Author's Note: Here's the final chapter, guys! Thanks again to peppermenttea on tumblr for requesting this. It was really fun to write SuFin for the first time, but I'm sorry if I botched it up. I tried, haha.

Why is it that all of Tino's friendships crash and burn like this? Can't he just have one meaningful relationship with someone for once without it ending in an emotional catastrophe? Is he doomed to be alone and friendless forever?

He stands outside the dorm room for a long while, debating whether or not go in. Berwald deserves his space at the moment, and maybe it'd be best to just leave him alone until things cool down. Except, where is he supposed to go? Berwald is the only true friend he's made since the start of the semester, and he can't exactly knock on a stranger's dorm and ask to spend the night with them.

It's cold, but he steps outside and finds a bench to sit on anyway. He'll head back in an hour. Is that too soon? What if Berwald never forgives him for prying? He'll sit out here all day if it means earning the young man's trust back.

He tugs the sleeves of his coat over his hands, curls into himself, and prepares for a long, sleepless, and anxiety-filled night—not unlike his first day on campus. He watches the autumn leaves in the trees above him break from their branches and float down to the ground—shades of yellows, reds, and browns. Swedish trees really are a sight to behold this time of year.

A gust of wind ruffles his hair, and he shudders. He should be used to the cold by now, and yet, every passing year seems to feel colder and colder the older he gets.

He lowers his head to his knees and daydreams, wondering what things are like back home and whether he is missed. How will he ever manage to live on his own and support himself if he can't even survive university and has to sit stranded out here on a bench? Is this foreshadowing what his future holds? This is why he needs a roommate who likes him—he needs someone to tell him to stop being melodramatic.

"Tino?"

He lifts his head, sniffles against the cool air, and sees the last person he expected to come after him. "Berwald, I'm sorry… I didn't—"

"I overreacted," Berwald admits, just as apologetic and remorseful. "I'm not angry with you. I'm angry with Mathias… And I was embarrassed."

Tino slides himself over to one side of the bench to make room for Berwald to sit next to him. "Embarrassed? Why would you be embarrassed?"

Berwald clears his throat softly and tinkers with his glasses to calm his nerves. "You know…"

"I'm not sure I do."

"About having been with Mathias… I was worried you might think less of me… That you would think it was inappropriate."

Tino feels the muscles in his face tug his lips into a frown. "You thought I wouldn't be okay with you liking guys?"

"Yes."

"Why would you worry about something like that? Even if I wasn't okay with it, you shouldn't be bothered by what other people think. You are who you are, and you shouldn't change that for anyone just because someone else thinks it's not right," Tino tells him with unwavering confidence.

"I was going to tell you, but Mathias managed to do it before me. Sorry."

"You think I'm offended that I found out from Mathias and not from you?"

"Aren't you?"

"Of course not! I thought you were offended that I found out from Mathias and not from you"

Berwald lets out a heavy sigh. "This is why I can't have friends. It's too confusing."

Tino laughs and pats Berwald's back. "I know how you feel."

"I mean, I was angry at first, but I soon realized I was angrier with myself than anyone else."

"You should never have to be angry or ashamed of something like that."

"I know, but I am anyway. Sometimes, I want to be… normal."

So, that's it, then. Berwald isn't some scary, intimidating guy. He's just a boy with as many insecurities as anybody else.

"What even is normal?" Tino asks with a serious expression. "Everybody has something that sets them apart, and if I've learned anything from being around Mathias for too long, it's that trying to fit in is a wasted effort. I think the lesson I was supposed to learn from all of this—if I have to find the silver-lining—is that we need to accept ourselves, and stop trying to be the people we're not, or else we'll never be happy. Everyone has a mask they wear nowadays because they're so afraid of others seeing them without it, and I know now that I don't want to be that way. I don't want to be normal."

Berwald looks down at his lap and, once again, Tino is filled with the overwhelming need to make him smile—to make him feel at peace and remind him he's not alone.

"Since we're being honest and open…" Tino begins, finally feeling ready to say what needs to be said right at this moment because he may not get another chance to do so. He owes it to Berwald to give him an explanation of his own. "

"We have something in common. I'm like you."

"Oh," Berwald mumbles, snapping his head up in surprise. "Really?"

"Yeah."

"Did you always know?"

"Not always, but I think I knew there was something different about me when I was a kid," Tino says, and it's like a lead block has been lifted off of his chest. That wasn't as hard as he thought it would be, and he's so impossibly relieved to have admitted it. He hasn't even been able to tell his own parents about his feelings, but somehow, he was able to tell Berwald without hesitation. Is he dreaming? When did he become so forward and courageous?

"Thank you."

"For what?"

"For telling me. I know it isn't easy."

