Chapter 4: To Marry My Yuuri, Viktor on a Mission!

Once Viktor gets an idea into his mind, he is nothing but persistent

The following Monday had Viktor practically skipping to his classroom at the thought of seeing Yuuri again. The weekend was absolutely tedious without him and he decided that he will invite the omega over to his house next weekend. He would have done so already if it weren't for his grandparents forcing him to attend a stuffy dinner with neighbors on Saturday, and then a charity ball on Sunday. He really hated those events and didn't understand why he had to be there. All he did was smile and suffer from the older ladies fawning over how cute he is. Why must they always pinch his cheeks?

He waved at Georgi, Mila, and Chris before also turning his attention and greeting Leo and Phichit who sat further back. He pouted when he saw that Yuuri's desk was still empty but made his way over and sat in his own.

Chris peered curiously at the blue gift bag Viktor was carrying. "What do you have there?"

Viktor smiled back and handed it over to Chris. He put a hand inside and retrieved a bar of chocolate.

"Chocolates? Isn't it early for Halloween or Valentine's? Can I have one?" Chris whined when Viktor made a motion to give him the bag back, "Aw, come on! Why show me when I can't have one?"

"Sorry, but those are for Yuuri. But don't worry, I got a separate bag here for you guys," he said, raising the white gift bag he held in his other arm, "I'll share it during recess."

Mila must have been eavesdropping on their conversation because she butted in, "That's so nice of you, Viktor! Yuuri's going to love it."

Viktor's chest puffed up with pride at her approval. "You really think so? I wasn't sure if he'd like Hershey's or Cadbury. I ended up just bringing both."

"It's chocolate. Who wouldn't like chocolate?" Georgi asked rhetorically. The idea that anyone would refuse it was just absurd.

"I'm going to give it to him after lunch. Can we ask Yuuri and his friends to eat with us?"

"Sure. Why not? I think his friends are nice," Mila looked over Viktor's shoulder, "Good morning Yuuri!"

Viktor turned around so quickly he could have gotten whiplash. He waved his hands excitedly at the omega. "Yuuri! How was your weekend?"

Yuuri smiled sheepishly at the sudden attention as he sat down. "Hi Viktor. It was good, thanks. How are you?"

"Happy now that you're here!"

Yuuri blushed as Mila aww-ed at the candid comment.

"Will you and your friends sit with us at lunch, Yuuri?" Viktor asked, "We can eat together and then play during recess."

The omega looked surprised at the invitation. It wasn't really common for omegas their age to be hanging around alphas. "Do you think it's okay? You don't think we'll get in trouble?"

"I don't see what the big deal is," Georgi shrugged. "It's not as if we're breaking any rules."

"I'll talk to Phichit, Leo, and Guang Hong then." Yuuri said, turning around and waving at his friends at the back. Phichit smiled and gestured to his polaroid camera giving him a thumbs up. Yuuri sighed, almost forgetting about the photo session he promised the previous week. Viktor returned Phichit's thumbs up and mouthed a 'thank you' to the beta.

At that moment Ms. Arena walked into the classroom and called their attention for attendance and everyone settled down.

"What's that you got there, Yuuri?" Georgi asked curiously during lunch later that day. He was pointing to the rectangular package Yuuri placed on the table.

"It's my lunch. My mom packed me some since we had leftovers from the weekend," he said, unwrapping the koi-patterned cloth and revealing a bento box.

"It's so pretty!" Mila said as she leaned closer. "That doesn't look like any ordinary lunch box."

"It's pretty common in Japan. It's nothing special, really," Yuuri said blushing at the attention. He opened the box to reveal sushi, shrimp tempura, gyoza, and several slices of pickled radishes. Chris and Mila ooh-ed at the exotic looking dishes while Viktor leaned over beside Yuuri to smell the food.

"It smells good. Does your Mom cook?"

"Her and my dad, yeah."

As the group of friends ate, Viktor stole glances at Yuuri between bites of food. He was just so curious and eager to take in every little new thing he learned about Yuuri, like how he would wrinkle his nose a little bit before laughing at one of Chris's jokes, how he would duck his head when he began to feel shy, or how he liked to tap his chopsticks at the side of his bento box while chewing on his food. Every now and then Yuuri would return his gaze and blush a little all while giving him the shy smile he loved so much.

