I look at the strange store in front of me. A dark glass door prevents me from seeing the inside of her completely. On the wall to the right, a huge and beautiful painting of several flowers decorates it. I see roses of different colors, lilies, sunflowers, tulips. Really something very beautiful. I'm looking for a signature of the artist, but I can not find anything. Just the drawing.
The noise of voices makes me turn my face to the outside area of the cafe, where several customers talk and enjoy a snack. I sigh and prepare to continue the walk with Makkachin when I end up seeing something that makes me hold my breath. Or someone . A man with messy black hair, super cute and with big blue-rimmed glasses. Makkachin barks, not only waking me, but also catches the attention of the boy, who looks at me with surprise. Suddenly, a different bark is heard and I see a smaller version of Makkachin jumping on his lap.
"Why do not you come in? Animals are allowed here. "The man tilts his face and smiles, and I'm completely screwed.
"Can I sit with you?" I ask, noting him closing a large notebook and putting it in a backpack.
"Of course. I'm alone. "He answers and I immediately take Makka by the arms and run into the establishment.
When I enter, the smell of coffee and walls full of large black-and-white drawings of super detailed landscapes surprises me. I recognize tourist and popular places in Paris, London, Rio de Janeiro, New York, Tokyo, Moscow, Beijing and many other cities, according to the nameplates below them. I feel something familiar in those images, but I leave aside, not caring much about it. Then I see a sunset drawing on a black and white beach, and I wonder if it's St. Petersburg. I'm surprised to see the sign with the words Hasetsu - Japan below.
"Can I help you?" A very pretty girl with long, light brown hair wearing an apron with the cafeteria logo comes up, smiling even though she is bleeding from her nose.
"Ah, I'm ...?" I'm interrupted by the barking of Makka and the little brown poodle, who are sniffing.
"Hey, Yuuko. Can you open the garden door and let Vicchan and his new friend play? "The old man comes up, and I swallow hard at the sight of him.
That man not only has a cute face, but he has the most beautiful body I've ever seen and the clothes he is wearing only highlight his curves. Gray jeans, glued to the most perfect hips; Open white shirt with a black undershirt that reveals a not too thin waist. And then I see his face better, loving the color of his skin and the brown eyes that look with surprise ... ops.
"Is there a problem with me?" The man says, looking at himself.
"No, I'm sorry," I say between coughs. "I just fell in love with the work of art in front of me. Now I understand why this place is called Art & Coffee. "
Now I want to bury myself alive. Did I really try to confess to him?
But when I see your face turn very red and the waitress at our side die of laughter, I wonder if there is still hope for me.
"Oh my God, Yuuri !" The waitress, named Yuuko, shouts. "You got a love confession from Victor Nikiforov !"
And now I freeze.
"Do you ... Do you know who I am?" I ask dryly.
"Of course we know! Yuuri and I have followed his career from the start! "Yuuko says, scaring me.
"Yuuko-chan ..."
"We have all your books and we are always on the lookout for news. Yuuri here ... "
"Yuuko!" I look at Yuuri in surprise, and realize that the woman next to me is silent too.
"Excuse me," I say, taking Makkachin again and immediately leaving that cafe.
Only when I get to my apartment and look at the boxes still full of things inside me, do I realize that the man named 'Yuuri' did not normally show up for me.
I play on the couch, confused by my own feelings. Both with respect to 'Yuuri', and to my past as a writer.
I moved to Detroit recently. After 30 years living in Russia. I want to start my life from scratch and forget about my past. My failures that have become more important than my successes. I need a better job, and get a place to leave Makkachin. I let out a long sigh and closed my eyes, sleeping right there.
~ x ~
Days go by and I avoid going near Art & Coffee. I concentrate on tidying up my apartment, finally getting it organized. My job search has not borne fruit yet and I'm getting nauseous from restaurant food.
"Makka, what do I do?" I ask, bending down to stroke her head.
She barks loudly 3 times and runs, taking her leash off and I sigh. 10 minutes later, we left the house. Maybe a walk is what I need too. What I did not expect is that, taking advantage of my melancholy, she takes me to Art & Coffee.
"Victor?" I hear Yuuri, and I see him standing outside the cafe, looking at me with concern. "Are you alright? If it's not uncomfortable, I'd like to talk to you and apologize for Yuuko. "
God, he's cute!
