Fact of the chapter: Skating clean programs back to back is extremely rare. At the PyeongChang Olympics none of the Top 10 men managed to do so.
"I'm scared," Yuuri says, refusing to leave the blanket cocoon he has made for himself on the couch. It's very cozy.
"No~ Yuuri~" Viktor whines, "I promise it will be good. Trust me!"
"Last time you said 'trust me' like that you nearly killed us." Yuuri will never let Viktor drive motorcycle ever again.
"You're overreacting. We would not have died… probably… But this isn't like that! I promise this will be good."
"Why can't I choose where we eat," Yuuri protests, "It's my birthday. Isn't my wishes the most important?"
"They are, but you were the one who started the bet, which you lost fair and square. Besides, I made reservations last week, so we have to show up."
"I mean, we don't have to."
"Yes, we do. Now come on," Viktor says and starts dragging Yuuri out of his blanket cocoon. Yuuri gets up from the couch, but drags the blanket with him. He will probably end up doing what Viktor wants, but he won't make it easy for him.
"Now what should we wear," Viktor begins to ponder as he drags Yuuri into their bedroom, "It's not a very fancy place, so formal wear isn't required… but it is your birthday. We would want to look nice."
"Do we?" Yuuri says, remaking his cocoon as he gets settled on the bed. Viktor quite enjoys dressing him up, so he'll just let him pick for the both of them. Despite how hard of a time Yuuri is giving Viktor right now, the day has actually be very nice.
Viktor woke him up with breakfast in bed - which actually isn't that much a rarity, but it's still just as nice - and served him pancakes with fruits and nutella. There was also a cupcake made by Viktor, although it did contain all the sugar and butter he normally didn't allow Yuuri to have during the season. It had been heavenly. Viktor had then given him (the first batch of) presents. Yuuri had been really adamant about Viktor not giving him too much, because there were very few things he actually wished for, but Viktor had found a way around everything. The first thing Yuuri got wasn't from Viktor but from everyone in Hasetsu. There were letters from his parents, Mari, Minako-sensei and the Nishigoris. There was a katsumori (a charm for success) from his parents, an old video game from Mari which they used to play together, tickets to the ballet from Mari (for a show in Saint Petersburg in early January) and a banner from the Nishigoris, which was the usual Katsuki Yuuri banner, but with good luck messages written all over it from the people in Hasetsu. It made Yuuri cry.
Viktor had given him a pair of noise cancelling headphones, because the ones he were currently using weren't all that effective. Apparently he had more gifts for him, but he'd give them to Yuuri later in the day. Yuuri could only sigh, because, really, Viktor already spoiled him enough as it were.
"I'm guessing you don't want to wear a suit?" Viktor asks, although Yuuri doesn't answer. Viktor should know that he's not in a suit and tie mood today. He'd honestly be perfectly fine with walking into the restaurant wearing a onesie. Speaking of onesies, they should have quite a selection somewhere due to that commercial they did in the summer. Maybe Yuuri should jump into one of those later.
"Hmm~ How about this?" Viktor asks and holds up a navy blue, long-sleeved shirt, which Yuuri knows is incredibly soft, "A pair of black jeans, those new shoes I got you last month and then just a little bit of product in your hair, then you'll look super handsome and still be comfy." Viktor smiles brightly as he keeps holding up the shirt, waiting for Yuuri to approve.
"What will you wear then?" Yuuri asks, because while Viktor definitely wants to make something of himself, he also really likes when they have - at least somewhat - matching outfits.
Viktor puts his head back into the wardrobe and digs around a little before he pulls out a new shirt. This one is white, long-sleeved, and with a simple pattern texturing it, "It's not the same brand, although it's still very soft. It's a little bit plain, but unlike you, I know how to use mascara."
"I don't see what mascara has to do with your choice of shirt, but sure, this will look nice."
"Silly Yuuri. There is a world of difference between me wearing this shirt with and without mascara, and I do not intend to show you the non-mascara option."
Viktor finds the rest of their outfits in the wardrobe and has Yuuri change for their surprise dinner.
"I'm still scared," Yuuri says as the get into the cab.
"You're making it seem like I'm kidnapping you!" Viktor protests and clings to his arm, "I promise you won't hate it."
Yuuri squints at Viktor. "I won't hate it, but I might not like it? I don't trust this."
"Yuuri~" Viktor whines, "Trust me~"
Yuuri sighs. Sure, he'll trust Viktor.
The cab stops outside a restaurant Yuuri doesn't recognize. The sign is red and in Russian, and Yuuri doesn't understand the words, which makes him trust it even less. And Viktor just smiles as he guides Yuuri inside.
