Victor's heart was racing as the music finally stopped, his eyes still glued to the sparkling blue man on the ice. As the cheers of the audience filled the stadium his hands raised to cover his face, containing what? Something… Something more than he thought he would ever feel watching someone else's performance. The goal in skating is to shock the audience, he couldn't do that anymore, he thought that Yuri might be able to do it, but shocking him hadn't been part of the deal!

His hands dropped and he turned away, his feet falling one after the other, pace speeding up as he ran to the gate to the ice. When he finally reached it, when he forced himself to look back up, there was Yuri, skating over as fast as he could with a goofy grin plastered on his face.

'Victor! I did great, right?'

He called out, still gliding towards him. A soft smile pulled on Victor's lips, a brief tilt of the head in a nod. Then, he dove forward, arm raised just high enough to hide as his lips pressed against Yuri's. Then they collided with the ice, and he just held him. Pulling back and grinning properly.

'That was the only thing I could think of… to surprise you more than you surprised me.' Victor smiled, his fingers still woven through Yuri's hair as he smiled back up at him.

'Really.' He laughed softly, accepting that excuse as he would anything else. Especially in the moment, there wasn't time to put any more thought in than that.

Victor paused slightly, staring down at him before he helped him up. It was hard to tell what was going on in Yuri's head sometimes. He was too forward and too honest, but so little of his though process made sense that Victor still had no idea when he wasn't speaking. For now though, his smile shone brighter than the outfit he was wearing, and that told him all he needed to know.

He draped an arm over Yuri's shoulders as they walked away to wait for the results.

'I believed in you.' He said softly.

Yuri turned his head slightly to look at him, eyes wide in shock. He knew that he'd said something about that when they were in the garage, but he didn't think he'd take it that seriously. He didn't think he'd ever hear that kind of thing from his idol. His hear raced. His already red cheeks turned darker. But before he got the chance to stutter a reply Victor grinned at him, back to his normal, careless smile.

'But if you're going to skate like that, maybe I should threaten to leave more often?' He laughed, sitting down on the chair and grinning at the cameras, completely ignorant of the frozen expression on Yuri's face.

Yuri thudded into the chair beside him, only half hearing the praise Victor was stringing together for the cameras. He called it praise, but it didn't quite sound like congratulations, more like he'd achieved the inevitable. Exactly what Victor expected from him, and now always would expect from him. But in that moment, at the edge of the ice, before he came back to reality, there had been a new expression on Victor's face.

He knew he had shocked him. And so badly wanted to do it again. Lips slightly parted in awe, wide eyes, with a glint of something hidden in them, and so intensely focused on him and only him. That feeling was something he wanted to reach again.

No.

It was something he had to reach again. Especially when it can with things like that…

Yuri's fingers raised to brush against his lips, a softer blush linger on his cheeks which had nothing to do with the skating. Sure, it might have just been to shock him, kind of like a weird form of payback, but even if it meant nothing, he wanted it again.

A quadtriple flip… Since when had that pig been hiding that up his sleeves. But from watching the performance Yuri knew that that wasn't the same man he'd skated with. He'd just regained himself after that, just slightly, when Victor decided to throw another heart stopping moment onto the tv. They kissed.

At least it looked like it…

maybe…

just…

maybe not?

His spoon snapped between his fingers, falling into the dish in front of him. He wasn't the same skater either. Just wait for the Russian cup, Yuri against Yurio.

Shit.

When did he start calling himself that?

It was hearing it too many times in Victor's voice that made it something he couldn't let go of. He was meant to shed everything that made him him in order to win. Sell his soul, sell his body, whatever it required.

He stood up from the table, turning away from the TV.

He could do it, he would do it.

He pulled his skates on over blistered feet and slid onto the ice.

Anything to get Victor back.