Once everyone more or less finished their lunch, Viktor reached down and lifted up the two bags he was carrying earlier that day.

"Finally! I thought you weren't going to pass them out after all," Chris whooped as he leaned over the table and reached a hand out. "Come on, gimme gimme."

"What is that?" Leo asked.

Beside him, Guang Hong's eyes widened as he turned his chin up, taking in the scent. "Ooh, is that…?" He trailed off as he began to smell a sweet aroma emanating from the bag.

Viktor passed the blue bag to Yuuri and the white one to Chris. Chris quickly opened it and cheered as he grabbed a handful of chocolates before passing the bag around the table.

Yuuri curiously peered down at his bag. Bright brown eyes widened in surprise before he turned back to Viktor. "Chocolates, for me?"

"Yup! I was telling Deda how much I loved the color of your eyes and how they remind me of chocolate!"

"They do? I don't see what's so special about my eyes," Yuuri said as he reached down for one and picked a Cadbury creme egg and began to unwrap it. "Thank you, Viktor."

"Anything for my mate!" Viktor smiled and hugged Yuuri, relieved that the shorter boy liked his present. The omega's eyes bugged out in surprise and he coughed as he almost choked at the sudden declaration.

"V-Viktor!"

"This is perfect!" Phichit took a picture of the moment. "Or almost perfect. Yuuri, stop getting so red!"

"It's okay, my mate is perfect in any color!" Viktor laughed when his comment just made Yuuri blush harder.

Mila gushed at the scene, "Aww look, they're so in love!" Chris simply shrugged beside her, not really impressed while Georgi was too busy trying to choose what chocolates to pick from the bag.

Leo passed a chocolate over to Guang Hong and said "Well if you guys love each other so much, why don't you two marry? My mom says that people who love each other get married so they can live happily ever after."

Viktor gasped, "I never thought of that before!" He loosened his hug so that he can look into Yuuri's eyes. The omega was still a piping bright red. "Yuuri, we should get married!" At those words Yuuri squeaked and his eyes widened even further. "Then we can live happily ever after!" Viktor hugged him again and nuzzled Yuuri's cheek.

"Um, you two can't just marry," Georgi said.

Mila frowned at him, "Why not?"

Georgi gulped as everyone around the table turned to look at him. Viktor looked absolutely crushed and betrayed. "N-not that I don't want you two to marry! But you have to court Yuuri first!" That seemed to appease his friends.

"I guess that makes sense."

"Court Yuuri? What does that mean?"

"It's that thing that grown-ups do before they get married. So that you can prove yourself to the person you're marrying," Leo replied.

The first-graders continued their conversation as they got up from the lunch table to throw away their trash and return their trays before making their way outside to the courtyard. Viktor was quiet as he held Yuuri's hand and mulled over the revelation.

The omega sensed his discontent and squeezed Viktor's hand. "It's okay, Viktor, we can get married later after you court me." 'Whatever courting means,' Yuuri added to himself silently making a mental note to ask his older sister later when he got home.

Viktor smiled at Yuuri's reassuring words and squeezed his smaller hand back. "Yes, after I court you! I'll be the best alpha ever!" Little did Yuuri know that Viktor was just as clueless on what courting entailed. Was it like an exam that he had to take? It didn't matter. Whatever it was, he was definitely going to do it, and do it well so that Yuuri will have no doubt that he should marry him!

But first… he had to do some research. He cannot do it with Yuuri knowing however. Viktor was embarrassed and he didn't want the omega to find out that he didn't actually know how to court someone. How bad would that look? And so while Yuuri was preoccupied during recess climbing on the slide with Guang Hong, Viktor took the opportunity to walk up to Georgi who was attempting the monkey bars.

"Hey Georgi, you know a lot about courting right?" He was the one who brought up the topic after all.

Georgi looked down at Viktor as he stopped in the middle of the monkey bars, shoes dangling two feet above the ground. "Um, I guess?"

"How do I court Yuuri?"

