The breeze swirling above the Detroit River brushed Yuri's blonde hair like a feather brushing the cold ground. The night was unseasonably warm for mid-December in Michigan, and his dress vest and shirt shielded his arms from the cool air. The bright streetlights lining the edge of the waterfront painted the dark sidewalk with a dull pallor of white. The black sky cast a dark cocoon over the city; absent of any stars from the lights of the skyscrapers and casinos blinking like fireflies in a forest of concrete.

Yuri blew out a long, warm breath. Silver fog disappeared in front of his emerald eyes as he shoved his hands into his khaki pockets. He leaned on the railing and stared out at the waters, the cold bronze metal kissing his pale hands. The tranquil ripples rolling past him twinkled with the reflection of the street lights above the water like the jet planes flying over the city.

"Hey, Yurio," A heavy Russian voice said.

Yuri furrowed his eyebrows and frowned. "I don't want to talk to you." He said without snapping his gaze from the river.

Victor had taken off his fake beard and thrown it in a trash can. Rubbing his face to get rid of the glue, he stopped a few yards to Yuri's right. Yuuri huffed his way over to the two, having to rope in a few deep breaths from running up to him. He hunched over his thighs, looking up with watery eyes beyond his glasses.

"Yurio, what's going on?" Victor asked with a small smile. He reached over and grabbed Yuri by the shoulder. "I thought you were on your date with Isabel?"

Yuri, ignorant to Victor and Yuuri's snoping of his date, shrugged off Victor's hand and turned over to them. In the lights by the waterfront, Victor's grey hair shined with droplets of sweat glistening on his and Yuuri's hair tips. The creases on Victor's dark jeans crumbled as he took a few steps back to give the complacent Yuri space.

He shook his head and swiped a strand of his hair from the front of his eye. "Isabel is hiding something."

Victor blinked as he thought back to the last hour.


The phone rang.

Isabel, in her surprise, bit down on the flapping piece of raw salmon in her mouth. Breaking in two, the end facing Yuri broke and plummeted to the ground. The salmon slapped the ground of the marble white floor in the Oslo restaurant with a squelch.

Yuri raised an eyebrow.

Isabel swallowed, mentally cursing at whoever decided to break the moment. She finished the salmon in her mouth before breaking the reverie between the two of them.

She snapped her head down to look at her phone.

A gasp.

Her eyes grew wide as she thrusted the phone up to her ear. She began to turn away from Yuri, an apologetic look on her face.

"I have to take this," Isabel said. She looked down in embarrassment as she began to walk out of the room.

Yuri felt like reaching out to her as she hustled out of the room and thumped down the stairway. He stood frozen, his mouth wide open in shock as he tried to process what just happened in front of him. Isabel never ran out of the room that way before, and leaving him in the middle of the restaurant. The chefs continued to run around the room aroun him as clanking plates shifted in front of him.

"It's okay," An older man with a goatee said to him as he took away an empty plate. "I've been dumped before, too."

Yuri nearly slapped the man at assuming such a thing.

Meanwhile, Victor texted the bad news to the group chat.

No kiss.

A second later, the fireworks.

Nooooooo!-Phichit

God Dammit. Knew he's mess this up.-Mila

Told you! Yuri and love are just not a thing that works.-Georgi

What the hell happened?-Christophe.

Victor frowned as he texted his response. Ignoring Yuuri and his cries about his cut finger, he pressed his fingers on the screen with the speed of a swimming shrimp.

IDK. She got a call on her phone, and just ran out. Don't know if she's coming back.

Probably a side guy. Can't trust white girls.-Christophe

Chris, you idiot. You're white!-Michele.

Aren't you all white?-Guang

Not me. I'm Czech.-Emil

You're so stupid, Emil.-Michele


After those events, Isabel came up and said she had to leave. Yuri nodded as she went off into a taxi and drove away. She hardly gave an excuse, saying she just needed to see something. It was such a surprise that Yuri was unsure if she was joking or not. He left the restaurant just a few seconds later, shaking off the glass of champagne that had been dumped on him by one of the dancers in the nightclub on the first floor.

He decided to take a walk, bracing for the gentle cool that blanketed Detroit. By himself, he paced across the streets of Downtown until coming across the waterfront.

Walking with leisure down the edge of the park, Yuri looked out at the shimmering water that reflected the skyline opposite the shore.

He shivered with the worry that plagued his mind. Loosening the emerald tie around his neck, he kicked a pebble on the stone sidewalk while thinking. With Skate Canada just a few days away, his spot in the Grand Prix Finals was still up for grabs. He was not sure if he could face anybody if he did not make it in. On top of that, Victor had still not allowed him practice for fear of injury in his emotional state. He knew his programs were not up to par for the Finals, so any minute not on the ice irked Yuri like a blood-sucking mosquito.

