Ryuugazaki: I confess that I'm binging on the Twilight series as I write Chapter 63.
So there might be a YOI Twilight fanfic in these cards. Idk idk
Chapter Fifty-Two
(Sunday, 22 November 2015 – 7:07am, Detroit, Michigan)
"Ah, солнышко," Victor said. Yuri was sweeping the living room in preparation for his stretching. Eduvigis had complained that Yuri wasn't stretching as often as he should. She said that his back was tighter than it needs to be. So what does Yuri do? Decide to stretch his back and hips. Eduvigis also complained about his hips needing to regain their flexibility. "I miss you."
"I miss you, too." Yuri stopped sweeping and went to get the dustpan. "How's Japan treating you?" He asked. Yuri came back to the broom and continued to sweep.
"I like it. I wish I could read the signs, though." Yuri chuckled. "But I found a bookstore. Shame I couldn't read anything in there."
"What's the bookstore called?"
"Tsutsaya, I think."
"Oh, Tsutaya? Nice," Yuri said and started to sweep up the dust and grit. "I go in there a lot. Well, went in there a lot." Yuri yawned. "That changed when the fire nation attacked." He laughed at his own joke, but Victor was silent. "Victor?"
"I don't understand your joke, Yura," he said.
"It's an ATLA reference, Victor."
"I don't know what that is," he said. Yuri stopped sweeping and looked at his phone. "What is it?" Yuri briefly debated on hanging up his phone, but opted for not being a rude ass and keeping him on the line.
"It's from the opening of a cartoon." Yuri swept the dust and grit into the dustpan and disposed of it. "You need to watch it. I'll watch it with you. It's a good show." Yuri swept the living room again.
"I'd like that a lot," Victor said. "How many things did we say that we're going to do together?"
"I… I don't know," Yuri said. He swept the second batch of dust and grit into the dustpan and disposed of it again. Then he went back to sweep some more. "Do you still want to watch me do digital art?"
"Yes." Yuri heard a popping sound and it didn't come from him.
"We have to talk," Yuri said. Now he has two things to tell Victor.
"What does it entail?"
"Two things," Yuri muttered. "The nature of our relationship and something else." Victor made a sound of confusion.
"I… I thought our relationship was established," Victor said. "I asked 'what are we' and –"
"You kind of have to be explicit with me." Yuri yawned. "Reading between lines and analyzing subtext is not my specialty and I am not too skilled in it." Yuri swept up the third batch of dust and grit – which was hardly anything at all – into the dustpan and threw it away. He should be able to stretch without feeling grit on his skin.
"So what do you want?"
"Be clear about this."
"Aren't you my boyfriend?" Victor asked.
"I am?" Yuri asked. He got on the floor and started to stretch.
"Yes!" Victor declared.
"Alright then," Yuri said. "I'm your boyfriend." Yuri bit his lip. He let the word rest on his palate, taking it in. He wanted to get used to this. Doubly so since he heard it from the horse's mouth. "But that's only part of what I wanted to ask you."
"There's more?" Victor asked.
"Yes," Yuri said. "But I think I'd rather talk about that later."
"You can't tell me that there's 'more' and then refuse to elaborate on what 'more' means," Victor said. "So tell me now."
"It involves Phichit. We might have to go out." Yuri switched to a new position. "He really wants to sit down and have a chat with you."
"And I would like to sit down with him, too," he said. "When does he want to chat?" Yuri pulled himself up from his stretch and looked at his phone. He didn't expect to get this far with this discussion. Hell, he didn't think he'd actually have this discussion. He expected Victor to just accept that there was more to be said that couldn't be said in that moment and leave it at that.
"I don't know. I'll have to ask him."
"Good." Yuri nodded and moved into a new position. This one really stretched his hamstrings. "So, what time is it there?"
"7:28."
"What are you doing up?"
