CHAPTER FOURTY

-This is why I never drink before competition! Victor! What did you let me do!?-

The final night before the Men's Singles competition ended in the lobby of the event's main hotel; the Scandic Park Helsinki. A significant number of skaters had wandered in and seen the growing number of participants...and soon, what began as just Yuri, Victor, and Chris...had become more than 60, from all skating disciplines...men and women alike. Even Yurio stopped by and lingered a while...though he mostly did so because he saw Otabek wall-flowering on his own there.

Many smaller conversations had started within the group, since it was difficult to hear one another across the full length what seemed to be a 50-foot-long couch. Drinks crowded the circular tops of the three small tables that were set up between the couch and the individual chairs opposite it.

Victor had claimed the corner-end of the couch, and Yuri naturally sat right next to him. The Russian had already had three drinks, and was starting to get into a heated debate with Chris. Yuri just watched them cautiously, and huffed a laugh to himself once in a while as they made their half-drunken points.

"...and it's the only time I'll ever do these programs, so why would I want to spoil the big reveal to everyone by doing my full show in costume and with music during practice?"

"That's why it's called a Dress Rehearsal, Victor."

"I was dressed!" He insisted.

"In costume." Chris retorted, "It's not fair that you've held out on us for so long. You're treating us worse than the audience." He pouted.

"You'll see tomorrow!"

"I've seen his outfits." Yuri chimed in proudly, hand up like a student in a classroom.

"That would only be surprising if it were the opposite." Chris explained casually, "We expect you've seen more of Victor's plans than the rest of us."

"Well, I haven't seen everything." Yuri pointed out defensively, "He even had these super secret private practice sessions for a few weeks in St. Petersburg. I didn't know what he was up to until we left for Barcelona, and even now I haven't seen it."

"Hmm...interesting pick, going back there, if I may say as such."

"Chris has a point." Phichit added quietly, having just sat back and listened like Yuri was since his arrival, "Why did you go back to Barcelona? You could've gone anywhere. Like...Thailand, as an example." He said specifically, and leaned to nudge his friend with an elbow, both brows up.

"It's where we got engaged, so why not?" Yuri answered, a nervous sweat on his skin as he desperately avoided having to explain why he still hadn't gone to Bangkok. He's never going to let me forget.

"It's weird to think you guys are actually married now." Phichit went on though, and smiled as he nursed his one drink for the evening, "I was so embarrassed when I realized you weren't after I'd congratulated you already..."

"I was sure you'd stay a bachelor until you retired." Chris chimed in, though he spoke more to Victor than anyone, "It didn't seem normal for you to just veer off and find someone."

"It's not like I went to Hasetsu just to seduce Yuri." Victor explained, only to pause and touch his chin with a finger, "...Well, okay, maybe mostly I did, but not entirely..."

Yuri chortled at him, "Victor, you presented yourself to me completely naked. I couldn't even understand what you were saying at the time because of it."

"I was in the onsen! I'd have gotten grief if I even let my towel fall in!" Victor insisted. Yuri just smirked.

"Tsh, Victor, you're such a horrible tease...why did you never show up in places for me naked?" Chris wondered piteously.

"That's true! And you probably would've appreciated it more, too!" Victor laughed, and the two reached out their glasses to clink them together.

"Ohhh...Victor, come be my coach next year!" The blonde beckoned, and blinked his eyes slowly as he pulled his drink back.

"No! No, he's mine!" Yuri waved his arms around protectively, "I already called dibs!" He pointed at his ring, "See?" Then at Victor's ring, "Dibs!"

"Maybe we should have another Dance-Off?" Chris taunted, "Whoever wins gets Victor for the night."

"Oohhh!" Victor clapped, "That sounds like fun!"

"You're not supposed to be happy about that!"

"Are you worried Chris might win?" The Russian ran his fingers though his beloved's hair before one of them slipped under Yuri's chin to draw him closer, then slid around the back of his head, "Are you thinking about what he'd do to me if he did?"

"Victor!" Yuri's face was bright red.

"Maybe it should be Victor and I having a Dance Battle over who gets Yuri for the night?" Chris mused. He rose up from his solo-chair and sett his drink down, only to get down on his knees and wedge himself between Yuri's legs provocatively, leaning into him as well as he could, "If I win, then I'll get to find out what it is about you that made Victor so happily leave the ice." His hands descended along the younger man's chest, slid around his waist, and cupped around Yuri's backside.

That just made Yuri jump out of his skin from the embarrassment, "Oh, I need an adult. Victor help!"

"Oh my..." Phichit whispered into his glass, "This is getting PG-rated rather quickly..."

"He does have quite the kissable face, don't you think?" Victor wondered, eyes on the two and quite entertained at it. He'd already pulled out his phone for pictures.

The blond looked Yuri in the eyes rather seductively, "More than just his face..."

"Victor save me!" He pleaded, trying to wriggle free but unable to.

"Okay, okay..." The Russian acknowledged, and dropped his phone to his chest. He then leaned over to liberate his husband from the evil Swiss skater's grasp. Chris played along and let up, and watched Yuri be guided over as he sat back in his own chair. Victor lead his partner by less than a finger under his chin, and he looked up at those cherry-hazel eyes longingly, "What kind of reward do I get for my daring rescue?"

