This AU is officially going to be continued! I have approximately 9 more chapters outlined! Also, please look for the Seungchuchu prequel fic: When Sarcasm and Optimism Collide!

I'm sorry for the delay with posting but I have been fighting with errors on this site for weeks! I am going to be uploading a massive amount of content today!


Sleep had become a figment of Yuuri's imagination.

For another span of fitful eight hours he had laid across his bed, overanalyzing every text that he had exchanged with Victor. He reread every word, stared at every emoji, and had generally driven himself to the point of frustrated madness.

If it had been anyone other than Victor, Yuuri would have been sure, beyond a reasonable doubt, that the texts were meant as flirting. But he had seen Victor flirt. Hours and hours of fast-flying texts, every one of them filled with sexual innuendo and heavy insinuation of growing lust. Other than the one crotch picture, which could have easily been Victor's failing with the phone camera, there had been no indication of anything remotely sexual. There was the usual amount of sarcasm and plenty of digs at each other's competence, but nothing else. It was the exact same as it always was, minus two winking smiley faces and a possible crotch shot.

Shoving from the bed, Yuuri rubbed a heavy hand over his tired face. His restlessness been beneficial only in the chance it had given him to pack for the conference. An event that had seemed so far away when he scheduled it, but was now upon him like a forgotten deadline. Kicking his duffle bag toward his hanging suits, he made his way to the bathroom.

It was a double-edged sword of timing. On one side, Yuuri thought it would be good to step away for a couple of days. Even being only an hour away from their small circle would give him a chance to clear his mind. He would be able to analyze every potential argument regarding his relationship with Victor. Understanding every side to a case was his method as a lawyer, and logically the same skills should apply to a decision between friendship and more. He huffed to himself, realizing that logic had probably ceased to exist sometime on Friday night.

Bouncing on his toes as the shower water heated to a preferred temperature, Yuuri couldn't get the unoiled gears in his brain to stop grinding. On the other side of the precariously balanced sword, Yuuri knew how quickly Victor could change his mind. If, by some stroke of stupid luck, Victor was interested, that interest could flit away by the time Yuuri got back. He had seen Victor lose interest in other guys in a matter of hours, and the thought was making Yuuri's stomach sour.

A quick dousing of water and suds was all Yuuri could handle. The sadistic army of nerves marching along inside of him made it impossible to concentrate, even on ordinary activities. He moved into his familiar morning routine at the hands of his unstable autopilot, praying for relief from the constant buzz of overthinking. Brushing his teeth and combing out the tangles from his hair with his right hand, Yuuri flicked through his phone calendar with his left, demanding his brain focus on the tasks. Phichit had court that morning and Victor would get to handle JJ in the afternoon. Yuuri found himself almost disappointed that he wouldn't be able to watch that fiasco go down. Victor had a notoriously horrible memory for periphery humans, and the handful of people Yuuri had dated all seemed to fall into that category. Given JJ's own personality and the boisterous kiss he had bestowed on Yuuri in the vestibule of the office, there was plenty of predictable drama for the afternoon, none of it having to do with JJ's case.

It was drama Yuuri would gladly skip, even though a small part of him wanted to play the fly on the wall. Even if traffic was non-existent, the conference check-in started at noon and with the hour drive, Yuuri would have to leave immediately after breakfast. JJ's case was scheduled on the afternoon docket making Yuuri's potential voyeurism of the madness impossible. Smiling to himself, he unlocked his phone and clicked on one of his newest contacts. He couldn't be the fly, but he knew a certain declawed cat that might be willing to help him. Firing off a text to Yuri, he tossed his bath towel into the hamper and went in pursuit of clothing.

Shrugging on a blue polo shirt, Yuuri took his time sliding his legs into his jeans. Trying desperately to distract himself, he visualized the list of items in his duffle bag. Mentally he reviewed the final list of what he needed to pack and once dressed he pursued each missing piece. Finally tucking his suits carefully into his garment bag, Yuuri moved from the bedroom to retrieve his laptop and call Vicchan from the poodle's favorite place on the couch. Clipping on Vicchan's leash, Yuuri took one last glance around his apartment and sighed his way out of the door.

Tuesday morning meant breakfast with Seung-gil at their favorite puppy-and-me café. It was a tradition that had started the first spring after Vicchan became Yuuri's, and was as important to them as Sundays for Phichit and Victor. This Tuesday was as much a necessity as it was tradition, even if Yuuri couldn't fathom eating a single bite.

He had found the café by accident during its official first week of opening. Yuuri had been jogging to the soundtrack filtering from his earbuds, Makkachin and Vicchan happily glued to his side when Georgi's over-the-top greeting interrupted their rhythm. Pausing only to avoid rudeness, Yuuri had fallen in love with the charming idea of the café. After a quick meal, and lots of Georgi snuggles for the dogs, Yuuri waved goodbye to the owner of his new favorite place.

The café was on a small lot, with limited indoor space which was compensated for by a large patio and even larger fenced yard. Dog owners could bring their friendly pets to romp over the plush grassy area, while waiters dressed in t-shirts covered in various dog breeds served drinks and food. It was a simple menu, breakfast and lunch sandwiches, coffee, tea and a few sweets, but everything was made from local ingredients and was delicious in its simplicity. The dogs also had available selections of their own, including bacon flavored dog cookies and a variety of jerkies. The whole place was run by the always dramatic Georgi, who cooed and kissed every dog as they entered the front gate.

Tuesday was their standing date, one that allowed them to check in and indulge in an hour (or two) of pure cynical commentary. Phichit and Victor were the kings of sunshine, and Yuuri and Seung-gil their princes of darkness. Laughing to himself over the comparison, Yuuri carefully placed Vicchan on the front seat of his car and then loaded the trunk with his bags.

He couldn't cancel on Seung-gil, even with the knowledge that there were probably a million questions prepared to rain down on him. Phichit and Seung-gil had offered to take Vicchan for the days of Yuuri's trip and it made sense to send Vicchan home with Seung-gil from the dog restaurant. If questions came, Yuuri would handle them, knowing that Seung-gil would try to understand the discombobulated answers.

Settling into his driver's seat, Yuuri pecked a quick kiss to Vicchan's head before backing out of the driveway. Instead of making a right, Yuuri turned left and heard the reactionary whine from his furry kid in the passenger seat.

Had it been any other Tuesday, Yuuri would have been picking up Makkachin as well, a fact that wasn't going unnoticed by the now pouting Vicchan. Victor hadn't asked about it, so Yuuri hadn't either, letting the slight guilt of leaving Makka behind settle on his shoulders. One missed visit to the Doggy's Day Café wasn't going to be the end of the world and Yuuri reminded himself of this fact as he headed down the street.


