Part 2! Hope you like it!
I'm in the process of moving all my stuff over to Ao3 - you can find me there under the same username. I'll still be posting updates on all my works here as long as I can, but I'm worried that this story may technically go against one of ffn's policies regarding chat formats in stories. I've also heard that their formatting options are just generally better, and this story is incredibly dependent on formatting, obviously. So if this story gets pulled for some reason, you'll be able to find it on Ao3 soon.
The Writing on the (Facebook) Wall
Part 2: March 28th - March 31st
Victor Nikiforov
v-nikiforov
"To my fans who are disappointed by today's outcome: Don't be. I'm not. I'm Yuuri's coach and S.O. I'm proud of him winning, even though…1/5"
11:36 PM – Mar 28
16 replies 41 retweets 891 likes
Victor Nikiforov
v-nikiforov
"…his getting gold means I took silver. Please stop harassing him. It's also been a year since I've competed – I'm nowhere near…2/5"
11:38 PM – Mar 28
4 replies 13 retweets 234 likes
Victor Nikiforov
v-nikiforov
"…the level I was last Worlds. At next season's GPF, we'll be on more even footing, and I will crush him :) Only kidding...mostly…3/5"
11:41 PM – Mar 28
23 replies 12 retweets 117 likes
Victor Nikiforov
v-nikiforov
"Now that Yuuri won gold I'd also like to formally announce our engagement, as per a promise we made. Though you probably already guessed 4/5"
11:43 PM – Mar 28
1,368 replies 5,943 retweets 66,622 likes
Victor Nikiforov
v-nikiforov
[image: Victor holds a gold medal hanging from Yuuri's neck in his right hand; his lips are pressed against it. Both the medal and the gold engagement ring on Victor's finger gleam brightly in the Shanghai skating rink's fluorescent lighting. Yuuri is blushing, a wide grin on his face.]
"So again, please don't say cruel things about my fiancée. Anyone who does isn't a true fan of mine. 5/5"
11:48 PM – Mar 28
1,488 replies 9,391 retweets 72,643 likes
BBC News Sports
[live broadcast: Yuuri glides toward the middle of the rink to the sound of applause. Victor takes his place on the far side of the ice, and the cheers become deafening. The two are dressed in matching costumes adorned with golden chains and buttons; Victor sports a pink suit, while Yuuri's is blue.
"Next up in the World Championship Figure Skating Exhibition, we're jumping to gold medalist Yuuri Katsuki of Japan. Russian silver medalist Victor Nikiforov has ceded his right to skate his own individual exhibition performance. Instead, he will be skating with Katsuki to "Stay With Me," the song that won him the title at last year's Worlds."
The music starts, slow and soft. The camera zooms in closely. Yuuri's arms move in time with the first few sad notes, as he turns around and around as if to look for someone who is not there. After a few moments he begins to truly skate, tracing a few lonely circles on the ice. He jumps once, twice, three times – and suddenly Victor is at his side as the camera's frame widens; the rink's lights change from a cold blue to a warm pink.
"They performed a version of this pair skate at the exhibition of the Grand Prix Final last December, but now that Nikiforov has made a comeback to the sport, there are rumors that they've made the routine a bit more challenging."
Together, they twirl across the ice, performing effortless lifts and dips as they seem to focus on nothing but each other. Their movements are perfectly in sync; at times, in the heavily pigmented spotlight, it is difficult to tell where the body of one ends and that of the other begins.
The music begins to pick up speed. Without breaking stride, the pair enter a fast-paced step sequence. "And now we're starting to see some of that added difficulty. Of course, Yuuri Katsuki is known for his intense, well-executed step sequences. Nikiforov seems to be struggling here a bit in his footwork, but he's certainly still keeping up with Katsuki. His struggles are comparable to the best performances of almost any other pro skater's life - he's certainly proven that time and time again." At the end of the step sequence, the two hold hands once more and enter a spiral. They revolve around each other, the strength in their grip the only thing keeping them from flying apart with the force of the spin.
"Of course, Nikiforov is getting to the age where most skaters retire, but something tells me this won't be his last competition."
The music gets faster still, driving toward its inevitable crescendo. Yuuri and Victor end the spiral sequence and disentangle their clasped hands. They head to opposite ends of the rink. For a moment, the camera lingers on the space their linked hands were. It pans back out. The two skaters are moving toward each other quickly, now. It seems they will collide if one of them does not veer out of the way. At the last moment, both pull to their right. They pass each other narrowly and begin a jump sequence as they skate away from each other once more.
"Quad toe … into a triple toe! They nailed it! And it looks like they're both prepping to do another jump –"
At the edge of one end of the rink, Yuuri executes a flawless quadruple flip – Victor's signature move. A dedicated fan of the sport would know that it is easily the best quad flip – maybe even quad – of his career.
On the other side of the rink, Victor falls.
