My head hurts. Caffeine withdrawal was the ultimate hell. But whatever Master wants...I just needed to find a replacement for it. Sugar, maybe? Sugar might help. For right now, I needed the big ass bottle of aspirin I kept in the cupboard above my stove next to my vodka. If I couldn't have any caffeine, that would be the next best thing. I popped two little blue tablets in my mouth and took a good swallow of water. It's going to be a long however long Mike and I are together. If that's what we even are.
"Morning, Vi," Gene walked in and sat down at my kitchen table.
"Morning," I laid on the counter, hating the world.
"Wow, sweetheart," he worried, "Are you ok? Having one of those don't talk to me until I've had my coffee moments, are we?"
"Uh-huh," I whined into my countertop.
"Well, we can't have that now, can we?" Gene got up and walked over to my coffee pot.
"I can't have any," I sat up, keeping myself from falling back asleep, "Mike says I can't have any caffeine."
"Mike's not here."
"But he'd know," I assured, remembering the reason why he wanted me off it in the first place. Something about delirious sex feeling a million times more intense.
"Whatever, Violet," he shrugged, reclaiming his spot at the table. I couldn't have coffee, so I might as well steal Yurio's apple juice. Maybe that'll help.
"Morning, Mama," the pitter patter of tiny feet echoed across my hardwood floors. Keep it together, Violet. Do it for the kids.
"Good morning, Yuri," I put on a fake smile, sitting one of my boys on my hip, hugging him tight. There's going to come a day where Yuri won't be so little anymore and I won't be able to do this with him. For now, I'll take advantage of these little moments, "Sleep ok?"
"Yeah," Yuri shoved his fist in his eye under his glasses, "Can I have a juice box?"
"Sure, baby," I sat him on the counter and got two juice boxes out of the fridge, "Is your brother still sleeping?"
"I think so," he took his straw and stabbed the hole, "I don't know. He was when I left."
"Ok," I helped him down, "Go sit on the couch and I'll get started on breakfast. what do you want?"
"A bagel."
I took one more look in the fridge. Dammit. I should've gone shopping last night, "Sorry, Yuri. I don't have any bagels."
"I can go get you some, Violet," Gene volunteered, "That's no problem. I wouldn't want Yuri going hungry."
"You don't have to do that," I stopped him, "You're my bodyguard, not my assistant."
"Oh, hush," he insisted, "Don't worry about it. What kind of bagels do you like, Yuri?"
"Um..." Yuri wasn't sure what to say to that. And I completely understood, "Everything...?"
"Me, too, kiddo," Gene gave him a little pop in the jaw, "And what about Yurio? What's his poison?"
"Cinnamon raisin," I told him. Gene really didn't have to do this, yet here he was. I didn't deserve him. Thank you, Celestino. You know how to pick them. And I really hope you're paying him enough.
"And what about you, Vi?" he asked.
"Blueberry," I ordered, "And if you're going to be out, will you stop and get some mascarpone, too?"
"Sure," Gene headed out the door while Yurio came out to greet the day.
"Good morning, dovahkiin," I gave him the other juice box.
"Morning, Mama," Yurio down his apple juice in seconds flat, "Can I have something stronger now, please?"
"Wait," I twitched, "You're wanting coffee?"
"Yes, please," he sat at the table, patiently waiting for me to bring him the nectar of the gods.
"Your dad and your uncle drank it all," I came up with a quick excuse, "Sorry, baby. We're out."
"Aww..." Yurio pouted, "I want some, though, Mama."
"I know," I held him on my hip, "I know. I do, too. But if you can't have any, then I can't have any either. Deal?"
"I guess," he grumbled, "Then, can I have another juice box?"
"Absolutely," I reached into the fridge and pulled out another one, "Well, boys, it's just you and me for the next week. What do we do?"
"I don't know," Yurio shrugged.
"Me either," Yuri joined us at the table.
"Ooh!" Yurio quickly changed his tune, "Can we go to Coney Island?"
