Thank you to midnightsky0612, dododoobird, and yukichicken for your reviews on the first chapter. I much appreciate them. :)
All I could find on Minami's family is that both his parents are doctors and he has an older brother who is also studying to be a doctor. Therefore I had a lot of room for creativity as far as his family member's names and personalities.
Yuuri stood speechless for a moment. Once he realized his ears heard Minami's words correctly he looked over at Victor then back to the younger boy.
"You ran away?" Yuuri asked just to clarify.
The teenager nodded. "Last night," he said. "I rode the bus here." The transportation fare along with what he bought to eat on the way had used up a good chunk of the allowance money he had saved up.
Yuuri was baffled to say the least. Based on his fan's personality he'd never expect the kid to have home troubles. He frowned at the thought that the reason Minami often wore a smile was to hide the pain. After the thought crossed his mind he hoped that wasn't the case.
"Why'd you come all the way out here?" Victor asked.
"I was going to go to my coach's house, but that be the first place they'd look," Minami explained. "And all my friends' parents would take me back home, or call my parents to pick me up." He twiddled his thumbs. "So the next person I thought of was you."
Minami glanced up through his bangs at his idol who wore a countenance of concern.
Yuuri sighed. He already knew when he told his parents the reason they wouldn't be so keen to let him to stay unless Minami was being harmed in some way. Again he hoped that wasn't the case.
Plus it didn't make sense that his parents would suddenly force their son to stop skating. From what Minami told Hiroko back in December they were proud to watch his performances on television due to their work not allowing them the chance to view them live. In addition his parents paid for all his skating expenses, which made the decision even more confusing.
"What are you thinking?" Minami asked Yuuri as he noticed his idol had gone silent and lost in thought.
"You're parents don't know you're here, do they?" Yuuri finally asked.
Minami shook his head. "That's why I can't pay with a card," he explained. "They'd trace it and find me."
Yuuri folded his hands on the table. "Minami, you're asking a lot," he said. "I won't lie, I don't think my mom and dad will let it happen. You're a minor and your parents are probably out looking for you."
The boy flinched. Yuuri said no more and let the words linger for a bit. He wanted to help his acquaintance, but couldn't put his family or their business in jeopardy.
"Why won't they let you skate anymore?" Victor asked catching the attention of both Minami and Yuuri.
Minami lowered his head and mumbled something neither of the other two could make out.
"Could you repeat that," said Victor.
Minami twirled his chopsticks in the katsudon bowl. Without making eye contact with either of the two older men he said, "I failed too many subjects." He tightened his fist and accidentally snapped one of the chopsticks. The two pieces fell on the table. The whole one landed beside it and rolled off the table onto the floor next to Minami's right leg.
Minami placed his fists on the table and hung his head even lower. "If I don't pass everything next semester I'll be held back for sure." His voice wavered. "I won't graduate." Warm tears pooled in his eyes. "My dad said..." Minami sniffed and wiped away a falling tear. "He said skating's interfering with my studies and I can't compete this season."
The room went silent for a moment.
Minami ignored the grumbling in his belly for the nausea caused by knowing his idol and said idol's lover stared down at him. Even more he remembered the last conversation he had with his parents hours before he made the decision to leave home.
"I'm home!"Kenjirou shouted as he entered the apartment. He threw off his shoes at the door along with his backpack which contained his skates, wallet, and a water bottle. Just as he unzipped his jacket he heard footsteps approaching the foyer.
The teenager hung up his coat on the rack. His father's tall shadow engulfed him causing the boy to turn. The usual warm greeting was replaced by a frown, a look his father rarely used, only when he was in trouble. A quick glimpse at the older man's hand Minami recognized the paper and his stomach flipped, already knowing he was in for a lecture.
"Kenjirou, will you join me in the family room?" Soma Minami said. And although he formed it as a request, the tone proved otherwise.
Slowly Minami made his way to the living room. His mother, Michiru, already sat on the couch, and her husband joined her. With a slight pout Kenjirou sat in the chair across from the occupied couch.
That was not the first time he had been in that very situation. Throughout his life he had put other things ahead of his studies which often led to a lecture and punishment from his parents. In the end he always managed to pass his grade. However with this year being his last Minami wanted to enjoy being a teenager before his eighteenth birthday rolled around in August.
"Kenjirou, you are almost an adult, please explain why I'm still having to scold you about your grades," Soma said with a calm demeanor, yet the words still laced in anger.
The teenager shrugged.
Soma opened up the folded report card and handed it to his son. Kenjirou gingerly accepted it and looked over the number of failed grades.
"This is your worst report card to date," Soma said. He pushed his glasses back on his face. "To say I'm disappointed is an understatement."
Minami hung his head.