The raven-haired alpha paused in thought. When he began to feel his hands starting to slip he gave up on completing the set and allowed himself to fall on the ground beside Viktor. "My mama said that papa would give her flowers."

That seemed simple enough. "Is that it?"

"No, he did other stuff too. He used to give gifts, like jewelry." Georgi turned to look at Yuuri, "I don't think that Yuuri is really into jewelry though."

Viktor hummed in agreement. "That's okay, I can think of another gift. Thanks Georgi, you're the best!" He patted his friend's back and returned to Yuuri's side.

At the end of the school day, Viktor walked with Yuuri hand-in-hand once again as they walked down the steps. The alpha smiled when he saw Yuuri carrying the blue bag of chocolates he had given him earlier that day. "Did you like them?"

"Of course!" Yuuri nodded adorably, "Thank you again."

"Which do you like better, Hershey's or Cadbury?"

"I like them both, but if I had to pick… Cadbury."

"Ha, I knew it!" Viktor fist-pumped. He could see his grandfather parked in his usual spot. "Say Yuuri, I was wondering... would you like to come over and play at my house this weekend? I wanted to ask you to come this past weekend but my grandparents dragged me out to boring grown-up stuff."

"I'm sorry, Viktor but I can't. I have a ballet recital on Sunday and I'm practicing for it on Saturday."

"Oh." The alpha visibly drooped.

"B-but you can come to my recital!" Yuuri quickly said to placate the alpha, upset at seeing Viktor look so down. "I-if you want to that is."

"Really? I can come?!"

Actually the mere thought caused Yuuri's heart to race in apprehension. He honestly didn't like the idea that there would be more eyes to see his performance, to see any potential failure should he misstep or freeze onstage. But before more dark thoughts entered his head he gazed back at Viktor's excited eyes and grounded himself in how happy the alpha looked at being invited. No, he can do this. "Yes, really."

"Okay, then I'm going to have front row seats! I'll come there early. Let me know where it will be tomorrow, okay? I'll get my grandparents to bring me there." He gave Yuuri one last hug before they parted, Viktor walking over to Yakov and Yuuri over to Minako and Mari.

"Deda, I need you to take me somewhere this Sunday," Viktor said once he got into the car and put on his seatbelt.

"Where would you possibly have to go on a weekend? Is it a school function?" Yakov pulled out of his spot and made a turn over to a main street.

"Nope, it's Yuuri's ballet recital and I can't miss it!"

Yakov sighed. "Fine, but we'll have to bring your grandmother too. She'd want to watch." Lilia was a former prima ballerina of the famous Bolshoi Ballet back when they were still in Russia. She had long since retired, but had still kept active by being one of the top ballet masters. He felt guilty that they uprooted their lives to move to the United States, although he knew that it wasn't his fault given the circumstances.

"Great, that's perfect! And there was another thing I wanted to ask you about Deda."

The older man internally groaned and wondered what his grandson's next request could possibly be. Best to get it over with. "What is it?"

"How do I court Yuuri?"

"… WHAT?!" Yakov quickly glanced down at Viktor who had a notebook and pen out. It looked like the boy was writing some sort of list. "What kind of nonsense are you going on about, boy?"

Viktor sighed and tried to explain patiently as if Yakov was the child and he was the adult, "You know, 'court.' I'm going to marry Yuuri but Georgi and my friends said that I can't until I court him and prove that I am a good alpha."

"I…" He was at a loss for words. There were so many things wrong with that statement, where does he even start? He internally cursed as he looked at the street sign they just passed. It was going to be at least another twenty minutes before they got home. He never knew how to handle these situations and preferred to leave them to his wife.

"Come on, Deda, you must have courted Baba too right?"

Yakov sighed and knew he had no choice. He was going to have to say something. "You can't just court Yuuri, Vitya."

"Why not? Then how are we going to live happily ever after?"

"... Look Vitya, you're too young. Courting is only something grown-ups do." He took advantage of the red light to look at his grandson who was frowning down at the notebook he held in his lap. "Do you understand?"

"But I want to marry Yuuri and I can't marry Yuuri if I don't court him." Viktor began to tap his pen against his notebook impatiently.

