***Hello, everyone! It is currently 2:30 AM as of upload time. But quarantine has turned me and my younger sister into nocturnal creatures. That, or maybe I should go and live on the other side of the world. Anyways, I don't own Yuri or Otabek, and let's go!

Chapter Nine: Promise

Days turned into weeks, and weeks began to add into months. Yuri had eased into his relationship with Nadya, only snapping at her occasionally. But for the time being, they both blamed that on his out-of-whack hormones.

His morning sickness had now faded to just occasional sickness, and at a total of six months along now, he was definitely showing. He missed being on the ice dreadfully; something his rink mates could see written all across his face when he felt well enough to go with Otabek to the rink.

The Kazakh skater knew that his child would only be around a month or two old by the time the figure skating season began. For that reason, he had honestly considered taking the season off with Yuri, who would in no way be able to prepare himself for the season.

But when the Russian had threatened to strangle him if he didn't skate the season, Otabek figured that it would be best to continue in another year with his job.

Both Katsudon and Victor were just as involved in the nine-month journey as Nadya, Nikolai, and Otabek were. Mainly due to Victor's insistence that his little cousin keep him informed on everything that happened. Although Yuri had told the older man many times to screw off, Otabek did give some information, which Victor always relayed to Katsudon, who was always ready to help, even if he wasn't as eager to extort information.

Throughout the passing weeks, with the wildness of the press beginning to press into the Ice Tiger of Russia's unborn cub and the emotions of things like watching his baby shift and move on the ultrasound screen bi-weekly, Otabek had certainly been deep in his thoughts.

Finally, he seemed to come to a sort of conclusion in his sea of scattered thoughts. He had thought about mentioning it to Nadya and Nikolai, the latter at the very least.

But at last, Otabek decided that he didn't need to mention it to anyone. This was between him and Yuri.

Or perhaps, Otabek was just too nervous to mention it to anyone.

XxX

For someone with such a nasty temper when he was awake, Yuri was certainly very sweet when he was asleep.

Otabek discovered this when he came home from a day of practice. Yuri had felt sick and slightly dizzy for the day, but if he couldn't sit on the sidelines to watch at the rink, he still had insisted that Otabek get in a day of practice.

The Kazakh finally relented and went to the rink, even if he did send texts to check on his beloved. Now, in the evening and around dinner time, he watched Yuri sleep peacefully in his sweatpants.

He was curled up on his side, a pillow under his baby bump that was now bare, his hair messy and expression soft. Otabek sat on the bed next to him, gently rubbing his stomach.

"Yura, time to get up," he said. It didn't take long for the Russian to awaken. "I woke up because your baby started kicking me with their sharp little heels," he muttered.

Otabek smiled. "Do you feel any better than you felt this morning?" he asked. "Yes. I'm actually hungry right now. Hopefully you brought food?" Yuri asked.

"Yes, but you have to kiss me first," Otabek said. "You're an ass," Yuri said. However, he smiled and gave Otabek a kiss, holding it until he felt a particularly sharp kick in the ribs. "Alright, alright! I'll feed you, you brat," he said, pulling on a tank top. Otabek smirked and led Yuri to the kitchen.

However, there was no dinner made. On the table was nothing but a small, cardboard box, no bigger than a soda can.

"What is this?" Yuri asked. Otabek slipped his hands into his pockets. This was it. "Sit and open it," he said simply. Yuri sat down and opened the box.

Inside was nothing but a small, silver band.

"A ring?" he asked. Otabek pulled up a chair next to him, taking the ring.

"These past six months have been crazy for more reasons than one. After some thought, I've decided that I... I want to be with you for the rest of my life, Yuri. Sure, you have your moments where you can be a little unbearable, but I don't care. I love you, and I love our baby," he said. He cleared his throat and held his lover's hand. His heart was hammering in his chest.

"Yuri Nikolaveich Plisetsky. Will you marry me?"

Yuri's eyes grew to the size of pie plates. But once the shock wore away, he actually smiled. "Thanks for writting a sonnet for me, Beka," he said, "and I will marry you."

Otabek slipped the silver band onto Yuri's ring finger, then held him in a long kiss. They stayed in an embrace afterwards, their foreheads resting against each others' gently.

"I love you so much, Beka," Yuri said, his voice soft. His fingers interlaced with Otabek's, and both hands rested against Yuri's stomach. They both felt a soft roll against their hands. "I love you too, Yuri," Otabek said. He smiled.

"I can't wait to be a real family."

***To be honest, the main reason I used a soda can as a unit of measurement comparison was because that was the first reasonable thing I saw on my nightstand. Anyways, be sure to leave a review on the way out, and I'll see you all in the next one! Bye!