The flat tundra of the ice twinkled underneath the powerful spotlights lighting the rink. The fresh ice smelled like clean linen. Plexiglass walls surrounded the rink like walls around a castle. The old rafters swung above the ice from the frigid wind colliding with the building outside.
The hush of a skate cutting through the ice emanated through the small building. The skates hissed with every powerful stroke as Yuri buckled his knees. He held his cool breath with the tilting of his foot upward and heaving through the air. Lifting his frame, he twirled like an unstable twister. Three spins later, he landed on the ice and glided backwards away from the spin. He spread his arms and slid on one foot.
Moving backwards, he growled and slammed his other skate on the ice. Standing upright, he halted his momentum and raced to the sidelines. Stopping himself at the wall, he looked at Victor sitting on the wooden hockey bench.
"That was shit," Yuri said. He slapped the edge of the wall.
Victor shrugged. "It wasn't that bad. You're just not getting enough rotations. Plenty of air, but you're stalling in midair like a crashing helicopter."
"Great. Thanks for comparing me to a crashing helicopter," Yuri said.
"I think it's your leg strength that's the problem," Victor said while holding a white coffee mug. "You're vertical jump is great, but you need to twist more on the dismount. Even if you fall, the revolutions will count."
This was the typical routine during practice. Yuri goes out and tries to push more rotations on every twirl and speed on every twist. Victor looks on with an air of apathy, like he was about to fall asleep. Yuri beat himself up over a missed flip or an occasional stumble while Victor shrugged like he just missed a bus.
Yuri smacked the wall again. "I know that, old man. I just can't get that last turn right now."
"Shouldn't skip leg day," A voice shouted.
Yuri looked over at the empty seat outside the rink. Walking in black sneakers and still in her school uniform with a red polyester jacket, Isabel practically skipped down a ramp to the side of the rink. The top of her head was hidden in a white beanie while the blonde bangs poked out from under the edge. Plopping down on the bench next to Victor she beamed at Yuri.
"I've never seen you skate before, Yurio? Is that going to be your routine? I don't know how this works. There's like a short skate program and a long one? Which one was that?"
Yuri gritted his teeth. "What is she doing here?" he asked Victor.
Victor sling an arm around Isabel and chuckled. "You're friend is here for a very important reason. Take your skates off. I need to teach you something."
Yuri raised an eyebrow. If he was going to learn something, it should be with skates. Shaking his head, Yuri decided that the sooner this stunt ended, the better for his mental health. He slogged over the wall and undoing the fine white laces on his skates. Slipping them off, he set them on his duffel bag like newborn babies. He turned and narrowed his eyes at Victor.
"What is it?"
Victor and Isabel stood up. He placed himself between the two teenagers and cleared his throat. "A big problem you have is not on the ice, Yurio. It's in real life. You have a large fanbase, but you treat them like a dog treats an old chew toy. Disinterested and bored."
"Maybe that's because those fans have that effect on me," Yuri said.
Victor pointed at him. "Regardless, you need to learn how to love your fans."
Yuri flinched as he stepped back. "And how is this going to help me do a triple flip."
"It might help," Victor said. "If you feel like you have people on your side, you might do better. Let's start small. I brought Isabel over so she can be the crazed fan. What are they called."
"Yuri's Fairies," Isabel said. "I didn't know you had a fan club."
Yuri rolled his eyes. "Don't remind me. I can't blink without one of them writing a blog post about it."
Victor pushed Isabel forward. She stood straight like a soldier at attention in front of Yuri. Victor held his hand on her shoulder.
Yuri was stunned this was happening. He looked at Isabel like she was a giant centipede trying to eat him alive. He was shocked that Victor would waste time on something like dealing with his fans. He had great social skills. He just refused to use them. Besides, if he had fans even with his cold shoulder, then he failed to see how he would lose them.
"Here's the scene," Victor said with a grin. "You just got off the ice. The crowd is going crazy because you almost broke one of my world records."
"What do you mean 'almost.' I'm breaking all of your records."
Victor barked out a laugh. "Such a jokester. Anyway, you're walking out of the locker room and leaving the stadium. Suddenly, a crazy fan gets through the security barricade and comes up to you. What do you do?"
"Call security so they can shoot her with a taser?"
Victor shook his head. "Close, but not quite. Let's begin." He said.
He let go of Isabel. She sauntered up to him and grasped his shoulders. Pulling her towards him, she bounced on her tiptoes and grinned.
"Oh my God, I can't believe it's you," Isabel said in a fake high-pitched voice. "You're Yuri Plisetsky. I love you so much. I have a tattoo of you. I even forced my dad to get a tattoo of you. You're so sexy in real life. Can I marry you? Give me your children," Isabel shouted.
Yuri brushed away her hands and took a step back. "Get away from me."
Victor ticked and shook his head like a disappointed mother. "That's what you shouldn't do."
Yuri smoothed out the front of this plain ivory long-sleeved shirt. "But those fans are insane. They tried to take some of my hair and sell it online."