Yuri couldn't find words for the moment, feeling more comfortable looking into Victor's eyes than into Chris'. He suddenly gave a more devious expression, "I don't know; what kind of reward would you want?"

"Wow~!" Victor smirked, and abruptly pulled the man up onto his lap, "And you haven't even had anything to drink tonight."

Chris whistled as he eagerly, and watched the lucky Russian pull his husband into a deep kiss right there in front of everyone. Many others in attendance started to noticed, and turned their heads to see the spectacle, several even cheering them on. Victor started to pull the zipper of his track-suit coat down when he abruptly paused, eyes going up to the stunned and confused look on his partner's face. A moment later, Yuri clutched at his head with both hands and snapped his sights up and across the room; the offending heel of bread that had been chucked at him fell to the floor by Victor's foot.

"Knock it off, dumbasses!" Yurio barked at them, arm still outstretched from his pitch, and leered at them despite the camera flashes and videos recording all around him, "This is a public place! We don't all need to see you making out!"

Yuri brushed some of the crumbs from his hair, and suddenly became super, incredibly aware of his situation - and all the smart-phones facing in his direction. He quickly got off Victor's lap, sat properly, and tried to become as small and unnoticeable as possible.

"Aww you're such a kill-joy, Yurio..." Victor whined; he pulled his partner to lean into a hug against his chest, though Yuri didn't return the gesture because of his previous humiliation, "It was all harmless fun!"

"It's harmless till one of you whips your dick out!"

"It wouldn't have gone that far!" Victor insisted, and protectively stroked his partner's hair.

"Says you, Mr. 'I run around the deck of the onsen buck-ass-naked.'"

The silver just laughed at that, "It's more relaxing that way!"

"...Who would even want to see either of us naked in public anyway?" Yuri wondered, mostly to himself as he deadpanned the entire situation.

To his surprise, a few hands nearby started rising, including Chris'...and then Victor's own as well.

"...Never mind...!" He stammered, his face turning even brighter red as he tried to hide it against his spouse's chest. The sheer intensity of Yuri's chagrin had lead him to request a drink from the bar, and soon after finishing it, decided to head up to their hotel room to cool his overworked humiliation-organs. He checked his phone as he went up the elevator, face going red all over again as pictures and video of the event started circulating online.

I can't believe I let that happen... He thought, mortified at himself, It was already bad enough when Phichit posted photos of Victor and me at the hot-pot restaurant...and he was still just my coach then. I know we're married now, but he's competing again! We should be taking things seriously!

He tossed his phone onto the bed when he got back into the room, and went face-down next to it soon after. He whined loudly into the blankets, I wish Makkachin was here... The reason for the pup's absence was on a small end-table nearby; confirmation print-out for 'Tassuvahi Oy Ab,' a well-regarded pet boarding facility near their hotel. Pets - after all - weren't allowed at the event, or in their room.

Yuri faded fast and fell asleep, with all the lights in the room on, until he felt himself jostled awake again by someone flipping him over. Half-conscious and still slightly buzzed, he thought he could see Victor there, and even worse, Chris standing behind him. Victor wedged himself between his knees, and pulled those legs against either side of his hips, groping for the openings to clothing in an attempt to pull them off. Yuri could feel the man pressing hard against his hips. He shot up after that though, yelling protests into the air of an empty room.

Panting heavily, he looked around the small space, hopeful - and perhaps fearful - that the offending Swiss had just leapt behind a wall somehow. The more he looked though, the more be settled into the idea that it was just him in there...and as his heart-rate came down again, he noticed that the yellow, Chris-shaped blob in his nightmare had actually been a sunflower in a painting on the wall ahead of him, and with a heave, he fell backward on the bed.

...Just a bad dream. Victor would never really suggest inviting Chris into our bed, right...?

He turned his head as he heard the sound of the door-lock being released, and the door opened after it; Victor himself came stumbling in. His face was flushed and his hair messy, and it wasn't long before the track-suit coat he'd started removing in the lounge finally came off and was tossed aside.

But, unlike in Yuri's waking nightmare, Victor didn't just go over and force himself between his legs. The Russian stepped to the edge of the bed and went face-down into it next to him, just as he himself had earlier in the night. Yuri gawked at him ponderously, and looked over to the alarm clock to see its face reading 2:37am.

"Too much to drink?"

"Mnnh..."

"Are you going to be okay to skate later?"

"Mhmm..."

Yuri cocked a brow at him, "...Would you really let Chris have his way with me?"

"Mm'mm..."

The answer was easy, but Yuri wondered if Victor was even really paying attention. That inquiry was soon answered though, and Victor turned his face, then pushed himself onto his side, then onto his back, and looked up to meet his partner's gaze; Yuri had had propped himself up on his elbow. The Russian reached up one hand to find his husband's, but soon after, lifted it and cupped that hand over the man's cheek, "No one gets to have you but me." He said blearily, "We may joke around, but Chris knows I'd never let him touch you like that. Not seriously."

"What about you?"

