This fic is for the event JJ Style Week, for the first prompt: Friends. Title comes from "Theme of King JJ."

The Grand Prix Final banquet in Barcelona is certainly different than the one in Sochi had been, Isabella muses over her glass of champagne. Katsuki isn't drunk, although he's still hanging off Nikiforov about as much as he was last year. Giacometti is begging for a rematch of their pole dancing competition, but Katsuki seems unlikely to give in, to Isabella's combined relief and disappointment. Chulanont is taking pictures with everyone and everything, much to his coach's despair. Plisetsky is talking to Otabek in the corner of the room, glaring at anyone who comes too close. Isabella supposes that's how he started out last year as well, although she thinks a dance-off is unlikely to happen again.

And next to her, staring into a glass of champagne like it holds all of the answers in the universe, is JJ.

He's still shaken by his short program performance, she knows, and disappointed about bronze. Isabella thinks he's amazing, but JJ tends not to listen to anyone when he's in this sort of mood, no matter what she says.

"Honey?" she asks, trying anyway. She puts a hand on his, squeezing it gently. "Honey, are you okay?"

"When can we leave?" JJ asks, his voice small in a way that it almost never is, and Isabella's heart breaks. She would say they can leave immediately if she thought it would help, but she has the feeling it'll only do the opposite.

"We don't have to stay too long," she says instead. "Don't you want to mingle?"

"Not really." JJ is back to looking into his glass of champagne, his gaze a little too unfocused for Isabella to believe he's actually looking at it.

"I want to mingle," Isabella says, which is a blatant lie but worth it if it can make JJ show some life. It doesn't.

"Then go mingle, babe," JJ replies. "I'm okay here."

"JJ-"

"Don't let me hold you back," JJ adds, a horribly fake smile on his face, and Isabella presses a kiss to his forehead.

"You could never."

"Go mingle," JJ tells her, because he's apparently gotten fixated on the idea now. "I'll be here when you're done, and then we can go upstairs."

"We're not going upstairs until your parents say we can," Isabella counters. "We're not sneaking away again." They did that at the end of a press conference once, and the Leroys had burst into the hotel room half an hour later, demanding that JJ get back out there and talk to the press. He'd been struggling to chew a mouthful of potato chips at the time, and Isabella had burst out laughing at the chipmunk look on his face.

There's a flicker of a real smile on JJ's face, as if he's remembering that moment too. "Okay, I'll check with my parents first," he says. "Now go mingle, babe. Make some new friends."

Isabella leans forward and gives JJ a long kiss, then she downs the rest of her champagne and heads out into the party. If JJ wants her to mingle, she'll mingle. But she's not planning on going out to make new friends. She's going out to find an old one.

"Otabek, can we talk?"

Plisetsky looks like an angry cat and actually makes an honest-to-God hissing noise at her. "You're stupid JJ's fiancée," he spits. "What are you doing here?"

Isabella ignores him. "Otabek?"

"Why the hell would you want to talk to Beka?" Plisetsky demands. "And why the hell would he want to talk with you?"

Otabek frowns. "Is something wrong, Isabella?"

Isabella looks at Plisetsky, who looks horrified at the fact that Otabek is even talking to her. "What the hell-"

"Can we talk alone?" Isabella asks, her voice a little too sharp.

Otabek looks at Plisetsky, who bristles. "Fine! I'll go get Chris to show me more pictures of his stupid cat. Screw both of you."

Plisetsky stomps off, muttering under his breath. "Sorry," Otabek says, watching Plisetsky go. "He doesn't like JJ."

"I've noticed," Isabella replies dryly. "Charming personality."

"What's wrong, Bella?" Otabek asks, frowning. Isabella shoots JJ an automatic glance and Otabek follows her gaze. His frown deepens. "Is he upset about his scores?"

"About his short program, mostly," Isabella replies. "And a bit about only getting bronze. I've told him a million times that I don't care, but it's like he doesn't even hear it."