Isabel was giving him a migraine, as well. She seemed a little more out of it than usual. She was forgetting things easier than even Victor did. She talked a little less as well, which would normally comfort Yuri so he could give his ears a break. Even her eyes appeared to be a little duller than usual, her sparkling cerulean eyes dimmed with what appeared to be worry. That smile was still there, but the wrinkled that usually formed right under the eyelids were gone. It seemed forced, almost strenuous. He thought she was trying to make him feel better after his grandfather's death, but something else was bothering her. Leaving in the middle of their date was the more proof.

Shaking his head to Victor, he repeated his statement. "She's hiding something, Victor."

Victor tilted his head. "What do you mean? You should still be with her. Me and Yuuri," Victor said as he gestured at the Japanese man next to him while trying to keep the ruse of not spying on him. "We were just taking a stroll out here tonight. We didn't think you'd be here."

"I didn't either, you idiot," Yuri snapped. His fist clenched by his side. "Isabel left me in the middle of the shitty restaurant. She barely said goodbye to me."

Yuuri pushed back his glasses. "You know why?"

"If I did," Yuri seethed. "I'd tell you two idiots."

"So you think something's going on at home?" Victor asked.

"I know it is," Yuri said as he threw his hands up in frustration. "She's always asking me question after question about me and my life, but she doesn't say shit about hers. It's not fair. It pisses me off because I still don't know anything about her. I mean, she lives in a bad place in this shitty city. I know that, but that's it."

"Couldn't find much online, either," Yuuri said. Yuri and Victor looked at him with inquisitive expressions on their face.

Yuuri shrugged. "I look everyone up online. That's not weird."

"It's a little weird, Yuuri," Victor said.

Yuri groaned. "I don't care," he said. "I'm going to find out what's going on soon, and she better tell the truth when I do."

"Well," Victor said. "Threatening her won't help you much."

"I'm not threatening her."

"You sound like it."

"Because I care, Victor," Yuri said as he shivered again. "I fucking care about her, and she doesn't want to tell me anything. I don't know about her dad or her neighborhood. I don't even know if she's had any other boyfriends."

"Relax, Yurio," Yuuri said. "It'll be okay."

"It's not okay," Yuri shouted, causing Yuuri and Victor take a step back. "There's something wrong with her, and I have a problem with that."

"That's what caring about people feels like Yuri," Victor said.

Yuri's angry expression melted away with a look of confusion and epiphany cresting over his face. His shoulders slumped down as he released his fists from his clenched position. Shoving them in his pockets, he tore his gaze away from the couple in front of him and looked down at the cobblestones in the ground. He appeared dejected, almost vulnerable as his eyes narrowed with fatigue.

Victor stepped over with a smile on his face. He cupped Yuri's slim chin in his grasp and lifted his head up. The young teenager remained limp, looking up at Victor without hesitation for once.

"All of that worry and trouble you feel," Victor said. "That's what caring for people feels like. Every shout you make and every curse you throw about how little you know or control is just you caring for another person. I know it's not something your used to, but it shows that you care about her on another level. An agape level."

Yuuri cleared his throat as he pulled on the sleeve of his jacket. He smiled as he looked down at Yuri's face which was still in Victor's grasp. "I don't get on Victor about overspending or being late for meetings with the sponsors because I hate him, Yurio. The reason I get upset at him or you when you do something I don't like isn't because I wan't to annoy you. It's because I want to make sure our apartment is livable for all three of us. We want you to succeed, and we want you to be happy with Isabel."

Victor let go of Yuri's face. The young Russian teenager rubbed his chin as he looked up at the two adults in front of him. There was a weird kind of warmth being cornered away from the wind by their presence. There was also a strange, knowing look that Yuuri and Victor were giving him as if they were teasing him over his reaction. It sounded stupid to Yuri, but they almost looked like loving, caring parents looking out for their son.

Yuri mentally blanched. Even through all they had been through, that image was still kind of gross to him.

Kind of.

Yuri nodded at the two. "I didn't mean to shout and overreact," he said in a soft tone. "But I think I need a little help."

"What do you need, Yurio." Victor said with a small grin.

Yuri sighed. "I need to figure out what is going on. I don't want your help. This is between me and her. Skate Canada is coming up, so I'll ask her about it all then."

"Great," Yuuri said.

"And one more thing."

Victor crossed his arms. "Yes, Yurio?"

Yuri licked his lips, aware of the risk he was taking with his suggestions. However, they were necessary. There was no way, after the changes in his life, that he would be able to continue as normal even if he did make it to the Grand Prix Finals. He took a deep breath and looked at Victor deep in his bright blue eyes.

"I want to change my programs."