"Sweeping," Yuri said and switched to his other leg. "I just wanted to sweep this morning." He left out the stretching that came after the sweeping. He's never mentioned Eduvigis to Victor before and he doesn't plan on doing that right now. He knows that he can't keep this up; he can't keep up the apathy and being a closed book, offering only excerpts and samples. He'll have to start somewhere. "But right now I'm stretching," Yuri said, before he could catch himself trying to filter his words.
"Stretching? What for?"
"My ballet instructor complained that I'm too stiff." Yuri laid prone on the floor. "So here I am. Stretching. Like she asked." Yuri sat with his back to the back of the chair. "Well, it was less like she asked and more like she… I don't know. Demanded?" He looked at the entrance to the hallway. "I only caught part of what she said. She was speaking so fast that I couldn't totally catch what she was saying. But I did catch that she was irate about it and that something means nothing without the flexibility to go with it."
"Something?"
"I missed the word that she said before 'means,'" Yuri said. "Eduvigis, for lack of a better word, asked and I will supply."
"Is that her name? Eduvigis?" Victor stumbled over his ballet instructor's name. "What kind of name is that?"
"I don't know, but I know that it's her name and it's very good for her." Yuri looked at his feet. "She explained once that it's derived from Hedwig. So I guess that if you have a problem saying Eduvigis, you can say Hedwig."
"Where is she from?"
"Havana," Yuri said. He made a split, but it wasn't a 180º one. Yuri decided to continue with a different type of hip flexibility stretch. Victor was silent. "Eduvigis is nice. I think you'd like her. I'd suggest that you come with me to a ballet lesson so you can meet her, but you have a class on Friday mornings."
"You remember that?" Victor sounded genuinely surprised.
"Of course I did." Yuri made a face in response to the pulling sensation in his inner thigh. "If you could look past her accent – which is adorable, might I add – I think you'd like her. She counts in Spanish!" Yuri gushed. "She's adorable when she speaks Spanish!" He flopped on the floor and laid there. Yuri heard footsteps coming towards the living room. He looked at the entrance; it was Khoudia.
"What are you doing?" Khoudia asked.
"Stretching," Yuri said to Khoudia. She walked over to his body and knelt down. "What are you doing up so early?"
"Who are you talking to?" Victor asked.
"Khadijah," Yuri told Victor.
"Yuri, who is that?"
"My boyfriend," Yuri said. Khoudia got up and went back into the room. "She spent the night with us. We went out last night." Khoudia came back with the mat she uses for morning prayer when she's here. She shook it out towards the door and placed it parallel to Yuri's body. "Khoudia, are you really?" Yuri asked.
"Yes," she said. "Continue stretching. I'll just pray." She got up to go to the bathroom. She has to go and do her ablutions and cover her hair before she starts.
"Khoudia is going to pray right now."
"Why did you say her name differently?" Victor asked.
"Because that's her name," Yuri said. "Her name is Khoudia."
"But you told me Khadijah."
"I told you 'Khadijah' because she finds it simpler to tell people rather than walking them through pronouncing 'Khoudia.'" Yuri sat up and pushed Khoudia's mat closer to the wall. "I've been meaning to explain that to you sooner." Victor stayed silent. "If it helps, you can still say Khadijah. She doesn't mind."
"Still though," he said. "How do you say 'Khoudia'?" Victor stumbled over her name. "I want to know."
"Khuu-ja," Yuri said. "It's the French spelling of the Wolof pronunciation."
"Khuu…ja?"
"Yes," Yuri said. He looked down the hall. The bathroom door was still closed. "Khoudia might be able to explain it better than me."
"No, no, this is fine," Victor said. There was a silence. "So what is she doing right now?"
"Washing up for prayer." Yuri thought he saw the door open, but it was still closed. "She's Muslim," he elaborated.
"Ah," Victor said. "Is she devout?"
