Ok, so it's been over a month and I am really sorry but it's exam season right now so this is quite possibly the last update you are going to get until June when I am free once again. I hope this chapter is going to make up for the long wait!
Song title from Wicked - Just the title I promise! They aren't going to start hating one another. Not right now anyway... ;)

Victor's time in America was coming to an end. Phichit was due back in little under two week so Victor and Yuuri were making the most of their time together. Victor had made it his mission to get Yuuri skating Eros to an almost perfect standard before he left and Yuuri was certainly not letting him down. Victor could barely leave the rink without undoing a few buttons on his shirt to try to cool down his heightened body temperature. The jumps were still mostly hit and miss but Yuuri had managed a couple of run-throughs without touching down once during a landing. The shaky legs was something Victor was confident Celestino would be able to iron out before the competitive season started.

Victor woke early one morning to the sound of the hamster wheel squeaking. After sitting up and nudging Makkachin lightly, Victor stumbled over to see Bronza running around as fast as her tiny legs would take her while Serebryanyy and Zoloto were hovering by the food bowl. Victor chuckled lightly as he scooped some dried food into the bowl and the two hamsters practically fell in after it with Bronza not far behind. When Victor had turned away from the cage, his room was empty as Makkachin had left the bed and padded out of the door which was always left open for him. Victor made to follow the dog but wasn't surprised when he couldn't find the brow curls in the main body of the apartment. After only a few days of being there, Makkachin had taken to waking up with Victor and then demanding to be let into Yuuri's room for some cuddles with his new best friend. It had quickly reached the point where Yuuri began leaving his door slightly open overnight too so that Makka could nose his way in whenever he felt like it.

Victor peaked into the room just as Makka plonked himself down next to the mound the was Yuuri's body and a stray arm reached over to pull the heat source closer to the slumbering man. It wouldn't take long for Yuuri to wake up since Makkachin was known to fidget until he was satisfied with the amount of attention he had been given. Victor wandered into the kitchen and turned on the coffee maker and sat at the small table while waiting for the younger skater to emerge from his room. In the brief moment of solitude, Victor considered the lack of time he had left in America and decided that he had not seen anywhere near as much of Yuuri's current home city as he deemed acceptable. A plan began to emerge as he heard the tell-tale sound of a door being opened and then the tapping noise of claws hitting the wooden floorboards.

"Hey Victor." Yuuri's voice, still rough from sleep, followed not too long after Makkachin's nose brushed up against Victor's knee. Victor lifted his eyes away from the adoring dog and over to his housemate. Yuuri was a mess of black bedhead curls and soft skin marred with red lines where he must have slept on a crease of his pillowcase.

"Morning Yuuri." Victor replied. Yuuri poured himself a coffee and slumped into his seat opposite from the older skater. "Hey, I was thinking, maybe we could do something a little different today?" Yuuri looked up with a confused expression. "I thought maybe we could go sightseeing? I have to go back to Russia soon and I want to see more of Detroit first."

"Oh, ok then. We were due a break from practice soon anyway I think." Victor was almost shocked at how quickly Yuuri agreed but he knew they were both very much aware of how little time they had left together for the time being.

After the two men had prepared and ate breakfast, they got themselves dressed and ready for a day out on the town. Makkachin was clipped onto his lead and they set out together, with Yuuri leading the way. The first stop on their journey was a large park about a half an hour walk in the opposite direction to the skate rink. Makka was let of his lead but made sure not to stray too far from Victor's eyeline as he had been trained to do for his own safety. Victor was thrilled to see such a large expanse of greenery after being surrounded by the cold cityscape and high-rise buildings for so long. His phone was out in an instant and he ran off taking pictures of seemingly every blade of grass before returning to Yuuri's side demanding selfies for his social media accounts. Yuuri reluctantly played along after giving in to the puppy dog eyes from, not just the actual dog, but from Victor as well. Victor positioned Yuuri in front of an aesthetically pleasing background and then leaned in close so their faces were squished together. After seeing the soft pink blush creep onto Yuuri's cheeks, Victor couldn't resist turning his head to press his lips lightly against the colouration of skin just as he clicked his phone to take another picture. Yuuri's face was bright with shock as he pulled away slightly, flushing even further.

Makkachin took that moment to bound over to the pair and paw at Victor restlessly. They had massively lost track of time and Victor realised that the pup was probably asking for some food. After pointing out the time to Yuuri, Victor felt a hand make its way into his grasp before Yuuri was pulling on Victor's arm gently to lead him to a café he knew of nearby that served food of dogs as well as their owners.

Victor refused to let go of Yuuri's hand throughout the whole walk over to the café, while Yuuri pointed out various notable buildings, and he also chose a seat next to the younger skater so he didn't have to relinquish the contact they had when they sat to eat. In fact, Victor chose not to let go of Yuuri's hand for the entire time they were sat in the café having lunch. They thankfully both chose foods that could be eaten one handed so Victor really had no need to let go of Yuuri ever again, in his opinion. Victor felt his cheeks flush slightly at the thought of keeping a hold of Yuuri and never letting him leave his side.

The older man realised he hadn't felt this attached to another human being in quite some time and Victor began to feel slightly overwhelmed at the sudden influx of emotions, that he had sequestered in the far corners of his brain, which threatened to distract him from his date. Lunch, not date. Just lunch. With Yuuri. Sweet, adorable, completely unaware of his sex-appeal Yuuri. Victor needed to get off this train of thought before he inevitably said something he knew Yuuri wasn't ready to hear yet and mess everything up between the two of them.

