Ryuugazaki: Several several things:
* I'm posting this from my math class while listening to highlife. It is the first day of the new semester and I'm already not being a good college student.
* I expected to at least be posting Chapter 55 by this time. Whoops.
* I really wanted to rewrite this, but my brain wasn't having that so y'all have this.
* Confession: I started reading Philosophy in the Bedroom because I watched "I Killed My Mother" and Philosophy in the Bedroom is an anatomy lesson that you shouldn't read in public unless you've got the guts for it.
Chapter Fifty-One
(Saturday, 21 November 2015 – 7:14pm, Detroit, Michigan)
Yuri has been utilizing all means of art that he is capable of to deal with his loneliness. Sure, Victor has called him multiple times and texts often and frequently, but it's not the same. He's been drawing and painting, mostly. He had to run out and get more canvases after his ballet lesson on Friday. He's mainly been doing his painting at night when Phichit is asleep so he won't criticize his rituals and distract him. Yuri's even tried his hand at playing the guitar and free verse poetry again. It wasn't exactly good, but it wasn't exactly bad, either. There was room for improvement.
But tonight was Saturday and he said that he would go with Phichit and Khoudia to Supernova. Phichit let Yuri pick out his clothes tonight. Yuri felt that it was fitting to wear his space-themed clothes. He didn't have any space-themed pants, but his jeans complimented the outfit just as well. Phichit decided to wear jeans and his EXO sweater. Khoudia said that she was going to meet them at the apartment to change clothes. Her parents and sisters must've pressured her into looking like a "proper woman" instead of a "hoodlum" tonight. Yuri didn't know how much Khoudia told her parents about what she was doing tonight, but he was sure that she didn't mention to her devout Muslim parents that she was going to a gay bar with her queer friends to get her mind off of a girl that's ignoring her messages. That wouldn't go over well at all.
"Hey!" Khoudia said as she came in. She took off her boots. She was wearing a skirt tonight; her parents must have made her wear it. "I can't believe I'm going with y'all to a gay bar tonight!" She was beaming. "I called Adé to ask if they wanted to come, but they said that their partner wouldn't let them. So I guess it's just us tonight." She shrugged and took off her coat. Phichit was on the sofa, scrolling through his Instagram feed. Yuri was in the bathroom, doing his eyeliner. He couldn't get it as sharp as Guang Hong made it, but he was able to look passable. Yuri walked out of the bathroom. He picked Khoudia up and spun her around.
"You were saying that Adé's partner wouldn't let them come out tonight?" Phichit said. Khoudia nodded once Yuri put her down. "Tragic, just tragic. We need to have an intervention or something." Yuri agreed.
"I'm going to go change," Khoudia said. Yuri and Phichit nodded. She walked to the bathroom with her bag and didn't shut the door behind her.
"Baby, come take a selfie with me," Phichit said. He started to angle his phone. Yuri stood behind Phichit's spot on the sofa and placed his chin on Phichit's head. "There we go. Let's take another one. Come sit next to me." Yuri flung himself over the sofa and plopped next to Phichit. He fixed his clothes and placed his head on Phichit's shoulders. Then they took another one where Yuri's nose grazed Phichit's ear. Then another one where they kissed. "I cannot post the last two on Instagram," Phichit remarked. "Your boyfriend might start following me on there and he might see it and I'm not trying to ruin anything." Yuri shrugged. "Don't shrug. This is serious."
"I know it's serious."
"Then act like it," Phichit said. Yuri yawned. "Am I boring you?"
"Of course not. I just slept poorly because someone wants to shave my head." Yuri side eyed Phichit and smirked. Phichit nudged Yuri's arm and laughed.
"Didn't you say that you weren't going to sleep last night?" Phichit snapped back.
"I did, but the flesh is weak," Yuri said. "The flesh is weak and I was tired." Phichit giggled. "But I'm glad that you didn't shave my head last night. I like having hair."