"No problem. I was just taken by surprise, "I say, taking a deep breath.
"Do you want to come in? I can serve you some coffee and something to eat and we can talk. "
"And the owner lets you do this?" Victor asks, starting to go to the door and noticing that the sign is closed.
'Yuuri' unlocks the door and I go in, seeing that the coffee is really empty and a little lit.
"It's the first time that happens, but I do." 'Yuuri' smiles widely. "And I can say that it's a special service that only the most beautiful customer can receive."
And again I freeze, being caught off guard by Yuuri being the owner of that cafe. And he gave me a love confession too?
"I have not introduced myself yet, have you?" He says, pouring me coffee and understanding a pot of sugar and a plate of croissants. "My name is Yuuri Katsuki and my dog's name is Vicchan."
"Hm." I nod, putting sugar in the coffee and blending. "And you know that I am Victor Nikiforov."
"Yes, I know of Victor Nikiforov, writer of multiple romantic bestsellers." Yuuri serves up a cup of coffee for himself and looks at him. "But I do not know the man behind the writer."
I raise my eyebrows, being taken by surprise by him.
"And why would you be interested in meeting the man behind the writer?" I ask, giving the first bite on a croissant and then exclaiming. " Vkusno! "
Yuuri smiled, taking another sip of coffee.
"Because he's the one I'm interested in now." Yuuri laughs, obviously at my face.
"I can tell you about me. But I also want to meet Yuuri Katsuki. "I say, and he finishes the coffee before giving me an answer.
"Fair. You can start, since I have a certain advantage. "He speaks, serving us more coffee."
"You're from where?" I ask, not missing the opportunity.
"Hasetsu, a small Japanese seaside town." He answers and I frown.
Where did I see that name before?
"There." Yuuri points to something to my right and I turn around, looking at the walls with the pictures and I look at the sunset, reminding me.
"Wow, it must be a very beautiful city." I comment, looking back at him. "How did you know I wanted to knew?"
"You asked," he replies, laughing. "I know you're Russian and lived in St. Petersburg. But were you born there? "
"Yes," I reply. "What do you like best to do?"
"I like cooking, drawing, ice skating, dancing, listening to music and watching around me." He responds and I ...
Holy shit, how many times will I still be surprised by Yuuri Katsuki?
"Ice skating?" I ask after a cough.
"There's an ice rink in Hasetsu," he replies, smiling sheepishly. "I know that up to a certain point in your career, you also liked to skate. This was evident in your early books. But over time, I realized that your writing has changed. Like a machine ... "
"Shut up," Victor shouts, startling him. "You do not know anything of what I went through, so do not come with that nonsense you understand!"
"Victor, I'm sorry ..."
"Stop! I do not want to hear any more! "Victor gets up, and prepares to leave when suddenly, Yuuri grabs him.
"Look for my name on Google." And he releases it.
For the second time, Victor leaves Arte & Café angrily. So much anger that he ignored Yuuri Katsuki's last words for weeks. That's until coffee appears on television.
...
"At one of Detroit's most traditional spots, we have a special place that puts together art and a good dose of coffee. Called Art & Café, the gallery and cafeteria created by the genius of painting Yuuri Katsuki is one of the most visited places by tourists and locals. The artist, with a simple black pen and pencil, faithfully reproduces landscapes of places described in the books of the Russian writer Victor Nikiforov, source of inspiration for his most famous paintings, with the exception of the portrait of Hasetsu's sunset, the first landscape raised when he was 12 years old. Even though a good part of the exhibited works are the targets of plagiarism denunciations, the artist never disposed of a single work for sale, and if it were not for professionals who went to the gallery to evaluate Sunset, he would never be the winner and much less art competitions. "
...
I left a gasp to what I hear. So, at that moment, everything makes sense. He suddenly remembers Yuuri's last words and, on his cell phone, he types the name Yuuri Katsuki. And it opens the first page that it finds, from Wikipedia and I'm surprised by what I read. After all, Yuuri Katsuki is the winner of 348 world art contests, with several of his paintings. He also has a personal collection of 180 works of his own, of which 120 are exhibited in museums all over the world. These works were donated to museums that donate publicly to charities. Many of the remaining paintings are based on excerpts from his books, which for Japanese are much more than books. They are universes that merge around him, where he is able to observe live what he is reading at the moment '.
