Author's Note: I'm actually on time? Whoa, this is new.

I'm still really proud of the last chapter. For something that started off in my mind as "80's shopping montage," it turned out pretty great.

This next chapter is not as long, but I still think it's good. Please enjoy~!

Yuri and Victor were beyond tired. They both had a sudden burst of energy upon seeing each other at the airport, but after the initial shock to the system, they were both left with the reality that neither of them had slept in over twenty-four hours.

The only thing that took priority over sleep was their empty stomachs, but luckily, Mrs. Katsuki had them covered with extra large pork cutlet bowls.

As good as it was, neither could focus on the flavor. At this point, it was only a means to an end. They leaned on each other wearily as they downed their food in perfect silence.

There was no question what they were going to do once they finished. Even though it was early afternoon in Hatsetsu, it was already night in Moscow. They were going to bed now—Japanese time zone be damned.

Victor collapsed backwards onto his bed. Yuri followed, collapsing onto Victor.

The former chuckled, gazing down at Yuri's head on his chest. "You're surprisingly forward today," he remarked and reached up a hand to stroke Yuri's hair.

In response, Yuri turned over and buried his head into Victor's shirt. "Too tired," came his reply. "Too tired to do anything. You'll have to push me off if you don't like it."

"I don't remember implying I didn't like it," Victor quipped, tracing Yuri's ear with his finger. He could feel every breath Yuri took, the blood pumping through his body, everything all at once, and yet it wasn't the least bit overwhelming. Quite the opposite actually. If he wasn't so tired, perhaps he'd pursue this opportunity and actually put some effort into flirting, but for the moment, he was emotionally spent.

The room dissolved into silence until each other's breathing was their only companion.

Just as Victor was finally drifting to sleep, Yuri stirred.

"Victor?"

The tone roused Victor enough to reply. "M'hmm?"

"Turn over."

Victor could feel sleep slipping away, but he was far too intrigued to care. "What?"

"Turn over," Yuri repeated. "Face away from me. Towards the wall."

Victor felt a pang of distress deep in his chest, thinking that he must have somehow offended Yuri without his knowledge, but the other must have been able to tell from Victor's sharp inhale that his message had gotten lost in translation.

"I don't mean—! I'm not mad at you!" Yuri was sitting up now, gazing earnestly into Victor's eyes to convince him. "Just trust me."

Victor still wasn't quite sure, but he relented, countering, "You'll have to get off first if you want me to turn over."

"Oh." Yuri's cheeks colored. "Right." He rolled off Victor and prodded his side. "Come on. Turn over already."

Victor gave him another uncertain look but complied, turning his back to Yuri. Staring at the wall, he pondered what Yuri was up to for a moment, but he didn't have to speculate long.

Yuri slid one arm through the space between Victor's neck and the mattress and the other arm over Victor's side parallel with the ceiling, pulling closer and melding their bodies together in a spooning fashion.

Victor laughed lightly, no longer worried. "What's this about?"

Yuri mumbled into Victor's back, "It's just… Back in China. When you tried to make me sleep. It seemed like you really wanted to be the little spoon. I wanted to try it out."

Victor was struck silent for a moment. Then, he chuckled again. "I guess my secret is out."

"Why is it a secret?" Yuri questioned, tone intrigued. "Are you embarrassed about it?" That seemed unlikely to Yuri, considering Victor's shameless exhibitionist streak.

"Hmm…" Victor considered. He wasn't entirely sure himself, but he didn't know if he wanted to admit it. "Maybe?"

Yuri snuggled in closer. "Why?"

"'Why'?" Victor echoed. He'd never thought about it. It just didn't seem to come naturally. Or maybe the problem was that it came too naturally. "Well, it's…" He furrowed his brows at the wall in deep concentration. "… It's just not a manly position to be in."

Yuri considered this. Suddenly, he felt a little offended. "Oh, so I'm the one who has to get delegated to the 'unmanly' position?" It came out harsher than he anticipated.

The gravity of what he had just said finally dawned on Victor.