"I saw that. You're hair is definitely not worth a thousand dollars," Victor said. "But that's not important. Even with the craziest fans, you have to be gracious. Instead, ask her what she wants. Let's try again."
Victor tapped Isabel on the shoulder. She took a large step forward and grabbed Yuri's shirt again.
"Yuri! Oh my god, it's you. You're like a god to me. I love you so much," she shouted with her blue eyes reflecting Yuri's disgusted look on his face.
"Get o-. I mean...what do you want?"
Victor sighed. "Nope. Say it nicer. Like your a waiter at a resteraunt."
Yuri grunted. "Fine," he said. He looked back at Isabel. Their noses were almost touching. "Uh...what can I help you with?"
Victor facepalmed as Isabel leaned even closer to him. "I want you to be mine," she purred.
Yuri shifted his eyes towards Victor. The older Russian waved his hands in the air, motioning for Yuri to continue.
"Uh...okay."
"Stop," Victor said. Isabel stepped back as Victor sauntered towards them. He rubbed a bead of sweat off his forehead. "Don't say yes to what they want?"
Yuri sputtered. "You just told me to go along with what they wanted."
"You're not supposed to agree to what they wanted," Victor said. "You're supposed to reject them, but in a way that makes them feel good."
Yuri threw his hands up in anger. "I give up. I don't care about this. I'm supposed to be working on my routine."
'And you are. Just in a different way than usual," Victor said. "Try this. When she asks you to do something crazy, say that you can't because you are not worthy of them."
"Not worthy of them? That makes no sense."
"Just try it. Then, offer to give them an autograph or a picture. Remember, you have to do this with a lot of fans, so be quick about it."
Victor turned around and sat on the bench. He crossed his legs and smiled at the two standing in front of him. "Take three. Action."
Isabel grabbed him again and hopped up and down in excitement. "I love you so much, Yuri. I watch every routine every moment I'm awake. I have all of your posters in my room. My dad had to take a second mortgage out just so I could come here and see you. Will you marry me?" She spouted with the speed of a charging hockey player.
Yuri swallowed and narrowed his eyes slightly. Then, he did something that made both Isabel and Victor surprised.
He reached up and stroked Isabel's neck. "I'm sorry love, but I'm not worth your time. If I married you, I would be denying the rest of the world an angel. Can we take a picture instead? Just so I can remember you?"
Isabel blushed furiously as Yuri's pillow-soft hands stroked her warm, slim face. Yuri's eyes were beautiful under the ice rink lights. His turquoise pools had a focused, yet relaxed gaze. His effeminately shaped face complemented his small smile as he inched forward. He smelled like lavender despite the sprinkled sweat around his forehead. Even his breath had a pleasant, peppermint fragrance that she wanted to taste.
"Sure," Isabel stuttered. "I...I'll put it on Instagram later."
Yuri put his arm down and looked away from Isabel. He shook his head while staring at the empty seats next to him. After a few seconds of huffing, he turned back to the other two. Isabel's face was redder than a tomato. Victor leaned back in surprise while clutching his coffee mug like it was escaping his hands.
"That sucked, didn't it?"
"No," Isabel said. "That was actually good. So good that we are a bit taken aback."
Victor coughed. "I agree. Although you should tone it down. You might cause some girls to faint."
"Hell, he might cause some guys to faint," Isabel added.
Yuri tilted his head. "Really? Was it actually good?"
Isabel nodded. "Incredible. We can keep practicing if you want."
Victor stood up. "That won't be necessary," he said. He put a hand on Isabel's shoulder and pulled her back. "I think we're done for the day. Isabel, you want to stay for dinner? Yuuri is making katsudon again."
Isabel smiled. "I'd love that."
Yuri rolled his eyes. "You people are going to give me a heart attack. My gravestone is going to say: heart attack from his dumbass coach and crazy classmate."
Otabek sat in front of a pink wall with a painting of a truck hung next to his head. He had developed a scruffy chin in the time away from Yuri. His eyelids were heavy while his black hair stuck up in the back of his head. Dark circles were forming underneath his black eyes.
Yuri sat on his bed with the laptop open in his lap. Skype conversations were a long affair for Otabek. He droned on and on to the tired ice skater while he occasionally nodded in agreement.
"They're just so dumb, Beka. Why do American students know so little about classical music? It's not rocket science."
"Can't imagine why," he said in a gruff voice.
Yuri chuckled before looking back down at the screen. "So that's what it's like in Detroit. The air smells like rotting seafood and the streets are a warzone after eleven at night. A lot of gangs. Not to mention most of the buildings here look like they may collapse any second. There's been like two days where I've actually seen the sun, although that's sort of like Russia."
"So what about this girl?"
Yuri gasped. "What girl?"
Otabek licked his lips. "I talked to Japanese Yuuri to figure out what hotel we're staying at for Skate America. He and Victor mentioned you were seeing a girl."
Yuri clutched his hair. his mouth hung open like a broken dam as words poured out. "What the fuck is their problem? No, I'm not seeing a girl. I mean...there is a girl I see a lot, but that's because we go to school together. I don't know who she is. God, what if Victor told other people. I haven't been on Twitter in forever. What if somebody gets the wrong idea?"
