Pairings: Viktor/Yuuri

Warnings: AU Universe. Non-canon. Brief mentions of real life disasters. More confident Yuuri. Older characters.

Disclaimer: I do not own Yuri on Ice or any of the characters, but the OC characters belongs to me

Chapter Five: Realisation

It took nearly an entire day just to get the most serious cases to the various hospitals via airlift, and even so, by the time that Yuuri's team was relieved by another two paramedic units, there were still more that were trapped in their vehicles, but he was reassured by the leaders of the two units that they can handle things and that the victims are in no danger of dying, unlike the cases from earlier in the day.

Now with the adrenaline going away even as Unit Two were dismissed and told to go home, every single paramedic felt the drain hit them all at once—both emotionally and physically. Even the call dispatch paramedics attached to Unit Two normally assigned to call dispatch duty have felt the drain, as they've been busy tending to emergency calls and even calling up the various hospitals and other EMT Departments from the other provinces and states for assistance.

Leo de la Iglesia sighed even as he closed his locker door, having already changed out of his uniform.

"Leo-kun, you okay?" Guang Hong asked almost timidly. Along with Mickey's twin sister, Sara, Guang Hong is one of the two call dispatch paramedics of Unit Two normally assigned to the call dispatch room, though they do drive out with the team occasionally if they're short-handed.

Leo turned around to face Guang Hong and the rest of his concerned teammates, half who were currently in the middle of changing out of their uniforms, with their movements sluggish at best.

Emil was struggling to change whilst seated on the bench in the middle of the locker room—his legs were so exhausted that he could barely haul himself back into the ambulance earlier. Mickey has to take over driving duty earlier when they were ordered back to headquarters.

Leo forced a smile on his face even as he shrugged on his jacket. "I'm fine," he reassured Guang Hong who didn't look convinced.

"Come on, it's not your fault." Phichit sighed whilst being seated on the bench, already changed and with his bag next to him. For once, his phone is nowhere in sight—a rare sight, as Phichit normally already had his phone in hand the moment he knocks off. "We did all that we could."

"You saw the scene at the hospital. And even at the disaster zone." Leo reminded Phichit, and everyone flinched at the reminder.

Even Guang Hong, as he had alternated duty between him and Sara by informing the nearby hospitals of emergency cases. He wasn't there, but he had a good idea just what had gone down, judging by all the screaming that Mickey was doing as well as the screaming and shouting in the background when he had taken the calls.

"How many have died?" Emil murmured to himself, pulling his knees up to his chest and wrapping his arms around them. "How many have died whom we could have saved if only…?"

He trailed off, not finishing his sentence, but everyone in the locker room knew what Emil had meant. If only Michigan's governor had grown some brains and common sense and had the foresight to include emergency routes in case of an emergency.

Half the room jumped when Mickey kicked at the bench in the locker room, sending it skidding away—thankfully not the one that Phichit and Emil have occupied. The Italian looked furious, with his hands balled into fists.

"Damn the mayor! How many people must die before he'd get his head out of the clouds?" Mickey snarled. "Celestino and even the head of the Fire Department have been petitioning for months now, ever since the orders for a new headquarters is to be built had came in! We're too overwhelmed here! Have been for months! We can't cope with all the emergency cases coming in, not with how limited we can do in terms of emergency escape routes."

"Don't destroy station property, Mickey." Phichit reprimanded. "Yuuri won't be happy."

At the mention of the name of their unit leader, Leo looked around. "Where's Yuuri anyway?" he asked Phichit. "Haven't seen him since we came back."

"Probably giving his report." Phichit sighed tiredly. "I don't envy Ciao Ciao, as no doubt he will have to report to the city council tomorrow just why and how the pileup even happened to begin with."

"Not like they will do anything anyway." Leo said harshly, and everyone turned towards the only American in their midst with surprise. Leo looked angry, a first for him. Though honestly, with the number of accidents and such and the lives that could have been saved lost because emergency routes weren't plotted out, it had been grating at everyone in the EMS Department.

Phichit knew from Yuuri that the other unit leaders were getting increasingly more frustrated due to the number of emergencies that could have been prevented, but happened anyway, because emergency routes weren't properly planned out.

The door to the locker room opened just then, and an exhausted looking Yuuri stepped in, looking as if he is about to collapse on the spot from exhaustion, due to the weariness in his slender frame and how he is practically dragging his feet.

"You guys are still here?" Yuuri questioned, walking towards his locker and opening it. He then started to change out of his uniform. "Hurry up and go home. It's been a long day for all of us. We have the day off tomorrow. So take the chance to rest up."

There were a chorus of agreements from the rest of the team. "Yeah, I just want to sleep all day." Emil admitted, heaving himself to his feet with some difficulty. "I think I'll call for a cab. I don't have the strength to walk all the way to the subway."

"Don't think too much about things." Yuuri told his team, as they were about to leave the room. As one, they turned towards their unit leader who looked solemn. "We did the best we could. Remember that every life saved today is due to our efforts. Don't forget that."

"Yeah." Leo managed a small smile. "I'm going home. See you in two days, Yuuri, Phichit."

"Yeah, see you." Phichit called even as the rest of their teammates left the room. He then turned towards Yuuri who fumbled with the buttons of his shirt, finally managing to do it up. "I can say the same to you too. It's not your fault. You know that. We did the best we could."

"I know." Yuuri sighed, picking up his bag. Phichit got to his feet and picked up his own bag, turning off the lights of the locker room as they left, waiting as Yuuri locked the locker room door with his key. "Alexander and Ciao Ciao said as much." He looked at Phichit who had already pulled up the Uber app on his phone and is hailing for one to bring them home. "I'm fine. Are you okay?"

