The ice rink at Campus Martius Park was wedge between two rows of tall ferns waving in the quiet breeze. Restaurants and other buildings lined the perimeter of the park, blocking it from sight on the sidewalk of the street. The bare branches of pine trees were wrapped in white lighting, giving the area a festive holiday aura. People in all colors of jackets and beanies rumbled around the park. Children skipped behind their parents as they ran up to the ice rink. A single black man played a guitar with an attached harmonica on the ivory stage behind the ice rink. Older people sat and listened to the singer while sipping warm beer underneath the nighttime sky.

Yuri leaned on the railing of the rink, looking at the people skating with no hurry or purpose. A few people stumbled and toppled over onto the chopped ice. It was so overused, the typical sheen of clean ice was worn down and replaced with a thin graphite film. It was almost like the people were skating on slush. The lights around the rink twinkled as vibrant as the new skates flashing on one little child gliding through the rink.

The little girl was chugging around the ice like a speeding train. She giggled and leapt up for a simple single loop. When she landed, she clapped to herself and weaved through the traffic of stumbling adults and goofy teenagers trying their hand at ice skating. One of them, a young black man, swirled around the ice with his arms out in front of him like a drunk bar patron kicked out onto the street. With a holler, he collapsed onto the ice. A group of his friends laughed like hyenas.

Yuri rested his head on the cool railing. Watching other people skate amused him to no end. Every time he saw a public skate session, he wanted to run out and shock everybody with a triple lutz. Tonight was an exception.

"Yuri?"

Yuri sighed. He knew the trouble he had caused everybody would catch up to him at some point. Literally.

He turned around and found Isabel behind him. Her tight jacket was zipped up while her hands hid from the chill air in cobalt gloves. Her breath appeared and evaporated in foggy wisps. She moved towards Yuri and leaned on the railing next to him. Looking out at the rink, she chuckled.

"You should go out there and do your routine. I'm sure everyone will be amazed."

Yuri grunted. "Not enough room. I'll knock someone unconscious and be thrown in jail. I heard American jails are rough."

"Worse than Russian jails?"

Yuri turned his head at the girl. Her navy eyes connected with the sight of his blue-greens as she took in his appearance. Yuri was quite disheveled with his large sweatpants and the loose-fitting hoodie draped over his head. The blonde bangs stuck out from underneath the clothing, and his eyes were bloodshot.

"Why are you here?"

"I don't really know. I guess I wanted to help you or make things better, but I don't know how."

"Gee, thanks for trying. You really helped," Yuri said. He turned to look back at the skaters struggling on the cheap ice rink.

Isabel grabbed Yuri by the chin and forced his head towards hers. His heart stopped as she moved an inch closer. The lights from the trees appeared to glow brighter with her gloves warming his chin.

"Listen to me for a second."

Yuri shook off Isabel's hand and looked at her. "What is it?"

Isabel still had no clue where to go from here. Conflict resolution was not something she was good at. She was not the kind of girl to start meaningless drama. However, being put in a tough spot by Yuri in the apartment left her no choice. She hated to leave people on a sour note. Her eyes narrowed slightly. The lights hanging on the trees were difficult for her eyes to adjust to with speed.

"I don't know what happened between you and those two," Isabel said. Yuri scoffed as she continued. "And before you interrupt me, Victor told me everything a few minutes ago. I know about Victor leaving you and getting with Mister Katsuki. I know about Yakov, that other coach you have. He told me about you winning that big competition three years ago and then losing it to Mister Katsuki. The problems with your last coaches and agents, he told me about them."

Yuri frowned. "He didn't tell you everything, then."

Isabel blinked. "Was he lying?"

"No, he wasn't," Yuri said slowly. His face hardened in anger as he took a step towards Isabel. "He didn't tell you about those nights where I couldn't sleep. Those nights where I wondered why I wasn't good enough for the best ice skater in the world."

"Uh...I don't think he told me that."

Yuri laughter dripped with irony and mirth. "Of course not. In his view, he's never made a single mistake in his life. He seems like such a simple guy, but he's a pig. Him and that Japanese freak. Leaving me so I could be with that shitty coach. Then, not only does he fucking beat me in the Grand Prix that next year, but he retires right away. Before I even have a chance to beat him, he leaves. He could have been one of the best, but he wasted it away just so he could be with Victor."