"Relax," Otabek said. "They told me they haven't told anyone else. They just said you were seeing a girl. Never said it was romantic. Just that a girl was coming into your apartment."
"She doesn't just show up at my apartment," Yuri shouted. "Victor brings her over."
"Nothing wrong with a new friend."
"What? Beka, I have literally one friend, and its you. I don't just make friends, man."
"Tell me about her."
"No. Why don't we talk about where you're staying for Skate America?"
Otabek crossed his arms. "Nope. I want to hear about her."
Yuri rubbed his eyes. Otabek was too headstrong for his own good.
"If you weren't my friend, I'd hate you," Yuri said.
"If you weren't my friend, I'd be asleep right now, Yura. Now tell me before I pass out."
"She's nothing," Yuri said. "Okay, I guess that's harsh. She's not nothing, but she isn't anything like that. Know what I mean?"
"Not really."
"She's not a romantic thing to me," Yuri said. "She's a girl I met from the school I told you about. Her name is Isabel, and she is very weird."
"What do you mean by that?"
"She's just happy all of the time. She won't shut up, and she always looks like she is laughing at some random joke. She forgets things sometimes, and she chews on her pencils all of the time. It's annoying. What's really annoying is how much she ends up around me. Victor even brought her over to practice earlier today. But you know what really pisses me off? For some reason, I just talk to her. I find myself being able to say things to her. I don't do that with other people, Beka. I don't even say hello to that street drummer I pass by on the street every day. Shit, I wouldn't even speak to that Japanese pig or Victor if I didn't live by them."
"Anything else?"
"She has an awful taste in music. Something called Motown, but I haven't listened to it. She also eats many things. She told me she wants to be a world-class chef when gave me that food on the rooftop. It must be a hobby, but she seems serious about it. She cooks and eats a lot. For some reason, you can't tell by looking at her. I guess, objectively, she is...nice looking."
"Nice looking?"
Yuri nodded. "Victor and other people tell me that she is very attractive, but I don't see it. Her eyes are really blue though, but I'm just saying that because she doesn't know what personal space is. Also, there is this weird lavender scent whenever she is around. I think she puts perfume on. But let me be clear, it's not because I noticed these things. I'm just telling you what she is like."
Otabek nodded.
Yuri sighed. "I think that's it for today. I just need to think about things for the rest of the night."
Otabek held a finger up. "Yura, I want to ask you something."
"Go for it."
"Do you think I'm stupid?"
"No, Beka," Yuri said quickly. He shivered as he leaned forward and clutched the screen. The last thing he wanted was to scare away his only real friend before a big contest. "Why would you say that?"
Otabek took a breath. "Yura, all I'm going to say is that you have a lot to think about. I know you don't want to be distracted, but why would you possibly describe how she smells if you didn't care."
Yuri gasped "I told you it's because you asked me to describe her."
"If she was no big deal, you would have just said she was a classmate."
Yuri jumped slightly as he heard a rumble of thunder roll through his room. The walls vibrated as his rock matress shook on it's springs. Otabek blinked at him. Yuri looked back down at the screen.
"Sorry, just weather."
Otabek sighed. "You practically gave me her life story. Seriously, Yura, you might as well know her home address."
"That's just because she gave it to Victor."
"Wait. Do you actually know where she lives?"
Yuri sat in complete silence. This entire conversation was infuriating him. Otabek was just saying all of this to distract him. That made no sense. He was on his side. A victory for Yuri was a victory for him and vice versa. If J.J. had said all of this stuff, he would just brush it off as stupid taunting. To hear these thoughts from Otabek shook Yuri's nerves like the rafters swinging over the ice rink earlier in the day.
"She's just a fan, Otabek."
The older skater nodded. "If you say so. But if she didn't know who you were before all this, and she hasn't asked for things like autographs yet, maybe it isn't just a crazy fan."
"So what should I do?"
Otabek shrugged. "In skating, there is a phrase. 'You never slip, you're just skating a new routine.'"
"That makes zero sense."
Otabek reached towards the screen. "If you slip in a routine, you don't start over or give up. You just keep going on the new path you took on the ice. Even if that wasn't the spot you planned on doing your triple flip, you do the triple flip anyway."
"Still not following."
"See you soon, Yura."
A beeping noise went off. The screen turned white.
Yuri collapsed backwards and fell on the bed with a grunt. Closing his eyes, he felt gravity collide with his bones. Weightlessness took over as he drifted into an uncomfortable sleep.
As always, please make sure to review, favorite, follow, do anything you can to bring attention. I hope that I make something you can enjoy, and I hope you will express how good (or bad) this is. Something fun and unique for everyone!
I made soft edits to make this canon compliant, following certain events from Episode 12. Very exciting!
Thank you so much. you are the reason we write, and I hope that constructive, long reviews will be left by you, the intelligent reader. The more reviews, the better the story. Is everyone in character. No OOC people so far? What about the OC? What do you think of her? More or less Viktuuri? Let me know!
See you soon!