"No—!" He spun around so fast, his shoulder knocked into Yuri's chin. The other man immediately hissed out some Japanese curses, clutching his chin in the palm of his hand. "That's not what I—! You misunderstand! Wait—Oh my god, are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'll live," Yuri groaned, laughing a little as he spied Victor's horrified expression over the view of his own hand.

Victor reached out and cupped Yuri's cheek, worry written all over his face. He chose to take Yuri at his word and return to the previous topic. "It's just…" He couldn't find the words. The fingers that were resting on the side of Yuri's face fidgeted uncomfortably as he grasped for meaning among all the thoughts swimming in his head.

How could he explain that he was predisposed to hide this side of him? That there were a million layers of culture and language and experiences that occasionally rose to the surface to suffocate his true feelings?

Yuri was quiet, studying Victor's expression. He'd almost never seen Victor so conflicted. But there must have been a clue somewhere there because realization began to dawn on him.

"Hey." Yuri reached up and removed Victor's hand from his face and inched closer to press their foreheads together. "Look at me."

Reluctantly, Victor did. They were so close that all he could see were Yuri's deep brown irises, dark enough to swallow his pupil whole. It always made Victor feel a little intimidated, thinking that maybe those eyes were enough to see right through him at times.

Yuri moved in even closer somehow, determined to get Victor's full attention. "Listen," he started, "it's just us." He let that statement hang in the air a moment—let it sink in. "No one else is here."

Victor tilted his head, questioning. Wasn't that obvious? Of course it was just them. What did Yuri mean by that?

Yuri groaned a little, realizing the significance hadn't quite gotten through to him. He redoubled his efforts, clarifying, "I mean, you don't have to worry about looking weak in front of me." He tested the waters, inquiring, "Would you like it if I wasn't honest with you?"

Honesty? Was that what this was about? Victor had lost track along the way. He seemed to recall it being something about spooning, but everything had gotten complicated quickly. He answered the question anyway: "No, of course I wouldn't."

"See? When we're like this, we can be honest. We don't have to care what other people think."

The puzzle pieces were started to click together, albeit slowly.

"Oh… I can't believe I was embarrassed about a thing like that." Victor laughed. It felt good—broke the tension. "I guess I'm just not entirely used to it yet."

"To what?" Yuri's voice was accusatory. "To me?"

Victor laughed again, cuddling into Yuri's embrace. "Of course, I'm already abundantly used to you~!" He reached out and tickled Yuri's sides, garnering some laughter from the other.

"Stop it, stop—!" Yuri pushed away at Victor's hands, but it was done half-heartedly. He was still laughing, shaking the bed with it. "Vitya~!"

Abruptly, Victor's hands froze in place.

"What…?" He swallowed dryly. "What did you just call me?"

Yuri wasn't laughing anymore. He immediately went red, recognizing what he had said. "I, uh… You know you our old coach, Yakov? I mean, of course, you know him… Well, when I was back in Moscow, he called you Vitya, and I guess I just kind of…" He gave Victor a wary look. "Sorry… Do you not like it?"

Nothing could be further from the truth.

Victor immediately pounced on Yuri, adorning him with a smattering of kisses around his face. "I love it,"—a kiss—"I love it,"—another kiss—"I love it,"—finally, a kiss on the lips—"and I love you."

Yuri was giggling again. "Clearly," he said teasingly, leaning into that last kiss.

Victor made it last as long as he could before he had to come up for air, then gazed lovingly down at Yuri's augmented lips, admiring his work. "Say it again. Like before."

Yuri rolled his eyes. "I'm not sure I can do it like before, but I'll give it a try." He leaned up until they were mere seconds apart from engaging in another kiss, letting his mouth ghost over Victor's lips.

"Vitya."

This time might have been even better. Instead of the laughing tone, now his voice was hoarse with desire, and it made a shiver zip down Victor's spine.

"Oh, god. Again."

"Again?" Yuri reached up and poked the man's cheek, lightly directing Victor's attention away to give himself a break from those piercing blue eyes. "You're getting spoiled. If I say it any more, it won't be as special."

"It'll be special! It'll be special!" Victor insisted, dropping his head down to brush his nose against Yuri's. "I promise, it's special every time."