Arriving at the café, Yuuri smiled at Georgi when the café owner bent down to scoop Vicchan into his arms. Georgi always seemed lonely, and Yuuri felt bad for not visiting more often than they did. Listening as Georgi coddled Vicchan, Yuuri glanced out of the back window, spying Seung-gil's dark mop of hair sitting at their usual table. Suppressing his fear, Yuuri accepted Vicchan from Georgi's arms and headed back to face his doom.

Vicchan was out of his arms and under the legs of Seung-gil's husky before Yuuri could pull out his chair from the table. Laughing, he watched as the two dogs romped together in happy greeting. "Hey," Yuuri said, letting his body drop into the chair.

"Hey, Mr. Nikiforov," Seung-gil replied without looking up from his menu.

The smirk was evident, even with the coated paper covering most of Seung-gil's face. Lifting his own menu, Yuuri tried to remain calm. "Already, huh?" He had thought Seung-gil would at least let him drink a sip of coffee before the torture began. It was painfully obvious that he was wrong.

"Someone has to," Seung-gil shrugged, dropping his menu to the table. "Phichit has been leaving you alone. Mostly due to my father almost killing him, but nonetheless, he has stayed quiet." Lifting his own coffee cup, Seung-gil paused, "I won't." When Yuuri didn't respond, Seung-gil took a slow sip of his coffee and replaced it on the table. "How far is your head up your ass? Should I call your father's proctologist?"

That did it. Yuuri burst out laughing, letting the nervous energy roll out of him with the amusement over Seung-gil's question. "No specialist needed. Maybe a few strong men and a crowbar." Yuuri smirked at his friend when Seung-gil chuckled. "Do we have to talk about Victor?" He knew the answer, but it was worth a shot.

"Yes," Seung-gil answered, "because you haven't seen your sister since Sunday so all of her decent advice is out of your ridiculous brain. You're leaving for two days. I need to fill you with realism before your pessimism destroys everything."

Conversation halted as they placed their orders with the cheerful red-headed waitress who had been a member of Yuri's and Otabek's study group. Yuuri paused to answer a couple of her study related questions, remembering only as she walked away that her name was Mila. Happy for the change of topic, Yuuri fiddled with his silverware. "I led a study group last night for our interns. It wasn't as bad as I thought it would be." Daring a glance at Seung-gil, Yuuri had to suppress a laugh at the frustrated glare being leveled at his head.

"I'm sure it was as fun as listening to Phichit stress study for the bar," Seung-gil smiled. Yuuri remembered the stories of Phichit, clad in nothing but stress, attempting to memorize law books by reciting them in Shakespearean English. "But, Yuuri…. Victor," the delivery was firm and Seung-gil leveled him once again with an unfailing gaze.

"He is my best friend," Yuuri sighed, turning to watch the dogs play as an excuse not to look at his tablemate. "He has always been there. Now I screwed it up." There it was; the thought that had been resonating in his brain like an out-of-tune violin.

"How so?" There was patience and coaxing laced in the question, and Yuuri knew that Seung-gil would be ready with a proverbial bucket for any of the word vomit that escaped him.

"I made the first move," Yuuri contemplated this statement and corrected himself, "he kissed me first. Everything else…" he trailed off. The memories of Friday night, despite the alcohol, were incredibly vivid and never without bodily reaction. There had never been a more replayed memory in all of Yuuri's life.

"So?" Seung-gil pushed again. "Sounds to me like you both wanted it. If you ask my opinion you have both wanted it since that first day in the library."

It was a reality. Sometime in the knotting and unknotting of Yuuri's thoughts, he had realized that his attraction to Victor had always been there. That in moments of weakness, Yuuri had felt flutters of something even more. After talking with Mari, those flutters had become drumbeats. Beats that had increased in volume with every text sent over Monday night.

"Say it," Seung-gil nodded at Yuuri.

"I love him," Yuuri felt the words slip from his tongue. It was useless to pull them back, something about simply saying them aloud felt like a weight dissipating from his shoulders. "I love him and now I have to quit."

"You're an idiot." Seung-gil's clipped sentence was interrupted by Mila's return to their table.

Placing their orders down, she smiled. "Actually, he is pretty smart. And organized. Can you run the study group all the time? The other guy is always laughing and making jokes. Very approachable, but very social, makes it hard to concentrate sometimes."

"That's his to-be boyfriend you are talking about," Seung-gil joked, concentrating on his sandwich and missing Mila's blush.

"It's not… he's not…" Yuuri stammered.

"Awwww!" Mila exclaimed, "I can totally see that! Sort of ying and a yang thing, even with your hair." She laughed and ruffled Yuuri's hair. "Enjoy your breakfast!"

Seung-gil's laughter held only until Mila had disappeared inside. "Victor's hair is in the white," shaking his head, Seung-gil continued to chuckle as he bit into his breakfast. "Anyway, no quitting, you are stupid, next thought please."

"I don't think he loves me back," Yuuri took an overly large bite of his breakfast sandwich, finding it hard to chew as he let this thought run circles in his brain.

"Idiot," was Seung-gil's only answer.

Yuuri knew that idiot was also meant for him. He also knew that Seung-gil was there when this subject was approached on Sunday with Victor. Somehow, Yuuri felt slightly reassured. The most logical part of his brain told him Seung-gil wouldn't be pushing him on the subject if it meant purposefully leading Yuuri to heartbreak. "If he does love me back, and we date, and we break up then what happens to the firm?"

"You put on your big boy pants and work together." Seung-gil sat his breakfast sandwich down and broke off a piece of turkey jerky to toss to his own furbaby. Across the table, Yuuri bent down to feed Vicchan small bites of doggy breakfast meat. "You'll end up married."

It was rare for Seung-gil to have any level of optimism, even with the direct existence of Phichit in his life. The combination of Seung-gil's realistic answers, and what seemed to be a hint of positivity, was the best weapon against Yuuri's circular thoughts. Unlike Victor, who always had flowing words and comforting cuddles to calm Yuuri, and Phichit who could excitedly talk away Yuuri's worries, Seung-gil used his bluntness as a dagger to cut Yuuri's anxious thoughts to shreds. What was once a swirling mass of uncertainty was quickly becoming a hardened ball of inevitability. He loved Victor. The odds that Victor loved him were beginning to tip towards yes on his brain scale full of lost marbles.

