"Yuri is feeling a little better, but it's stressful. I can't imagine going through all this. I've been talking to some people about what to do. They went through this before. There were some good ideas, but none of them work for Yuri. Mey said to try getting him whatever he's craving, and he'll have a better chance of keeping it down. I would love to do that, but Yuri doesn't get cravings." Victor said, readjusting the bags in his hand and fixing the Bluetooth in his ear. "I don't know what to do for him."
"Be there, Vitya. Sometimes that's all you can do. It helps more than you know, even if it doesn't feel like you're doing much." Yakov replied. "Try to focus on something positive."
"That's the plan for today. It's been one thing to worry about after another. Yuri's so sick all the time. I made a stop on the way back. Hopefully, it'll at least help him to relax a little. The doctor's been monitoring the baby more closely. I told Yuri it's not necessarily a bad thing. I can't blame him for worrying either. I'm worried too, for both of them."
"Of course you are. Any father would be. It's normal, especially the first time around, not knowing what to expect. Just remember, if you think it's hard on you, chances are it's twice as difficult for him. Don't let him see you constantly nervous about it. You don't have to be perfect all the time. You just need to make sure you can hold it together." The older man advised.
"I've messed that up at least once. I was supposed to be supporting him. Yuri ended up comforting me most of the night. I feel like I'm failing him sometimes and-"
"There's not much more you can do for him. He's going through a lot, Vitya. Things are changing for him. The only way you could fail him is if you walked away from your family and stopped supporting him. Everything will turn out the way it's supposed to."
Victor sighed.
"I know. I just hope when it does, it's for the best. "Victor said. "I can't tell you how grateful I am that you're still willing to take my calls like this. Yurio must keep you pretty busy, and all the arrangements you have to make."
"My phone's always on, Vitya. But I'll be sitting out this season. Yuri decided he needed a break." Victor paused, shocked by the news.
"A break,? that doesn't sound like him. Is he okay?" the silver-haired man took a seat on the bench, just outside the hospital entrance, setting the items down beside him.
"He said it's personal. He didn't say anything more than that. If I had to guess, it has something to do with that boy he's been talking to. He came to visit a few weeks ago. He watched a warm-up, and they left together. I haven't seen Yuri much since. I don't know anything about it, so don't start." Yakov demanded, cutting off Victor's next line of questions.
"You should get back to your Yuri and check-in."
"You're right,I should. He's probably wondering what's keeping me. Thanks again. If you hear anything more about Yurio, let me know. I just want to know he's alright." After hanging up the call, Victor gathered his bags
He made his way through the automatic doors of the hospital, and down the corridor to the elevators. It seemed to take an eternity to make it to Yuri's room. He found the young man lying in bed, resting quietly. He put the bags on the chair and turned his attention to Yuri.
Yuri was pale, it never got easier for Victor to see him that way.
"Yuri, are you awake?" Victor called out, receiving no response. He leaned forward, kissing his future husband's forehead.
Yuri slowly opened his eyes, smiling up at Victor, and removed the earbud from his ear. Victor brushed back a few strands of dark hair from the young man's face.
"Sorry, I didn't mean to wake you." He said quietly. Yuri shook his head.
"You didn't. I was trying to get some rest before things get too crazy later. I had these in." Yuri motioned to the earbuds. "I do feel a little calmer than I did this morning."
"Good. What are you listening to?"The older man asked, sitting down on the edge of the bed.
"Just a few different songs. I just needed something to take my mind off of things for a while."
I don't blame You. These last three months have been pretty hard on you. I'm sorry it took so long to get back to you. Do you want me to get you anything?" Yuri shook his head.
"No. I'm fine. How did your meeting go?"
"It was informative. I wish you could've come with me. I think you'd get along with everyone."
"It would be great to at least get out of bed."Victor kissed Yuri's hand lovingly.
"As soon as you're strong enough, I'll get you out of here. You'll be able to rest in our bed, and Makkachin misses you. He was looking for you while I was there. Oh, I meant to tell you, when I logged into the page to give everyone an update, you had a ton of new messages. I think you have more fans than I do now."Victor teased.
"I highly doubt that." Yuri replied sleepily.
"Is it really that hard for you to believe so many people love you?"Victor replied.
"It's hard to imagine anyone having more people that love them than you."
You don't give yourself enough credit. You're beautiful, and-" Yuri scoffed.
"Yeah, Throwing up all the time is really attractive." He said sarcastically. Victor shook his head.
"You're still my Eros. There's nothing you can say or do to change that. So many people love you, Yuri. You should see these messages. They all want you to feel better. There were a couple people asking if you'll come back after our little one arrives."
"I told you. That was my last season. How am I even going to have the time with a new baby?"Yuri rested his hand on his belly."Victor? What if-I mean, I'm ten and a half weeks. We should be able to- we should see something."
"The doctor said not to panic. It takes longer sometimes. Especially first pregnancies and you did lose a lot of weight from your sickness. Our little miracle is a little smaller than other babies at this stage, but that doesn't mean you should worry. Our little one's strong, just like you."
