"Next up we have Yuuri Katsuki, first runner up at the Grand Prix Finals last year." Yuuri did his lap around the ice as they announced him, shaking out his ankles, cracking his neck, ignoring the countless eyes that were obviously trained on him. "For his free program he is skating to Break the Silence by Francois Mulder, covered by none other than himself."
Yuuri dropped his head and hands as he reached centre ice, relaxing and taking a deep, concentrated breath.
Without his permission, his mind suddenly rewinds to their last day in court. They day they had won and put all four of the perverted bastards behind bars. That was the first time he could recall feeling the weight completely leave his chest, the icy fist release his heart. He and Viktor had cried for hours, out of pure joy.
Yuuri snapped back to reality as he noticed his feet moving by themselves to the music that had begun fluttering down to the ice. When the lyrics faded in, his own voice seeping through the cold air, he found his mind leaving the task at hand yet again.
"Are you sure?" Viktor had concern written all over his face as he pulled out the earbuds and looked into Yuuri's eyes. He expected to be met with uncertainty, but instead found confidence. More confidence than Viktor had ever seen come from his fiancé. It was Yurio level confidence. Who was this man and what had he done with Yuuri?
Yuuri nodded with a smile. "Worst case scenario, people judge me. Who cares? Best case, I help someone. I can help someone to know they're not alone. So… yeah. I'm sure."
"I didn't know you sang." Viktor smiled back at his beloved, feeling that giddy lovesick wave crash over him for what had to be the tenth time that day.
As the chorus kicked in, Yuuri forced his mind to attention, ready to hit his triple salchow. He. Would. Not. Fall.
Break all the silence, and tell the whole world
That they're tearing me apart with their dirty selfish hands
Leaving me with nothing at all.
They take me inside and break me apart
As they push up against me my skin begins to crawl
Leaving me with nothing at all
I can't cry
For someone to save me
For someone to free me
For someone to show me that love is still alive
And hope is not lost
"My theme this year is conquering." Yuuri hoped the camera wasn't picking up his trembling fingers as they wrapped tightly around the microphone in his hand. He quickly flipped his card to show off the carefully written characters. He'd been dreading this press conference for weeks.
"They already know." He assured himself silently. "It's been all over the news, you announced it on social media, they know."
"Eight months ago, I was attacked and gang raped in my own home." The words tumbled out of his mouth before he could take a breath. "It was the most isolating thing I've ever experienced. I was surrounded by people I loved during my recovery, but still, I felt truly and utterly alone. For a long time, I wasn't sure how much I'd be able to take before I eventually snapped. But in the end, I realised that I was stronger than I ever thought, and I would get through it. I've still got a long way to go, but I now know that I'm not alone. And I hope to let anyone out there who has experienced something similar that you aren't either. Someone has been through the same thing you have. You just have to remember that."
I will not stop until silence no longer fills
The darkened hotel rooms where people trade the lived of the
Unlucky millions the defaced civilians
The mother, the daughter, the brother, the sister, the son
Yuuri hit a solid double toe, triple flip connection, landing as gracefully as ever and moving into his step sequence.
I'll give my life to make it go away
Wash off their hands but still feel stained
Who is gonna turn the night into day?
He searched for Viktor along the barrier, catching his entranced gaze and reaching out to him as he skated past before snapping around into a gorgeous death drop.
And I cry
"Yuuri!" Viktor jolted awake when he heard the muffled scream, turning on the bed-side lamp as quickly as possible. His heart broke to see Yuuri sobbing into his pillow. The nightmares were still so vivid, even months after the attack. "Yuuri it's okay." He gathered his raven haired beauty into his arms and let him cry, reminding him to breath when he chest began to expand and contract too sporadically. "They can't hurt you, my love. Nobody will ever hurt you ever again. I'll kill anyone who tries to lay a hand on you. I promise."
As they push up against me my skin begins to crawl
Leaving me with nothing at all
Yuuri let the music flow thorugh him as he began his combination spin, camel to flying sit spin, to sit, to A, to scratch. It changed with each begging, pleading phrase.
No more
I cannot take it
No more no
I can't take it anymore
No more
I can't take it
I can't take it anymore
With the last line Yuuri flew into his flawless quad flip, spotting Viktor as he landed.
Someone please save me
He met Viktor's eyes as he glided back to centre ice for his final pose.
Someone please free me
His voice and the piano notes faded out as he reached out for his fiancé, tears streaming down his face. He caught the flash of gold that meant Viktor was reaching for him too, ring in plain view.
For a moment, the arena was silent. Yuuri couldn't quite comprehend why until he realised: he had skated a perfect program. No bobbles, no falls, not even a misplaced finger. Everything had gone as it should have.
Suddenly the announcers' voices were echoing through the rink, drowned out by the relentless cheering from the massive GPF audience. Yuuri kept letting the tears fall as he skated to the sidelines, crashing into Viktor's awaiting arms.
"Yuuri!" his silver-haired lover cried, letting his own tears slip. "Yuuri."
"Viktor." He agreed.
I hope that ending came across as I intended. Oh well, if it didn't, to each his own!
As promised, here is my sappy note:
Thank you to everyone who has favourited and/or followed DOBG and/or myself. I appreciate it more than you know, and again, I'm so sorry for taking so long to finish this. Truth be told, I kind of lost inspiration for a while, mostly due to not knowing how to end such a drawn out story. I figured an epilogue (as much of a cop-out it can sometimes be) was the best way to insert eight months of content into the end of the story, rather than adding another 37 chapters.
I'd liek to send out a special thanks to YuriKatsuki1 and Arisquelle, who reached out to me through this site, and became really good friends as the story developed. I love you guys! Always feel free to message me with questions, comments, concerns, or just for general anime chit chat! I'm always down to meet new online friends!
I have another YOI story in the works that focuses heavily on Yuuri's (tragic) past, so keep on the lookout for that if you want more Viktuuri angst, and feel free to request a story if you'd like! DOBG started off as an idea given to me by a friend, and she thinks I did okay with it, so if you'd like me to write a oneshot or a full length story, send me a message with your idea and I'll do my best!
Well, I think that's all the sappiness I have in me. I hope I'll see you guys again soon! Happy reading, friends!