Without thinking, Yuuri pulled his phone from his pocket. He had one hour before he would have to leave for the conference. Although he didn't want the conversation to be rushed, Yuuri needed it to happen more than he needed air or water. Clicking on Victor's ridiculous contact picture, Yuuri lifted his shaking hand to his ear. Seung-gil's encouraging smile and small nod had Yuuri taking a deep breath.

"You have reached the voicemail of Victor Nikiforov. I am unavailable to take your call right now, but if you leave a message, I will return your call at my earliest convenience."

Several seconds of silence passed after the beep as Yuuri lost himself in the melodic tone of Victor's business voice. Across the table, Seung-gil cleared his throat and Yuuri jumped. "Hey, Victor, it's me… Yuuri, it's Yuuri. I have this conference thing and I have to leave in an hour, but if you are around… I guess give me a call. A call would be good. Let's talk. Thanks. Um. Bye." Hanging up the phone, Yuuri tossed it on the table. "Well, I tried."

"Are you sure you are a professional adult? That was the worst voicemail I have ever heard." Seung-gil shook his head as Yuuri laughed. "Victor's extra ass is probably going to save it forever."

Sitting back against his chair, Yuuri let his nerves taint his laughter. There was nothing he could do now. The clock was ticking on his time to leave and the ball was in Victor's court.


The slope of the hill to Yuuri's parent's home was made up of smooth concrete that lead to packed dirt. Trees lined the driveway making it feel as if there was a separate world on the other side. At the forest opening, stood a circle of fourteen cabins, each equipped with electricity and temperature control systems. The bonfire was in the middle, and a short hike up the hill led to the naturally occurring hot springs which Yuuri's family worked tirelessly to maintain.

This place had become a second home to Victor during his time in the States. He had come to college on an international scholarship, bunking with Seung-gil who had done the same. It was through Seung-gil that Victor had officially met Yuuri and eventually through Yuuri that Victor had found the Katsukis. The wonderfully welcome and loving Katsukis who had made Victor part of their family without hesitation.

Taking the hill slow, remembering the lectures of Papa Katsuki about flinging rocks, Victor let himself recall all the summers of hard labor helping the family with their grounds. Gathering wood, cooking meals with Mama Katsuki, and the summer of the flood which had left them days of repairs with no signs of sleep. The Katsuki Hot Spring was more of a home than anywhere Victor had ever been.

Which was why he found himself parking his car in its usual spot in the morning hours of Tuesday. Letting Makkachin bound off to play with nearby kids, Victor climbed the stairs to the family cabin, stopping to slip off his shoes and place them on the part of the rack that held his name. All of their names were painted there, along with Seung-gil's and Phichit's, and Victor felt a familiar tug of his heart seeing his name next to Yuuri's in complimentary shades of blue and purple.

His head came up as footsteps clomped down the stairs. Mari appeared, looking smug as she yelled over her shoulder, "mama, Victor is here to declare his love for Yuuri!" He felt his cheeks heat up to bonfire temperatures as Mari's smirk returned to him.

Throwing open the kitchen door, Yuuri's mom came clapping into the foyer. "Oh good! It is about time!" Being grabbed into a hug, Victor couldn't resist the warmth of Mama Katsuki's arms. "Good morning, my Vicchan. Let me feed you while you make your grand declarations."

Victor let himself be tugged to the large table and guided into a seat. He was never anyone but "my Vicchan" to Mama Katsuki and the name made him feel guilty now, as his ridiculous brain replayed the debauchery of Friday night. He wondered if he would still be Mama Katsuki's Vicchan if she knew exactly what had happened.

"You look like he did on Sunday," Mari leaned against the table to examine Victor's face.

The bluntness shared between Mari and Seung-gil always made Victor wonder if they had somehow been created from the same stardust. "How did he look?" He winced at his own eagerness. Phichit had been no help in this department, because he hadn't seen Yuuri since Friday either. Victor was desperate to know any information he could drag from anyone.

"Lovesick," Mari answered, scooting away from the table as her mother returned with a plate overflowing with Victor's favorite breakfast foods. "Mama, stop trying to fatten him up! It is getting a little Hansel and Gretel."

Mama Katsuki giggled as she placed the plate in front of Victor with a cup of tea. Sliding in the seat across from him, she propped her hands under her chin. "Now, tell me about how much you love our Yuuri so I can stop setting him up on terrible dates."

Victor choked. Mari stopped in the doorway, twisting on her heels. "Mama… no…" Mari looked ready to burst out laughing, her face pinched into distorted realization.

"I know what a taxidermist is Mari," Mama Katsuki grinned with the delight of her own plan, "that urologist talked my ear off at the grocery store and I was sure he would the one that would finally send Yuuri screaming toward Victor. Was it the urologist?" There was an adorably ridiculous amount of hope in her voice and it broke Mari's resistance to the hilarity of the situation.

Wheezing with laughter, Mari came back to Victor's side, slapping a hand to his shoulder. "My mom can't arrange marriage in this country, so she tried to scare Yuuri into marrying you. Good thing that idiot already loves you, huh?" A final shake of Victor's shoulder and Mari was gone.

Marriage. Love. Yuuri loves him. Yuuri is an idiot. All of these thoughts ran through Victor's head in a Nascar race against each other. He couldn't slow them and felt the impending crash at the back of his teeth. "I want to love marry that idiot!" Victor quasi-shouted with a slam of his fork.

"About damn time!" came Papa Katsuki's voice from the kitchen.

Mama Katsuki smiled with thousand watts of happiness. "Oh my Vicchan! Finally! Did you want our blessing? You have had it for nine years." There were little tears glistening in her eyes as she peered at him over the table.

"Really?" Victor felt his heart somersaulting in his chest. This family had become his, and they all seemed thrilled with the prospect. He had been nervous when he had devised this plan lying spread eagle over his bed. Now he felt ridiculous for worrying. "Are you sure he loves me back?" He glanced over his shoulder to see if Mari was still around to squash his fears.

"I'm sure," Mama Katsuki rose from the table, moving to a cabinet and opening a drawer. Lifting a notebook that Victor recognized as Yuuri's, he watched with intense interest as she flipped open the pages. Pushing it against his elbow, Mama Katsuki nodded down. "My Yuuri is subtle, almost subconscious in how he reveals his feelings. Sometimes, I don't think he knows he is doing it. See those characters in the margins?"

The breath caught heavily in his chest as Victor stared at the page. Japanese 101 had served him well and the characters spelling out his name were easy to pick out. Yuuri's characters were scrawled in tandem, everywhere Victor's appeared. In between them was a very distinct printing of "love."

Swallowing hard, Victor's shaking fingers moved to lift the front cover of the notepad. The word "sociology" was printed in Yuuri's careful handwriting on the red front cover.