"Marrying is also only something grown-ups do."

"That's not fair, I'm seven already, why do I have to wait if I know I want to marry him now?"

"Because…" Yakov was struggling to find the right words. He waved his left hand in an agitated motion, frustrated at finding himself in this situation. "You're just too young. Look, I understand that this Yuuri is a close friend-"

"He's not just a close friend, Deda, he's my mate," Viktor was starting to get frustrated and upset at the turn the conversation was taking.

That word again. Yakov sighed and rubbed his temples as the car behind them honked its horn. The light had turned green. He turned his eyes back on the road and got the car rolling again.

"I already told him that I was his alpha and he said yes. He also said yes to marrying me."

"Vitya, you're too young to really know if you want to spend the rest of your life with someone."

"Why? I know that Yuuri makes me happy and I want to be with him all the time. How is that different from you and Baba or Mama and Papa?"

"Things change when you get older, Vitya. You will change, Yuuri will change. In a couple of years you will look back on this and realize that this was just a passing phase. I'm not saying that you two won't stay friends but you just cannot know if you want to spend the rest of your life with someone until you know them for much longer. And when you're much older."

"Well, I still think you're wrong. If you're not going to tell me how to court Yuuri, I'll just ask Baba." Viktor closed his notebook and proceeded to look out the window at the passing houses uncharacteristically quiet in his own silent version of a tantrum.

Yakov grumbled under his breath. And this was exactly why he preferred to leave all the talking to Lilia.

Yuuri placed his shoes and backpack down once he got inside their front door. Minako walked on ahead to the dining area, eager to take advantage of the large TV there to watch the latest soccer game with his dad. Mari was beside him taking off her fall coat and hanging it on a coatrack.

"Give me yours, Yuuri." The omega shrugged his coat off and handed it to his sister who stood on her tiptoes to drape it on top of her coat.

Yuuri's eyes darted around to make sure no one else was nearby. He didn't know why but he felt self-conscious and wanted to ask his sister alone. "Nee-chan?"

"Hmm?"

"Can I ask you something?"

"Yeah?"

"What does 'courting' mean?" His eyes flitted away to look down at his feet when Mari turned around to fix him with a piercing stare.

"And why exactly do you wanna know about that?"

"Well…"

"Yuuuuriii…" Ah there was that tone again, the tone that his sister took whenever she knew that he was hiding something from her.

"There were some kids talking about it in school and I just wondered-"

"It's Viktor, isn't it?"

Yuuri fiddled with his hands, "I didn't say that it was him."

Mari sighed and put her hands on her hips, making her look much older than the 13-year-old she really was. "But it is him. I'm right, aren't I? Don't lie to me, Yuuri, you know I can tell if you lie."

Yuuri gave up his pretense. "Yes, it's Viktor. He wanted us to get married but then our friend Georgi said that he can't marry me until he courts me first. Viktor got so sad then but I told him that I can marry him after he courts me. So what does courting mean?"

Mari's stern expression quickly turned into one of bewilderment at Yuuri's words. Okay, calm down, this was no big deal. Little kids, omegas especially, liked to play house all the time, right? This is just another one of those make-believe games. Although Mari can't really say for sure since she usually roughhoused with the rest of the rowdier betas and alphas when she was Yuuri's age, being a bit of a tomboy. She decided a little bit of information can't hurt.

"Courting is something grown-ups do to show that they love each other. In your case, Viktor is the one who will court you and try to show that he can be a good alpha."

"How?"

"Well…" she recalled some of the older students back in her school. "He may give you gifts, for one."

This got Yuuri excited. "Really? Even if it's not Christmas or my birthday?" Courting must be so much fun! "Should I get him something too?"

"Usually it's just the alpha or the beta who does it."

"Okay! But maybe I can still think of something to give him. Wow, I can't wait to see what Viktor gets me." Yuuri gave Mari a hug, "Thanks, Nee-chan! I'm going to do some homework now." He bent down to pick up his backpack and went upstairs to his room, all bubbly and cheer.