Yuuri has to admit, it smells pretty nice in here. The smell is quite reminiscent of that one Thai place, he and Phichit used to visit that was an hour's drive away. Yuuri hopes the food here is just as good. As he looks around, he sees that despite the vast amount of tables, there aren't many people. Yuuri, at first, takes that as a bad sign, but he has to remind himself that it's a Wednesday night and people mostly go out on the weekends.
There are wooden chairs and tables, and brick walls decorated with a couple of abstract art paintings. The amount of tables that are set for four people make Yuuri think that this is a family restaurant, which means that this really can't be that bad. No parent could convince their child to eat pig brain or cow hearts.
They are guided to their table, which is nice and remote from most of the other customers, and Yuuri is glad to be handed and English menu.
"Thought it would be better than a Russian one," Viktor comments, and Yuuri opens the menu to see what kind of place Viktor has taken him to. It's not exactly what he had expected.
"Ne, Viktor," Yuuri says slowly as he reads through the menu, "Why does most of these dishes contain ghost peppers?"
Viktor smiles innocently at him, "Because it's their theme. Oh look, they also have one with the carolina reaper. Wanna try it?"
Yuuri sighs and places his head in his hands. "I can't believe you took me to chili place. I'm not good with spicy food."
"But you enjoyed our Valentine's meal!" Viktor protests, because, yes, Yuuri had enjoyed that very much despite the fact that his mouth had died a number of times.
"Is that why you wanted to go here?" Yuuri suddenly realizes, and Viktor's bright smile gives away the answer. Yuuri cannot believe he's about to eat ghost peppers, because he's in love with Viktor Nikiforov.
So Yuuri gets the dish that sounds the least deathly (even though it literally has the word death in it), while Viktor is insane enough to go for what sounds like the spiciest dish on the the planet (that one had contained the words instant death ). Yuuri is not surprised that the restaurant gives out free milk, which is refilled as soon as they empty their glass.
Despite how much his own meal actually scares him, it looks incredibly appetizing and it smells wonderful as well. And it doesn't have literal ghost peppers sticking out of it like he had imagined in his head.
"You should take the first bite," Yuuri says as he hesitates tasting his food, "It's only fair."
Viktor puts on a small pout, "We should eat together."
"No."
"Fine," Viktor gives in pretty quickly and takes a spoonful of his surprisingly vibrant red curry (which contains literal carolina reapers). Yuuri is surprised that Viktor doesn't immediately reach for his milk. Or the glass of wine he also has.
"Doesn't it burn?" Yuuri asks confused, and takes a bite of his food, because if Viktor isn't dying from his food, then how could Yuuri's be bad? But it burns. It burns a lot. Yuuri downs his milk, and then reaches for Viktor's glass as well. As he drinks, he hears Viktor laugh, and gets suspicious. "If this is a prank, Viktor, I swear to god, I will kill you."
Viktor continues laughing, tears forming in the corner of his eyes, "I swear, it's not a prank, but I knew if I acted like it wasn't hot you'd take a bigger mouthful."
"How did you even keep a straight face?"
"With great difficulty, my love, but it's good right?"
Yuuri hates that he can't lie, "... yes."
Yuuri's dish isn't actually as hot as the one they had in Korea, and after a couple of bites, he gets accustomed to it. Or, rather, he no longer needs milk after every bite. Since Viktor seems to not find his incredibly hot either, Yuuri does at some point taste a bit of it. Yuuri counts that as the biggest mistake of his life.
At some point they finish their dish and order some cooling ice cream - which is entirely chilli free - and Viktor gives Yuuri another present.
"Here," Viktor says and hands him the headphones he'd given him that morning, which Yuuri had not seen that he had brought with him, "Wear these."
Yuuri puts them in, the sounds around him disappearing completely. The headphones are wireless, and currently connected to Viktor's phone, so Yuuri assumes that he's going to listen to a song, a piano piece Viktor has played, or maybe even something as ridiculous as Viktor reciting a poem. With Viktor there was really no way of knowing.
The piece does start with a piano playing. It's slow, and kind of romantic. Then, a voice. The song is in Japanese and performed by someone Yuuri isn't familiar with, but it becomes clear to Yuuri that this is a song written for him.
Have you realized? That you have power in your hands Courage will become light It's alright even if you're not ready You can still fight The seed that you hold in your chest Will someday bloom dreams, for sure
Don't lose Now, in time Everyone looks for the future It's alright to be wounded It's alright to make mistakes Stand up no matter how many times you have to fall Just one thing Reach out your hand to the future Like the flowers that bloom upright Everyone can be strong So can you
Yuuri really tries to fight the tears, he really does. They're in public after all. He still cries though, and he can't believe Viktor did this to him in public.
"You knew I would cry," he says through the tears, "Why didn't you wait?"
"That's a secret," Viktor smiles, and Yuuri thinks he's just being mean now.