"I don't feel like I am. Everything I've put him or her through. Before I forget, that test the doctor told us about, with the huge needle and taking that sample, you remember, Cv something?"
"What about it?"
"I'm not doing it. I talked to the doctor a little more and it's not worth the risks. It's not a routine test, so I'm just going to skip it. The baby already has enough to deal with. I'm not going to make it any harder on him or her than it has to be." Victor rested his head against Yuri's forehead.
"You're amazing."The silver-haired man kissed Yuri lovingly. "You continue to surprise me with all the strength and love you have for us. I was so sure you'd had enough the other day and you kept it together, I'm impressed."
"That's part of being a mom," Yuri replied. "We hold it together. I'm going to be a good mom for our little one. I have a lot to make up for."
"You're already the best. Can I ask you something? It's about Yurio-"
"Victor, you know I promised not to talk about that conversation." Yuri pointed out.
"I know. I just want to know…did he sound okay when you talked to him?"
"Mostly. Why, what's going on?"Victor sighed.
"I talked to coach Yakov, and Yurio decided to take some time off.. He thinks it has something to do with a boy that came to see him. I just want to make sure everything's alright." Yuri frowned.
He couldn't help but recall the conversation, hoping it wasn't connected to the decision.
"Have you talked to him since then?" Victor pressed.
"No. I let him know he could call us anytime. Maybe he just needs some space. Teens are like that sometimes."
"That's true, I suppose. It's hard not to worry. It's not like him to just suddenly do something like this. I guess I'm a little protective. Like I said, he doesn't have much of a support system. His grandfather is there for him, but his parents are another story. Coach Yakov's a tough man, but he always made sure we were okay. He doesn't like to show it, but he does actually care. "
"When the time's right, maybe he'll talk about it. There isn't much you can do until he's ready.
Victor reached over to the bags, pulling them onto the bed.
"Since you're a little better today, and it's been difficult, I thought we could do something fun. I stopped by the bookstore on the way back from the meeting." Yuri raised an eyebrow. Victor handed him a set of blue and pink pens, each one had a small plastic teddy bear attached to the clip. He then offered Yuri a journal. Yuri smiled faintly at the words on the cover.
Braver than you believe
Stronger than you seem
Loved more than you realize.
"That's not part of what I had planned, but when I saw it, I thought of you and how hard this is for you. It's something I want you to keep in mind. Sometimes it helps to write some thoughts down." He pulled out another journal with a lilac cover.
We believe in love at first sight because of you. had been printed white letters.
"I thought that if you're feeling up to it, we could go through some names. We can both make a list of our favorite ones, then we'll put them in here and may add a few things to it. When our little one is ready to be out on their own, we can give this to them, so they can see a little bit of what's going on now. We can put together a box or something with pictures and notes. I got the idea from one of the girls."
"I like that idea," Yuri confirmed. "I've given a little thought to names. If we have a daughter, I'd like to call her what she is." Victor tilted his head.
"Mira," Yuri said. "Short for Miracle. Maybe if we have a little boy, since he's your first son, we can call him…Victor. Or at least use it as a middle name." Victor smiled.
"Miracle Nikiforov, I like that. I think that's definitely going on the top of the list. I think it's wonderful that you'd want to honor me by giving my name to our son, but what about you?"
Yuri shrugged.
"I want him to have a name he can be proud of." He explained. "And it would fit him, I think. After all this."
"What if I wanted to call him Yuri? He could be proud of-"
"No. " Yuri interrupted. "One day he'll grow up and be able to look for videos of us online. If he some of my routines, or worse, if his friends happen to see any of this last season-"
"You were amazing." Victor pointed out.
"I hit my face off of the wall, I fell on-"
"A lot of people fall out there. I'm proud of what you've done. Our little one will be too."
"Or be embarrassed by his friends or classmates. I can hear them all now. 'Aren't you the kid of that one guy that just about broke his nose on the wall during a televised-"
"You're putting too much thought into that." Victor chuckled. "No one's going to-"
"You can't tell me that's not all over the internet," Yuri said skeptically.
"Everything does sooner or later, but I wouldn't worry too much. You've given them plenty of other things to watch." Victor pulled his feet onto the bed, lying down at Yuri's side and pulling the younger man into his arms.
"Whatever we name our child," Yuri said. "I want it to mean something special. It has to be perfect." Victor kissed his head.
"It will be." He promised. " We have plenty of time to find it. Let's just relax and enjoy this experience. "
"Yeah," Yuri replied softly. "Sounds like a good plan to me. Where should we start?"
"Anywhere you want, Yuri. You seem like you're pretty set on the girl name."
"I do love it, but I don't know what she'd think about it later. She'll be stuck with it until she's an adult. What if she hates it?"
"It's a beautiful name, I don't think she will. Right now, try to focus on this moment. We'll handle whatever comes our way when it happens, let's just be here now." Yuri nodded. He knew there was a lot of pressure involved in choosing a name for a child, but Victor hadn't steered him wrong yet. He took a breath and joined the older man in searching for the perfect name.