Title is taken from the song "Theme of King JJ".
Line breaks on their own separate short time skips within the same part; line breaks paired with "#YOI#YOI#" separate longer time skips and parts.
I do not own Yuri! ! ! on Ice, and I hope you all enjoy!*
WARNING: Both JJ and Yuuri have anxiety attacks.
JJ arrived early to his first Four Continents, and he leaves late. His parents, stating that at seventeen he was free to roam the city by himself, encourage him to do so. Unfortunately, every other skater JJ knows has already left. He watches his parents exit his hotel room to go talk to sponsors, and then he falls backwards onto the bed.
Heaving a sigh, JJ lifts his phone up and opens Instagram. Scrolling through photo after photo of friends back home having fun and other skaters saying goodbye to the city, he gives up on social media distracting him and - a skater is still here. The photo depicts someone JJ follows purely to watch his spins, on the few occasions he posts anything. Holding up a peace sign with a small smile in a hotel room clearly showing landmarks through the window, Katsuki Yuuri tagged it #onlyforyouphichit. JJ beams, and in seconds he's messaged Yuuri asking for his room number.
'YK is typing…'
"Why?"
"Room #, or meet in the lobby!"
"We barely know each other."
"We're the only 2 sk8rs left in this hotel."
"I should rest…"
"Sightc."
It takes twenty minutes of texting Yuuri nonstop, but JJ eventually receives a room number for him to show up at, beaming. Later, Japan's Ace will say JJ is the only skater besides Phichit both annoying and stubborn enough to not only be able to drag him out of a hotel, but keep him out of it until an entire day of sightseeing has passed. JJ, of course, will smirk and say it's just the awesome willpower that comes with "JJ Style!"
#YOI#YOI#
Phichit Chulanont followed JJ on Instagram after he posted the third selfie of him and Yuuri sightseeing in a single day. When JJ has returned to Toronto and Yuuri to Detroit, he follows Phichit back when he realises it's the only way to keep up with Japan's Ace. He does keep messaging Yuuri, though, and Yuuri keeps responding, and eventually they're having full conversations through text. This evolves into actual phone conversations, sometimes for fun and sometimes for advice. By the time the Sochi GPF begins, JJ knows that Yuuri has become one of his best friends. He hopes Yuuri knows it, too.
#YOI#YOI#
JJ's happy to have proof he's right, but he wishes it didn't happen like this.
The short program goes fine. Yuuri comes out in fourth, and JJ himself is in fifth. Admirable places considering it's their first GPF, and it's still possible to climb up on the podium. It's the next afternoon that everything goes wrong. JJ leaves morning practice with explicit instructions to have lunch and relax, so of course he tries to find Yuuri. Instead, he runs into Celestino.
"Ciao Ciao," JJ greets cheerfully, hoping his wariness doesn't show. The coach hasn't been happy that his shy skater befriended him, hyperactive as he is. JJ suspects the man thinks he'll be a bad influence. Now, though, the Italian looks almost relieved to see him.
"JJ. Come with me," Celestino says, then walks away, glancing back only once to make sure he's following. JJ is. Ciao Ciao is being unusually gruff, which in the Canadian's experience means anger or worry. It doesn't seem to be the former, and considering he came to JJ, something is wrong with Yuuri. JJ speeds up.
Celestino doesn't even bother knocking when they reach Yuuri's room, just digs out his own key. The moment the door is open, the familiar sound of muffled sobs permeates the hall. The Canadian barrels past Celestino, letting the coach close the door as he leaves. JJ leaps onto the bed and gathers Yuuri in his arms. The Japanese man buries his face in the Canadian's collarbone and clings to him, and all JJ can do is cling back.
JJ eventually eases them down and lets Yuuri cry himself to sleep. Through his sobs, he friend managed to say that Vicchan died, and the Canadian can't imagine how Yuuri expects to skate tonight. But Yuuri does, and when he falls and falls and falls again, JJ is there to pick him up again.
JJ has to leave before the banquet because of exams, but before he does he wraps Yuuri up in a giant hug and tells him to go. "It'll be good for you," he says.
Yuuri grumbles and says he won't enjoy it, but he'll go. JJ takes the win.
