CHAPTER SEVENTY SIX
[Yuri's friend just messaged Chris. They're coming back now. You should, too.]
Minako was looking at her phone, reading the message from Yuuko as it came in.
"Phichit found Yuri." She said, nodding her head over to where Mikhail was in the driver's seat, "We can go back."
"It's going to be awkward there for a while until Yuri apologizes to Viktor. Do you really want to jump back into the middle of it?" He wondered.
"...Maybe not." She sighed, putting her phone away, looking out as the snow was starting to really come down, "We have to go somewhere though. We'll be sliding around like air-hockey discs in this before long."
"Lady's choice."
"Oh!" She got excited, "I run a snack bar! We should go there. At least there's wifi."
"A ballet studio and a snack bar? You're quite the entrepreneur."
"Have to pay the bills somehow!"
.
.
.
Yuri and Phichit were standing just under the entrance arch to Yu-Topia Katsuki. Yuri sighed, not wanting to step through it.
"You don't have to confront him right now, you know." Phichit explained, "He went upstairs anyway, right after you left. I doubt he's come back down already."
"...Can you check?"
"Yuri...!" Phichit lamented, "All right...all right...hang on." The Thai skater went up and did as asked, sticking his head in through the front door before disappearing inside briefly, then coming back out a minute later to wave his former rink-mate inside as well.
Yuri went in nervously, not all that keen on confronting the rest of the crew either, but at least they weren't Viktor. Unexpectedly though, as soon as he was in the door and closed it behind himself, his mother whirled him around, pulled off his backpack, and pointed at the doorway to the onsen.
"Don't come out until you're ready to deal with what happened." She said firmly, as only a mother could.
He wasn't going to argue though, and nodded solemnly before stepping off, pulling his heavy long-coat off as he went. By the time he'd changed, washed, sat in the indoor tub, and then finally moved to the outdoor pool, it was already dark. There weren't any other guests in the spring at the time, which was fortunate.
Yuri put the small towel on his head carefully and slowly stepped into the hot water, sitting on the ledge where he entered, and sinking to just under his chin.
...Mom says not to come out until I'm ready to talk to Viktor...but I'm not supposed to sit in this thing all night, either...
He sighed and lifted his head to the falling snow.
I don't even know how to approach him about it now. I messed up so badly... I wonder what he's doing right now...?
Viktor was just lying on his right side in bed, earbuds in, playing music from his phone. He had his arms crossed tightly, head on the pillow above him, and an angry look on his face, even with his eyes closed. He still hadn't changed out of the practice clothes he'd worn since the last attempt at getting into the Ice Castle. The lights were all off, but there was still enough ambiance through the windows that the room was cast darkly in a blue shade.
Yuri sat on the outer ledge for a little while, his feet dangling into the hot water. It had been an hour and a half since Phichit had made him come back, and he decided it was finally enough...he had to deal with this. He went back into the wash room, changed back into his clothes, and nervously made his way up to the banquet room.
Careful not to make any sound as he approached, Yuri stood in front of the closed doors, staring at the latch quietly. He shook his head and drew in a deep breath, letting it back out slowly, "...Viktor? You in there?"
No answer.
Yuri wasn't sure what that meant, but he went on, assuming the man was there anyway.
"I'm sorry I made a big scene. I don't know why I got all worked up about your plans. It didn't even come out the way I meant it..."
Still no answer.
The fragile skater's heart was starting to break all over again, but he didn't dare touch the door to go inside. He could feel the tears splashing against his toes where they fell from his down-turned face and hit the floor. He shook his head, "I'm sorry...!" He whispered with finality, turning away to go back the way he came. By the time he got back to his old room, he was an even bigger mess than he had been on the bridge, but thankfully it was far enough away from the common room that no one would hear him.
He pushed the door open, and made his way inside...only to find his breath catch in his throat with surprise.
Viktor was lying on his bed, back towards him.
"If you still have that ring on your finger, then don't come in." The Russian said flatly.
Yuri just rubbed his eyes on his arm, "...But this is my room." His voice was scratchy, but he found his words anyway.
"This room belongs to Yuri Katsuki."
"I am Yuri Katsuki."
"Oh?" Viktor finally pushed himself up and swung his legs over the edge, the earbuds coming out of his ears as he went, "Then so sorry for the intrusion. For a minute, I thought you were Yuri Nikiforov. My mistake. I'll see myself out."