"I didn't shave your head last night because you looked so peaceful when you were sleeping. I didn't want to disturb you." Phichit kissed Yuri's cheek. "Aah! I keep forgetting about Victor! Sorry!" Phichit was blushing something fierce and Yuri patted his back. Phichit placed his face in Yuri's chest and Yuri gave him a hug. "Stop. Indulging. Me. You're making it worse!"
"What am I supposed to do?!" Yuri screeched.
"Let me suffer!"
"How am I supposed to sit here and let my lapinou suffer?" Yuri asked. He hugged Phichit tighter. "I'm not going to let you freak out over something that's still new to the both of us. It's fine. You're fine."
"You still haven't told Victor about us." Phichit pulled away from Yuri. "He's going to ask." Yuri stayed silent. "You have no clue what to tell him, do you?"
"Well," Yuri said.
"What?"
"When we first went to the museum, he asked about what we do. I think he was curious about why you pick out my clothes. He was laughing really hard when I told him that you do that." Yuri bit his lip. "Speaking of, why don't you let me pick out my own clothes for things?"
"If it was up to you, you would wear nothing but sweats, floral harem pants, and hoodies."
"I would have been fine wearing floral pants and a hoodie to the museum, though," Yuri said.
"I wasn't going to let my baby walk out of the house looking homely," Phichit said. "The goal was to dazzle Victor and I succeeded." Yuri looked at his fingers. "And I will continue to pick out your clothes because I still don't want you to look homely when you're with Victor. I just want my beloved to be happy." Phichit tenderly stroked Yuri's face. "…And look good. I want you to be happy and look good."
"And does being happy mean you being in misery?" Yuri asked.
"I am not in misery."
"Then a little heartbroken then."
"I am not heartbroken either."
"Mm-hm," Yuri said.
"You have jokes, Yuri Katsuki," Phichit said, playfully shoving Yuri.
"I smell boys being gay!" Khoudia said, tottering out of the bathroom. She didn't have a shirt on and her jeans were halfway up. She stood at the entrance to the living room. Yuri and Phichit looked back at Khoudia as she bounced to pull her jeans up. "Stop being gay. I'm trying to get dressed and I don't want to miss anything."
"Khoudia, finish getting dressed," Yuri said. "I know you feel at home here, but please finish getting dressed."
"Fine, fine," Khoudia said, finally getting her pants over her butt. She zipped her pants and walked back into the bathroom. Phichit whistled as Khoudia walked. "Shut up!" Yuri and Phichit snickered. "Remember: Hold off on the gay until I'm done dressing!" She yelled from the bathroom.
"We will!" Phichit said. Yuri was smiling from ear to ear. Phichit woke up his phone and went to check his Instagram. "I'm posting our selfie." Yuri nodded and grabbed his phone to check his Tumblr. "Are you bringing your portable charger?" Yuri nodded.
"Are you still waiting for yours to come?" Phichit nodded. "Did you check the mail today?" Phichit pursed his lips. "You didn't check the mail today, did you?"
"I did not." Yuri sighed and got up. "Where are you going?"
"To check the mail." Yuri put on his sneakers and went downstairs. Phichit's package was in the mailbox, waiting for him. When Yuri was downstairs, he saw their conservative, middle-aged neighbor. "Hello," Yuri said. She stayed silent. "Have a nice day," Yuri said as he closed the box and went back upstairs.
"Was it in there?" Yuri nodded and gave it to him. He put the rest of the mail on the coffee table. That will be handled when they come back. Or tomorrow. Or next week. Or never. Probably never. "Thank you, ma poupée."
"No problem, lapinou."
"Okay, ready!" Khoudia walked out of the bathroom in her ripped jeans, white leggings, and Steven Universe crop top. She spun around slowly, modeling her outfit. "I look great, don't I?" She struck a pose. "It's okay, y'all don't need to say anything."
"Why are you wearing a crop top when it's winter?" Yuri questioned.
"Technically it's still autumn," Khoudia said.
"That isn't the point," Yuri said. "It's cold. Put on a jacket."