"Did you commision this?" Yuuri says through his sobs. A waiter has kindly provided him with a pack of tissues.
"I made it," Viktor smiles, and Yuuri looks at him, needing an explanation, "I wrote the music first, and then I added the lyrics. I had a little help from Mari though. Just to make sure that I didn't make any mistakes. The trickiest part was finding a singer, but apparently Minako has connections, so it worked out pretty well."
"Can I..." Yuuri begins, "Can I use it for my exhibition?"
Viktor smiles: "I'd love that."
Viktor smiles a lot on the way home. It's not unusual for Viktor to smile a lot, especially not on a day like this, but Yuuri feels like the surprises aren't over yet. He tries to ask, but Viktor just says that he's happy and in love and the luckiest person alive , so that's useless.
As they get home, Viktor's smile gets even bigger and Yuuri takes a second to just look at him. Viktor just giggles as he unlocks the door. The second thing Yuuri sees - second because the first is Makkachin assaulting him - is that there is something big in the middle of the living room that was definitely not there when they left. Curious as to what is occupying their living room, Yuuri turns on the light. And right in front of him stands an outfit on display. The design resembles a kimono. It's white with pink cherry blossoms blooming from the heart and spreading out over the white, growing further apart the longer they are from the center, like flowers scattered in the wind. The sash around the kimono is golden and tight around the waist. Accompanying it is a black pair of standard figure skating pants giving away that this is a costume meant for a performance.
"It's for your exhibition," Viktor says as he comes up behind him, and wraps his arms around Yuuri's waist, "Do you like it?"
"That's why I got the song when we were out..." Yuuri slowly realizes, "Did you know I would use it for an exhibition?"
"Of course," Viktor says sweetly, "I know you very well."
"Do you have choreography as well?"
"I thought we could make that together," Viktor says and Yuuri turns around in his arms.
"Together?"
Viktor smiles and gives him a kiss. "Didn't you want to choreograph a program at some point? What better place to start than with an exhibition piece. And don't worry, I'll help you."
Yuuri leans up for another kiss.
Even though Yuuri spends a lot of time admiring his new costume, he does notice the paper bag on the kitchen counter. When curiosity overtakes him, he walks up to it and finds a small note with his name on it… and some catwhiskers. Yurio must have been the one to bring the costume. The paper bag contains Yurio's (now signature) katsudon piroshki. The same thing Yuuri got from his last year - although this time made by the kitten himself rather than his grandfather. Even though he's still full after their dinner, Yuuri makes Viktor share one with him. It's the perfect way to end his birthday.
Working on the new exhibition is surprisingly calming. Yuuri had had one of his worst panic attacks soon after Skate America, as he had become the overwhelming favorite for the Finals. He was the world champion and he had been the only one to win both of his qualifiers. Yuuri had been trying to find some replays of the event - mostly to watch Phichit's spectacular free skate - yet all his results had been articles about how he had practically already won the Finals. It had not taken Viktor long to throw Yuuri's phone across the room to keep him from spiralling further down.
Yuuri had been on edge ever since, and he was beginning to regret his decision to bring the quad lutz into the short program. As Viktor had said, mistakes in the short program were much more costly than in the free, and he had landed the lutz exactly one time out of three attempts. The odds were against him.
The exhibition gave him something else to focus on.
Having Viktor depend on Yuuri for most of the choreography lets his mind focus solely on that. Any creative input he could give is important, because choreographing your first piece is a big challenge. Apparently Viktor had come to Yakov with countless of ideas before he had even gotten one approved for an exhibition. This wouldn't be the case with Yuuri, because he had Viktor to guide him and tell him what would and wouldn't work. But Viktor was generally very passive about the whole thing. He stepped in when Yuuri started thinking about it more as a competitive piece rather than something to express himself with, and he gave advice about how to turn his ideas into skating. To see the program slowly take form made Yuuri extremely happy.
"Are you ready for the Finals?" Viktor asks the day before they're leaving for Japan. Makkachin is already asleep at the foot of the bed, and Yuuri feels ready to sleep as well.
"Yeah," Yuuri says and leans into Viktor, "Jumps are good."
Viktor sighs, "That's not what I meant," he intertwines their hands, "At Skate America, you didn't deal too well with being first after the short. It's not the first time, I know, but you're coming into the Finals with much more pressure than the last two times. I just need to know if you're prepared for that, and what you need me to do." Viktor smiles, "I'd be totally prepared to start a fistfight with all the journalists if you don't want to get interviewed."
Yuuri giggles lightly at the image of Viktor starting a fight. He can't imagine him winning.
"I was just… shocked by the point difference. I like winning, but I don't deal well with being the favorite. I thought I was getting better though..." Yuuri trails off. It's hard admitting that he's not making the progress he had been telling himself he had been making.