However his father wasn't finished. "I also got a letter from your counselor." He held up the note and also handed it over for his son to read. "If you don't pass everything next semester you can count on being held back." His volume rose just the slightest, but enough to frighten Kenjirou. "That means you won't graduate."
Kenjirou crumpled the sides of the letter. He recalled the meeting with his counselor at the beginning of last semester. He explained in full enthusiasm his dream of becoming a world renowned figure skater backed up with the evidence he had already won a few medals, and was somewhat of a regional celebrity. When the counselor brought up the subject of his lackluster grades Minami waved off her concerns with his ambitions didn't require academic success. Thankfully she had not included that in her letter to his dad, but there was no doubt those words were in the back of her mind while typing up her concerns.
However, even though he had no intention of attending college, he still knew how important it was to his family that at least he graduate high school. They accepted their youngest son would never graduate with honors, but a diploma would be enough. From the looks of it now that minor goal that meant the world to his family seemed far out of reach.
"Have you even begun your summer homework?" Michiru asked.
The flinch answered that question.
Kenjirou usually waited until a week before school started up again to rush through the homework. He did the bare minimum, but it was enough to please his teachers; he had long given up on trying to impress them.
With this being his last summer as a teenager he wanted to enjoy it to the full extent. He practiced skating every morning with his coach then after returning home to change his clothes and a quick lunch, he rushed out to meet up with his friends.
"Kenjirou, you don't seem to grasp the seriousness of the situation, so we are going to make you understand," said Soma. He looked over at his wife who nodded then said to his son, "Your mother and I discussed it and we agreed that this semester you will focus only on your studies."
Kenjirou sighed and nearly rolled his eyes when the realization of what his father meant hit him.
"Wait! But-but the season starts next semester," the boy argued.
"You will not be participating this season," said Michiru.
Minami jumped up. "You can't do this to me!" he cried. His lips quivered and tears formed. "I'm a skater. This is my life."
Soma narrowed his eyes, but also stood, not taking his gaze off his son. Kenjirou winced at the sight of his father towering over him.
"We didn't want it to be this way, but you've given us no other choice," Soma replied. "Skating will have to take the back seat for now. You need to pass every subject with high scores, not your usual mediocre ones, or you won't graduate."
"I don't care," Kenjirou spat and crossed his arms. "So what if it takes a little longer for me to graduate? I'm not going to be like you or Ryuki." He placed his hand against his chest. "I'm going to be a professional skater."
"And what if you get injured?" Michiru asked as she stood. She pushed by her husband and stared dirctly in the eyes of her son, their heights being the exact same. "What if you don't make it? You need something to fall back on."
The tears broke through the barrier at his mother's last statement. Too long they assured him they supported his endevours, but now he couldn't be sure.
"In that case," said Soma as he adjusted his glasses. "If you don't graduate, you can forget skating altogether."
Soma walked past Kenjirou. The boy heard the sound of a zipper and instantly recognized it as his backpack. He rushed for the foyer and gasped at the sight of his father holding his ice skates.
"You will get these back when you bring home a decent report card," Soma stated.
"You can't," Kenjirou croaked.
Soma glared at his son, daring him to argue further. The head of the household walked off to his bedroom where the skates would be locked away at least until December. By the time Soma returned Kenjirou was openly sobbing. His mother tried to put a comforting hand on him, but he pushed her away.
Kenjirou looked up at his parents and whispered, "I hate you," then ran off to his room.
Kenjirou stayed in his room for the rest of the day. He stopped crying after an hour and instead laid on the bed staring up at the ceiling. He glanced over at the packet of homework on his desk. He reached over and knocked the papers to the floor before rolling on his side.
He couldn't imagine a life without skating. Ever since he was six he had been on the ice.
Brown eyes landed on a framed photograph of his junior division win. He held up the gold medal and his brother Ryuki had an arm around him, both smiling at the camera. That was the last competition Ryuki got to attend before he began premedical school the following semester.
A part of him wanted to smash the frame on the floor, but he knew it wasn't his brother's fault. In the back of his mind Minami knew he had no one to blame for his situation but himself.
As long as he lived in his parents' house he'd have to abide by their rules. If only he could go somewhere else...
Minami's eyes lit up as the perfect solution presented itself.
That night he waited an hour after his parents went to sleep to open the door. He crept over to his parent's bedroom and slowly turned the doorknob. He held his breath and waited a few seconds to hear the snores of his father and hums of his mother.
The head full of a mess of blond and red poked inside. He glanced around the room wondering where his dad had stashed his skates. The most obvious option was the closet.
With his lungs holding onto a captured breath Minami tiptoed into the room. He expected his parents to wake at any moment due to the sound of his racing heart. They'd see his shadow before him. If he was caught he'd be in worse trouble.