"I found this book a year ago when I was cleaning out Yuuri's room," Mama Katsuki placed a gentle hand on Victor's shoulder. "I opened it out of curiosity to see which language Yuuri had used to take notes. When I found this, I realized that my boy had loved his best friend from the beginning, and that Yuuri probably didn't even know it or pretended not to." Sighing, she flipped to another page with a quick doodle of Victor with a thought bubble saying "I'm beautiful and smart, but my arguments suck butt." She chuckled at this one, shaking her head at her son's crudeness. "You can have this," she pushed the book toward Victor, "as long as you tell him how you feel. You know how our Yuuri is." Standing, Mama Katsuki kissed Victor gently on the top of his head. "Don't let stupidity ruin something so wonderful. For smart boys, you two really are clueless."

Victor heard her go, unable to form a response as he continued to stare at the notebook in his hands, his breakfast forgotten in front of him. His own sociology notebook had been red that year, and somewhere in the margins, jotted in Russian were similar declarations. At that time it was more of a fleeting thought, an automatic assumption that the excitement he felt around Yuuri had to be love. But Yuuri had taught Victor about friendship, and those fleeting thoughts had become a memory replaced by a relationship far more important. Above all else, Yuuri was his best friend.

Friendship with trust, respect, laughter, and teasing. Friendship filled with unconditional support and memories spanning nearly a decade. Friendship that could easily be the foundation for even more.

Pulling his phone from his pocket, Victor moved to open Yuuri's contact when he noticed the time. It was Tuesday and Yuuri was most likely at breakfast with Seung-gil. Victor wanted to say a lot of things, and none of them while any part of the Seung-gil/Phichit duo could listen in. He loved the other half of his best friends, but this was a private conversation for him and Yuuri alone. Sighing, he set his phone face down on the table, reserving himself to waiting until after court that afternoon.

Another hand, stronger and rougher this time, landed on Victor's shoulder. Looking up, he found Papa Katsuki grinning down at him. "How much time do you have today, Vicchan?"

That question meant chores, but Victor didn't mind. "I have several hours before I have to be in court. Makka is here with me and my suit is in the car. If I can shower before I leave, I'm all yours for two hours." Victor couldn't help his smile. He loved being a part of this family, even when it meant sweating his ass off on his free morning.

"Great!" Papa Katsuki hauled Victor from his seat. "I'll pack your breakfast up so you can take it with you and make a lunch for you when you head out. There is some brush gathered by spring three. Grab the truck keys and clear it out for me, would you?" Gathering the plate and mug from the table Papa Katsuki headed for the kitchen. "I'm happy for you two," he said quietly before disappearing behind the door.

Heading for the door, Victor slipped his shoes back on his feet and grabbed the truck keys along with a hand radio from the charger. Jogging out of the front door, he called for Makkachin and let her jump in the passenger seat.

In the middle of the dining room table, Victor's forgotten cell phone pinged with a new voicemail.


"Goodbye, Vicchan," Yuuri cooed, letting his poodle crawl all over him. "Be good for Phichit and Seung-gil." He snuggled the ball of brown fur close to his face, planting tiny kisses over the wiggling body. Seung-gil would spoil Vicchan and Yuuri knew that, but it was still hard to say goodbye even if it was only for a couple of days.

"No call back?" Seung-gil asked for the tenth time, making Yuuri tense. "Maybe he is caught up in trial prep."

Yuuri pushed from the ground and shook his head. "JJ's case is easy and I doubt Victor has even given it much thought. Thanks for trying though." There was bubble of dread in Yuuri's stomach again and he wanted to be in his car alone in case it burst.

"He'll call," Seung-gil stepped forward and gave Yuuri a swift hug. "Call me if you need to. Drive safe." With a wave, Seung-gil was heading down the sidewalk, both dogs prancing in his wake.

Throwing himself in the car, Yuuri set the GPS to the address of the hotel and cranked his stereo. He was going to drive and sing, with no thinking allowed for the next hour.


By the time Yuuri had reached the hotel, it was already buzzing with lawyers. They were easy to pick out among the crowd, most of them sporting some air of superiority. This conference had seemed like a valuable learning experience when he had booked it months ago, but now it seemed like a trap of awkward inconvenience.

Easing his car into the valet line, Yuuri stepped out to hand the keys over to the cheerful boy who greeted him at his door. Popping the trunk, Yuuri collected his belongings and made his way through the throng of people to the front desk. He was waiting for the clerk to produce his room key when a familiar voice assaulted his ears.

"Yuuri Katsuki," it drawled, coming up directly behind his ear. "Well, this conference certainly became more interesting."

Not redirecting his gaze from the alarmed look of the clerk in front of him, Yuuri sighed, "hi Chris, I didn't know you were coming." He instantly regretted his choice of words.

"Only for you, handsome," Chris leaned his body against the counter attempting to break Yuuri's sightline. "After you slaughtered Dave in that Wetzel case, the bossman negotiated a place for six of us at this thing. Apparently it takes six guys to take down the power that is Yuuri Katsuki." Chris winked with his own innuendo and Yuuri managed to not roll his eyes. "What room are you in?"

"603," chirped the clerk with her own wink in Yuuri's direction. He wasn't sure if she was being helpful or evil so he withheld his urge to scream.

"Maybe you can give me a tour later," Chris pushed from the counter and pinched Yuuri's butt. "I'll see you at check-in."

Letting his breath heave from him, Yuuri glanced at the clerk. "I bumped you up to a suite. They are the only other rooms available because of the conference, but you need an active room key to scan onto the floor. I waived the additional cost."

Yuuri never hugged strangers, but he wanted to hug this one. Carefully slipping a fifty dollar bill from his wallet, he handed it to her in exchange for his key. "Thank you, you have no idea." He smiled when she laughed, and something told him that maybe she had more than an idea. Thanking her again, he headed toward the elevators to inspect his new room.


Sweat covered every inch of Victor's body as he threw the last of the brush into the chipper. Collecting the bucket, he dragged it to the bonfire, adding the chips to the bottom of the fire bed. Makkachin, who was still dripping wet from her ill-advised dip into the hot spring, ran off in search of more children's faces to lick.

Two hours had passed quickly with the struggle to cut and collect the brush from around the hot spring. Victor had leaves in his hair and scratches on his arms along with a bizarre cramp in his left butt cheek. He also had a plan.