"You are," Viktor says firmly, not letting Yuuri doubt his words, "You're the world champion, and you handled that so well. You've won three competitions this season. Don't you think that's worth something?"
"They weren't big competitions..." Yuuri says slowly. It's not like he won three world championships in a row, unlike some skaters he could think of.
"No. Yuuri. You can't think like that." Viktor cuts in, perhaps a little harsh in his words, but he probably know from experience that Yuuri won't listen otherwise, "You're the only one who's won everything this season. And didn't you beat Phichit this season? Twice? Phichit who beat both me and Chris, when both of us scored over 300 points. You're allowed to be nervous. You're allowed to be anxious. But don't dismiss your accomplishments. And don't think you haven't made progress. There's no reason for you to think you're not making progress just because you get nervous."
"But you asked if I felt ready," Yuuri interjects, raising his voice slightly as he begins to feel distraught "You expected me to be anxious. How is that progress?"
"Yuuri. You have anxiety. You know as well as me that that doesn't magically go away. I asked because I needed you to be prepared for the pressure. I'm not saying you shouldn't get nervous. I'm saying you shouldn't feel dejected if you do, and that I'm here to make it all a little easier."
Yuuri turns his head to look at Viktor. He's smiling. Sweetly. Kindly. Yuuri turns around to hug him and whispers into the crook of his neck: "Thank you."
They arrive in Nagoya, and Viktor does an excellent job of fending of journalists. Yuuri will give an interview at some point, but for now they need to give him space. Of course Yakov, who has three skaters at the Finals including Viktor, is not happy to see one of his top students ignoring the reporters. Viktor merely ignores Yakov as well.
They soon arrive at the hotel and they have some time before the first practice is scheduled. They use that time to make a schedule of the day. At first, the idea had been to make a plan before they arrived in Japan, but because their plans would change greatly depending on Yuuri's anxiety levels and Viktor's stress levels, they decided to just plan from day to day. Yuuri was up for a short media appearance later, while Viktor decided to merely use social media to communicate. His schedule was simply too packed for him to give a proper interview.
As they arrive at the rink, the only one who isn't there is Yurio - who had undoubtedly been stuck at the airport for so long that he might have only just made it to the hotel. He was the reigning champion after all, so it was no wonder that everyone wanted to interview him.
"Yuuri!" Phichit exclaims the moment they arrive at the rink, and the beaming smile on his face is something Yuuri has missed (even though it's only been two weeks since they last saw each other). He opens up his arms, allowing Phichit to hug him. His best friend jumps into his arms.
"Don't hold onto him all day," Viktor teases as he puts down the makkachin plushie, Yuuri's water bottle and his thermos filled with green tea on the barrier. He'll be watching over Yuuri's practice until Yakov shows up. At that point Yuuri will make a decision as to whether or not he wants to keep skating or go back to the hotel. Maybe he'll hang out with Phichit who can't seem to let go of Yuuri.
"You have the privilege of getting Yuuri-hugs whenever you want!" Phichit protests clinging onto Yuuri, his feet no longer touching the ground as Yuuri hugs him (more like carries him), "I will treasure this Yuuri-hug forever."
"I can still skate," Yuuri smiles and he promptly skates onto the ice, Phichit hanging onto him laughing as he twirls around near the barrier to avoid colliding with Seung-gil and Chris who are in the middle of practice.
"Do you two not know how to take things seriously?" Celestino's voice booms, and Yuuri turns to look at him. He's now standing beside Viktor who seems much less concerned about them playing around than Celestino does.
"You're such a party pooper!" Phichit pouts, but makes no move to let go of Yuuri, "I haven't seen Yuuri in years- "
"You saw him less than two weeks ago."
"And you're trying to break up our special moment?"
"You're hugging a friend, not reuniting with a long lost lover."
"Excuse me? This is my best friend, and I love him more than Viktor does."
"Not true," Viktor intervenes, although he's still smiling. The two of them have had their fair share of twitter wars over a number of Yuuri related topics. The latest one having been about which one of them could make Yuuri the happiest just through food.
"Okay, but Yuuri loves me the most. Right Yuuri?"
Yuuri smiles. It's fun having them compete over him, but he can't choose: "I love you both in different ways. Can't compare them."
"See Celestino? Yuuri loves me! How many people does Yuuri say that he loves out loud? Only me… and maybe Viktor."
Celestino sighs, "Two more minutes or you will regret it." He walks away. Probably to get a cup of coffee. Maybe two cups.
"Yuuri. Yuuri. I have something for you," Phichit says enthusiastically and Yuuri finally lets him down so that Phichit can drag him to his skate bag, where he pulls something out, "Happy birthday!" Phichit beams as he hand Yuuri the gift wrapped in blue paper, with a little paw-shaped note hanging off of it.