Isabel tilted her head inquisitvely. "Wait. Are you talking about Mister Katsuki?"

Yuri let out another fake laugh. "I guess he didn't tell you about that. About Mister Katsudon beating me at Grand Prix and then retiring. He wasted all of that time and energy I spent trying to motivate him and trying to beat him. And for what? So he could get screwed every day by that closeted Russian?"

Isabel nodded. "He just told me that he left you for another skater. He didn't mention all of that."

"Well, it's fucking true," Yuri said softly. "I'm not good enough for him. And what he said earlier is proof. He just wants me because he knows I'm a meal ticket. He can't win any more medals by himself, so he needs something else to win with. It doesn't matter if I was Otabek, Georgi, or even Jean Jacques fucking Leroy."

At this, Yuri felt his vision blur. He began to tremble like an unsteady building. He sniffled as he looked down at his feet, trying to hide his face from Isabel. "That's all I am to these people. My mom, my agents, you name it."

Yuri flinched when he felt a gloved hand placed on his shoulder. Just as he felt tears brim at his eyelids, he looked up at Isabel. She had a small smile and leaned towards him, their noses almost touching.

"Something else Victor told me was how proud he was of you."

Yuri sniffled louder and stared at Isabel.

"The reason he didn't tell me all of that stuff you said was because he actually broke down the moment you walked out the door. That's why he shouted out at you before you left. He cried and cried about how he was a failure and how he turned you away from him. He was really upset about the stuff he said. He told me that no decent coach would ever do that the night before a big show."

"Are we talking about the same Victor Nikiforov here?" Yuri said in a shaky tone.

Isabel chuckled. "I didn't believe it either. Mister Katsuki calmed down after yelling about you for a minute and he feels bad, too. Although, you said some pretty bad things, Yurio." She stroked his cheek with the light touch of a feather. "I see a lot of things in my neighborhood, Yurio. A lot of people get into gang fights in Eight Mile. The main reason is because one side thinks the other is out to hurt them. Usually, both sides want the same thing, but everyone assumes that people just want to get them. Victor doesn't want to hurt you, and neither does Mister Katsuki. I know for a fact that you don't want to hurt either of them."

Yuri looked at her in a confused state. "And what makes you think that."

Isabel beamed at him. "I have a feeling. I've known you for a month now, but I think I catch on when people are good or bad. You're kind of like a...a cat. You know cats, right? They seem very mean and like they don't care, but when you get down to it, they like people just as much as people like them."

Yuri snorted out a laugh. "At least you compared me to something I like."

Isabel widened her smile. "I think you're a small tabby cat. You know, like a Garfield type cat."

Yuri raised an eyebrow. "A tabby cat? Not like a lion or something like that?"

"Nope. Just a small little cat that likes to claw on people's laps."

Yuri sniffled and rubbed away the tears from his eyes. He felt a small weight get knocked off his shoulders. As the skaters spun past them in the rink, the air remained it's frigid Detroit aura. None of that mattered to him at the moment. His passion about skating faded like a flickering lightbulb for just a second as he took in the scene. The middle of Detroit never looked so beautiful with people sashaying around on the ice in joy. Hot dogs sizzled underneath the frigid air covering the park. Yet, all Yuri could see was the tall blonde girl in front of him with the heart-shaped face and gorgeous royal blue eyes, reflecting the white lights from the trees off her irises.

Yuri immediately slapped himself. Gorgeous eyes? No way he just described them in his head that way.

"What's Garfield?" He asked trying to distract himself.

Isabel gasped. "What is Garfield?"

"There's an American president named Garfield. Is that who you're comparing me to?"

Isabel shook her head and ticked away with her tongue. "You have a lot to learn about our country, Yurio."

Yuri nodded. He gathered enough courage to go back to the apartment. He knew that there were a lot of issues he needed to work out with Victor and Yuuri. It was not going to disappear in one night, but making up before a big competition could be a big step in the right direction. Apologizing for things was hard for Yuri, but it had to be done. Yuri knew that he was worth the time and effort of being a world-class skater. It was time to prove to others that he was and make them stick with him.


After the short walk back to the apartment, Isabel admitted to herself that she was unprepared for going back into the apartment.