"Oh, sure," Tino chuckles with a grin, feeling both awkward and not. Normally, this would be the most uncomfortable conversation he could have with another person, but Berwald doesn't make it feel strange or odd at all. In fact, he's pretty relaxed and cordial about it. "So, you see, I'm not normal either."

"That's good. I'd be disappointed if you were," Berwald replies with a smirk. "Let's go inside. It's cold."

Tino has never been one to believe in soulmates or movie-like romances with happy endings and oodles of fluff. Nevertheless, as he trails behind Berwald and makes his way back for their dorm, he feels a prickling excitement in his stomach and pictures himself and Berwald growing old beneath these Swedish trees. It's silly, of course, but he lets himself be foolishly happy. He feels like he's walking on air.

He stares at the back of Berwald's head and sees him in a completely different light. Just like that, he's no longer only a friend. He's something more important—more long-lasting. He can imagine dragging Berwald to the cinema with him, and going out to dinner together, and talking about how youth is wasted on the young, and not needing anyone else except each other. It's as though just for the briefest second, he's able to peek into the future and see himself in a way he's never seen himself before.

"Are you okay?" Berwald asks, noticing how quiet he's become.

"Yes. I'm great. Really great," he assures before walking through the doorway.

It's time to talk to Mathias again.

Tino isn't feeling vengeful, nor is he out to get him in any way. Rather, he just wants to get to the bottom of what's been bothering him. He has always believed that people aren't mean or evil by nature—something makes them act in the ways they do, and if there's something he can do to help Mathias get some closure, he wants to let him know he's here to offer support.

"Knock, knock, open up!" Tino shouts, mimicking Mathias' tone as he bangs on his door.

There's the sound of something falling on the floor before the door comes squeaking open halfway. "What do you want?"

It's nine o'clock in the morning, but it appears Mathias is still dressed in the clothes he slept in and hasn't made an effort to comb his hair (not that he ever does anyway). He must have had a rough night because he doesn't look nearly as jovial and irritatingly peppy as he usually is.

"Are you okay?" Tino asks, worried.

"Yeah, I just… I've had a lot on my mind, and I have this headache I can't get rid of."

"I can come back later if this is a bad time."

"Nah, it's all right. Come in—my roommate's in class."

Tino's fairly taken aback at how well he's being received. Just the other day, he could've sworn Mathias hated him. He keeps his guard up and makes a mental note to be vigilant in case this is a trick. He follows Mathias and searches for a place to sit, except the dorm is an absolute mess. Clothes and junk are strewn everywhere—the polar opposite of what Tino and Berwald's dorm looks like.

Mathias clears some clothes off of the nearest chair and tells him to sit. "Sorry for the mess."

"It's okay. Believe it or not, I've seen worse."

"Hah, no kidding?" Mathias snickers, except his laughter is missing some of its energy. He leans against the couch but doesn't sit on it, too antsy to stay in one place, apparently. Instead, he paces back and forth as he talks, and it reminds Tino of how he was buzzing around that time when he ran him over with his bike. "So, what do you want?"

"I just wanted to talk and make sure you were okay. You've been kind of tense lately."

Mathias, understandably, is suspicious. "Uhhh, I'm fine."

"Did you talk to Berwald? I think you guys should work things out."

"Yeah, well, you can keep your suggestions to yourself," Mathias snaps before quickly chiding himself. "Sorry, that wasn't fair. Anyway, it's not like Berwald would talk to me anyway. He doesn't want anything to do with me."

"Is that why you keep trying to find creative ways to annoy him into talking to you?"

Mathias scoffs and takes a sip from a stale soda bottle that's been perched on the coffee table for who knows how long. "Berwald's been putting up with me for a long time, and he's going to have to keep doing it."

"Why does it have to be about 'putting up with you' when you guys can just talk things out and be friends? Wouldn't that be easier and less stressful for you both?" Tino asks, confused as to why Mathias has to overcomplicate things.

"He wouldn't be my friend."

"How do you know that? I'm sure he would if you reached out to him. He's friendlier than he seems."

Mathias rolls his eyes. "You say that as though you've known him longer than I have."

"I know I've been more nosy than I have any right to be lately, but I just can't live in these dorms like this when I know there's bad blood between the three of us. I want a truce," Tino explains, trying to show that he's being as sincere as possible and doesn't have any hidden motives.

Mathias sighs and rubs at his head roughly, probably agitating his headache even more. "Berwald and I have been like this toward each other for so long that I don't even know how to act like 'friends' around him anymore. Back when I first met him, he was the only one who didn't judge me like the rest of the damn world, you know what I mean? I just talked and he listened, and it was nice. I'd never had anyone do that for me before—just hear what I have to say."

Tino nods. He, too, has been on the receiving end of Berwald's rapt attention.

