CHAPTER TWO HUNDRED SIXTY NINE
The energy in the arena made the air tingle. It was palpable to every skater as they glided across the ice, twisting and turning , careful to keep a large berth between themselves. There was a surgical precision to the way they each got their practice time, each skater staying close to the inside edge of the rink wall while just moving in a relatively straight line, working on their moves in the field or step-work. Those who wanted to jump would wait until getting to one of the rink's four rounded corners, then would break off to make a tight turn towards the inner part of the ice, launch, spin, land, and rejoin the circle by the wall.
By the 3-minute mark, all but Yuri had jumped. He moved nervously around the rink, feeling the eyes of the audience bearing down on him. His heart was pounding from the nerves of it all.
Half the audience is worried I'll jump and fall. Half the audience is hoping for it, just for the excitement of it. ...It's so different from how things were in Canada or China. At least there, I was nervous because of the pressure to win.
His eyes moved over to where the NBC Newscaster was still speaking to the camera at rink-side, no doubt answering questions to news anchors elsewhere about what was going on with the competitors. The man lifted his head and glanced over a shoulder, looking straight at Yuri for a moment, and then pointing at the skater as he zipped by.
"...-kater Yuri Nikiforov hasn't jumped yet, but that might be bec-..."
It was all he could hear before he was too far away again.
Ahh this is so nerve-wrackin-
"Yuri."
He practically jumped out of his skin, launching some 10ft into the air from the fright of it. When he landed again, his skates threatened to slide out from under him, but mercifully, a bracing set of arms came around his sides and kept him on his feet.
"If you could get that kind of height on purpose, that'd be something else." Viktor laughed, holding firmly to his partner, "Sorry though. What were you thinking just now?"
Yuri let the Russian push him along, sagging a bit where the adrenaline rush was fading from the startle, "...Just about how different the energy is here..."
"Go do a double Lutz then. Take the edge off."
"You sure?"
"Mh. I'll stand by."
Yuri found his feet again and started moving along on his own, hand moving down to take his spouse's for the last few yards before the rink turned. Otabek's blades cracked the frost as he landed a quad Toe, and he glided off effortlessly as the older skater moved in to follow in the scratch-marks left on the ice. Viktor slid just a bit further behind and to the right, hands parked on his hips as he watched.
With some speed picked up, Yuri pushed through a 3-turn, twisting himself to skate backwards, readied his launching skate...and clapped it hard into the ice. The audience practically went silent for that span of two seconds where the young athlete was in the air, and then clapped excitedly when he landed, sliding off with only a slight wobble.
Sighing with relief, Yuri held his hand out for his partner to come up close again, feeling those fingers sliding into his own and curling them around, "Whew..."
"That looked pretty good. It was a triple though."
"Yeah, I realized halfway through that I was going too fast..." He lamented anxiously, "Couldn't do much about it in the air though. Was it really okay?"
Viktor nodded, "Maybe just -1 GOE for the wobble, but otherwise fi-"
"Will the skaters please exit the rink. The 6-minute warm-up has come to an end."
The two lifted their heads to the sound of the announcer, but nodded and started moving off. Sliding towards the center of the rink, they saw Chris and Phichit heading the same way, the four of them stopping directly on top of the ISU logo. Otabek saw and was heading that way, too, but had to stop and grab Yurio by the back of his jacket to make him join in.
When all six skaters were in the middle together, the first four almost instinctively moved to link arms behind one anothers' backs, Chris to Viktor, Viktor to Yuri, Yuri to Phichit. The Russian Tiger reluctantly joined in when he saw Otabek take his place next to the Swiss skater, he himself between the Kazakh and the Thai athletes.
"It's kind of weird that it's the six of us here at this Final." Viktor started, "We're all linked to each other in some form or another, and not just as skaters either."
"It's the Grand Prix Final of Friendship!" Phichit laughed, "Let's all do our best!"
The eldest competitors all smirked or smiled at that, nodding to one another. Otabek nodded in solidarity, but Yurio just glanced around in uncomfortable silence, looking briefly from the Kazakh to Yuri, but saying nothing.
"No one go easy on Yuri," Chris commented wryly, "He's got that annoying habit of busting out the big-guns when he's down to the wire."