The younger skater watched in horror as his idol rose back up to his full height and was stepping forward towards the door, but instinct took over and his right hand came up, planted itself in the middle of the Russian's chest, and stopped him.
"...That's not what I meant and you know it." Yuri said quietly, not daring to turn his head.
Viktor was the same, staring straight ahead...but soon, he moved his eyes, lowering them to see that Yuri still had the gold band on the hand holding him where he stood.
"It was cruel to set up that word-game just now." Yuri went on, his eyes and throat still raw, but feeling a sense of calm somehow, "You had two hours to think of what you would say when I came back, and that's what you came up with? A way of tricking me into suggesting I'm not your spouse anymore, no matter how I answer or what I do?"
"I didn't think my husband would humiliate me in front of friends, family, and strangers alike."
"What I said came out wrong." Yuri said painfully, reaching up to his throat with his free hand; not that it would do any good, "I'm sorry for that."
"How can I accept an apology when it's clear you don't even know what you're apologizing for?" Viktor asked, pushing Yuri's hand away to stand side-face and glared at him, "You don't even get why I'm mad at you right now."
"I thought I was trying to encourage you not to give up, the same way you've encouraged me...but I entirely failed to see that what you're doing isn't even the same thing." The younger figure said, trying not to cry again, "In the end, I just blurted out all the things you're worried other people will say, when I should've been the one to stand by and support you. I heaped my insecurities onto you like we process things the same way...and completely disrespected everything I know to be true about you."
Viktor continued to glare at him, but his expression softened a little.
"...So my attempts at being supportive turned into what felt like an attack. I can't take back what I said, but I understand now what it sounded like to you and I am so sorry."
The Russian drew in a deep breath and crossed his arms.
"...Vik...tor...?" Yuri chanced a glance at the man, but averted his eyes again when he could see that Viktor was still glowering at him, even if he wasn't looking directly his way.
"You don't know how worried I am about this next year because I don't want you to worry, too." He finally said, stepping forward to close the door, and keeping his hand on it, "You already worry so much about everything else. Until you can learn to manage it, I don't want you stressing over me, too."
"We're supposed to be in this together."
"...I know."
"So why aren't we?"
Viktor shrugged.
"What else don't I know?"
The Russian leaned his shoulder against the door, turning slightly to face into the room again, "...Too much, and yet nothing."
"If it were up to me, you'd tell me when something was bothering you, even if you know I'll worry about it." Yuri pointed out, "I'd rather worry about something real than about the unknown and maybe nonexistent. 'Sanctuary of warmth and peace' and all that, right? Even if there's nothing I can actually do to fix whatever's wrong, stressing over it makes me feel like I'm at least in the fight with you. Remember when you were still on the fence about Mikhail at Worlds? And I said I owned a pair of boots with knives on the bottom?"
Viktor couldn't help but smile and huff a laugh at that.
"Even though Mikhail ended up being totally fine...feeling like I could do something to protect you made everything else easier." Yuri could feel the tightness in his chest starting to let up, "Especially for something like that whole debacle with Konstantin... I'd like to think that that was something more I could've done, bu-"
"You did more than I could've ever asked of you." Viktor cut him off, "More than I ever even expected. You even came in handy that one time..."
"...I did?"
The Russian nodded, finally turning to look at his partner again, "My father was telling me I shouldn't even hold your hand. So I told him if he didn't mind his own business, I'd French kiss you right there in his house, and sear the image in his mind forever."
"That would've gone over like a lead balloon."
"...It would've been worth it. He'd have to have burned the whole house down to remove the taint."
"You never did say how it all turned out in the end." Yuri noted, cautiously reaching his right hand out to Viktor's, "I nearly had a stroke when I saw him reaching for your face on the hill."
"Me too." He answered, feeling the man's fingers brushing against his skin. He moved his hand forward and took Yuri's wholly into his own, lifting it to his lips to kiss the ring, raising his other hand to join it and holding them all together there for a few seconds, "He said he'd basically been forced by Divine Edict to accept my skating, but not to bother asking him to accept us."
"...I guess that's enough."
"I don't even know that I'll ever see him again. He'll never actually apologize for the things he did to me...and it didn't matter much before that he didn't accept my skating, so it still doesn't really matter now that he does."
Yuri furrowed his brow at that, "So you really didn't get much resolution out of it after all."