Sitting back in the warm love seat, she swung her legs like a hyper kid as Yuri and the other couple sat behind her at the dining table. They all looked at each other, unable to decide who would say the first words. When Yuri walked in, Victor and Yuuri gave him a blank stare. When Yuri sat at the table, they followed him. No words had been spoken between them, and time ticked past eleven at night. The red lights on the skyscraper rooftops blinked like a Christmas tree every few seconds. Lights in the windows went out like dying fireflies every few minutes as people travelled home for the night. The city lights obscured any stars in the sky, leaving a dark globe encompassing the night sky in Detroit.

Yuri took a breath and shifted his gaze from Yuuri to Victor periodically. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have yelled at you all. And I shouldn't have used that word. I didn't know it was that bad of a word to say in English. It was a reflex for me to hurt you, and it's wrong for me to do that. I'll try to treat you better. Both of you."

Yuuri adjusted his glasses and leaned back in his chair. His long black hair nearly pinched between his neck and the seat. "Yuri, do you know why those things hurt so much? It's not just because you insult me every day. I can deal with that."

"Do you know how hard things were for me, Yurio?" Victor chimed in. He ran a hand through his gray hair. "There are a lot of reasons why I left Russia. One of them was because of myself and Yuuri. Do you know how hard it is to be like us in Russia?"

Yuri remained silent.

"I left Russia so I wouldn't have to deal with people saying things like what you said. The moment I kissed Yuuri on the ice, the media in Russia blacklisted me. Every single speck of dirt they could get on me, they put it on the front page. It's hard to be like us and live in Russia. People are still being thrown in jail just for being themselves. Then, they started to target Yuuri. Headlines about how he corrupted the greatest Russian ice skater alive."

"It wasn't much better in Japan," Yuuri said with a small sniffle. "My mom was getting letters about how I shamed the country. They called me a lot of slurs in those letters. So when we hear you say the same things, it hurts worse than making fun of my weight. People just want to be happy with themselves."

Victor took Yuuri's hand and held it on the glass table. "We just want to be happy about ourselves. We want to be happy and live freely and pay bills and go shopping on Black Friday like every other normal person," Victor said with a sad smile. "That's all we want. The best place to do that is America."

Victor stood up. Yuuri followed suit as they planed themselves besides a seated Yuri. He looked up at Victor as he smiled. "Ice skating means the world to me, Yurio, but this bowl of katsudon I have next to me," he said while nudging Yuuri playfully. "He is the world to me. And you might not believe this, but you are too in a way. I'm sure as hell not letting any politicians in Moscow or bloggers in Tokyo get in the way of that."

Yuuri nodded. He was already crying with the kind words. It still hit Yuuri when he heard things like that from Victor. He never imagined in a lifetime he would ever find somebody who believed that much that he was special. With Victor, Yuuri felt like the only other person in the world. "I know I'm not the most forceful person in the world, but when I heard those things said to Victor, I snapped. I shouldn't have hit you."

Yuri felt his lip wobble as he brushed away a tear. "I shouldn't have said that to you. I'm confused by a lot, and I'll try not to take it out on you so much anymore. And I won't say things like that anymore."

Victor choked on his words and ruffled Yuri's blonde mop. "I know you don't believe me, but I'll prove it to you soon. You're not just a meal ticket. Besides, even if you were, I would probably just go out on the ice. I'd get more money easily."

Yuri scoffed. "Keep telling yourself that, old man."

Isabel stood up and looked at the three. All of them had trails of hot tears rolling down their cheeks. However, they seemed more content with the world for a second. Even if they still had friction between them, it was deposited to the side of the road for a moment.

She clapped at them. "Excellent. That went better than expected. I have to take the bus home now so I can pack. See you tomorrow."

Just as she was about to leave, Yuri held out his palm at her. "What do you mean by that?"

Isabel stopped and looked at Yuri. "It means I will see you at the airport tomorrow."

"You don't have to do that. I'll be back by Monday."

Isabel giggled. "Wait, did you tell him, Victor?"

Yuri narrowed his eyes and looked up at Victor. "Tell me what?"

Victor nervously chuckled. "Well...let's just say that I had some extra money and..."

Yuuri scratched the back of his neck. "Our entourage to Skate America is four now."

Yuri slammed his head on the table.


I hope you all have an amazing Christmas or whatever you celebrate!

How are things going so far? Liking what's happening? Disliking? What about the character relationships? Anything stand out at the moment?

What's going to happen at Skate America. Big collapse. Surprise finish. Will Phichit beat Yuri?!

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