"Right?" Viktor laughed in agreement, pulling his arm back from where it was around his friend's back and sticking it into center, "Phichit's right, too. Everyone do your best...and let's all have fun while we're at it. I, for one, am totally over the drama of the last few weeks. I just want to properly thrash the whole lot of you like old times."
More laughter, and if not, knowing smiles, save the slight side-eye from the Tiger. Hands started to stack on top of the silver legend's, with Chris putting in second, then Phichit eagerly, and Otabek's after that. Yuri brought his eyes up to glance across the pile towards the blonde, meeting those emerald irises for a split second before reaching forward and adding his hand to the tower.
"Like Viktor and Phichit-kun said...we're all friends here." The Japanese skater said, "No more hurt feelings, and no harm done. Let's all skate like we want Gold, if not because we all really actually want it, but because we all want to see the look on Viktor's face when he has to look up at someone else from the next podium down."
"Just like at Worlds." Chris winked at them both, though Viktor just gave a hesitant smile.
"Yes, just like at Worlds." He dipped his hand low to take the stack down, "May we all look up at Yuri in the end then."
"No pressure." That certain SkateHusband mused nervously.
The tower of hands was quickly brought back up again, and the flock of skaters burst out from center, with Chris moving off to the side to find his coach as the rest headed for the exit to find their blade guards.
"The first skater of the Men's Singles bracket is Christophe Giacometti of Switzerland."
"A fantastic show of sportsmanship from all the competitors this evening. But...on with the show. Normally, rank assignments are made in the reverse order of qualification," The NBC reporter was saying, the camera pointing towards the gaggle of athletes, "But today, it's coming up in order of random draw."
1 [CHE] Christophe GIACOMETTI
2 [RUS] Yuri PLISETSKY
3 [KAZ] Otabek ALTIN
4 [RUS] Viktor NIKIFOROV
5 [THA] Phichit CHULANONT
6 [JPN] Yuri NIKIFOROV
"This works out really well, and really poorly, for injured skater Yuri Nikiforov, who was involved in the accident that removed Canadian skater Jean-Jacque Leroy from the Final." The reporter went on, watching Chris as he got his final motivational talk and hug from his coach, "Going dead-last means he has the longest time to wait and get any last bit of recovery he can, after splitting his head on the ice. But it also means tension for the final Short Program placements will be highest when he goes out there, so he'll be feeling the pressure to beat everyone who skated before him. For now though, we turn our attention back to the ice, where Swiss skater Christophe Giacometti is about to kick-off the Men's Singles event. At age 27, Chris has qualified for a number of Grand Prix Finals, but never quite managed to take Gold. He's in the twilight of his skating career though, and this may well be his last chance to get to the top of the podium."
"Chris~! Davai!" Viktor called, waving an arm around where he and the rest of the skaters were heading under the blue curtain to the prep area and out of the way.
"Ganba!" Yuri added, careful this time not to let his husband whop him in the face like he'd done cheering for Yurio during the previous season.
As before, Chris' Short Program ensemble was a one-piece, dark for the most part, starting as black and rising up to chest-level where splatters of white came into play. A thickly-cut window streaked across the skater's chest, covered by lace and a starburst of red crystal over his heart, appearing the 'drip' blood down the length of his frame to waist level.
Having seen the show once before, the costume made more sense than it had the first time. Yuri thought back on the day Chris had told them in France what it was all for.
.
"Viktor...we've been doing this for a very long time." He started, "I think it's time I showed my appreciation for all the years we've been friends, don't you think?"
"Eh?" Blue eyes blinked in confusion.
The Swiss winked and clapped his long-time friend's shoulder, "You'll see."
.
"Life on the ice isn't just about winning multicolored metal discs, you know?" The taller skater said, patting Viktor's back, "You'll be surprising crowds for years to come at all the Exhibitions you'll be getting invited to. So stop talking about your retirement like it's the end for you. I think the fact that you won't be constrained by rules and regulations will be great for your muse. The competition circuit is holding you back."
Yuri watched and listened closely, rather surprised by the skater's efforts. His impartial observation was suddenly ended though when he felt Chris grab his coat and dragged him into the hug as well.
"Let your cute young husband deal with the rigid structure of these events." The taller man went on, "Look how far he's come because of you. He thrives on what you do for him. So...use him to bring home the gold, but free yourself to be the artist that everyone knows you wanted to be all along."