"I didn't go up there to find resolution, or make peace, with Konstantin. I found out the truth of the circumstances surrounding my mother's death, and soon, we'll both find out how the rest turned out. Whatever it is...I can't let it change me. I refuse to let it. The person I am now and the one I would've been if I never left...they're too different to reconcile. Besides..." He moved his left hand forward and brushed it through Yuri's hair before settling it on his cheek, sliding his thumb just under the younger man's eye, "...If I had never left, I would never have met my soul mate. I'd take a thousand punches in the eye if it meant I'd still get to be with you in the end."
Yuri's eyes widened as he heard the words, and his cheeks flushed, "...You...really think of me as...?"
Viktor nodded, the happy smile back on his face where Yuri had seriously wondered if he'd ever see it again, "There's an old Greek story that says people were originally created as one being, with four arms, four legs, and two faces. Fearing man's power, Zeus split us apart, and condemned us to seek out our other half forever." He stepped forward and pulled Yuri into a tight hug, "...Even though you sometimes do things that make no sense whatsoever, or even drive me crazy...I've never felt more whole than I have since I finally caught you and made you mine."
The younger man buried his face in the crook of Viktor's neck, holding him tight as well, happy tears falling from his eyes. The relief at the whole thing was palpable, and he could feel his whole body easing up. He felt the Russian leaning down as well, kissing the side of his neck where he could get at it. Yuri knew where this would go and was all for it, even starting to move away from the door, pulling Viktor with him a few foot-shuffles at a time, leaning his head up to kiss him as they went. Soon, he turned the taller man around and gently guided him down to his bed before crawling in on top of him.
Yuri could feel his husband relaxing under him, especially when he pulled out of a kiss and flopped his head and arms down to the pillow. He was looking up with half-lidded eyes and a 'do whatever you want' look on his face...and Yuri was going to do just that. He leaned down to kiss him again as his hands moved down Viktor's chest, tugging on the black t-shirt he usually wore for practice, and pulling it up until he could see skin.
Viktor's whole body flinched as Yuri's apparently-rather-cold hands touched him, but he just laughed at himself for it and settled to let them warm up as they moved. He got a little revenge though since his own hands were fairly cold as well, and Yuri jumped as he slid them under his own shirt. That just made the Russian laugh again, and he pushed his hips up against his partner as he came back down again. Viktor wasted no more time though, feeling he was starting to stir, and reached those hands up to pull Yuri's dark-blue practice shirt away, then the rest of his own, and tossing them both to the floor next to the bed.
He started to move his hips a little more after that, pushing up against where Yuri straddled over him. The feeling of it caught the younger man, and he paused a little to savor it...at least until Viktor literally took hold of him rather unexpectedly and he drew in a rather loud gasp, crying out in surprise.
"...Viktor!" He whisper-yelled.
"Oh...you should keep doing that. That was great~."
"Half the resort probably heard me..." Yuri's face was bright red, and he brought his hands up to cover his mouth from the embarrassment, looking around as though he worried someone would come running to check if he was hurt.
"Then I'm going to make it my mission to make sure the entire resort hears you by the end of it."
His brows furrowed in worry at the prospect of it, but Viktor didn't let him dwell on it for long, keeping hold of him in his right hand as he rose to sit up, parting his knees like he were sitting half-cross-legged, and forcing Yuri to sit slightly deeper on his lap. He pressed his forehead to Yuri's and looked in his eyes as he started to stroke, which inevitably caused the younger man to lose focus until Viktor started kissing him again. Yuri's arms went over Viktor's shoulders, the fingers of one hand running through his silver-grey hair as Viktor leaned forward and over him. He could feel the Russian's free hand tracing down the entire length of his spine, slowly teasing until finally coming to rest against his lower back and side.
The further back Yuri leaned, the further down Viktor's kisses trailed, until it became apparent that the remains of their clothing were going to get in the way. Viktor leaned back again after that, pulling Yuri with him, and then pulling at the edges of his black and aqua practice pants. Yuri took the hint and rose up on his knees to make it easier, leaning over Viktor's head and kissing him as the garment came away. He only settled back to where he was after he could feel that Viktor had pushed both of their clothes off and was ready. By then, Viktor was half-sitting-up again, and held Yuri close against his chest as he slid back down to sitting. He took them both in his hand to hold them together as Yuri moved to slide back up again a little, then back down, then up again...rhythmically, but slowly, steadily.
Viktor only moved to twist over the edge of the bed briefly after that, catching Yuri by surprise again but for entirely different reasons. He watched as the Russian pulled the corner of the mattress up a little bit.
"...What are you doing?" Yuri wondered.
"I hid stuff here." Viktor answered, reaching his hand down to try and find what he was after.
