Ivan sucked in a breath.
His heart was pounding in his chest, and his nerves were dangerously frayed.
He'd been keeping the secret of dating Yao tucked away from his family for months, but he knew he had to tell. He couldn't go on faking and lying and pretending any longer.
He had let his older sister know everything about them, of course, because he trusted her. He told her when he discovered his sexuality, and he told her when he met who is surely the most beautiful man he'd ever met. She kept all his secrets, but he couldn't keep them from everyone else any longer.
Ivan sat down at the barstool at their counter top. His father scrubbed meticulously at a grease stain on a plate, hardly paying Ivan any mind.
Ivan and his father usually got along just fine. There were the typical clashes in personality, of course, with Ivan being a gentle, warm, excitable person, and his father being an uptight man who had trouble expressing himself.
Ivan had a bad feeling in the back of his mind, he had the worst of outcomes visualized, only able to hope desperately that they wouldn't come true. He didn't think he could handle it if things went too far south.
"Dad?" Ivan asked gently, his eyes flickering to Iryna, who stood out of their fathers sight in a door way. She sent him a reassuring look, her eyes soft.
Ivan's father looked up, his face unreadable, as usual. "Yes, what is it?"
"I need to talk to you... Can we, please?"
His father gave a tiny sigh. "Yes, fine. Let's sit at the table."
Ivan nodded and nearly sped for the table, feeling the heavy feeling of discomfort and fear settling in his stomach and bouncing around with every step he took.
His father sat stiffly, watching Ivan with that same odd expression nobody knew how to figure out.
"I need to tell you something important, okay?"
"Yes, yes, that's fine, go on."
"I..." Ivan felt the words sink into his throat. "I... I'm..."
He took in a deep breath, his violet eyes shut. "Dad, I'm dating Yao Wang. I have been for about five months."
His dad's expression did not change, but that almost made it worse. He didn't know what his father thought, and that made his nerves shatter even further.
"Yao Wang? That Chinese boy you brought over that one time?"
"Yes sir."
"You're... dating him? Dating?"
Ivan saw the distaste brewing on his fathers face, and it made him wish for the ambiguous face once again.
"Yes, I am. I'm dating him, dad."
His dad stared at him for a long, drawn out minute, in which I and face burned painfully, and sweat beaded up from the anxiety.
After the dead silence, his dad spoke.
"Get out."
Ivan's face fell, and his heart went to mush in his chest.
"W-what?"
"You heard me, you need to get out." His father said, his voice dark and unappealing. "Get out of my house until you decide to stop dating this ridiculous boy!"
Ivan's nostrils flared at the insult to Yao, but his disbelief and pain clouded that.
"You're making me leave?! Over what, the fact that I like a man and not a woman?"
"I disliked that boy from the start, but you've gone and made it worse by dating him. When you decide to date a woman that I approve of, you can move back in."
Ivan shook his head. He moved past disbelief and went straight to blind fury. How people could be so harsh because of something like this would always be beyond him.
"Well, I guess I'm never coming back then, am I?"
Ivan left the room, his rage and blind despair fueling him. Iryna followed after him, her distress prevalent.
Ivan snatched a suitcase from his closet and began stuffing clothes into it. He didn't bother folding them, he just stuffed them where they fit. He tossed some other objects of his on top and zipped it shut. He turned around to find Iryna in his bedroom doorway. She gazed at him sadly, her eyes melted and gentle, only wishing him the best.
She surged forward and threw her arms around his neck, pulling him down a bit to match her height. He hugged right back, in desperate need of it.
"Ivan, I can't believe he's kicking you out! He can't do that, can he? Why are you leaving, Ivan?" Her distress picked up with each question.
"I'm not welcome, and that's clear to me..." He murmured, pulling away from the hug slowly. "I love you, sis, but I'm not going to stay here where I'll feel unwelcome by him."
"Where are you going to go?"
"I need to make a stop somewhere, and then I'll find a hotel for the night until I can find long term plans. I'm seventeen, so it's only about a year until I'd move out anyway."
Iryna sighed. "Okay... Please stay safe, Ivan, keep in contact with me, alright?"
"I will." Ivan said.
So with that, he grabbed his suitcase and left. His father didn't speak a word about it.
...
Ivan's suitcase bumped viciously on its wheels against the concrete sidewalk. He felt blind outrage and loathing pushing him onwards. He felt his eyes crinkled inwards in the most unpleasant way, and his jaw sat clenched in displeasure.
Simply put, he was angry.
Beyond angry.
Boiling with fury.
Until the intensity of the situation hit him.
Then he wasn't furious...
He was miserable.
He broke down in tears, his heart clenching and his eyes now squeezed shut. He stopped walking and collapsed on the doorstep of the nearest house.
In his downfall, he hadn't realized what house he showed up at.