"A hoe never gets cold," Khoudia said. Phichit started laughing. "Plus, I am going to wear my coat. When we leave. But right now I look cute. Someone take pictures of me." Yuri and Phichit snapped flicks of Khoudia as she made various poses. Her hair was in box braids and she had it in a bun. It complemented the outfit very well. "Ah, thank you, thank you. Now send them to me. I have to post those on Instagram." Yuri rolled his eyes and laughed. Khoudia walked over to her boots and put them back on.
"Where are you putting your other clothes?" Phichit asked.
"I left them in the bathroom."
"You can put them in here." Khoudia walked back into the bathroom, folded her clothes, and put them in her bag. She came back in the living room with her bag and put it on the sofa. Phichit got up to put on his shoes; Yuri followed. They put on their coats and left for Supernova.
#
(Saturday, 21 November 2015 – 8:04pm, Detroit, Michigan)
Supernova was a tiny bar in the middle of the block. The sign was in black and white and they had the bar name in the window. The bar wasn't full, but it wasn't exactly empty either. It was quiet inside. Yuri, Phichit, and Khoudia were sitting in the quiet bar, drinking their beers. Khoudia was silent, watching Yuri and Phichit look at each other.
"You know," Khoudia said.
"What?"
"It's hard to believe that you two aren't together anymore. Literally nothing has changed between you two." Khoudia took a sip of her beer and belched. Phichit looked over at Yuri. He was silent and drinking his beer. "Phichit still gives you that look – that soft, doting look." Yuri shrugged and looked over at Phichit. He reached over and wiped something off of Phichit's cheek. "And you still act all nonchalant but loving towards him. Nothing has changed."
"Well, some things have changed," Phichit said. "Yuri doesn't do drugs anymore."
"Yeah, I remember you having a fit about his drug usage early in the relationship," Khoudia said, laughing. Phichit took a swig of beer.
"I stopped to appease you, remember?" Yuri said. "We pinky swore." Yuri leaned back in his chair and took another sip of beer. Then he took out his phone and took a picture of Phichit. He didn't notice or hear the click sound.
"And you haven't gone back on it yet! I'm happy." Phichit pulled Yuri's chair closer to his and placed his head on Yuri's shoulder. Yuri flung his arm around the back of Phichit's chair. Khoudia took out her phone and took a flick of Yuri and Phichit.
"Yuri's become a little bit more opener because of you. It's astounding."
"Don't you mean affectionate?" Yuri asked.
"Well, yes, that too," Khoudia said and took a sip of her drink. "If I went back in time and told myself that Yuri Katsuki would actually start giving me hugs, I would not have believed myself. At all." She took another sip of beer. "Why didn't it work out? I've been wondering that for years. You two still act like you're in a relationship despite not being in one."
"Yuri felt that there was too much pressure attached to the 'boyfriend' label. So we ended it amicably and just continued."
"So you're still boyfriends, but not in name?" Khoudia asked. Phichit sat up and took a sip of his beer. He was silent. "Am I understanding this wrong?"
"No," Phichit said. "He's my platonic life partner. We're always going to be together."
"But Yuri has a boyfriend," Khoudia said. Yuri took a sip of beer. "Are you still going to be partners even though Yuri has a boyfriend?" Phichit nodded. "Yuri, how do you feel about this?" He shrugged and took another sip. "Ma raison, I'm going to need you to stop being laconic right now. This is important."
"We're partners," Yuri said. "I am always going to be with Phichit." Yuri took a sip of beer and held up his finger. "But, right now, Victor is my boyfriend. Phichit is highly okay with it. But I will have to let Victor know about this and ask him if he's okay with it." Yuri looked for more words to say. "I hope that he'll agree with this. I want him in my life."
"As your boyfriend?" Khoudia asked. Yuri nodded and took a sip of beer. "What if you want to marry him?"
"We'll cross that bridge when we get to it," Yuri said.
"Aside from that, any new news in the world of Victuuri?" Yuri and Phichit looked at Khoudia. "That's my ship name: Victuuri. I ship this and I want this." Phichit giggled.
"Victor and Yuri have been fucking."