Yuuri Katsuki is shy, and avoids being filmed while working, but his best friend Phichit Chulanont, his assistant and best friend, has posted videos on Yuuri's social networks. In these videos, made without his knowledge, he is in a semi-dark room and begins to paint out of nowhere. These videos were used as evidence in his favor in cases where another artist, Ygnis Krishner, claimed that Katsuki plagiarized his works. Including the last work of the Japanese, called Longing - Stay Close to Me, which was quite discussed for presenting something different. A person with long pale hair stuck in a ponytail, is on his back, looking distractedly at a large window into the sky.
I notice that there is a photo of the painting and I open it, increasing its size. And then, I shudder at what I see. Because it's me eight years ago, bored while waiting for his publisher, Yakov, with the first volume of his first book, "Stay Close to Me," which soon became his first bestseller at the table in front of him. And clearly he can see the name of the picture book. Now I remember that I had given such a volume to a super-boy with black hair and eyes who seemed to be alone in that hotel's restaurant and was sitting at the table next to his. Victor remembers seeing a notebook on his lap and a pencil in his hand, but did not see what he was then, he had to ask for a new book from that one for Yakov and say he wants to add another chapter to the story.
~ x ~
I look at the clock and I check the time. 17h37m. To my surprise, Makkachin barks and walks over to me, carrying his leash in his mouth and throwing it on my lap.
"Do you want to see Yuuri and Vicchan?" He asks her, beating more excitedly. "Me too."
And that's what I do. I continue with Makkachin until Art & Coffee, which is still open and apparently empty. Makka beats three times and soon, Vicchan's head appears on the outside and it barks as well. And then a dark-skinned man comes up and looks at me seriously.
"Victor Nikifofov," he says, and I notice a tone of anger in his voice. "Took too long."
"Who are you? How did it take me too long? "I ask, scaring me.
"My name is Phichit Chulanont. I'll open the door for you. "He just says, picking up the mini-poodle and turning around.
Soon he would enter the door and I enter, noticing there were no pictures on the walls.
"What happened?" I ask, surprised.
"They took the pictures. All of them. That bastard Krishner has won the plagiarism process, and now all the paintings, even those that have been ceded by the museums, must be destroyed. "Phichit says, and I notice a tear trickling down his face. "Yuuri also has to pay a moral damages claim amounting to millions of dollars. Like he had all that money. "
"But ... Yuuri is the real painter!" I exclaim, starting to feel anger rise in me.
"Does not matter. The judge decided and Yuuri has to obey if he does not want to be arrested. "Phichit steps away from me and opens a door. "Come on. Let's see if Yuuri opens the door for you. "
"What do you mean?" I ask, leaving Makka toying with Vicchan.
"He ... has locked himself in his room ever since. It's been two days and he has not eaten anything. I bet he did not sleep too. He had a panic attack when he received the sentence. One of the worst he's ever had in the years I've lived with him. Yuuri Katsuki is a talented artist, but his creative brain also carries a great deal of anxiety, low self esteem, doubts and depression. And now I'm afraid he'll get worse. "
"You mean…"
"He might want to commit suicide." Phichit says, scaring me.
Going up the stairs, I notice that there are papers with drawings, glued to the wall. I recognize myself in the drawings, surprised to see that they are the two times I met Yuuri. They are highly detailed drawings and I am surprised to see that even when I was angry, he drew me perfectly.
"Not if you know, but he never drew anyone and when they recently discovered ' Loging - Stay Close to Me ', he was afraid and stopped drawing. And it only got better when he saw you. He started to draw you, like a madman in love. But the bastard ruined everything. "
"Why did he do this to Yuuri?" I ask, seeing Phichit standing in front of a closed door and just shaking his head.
He knocks on the door twice.
"Yuuri." he says, letting out a sigh. "I brought Victor."
And to the surprise of both of us. We heard footsteps approaching the door.
"Victor?" Yuuri's hoarse voice listens, in a low tone.
"Yuuri. It's me. "I say, devastated.
"I'm sorry. I can not see you now. "He says, and I hear him sobbing.
"I'll leave you two alone." Phichit walks away, then down the stairs.
"I'm sorry, Yuuri. I did not realize, "I say, sitting with my back to the door.
"Of course you would not realize it at once." I hear from the other side of the door. "That's why I asked you to put my name on the internet.