After court, he was going to track Yuuri down, utilizing Phichit and Seung-gil if he had to. He was going to tell Yuuri that he hadn't stopped thinking about Friday night. He was going to give Yuuri a thousand examples of all the times Victor had fallen in love with Yuuri over nine years. During his drive down from the spring, he had carefully constructed an argument as to why they should be together. If he approached the conversation like a classroom debate, he knew he could get Yuuri's perpetually stubborn ass to listen. He only had to get Yuuri in front of him and talk until Yuuri ran out of counterpoints.

Bursting into the Katsuki house, Victor threw off his shoes, tossing them haphazardly on the rack. His suit dangled over his arm with clean undergarments swinging from a bag in his right hand as he took the stairs two-by-two to the bathroom that was Yuuri's in his youth. Stripping off his sweat drenched clothes, Victor heaved his body into the shower, scrubbing every inch of dirt off of his skin.

He wanted to think and plan more. He wanted time to practice his speech to Yuuri and make sure it was flawless. Instead he was rushing through a mildly cold shower, trying to remind himself of the asinine facts of Jean's case. Something about trying to rescue his mom or girlfriend and not realizing he had consumed more than the legal limit. Sounded stupid, but easy. Even if the man had kissed Yuuri and could happily go to jail as far as Victor was concerned, there would be no reason that Jean would receive any level of conviction that day.

Snagging a clean towel from the small rack, Victor hurriedly toweled himself dry and tucked himself carefully into his suit. Pulling the hair brush from the bag, he shoved his messy clothes into their place, tossing his deodorant and cologne in after. Dragging the bristles through his tangled hair, Victor looked at himself in the mirror.

Was love sickness a thing? He pondered the possibility as he looked at the tired purplish tint under his eyes. Maybe once he told Yuuri how he felt, and they were together, living in Victor's house with a wedding scheduled, Victor would finally be cured. Internally he chastised himself for the amount of step skipping he was doing. Out loud, he looked his reflection over and said "go get him." He was thankful no one else was around to hear his pathetic pep talk.

Gathering his things, Victor tidied up the bathroom and jogged down the stairs. Mama Katsuki was standing by the door, his dirty boots wrapped carefully in a plastic bag and a paper bag smelling of delicious food waiting for him. "You always look so handsome in a suit, my Vicchan." She reached up to straighten his tie. "Good luck today, why don't you leave Makkachin with us for the night? She is very happy with the guests right now and I will give her a bath later."

Leaning down, Victor accepted the offered hug, the peck of a kiss to his cheek and the bundle of boots and food. "Alright, if she is having fun, I will leave her. I'm running late as is, so that will mean I can go straight to court. Thanks, Mama." Victor placed his own kiss against Mama Katsuki's warm cheek. Opening the door, he headed for his car, turning to wave as he slid into his driver's seat.

"Love you, my Vicchan!" Mama Katsuki called from the porch.

"Love you too!" he yelled back with a blown kiss. With a much lighter heart, Victor headed back down the sloping driveway.


Everything was loud. There were so many people talking over each other that Yuuri felt his brain click off from over-stimulation. He felt uncomfortably warm in his suit and eager to have the first speaker of the day call the room to order. Listening and taking notes was a far more desirable activity than the networking that everyone else seemed to be after.

Yuuri had managed to avoid most of the familiar faces by hanging out in his oversized room. There was a king sized bed, a small living room area and a full kitchen in his suite. The bathroom had a glass shower with multiple shower heads and a bathtub big enough for two people. His thoughts had briefly gone south at the idea of Victor sharing the space with him, and Yuuri had spent a half hour in the shower relieving the pressure in his groin.

His phone had remained silent for the entire drive, except a text from Mari with nothing but a bunch of grinning emojis. He had no idea what his sister was up to and decided to ignore it. Yuuri couldn't ignore the lack of response from Victor. The silence was slowly murdering his heart.

Finding a seat near the front of the banquet hall serving as the main room for the conference, Yuuri dropped his laptop bag onto the floor and retrieved a pad and a pen. As the first speaker of the event stomped over the stage, Yuuri let out a pathetic sigh and let his phone drop to the bottom of his bag.


Victor had always prided himself on being able to represent anyone, but sitting next to the man who had kissed Yuuri only five days prior was testing this confidence. Jean was manspreading all over the courtroom bench, the blue pants of his suit barely containing the obscene spread of his thighs. As Victor attempted to explain what was going to happen, he was continually distracted by JJ's constant flipping of the end of a very red tie. Victor's irritation level was exponentially growing and he rubbed his forehead to relieve some of the building tension. "Do you understand everything I have said?" Anyone near them would have heard the level of disdain leaking through Victor's question, but Jean seemed unbothered by it.

"You don't remember me, do you?" Jean suddenly sat up, leaning forward with his elbows on his knees.

Taking a deep breath, Victor tried to shove away his annoyance at being ignored. "Why should I remember you?"

Jean's face was a mixture of offended and amused. "I dated the guy you are in love with. And you went all macho crazy. Karaoke for your cheerful friend's birthday. You told Yuuri I wasn't good enough for him." Jean twisted and threw an arm over the bench behind Victor. "Ringing any bells yet?"

It clicked. Yuuri dragging the tall man with a severe undercut into the bar while Phichit was singing to Seung-gil. Jean's arms wrapping around Yuuri, practically pulling Yuuri into his lap. Victor's own boyfriend asking what had gotten into him as Victor attempted to put Jean in his place for several hours straight. A conversation where Yuuri's eyes looked like pools of challenge and a hint of something else. A screaming match outside of the bar between Yuuri and Jean, words unable to be heard from Victor's position behind the glass, but the anger had come all the same. His boyfriend had broken up with him that night too, claims of cheating being thrown like pointed knives over his vanishing shoulder.

A couch. A whispered set of two words, one that Victor had been convinced were a dream.

It was all there, the entire night that he had only remembered in odd fragments, mostly due to the birthday shots Phichit had forced on them. He wasn't cheating on his boyfriend, but his heart had belonged to Yuuri, even then.

The bailiff entered the courtroom stealing Victor's opportunity to respond. Jean's smug huff from next to him, told Victor he probably didn't need to.


The case had taken exactly twenty-two minutes to try. Victor and Jean walked out, Jean with a PBJ for his first offense and waiver of half of the court costs. It was a successful afternoon and Victor felt relieved that it was over. Stepping into the courthouse hallway, he turned to review with result with Jean.

"Are you with him or not?" Jean stood with his hands on his hips, facing Victor.

It wasn't until they were standing directly in front of each other that Victor registered Jean's physical size. Even with Jean's attempts to look intimidating, Victor wasn't buying it. He had seen the nervous tremble of Jean's hands when they approached the defense table and the continuous bob of Jean's Adam's apple in his throat. "Why is that any of your business?" Victor crossed his arms over his chest, setting his face to an expression of aloof impatience.