"Yeah!" Yuri agreed, "Let's go to Coney Island, Mama!"
"Please?"
"Please?"
"Please?"
"I was thinking that," I admitted. Although, a bunch of screaming children would be miserable on my head and even worse on my mood. Except for one place, "Alright, boys. We can do Coney Island."
"YAY!"
"On one condition..." I stipulated.
"Aww..."
"Honey!" Gene came back with half a dozen bagels in a light blue box and a bag hanging from his wrist, "I'm home!"
"I'm pretty sure Sonia would have a problem with you calling me honey," I assumed.
"Not at all," he promised, sitting the box on the table, "I got two blueberry, two everything, and two cinnamon raisin. Is that alright with you two?"
"Did you bring us bagels?" Yurio peeked in the box, a bead of drool already running down his chin.
"Yes, I did," Gene put the bag on the table, "And Violet, for you, your mascarpone. I got cream cheese, too, just in case you didn't have any."
"Thank you, Gene," I awed, "You really didn't..."
"Hush..." he cut me off, "We'll just chalk this up to you owing me."
"Deal," I felt a little less guilty. But then, a sudden idea popped into my head, "Hey, Gene..."
"Yes, Violet?" Gene pulled up the empty chair, "What can I do for you?"
"It's not what you can do for me," I thought, "It's what I can do for you. Rather, someone you love more than life itself."
"Color me intrigued," he wondered, "What's up?"
"What's Sophie got going on today?" I asked.
"Nothing that I know of," Gene ran through her schedule in his head, "Why?"
"Boys?" I got Yuri's bagel out of the box for him, putting a thin layer of cream cheese on it. I might have lived a floor above them, but I'll be damned if I don't know how my babies take their breakfast, "You up for making a new friend?"
"Sure," Yurio shrugged.
"Ok," Yuri nodded.
"Violet?" Gene's curiosity got the better of him, "What were you planning today?"
"I'm taking Yuri and Yurio to Coney Island today," I explained, "And there's only one place they'll want to go."
"We're going skating!" Yuri beamed, "Right, Mama...?"
"Only if Gene can get Sophie to come along with us," I coaxed, "Come on, Gene. Do it...All the cool kids are doing it."
"Absolutely," Gene confirmed, "I can let the nanny go home early today."
"Awesome!" I grinned, "After breakfast, though. You two don't need to be skating on empty stomachs."
I got up and mixed my mascarpone with a little lemon juice, spreading it on my bagel. Mmm...Gene went to the good bakery a couple blocks from here. If Sonia didn't already have claims on him, I might marry this man. But I have a feeling Mike would have a problem. Well, I didn't intend on skating today, but I can't have my babies and not take them to a rink. I know I'll be doing that all next week, but they needed to skate for fun once in a while, too. Besides, Yurio gets his confidence from showing up other kids at the rink.
After inhaling my bagel, I grabbed a skater dress and some leggings out of my closet and went into my bathroom. My shower was what dreams were made of. Kind of like Mike's shower, but a little better. What can I say? There's no place like home. Speak of the devil, I had a text pop up on my phone from Master.
What are you up to today?
-M
I thought we agreed he'd make himself scarce this week...
Taking the boys to practice.
-VP
I left my phone on the counter and got in the shower. Another beep chimed from the speaker, but he can wait. His patience may be thinner than paper, but he does have some. In fact, out of spite, I think I'll even wait to respond after I get dressed. Maybe after I blow dry my hair...Finish getting myself ready...No. Because that's when Master starts double texting and triple texting and getting pissed at me. I don't need that when we see each other again.
Usual rink?
-M
Dammit. I know how this is going to go. Mike wants to see me even though I already told him we wouldn't be seeing much of each other this week. If I tell him we're going to our usual practice rink, I have no doubt he'll just happen to drop by because he was in the neighborhood. I wanted to spend some time with my babies by myself. I didn't need them to see Master's pet. Ever.