"Yuuri, I'm worried about your paintings. It's years of hard work and dedication, "I say, running my left hand through my silver hair. "Why is this happening to you?"
"Revenge." I listen, and I open my eyes. "After all I took his place during the American art competitions. I tried not to pay too much attention but he bribed a judge and as a result he took my paintings and I have to pay for it. I am grateful that all museum owners and people who appreciate my work are on my side. But it is not enough. They took Longing , Victor. "
"It's me, isn't it? 8 years ago? "I ask, looking at the walls surrounded by the drawings.
"Yes." he answers and suddenly I hear the door being unlocked and opened, much to my surprise.
I jumped up and turned, watching him. And my heart is saddened to see him completely pale, with pale face and swollen eyes of not sleeping and crying very and obviously weak.
"I was just a boy who did not understand anything. Only that the angel in front of me was too beautifull not to be put on paper. When you noticed me, I had already drawn you, and the environment was missing. When you gave me the book, I was confused and could not read because it was in Russian. Of course I learned the language and when I read it, I loved it. I could feel that the story was alive around me. And then I learned that the published edition received a bonus chapter and I read it in a bookstore, noting that I inspired that chapter. "
"Yuuri, do you still have the book?" I ask, noting that I can reverse the situation.
"Of course." The Japanese walks away and I decide to wait for him, who soon returns with the book in question. "Here it is."
"I need to borrow it for a while. I promise you I'll return it soon. "I say, and he looks at me confused.
"Okay," he says, wiping his face with the full sleeves of the navy blue sweater.
"And if it's no problem, can you close your eyes?" I ask, and he opens a small smile, obeying.
Immediately, I approach him and put my right hand on the back of his neck, kissing him. I feel him grab my shirt with both hands and pull away, noticing the bright brown eyes of him looking at me.
"Can we talk later about this?" I ask, touching our foreheads.
"Of course," he says, smiling again. "I love you, Victor."
"I know. Your walls have told me that. "I joke, watching him give a low laugh. "But you know? I think that from the moment I met you at Art & Coffee, I became interested in you. And now I'm sure. I love you too, Yuuri Katsuki. "
He hugs me, grabbing me now in the back. I return the hug and soon I move away, touching his face.
"It hurts to have to leave you like this, but I need to sort something out as soon as I can." I say, kissing him again. "But do not worry, it'll be all right."
We say goodbye and I leave the cafe with Makka and the book, already making a call.
~ x ~
The next day in the afternoon, someone knocks on the gallery door. From the window, Yuuri notices that there is a truck in front, when he unlocks the door, sees men carrying their paintings inside. When he looks at 'Loging', he understands what happened.
"Victor. He managed to prove it." he says, falling to his knees and crying with joy.
...
When I arrive at the bookstore, I see that the paintings are being placed inside the gallery. When I look inside, I see Yuuri on the floor, crying, and follow him, kneeling and hugging him. I listen through sobs to him to thank me and when they finish unloading, I get up and pull him up, lifting him.
"How?" Yuuri asks, looking at me.
"I just put the book together and my photos that day. That was enough to prove it was me in the painting. "I say, sitting on one of the bench benches and closing the gallery door. "Well, all charges against you have been dropped, and Krishner has to pay you $ 30 million."
I approach Yuuri, putting the book on the counter and the eye. I take him in the face and kiss him, which he soon gives me.
~ x ~
Days later, Arte & Café opens its doors to the public. Thanks to Yuuri Katsuki, my inspiration for writing has returned with full force. My book 'Stay Close to Me' won a special edition featuring Yuuri Katsuki's arts and a sequel. The special edition was so successful that my future books also have his arts.
...
Once upon a time there was a boy born in Russia, the son of traditionalist parents. Under strict education, the boy grew up and became a teenager who always questioned everyone about the way of education, and if he saw himself ignored, he rebelled and decided to cause confusion by letting his hair grow clear and wearing his mother's makeup. The boy grew up being rejected by everyone around him and confused, decided to register his sorrows in a diary, where he says he likes boys and not girls. His mother found the diary and after a beating, she expels him from home. Alone, he becomes an adult, working as a teacher at a junior high school and trying to help the students with the same issues as him."That's how Yuuri's book ends, but in truth, there's a new chapter where the boy, now a man, becomes friends with other teachers, including one japanese man who is shy and super-cute.
~ End ~