"I don't know how to help him any more than you do," Otabek replies. "I was never very good at helping when he got like this."

"But I don't know what else to do, Otabek," Isabella replies, her voice more desperate than she wanted it to be. "Nathalie and Alain seem just as lost as I am, and I was just hoping that you might be able to think of something."

Otabek's lips thin. "I can try talking to him, but I don't know how much good it's going to do."

"Just try," Isabella replies. "Please, Otabek. I don't know what to do."

Otabek's gaze flickers over to Katsuki and Nikiforov, for some reason. "You did not hear this from me," he says, "but Katsuki wanted to talk to JJ at some point during the banquet. He knows what it's like to have your anxiety mess with you on the ice."

Isabella nods. "I can talk to him while you talk to JJ. And I should apologize for what he said at dinner the other night too."

"I'm sorry we all left," Otabek offers.

"JJ was an ass, you were right to leave," Isabella replies. "But you know how he can get with people he doesn't know well, especially if he's intimidated or he wants to impress them. He didn't mean to be rude. He still was, though. I'll apologize for him."

"And I'll go talk to him," Otabek adds. "I'll do my best to help, but I don't know if I can."

"He'll get over it," Isabella says with false confidence. "I just want to help him through it more easily, but I'm sure he'll be back to normal soon."

"I'm sure he will be," Otabek agrees, although he sounds about as confident as Isabella feels. "I'll do my best to help. I owe him that much."

"Thanks, Otabek. You're a good friend."

"JJ's always been a good friend to me. It's the least I can do."

Isabella snags another glass of champagne from a passing waiter as Otabek goes over to JJ. She half wants to watch, but it won't do any good, and talking to Katsuki might. She tears her eyes away from JJ, slumped over a table and still staring at his champagne, and downs her own glass of champagne before marching over to Katsuki and Nikiforov. She's a little intimidated to talk to them, to be perfectly honest, but there isn't much she won't do for JJ, and this definitely isn't one of those things.

"You should have won bronze," JJ says when Otabek walks up to him.

Otabek blinks. He hadn't even realized that JJ knew he was there. "You beat me by seven points," he counters. "Your free skate scored over thirty points higher than mine."

"You started on time, though," JJ mutters bitterly. "I was horrible. I only beat you because I had a technically difficult program, but it wasn't well done. I shouldn't have medaled."

Otabek picks up a glass of champagne and sits down next to JJ. "I disagree, and so do the judges, since you got bronze."

"I didn't deserve it."

"I think you did."

JJ makes a face. "Did Isabella tell you to say that?"

"Isabella did ask me to talk to you, yes."

"She pities me. She saw how horrible my short program was. She probably wishes she didn't say yes when I asked her to marry me."

"I don't think she'll ever regret that," Otabek counters gently. "You make her happy, JJ."

"I was pathetic on the ice, you can't say I wasn't."

"You had an anxiety attack on the ice, JJ."

JJ flinches. He doesn't like using the word "anxiety" to describe himself, Otabek knows. He still wants to be perfect, unshakable, and having anxiety problems doesn't fit in with that image he's made for himself. Otabek doesn't think anyone will find him weaker for having to fight his anxiety as well as the competition, but JJ's never let him talk about the topic for long enough for him to get that sentiment out.

"I was weak," JJ says again. "That was the lowest score of my senior career, Otabek. It was horrible-"

"You made up for it, though," Otabek replies. "Your free skate was much better-"

"I still think you should have won bronze."

"No one else does."

JJ scoffs. "I bet your Russian kitten would agree."

Otabek can't help but grin a bit at that. "I think his head might explode if he agreed with you on something."

"He's never liked me."

"You've never tried to be that likable with him."

JJ raises an eyebrow. "Do you really think that would make a difference? That kid dropkicks people for fun."

Otabek shrugs. Yuri's been perfectly nice to him, but he knows that he's not that way with most people. Then he realizes that JJ is trying to change the topic - an unfortunate habit of his, when he's stuck in a conversation like this - and tries to drag it back on track.