No. They practice somewhere else.
Going dark for the rest of the day.
-VP
Beep!
Goddammit, Mike...
Ok.
I miss you, pet.
x
-M
I miss you, too, but for now, leave me alone. If I would actually say something like that to him, I'd end up over his knee. I have no doubt. Regardless, I got myself publicly presentable and did a couple spins in the mirror. That's the only reason women wear dresses. Some may say it's because they're breezy. Some may say it's because they feel more feminine. No. That's bullshit. It's so we can spin around and watch the skirt go up because it's too much damn fun. Simple pleasures.
"You look cute today, Vi," Gene complimented, giving me one more spin.
"Thank you!" I chimed, "Yuri! Yurio! You two ready yet?"
"Working on it!" Yurio called out from his and Yuri's bedroom.
"Almost!" Yuri called from their bathroom.
"I'm going to go grab Sophie," Gene said, "Is that ok with you?"
"Yeah," I shooed him out, "Go ahead. Meet back here?"
"Good enough for me," he chirped, "You need anything while we're out?"
"No," I shook my head, "I'm going shopping later anyway. Like I said, you're my bodyguard, not my assistant."
"Maybe you should get one of them, too."
Gene had a point. Maybe I should talk to Celestino and see if I can get an assistant. He's already got Gene on the payroll. I might as well have an assistant, too. That way, I don't have to do my grocery shopping, I'll have someone to manage my schedule (and Yuri and Yurio's, too, if need be), and I can focus all my energy on my skating. That'll be the line that sells it to Celestino. I don't know. I'll think about it.
While Gene was out getting his daughter, I figured I'd do a little narcissistic Google search of myself. Let's see if Doyle Wallace of Skate Weekly Magazine has any other misinformation to leak onto the internet. Hmmm...My Wiki page, my fan page, the infamous picture of me drunk outside of Cosmos...Nothing. Huh...I'm not sure if I'm happy or...disappointed. I didn't drift into obscurity before my season started, did I? Let's check the fan page.
On the top of the site, there was a picture from last year's Junior Grand Prix of me...Along with an adorable little boy from Thailand. Phichit, you angel. I missed him. I'm sure Yuri did, too. They formed a fast friendship last year. Kind of like Yurio and Otabek. Who would've thought my antisocial sons would've made friends the same way I did with their father? Hey! There's a caption!
I met Violet Plisetsky last year at the Junior Grand Prix and I was the first one she announced her comeback to. Actually, Victor was the first person I announced my comeback to. Then, my boys and my coach. Then, Phichit, if I remember correctly. She's super, super nice in person and people need to stop being so mean to her online. I think I just found my new favorite PR person. Thanks, Phichit. My Twitter feed had been dead for a while and my Instagram was more food pictures than anything. If he were a little older, I'm sure Phichit would make a hell of an assistant, but to take him off the ice would just be plain cruel.
"Ok, Mama," Yurio came out, plopping down on the couch, "I'm ready to go."
"That's all well and good, baby," I pulled him to my hip, "But we have to wait for Gene to come back. Then, we can leave."
"When will he be back?" he wondered, impatient as all hell.
"Soon, I'm sure," I settled him, "Relax. When Gene and Sophie get back, we can go skate."
"Fine," Yurio pouted, "What do we do until then?"
"Here," I gave him my phone, "Watch through my YouTube account."
"Are all of your old routines online?" he cheered up.
"Even some of mine and Victor's," I added, "Is that good enough for you?"
"Definitely." Yurio fell down a rabbit hole of my old routines and studied each move closely. What a dork. But he was my dork, so it's ok. Then, my body went cold. I hope none of my old burlesque routines were online, "Hey, Mama..."
My heart fell out of my chest, "What, Yurio?"
"What's the Toxic Circus?" he pushed play, letting a familiar violin riff begin, "You look like a doll."
"Nope!" I took my phone back, "You can't watch that."
With the way their policies are, I'm surprised YouTube hasn't flagged that yet.