"You shouldn't have..." Yuuri says as he takes the gift.
"Nonsense, Yuuri. But I'm not as rich as Viktor, so don't expect that to be a trip to Hawaii or something."
Yuuri laughs, "I mean, Viktor gave me a song, so..."
"Viktor gave you a song?" Phichit exclaims, and then throws Viktor a dirty look. It makes Yuuri curious as he opens the gift.
The gift is a CD. But not just any CD, no, as Yuuri turns it over to look at the track list, he knows Phichit put this together. It's all the songs that have some sort of special meaning in their friendship (and that includes Phichit's favorite song from The King and The Skater ).
"Riverside?" Viktor reads the first track out loud, as he looks over Yuuri's shoulder.
"Oh! That's a good story!" Phichit beams, and Viktor looks up because he's naturally curious, "When I first came to Detroit, Celestino called in one of his choreographers and asked her to do an exhibition for me, but Celestino didn't specify that I was the one who was going to use the program. So she thought the program was for Yuuri. When she then came to work with us, we didn't know who should get the program, me or Yuuri. So in the end we both practiced it and used it for our exhibition. People didn't really seem to notice because I was a junior at the time, but it really bonded us."
"So you had the exact same program?" Viktor asks, slightly perplexed.
"Kind of," Yuuri elaborates, "We both had our own version of it, but the choreography was pretty much the same."
Viktor gets a look on his face. Yuuri knows the first chance he gets, he's going to look up those exhibitions. He's probably already watched Yuuri's Riverside, but Phichit's? Yuuri doubts Viktor has watched much from Phichit's junior days, let alone an exhibition piece.
Viktor would probably ask about the story behind every single song on the CD, but before long Celestino comes back and practice resumes.
After about an hour and a half, Yurio and Yakov arrive at the rink, and Viktor starts lacing up his skates. Yuuri feels like he's practiced hard enough and gets ready to leave. As do everyone else, leaving the Russians by themselves.
As the four skaters leave, the journalists seem ready to jump at them. Since Yuuri doesn't want to give an interview right at this moment, he tries his best to walk in the shadow of the other three. As he walks behind them, both Chris and Seung-gil (surprisingly) hand him some gifts. Chris' is worryingly large and with all the other stuff Yuuri is carrying with him, he can hardly fit it in his bag. Seung-gil's is small enough for him to put in his pocket. He quickly thanks them as he practically sprints out of the rink.
Yuuri only manages to get through a shower and half of the new posts on instagram, when Phichit knocks on his door.
"Did you open the other presents yet?" Phichit asks as he settles on the bed.
"No," Yuuri answers, and Phichit quickly finds them and hands them to Yuuri, smiling expectantly.
Yuuri opens the one from Seung-gil first (because Chris' could be anything from cute to R rated), and he gets a keychain with a husky on it.
"Cute!" They say in unison, and Yuuri finds his keys to add the charm to it. At this point Yuuri has more charms than keys. He probably have a wider range of dog breeds as charms than keys as well.
Yuuri approaches Chris' gift with caution. Under the wrapping paper is a black plastic bag, which means that this, without a doubt, is sex-related.
"What do you think it is?" Phichit asks, and they silently decided to make a game of it.
"Hmm~ Flavoured condoms may be too boring, but it can't be too out there… probably."
"Well, Viktor probably tells him all sorts of things, so maybe this would play into one of Viktor's fantasies? Dog roleplaying." Phichit seems weirdly confident in his guess.
"I really hope you're wrong… but you're right about Viktor. He's probably told Chris all his dirty fantasies. Handcuffs?"
"Or maybe just all of the above," Phichit suggests. Yuuri laughs. When Chris came to visit over the summer, he gave them matching mugs (which were now their favorite mugs), but sometimes he did things like this that sometimes seemed like he was trying to keep up a brand. Although Yuuri knew that he loved messing with them - and by 'them' Yuuri meant everyone.
Yuuri opens the black bag and pulls out its contents.
"Oh my God... " Phichit says slowly and then starts giggling, "Is that edible underwear?" It is edible underwear. Yuuri finds a note inside the bag too, wishing him and Viktor a happy anniversary.
"Oh yeah, on the day of the short program you will have been engaged for a year," Phichit realizes and then he wiggles his eyebrows.
"Phichit. We've had this conversation before. Not during a competition."
"Even if it's your anniversary?"
"Yes."
"Boo, Yuuri! Boo!"
The night before the short program is nothing like last year. No one gets engaged, and there is no fairy-kidnapping trending on social media. They do keep up the tradition (if it can even be called that when it's only the second time they do it) of having all the skaters eat together, although Seung-gil was hard to convince. They end the night early to both prepare for tomorrow, but also because someone (Viktor) was close to falling asleep in the restaurant (he had been very busy all week). It's still a nice evening though, and Yuuri goes to sleep before the nerves hit him.