Yuri thought. Then he decided. "No, she's not." Khoudia's family habitually calls her a bad Muslimah. Unlike her elder sisters, she wears tight fitting clothes, doesn't wear a hijab, drinks, and she frequently keeps company with those who are haram to her. On top of that, she's also a figure skater – something her father disapproves of highly. They let her do it, but they also shame her for being the extremely odd one. They're more lenient with her younger siblings, though. If it wasn't for Khoudia paving the way, Amadou wouldn't be allowed to pursue music, Malik wouldn't be allowed to aspire to be a professional basketball player, and Aida and Yande wouldn't be allowed to do ballet. She's a trail blazer.
Khoudia came out of the bathroom, her face, hands, and feet washed. She knelt down on the mat.
"I heard you trying to explain how to pronounce my name," Khoudia said. "You did a good job, Yuri."
"Hello Khoudia," Victor said, using his newfound knowledge. "How are you today?"
"Hungover. I'll live, though." Khoudia scratched her neck and rubbed her eyes. "Are you going to watch?" She asked Yuri. He nodded. "I ask you two to please be quiet."
"I have one question," Yuri said. She nodded. "Didn't you already miss the first prayer time?" Khoudia looked at Yuri and sucked his teeth. "That's a yes, isn't it?" She rolled her eyes.
Then she got up and stood on the mat. She raised her hands to her ears and said "Allahu akbar." She placed her hands on her sternum and kept her gaze downward. She started a recitation. Then she went into ruku and said "Allahu akbar." Yuri got gratification out of watching Khoudia go through the motions of praying. Then she muttered a sentence. Yuri extended his right leg to the right and leaned sideways. He was stretching his hamstring again. Then she stood up straight and started another recitation. Then she went into sajdah and said "Allahu akbar." Then she muttered another sentence. Then Khoudia sat on her knees and repeated a sentence three times. She went back into sajdah and repeated another sentence three times. Then she sat on her knees again; thus ends the first rakat. She did this two more times and then she finished by saying her valedictions to the angels on her shoulders. She was done now.
"You two can talk now," Khoudia said. "Yuri, do you need me to help you stretch?"
"I need to work on my middle splits."
"I got you," she said. "Assume the position."
"Can I stretch my other leg first?" Khoudia nodded. Yuri brought his right leg in and extended his left leg towards the left, his toes en pointe. He leaned sideways. Khoudia got off of her mat and went to put it away. "Victor, are you still there?"
"I am." There was a silence. "Do you know what Khoudia was saying when she was praying?"
"Not a clue," Yuri said. He raised himself up from his position and raised his hands towards the ceiling. Khoudia came back.
"Are you ready?" Yuri nodded. "Great!" She sat in front of Yuri. "Also, you two can continue talking. Pretend I'm not here or whatever." Then she got behind Yuri and shoved him forward. "You need more room behind you. So, Victor, how's Japan?"
"It's so lovely," Victor said. "I wish I could read the signs, though."
"Did you know that Yuri's family has an onsen in Kyushu?" Khoudia volunteered. She wasn't specific about where their onsen was, but she gave the island. He rolled his eyes. Yuri stretched his legs forward and reached as Khoudia pressed down on his back.
"He's never told me that." Khoudia plucked Yuri's neck. "He doesn't talk about himself too much," Victor said. Khoudia plucked Yuri's neck again.
"Ah, well, he's kind of withdrawn and stuff." Khoudia stopped pressing down on Yuri's back and Yuri sat up.
"How long have you known him?" Victor asked. Khoudia had Yuri twist left and right. Then she had him stretch forward and reach again.
"I've known him since I started college," she said and pressed down on his back. "He's a super chill person."
"I don't know if 'chill' is the word I'd use," Victor said. Yuri glared at his phone. "I'd say reserved or withdrawn."
"To the untrained eye, Yuri does look rather withdrawn. Even to the trained eye, he still looks withdrawn." Khoudia had Yuri sit up again. "Underneath his withdrawn exterior, there is an entire fire within him." Yuri twisted left then right again. "I'm glad he's found someone. I mean that, truly," she said.