Yuuri seemed oblivious however and remained focused on trying to eat his sandwich with one of his hand occupied by the Russian. Eventually, the pair finished their late lunch and Victor paid the check before Yuuri had the chance to intervene. Victor then took the lead as he dragged Yuuri down the nearby streets in order to do some window shopping.

After spending a long while aimlessly meandering around the streets of Detroit, Victor paused in front a posh looking formalwear shop. Despite Yuuri's complaints, Victor loosely looped Makkachin's lead through a wrought-iron fence outside and dragged Yuuri into the shop. After a few minutes of sifting through a mountain of soft silk, Victor lifted up two strips of material and held them up for Yuuri's opinion.

"Well, uh. I guess the red one is nice but maybe the checked one would go with more suits?" Victor continued to eye the fabric critically while occasionally flicking his gaze to Yuuri briefly. "What colour suit would you want to wear it with?" This caught Victor's attention.

"Oh no Yuuri, this is for you." Yuuri couldn't hide his surprised expression.

"Wait, what? But I don't need a-"

"Oh yes you do." Yuuri continued to look perplexed. "I found the sorry excuse of cloth you call a tie in the back of your wardrobe one day and this one will suit you so much better don't you think?" Victor held up the red tie, which upon closer examination, Yuuri could see was actually a complex pattern of tiny red birds that filled out the body of the tie to appear as a block colour from a distance. Victor pulled away before Yuuri had a chance to react and strode purposefully to the cashier. As the tie was being rung up, Yuuri tugged on Victor's sleeve to get his attention.

"Wait, why were you looking in the back of my wardrobe anyway?" Victor looked away guiltily and rubbed the back of his neck.

"Oh, I was bored one day when you were cooking so I went exploring?" Victor looked back to Yuuri to meet wide brown eyes staring at him. Victor was worried he had overstepped when Yuuri's eyes lit with mirth as he started laughing.

"I honestly don't know why I expected anything less." Yuuri managed to say, in-between huffs of laughter. Victor felt a matching grin spread across his own face as he felt his heart tighten that little bit more. He took the bag containing the new tie from the cashier and hooked his arm around Yuuri's to lead him out of the shop. There were tears of laughter streaming down both of their faces by the time they reached Makkachin outside on the street.

They slowly made their way back to Yuuri's apartment while taking what Yuuri's called the 'scenic route' which involved a lot of drab grey buildings that were apparently the highlights of the city. Victor couldn't say he minded the dreary city too much and it gave him the opportunity to stare at something much more attractive in the form of his companion.

Once the two skaters had returned to the flat, Victor immediately fell onto the sofa and dragged Yuuri down next to him while Makkachin plodded into Victor's bedroom for a nap. The two men flicked through the television channels before they landed on a film that seemed decent enough to hold their attention for the time being. Victor was more than aware of the lack of space between their bodies and leant slightly further into Yuuri's side.

Victor looked up a short while later to find Yuuri not paying any attention to the film, but instead scrolling the screen of his phone. Victor propped himself up slightly and leant his head on Yuuri's shoulder.

"Whatcha looking at?" Yuuri let out a small laugh before leaning his head on top of Victor's and moving his phone so they could both see the screen.

"I was looking through all the pictures you put up today." Yuuri let out a soft sigh and Victor twisted his head slightly to look at him and encourage the younger to speak his mind. "I- Well, I was wondering what you did with the picture you took in the park where you, you know, kissed my cheek." The last words were said in a rush and barely above a whisper so Victor had to strain to hear them.

"Oh, I actually kind of wanted to keep that one for just us." Victor fumbled around slightly until his fingers brushed against his phone so he could bring it up in front of him. "I actually set it as my home screen." Yuuri turned his head suddenly to see himself staring back with wide eyes and Victor's lips came into contact with his skin. "I could send it to you if you want?" Yuuri nodded quickly and leant back slightly to give Victor space to free up his arm and hit the various buttons on his phone to share the image. Victor looked up after making sure the picture had been sent successfully and came face to face with Yuuri. Both men froze as their eyes locked and collectively realised just how close they actually were. Victor watched as Yuuri's gaze flicked to his lips before looking away guiltily.

The pair were too wrapped up in their own world to hear the clack of nails on wooden flooring to signify Makkachin's approach. Seeing his owner and new favourite person curled up together made Makka believe it was the perfect time for a cuddle party and wanted to know why he hadn't been invited earlier. To make his presence know, the dog leaped up onto the sofa and immediately crashed into Victor's back, propelling him forward. Victor's eyes flew open wider than he thought possible as his dog pushed him straight into Yuuri's unsuspecting personal space. Before Yuuri could move back, Victor's lips were on top of his own. Almost instantly, the pair sprung backwards as much as they could to collectively try to regain their senses. Victor pushed Makkachin away to give himself some more room before turning back to see Yuuri still staring at him but with his fingertips brushing over his lips in awe.

"I'm so sorry Yuuri! I couldn't stop, Makka was just-, I couldn't-, I mean, it's not that I didn't like it but-." Victor's frantic apologies were cut off by the returning pressure of Yuuri's lips. Victor froze for half a second before leaning into the kiss and wrapping his arms around Yuuri's neck to hold him close. The film was forgotten as the two skaters were lost in their own emotions as their unspoken feelings were communicated through the gentle slide of their lips and soft caresses of their fingertips.

I really hope this chapter is ok because I honestly wrote it in about 2 hours and it's midnight now so... Let me know if you spot and mistakes that my sleep deprived brain didn't!
Also hit me up on tumblr if you want.
BN x