"Why not?" Yurio whined, "All I did was search your name."
"That's one of my burlesque routines, Yurio," I clarified, "You are way too young for that. Especially for Toxic Circus."
"What's it about?" he let it go.
"It's about a wandering, young girl getting picked up by a traveling circus," I told him, "She had goals and aspirations. She wanted to be a doctor, but some things didn't go the way she planned. She got hooked on the feeling of the crowds and ended up falling in love with the ringmaster. Little did she know, the ringmaster was a terrible man. In the end, the girl realized she was worth more than that and turned the tables on him. Then, she became the ringmaster and ended up killing him."
"Why can't I watch it?"
"Because," I remembered that routine like the back of my hand. And the world saw more than just the back of my hand, "It's violent, it's bloody, it's suggestive, and it'd show more of me than you need to see. That's why I don't like you seeing my Lady Marmalade routine."
"Fine..." Yurio jumped down from the couch and started walking into the bedroom.
"And don't think I won't know if you're watching it while my back's turned!"
"FINE!" he came toddling back out with a familiar angry face. I love him.
"Mama," Yuri came out of the bathroom, "I'm ready. Can we go now?"
"Not yet," I reiterated, "Not until Gene and Sophie get..."
"Violet!" a sweet little girl bounced her way into my lap...and my heart, "Your house is huge! It's so pretty! Are all these rooms yours?"
"Hi, Sophie," I giggled, wrapping my arms around her, "Where'd your daddy go?"
"He's coming," she promised, "Are we really going skating?"
"Yes, ma'am," I nodded, "Yuri, Yurio, this is Sophie. Sophie, these are my boys."
"This is our new friend?" Yurio gave her a look.
"Yes," I glared, "Be nice to her."
"So, they're like my new big brothers?" Sophie guessed.
"We'll wait and see about that," I settled her.
"Sorry, Violet," Gene came in, "She got a little excited when I told her we were going to your place."
"No worries," I assured, "Ready?"
"Hai."
"Da."
"Yes!"
By the sounds of it, all the babies are ready. I grabbed my mint skates and Yuri and Yurio already had theirs in hand. Gene pulled me aside, "Violet, Sophie doesn't have any skates. Didn't you say you were going to let her use a pair of Yurio's?"
"Yeah," I mulled it over, "I'm glad you said something or I would've forgotten."
"Maybe I should quit as your bodyguard," he jabbed, "I do better as your assistant."
"But if you were my assistant," I reached into the front closet and pulled a white box off the shelf, "You wouldn't have known about this. Boys, go wait by the elevator."
"Ok, Mama," Yuri and Yurio started heading down the hall.
"Sophie," I got down to her level, "Come here."
"What is it, Violet?" she gave me a look, "Aren't we going skating?"
"Yeah," I nodded, "But do you have any skates?"
"No..." Sophie was on the verge of tears and I'll be damned if I allow such a thing on my watch.
"Then," I smiled, taking the lid off the box. A pair of bright pink skates laid nicely in the paper, "It's a good thing I got you some, isn't it?"
"Really?!" her face lit up as she took them from the paper, "They're mine? Look, Daddy! Violet got me skates!"
"Yeah, she did," Gene shot me a glare, "Violet..."
"Yes, Gene?" I sat back with a shit eating grin on my face.
His gaze softened a little, "What do say, Soph?"
"Thank you, Violet!" Sophie practically tackled me, throwing her little arms around my neck.
"You're welcome, sweetie," I kissed the top of her head, "Go find Yuri and Yurio, ok?"
"Ok!"
"Violet," Gene pulled me aside again, letting Sophie get ahead, "You didn't have to do that..."
"She might catch a bug," I shrugged, "If she does, it'd be a shame if she lacked the equipment."
"Thank you," he finally smiled again.
"I owed you," I reminded him, "You bought bagels this morning."
"How long have you been sitting on those?" Gene asked.