"I'm glad I've found him," Victor said. There was a silence. Khoudia slapped Yuri's back.
"Say something!" She whispered harshly. Yuri stayed silent. "He won't come out and say it, but he's glad he has you, too." She giggled. Unlike her laugh, it was sweet and airy. Yuri reached towards his feet again and Khoudia pressed down on his back. "He's not very good with emotions."
"So I've heard," Victor said.
"He'll get there. I'll make him get there."
"No you won't," Yuri said. "I'll get there when I get there." Khoudia slapped Yuri's back and he winced. "You can stop helping me now. You're going to kill me after this."
"No I won't. I wouldn't dare touch a hair on your head." Khoudia stood up. "Now, 180º split time."
"I don't think I'm physically ready for that right now," Yuri muttered.
"Just try it," she sweetly prodded. "You're not so stiff that you've lost the ability to do splits, are you?"
"I'm not, but–"
"So do it," she said. Yuri spread his legs and reached towards his left foot. Khoudia pressed down on Yuri's right side to deepen it.
"I think I'll leave you two to your stretching," Victor said. "I don't want to disturb you any more than I already have."
"Well, it was lovely talking to you!" Khoudia beamed. "I hope I get to talk to you again. This was nice."
"It certainly was," Victor said. "Sunshine, I'll text you." Khoudia grinned when she heard that. Yuri could tell that she was going to have a field day with that. "I love you." Then Khoudia's eyes widened. She looked at Yuri, waiting for a response. She flicked his neck in order to get a response from him.
"I–I love you, too," Yuri said. He felt his chest constrict. He couldn't believe that he had just said that – out loud, nonetheless. It felt wrong to him. Not because he was saying it to a man – he's said it to several men – but because it was under duress. He had wanted his first "I love you" to be organic, springing from a place of perfect ecstasy and harmony. He's almost said it after their bouts of messing around, but he's always held himself back. "A better time," he told himself. That better time never really came around – or maybe it did, instead it was just unidentifiable to Yuri.
Khoudia hung up the phone and smiled as if she had accomplished something great today.
#
(Sunday, 22 November 2015 – 9:09am, Detroit, Michigan)
Yuri, Phichit, and Khoudia agreed to get something to eat before they take her home. So they were sitting in a diner, looking over the menus. "I can't believe you two were up before me. And Khoudia actually did her morning prayer."
"Even though she missed the first one."
"I was drunk, okay?" Khoudia said. She muttered something under her breath about being drunk and praying. Then she continued to look at her menu. "Last night was fun." This was spoken like less of an opinion spoken by an active participant and more like a casual observation.
"And no one tried to use a swing set like a dance pole," Phichit said. "I'm proud of you two."
"We just went out for beers," Yuri said. "If it had been rum or vodka, I can't promise you that that wouldn't have happened."
"You two just need to stay away from hard liquor." Yuri and Khoudia laughed. "How did you two sleep?" Khoudia shrugged. "What about you, ma poupée?"
"I… I slept," Yuri said. "I did that." Then he looked at his phone. He had two texts from Mari.
Mari: Hey there, little brother
Mari: What's new with you?
"You two are wrecks," Phichit said with a laugh. Yuri took a quick flick of Khoudia and Phichit looking at their menus. Yuri already knew what he wanted.
: It's almost the end of the semester
: I do not want to die
: My next event is this coming week
: Wait hold on
"Khoudia," Yuri said, "you know our event is this week, right?" Khoudia looked like she had glass thrown in her face. Her hands found their way to her face and she held them there. "Are you okay?"
"I haven't even started packing." She took out her phone. "It's time for me to ask Adeola and Fatou to do me a favor." She unlocked her phone and started texting. "I know I'll have to go behind them and check, but still."
: Okay so my event is this week
: It's almost the end of the semester
: I do want to die
: I am very anxious
: haha :*(
"You two are going to leave me all alone," Phichit said, pouting slightly.