Mari just shook her head, amused. She's never seen Yuuri so happy to do homework before. 'I must really meet this Viktor one time.' Her curiosity was piqued last Friday when Yuuri first mentioned Viktor but now she really wanted to see just what kind of boy this Viktor was to make her brother so happy. She walked over to the dining area to join Minako and her father, already hearing the cheers from them and the other avid soccer fans staying at their inn.

Lilia just barely opened the front door before Viktor gave her his customary hug and said, "Baba, please tell me how to court Yuuri." She saw Yakov standing behind their grandson who returned her questioning look with a sullen expression.

"Don't look at me, he's all yours. I already tried," he mumbled as he walked off.

The corner of Lilia's lips quirked up in a wry smile. She could already tell how that conversation must have went. "What did your deda say?"

Viktor gave a huff and stomped ahead of her as he made his way over to the parlor where he knew Baba liked to drink her tea and talk to guests. "Deda wasn't helpful. He didn't say anything, just that I can't marry Yuuri yet cuz only grown-ups can marry." He turned around to face Lilia when she sat down on her favorite plush chair. "But I already know that I want to marry Yuuri so I'm going to court him now." He crossed his arms and stared at his grandmother with a stern expression daring her to defy him.

Lilia couldn't suppress the soft laugh that escaped her at the hilarious image of her young grandson trying to look intimidating but only managing to look as threatening as a newborn puppy. "Vitya, come here." She opened her arms and the young alpha quickly complied, giving her a hug. It was rare for his grandmother to initiate hugs like she did just now. "You know, right now you reminded me of your mother."

Viktor turned his face up, "Really? Was she angry all the time?"

"No, the opposite really." Lilia gave him a rare smile and her eyes glazed over while recalling the memories. "You're very much like her, same silver hair and same smile. She was always happy and cheerful just like you."

"But then why would I remind you of her just now?"

"It's because she was happy all the time, that it's also easy to remember the few times that she wasn't." But back to the topic at hand. "So you want to know how to court someone? It's true though what your Deda said. Courting and marrying is something only grown-ups do."

"But Baba~" Viktor began to whine but didn't break away from her embrace. "Why do I have to wait until I grow up if I know that I want to live happily ever after with him now?"

Lilia let out a breath and took a moment to organize her thoughts. It was so difficult to argue with a child's simple logic. To them things were black and white. They lived in the present and still didn't appreciate the true concept of the future, as much as little kids always say that they want to grow up. She decided to approach the subject through a different tactic.

"Did you know that your mother didn't like your father when they first met?"

"What? But Mama loved Papa!" Viktor was incredulous at the thought that his parents could have ever been anything but in love with each other.

"I promise you, I'm telling the truth. He came off as very arrogant at first, as if he was better than any alpha."

Viktor nodded his head deep in thought. He remembered Mama telling him to never be arrogant. Was she referring to Papa all the while? "Then how come they got married?"

"Because your Papa changed into a better person. He became nicer. It was difficult at first, but in the end your Mama fell in love with him."

"But Baba what does this have to do with me and Yuuri?"

"What I'm trying to say, Vitya, is that over time people can change. You may think that Yuuri is the right person for you now but as you two get older, things can change and you may not end up together." She leaned back to carefully observe Viktor's expression.

The young alpha was silent, taking the time to absorb her words. "I think… I understand."

Lilia nodded and made a move to stand up. "Well then, your tutor should be arriving in a couple of minutes-"

"But I still think that you and Deda are wrong."

Lilia paused in surprise and watched as Viktor stepped back and pointed a finger to his heart. "I feel something here, Baba. I know that me and Yuuri will be together. We might change, but I know that we'll still be together." Viktor gave a small smile. "I'll go to the library. But later tell me how to court Yuuri, okay?" He didn't wait for her response before going out of the parlor to retrieve his backpack.

Later that evening Lilia went into her husband's study after tucking Viktor in bed. She opened the door to find Yakov reading a book and nursing a glass of brandy. "Yasha?"

"Hm?" He turned his eyes up and set the book aside. "So how did it go?"

Lilia sat down at the chair opposite his desk. "Better than your conversation with him, I suspect. But he's persistent and stubborn."