"He let me talk about my messed up family and didn't care when I was rambling or being dramatic. I threw way too much emotional baggage on him, but he never seemed to mind. I never could understand how someone could be so calm and collected all of the time, no matter how much you pushed them. It's like he makes it his job to observe the world and not participate in it, which bothered the hell out of me. I wanted him to participate. I wanted him to get angry with me and go party until our heads were spinning or whatever, and he just wanted different things. So, he left me."

"I'm sorry."

Mathias shakes his head slowly and cradles it in one hand. "No, don't be. It was the right thing. We weren't good for each other. I was destructive for both us, and it wasn't good. It got bad sometimes. Really bad, and when he left, I didn't know what to do because he was the only one I had. I didn't have a family or any real friends—just fake people who I would talk to in passing. All I had was Berwald, and even he was sick of me."

"He wasn't sick of you. You said it yourself—you guys just wanted different things," Tino murmurs.

"I couldn't accept it though. It was like someone close to me had died. I couldn't let go. He was my emotional crutch, which sounds really awful and sick—I guess it kind of was—but I didn't think about it in that way before… And then you came along. I see the way he looks at you. It's the real deal."

Tino furrows his brows and tries to ignore the rising warmth in his neck and ears. "What do you mean?"

"Aww, come on, you can't be that blind. He likes you. A lot. You got him to talk—most people can't even get him to do that. So, the question now is, do you like him back?"

"I-I think so."

"No, you have to know not think. Nobody hurts his heart, you got it? You're either in it all the way or not at all," Mathias warns, wagging a finger at Tino.

Tino lets out a short laugh and long stream of breath, thinking hard. "Okay, but first, I need you to promise me something."

"Hey, I don't do favors for anyone."

"Not even a tiny one that'll benefit you as well? I want you to talk with Berwald. Please? He won't hate you, I promise. If you want, I'll even let him know beforehand that—"

"No! Don't mention anything!" Mathias quickly cuts in. "I'll talk to him, but if he hates my guts afterward, you're dead. Understood?"

This is a risk Tino isn't afraid to take. "Okay. Understood."

"Good, now get out of my room because my head is killing me."

Berwald's missing.

Tino has pretty much memorized the other boy's schedule by now, and he knows Berwald should have returned to the dorm an hour ago. This can mean only one of two things: he's getting food, or he's hiding in the place he always goes to when he's trying to get away from society—the park.

He checks the dining hall first and doesn't find him there, and so, it has to be the second of the two possibilities. He looks for Berwald's car in the parking lot, checking the usual spot it's in, and sees that it's still there.

He hardly has enough time to feel concerned when he hears someone behind him say, "Hey."

"Berwald, hi. I thought you were going to the park."

"I was, but I was waiting for you. I knew you would come looking for me," Berwald says with a smile. It's nice to see him smiling more often. "I know how much you love Swedish trees and thought I'd take you along," he jokes, pursing his lips.

Tino turns red and laughs before hopping into the passenger's side of the car, ready to go. "I sure do. Come on, then!"

Berwald is happy to oblige, and soon, they're off. Tino rolls down the window and sticks his head out, letting the wind rush over his face. He wants to stay in this moment forever, and when they reach the park, Tino has to reluctantly yank himself out of the car to follow Berwald to his usual spot by the lake.

"Mathias told me about how you went to visit him."

"Ahh, I figured he would," Tino says sheepishly.

"Thank you for what you did. It's going to take time, but I think things are going to be okay between us again, and… It feels good to not have to feel frustrated every other morning when he barges in to steal something of mine," Berwald grumbles, both pleased and a tad exasperated by the whole situation.

"You don't have to thank me."

"Yes, I do. I owe you. I have to give you something to show my gratitude. What do you want?"

Tino shrugs his shoulders and says between a bout of chuckles, "Swedish trees."

"I'd give you all of the trees in Sweden if I could," Berwald says, returning the laugh. "As long as you give me something from Finland to remember you by."

Tino crosses his arms in mock frustration. "Nope, you can't have any Finnish stuff. It's too sacred."

"I didn't think you could be so mean."

"I can't help it sometimes," Tino says lightly before a new idea sparks in his mind. "I can give you something else though."

"What?"

"Close your eyes."

Oblivious, Berwald does so, and Tino watches his blue eyes disappear from view.

Tino bites his lip for a second, musters all of the bravery and brashness that he's built up since he started university, and leans forward to kiss Berwald. It's quick and soft, and if he thinks about it for too long, Tino has to wonder if it really happened in the first place. When he pulls back, Berwald has already opened his eyes and is blinking at him in astonishment.

Tino waits for him to say something, and it's as though an eternity passes.

"Better than any Finnish trees you could give me," Berwald mumbles finally.

Tino throws his head back with an airy laugh and lets himself fall in the plush grass behind him.

It's going to be a great four years.