"You won't be alone," Khoudia said. "You have Masabeeh and Tal'at to keep you company." Phichit rolled his eyes. "And maybe Adé's partner would be so gracious to let Adé spend the night so you would have someone to talk to."
"No, no, I'll live. I have the hamsters to give me all the company I need." Phichit put down his menu. "I've decided on what I'm getting." Khoudia looked down at her menu.
"Are the pancakes here good?" Yuri nodded. "I guess I'm getting pancakes," Khoudia said and put down her menu. "I hope they have turkey bacon."
"They do," Yuri said.
"Oh, good," she said. "Are you going to make me get scones?" She questioned irreverently.
"They don't have scones." Yuri played with the edges of his menu. "Try again." Khoudia rolled her eyes and sucked her teeth. When Khoudia's phone buzzed, a waitress came out to take their orders. They ordered and resumed their chatter. "Are Adeola and Fatou going to pack for you?" Yuri asked.
"Adeola said she'll do it," Khoudia said. "Now I have to wait to see if Fatou is on board." There was a silence. "I hope she says yes. I've been less annoying than usual. She has to help me if I've been less annoying."
"You've only been less annoying because you've been out of the house more," Phichit pointed out.
"Are you calling me annoying?" Khoudia asked. The waitress came back with their drinks: an iced coffee, a tea, and a glass of grape juice.
"You said it. Not me." Phichit took a sip of his tea. "Since when do you drink iced coffee?" He asked Yuri.
"Since I've started asking for a bunch of sugar in it," Yuri said. Khoudia took a sip of her grape juice. "Shouldn't you let your tea cool off before you drink it?" Yuri swirled his iced coffee and took a sip. It was nice.
"But you hate coffee."
"Correction: I hate hot coffee. Iced coffee is somehow more palatable." Yuri shrugged.
"Is this one of those sensory things that you suck at explaining but understand very well?" Khoudia asked. Yuri nodded. "I see."
Mari: Don't worry about your event.
Mari: You'll do fine.
Mari: You have us to cheer you on.
: I think that makes it worse somehow
Mari: How so?
"Who are you texting? Your boyfriend?" Phichit cheekily asked.
"No. Mari," Yuri said. Phichit nodded and drank some tea. "She's saying that I don't have to worry about anything because I have them – not quite sure who 'them' are, by the way – to cheer me on, but I'm not so sure." Yuri took a sip of his iced coffee. "It's not the lack of support that bothers me – and I don't lack support at all. It's not being able to perform to my fullest capacity that bothers me."
"Well, what did you do to perform the way you did at the Bompard?" Khoudia asked.
"I channeled the fervor I had for dancing with you and the feelings I have for Victor."
Khoudia nodded and said, "Recreate those feelings and do that." She took a sip of her juice. "Just summon all of the feverish desire in you and put that into your routine."
"But I don't remember how I did that," Yuri admitted.
"Well, what were you doing before you stepped on the ice?"
"I was getting my makeup done by Guang Hong," Yuri said. Khoudia made a face. "Guang Hong is one of Phichit's friends." Khoudia nodded. "Then Ciao Ciao told me that I need to stay put and stretch." Yuri took a sip of his coffee. "So I stretched and warmed up like he told me."
"Did you think about anything in particular?" Khoudia took a sip of her grape juice and pressed her lower lip against the lip of the glass. Yuri shrugged. "Come on, you had to have been thinking about something." Yuri shrugged again. "Your mind is not a refuge. You have not mastered Zen. You were thinking about something."
"I thought about coming home and being with you two. And I also thought about my next date and all the things that might happen." Yuri took a sip of his coffee and kept his gaze downward.
"Come on, you can do better than that. Break it down. Start identifying emotions," Khoudia said. She took a sip of her juice and put the cup on a napkin. Yuri shrugged. They were going to be here for a while.
Ryuugazaki: I'm actually doing jury duty (as of uploading this – I'm on day three) and I'm super excited about it.
Also, I hate college. I hope y'alls classes are going well. Someone save me.
