesterday they’d gotten the best news they could’ve hoped for: the lawsuit was finally settled and, best of all, they got to keep their name and doing what they loved. There were still some details to be ironed out, but none of them cared. They all felt better than they had in months, and they could celebrate Christmas without the impending “what if” hanging over their heads.

Chris glanced over at the couch where JC was sitting and his smiled slipped slightly. It was clear that JC was content to sit back and let the others do the hard work, but Chris could tell he wasn’t completely there. JC’s foot unconsciously tapped out the beat to the Christmas music playing softly in the background even as he chewed at his lip.

Smoothly, Chris moved from the chair to next to JC on the couch. JC glanced at him as he felt the couch dip from the added weight, but he said nothing and returned his gaze to a spot in front of him. Chris wrapped an arm around JC’s shoulders.

“It’s gonna be all right,” he told JC quietly. The others had finished with the lights and were putting tinsel on the tree.

JC laid his head against Chris’s shoulder. “I know.” He sighed. “I’m happy. It’s just hard to jump from one extreme to another.”

Chris just nodded. Going into yesterday they’d been dealing with months of anxiety and worry over the lawsuit and what it meant for their future. Then, they’re told they essentially won and a feeling of elation took over. It was strange because the months of anxiety had taught them to expect the worst…only it hadn’t happened. It would take a couple days to really sink in, but they were more than ready to get back in the studio – this time with complete creative control.

“Hey,” Joey said suddenly, looking over his shoulder at them. “Are you guys gonna help or just continue to sit there and be lazy?”

“Lazy? We were the ones who decorated the house. All you’re doing is the tree. If anyone’s lazy it’s you.” Chris winked at JC, and JC smiled.

Joey rolled his eyes. “Yeah, well, someone had to go shopping and get food.”

“All right. Enough chitchat,” Lance said. “Let’s get this done.”

“Wow, someone’s Grinchy.”

Justin grinned at Chris. “Good one, man.”

“I’m not Grinchy or grouchy,” Lance defended, glaring at the smirk on Chris’s face. “I want to be done so we can sit back, relax, and enjoy it.”

JC got up from the couch and crouched down in front of the couple of boxes near the bottom of the tree. “Are these all the ornaments?”

“Everything’s there,” Lance said, nodding.

Together, the five of them hung the ornaments. They sang along to Christmas songs and laughed when they got tangled around each other when two of them would try to put ornaments around the same area at the same time. Finally, all that was left was to put the star on top.

JC held up the gold star tree topper. “Who wants to put the star on?”

“Me!” Justin immediately plucked it from JC’s hand. He glanced at them. “’Cause I’m a star.”

Joey rolled his eyes again and playfully slapped Justin upside the head. “We’re all stars.”

“Well, I’m the tallest.”

There was no argument to that, and Justin nodded, satisfied. He got up on his tiptoes and reached his long arm so he could put the star on top of the seven foot tree. Once it was on, he stepped back to admire his handiwork.

“There. Perfect.”

JC tilted his head. “Actually, I think it’s crooked.”

“No it’s not,” Justin denied, glaring at him.

“It’s leaning.”

As the two of them got into a playful argument about the placement of the star with Lance and Joey adding their two cents, Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas came on the radio. Chris couldn’t help but smile, knowing there was truth in the lyrics. They could finally put all of their worries behind them and focus on the bright future that lied ahead.

It was indeed a Merry Christmas.