The teenager snuck over to the closet and pushed the door open. He pushed aside a few garments, feeling around for the skates. A belt slipped down from the railing and the buckle slammed against the floor. Minami clamped a hand over his mouth. His father's snores abruptly switched to a sharp snort and ceased. Minami slowly turned his head expecting to see his mother, father, or both glaring in his direction. Both were still sound asleep; moments later the snoring continued.
Minami slowly let out a breath. He turned back to the closet wondering if he should abandon his precious skates. Minami threw away that thought and resumed his mission. After a few minutes of paranoid searching he realized the skates were not in the closet.
The next thought was to check the dresser. He tiptoed around the bed close to his mother's side. With another deep breath he crouched down opened the bottom drawer, the deepest and the only one of the four large enough to house ice skates. Minami's eyes lit up at the sight of his most prized possession stored next to a few slacks and jeans.
Minami pulled the first skate out. The side scraped against the drawer. His eyes widened at the sound of moaning and blankets shifting. With a pounding heart he turned to see Michiru turn over on her side, but didn't wake. He let out a sigh of relief and put a hand over his stinging heart. Fortunately his parents would be able to revive him if he did have a heart attack, although he wondered if he'd even want that option.
He looked over at his sleeping parents and regretted telling them he hated them, he hadn't meant it. He debated with the idea of putting the skates back in the drawer and going back to his room, forgetting the whole plan. The reminder that he wouldn't be able to skate again until he was nineteen made that decision for him. He was in his prime and forfeiting a season would be too major a blow to his career.
Carefully he secured the second skate and hurriedly tip toed out of the room. He shut the door behind him then rushed off to his own room. He shoved his skates in his backpack then jammed the rest with what clothes he could fit. In the end he only managed to pack five outfits, but would be enough once he found somewhere to stay that had a washing machine. He picked up a few more items including the framed photograph of himself and Ryuki at the junior men's figure skating championship. His jacket on his arms with his wallet in one pocket and his keys and phone in the other.
As he made his way to the door he stopped and scribbled on a sticky note: I'll be back when you change your minds. -Kenjirou.
Minami shut the door behind him and started on his trek away from the only home he had ever known. A part of his brain kept pleading him to go back and beg his parents for forgiveness. He quickly shut those thoughts up knowing that now no one could determine his future but himself.
He stopped a few blocks away from his house. The few passing cars filled him with a temporary fear that his mom or dad would be in the driver's seat, but each one passed on without a glance in his direction.
For a moment he wondered where he headed. He considered going to stay with his coach, but she'd certainly notify his parents and he'd be in even worse trouble come morning. Minami dropped the backpack on the sidewalk. Where exactly could he go? Everyone he knew would turn him in the moment he arrived. It wasn't too late to sneak back into his apartment.
The boy wondered what Yuuri Katsuki would do in his situation. He gasped and eyes lit up at the thought of his idol. He was on good terms with Yuuri's mother who wouldn't turn him away, especially if he pretended to be a customer. Hopefully Yuuri would be there too, if anyone knew what to do it would be him.
With a plan in mind Minami picked up his backpack and slung it over his shoulders. He walked in the direction of the bus station. It would take a while to reach Hasetsu, but that made it even better. His parents wouldn't think to check there.
Minami looked up at his host and his boyfriend. "So will you help me?" he asked with hope glimmering in those brown eyes.
"Wait," Yuuri said and held up a hand. "You're failing your grade and your first thought was to run away?"
Minami nodded.
Yuuri sighed. "Minami, I'm sorry, but you need to go home."
The boy's expression fell. "Were you even listening to what I said?" he cried.
"Yes, and you're making a terrible mistake," Yuuri replied.
"Who's side are you on?" the teenager yelled.
"Look, I know it isn't what you want to hear, but your education is important," the older skater retorted.
"You were skating at my age," Minami argued.
"And I made sure to study between practices," Yuuri responded.
"To be fair, I never cared too much about my studying either," Victor said as he stared up at the ceiling with a smile on his face and finger under his chin.
"Victor," Yuuri snapped and glared at his boyfriend.
Victor nervously laughed with his hands out in front of him. "I mean, Yuuri's right," he quickly replied.
The twenty-four-year-old shook his head then returned his attention to Minami. "You can't shirk your schoolwork for skating. And your mother is correct. That's why I went to college, just incase professional skating didn't work out."
"I never gave much thought to any other career," Victor mused.
Yuuri elbowed his boyfriend in the ribs.
"I'm sorry I thought you could help me," Minami said as he stood.
He fled from the room trying to keep from crying in front of his idol a second time. Yuuri looked over at Victor who motioned for the former to go after him. With a sigh Yuuri jumped to his feet and followed after the younger skater.
I did some research before writing this chapter on how the Japanese school year works as it is different from the typical school year in my country.
Minami strikes me as the person who doesn't care very much for school. His talents rest in skating, dancing, and other creative and athletic works, and just doesn't care much for a classroom setting.
I hope you all like this chapter. :)