"You hid stuff under my mattress?"
"Sure!"
"...Already?"
"The day after we got here~!" He finally came back with the small bottle happily in hand, "I made sure to put the warming one here since you like it."
Yuri's face was red again.
...I need to get rid of the posters before he finds them-
"I found your collection while looking for a hiding spot, too." Viktor cut off his train of thought, as though having heard his thoughts.
Yuri could've died in that moment, his mind going blank.
"I noticed you had a bunch of the same images though. I'll have to get you a better variety..." The Russian went on, even as he was dribbling the warming liquid between them like it was no different from any other chore he'd ever done, then capping the bottle to drop it to the sheets and replacing that hand around them where it had been before, spreading the liquid around. He moved back up to touch his nose to Yuri's affectionately, "Did you ever do this sort of thing by yourself, when all the posters were still up?"
"...I'd have to be a eunuch for you to believe me if I said I didn't." Yuri answered cautiously, his mind half-wandering between the embarrassment of the confession and how good it felt where Viktor held him, sliding his hand up and down and around.
"Did you think of me when you did it?"
"...My walls were literally a...ahh...a shrine to you..."
"That's not what I asked, Yuri~." Viktor purred, continuing on, squeezing a little harder as he went.
"...Maybe."
"Yuuuuri~!"
"S...Sometimes..."
"Did you imagine me on top or you?" The Russian asked pointedly, looking into his partner's eyes as he did so. It put Yuri on the edge rather quickly, and Viktor could feel it, so he eased off with a smirk, "...Well?"
The younger skater was thoroughly embarrassed, but he knew he'd have to answer, "...You...always you."
"Mmh...I thought so." The Russian mused, moving both hands over Yuri's legs to curl behind and under him, pulling up a little against his skin to make him rise. As the man did so, Viktor repositioned himself, and then let Yuri sit back down again, "Did you want me to dominate you?"
"...V-Viktor...!" Yuri answered between clenched teeth, hardly able to comprehend what the question even was anymore. He could feel the man beneath him though; long, thick, slick, and ready for his answer.
"I always felt you responded better if I made it as equal as possible, but...I could be convinced..." Viktor continued, smiling devilishly, resting his forearms on Yuri's thighs where they parted around him, and using one hand to hold himself up to press against the man's lower half, moving just enough to remind Yuri that he was anxiously waiting, "So what do you want me to do, hm?"
The younger man flinched, "...Here I thought I'd be doing most of the work tonight to make up for my faults earlier..."
"You're avoiding the questiooonnnnn~!" Viktor hummed, moving in closer to kiss at Yuri's neck.
"...I..." He started, nervous.
"Mhm?"
"...I want you to do whatever you want to do."
"And if I want to go hard and fast?"
Yuri gulped, "...Then just ease me into it."
"Always." The Russian lifted his head again, kissing Yuri's chin and then nose before looking into his eyes, "This should be fun~!"
The younger man nodded anxiously, feeling where Viktor was starting to press harder against him.
"Cry out." Viktor said suddenly.
"...Huh?"
"...I want to hear how it feels when I get inside you."
The group in the common room had settled into watching whatever the other guests had put on the television, conceding dibs on the entertainment after their group-mates had caused a scene earlier in the night. Some soccer game was playing, which numbed the minds of those who cared little for it, Chris especially.
He lifted his head as he heard something though.
"What is it?" Phichit wondered.
"...Turn the TV down."
The Thai skater moved off to get the remote from another table, hitting mute for a moment to the complaints of the other patrons. Everyone listened closely though, and heard another noise.
"There it is again." Yurio said curiously, "Sounds like a cat."
"...I don't think that's a cat." Chris mused, only to be validated by a rather loud cry after that, but in a voice that was more familiar, "...Oh, good. That's a relief." Chris felt the tension lifting a little when he heard it again.
"Oh my god they're fucking." Yurio said incredulously, looking up at the ceiling like they were doing it right above them.
"LANGUAGE." Yuuko chastised him, "There's kids here!" She had already bundled her triplets together in a row, her hands covering the ears on the two on the outside while the sides of their heads covered the ears of the one in the middle. They were smirking though despite their mother's efforts.
Yurio slunk lower, "...They're...doing it..."
"Sounds like it hurts..." Phichit said anxiously.
"...It's make-up sex. It can get rough." Chris laughed, watching with hilarity as both Phichit and Yuuko burst backward with nosebleeds as they definitely heard Yuri yelling out Viktor's name.