"Honey, that's not even a secret," Khoudia said. "Yuri was glowing after his first date with Victor. He got some then."
"Oh, I knew," Phichit said.
"If you knew, what was the point of asking me?" Yuri said after he took a drink.
"I wanted to hear you say it," Phichit said after he took a drink. "But it wouldn't have mattered if you didn't tell me. I knew. Didin't think Victor would leave hickeys this time, though." Phichit was still in mild disbelief.
"There's hickeys?!" Khoudia yelped. Phichit took out his phone and showed Khoudia pictures of them. He must have taken those while Yuri was sleeping. "Ooh," Khoudia said. Then she looked at Yuri. "Would it be wrong of me to say that he has it bad for you? Because I am of the belief that he has it bad." She stressed the word "bad."
"He said that he missed me a lot when I was in Bordeaux."
"He missed you so much that he left marks and had to get in them guts." Khoudia giggled madly. Yuri rolled his eyes and took a drink. "Anyway, where is he?"
"Nagano," Phichit said. Khoudia took a sip of beer. "NHK event." She nodded and took another sip of beer.
"Wait, I have an important question before we start to discuss figure skating!" Khoudia said.
"Shoot," Yuri said.
"Did you leave any marks on Victor? I need to know." Yuri deadpanned and took a sip of his drink. And then he took one of Phichit's. He wasn't amused.
Then he spoke. "Not on his neck." Khoudia nodded. "I, unlike Victor, am considerate." She giggled.
"Imagine if you left them on his neck and the reporters just started talking about who the mystery woman could be." Khoudia said and laughed. "And then – and then – Victor posts a picture of you being you on Instagram and captions it 'bae' and the skating world literally implodes because the Lord and Savior, the Ever-Compassionate Master of Figure Skating is not straight."
"That might honestly decimate the figure skating world," Phichit said. "Now, on the topic of figure skating." Yuri and Khoudia nodded. "Are you watching the NHK event?" Phichit asked Khoudia.
"I was until my sisters bullied me into watching Love & Hip Hop with them."
"You know, I forget that you have older sisters," Phichit said.
"It's funny because they forget about me, too," Khoudia said before she took a drink. "You would think that they wouldn't forget that I was born in Dakar just like them – that I'm one of the eldest just like them – but they don't care to remember." She took another sip of beer. Yuri took out his phone and looked at his messages. Nothing new from Victor.
But he did have a text from Chris.
Chris: wyd cutie?
: I'm at the bar with some friends
Yuri took a sip of beer. Then his phone buzzed.
Chris: Ooh. A night out.
: Haha yeah
"Ma poupée, who are you texting?"
"Chris." Phichit nodded and continued to converse with Khoudia.
Chris: How are your friends?
: They're fine. They're discussing the NHK event.
Chris: And? Do they like it?
"Hey, I have a question," Yuri said. Phichit and Khoudia paid attention. "Do you like the NHK event so far?"
"You interrupted us for that?" Khoudia asked. Yuri nodded. "I like it, so far. Victor's performance stopped hearts, but that's no secret." She took a sip of beer. "But Seung-gil's performance is my favorite for obvious reasons."
"What reasons are those?" Phichit asked. Khoudia glared at him. She just took another sip of beer and stayed silent. "Khoudia," Phichit said. "Khoudia."
: My friend likes Seung-gil's performance.
Chris: A Seung-gil stan? Of course lmao
: Not a stan. A professional skater.
Chris: Oh? What's their name?
"Khoudia, Chris is asking for your name." Yuri put his phone down and took a sip. "What do you want me to say?"
"Khoudia." She sucked her teeth and looked back at Phichit. She seemed genuinely peeved.
: Khoudia.
Chris: Does she have an IG?
"Do you mind if I give him your Instagram?" Yuri asked. Khoudia waved her hand. He interpreted that as a "yes" and gave it to Chris. He said that he was going to follow her immediately. "He's going to follow you on Instagram." Khoudia nodded. "Can you two start talking to each other again?" Yuri said. "Phichit, Khoudia's favorite performance is Seung-gil's performance because she has a fan crush on him. Khoudia, literally no one would know why his performance is your favorite because you're thirsting over female skaters all the time. There."