The morning of the short program flies by, and Yuuri even feels up for giving a short interview before they enter the rink in preparation for the competition. They have to go through the junior competition before they're up, but since the amount of skaters in the Finals is quite small, it all goes by very quickly. To keep himself focused, Yuuri pulls out his new headphones and uses them for the first time since his birthday.
And they are amazing. Even moreso than Yuuri realized as he used them the first time. Not only do they block out all the surrounding noise, but Yuuri can hear notes of the music he's playing that he couldn't hear before. He's playing his short program on loop, and he gets so caught up in listening to it, that even as he follows the competition through the monitor, the nerves never hit him.
They skate in the order they qualified, so Yuuri is last, while Yurio opens the men's event. And Yurio is on fire. Although he's been careful to not overdo it and tries to pace his body for the Olympics, it's clear that he wants to defend his title. He lands his opening quad loop, and it's definitely the best he's ever landed it in competition. The quad salchow-triple loop combination is great as well, and with his quads out of the way, Yuuri begins to show some his performance skills that have only improved which each showing of the program. Although Yuuri cannot hear it, he's seen Yurio skate this program so many times that he knows he's hitting every note of the music. It's a great performance that Yuuri can't wait to watch back when he no longer has his own skate to worry about.
Yurio hits the triple axel, and with that he secures a clean program. The following step sequence and final spin is much refined compared to what he did at the NHK trophy, where he also landed all his jumps, but only got a level three on his last two elements. Yuuri doesn't think that will happen again, and with the added performance, this is bound to be a season's best. Yurio scores 108.15 points, taking him into first where he might stay for a while. Unless Phichit skates himself a new personal best. And with the roll that he's on, Yuuri wouldn't put it past him.
Phichit is the only of the finalists who only has one quad in his short program, and although that puts him at a disadvantage, his components can rival Yuuri's on a good day. All he needs is a clean skate. And damn if Phichit isn't up for the challenge. His opening triple axel is huge. So huge in fact, Yuuri almost expects him to lose control of it. He doesn't though and goes onto hitting an amazing triple lutz that receives a perfect GoE. And although Yurio's program was amazing, there is a visible difference in maturity and interpretation when compared to Phichit.
The quad-triple combination in the second half of the program is a crucial part of his performance, and Yuuri almost cheers when he lands it perfectly. It's another clean program, and Phichit throws his fist in the air as he ends the performance. It's a shame that he only has one quad, because despite having higher components that Yurio, he takes second with a score of 105.02. But Phichit seems happy enough as he celebrates another personal best set at the Grand Prix Final.
Seung-gil goes next and just before he starts, Viktor signals to Yuuri that he'll be getting ready soon. They share a hug before Viktor laces up his skates and starts preparing.
Yuuri isn't yet too familiar with Seung-gil's music as he has mostly watched the beginning of his performances over Viktor's shoulder, as his fiancé studied the quad loop. A quad loop which Seung-gil lands so perfectly that Yuuri doesn't even think he could do the same thing on a triple. When the score reveals that he received plus threes across the board, Yuuri is not only unsurprised, but also aware that Viktor will download the program to his phone, tablet, and laptop to watch until his eyes bleed. It's the first time a quad loop has gotten a perfect score after all.
Yuuri also takes a moment to appreciate the great camera work, as Seung-gil points his finger gun right at the audience and camera. With the serious look on Seung-gil's face, it really makes it seem like he just shot you dead. And as if there is a magic spell at work, Seung-gil lands both his quad-triple combination, and his triple axel to secure the third clean performance of the night. He falls behind both Phichit and Yurio on components, but overtakes Phichit with a score of 106.60 to go into second.
Yuuri takes off his headphones for Viktor's performance. He almost startles himself with all the sudden noises around him, but he wants to watch Viktor perform. He has yet to have a chance at seeing this program in person, and, even now, he's watching through a screen, but at least he knows Viktor is close by as he performs his short program.
Because Viktor has no chill, and always wants to do something different, he has painted his nails. It's a very subtle white nail polish, only noticeable when the camera zooms in on his hands in his opening position, but on the finger where Viktor wears his ring, the nail is painted in the same blue as his costume. Yuuri is sure that all his fans are making theories and wild interpretations that he will read through later. He's a Viktor-fan after all.
The program starts as Viktor removes the hand covering his face at the first note of the music, and Yuuri is reminded once again how much he loves this program. It's so personal that even people who don't know Viktor will have their soul touched. In Viktor's absence after Cup of China, Yuuri had watched the performance with as many different commentators as he could find, and at least half of them had started crying during the program. One Russian commentator had even had to turn off her microphone because of how much she was sobbing. Yuuri tries his best not to cry this time around, but he's sure that if he had already skated, he most certainly would be crying a river.