.
They made their way to one of several big-screen televisions that were set up under the stadium for skaters to watch the competition from. There were a number of other athletes still there from the Ladies and Pairs events prior to the Opening Ceremonies, and many were keen to see how the Men handled themselves. When the SkateHusbands had finished putting their team jackets on and found their place within a small crowd, Viktor took his usual spot, latched to his partner's back, right hand clinging to the waist as the left came up under an arm to hold a shoulder just under where he rested his chin.
Yuri's eyes were glued to the screen, but he let himself put his hands in his pockets, but pulled his partner's right hand with it from where it had been parked on his hip.
Chris made this show with Viktor in mind. The young skater thought, watching as the Swiss athlete made his way towards the center of the rink to take position, All the times that people had been harping at him about his age and looming retirement...and no one but Chris thought to wonder what Viktor could do to stay in skating even after competition. It's one thing to be a coach...but he did that just to be around me. Viktor's heart is on the ice. He'd never be satisfied with watching others skate without him...not for long, anyway. If he has legs to stand on, he'll have blades on his feet.
The Russian held on a little tighter as the music started.
['Broken' - Lifehouse]
Chris had his head bowed, leaning slightly forward with the left hand curled behind his back, the right gesturing forward, right leg crossed over the other. With the quiet strum of a single acoustic guitar resonating high above, he lifted his head up and looked to the horizon, twisting around and pushing off to the side. He glided effortlessly across the surface of the ice, twisting to and fro, until the lyrics began.
The broken clock is a comfort, it helps me sleep tonight,
His arms moved in wide gestures, as though telling the story of the music. Hands came down and together under the side of his chin, blades twisting under him, moving him along in a slow, sliding rotation, leaving overlapping oval scratches in the frost. When his hands went out again, he leaned forward, kicking through a few stars-maneuvers, before...
Maybe it can stop tomorrow from stealing all my time.
...the last kick vaulted him into a butterfly jump, landing upright and starting to rotate swiftly for the flying-entry camel spin.
And I am here still waiting though I still have my doubts,
He rotated in the normal formation at first. A hand then went back to reach for the upright blade, holding onto it for the donut variant, spinning several times before leaning back for the layover variant.
I am damaged at best...like you've already figured out.
The blonde backed out of the spin and rounded the end of the rink, spinning and twisting elegantly as he made his way back to the other side, picking up speed as he moved back towards a curved corner.
I'm falling apart,
Outside spread-eagle into a triple axel.
I'm barely breathing.
Step sequence; blades flew under the athlete, his whole frame bobbing slightly or arching with the beat of the music. He carved a long, serpentine path across the ice, bringing his hands up to his chest to cover the ruby-red starburst in its center.
With a broken heart that's still beating.
In the pain, there is healing,
He dipped down low, almost into a sit-spin but not quite. Hands clutched over his head while he was down, as though reeling from some hurt. But, he rose back up again, twisting to glide backwards, then around again to go forward, arms outstretched before himself.
In your name, I find meaning.
The Swiss skater quickly changed direction again, moving through a 3-turn to go backwards, extending his right leg out behind himself...
I'm hangin' on...
...toe-pick down, and ice flew as he launched into his legendary quad Lutz, astonishing all by lifting one arm above his head in the process.
...Another day, just to see what you throw my way.
The silver Russian's eyes widened a bit as he saw it play out on the television, "Wow~ He didn't do that last time!"
Yuri was equally stunned, watching as Chris lowered his shoulders down as he kicked high in a single-rotation fake-out illusion spin, before lowering down for the start of his sit-spin, "...No kidding..."
The Swiss skater rotated swiftly with a twist, left arm straight above, left leg bent over the spinning blade. Switch to the lower, tighter formation of the cannon-ball spin with the left leg moving forward until it stuck straight out, and Chris loomed over it, holding both hands to his ankle.
And I'm hanging on to the words you say...you said that I will be okay.
Those brown eyes watched in amazement, and Yuri felt his fingers tighten a little where he had his partner's hand in his pocket, He's trying a lot harder this time than in Bordeaux...I wonder what's gotten into him?