Upon hearing a strange sound, Yao came to the door to investigate, only to find his usually cheerful boyfriend reduced to a puddle.
Yao instantly dropped everything and raced to Ivan's side, tossing his arm around him and squeezing it tight. He wanted to ask what was wrong, but he needed to get Ivan to relax a bit first, for the sobbing was so painful for Yao to listen to. He despised the sound of his boyfriend breaking apart inside, and he would give anything for the feeling to go away.
Ivan's breath hitched as he took in a breath, trying to relax the sobs. He hiccuped, his body still trembling. He felt Yao's slender arm around his shoulders, helping him relax.
Once Ivan had quieted a bit, only sharp breaths and shuddering exhales coming sporadically, Yao spoke.
"Ivan... Ivan are you okay...-" Yao started, before correcting himself. "I take that back, you defiantly aren't okay... But... God, Ivan, what happened?"
Ivan turned his reddened face towards Yao's, which was twisted with concern. Even in the dusk of the city, Yao's eyes burned brightly and intensely, and they brought Ivan comfort.
"My dad..." Ivan choked out.
Yao's eyes flared. "Your dad? He didn't hit you, right? Ivan, did he lay a hand on you-"
"No, no, Yao, he didn't hit me." Ivan assured Yao, his voice soft. "I told him about us dating... He wasn't happy about any part of it. He kicked me out."
Yao's eyes squeezed shut, and his hold on Ivan's shoulder tightened. "Cruel, cruel people..." He muttered.
Ivan could only nod in agreement.
They sat there for the longest time, with Ivan's head resting on Yao's shoulder, as the night fell into place, and the stars began illuminating the sky.
"Ivan, let's go inside."
"I need to go find a hotel, Yao, I need to find space before they run out of rooms."
"Ivan, are you kidding? Just stay here. We have the room."
"I don't know if your parents would like that..."
"Nonsense, they've been dying to meet you. They're supportive, trust me."
"Are you sure? I don't want to impose on you, Yao."
"Ivan, come on. If it were any trouble, I wouldn't invite you. Now please, just stay here."
Ivan sighed softly. "Okay... Thank you."
Yao smiled gently and helped Ivan to his feet. Yao kept one arm placed around Ivan's back, his hand falling on his hip in order to guide him.
Ivan's eyes widened a bit as he entered the house, for it was decorated with colorful, bright, cheery decorations. Reds, browns and golds adorned all kinds of places, and the warm light washed over them.
Yao guided him to the kitchen, where a woman sat at the table reading. She turned around and narrowed her eyes curiously for a moment, before realization dawned on her.
She stood up and approached the two boys in the doorway. Ivan towered over her, as she stood an inch or two shorter than even Yao.
"Yao, is this... Ivan? Your boyfriend?"
"Yes, mama, this is him."
The woman smiled, her eyes crinkling as she did so. She extended a hand towards Ivan and shook it with more force than he would have expected.
"Such a pleasure to meet you, dear. I was hoping Yao would bring you over soon!" She chuckled lightly, before letting her expression soften. "It's an odd time for him to bring you, however... Something tells me that something happened. Care to tell?" Worry crinkled into her eyes, just like Yao's.
Yao spoke up for Ivan. "Ivan needs to stay here for a while... His dad kicked him out once he found out that Ivan was dating me..."
Yao's mother nodded softly, her understanding clear. "Of course. Ivan, you're always welcome here."
Ivan managed to give a real smile. "Thank you... Both of you." Ivan leaned a bit closer to Yao, who tightened his grip on his waist reassuringly.
...
After even more thank you's, Yao excused Ivan and himself to the guest room. Ivan dragged his suitcase behind him, his body sluggish and tired from the nights events.
As soon as they entered the room, Ivan sat himself in the edge of the bed, his head in his hands, and his suitcase abandoned at his feet.
Yao sat beside him, lacing Ivan's fingers through his.
Ivan sighed, feeling the weight of everything hitting him once again. Yao kissed his cheek and held him closer.
"You'll be okay... Won't you Ivan?" Yao said softly.
"Yeah... Thanks to you. You make it all worth it."
Yao smiled lightly, despite everything.
"I love you, do you know that? I always will, okay?" Yao murmured.
Ivan smiled contently.
"No matter what other people say, I'll always love you..." Ivan said.
Yao could only hold him closer, wishing he never had to let go.
A/N: Well... I'm a bit disappointed with this ending, but I hope that other people don't dislike it? I don't know, it's just a bit too cheesy, but I couldn't find another way to end it, honestly.
I got the prompt from the blog imagineyourotp on tumblr, but I extended past it a bit, just to make the story more complete. Otherwise it cut a bit short.
Despite me being a bit uneasy about the ending, I hope you enjoyed this as a whole!
-KayDubs