There is a grace in Viktor's movements and a fluidity between each and every element of his program, which Yuuri could only wish he would one day possess. At no point in the program does Viktor make it clear that he's setting up for a jump or is about to enter a spin. He just does it. He just skates and suddenly flies into a quad like it was as easy as crossover. Everything is connected.
One of Yuuri's favorite things about this program is how Viktor has put his step sequence as his last element. It is very common for skaters to end their program with a spin, but Viktor is not every other skater. He is Viktor Nikiforov, and although Yuuri is ready to kick his ass, Viktor will always be the best skater of this generation. The best skater ever. And Yuuri feels his heart swell as the first notes of Eros ends Viktor's program. And with a score of 114.23, Viktor takes the lead.
After Viktor's score is announced, Yuuri puts his headphones back in and calms himself down, as he laces up his skates, following Chris' program out of the corner of his eye. He takes a second to watch Chris' land his quad lutz. He's been watching Chris perform that jump a lot lately, since his lutz is still the best in the business (even if JJ is slowly improving his enough to rival it on a good day).
After having laced his skates, Yuuri looks up just in time to watch Chris lands his combination, but he will have to miss a bit to meet Viktor by the rink side. With his headphone still in, he meets Viktor and receives a hug. The headphones really prove their worth when Chris lands his triple axel and he can't hear the audience applaud at all.
As Chris ends the program and the gifts start raining down, Yuuri takes a plushie to the head. It doesn't hurt (since it's a plushie), but it startles him a bit, and it definitely makes Viktor worried. Yuuri giggles a little as he looks at Viktor who's trying to make sure Yuuri isn't hurt. Yuuri merely picks up the red heart plush and throws it onto the ice.
Yuuri hands over his headphones to Viktor as he goes through a light warm up. Chris is sitting in the Kiss & Cry waiting for his scores, and Yuuri sees as Chris blows a kiss his way and then gives a thumbs up. It's probably his way of encouraging him and Yuuri sends him a smile. He skates up to Viktor as the score is announced. 111.27. Chris takes second behind Viktor. The standings are ridiculously familiar.
Viktor takes Yuuri's hand and kisses the ring. Part of Yuuri thinks it's a response to Chris blowing a kiss (like Viktor is marking his territory), but it's a sweet gesture nonetheless. "You'll be great," Viktor says, and lets go of Yuuri's hand when his name is called.
"Watch me," Yuuri whispers and pushes off of the boards.
Yuuri takes center ice, and the music begins. Tranquility overtakes Yuuri as the first notes play. Since the music from the loudspeakers in the rink don't reflect the music as well as in his new and amazing headphones, Yuuri ends up imagining the music in his head. It's like he's filling in the blanks in the music, and he tries to express it with a few added nuances in the program. He gets so caught up in interpreting the music, that as his body moves through the choreography by itself and he almost doesn't realize as he jumps the opening triple axel.
He lets the music flow through him, and expresses the music the audience can't hear. He isn't changing the program, he's merely adding small movements. Like a flick of his wrist, a somber look in his eyes or a turn of his head. All small details to let the audience know that they can't really hear the music. Not unless they watch him closely. He will perform the music for them.
He transitions easily into his quad flip-triple toe combination in the second half, and he almost wishes that the audience would stop applauding and just pay attention. He regains their focus with the new added element. The quad lutz. As he lands it, there is a moment of silence as the audience process the surprise, and Yuuri doesn't give them a chance to applaud him too loudly as he moves into the step sequence. This is where he shines the most. This is where he puts a spell on the audience, the judges, his fellow competitors and Viktor who stands just where Yuuri is headed towards. He makes it close enough to make eye contact with him, sees the shimmer in Viktor's eyes and accelerates into the final part of the sequence until he closes the program with a spin.
As the last note plays, Yuuri close his hands, like a conductor ending a concert and he silences the rink with it.
Viktor is the first to clap and the rest follow. Yuuri bows, and sees as the rink fills with Japanese flags and gifts of all kinds. He feels proud to be known as Japan's ace. He picks up a plushie of Viktor on his way to the barrier and lets the real Viktor envelop him in a hug.
"If that's not a world record, then the judges need to be fired. That was beautiful, Yuuri."
"Let's see the scores before you deem the judges incompetent," Yuuri smiles as they walk to the Kiss & Cry.
"It's only if you don't break a world record. They are plenty capable as long as they give you the score you deserve."