The broken lights on the freeway left me here alone,
Chris had risen up and was moving swiftly in reverse, bent slightly forward with his arms out for balance, eyeballing the next spot his final jump would lunch from. When he found it, he clicked his left toe-pick down for the final quad, launching off the blade of his right foot and landing on the same for the Toe-loop, and kicking off again for the triple Loop that came right after.
I may have lost my way now, haven't forgotten...my way home.
"Wow, he's making it look so easy this time." Phichit said, smiling nervously as he watched from close by, Celestino just behind him with his arms crossed, "He's not taking any chances like before."
I'm falling apart, I'm barely breathing
With a broken heart that's still beating
"The Free Skate is where it all still counts, but giving up easy points in the Short Program is never a good idea if you can help it." The coach agreed, glancing over at the Russian and his own former student, Not when the competition is known for holding the current World Record for the highest points. Chris can't afford to slack off when there's the potential for a 20 point gap to make-up for.
In the pain (in the pain) there is healing
In your name I find meaning
So I'm holdin' on (I'm still holdin'), I'm holdin' on (I'm still holdin'),
The Swiss skater's final spin began; initiated with an arms-out camel spin, then arms behind the back, descending into a sit spin with both hands folded over the bent knee while still sitting mostly upright, then rising up into the final scratch-spin, arms traveling up his thin frame, knuckles barely touching the fabric of the costume until he could clasp his fingers high above his head.
I'm holdin' on (I'm still holdin'), I'm barely holdin' on to you...
When he pulled out of the last of the spins, his arms flared out to the side, free leg extending behind himself as he moved in a wider and wider circle. The lyrics faded out, and the soft sound of the gentle guitar filled the arena. The blonde went down to his knees on the frost, wrapped his arms around himself, and leaned back.
Viktor pulled his hands forward to clap them together in front of his husband's chest, "He's going to be setting the bar pretty high, I think."
The crowd was roaring their approval, throwing flowers to the rink as the skater bowed and made his way to the exit. Moments later, he was with his coach in the kiss and cry, and he spotted his friend and rival coming up to watch. The skater just smiled and waved the Russian over, beckoning him towards the bench in front of the cameras, "This show's for you anyway, Viktor...might as well join in, right?"
"If you want." The elder mused, hand sliding down his partner's arm as he moved away and took his place on the bench.
"Maybe we should get you contact lenses that have a print of Viktor on the curve, Chris." Coach Josef huffed, arms crossed stoically as the three waited for the skater's score, "Just like in France, you performed better when he was around."
The silver Russian just smiled innocently, leaning against the blonde's shoulder, "Let's see how the judges feel about that."
Yuri leaned against the rink wall and smiled anxiously, holding his head up with a palm under the side of his jaw.
"The score for Christophe Giacometti..."
Everyone quieted down and looked up, waiting for the number.
"...97.81."
"...Hm." Chris put a finger on his chin as he crossed the other arm over his chest, "...I was hoping for better."
The audience started cheering and clapping excitedly. No matter what, scoring so close to 100 was still something worth celebrating.
Yuri clapped quietly from where he was standing, It's barely higher than what I scored at last year's Short Program...but I still managed to get Silver back then. He's going to be hard to beat, especially now...
"It's still higher than what Yuri and I got at both of our most recent events." Viktor offered, leaning inward a bit where he still had his forearm over the man's closest shoulder, "Anything can happen between now and tomorrow night."
"You're right." Chris nodded, rising to stand and make his way back to the prep area to watch the rest of the event, and passing where Yakov, Lilia, and Yurio were standing by waiting their own turns, "Scoring almost 100 is still pretty decent."
The silver Russian reached an arm out for his partner as they came by with Josef, and the young skater quickly trotted around to find his place in his partner's reach. They all chattered back and forth as they headed back towards the blue curtain, but Yuri glanced up and back the way they came, over Viktor's arm where it was draped over his shoulders. He caught a brief glimpse of Yurio looking back at him, and started to open his mouth to wish the teen good luck, but those emerald eyes swiftly shot back around to look away, and Yuri lost his chance. He sighed quietly to himself and turned back to watch where he was stepping, three sets of blade guards and one pair of shoes sounding the last of their retreat.
"Next on the ice...representing Russia...Yuri...Plisetsky."
Yuri's Angels went wild with excitement, heard clearly over the rest of the audience as the Russian Tiger took to the competition floor.