"Thank you for explaining that, Yuri," Phichit said.
"I am not that gay all the time," Khoudia muttered.
"Yes you are," Phichit said. "We literally would not be in a gay bar right now if you could stop being gay and liking girls who aren't interested in you." Khoudia deadpanned.
"All I'm saying is that Franziska could've at least texted me back and tell me that she wasn't interested in talking to me. It's not hard."
"Maybe she lost your number," Yuri suggested. He emotionally prepared himself for the backlash.
"How do you lose a number on an iPhone? Tell me how!" Khoudia screeched.
"Calm down. She hasn't texted back and she probably won't. We're here to get your mind off of her." Phichit took a sip of his beverage. "Now, let's focus on something that isn't her."
"One more thing?"
"Yes," Phichit said.
"She's at the NHK event," Khoudia said and took a sip of beer. "There. It's out of my system." She took another sip and scratched her forehead. "I really needed a night like this." Yuri nodded. "And this night is advantageous for Yuri, too," she said.
"Why me?"
"You can get your mind off of your boyfriend tonight," she said. "Also, Phichit gets to be with us. We all win tonight." Khoudia beamed, her gap teeth showing. And so they yapped and yapped about minutia until their third pitcher of beer. Then they started to reminisce about Pride 2013 and how it was a lovely adventure for all of them. It was before Adé had got with their current partner and their partner took control of most of their social life. They went out freely and didn't have to worry about displeasing their partner in some minute way. It was an infinitely better time before Jordan. They were still estranged from their family, but Adé only had to disappoint their family twice. They didn't have to live in too much fear. They were simply the carefree black kid that they've always been – before and after coming out.
But that was then. This is now. And Adé's partner is a whole asshole.
#
(Sunday, 22 November 2015 – 2:44am, Detroit, Michigan)
They called it a night hours ago. Khoudia had gotten the number of a cute criminal justice major. She was 5'9 and had curly black hair. She said she didn't go to bars much, but she was glad that she met someone while she was out. That made Khoudia happy.
But now they were home. Khoudia laid in Phichit's bed, cuddled up with his hamster throw. Phichit was in bed with Yuri, sharing the Starry Night Over the Rhône throw. Unlike the humans, the hamsters were actually asleep.
"Hey," Khoudia said. She put her phone under the pillow.
"What?" Phichit asked. He stopped scrolling through his feed for a moment.
"Are we really going to have an intervention?" She asked and rolled over to face the two.
"I was just throwing the idea out there. Do we even have the faculties to have one?" Yuri yawned in Phichit's ear. "Gross," he said. "Yuri, what do you think we should do? You have the most experience with mental health stuff."
"I'm not the best person to consult about this," Yuri said.
"But you're the only person with hands-on psych stuff experience," Khoudia said.
"Do you really want my opinion?"
"Yes," Phichit said.
"Fine." Yuri scratched his chest. "We can't make Adé break up with Jordan even if we wanted to. The best we can do is tell Adé that we don't care for them, provide our reasons why, and hope that they take them to heart. We can assist them and give them the resources they need to pull away, but they need to make that decision on their own. They have to want to get out of the coffin."
"Who said anything about coffins?" Phichit asked.
"No one, but I'm trying to make a point here," Yuri said. "We can hold the intervention, but it might not be the most effective way to get our point across." Yuri yawned. "Do what you want. I'll get roped along eventually." Yuri checked his phone.
Chris: How was the bar?
: It was nice. Khoudia got a number.
Chris: Nice, nice.
Yuri rolled on his back.
Chris: When's your next event?
: Next week.
Chris: Ooh!
Chris: I finally get the chance to meet Victor's beloved
Chris: I'm so excited. What should we do when we link up?
Yuri looked at the notification. He put his phone under his pillow and closed his eyes. He doesn't have to respond right now. He'll get to that in the morning.
Ryuugazaki: If you're still in school, I hope you have a nice first day of school!