"You got bronze because you deserved it, JJ. The judges don't just give out medals to just anyone."

"The judges were wrong." JJ looks at his champagne for another long moment, then he knocks it back in one gulp. "You did better than I did, and that's fine, but I just wish the scores had reflected it. I feel like…" JJ's mouth twists and he grabs another glass of champagne, downing that too. Otabek wonders if he's going to be this banquet's Katsuki. "I feel like a fraud."

"You're not a fraud, JJ."

"Otabek-"

Otabek grabs his phone and taps at the screen. "Look at this." He pulls up JJ's free skate from the Grand Prix Final and sets his phone out in front of them. "We're going to watch your performance and I'm going to score it."

JJ makes a face. "I don't want to watch it."

Otabek stares at him. "You haven't watched it yet?" Most skaters watch their routines not long after they perform them, often with their coaches. It's always a good idea to see what the routine looked like from the outside.

"Why would I want to watch myself fail miserably on the ice?"

"JJ, you didn't fail. You made a few mistakes, but it was still a great skate, and your base technical score was still very high."

"It wasn't bronze-worthy."

Otabek takes a deep breath. He's forgotten how much talking with JJ about these things can end up devolving into talking in circles. When JJ gets fixated on a topic, it's hard to drag him away. "Look, you might feel that way, but the judges didn't. I don't. I know Isabella doesn't. I don't think your parents do either." Otabek leans forward. "And if you don't think your routine was good enough, then use that for Four Continents and Worlds. Make it better. You think you can do better than you did here? Prove it."

Amazingly, that seems to get through to JJ better than anything else. "Yeah," he agrees, his face brightening slowly. "Yeah, I can redeem myself at Four Continents. I'll have to compete against Nikiforov at Worlds, so I'll have to fight for gold, but I can do well Four Continents." JJ looks much more confident now. "And I told Isabella I'd marry her when I win Worlds, so I'll have to fight Nikiforov for that gold."

"Isabella will marry you whether you win gold or not," Otabek counters, not certain that's the best thing for JJ to be hinging his hopes on, but JJ doesn't even seem him hear him.

"I can use this for Four Continents and Worlds. That's genius, Otabek. I knew I made a good choice when I taught you how to do a quad Salchow and won your undying loyalty to your king."

"That's not how I remember it."

"Well, that's just…" JJ grins wickedly, and Otabek realizes what he's going to do a second before he does it. "JJ STYLE!"

Otabek rolls his eyes, but he can't help but feel relieved. He doesn't think this is a permanent fix - JJ hinging all of his hopes on an upcoming competition isn't exactly what he was aiming for - but it seems like it's helping for now. Isabella and the Leroys can figure out what to do next.

"Where's Isabella?" JJ demands. He looks much more relaxed now, much more like himself. "We should dance. Last year's banquet was crazy, but at least it was fun. This is boring."

"I think Isabella went to talk to Katsuki and Nikiforov," Otabek offers. "But I don't know if she's still there."

"I'll find her," JJ replies dismissively. "Thanks for the chat, Otabek. We should hang out in Taipei." JJ grins. There's something a tad manic about it. "Just you, me, and my gold medal."

"I'll see you there," Otabek agrees as JJ disappears into a crowd of skaters and sponsors. He's still not certain that he did the right thing, getting JJ so fixated on the rest of the season, but it seems to be working for now.

"I can't believe you were talking with JJ," Yuri grumbles, materializing at Otabek's shoulder. He grabs Otabek's champagne and takes a sip, then wrinkles his nose and puts it back down. "What the hell, Beka?"

"We were rink mates when I trained in Canada," Otabek replies simply. "He's not too bad if you can get him to stop talking about himself."

Yuri scowls. "I don't want talk about stupid JJ." Otabek doesn't mention that Yuri was the one who brought him up. "You'll kick his ass at Four Continents."

Otabek glances over at JJ, who's now dancing with a laughing Isabella. "We'll see."