/

Chapter Two

/

Victor held Yuri's hands to keep them together as he moved backwards on the ice. Their eyes remained locked as they began their practice at a slow pace. A small smile from Victor was all it took to make the face before him light up to an outstanding crimson color.

It amazed Victor to see the different feelings Yuri carried when he was on the ice. When he was by himself, he was afraid of everything he did and made mistakes time and time again. But when an audience was there, he almost always nailed each position perfectly. Victor could close his eyes at any moment and picture the cocky smile he was often given from the man when he was performing. It was obvious, the king needed attention to make everything work. Victor laughed as he took their movements to a stop.

"What?" Yuri's expression grew confused to the amusement in his coach's eyes. The crimson shade barely left his face through their entire run.

"Oh, nothing but a silly thought," Victor said and waved his hand over his shoulder as if he were tossing the very thought aside. He knew it was now or never and he had to act quickly. He needed to shock the show out of Yuri. And he thought up the perfect way to do it.

Victor quickly grabbed Yuri's hips and pulled their bodies together in a snap. The motion was heavy enough to shake Yuri's mind out of all the thoughts dancing in his own head and into the moment they were sharing. The quick contact of their hips being forced together made a chill dance up both of their spines. A chill that they both knew had to be created from something much more than the cold. Victor moved his face close to Yuri's ear. His lips brushed against Yuri's skin as he spoke. "I chose you to be my king and you better not fail me now."

Victor threw his arms in the air and raced away from where the two had been embraced. His separation from Yuri was the only signal Yuko needed to start the music. She did her very best not to fawn over the obvious attractions which were expressed on the ice. Their relationship was confusing to most, but she wasn't an idiot since she was given the privilege to see their moments together on the ice time and time again.

The King's Surrender began with a strong sort of crash on a piano as if a king was knocking down the doors to his own party. Yuri straightened his posture as if he were the proud king. He had originally thought the music was about a king's surrender at war. But what if it was something so much more?

Victor smiled from where he stood as if he knew the second Yuri connected the truth to the music. Yuri's proud stance and sudden dash into action made Victor's heart soar. Those were the moments when he truly loved working with his favorite student. Witnessing the times of success and holding the ability to kick Yuri forward through the times of doubt was what it was all about. As Yuri continued to skate through the music, Yuko approached Victor to speak with him.

"Do you know how long he's been struggling to get the simple start figured out?" she asked as she leaned forward to rest her chin in her open hand.

"I don't," Victor admitted and let out a sigh so soft Yuko barely caught the sound. "He never speaks to me about what's bothering him unless we're on the ice. That's why I pulled him here this morning. I could tell something was bouncing around in his head even when we were speaking over the phone while I was away. It was so hard not to beg him to tell me."

"Maybe you should," she said as she thought back to her moments with Yuri on the ice many years ago. "He is a shy person and doesn't like having others worry about him. In fact, that was probably the very reason he never acted on any of his crushes."

Victor's eyes sparkled to her words. "You know about his romantic history? Oh, do tell!"

She laughed as she thought about how little there was to share on the matter. "More like lack there of. I was vaguely aware of his crush on me when we were young, but he never found the courage to step up and ask. He missed his chance with me and lost out to Takeshi because he didn't step up. There were a few others he crushed on but I don't think any of them were as strong as the crush he holds now."

"Who is that?" Victor asked with excitement and wonder in his eyes. He would do anything to help his student get through whatever love trials he was about to face. What else was he there for? Well, other than helping him on the ice.

"Do you really need me to answer that question?" Yuko gave him a smirk and walked away with a wave as Yuri's music was reaching the end. Victor returned all of his attention to the man on the ice as his motions ended. The final move of the piece was Yuri positioned in a bow as if he were finally dropping his confidence for the enemy before him. Victor let out a sigh and covered his face. What if he wasn't surrendering to an enemy but rather to a love?

Victor rolled his eyes behind his hands and shook his head. How could he have been so blind? He heard heavy breaths nearing him as Yuri approached.

"I'm not sure if I'll remember it all, but I think that was it," Yuri said and laughed. "I'm not sure what happened but we found it."

"Yes, we did," Victor said and once again wrapped Yuri into a tight, embarrassing embrace. He whispered even softer than before into the available ear. "Would you listen to me for a moment?"

"Of course," Yuri said and placed his own hands on Victor's hips as they pulled apart. "What's wrong?"

"I thought there was nothing wrong, at first. But there might actually be a whole a lot of something not right," he answered with a laugh. "If there was only one thing you could love in this world, what would it be?"

Yuri's eyebrows pulled together in confusion to the question he was asked. There was no way to only love one thing in the world. He had his family, his friends, his figure skating career, and he had Victor. There were too many possibilities to think he could only limit himself to one thing to love. Now one person, that might make things a little easier.

"I would love you," Yuri answered. He wanted to look away from the taller man's eyes. The only problem with looking away was the fact that he knew there was something much larger than a simple question occurring between them.

"And I would love you," Victor said. He moved fast to pull Yuri's face towards his own for a heavy kiss. As they shared their first kiss, Victor took hold of his partner's hand so their rings were touching.

They pulled apart slowly after their kiss and took in enough air to clear up their clouded minds. Yuri laughed and then tears fell from his eyes as he let his face collide against Victor's shoulder. Victor couldn't help but smile as Yuri cried gently against him. There was nothing wrong with his king surrendering to love.