"Maybe it isn't," Jean dropped his hands, but not his volume. "But I fell fast for him, and even if I never registered on the great Victor Nikiforov radar, Yuuri was a major point on mine. And it fell apart because of you."

"I don't see how I had anything to do with you screaming at him outside of a bar." Except Victor did, because Yuuri's voice was ringing in his head talking about Jean accusing Yuuri of being in love with a friend. Well, shit, Victor cursed internally.

"You prissy bastard," Jean rolled his eyes, "I don't know if it is an act or what, but whatever Yuuri sees in you, you should feel lucky. You're a great attorney, but this…" Jean waved a hand at Victor, "this is an act. And a bad one. Hopefully he knows a better side of you." Turning away, Jean started down the hall before pausing. "I'm getting married, you know." His voice was quieter now as he looked over his shoulder at Victor. "She is great. But Yuuri will always be my one that got away. Maybe don't be such a dickhead and repeat my mistakes. I'll see you next week." With that, Jean exited the hallway leaving a stunned Victor surrounded by his colleagues.


The pinging noises from Yuuri's cell phone had him digging into the bottom of his bag to silence the phone. The first speaker had finally exited the podium and all around him, attorneys were mingling and deciding on their next plan. Yuuri had another instructional he wanted to attend and then his first day of the conference would reach a conclusion. He intended to skip the social events at the hotel's bar that night and sulk in his ridiculously sized room instead.

Stepping into an empty corridor, Yuuri unlocked his phone with a hopeful sting in his heart. Seeing the texts from Yuri and still nothing from Victor, he felt the hope dissolve. Opening the message anyway, he first read the text saying that court was boring without Yuuri. He let himself feel a little boosted from this compliment and scrolled to Yuri's next text. It said Yuri was attaching a video, and to watch closely.

Shoving a blind hand into the small pocket of his bag, Yuuri studied the stilled frame of what looked like JJ and Victor. JJ was standing tall with his hands braced on his hips and Victor had his patented professional-yet-bored stance going. There really wasn't a way that anything good was going to come out of the video, but Yuuri shoved his earbuds in anyway. Pressing play, he watched the scene unfold at the shaky filming hands of Yuri.

He watched it three times before realizing he was late for his intended instructional. Hastily shoving his phone into his pocket, Yuuri jogged down the hall to the crowded room. He found a seat in the back and immediately lost focus on the room.

Not all of what JJ had said was clear, but Yuuri knew that he owed the other man an apology. A proper one that came with the acknowledgement that JJ had been right. He would think on the details later, but he was resolved to letting JJ have closure, and not the kind that came from a screaming match outside of a bar.

For Victor's part, he had looked mostly stunned. It bothered Yuuri that Victor hadn't admitted his feelings. He could have shut JJ's rant down if Victor had lied about them being together. Instead Victor had made it difficult, which seemed to only antagonize JJ.

His mind was going to circle on the same topics forever and Yuuri was beginning to annoy himself about the matter. Forcing it away while attempting to accept his fate of limbo, he tried to focus on the oldest attorney to still exist droning on about personal injury law at the front of the classroom.


The door to Phichit's office banged against the wall as Victor threw it open. Watching Phichit grab the sides of his desk to keep from toppling back in surprise, Victor continued to storm into the room. "I can't find my phone!" Victor waved the back of food packed by Yuuri's parents in wild circles. "I can't find my phone… I can't find Yuuri… I can't do anything!" Tossing the bag of food onto Phichit's desk, Victor flopped down onto the floor while smacking a hand to his forehead.

He looked up as Phichit moved to stand over him. "Well, you look useless currently," Phichit laughed, leaning back against his desk with his hands in his pockets. "Want to try again without the drama?"

"No, I do not!" Victor let his arm drop to the floor and stared at the ceiling. "Where is he, Phichit? Is he hiding from me?" Whining as Phichit tapped against his ribs with a foot, Victor flung out a hand to smack at Phichit's legs.

Drawing his leg back, Phichit threw up his hands in frustration. "Yes, Victor, this is an elaborate game of hide-and-seek and our friend is besting you in it." Plopping down in his desk chair, Phichit started tapping on his keyboard.

"Not helpful," Victor whined from his place on the floor.

"Hey, hi, my name is Phichit and my law partner is there for the conference. Yuuri Katsuki. He isn't answering his phone and I need to leave him a direct message. Which room is he in?" Phichit paused and scribbled on a post-it note. "Thank you! Yes a patch through would be great! Have a wonderful evening!" Victor didn't bother lifting himself from the floor, letting the confusion hang out with him like an old friend. "Hey, Yuuri! It's Phichit. Just making sure you got there okay. Have fun tonight!"

Victor heard the click of the phone. "Where is he?"

Phichit squatted down by Victor and slapped a post-it note directly to Victor's forehead. "He's at that conference. Currently adhered to your expansive head space is the address to the hotel and his room number. What are you going to do about it?"

Reaching up, Victor pulled the paper from his head, wincing as strands of hair were pulled. He held it with both hands, glancing to Phichit at his side. "I'm going to go get him." Jumping from the floor, Victor moved for the door. "You can have that food if you want! Papa Katsuki made it." He was halfway to his car when Phichit caught up to him.

"Your phone," Phichit pressed it into Victor's hand. "It was in the bag. And it looks like you have a voicemail." Winking Phichit headed back toward the office, yelling "good luck!" over his shoulder.

Victor slid into his car turning it on so he could play Yuuri's voicemail over the Bluetooth speakers. As Yuuri's voice filled Victor's car, Victor felt his grin break across his face. No more hesitating, it was time to chase down his future.


Yuuri threw his laptop bag unto the ground and tossed his suit pieces over the table in the entryway of his suite. Continuing to strip as he made his way through the lavish room, he knelt naked by his suitcase to pull out his comfiest pair of sweats and Victor's red hoodie. Slipping them over his body, he sighed in the soft relief of loose-fitting clothing.

Everyone else was probably in their rooms, changing for a night of drinking and chaos, but Yuuri wanted room service, a comfy bed, and lots of mind-numbing television. He still hadn't heard from Victor, and tried to remove the obsession from his brain as he plucked the ice bucket from the counter next to the sink. Padding down the hallway, he retrieved ice and a few sodas for himself from the vending machine.

His floor was quiet and he found it both peaceful and restless. Part of him wanted the distraction of noise, while the other half of him wanted to sink into sullen silence.

Pushing back into the hotel room, he heard his cell phone ringing from his charger. Diving to grab it, he didn't look at the caller ID before answering. "Yuuri Katsuki." He used his business greeting just in case.