"I'll be fine." Phichit reassured his best friend even as they both took the long trek down the fairly silent hallway to the exit. "So you didn't come home last night." Phichit changed the subject. "Where did you go?"

Yuuri tensed. "Nowhere," he said quickly. "Come on, Phichit-kun. Let's go home. I want a warm shower and my bed. Vicchan must miss us too."

XXXXXX

Phichit was already gone when Yuuri finally woke up the next day near noon—easily the latest that he had ever slept. His roommate had left a note on the living room table, stating that he's gone to the game store to pick up a game.

As Vicchan seems really restless when Yuuri was doing the dishes left over from last night's dinner, yipping and wagging his tail the entire time, the paramedic finally realised that his dog is demanding for a walk.

XXXXXX

Makkachin whined, licking at Viktor's face even as he sat on the bench in the fairly deserted park. It is a weekday, and not to mention midday, thus, it isn't much of a surprise that the park is fairly deserted.

His entire unit was given the day off today to recuperate, and honestly, Viktor is still feeling the drain from yesterday. It's not the physical exertion so much that he is feeling—he is a fire-fighter after all. He is used to the tedious physical work. It is the mental stress that he is feeling.

Hell, is this what paramedics go through on a daily basis? Viktor suddenly found himself growing a whole new appreciation for them, especially for one paramedic in particular.

Makkachin whined again, licking at Viktor's face, trying to cheer her master up.

Viktor smiled at his worried dog, patting Makkachin on the head. "I'm fine, Makka," he reassured.

There was a yip just then, and both master and dog turned to see a mini poodle not too far away from them, with a dark blue leash being attached to its collar. And holding the leash is…

"Viktor?" Katsuki Yuuri looked and sounded very surprised, holding onto his dog's leash. A look of realisation then dawned on his face. "Ah right. I forgot that you live around here too." A small smile graced Viktor's features when he realised that Yuuri might have been so preoccupied with the emergency call yesterday that he didn't really pay attention to his surroundings when Viktor had drove him to the EMS headquarters.

"You had the day off too?" Viktor asked even as he patted the bench next to him, and Yuuri got the hint, sitting next to him, also releasing the leash from his dog's collar, and letting the excited poodle run off exploring. Viktor did the same thing for Makkachin, with both men making sure to keep their dogs in sight.

"Yeah. Yesterday has been a long day. I'm still feeling the drain." Yuuri sighed. "Though I've been a paramedic for years now. I'm used to it. But it doesn't mean that it's easy having to watch people die."

Viktor flinched, recalling the number of people that have died yesterday. Sure, as a fire-fighter, there have been times when he couldn't save people. But he never truly came face-to-face with actually watching people die. Yesterday was a testament to that. He truly saw how important that paramedics are to doctors and hospitals and even fire-fighters.

"You're taking this rather well." Viktor commented.

Yuuri gave a small laugh. "You didn't see me yesterday," he admitted. "I was mentally drained. I blamed myself. For the people I couldn't save. Ciao Ciao and Alexander knocked some sense into me. As did Phichit."

"Ciao Ciao?" Viktor echoed with confusion before he realised that Yuuri is talking about the current head of Michigan's EMS Department. "Oh. Celestino? I didn't realise that you knew him so well."

Yuuri shrugged. "He was actually the one to come and recruit me back when I was still in high school," he explained. Yuuri sighed. "I've been a paramedic for a long time. I've seen more people die than I've saved. Paramedics and EMTs are often the ones called out to disaster sites and zones. We probably saw more people die than soldiers or even doctors." He explained. "And I often had to make the decision to decide who to save between two people." Yuuri's face twisted into a grimace. He never liked it whenever he has to make a decision like that. "I once had to decide who to save between a pregnant woman and her unborn child. I had to decide whether to save a father or his teenage son when I was called out to the site of a car crash. I probably saw more deaths than you even did."

"Yeah, there has probably been quite a lot of deaths the last three years." Viktor nodded. Even Viktor has lost count of the number of times he'd been called out to one site or another due to accidents, not always because of a fire.

"The situation in Michigan is getting out of hand." Yuuri admitted. "I'm a foreigner, so I really shouldn't say anything. But… It is getting out of hand." A dark expression appeared on his face that even made Viktor nervous for a moment. "The entire EMS Department were pretty pissed off last night due to the number of people who have died that we could have saved."

"Pile-ups and blocked roads." Viktor remembered the disaster that is yesterday, and how the paramedics have ended up having to call for an airlift just to get the victims to the hospital.

Even so, there are only so many helicopters that the hospitals have, and it also took time to load the victims into the helicopters and to transport them to the hospital. The ones that have died last night probably could have survived if only the ambulances were able to take them to the hospital directly.

Yuuri nodded. "I heard from Chris that the Fire Department has been pretty upset for the last three years as well?" he questioned, and Viktor nodded.

"We really need to think of something as the new headquarters is getting built." Viktor admitted. "This can't go on. I've lost count of the number of accidents that we had the last three years. Yesterday was the worst."

"There might be worst to come." Yuuri admitted. He had after all seen worst when he had volunteered as a medic in Israel after completing his training.

"Let's hope not." Viktor grimaced. He was silent for several moments, watching Makkachin and Yuuri's dog frolicking around happily. "Hey, have you had lunch yet?" He asked Yuuri who looked bewildered, but shook his head. "Let me take you out to lunch. My treat." Yuuri looked bewildered, and seem ready to refuse. "I insist. I wanted to talk to you since meeting you at the station. Humour me, would you?"

Yuuri looked conflicted, before he sighed. "Just for lunch," he said.

Viktor nodded. "Just for lunch," he echoed.