"Victor—"

"Nope!" Victor immediately shifted his attention slightly lower, capturing Yuri in a kiss. "You have to say it one more time," he mumbled against Yuri's lips. "One more, and I promise I'll let you go to sleep."

Yuri reached around and tugged Victor back by his hair decisively—though his amused expression subverted his stern action. "You're the one who needs sleep," he argued. "We can pick this up later."

"No, nooowww…" Victor was begging directly against Yuri's lips now. "Come on… Just one more time. Just one more." He pressed his tongue into Yuri's mouth, waiting for resistance.

He got none. Yuri melted in response, melding his tongue into Victor's. "Victor…"

"Vitya. Say Vitya." He tugged on Yuri's bottom lip with his teeth.

"N'hn…" Yuri was still fighting—but just barely. Even in this position, he still had just enough leverage to make a demand. "Maybe…" he mumbled, "… if you get my neck."

In response, Victor instantly pressed Yuri's chin to the side with his nose, granting him better access to the other's neck. He immediately sunk down on it, seizing the sensitive area near Yuri's pulse with his lips.

Yuri almost said it then and there. But he held back, opting instead to moan. Victor was a little disappointed that maneuver wasn't quite enough, but he had plenty of other tricks up his sleeve.

He licked it, curious if that would be enough. No, just more moaning—not that it wasn't fine music to the ears. But he had an agenda now.

Fine. He'd have to resort to his secret weapon.

Carefully, he took the flesh into his mouth and bit down.

It was hardly a nip—wouldn't even leave a mark. He was merely testing the waters, concerned how Yuri would take it. They had never tried something like that, and Victor wasn't about to hurt Yuri over some silly little game.

Luckily, the action was received positively.

It was more of a squeak than a moan, but he could tell Yuri was pleased from the way he stroked the back of Victor's head appreciatively.

To double the effect, Victor brushed his tongue over the same spot. The reaction was immediate, and Yuri was suddenly wriggling underneath Victor's touch—no doubt realizing how close he was to giving in.

"Feel like calling me Vitya now?" Victor asked, his breath wisping over Yuri's neck. It was meant to be a rhetorical question, but he was curious if Yuri would take the initiative to answer.

There was a pause as the younger man considered.

"Yes."

Huh. Surprisingly honest. Victor wouldn't have guessed that.

Then, Yuri's lips were on his again.

"Okay, you win… Vitya."

It was spoken directly into Victor's mouth. And this one was definitely the best one yet, bar none. He could feel the full effect of it collapsing onto him, traveling from his head to his toes and warming his whole body along the way.

Yuri fell back onto the mattress from the slightly contorted position he had to take to reach Victor and sighed contently. "Can we go to sleep now?" He pulled Victor down on top of him, emphasizing his point, but quickly realized his error. "Wait, bad idea, bad idea! Ugh, why are you so heavy? You have to sleep over there—" With the utterance of "there," he pushed Victor to the side—where he flopped comically.

Victor blinked at his new ceiling view, processing all that had happened in the last few seconds. Finally, he registered that he'd been insulted and propped himself up on his elbow to present Yuri with glare. "How rude. It's all muscle, you know." His tone was spilling over with feigned artifice.

"Yeah, yeah. Whatever the case, you were crushing me." Yuri prodded Victor's side. "Now, turn over again. I'm not done spooning you."

Victor chuckled but adhered to Yuri's wishes, rolling onto his side. Yuri was on him again. This time, they were both much more relaxed.

"Goodnight, Victor."

"Goodnight… Yuri-chan."

"Oh, god." Yuri shivered, but it wasn't the good kind. He clinged to Victor harder, burying his face as a blush crept up his neck. "Don't make a habit out of that one."

"But you gave me a nickname! I want to have one for you too!"

"Come up with a better one."

"But I like Yuri-chan!"

"No."

"Yuri-chan!"

"Vitya, please."

"See? It has all kinds of secret powers already!"

"Ugh."

That was quite enough for one day. Yuri turned out the light, and finally, the two drifted into well deserved sleep.

Author's Note: I guess I have no translator notes this chapter. Well, okay then...

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