Yuuri takes a chance to watch some of his program back by looking at the monitor that is replaying some highlights. It occurs to Yuuri that he had his eyes closed for a lot of the program and he can't imagine that that was safe, and he's not entirely sure how he made it work. But he also finds it hard to believe that he's looking at himself skate. It's almost as if, for the first time, he's beginning to understand what Viktor means by Yuuri creating music with the way he skates.
As the announcer starts to speak, Yuuri clutches Viktor's hands in preparation. "Yuuri Katsuki's short program score is 119.03. That's his season's best score and he's currently in first place."
Yuuri and Viktor turn to face each other and start cheering. He did it. His crazy plan worked. It's almost unbelievable. Yuuri tries to think of the number of times he's tried to carry out a crazy idea and have it work. He did it at last year's Finals too, so maybe this is just a competition where taking risks pays off. No matter the case, Yuuri is over the moon and in his ecstatic state, he pulls Viktor in for a kiss.
"What a great way to celebrate an anniversary," Viktor whispers as they pull apart and Yuuri can't help but kiss him again.
After the press conference and all of the other formalities they have to go through, the skaters all leave for the hotel together.
"I need a second quad," Phichit says in frustration as they escape the press.
"You'd be too dangerous," Viktor teases, "The rest of us can hardly stand up to you as it is."
"You're ten points ahead of me!" Phichit accuses, "I'll get that second quad one way or another, just you wait."
"Can you guys believe we all went clean though?" Chris says, "When does that even happen?"
"The possibility is very low, I'd say there was less than a 1% chance of that happening." Seung-gil says.
"I just hope we're not peaking too soon," Yuuri wonders out loud and gets a slap in the arm from Yurio.
"Don't be so negative. I still have a lot of points to gain in my components. I'll take my record back at the Olympics. Enjoy it while you can."
They all separate at the hotel, wishing each a good night as they leave for their rooms.
"Can I have a look at your scores," Viktor asks before Yuuri makes it to the shower, and Yuuri points to his bag. He's naked and cold at the moment, so Viktor can get it for himself.
After having cleaned and warmed up in the shower, Yuuri dons a fluffy bathrobe and settles beside Viktor on the bed.
"Any comments, coach?" Yuuri asks, as Viktor is still looking over the scores, his laptop replaying Yuuri's short program.
"Perfect 10 on both interpretation and performance. That's a first in international competition, right?"
"Yes," Yuuri smiles. He had been very excited as he had looked at his score for the first time.
"Now, I only got a 10 for interpretation, but look," Viktor hands over both score sheets to Yuuri, "I still beat you in the overall component score."
Yuuri looks over at the numbers. The were equal in interpretation, Yuuri won in performance, but in the last three categories, Viktor's score exceeds Yuuri's.
"Unless you want to continue with the quad lutz, I think your score in composition and transition will go up once you put the toe in again. But if you want to keep the lutz, then we need to change the program a bit to accompany it. But we can make that decision after the competition."
"No," Yuuri says, "I said that it would only be for the Finals, and I'm sticking to that. I don't think I could have pulled it off if I had been under any more stress, and I'm sure both the Olympics and Worlds will pressure me more than today. So I'll go back to my original layout."
Viktor smiles, "I love your independency," he says and Yuuri laughs.
"Is that all you love about me?"
Viktor almost seems offended: "Of course not! You have a great butt too."
Yuuri laughs again, and Viktor has to remind him that they're not done going over the short program. With Celestino, they always waited until after the competition to review programs, but Viktor knew that the best way of keeping Yuuri's mind off of the free skate, was to analyse the short.
"If you're going back to your original layout, we don't have to talk about the lutz, but I expect your attempt tomorrow to be even better than today. Technically speaking, the only real issue is your second spin. I think having two spins back to back is a little tasking for you, so we'll be focusing on that when we get back. It's not much, but look at our GoEs," Viktor points to the scores again, "Your base value is higher than mine, but I have better execution. When you take the lutz out, the only difference between us is which jumping passes are in the second half of the program. You need to pick up every point you can."
"You sound like such a good coach," Yuuri remarks and Viktor smiles in return.
"That's because I am good coach. Every student I've ever had has won Worlds and broken multiple world records."
"Wow!" Yuuri exclaims, "Your students must be great!"
"They are the best."
1) The song Viktor wrote for Yuuri is Hana ni Nare
2) Yuuri's costume is based on Yuzuru Hanyu's costume to that same song, but just all white.
3) There is a lot of Phichit in this chapter, because I wanted to bring his accomplishments into focus. He's really doing something groundbreaking and he's doing it in style.
4) Scores:
Yuuri - 119.03 (WR)
Viktor - 114.23 (SB)
Chris - 111.27 (PB)
Yurio - 108.15 (SB)
Seung-gil - 106.60 (SB)
Phichit - 105.02 (PB)
WR=World Record, SB= Season's Best, PB=Personal Best