At first, when Yuuri awoke the next morning, he couldn't seem to recall where he was. Slowly, piece by piece, the events of the previous night came back to him and he groaned. Sweet Viktor was still beside him. His eyelids were closed, and his chest rose and fell softly with each breath. Yuuri wondered what he was dreaming about. Protectiveness, a relatively foreign emotion, swelled up inside of him. He couldn't leave Viktor here at the brothel.
Even though Yuuri hadn't taken Viktor's virginity, it was certain someone else would if he was left here. Yuuri refused to allow that to happen. Picturing the fairy here day after day, servicing too rough men against his will, Yuuri felt like crying again. This gentle creature didn't deserve that. The human entertained the thought of how much buying Viktor outright would cost. Yuuri prayed that he had enough money.
He sat up just as the silver-haired form beside him began to stir. The fairy gave a huge yawn and then eased himself into a sitting position, arms raised in a stretch. His sleeves had slipped to around his elbows, and Yuuri caught a glimpse of bandages on Viktor's right hand before it was discreetly hidden away once more. Viktor had pulled down the fabric to obscure it, and Yuuri decided not to press the issue any further.
Viktor slid off of the bed and then stood up. All of his silver hair was tangled, makeup had stained his kimono. His head was bowed submissively.
"Would you like some breakfast, sir?" Viktor inquired with strained cheerfulness.
"Oh!" Yuuri blinked, and the ache in his stomach was called to his attention. While he was hungry, he was also afraid that he might vomit if he ate anything. "Um, no thank you..." The fairy dipped his head and turned to leave, and Yuuri called out,"Wait!"
Patiently, Viktor looked back. "Yes?" Was he going to come back? Or was this farewell? Panic constricted the human's chest. He couldn't leave Viktor here.
"Is- is this goodbye?" Yuuri asked. Ugh, he sounded so stupid. He wouldn't be surprised if the other man laughed in his face and left.
Yuuri braced himself, but the condescending mocking he envisioned never arrived.
"I'll return on, alright? Just fetching some clean clothes." Viktor winked reassuringly, shook out his wings, and then pushed the curtain aside to exit the room. The Japanese man was left there alone, feeling quite dazed. His heart was pounding in a flurry of beats. Shakily, Yuuri scrambled for his glasses, which were still resting on the bedside table. He slipped them on, and the world suddenly became clearer.
How could Yuuri possibly buy Viktor? The fairy probably wouldn't want to live with him anyway… And what would his family say? It was inevitable that they would find out. They'd probably think Yuuri was a pervert or something. On top of that, he didn't know the first thing about taking care of fairies. What if he did something incorrectly and Viktor ended up being unhealthy and sad, or hating him?
Yuuri moaned, conflicted, and laid back down. Why did he always have to be so indecisive and unsure? What on earth was he going to do? But then he remembered the man that had joked about Viktor bleeding. He remembered the wrappings on the fairy's hand, presumably from a cruel punishment of some kind. Finally, he recalled how scared Viktor had been the night before. Yuuri shuddered.
He was resolute now. Even if he became a pariah, that was something that he could put aside for the sake of the fairy's wellbeing. He refused to leave him here in such a filthy, dangerous place like this. Yuuri had made up his mind, and so now all he had to do was attempt to not overthink things and to wait for Viktor to return.
(Sorry this chapter is so short, the next one is a lot longer and should be up later today.)