"Hn, just like his father then. Damn bastard, passing all his bad traits over to his son."

"Yasha."

"Fine, fine I'll stop. So what did you end up telling him?" Yakov took another shot of brandy.

"Well in the end I did give him some courting advice."

Yakov almost choked on his drink and coughed. "What?! You're actually encouraging this?"

"I don't like to think of it as 'encouraging' but I'd rather have the boy learn from us than get information from other… less reputable sources. You know that Vitya will just go ask others if we don't tell him anything."

His wife had a point. "Alright, then what did you tell him?"

"After Yuuri's ballet recital, he'll be giving him a bouquet. I promised to take him to the florist tomorrow after his lessons so he can choose what flowers he wants and place an order."

Yakov leaned his head back and stared at a random point in the ceiling. "We're actually doing this. Letting our grandson court some omega from his class before he even starts puberty."

"If this is just a phase, it will pass Yasha. After all, children like to mimic adults. Let Vitya play this out. It makes him happy and it's not harming anyone. This weekend we'll be meeting this Yuuri and his family and we can see for ourselves if everything is alright."

Yakov had to admit that he was curious to see what the omega was like. "Come, let's go to bed." He stood up and took his wife's hand and they made their way upstairs.

Before the students knew it another week drew to a close and Sunday came around. Yuuri was sitting in one of the front row seats after finishing the final rehearsal with his age group. On the stage the students from the youth level classes began their warm-ups to practice.

Idleness was never his friend in this situation and he was a basket of nerves as the time of his recital came closer. Not even the thought of seeing Viktor and receiving his first courting gift could calm him down. Throughout the past week Viktor kept babbling about how excited he was to give Yuuri his first gift and watch his performance.

Yuuri let out a deep breath as he began to fidget. Oh he was really beginning to regret inviting Viktor over.

"Yuuri, calm down." Phichit walked over when he sensed that his best friend was working himself into a panic. He and Phichit were in Minako's pre-ballet class. It was how they knew each other for the past two years before they realized that Phichit was also a student at Kubo International on Yuuri's first day. The beta gave him a hug. "Everything will be fine."

"But what if he sees me mess up? What if I don't do well and he realizes that he doesn't want to marry me anymore?" Yuuri whimpered and clapped his hands against his cheeks. "And he told me that his grandparents wanna meet me too. What if they don't like me? And his grandma!" Yuuri gasped and grabbed Phichit's shoulders. "Phichit, he told me that his grandma used to be one of the top ballerinas in Russia! She's going to think I'm so bad!"

"Woah, woah, woah Yuuri calm down!"

"Oh I never should have invited Viktor. This was a bad idea!"

"Yuuri, come on you're going to be great. And even if you make a mistake-which you won't-Viktor will never go back on marrying you. Remember how excited he was to court you?"

"Yuuri, Phichit, come. Let's go out in the back and do some stretches," Minako called from the side. She saw the telltale signs of Yuuri's nerves and knew that the omega needed the distraction. As she expected, Yuuri nodded and stood up, eager to have something to do.

Thirty minutes later Mari arrived together with her mother. She held a camcorder while her mom carried her own camera as they each took seats a couple of rows from the front. Around them, several families were already starting to filter in.

"It's a shame your father couldn't come," Hiroko sighed as they settled down. Toshiya had to leave unexpectedly when their shipment of fresh linens called to say that their truck broke down. It normally wouldn't have been considered anything urgent but they were longtime friends of the family who owned the laundry service they contracted with and Toshiya decided to drive out to help them fix the truck.

"It's okay, Kaa-san, I'll be sure to record everything for him." She looked down to power up the camcorder and double-checked that the battery level was good before she heard a loud voice from the back of the auditorium.

"Ah, I'm so excited! Quick, I want front row seats!"

Hiroko and Mari turned around to see a young boy run down the middle aisle, his silver hair trailing behind him free from its usual ponytail, carrying a large bouquet in his arms. It was an odd sight considering that the bouquet was half his height and must have been obscuring quite a bit of his vision as he made his way to the front.