#YOI#YOI#
JJ just misses the podium at Worlds, and it's not like the GPF where he could focus on Yuuri's problems instead. Isabella finds him hunched over on the floor next to his hotel room bed staring at nothing. She sits next to him, grasps his hands in one of her own, and uses the other to pull out her phone. She hits speed dial four - JJ is one, her parents are two, his are three - and Yuuri picks up on the second ring.
"Hey, Isabella." His voice is warm.
"Hey, Yuuri. You're on speaker phone right now; JJ's with me." JJ blinks, and realises Isabella tells the truth - the phone has been set down in-between them, allowing both her hands to grasp his.
There's a pause, and then - "Hey, JJ. You looked great out there tonight."
That's right. JJ made Yuuri promise to watch him take Nikiforov down a medal. "You saw?" he asks, and winces when his voice cracks. Isabella squeezes his hands to make him look at her, and when he does she smiles at him.
"I promised I would. And, JJ?" JJ hums in response. "I've never lied to you, have I?"
JJ clears his throat so his voice doesn't crack again before speaking, voice soft. "No."
"I'm not starting now, do you believe that?"
"Yeah."
"You looked great out there. It may not have been your season, but you have so many ahead of you. You'll reach the podium." Isabella squeezes his hands again, this time in agreement, and she's never lied to him either.
JJ promises, "Next year, it's going to be JJ Style all season. You'll have to fight me to stand next to Viktor, Katsuki. You hear me? Tooth and nail, you and me."
There's a pause, as if Yuuri isn't sure of what to say. JJ feels a moment of panic - maybe the rumours of Japan's Ace retiring have some truth to them - but he squashes it down in time to hear, "You and me."
#YOI#YOI#
JJ proposes to Isabella. When he meets her outside a restaurant the next day she's on the phone, cheeks on fire and the weirdest grin on her face, as if she's torn between fear and hysterical laughter. After she hangs up, he asks her what that was about. She finally breaks down laughing, but manages to say, "There is nothing funnier or more badass than Katsuki Yuuri giving me the shovel talk."
JJ practically falls to the ground laughing.
#YOI#YOI#
JJ and Yuuri, instead of competing together to beat Viktor, compete to see who gets dibs on a wedding date first. First, though…
When JJ and Isabella get back to the hotel, he tells her to go on ahead without him. He has work to do first. She nods, eyes laughing, and he knows she knows what that work is.
He knocks on the door of Yuuri and Viktor's hotel room, and when the latter opens the door looking bewildered at why, exactly, JJ stands before him, the Canadian shoves his way in. Yuuri sits up on the bed and looks at him, wide-eyed and blushing and pleading that he not, but JJ just grins.
JJ turns to face Viktor, and proceeds to give the greatest shovel talk in history. When the Russian protests weakly, saying Phichit has already done so, JJ scoffs. "Is there some rule against both best friends giving one? Besides, it's only fair. Yuuri gave Isabella one." And then he picks up right where he left off.
#YOI#YOI#
The night of the Barcelona GPF Short Program is spent hugging and crying. Yuuri meets JJ at the Kiss and Cry, and he and Isabella spend the next thirty minutes squirrelling him away from the world, whispering encouragements in his ear as they squeeze him between them. Later that night, JJ opens his door to a Yuuri with tears streaming down his face. He manages to blubber out something to do with Viktor, and only his friend's hand on his arm keeps JJ from running out the door to tear the Russian to pieces with every single threat from the night before. But Yuuri needs him here, and so here JJ will stay.
The next night is much of the same, but they're happy tears and happy hugs and JJ never wants the night to end.
#YOI#YOI#
Yuuri wins Four Continents in January and JJ wins Worlds in March, much to the shrieking anger of Yuri Plisetsky. Five months later, and JJ is Yuuri's co-best man with Phichit - the poor man couldn't choose between them - and Yuuri is JJ's best man. The new skating season approaches, and JJ has 'Yuuri, Ganba! ! !' banners to make.*
*Apologies for the weird spacing on the exclamation marks, FFN takes out two when they're all together correctly.
I hope you all enjoyed! This is my first YOI fanfic, and I hope I did the characters justice. Please review and tell me what you think!