"Yuuri, sweetheart, it's mom."

Yanking his phone from the charger, Yuuri managed to suppress his need to sigh with disappointment. He adored his mother, but her voice was not the one he wanted to hear right now. "Hi, Mom," Yuuri replied, moving back toward the kitchen to open his soda and pour it over ice in a glass.

"How is the conference going? You'll be home before Sunday, right?"

Yuuri leaned against the counter and sipped his drink. "Conference is fine, lots of people, it is over tomorrow so I will definitely be there on Sunday." Swirling his drink, Yuuri listened to his mother chatter at his father about onions for a minute.

"Well…" his mom hesitated and Yuuri felt the prickle of apprehension run down his spine. "That very nice man from last Sunday would like to come for dinner again. I was hoping I could tell him yes…"

Feeling his resistance snap, Yuuri began to pace.


The drive to the hotel took Victor well over two hours. During that time, he screamed profanities at will and rehearsed every important point he needed to make. He had scanned the radio and purposely listened to nothing but love songs. He was ready.

Unfortunately, the clerk at the front desk of the hotel seemed to have other ideas. Victor had tried to get to Yuuri's room, only to discover that the top two floors required card access. Returning to the lobby, he threw himself on the mercy of the clerk.

"Mr. Katsuki seems to be awfully popular," she chirped, examining Victor closely. "I have already had one request for a key card today."

He didn't like the sound of that. Leaning over the counter, Victor let all of his drama loose. "I don't know who asked for his key card, but Yuuri is my law partner and my best friend of nine years. Earlier today, our other best friend and partner called to get his room number for me. I am here to profess my love for him. Can you please help me with that?" Victor clapped his hands together in dramatic plea, letting his bottom lip jut out and his eyes open to saucers.

Ten minutes later, he was standing in front of Yuuri's hotel room door. He could hear Yuuri's irritated voice filtering through the room door.

"Mom! I am not going to go out with that guy!"

There was venom in Yuuri's voice, a tone that made Victor laugh. It appeared that Mama Katsuki was still playing her matchmaker game and Victor could easily imagine Yuuri's irritated huffs of breath fogging up his glasses. Leaning closer to the door, Victor pressed his ear toward the seam trying to make out the one side of the argument he could hear.

"Because mom, he was boring! We have nothing in common and you didn't even ask me if I want or need to be set up with someone!"

Victor heard the silence, assuming that Yuuri was listening to his mother on the other end of a telephone. He shouldn't spy, but part of him wanted to hear the way the conversation was headed. It was slightly amusing to be on this end of it, especially since he now understood Mama Katsuki's real intentions.

"Who says I don't? You never asked me before you brought that guy over." More silence. "I'm not saying that I do! But I might! It's complicated! I have to go, mom."

The swelling in Victor's chest held a similar feeling to seeing Yuuri's picture in Victor's hoodie on Saturday morning. He was jumping to conclusions about Yuuri's statements, and he didn't care. Victor wanted to believe that he was the complication. He wanted to believe it so badly that all of his sound arguments began slipping from his mind. Before Victor could stop himself, he was knocking loudly on the door.

Out of frustration, Yuuri didn't bother to look out of the peephole prior to throwing the door open. "Oh good, you are not a serial killer." Yuuri's tone was deadpan and made Victor hesitate.

"Last time I checked, no I wasn't," Victor followed Yuuri into the hotel, noting the nervous twitch of Yuuri's hands and letting it propel him on, "but a lot could have changed in five days."

Yuuri stopped moving but didn't turn around. "I called you hours ago! And you have been missing in action as much as I have!" He finally turned, staring at Victor and feeling the wobble of his heart. They hadn't been in the same room since Yuuri had fled from Victor's bed. He remembered Victor's sleeping face. He remembered the way Victor looked underneath him. In a flash, Yuuri remembered every important moment over a course of nine years.

Victor saw the hoodie, hanging over Yuuri's body. It was the same one Victor had handed him on Friday night and the one in the picture from Saturday. It bore the name of their joint university and the memories flooded into Victor's mind of everything they had been to each other since the first moment in sociology class. Sparing partners, study buddies, law partners, best friends, and lovers. All of those things he had with Yuuri. All of those things made him love Yuuri even more.

For a moment they stood, hands at their sides looking at each other. Neither moved, neither spoke, they simply stood.

"Why did you leave?" Victor asked. He didn't look away from Yuuri, terrified that if he dropped his eyes for a second, Yuuri would be gone again.

Yuuri played with the string on the red hoodie, now looking anywhere but Victor's face. "Because I'm an idiot," Yuuri said without emotion. He let his brown eyes meet the wide blue ones trained on his face, "I woke up, your arms were around me and at some point, I had turned to cuddle into you. Me!" Yuuri's shout made Victor jump. "Me, of all people, subconsciously cuddling another person."

Moving to his right, Victor leaned on the back of the couch, crossing his arms without speaking. His heart felt so full in his chest, it was strangling Victor's ability to respond. Yuuri wasn't a cuddly person, and Victor always assumed that Yuuri dealt with Victor's physical tendencies out of pity. The possibility that Yuuri wanted all of those cuddles, enjoyed them even, was inflating Victor's heart to impossible widths.

"I felt comfortable," Yuuri whispered to his feet, "safe. And then JJ's voice showed up in my head again and my mind started rambling so I left." There was more to it. The memory of JJ's words had played a huge part in why he had left on Friday, but so had nine years of friendship. If he had ever considered being with Victor, even in small moments of weakness, he had shoved it away. He hadn't been willing to ruin the most important relationship in his life. Now, standing across from Victor, it seemed stupid. Yuuri wanted to cross the room and take a chance, but his feet remained rooted to the floor.

Victor's growing happiness faltered. The memory of Jean's statements in the crowded hallway flushing his cheeks. "What do you mean by JJ's voice?" It was selfish to make Yuuri say it. Victor knew it, but he couldn't stop from pushing. He wanted to sprint across the room, grab Yuuri and never let him go. First, he had to know that Yuuri wanted the same thing.

Flushing, Yuuri realized he had backed himself into a literal and figurative corner, as he had moved his anxious body back against the door to the balcony. "I told you, JJ broke it off with me, because he claimed I was in love with someone else." Hands smacking his hips as they dropped to Yuuri's side, he looked up to once again meet Victor's eyes, "he said I was in love with you."

Though Victor acknowledged that it would be inappropriate for him to backflip, and that he had no idea how to backflip, his urge to do so was very strong in that moment. Composing himself, Victor pushed off the couch, "in love with me, huh?" He began a slow path toward where Yuuri was positioned, becoming flatter to the door by the second.