"Vitya, slow down," an older woman wearing a fashionable gray frock coat followed the boy, walking arm in arm with a man wearing a trench coat and felt hat. The couple carried themselves with a dignified air and looked nothing like the hyper child who had placed the bouquet on a seat and proceeded to stand right next to the stage on his tiptoes, trying to look around the group of students for someone. His guardians both had rather austere looking expressions but didn't look unkind.

"But I'm looking for Yuuri, Baba."

"He must be backstage, Vitya, have some patience." The man sat down next to the seat with the bouquet while the woman paused at the side of the aisle, examining the ballet students that were going through the motions of their performance.

Hiroko bent down to Mari and whispered, "Is that…?"

"Yeah, that's Viktor. And I guess those are his grandparents?"

"In that case we may as well introduce ourselves then," Hiroko said cheerfully. She stood up and called out to Viktor. "Excuse me, did you say that you were looking for Yuuri?"

Viktor and his grandparents turned around. The young boy smiled and passed his grandmother to jog up to Hiroko and Mari's row. "Yeah! Do you know where he is?"

Lilia walked up behind Viktor and placed a hand on his shoulder. "Vitya, mind your manners."

"Oops, sorry." The young boy blushed slightly and smiled bashfully before holding a hand up to Hiroko. The woman laughed as she shook the boy's small hand. "I'm Viktor Nikiforov and I'm Yuuri's mate." This time his words caused Lilia to blush. Mari could see the man from earlier facepalm at Viktor's words in the corner of her eyes.

"O-oh, is that so?" Hiroko was caught off-guard by the comment. She turned her eyes to the woman who looked apologetic and flustered. Hiroko took pity on her and decided not to make a big deal out of Viktor's words. "I'm Yuuri's mother, Hiroko Katsuki," she extended her hand to the woman who smiled and shook her hand.

"Lilia Feltsman. I'm Viktor's grandmother." She gestured to her husband who stood up and made his way over, "and this here is my husband, Yakov." He nodded his head in greeting.

Hiroko patted her daughter's head and smoothed her hair, her hand coming to a rest on Mari's shoulder. "This is Mari, my eldest."

The young teen straightened her posture and looked up at Lilia and Yakov. "Nice to meet you." She tilted her head down to look at Viktor, "Yuuri's told me a lot about you."

That got Viktor excited again. "Really? Do you know where he is?"

Lilia sighed and sent another apologetic look to Hiroko. "I'm so sorry for my grandson. He's just very excited to see Yuuri and give him his bouquet, which I had already told him," and with this she stressed her words and gave a squeeze to Viktor's shoulder in reprimand, "has to wait until after Yuuri's performance."

With those words, the lights dimmed and Minako took to the stage with a microphone in hand together with a younger blonde woman, and called for everyone's attention. "Ladies and gentlemen, in a couple of minutes our recital will begin. I'm Minako Okukawa and I teach the pre-ballet and co-teach the boy's classes with Celestino Cialdini here in the Willowbrook Dance Academy."

Minako passed the microphone to the other woman, "And I'm Sarah Feldman and I teach the youth division. We'd like to thank everyone who took the time to come to tonight's performances. We'll begin with ballet followed by our tap, jazz, and modern classes. The students from our summer classes will proudly display the culmination of all the hard work they've put in all summer. I'm happy to say that many of them have decided to stay on for the remainder of the year and I'm sure all of us look forward to their continued growth in the performing arts."

The audience clapped as Yakov and Lilia waved their goodbyes to the Katsukis and steered Viktor back to their seats in the front row.

"Well, they seem like a charming family," Hiroko whispered to her daughter as the two sat down.

"But where are his parents?" Mari wondered aloud. They didn't get to continue the conversation however as music began to play and the curtains opened to reveal a line of cute young girls wearing pale pink leotards and white stockings. As the soft piano notes filtered through the speakers, the girls raised their arms in fifth position and walked across the stage.

Lilia sighed as she watched the young girls twirl clumsily. It was so cute to watch when children were just beginning to learn the basic steps. Nostalgia began to take over as she recalled fond memories of teaching younger classes back when she was still a ballerina and she reached over to hold Yakov's hand.

"I missed this," she whispered over to her husband. He squeezed her hand in response.