Victor smiled through his messy bangs, his eyes barely open as he looked up at his husband, "I've known Chris since we were barely out of the Junior division. We've always joked around...but we've never acted on those jokes. I'm actually not that terribly into guys."

"...Huh...?" Yuri felt a pit in his stomach, which was made worse by how Victor's words contradicted what he was doing at that moment.

"You're different." He reassured though, and put that weary, worried mind at ease again, "I'm not just into you...I love you."

...I've heard that alcohol can make a person say truths that they normally wouldn't...is this like that? Is he too drunk to tell a lie?

"What about you?" Victor wondered pointedly, as though not realizing how weird his question was. The ball was back in Yuri's court.

"...What about me?" He repeated, "...Of course, I love you, too... I don't understand."

"Were you into guys before I came along?" The alcohol asked.

Yuri furrowed his brow, but he shook his head, "I only ever had a crush on one person in my whole life, and that person wasn't a guy."

"You were really freaked out by Chris. I almost felt a little bad egging him on like that..." Victor sighed, arms up above his head as he stretched, "But it was just so much fun..."

"...Chris is too much for me." Yuri answered with a shrug, "You're the only person I've ever let myself really fall for." He turned so he could lay on his side, and set his head ear-side-down on his spouse's tummy to look up at him, "You said the other day that we were like soul-mates. Maybe I'm just Victor-sexual."

The Russian lifted his head to look down at him, perplexed at first, but then smiled and let his head fall back again, "Victor-sexual." He repeated, "...That's good, I like that. I'm Yuri-sexual for sure."

"Careful who you say that to." The younger man joked, "People might get the wrong idea."

Victor pulled himself upright again rather quickly, dumping Yuri's head into his lap in the process, and laughed at the whole thing, "Wouldn't that be hilarious!? I say I'm Yuri-sexual and everyone thinks I mean Yurio!"

"Pleeff djon fey chep." (Please don't say that.) Yuri muffled against Victor's belly, and finally pulled himself out again to sit upright, "I couldn't stand the shame."

"He's half my age; that would be horrible!" The silver explained, though he still thought it was hysterically funny though, "I think people would see more sense in my saying I'm katsudon-sexual!"

"...I dunno about that..." Yuri puffed, and moved to lean against his husband's frame, one arm tilted over the man's lap to find purchase in the blankets beside the opposite hip, "Remember how you told me that the time for thinking of katsudon and girls was over?" He asked, and saw that vacant-but-understanding drunken smile answer him. Yuri shook his head and changed the subject, "Yurio asked that you make him katsudon if he wins Gold this weekend." He said, then gave a strangely solemn look, "...Promise you won't?"

"Did I promise I would? I'm pretty hazy right now..."

"You didn't have time to say one way or another. Newscaster Morooka popped up right after he'd mentioned it."

"Oohhhh yeah, and we got that photo!" Victor said excitedly, "I haven't even had a chance to post it to my Instagram yet!"

"It's okay. I already did."

"...You did?" The Russian was entirely confused, "...Where? I didn't see it."

Yuri pulled his phone out from under where Victor's legs had covered it, and loaded up the Instagram app. With a few clicks, he pulled up his account, and showed the post to his pickled husband.

y-nikiforov
[photo]
1,213 likes
y-nikiforov Finally feels like everything came full-circle here at #Worlds. Got the photo I'd been offered at #SochiGPF with v-nikiforov that I was too ashamed to take at the time. Now I'm on top of the world with him! Thank you for putting up with my shortcomings, Victor! I'll make you proud!
#WorldChampionships #ISUSkating #MensSingles #SkateHusbands #Victuri

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Victor just stared at it for what seemed like forever; the photo was simple - showing Yuri and himself together just outside the stadium where they'd been earlier in the night. He had his arm over his partner's shoulders while Yuri had his opposite arm snaked around his back; they both smiled excitedly, "It really is like déjà vu." The Russian commented, "...If not for your missing glasses, and our rings, you'd really think this was then."

"Right?"

"You even made a new account to post this." He pointed out, "...y-nikiforov."

"A new name for a new time in my life. This is all possible because of you, Victor." Yuri said, his cheeks a little pink as he sat cross-legged on the bed, eyes on the man who still had his phone, "I don't even know what I'd be doing with my life if you hadn't crashed head-first into it like you did last year. I...can't even find the right way to thank you properly for all of this. I keep trying and it keeps being turned into something else..."

"Jeeze, you make it sound like you haven't done anything at all for me to this point."

"...Maybe I just haven't done enough."

"You're still on your way." Victor reassured, "To thanking me for being your coach, I mean. You owe me five World Championship Gold medals to hang on our wall back home, and every Gold medal you can take between them. Four Continents, the Grand Prix Series and Finale, All Japan...all of them. Every one."

Yuri held his hand out as Victor gave him back his phone, and then lifted his brown eyes to meet the blue in front of him.

"For the rest...I married you, didn't I?" The Russian purred, and raised himself up to lean into his beloved's space, touching their nose-tips together, "You've given me more than I could ask for on that front."

"...Victor."

"Keep giving me everything, okay, Yuri? Your heart, body, soul...all of it. And you'll always have mine."