"What does he know?" Yuuri tried to backtrack. Of all the ways to tell Victor his feelings, Yuuri had to pick the one that involved JJ. He was a hopeless mess, and his body was beginning to shake with nerves as Victor approached him.

Victor nodded as he crossed the room, smiling as he watched the nerves cause Yuuri's hands to flutter about. "So, you're not in love with me?" There was a burning need to hear Yuuri say the words. All of the signs were there, and Victor knew that it would be enough, but he wanted to know for sure. After all the waiting, all the dissection of their entire friendship, Victor wanted to be sure.

Yuuri wouldn't look at him. For the first time, he was devoid of snappy comebacks and sarcastic comments. All of the confidence he had in court had abandoned him and the stream of curse words passing through his brain at Victor's impending closeness weren't helping. Every step closer, Yuuri felt his walls collapsing. "I mean," the words were there, trapped behind his train wreck of a brain. "Why do you care? It isn't like you are in love with me?" It came out as a question with the edge of challenge to it. Yuuri internally face-palmed himself for again bringing the fight into a potential confession.

Taking a final step, Victor leaned into Yuuri. He was acutely aware of how strong Yuuri was and that Victor was completely vulnerable if Yuuri chose to knee his way out of the closeness. Relying on his trust of Yuuri, Victor ran his fingertips down the defiant jaw, tipping Yuuri's chin up to look at him. "What if I am?"

"Why?" Yuuri questioned, the defiance still present but he could hear the need for reassurance in his own voice. "Because we had sex? One round of good sex and you're in love? I never pegged you for being that easy." Victor's chest was flush against his own and Yuuri couldn't think. He immediately reverted back to what was comfortable, the push and pull of their never-ending bickering. Seeing the flash in Victor's eyes, Yuuri smirked, relaxing back against the glass. Maybe he couldn't come out and say the words, but he could fight them out of Victor.

If Yuuri wanted a fight, Victor planned to give him one. In the last five days he had come to realize that he would happily fight with Yuuri and love Yuuri in equal measures for the rest of their lives, if only Yuuri would let him. "I would evaluate the sex more along the lines of great, mind-blowing even." Dipping his head, Victor teased past Yuuri's lips with his own and continuing until he could run a trial of barely-there kisses over Yuuri's neck. The small moan that escaped his best friend spurred Victor on. "And you know that isn't it."

He trailed across Yuuri's ear, skimming his jawline as Victor moved to the other side. "You know you are brilliant," he deepened his angle on Yuuri's neck feeling Yuuri's body begin to relax, "you are beautiful," Victor snaked his hands under his hoodie on Yuuri's body, feeling the skin underneath, "and you are one hell of a fighter." In a swift motion, he pulled the hoodie over Yuuri's head, groaning when he discovered the lack of layers underneath. "You're a thief, too, by the way, I'm going to want that back." Victor grinned, nipping at Yuuri's collar bone.

A sly smile appeared on Yuuri's face. This he could do. The fight and the tease, the affection and the kind words, somehow it seemed to be a unique balance all of their own. Without warning, he pushed Victor backwards redirecting him to shove him onto the couch. Straddling him, Yuuri yanked Victor's shirt over his head. As skin met skin, Yuuri sighed against Victor's shoulder. Somehow, this already felt like home to him. Lifting his lips to Victor's ear Yuuri whispered, "there is not a chance you are getting that hoodie back." Yuuri nipped at Victor's ear, laughing as Victor's chest rumbled against him.

Victor kissed Yuuri's shoulder, and pulled back. "If you take the hoodie, you have to keep the heart that comes with it." Victor could feel Yuuri's heartbeat in his wrist, releasing his hold to place a flat palm on Yuuri's chest. "I'm a mess, you know that," Victor let his fingers trail down Yuuri's other arm to link their hands together. "But you have stuck with me through every failed relationship and every idiotic decision I have ever made. If you'll have me, I want to be your mess."

"I'm no better," Yuuri sighed, sitting fully back on Victor's legs. Bringing their joined hands together, Yuuri pressed a kiss to Victor's knuckles. "I am an actual human disaster sometimes." He watched as Victor pulled their joined hands back to his own lips. Yuuri felt Victor's other hand drop to his hip. Watching his best friend closely, Yuuri held his breath.

"There is only one choice as I see it," Victor dropped Yuuri's hand. Placing a gentle hand against Yuuri's cheek, Victor let himself get swept up in the moment. All of his valid points about the strength of their relationship were forgotten. The reasons why they should be together were floating all around them, their itemization unneeded. Sitting here together, Victor realized, as long as it was Yuuri, the rest really didn't matter. Pressing forward, Victor leaned his forehead against Yuuri's. "Let's be a disaster together then, shall we? Because I don't know how to live without my best friend, and it's really convenient that my best friend also happens to be the person I'm in love with." Victor felt the words as he spoke, hearing the hitch in his own voice.

"This could end badly," Yuuri whispered, needing to exhaust every worry before he could truly accept the offer being given to him.

"Or, it could never end at all," Victor kissed Yuuri's forehead and waited for the next counterpoint. He was ready to answer anything Yuuri could throw at him and he was willing to spend the entire night arguing away all of Yuuri's doubts.

"I like that idea," Yuuri wrapped his arms around Victor's shoulders. "You win your argument, counselor." He burst into laughter as Victor cheered below him. "Hey!" Yuuri sat back again, grinning at Victor. "You finally have one for the win column on your board!" Peals of laughter filled the hotel suite as Victor tackled Yuuri onto the couch.

"I can do this, you know," Victor traced a finger down Yuuri's naked side, poking Yuuri in the ribs to make him squirm. "I could banter with you for the rest of our lives." Staring down at Yuuri, Victor realized how true it was.

"Good," Yuuri laced his fingers into Victor's hair, "just because I love you, doesn't mean I plan to take it easy on you." He reached up to kiss Victor when Victor jerked away. Confused, Yuuri let his head fall back.

"Say it again," Victor whispered, leaning closer.

"Good," Yuuri teased, kissing Victor's nose.

"Yuuri…" Victor threatened, reaching down to squeeze Yuuri's ticklish side. "Say it again," Victor brushed his lips over Yuuri's, "please?"

"Jury's in. I love you," Yuuri laughed, "you big idiot." He laughed harder as Victor squeezed his sides again. Sighing, when Victor finally relinquished his playful assault, Yuuri looked up at his best friend and smiled. Without any further hesitation, he pulled Victor down to seal the verdict with a kiss.