Light flute tones rose in the instrumental music and a smaller group of young boys walked into view and formed a line behind the girls. In the middle was Yuuri wearing a tight white shirt and dark blue leggings. Beside him was Phichit.

"Baba, that's Yuuri," Viktor grabbed her arm and pointed to the young omega with his other hand. "And there next to him, that's Phichit."

"Shh…" Lilia took a look at Yuuri who appeared deep in concentration as he executed a simple first arabesque in parallel with the other boys. She was impressed. Out of the boys, he actually had very good form and was graceful given his age. The Phichit boy was also pretty good.

"Isn't he great, Baba?" Viktor whispered a bit more softly. "I wonder why he's not wearing his glasses."

Lilia suspected that Yuuri could simply jump up and down the stage and Viktor would still be impressed enough. As the music drew to a close Minako went on stage and gestured to the dancers who lined up and bowed, her students following suit as the audience clapped.

Viktor stood up and clapped the loudest. "Yuuri! You were great!" He jumped up and down and waved his hands trying to get Yuuri to see him. The young omega appeared to be looking for the source of his voice as he squinted across the bright stage lights. Viktor got impatient and decided to stand up on his chair ignoring his grandparents' scolding.

Minako must have seen him though as she stepped over and whispered something in Yuuri's ear while pointing to Viktor. Yuuri squinted in his direction and Viktor could tell the moment their eyes met because of the telltale blush that spread across his face.

"Vitya, get down this instant!" Yakov hissed. On Viktor's other side, Lilia held on to the boy's hand to make sure that he didn't fall off the seat.

Viktor nodded and jumped down from his chair and reached over to grab the bouquet that he handpicked for Yuuri earlier that week. "Okay, I'm going to give it to him now!"

"Wait!" Yakov attempted to reach over and grab a hold of his grandson but the young alpha was too fast, already weaving his way around the other families who were sitting in the front row.

A couple of rows behind, Mari watched the young alpha curiously as she held on to the camcorder. "Wait a second, is he seriously…?" She looked skeptical as Viktor hopped up the steps located at the edge of the auditorium that led to the stage. "Oh god he seriously is."

Her mother must have seen as well because she whispered an "oh my," as her wide eyes followed Viktor running in front of the dancers across the stage, clutching the bouquet in both hands. Yakov was muttering several Russian curses under his breath while Lilia held both hands to her cheeks to cover her embarrassed flush as her eyes followed Viktor's movements. All around them several members of the audience began to laugh at the spectacle while others continued to clap and cheer the young students.

Yuuri watched incredulously as Viktor made his way over to him. "Yuuri, here! My first courting gift to you!" Viktor exclaimed as he presented Yuuri with a bouquet of magnolias, freesias, and primroses interspersed with sprigs of baby's breath gathered in lilac tissue paper and clear cellophane. The package was neatly tied together with a bright yellow bow. Yuuri blushed violently as he accepted the flowers, gasping because they were much heavier than he anticipated. Viktor stepped closer and helped support the flowers with one hand, the other wrapping him in a one-armed hug.

"You were great, Yuuri!" Viktor said over the sound of the audience. "Do you like my gift?"

Yuuri shifted the bouquet in his arms so he could see the alpha more clearly. "I love it, Viktor, thank you. And thanks for coming." He smiled up at Viktor who beamed back widely in response.

Back in the audience Hiroko snapped one picture after another furiously as Mari stood on her tiptoes and zoomed in her camcorder to focus on Yuuri and Viktor.

"Your father has to see this," Hiroko gushed. "This Viktor is just so adorable!"

Mari laughed as she gazed at the image of her younger brother and the alpha in her camcorder's display. "You can't even see Yuuri, Kaa-san! The bouquet's completely blocking his entire face!"

It took a moment for the audience to settle down, but eventually a laughing Minako escorted Yuuri and Viktor back down the stage to reunite them with their respective families. As the rest of the recitals progressed, it was easy to tell who really stole the show that night. Everyone's families went back home that evening talking about the adorable scene of an overeager silver-haired boy stealing the show by bounding up the stage and presenting one of the young ballet dancers with flowers.