From the moment he begins the jump, it is clear that something is off. He's too low. He begins to tilt, where he should be perfectly vertical. He only manages to get three and a half rotations in before his right skate hits the ground. His body surges forward as his feet fly out from underneath him. His left arm instinctively shoots out to stop himself from falling down completely, but even as his gloved wrist makes contact with the ice, skidding for a moment across its slippery surface, there's nothing he can do to right himself – the rest of his body is still in the air. His left hip is the second thing, after his wrist, to hit the ice. It lands hard, taking the full force of Victor's body weight, with a noise that can be heard over the loud operatic music even as it reaches its climax. He continues to roll, the momentum from his jump driving him into the boards. It looks like he strikes the back of his head, though the angle of the camera makes it impossible to be certain. The crowd lets out a collective gasp.
"Oh my - and it appears Victor Nikiforov has taken a pretty bad spill! He doesn't seem to be moving -"
It is easy to distinguish the moment Yuuri puts together the gasping of the crowd and the thud Victor's body makes as it lands. For the first few seconds, he is still lost in the thrill of executing a perfect quad flip, an exuberant smile stretching his lips wide. The excitement seems to fade, however, as the grin quickly slips from his face. He whirls around, clearly searching for the silver-haired figure who should be skating back toward him now to finish the routine. His gaze pauses for a moment on where Victor's body should be. When he is finally convinced that his eyes are not deceiving him, that Victor is not there, he turns his head to search for him.
He starts skating frantically toward the other side of the rink when he sees. "Victor? VICTOR!"
The frame zooms in on Victor's body. Yuuri and the medics arrive at his side at the same time. The Italian love song screeches to a halt. Victor lies still on the ice, his back pressed up against the boards, clutching his left hip with his right hand. He holds his left wrist out away from the rest of his body awkwardly. It is bent at an unnatural angle and is already beginning to swell. He looks up at the sound of Yuuri's voice. The camera catches a glimpse of his pale face - hair disheveled and sparkling blue eyes filled with a mixture of pain and disappointment and fear and even what looks like guilt - before the back of Yuuri's head blocks its view.
"It looks like the medics are getting him on a stretcher. It's difficult to tell how serious the injury is, but stay tuned on our channel and on our website for the latest information on this top skater's status."
The medics roll the stretcher bearing Victor carefully to the closest gap in the boards. The camera tracks them all the while, zooming in as far as it can go. Yuuri doesn't take the time to locate his skate guards when they step off the ice and onto the solid ground of the stadium - he only pauses a moment to yank the skates off, nicking a finger on one of the blades in his haste. They're unceremoniously tossed onto the ground the moment they're off as Yuuri runs to catch up with the stretcher in his bare feet. He chases after Victor and the medics as they exit the frame.]
Channel 23
Yuuri Katsuki
ykatsy
"Thank you for all your concerned messages and well-wishes. Victor and I are working with his amazing doctors to get him back on the ice soon"
7:38 PM – March 29
150 replies 3,200 retweets 64,057 likes
Yuuri Katsuki
36 min ago
Friends only
"The news isn't great. Still waiting on x-rays, but we're pretty sure Victor's wrist is broken. Thankfully, they don't think his hip is completely broken, but it's a pretty severe contusion. Slight concussion, too. Thank you for all the supportive messages you guys have been sending him. I know we haven't been very responsive, but he really does appreciate it, and so do I."
Liked by Otabek Altin and 75 others 24 Comments
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JJ Leroy Get well soon Victor!
Like Reply 15 min
Phichit Chulanont Love you Victor! 3 3 3
Like Reply 13 min
Yuuko Nishigori We're all sending you both our best wishes from here in Hasetsu!
Like Reply 10 min
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Chris Giacometti added 3 new photos – with Victor Nikiforov and Yuuri Katsuki
March 31st at 2:55 pm
Friends only
"Victor's knocked out on pain meds, but Yuuri has no excuse! XD
They're adorable even when they're asleep!
Here's hoping that Victor recovers quickly 3 ^.^ I think it looks very promising!"
[image: Chris makes a peace sign at the camera, lips pursed. Behind him, Victor lies asleep in a hospital bed, wearing a white gown flecked with light blue. His face is covered in Sharpie.]
[image: A close-up of Victor's sleeping face. His cheeks are covered with bold marker lines made to look like whiskers. A black diamond is drawn on his nose, which connects to the curled mustache just beneath it. His chin sports a goatee, and his eyebrows have been connected into a unibrow. On his forehead are the words "Chris wuz here". A monacle is drawn around his left eye.]
[image: A shot of the entire hospital room. Victor remains sleeping, wrapped in sterile-looking white blankets. Yuuri is also asleep, sitting in an armchair next to his fiancée's bed, head resting on its metal rail. His right hand lies on top of Victor's left, the gold ring on the former contrasting sharply with the IV stemming from the latter. Both of their faces are covered in Sharpie.]
Liked by Yuri Plisetsky and 212 others
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Center for Athletic Orthopedics
PHYSICAL THERAPY
Patient: Victor Nikiforov
DOB: 25/12/1985
Date of onset: 29/3
Diagnosis: Severe L hip pointer w/ pelvic avulsion fracture, L wrist fracture
Recommendations: Rest and minimal weight-bearing 4-6 weeks, crutches for the following 4. ROM, active resistance, gait training for hip after 6 weeks. Strength training and ROM for wrist. Do NOT let patient skate for at least 8 weeks. Will need extensive recuperation beyond normal PT if he decides to return to skating.
Patient to re-check with me in 2 weeks
Physician signature: Georgina Mikhailov