Note: This idea of Yuuri working at a host club (because there are so many in Japan, and the idea spawn from it) just snowballed into this.
Yuuri uncharacteristically let out a twitch as he stared at his best friend – soon-to-be-ex-friend? – who let out a sheepish yet apologetic smile and a helpless shrug. He heaved an exasperated sigh and rubbed his temple to ease his oncoming headache.
He was planning to take this secret of his dark past to the grave. Really, no one was supposed to know. Well, no one aside from Phichit, because his best friend, the social media king, knows everything about him. He still doesn't know how Phichit managed to find out about this when he didn't use his real name when he was working there.He had a common indistinguishable name, and yet, Phichit managed to find it. How is that possible?
"…Yuuri, you worked at a host club before?" Victor asked with his eyes widened and his mouth gaped in shock.
"Um… w-well… yes?"
Victor still had that surprised expression as he repeated, "A host club?"
"Yuuri, I didn't know you were into that kind of environment." Chris had that all-knowing smirk that made Yuuri want to hide under his blankets and never come out ever.
Instead, he shoved down all his anxieties – as much as he could, which was not much if he was being truthful – and retorted with a, "W-well, you know how expensive figure skating is. I didn't have sponsors then, and I had to pay for it somehow if I wanted to continue."
"Really, Katsudon as a host? Who would request him anyway?" Yuri raised an incredulous brow and scoffed at the notion.
Phichit cleared his throat as if he was preparing to enlighten a group of uncultured people. He peered over to Yuuri, who just sighed, leaned back against the lockers, and looked as if he had given up altogether. Well, it wasn't Phichit's fault that the world wasn't prepared for this, really.
"According to the internet and his clients who turned out to be his sponsors now, Yuuri is their most requested host. His face was on the top five list outside the club every week for months." The Thai skater explained helpfully with a grin. "I even have pictures that. I must say, Yuuri, you look amazing."
"How did you even come across that?" Yuuri asked with an eyebrow raised. He then let out another sigh and groaned, "I can't believe you managed to stalk the internet for it."
"Yuuri, Yuuri, Yuuri." Phichit tsked disapprovingly with a shake of his head, looking like a parent scolding his child for a misdeed. "How could think you can hide something this big from your best friend? Am I not your best friend? Are you denouncing me as your best friend? You are, aren't you? How can you do this to me, Yuuri? My heart can't handle the betrayal!"
Yuuri gave an unimpressed look at his overly dramatic friend, and said, "You're overacting," in a deadpanned tone.
"So, do you give…favors… to your clients?" Victor asked with a gulp.
"Of course not. We just sit and talk over a drink." Yuuri answered as if it was obvious. He then smirked at their gob smacked looks when he destroyed the notions they had about host clubs, and decided to add, "How else did you think I managed to drown 16 flutes of champagne, do dance-offs, and pole-dance?"
He wasn't going to mention that he blacked out during that infamous Sochi banquet, but everyone already knew that one way or another. Really, who needs details?
"So, what's your host name, Yuuri?" Chris purred with a smirk, looking amused by the whole matter.
The said person retaliated with a sultry smirk of his own, ignoring Victor's startled gasp in the background, and rebutted, "Wouldn't you like to know?"
"He's known as Yuki. It's so unimaginative, I know." Phichit answered as he scrolled through his phone until his fingers stopped at something. "I have pictures if you want to see."
"NO PHICHIT! Don't show that!"
Phichit decided that sharing is caring and revealed over 500 pictures he somehow had of Yuuri as Yuki. "Yuuri, everyone must see how much Eros you have."
Chris let out a low whistle as he eyed at various pictures of Yuuri donned a formal attire with his hair stylishly unruly and heated eyes gazing at the camera. He blinked and looked at the pictures more closely, and uttered a, "Whoa," when he noted earrings in the pictures.
"Oi, old man, is that why you decided to give Katsudon the Eros routine?" Yuri raised an eyebrow towards Victor and tried to sound uninterested.
"I swear, I didn't know anything about this, Yura." Victor shook his head as his eyes stayed glued to the small screen that is Phichit's cellphone, and looked as if he wanted to save those pictures for his own collection. "Yuuri, why would you hide this from me?"
Yuuri let out a twitch at the pout directed at him and at the group crowding around Phichit's cellphone. He doesn't have an answer to that question without opening another assortment of problems that he doesn't want to handle now. Instead, he decided to answer with another question, "Shouldn't we be focused on practice instead of… this?"
"Oh please, we all know this is more important than our Grand Prix Final." Phichit replied flippantly as he stood next to Chris to look at the pictures again. "Oh, have you seen the ones where they had a crossdressing day?"
Yuuri just wanted to dig a hole and never come out again when his best friend mentioned anotherchapter of his dark past. The club he worked at had themes on certain days of the month, and one of those was crossdressing. It was popular with their clients, unsurprisingly. The club also sold pictures of the hosts during that time, which sold out within the first hour.
And of course, Phichit would have pictures of those. Why wouldn't he?
Instead, Yuuri decided it was a perfect time to take a page from Yuri's book, and shouted, "I don't know you guys anymore!" and stalked out of the locker room.