"Couple days," I thought, "Don't worry about it. Let's go!"
I ran after the little ones and started heading for Coney Island. I haven't been skating with the boys in ages and now, we had the prospects of a new friendship. Yuri and Yurio are going to be good to her. I hope. Anyway…Once we got to the rink, it was like riding a bike. The boys got their skates on and there was no keeping them off the ice. They took off without me. Rude.
"Um, Violet…" Sophie used the bottom of my dress to steady herself, "How do you walk on these?"
"It's like learning to walk in heels," I held her hands, "There was a time when you couldn't walk at all. Then, you got used to it. It's the same way with skates. Keep your balance and you'll be fine. Gene, it's cool if I take her from here, yeah?"
"My ass is not getting on that ice," Gene allowed, "I'd bust something."
"Alright," I walked his daughter onto the rink, "Now, this is the part where we have to be careful. It's going to get slippery, but that's the point."
"I want to see you skate, too," Sophie begged, "Please?"
"You will," I swore, "But you have to get out here first."
"Ok…" she started taking her first wobbly steps out. To no surprise, she fell on her ass, "Ow…"
"You ok, Sophie?" I helped her up.
"Yeah," Sophie rubbed on her hip, "I'm ok."
"You sure?"
"Yeah," a look of serious discouragement appeared on her face. Poor baby. Already? She can't be throwing in the towel now, "I'm alright."
"Hey," I picked her chin up, "What's wrong?"
"I'm not going to be as good as you," Sophie pouted, "I can't even skate a straight line. I'm too little."
"Oh, phooey," I hushed her, "You see Yurio out there?"
"Yeah," she watched Yurio skate around lazily in circles, "What about him?"
"You're only a couple years younger than him," I told, "When I started training him last year, he got so excited to get on the ice that he overlooked the actual skating part. He bit the ice pretty hard, but you know what happened?"
"What…?"
"Watch this," I smiled, "Hey, Yurio!"
"What?" Yurio yelled back.
"Show me your quad toe loop!" I demanded, "Make Mama proud!"
"Ok!" he did a few laps around the rink, building his speed. And with the most perfect form, Yurio executed his jump with a landing so clean, I could eat off it, "Is that good enough?"
"Perfect ten!" I praised, turning my attention back to Sophie, "See that? Yurio kills on the ice now. But there was once a time where he was falling all over himself like you did. That doesn't mean you can't improve. Now, are you ready to get back up and try again?"
"Yeah," Sophie dusted herself off and wobbled a little more.
"And you want to know something?" I went on, "When I first started skating, I fell a lot, too. If you ever see Victor, you can ask him about it. I had really big bruises on my legs for a long time. I still get them now. It's all in the practice. Now, come on. Let's go back, yeah?"
"Yeah!" she got fired up again, "Hey, Violet, will you teach me how to skate like Yurio does?"
"Well," I winced, "I'm preparing for my season now, but after I'm done with competition this year, I will be more than happy to teach you. I'm going to take a little break, but I can get you a good teacher real quick. Yuri!"
"Yeah, Mama?" Yuri skated right to me without another thought.
"Do you think you could help Sophie skate?" I asked, "Just getting around, no tricks."
"Sure," he took her hand, "Come on, Sophie. I can help you."
"Thank you." And the two of them skated off. Aww…It's so cute. I skated over to the partition and folded over it.
"You know, Violet," Gene leaned over the wall, "You really are a good mom. Not just to your kids, but to mine, too."
"Thanks, Gene," I rested my head on his shoulder, "You should've seen me with Chris and Victor in the early days. I was just as much of a mom to them. It's exhausting, but someone has to do it."
"And you do it so well," he threw an arm around me, "You want your water bottle?"
"I want a Monster," I grumbled, "But I'll manage. I'll be fine."
"Hey, Violet!" Sophie got her bearings, skating quickly over to me with her teacher, "You said you skate professionally, right?"
"That's right," I nodded, "What about it?"
"I want to see one of your routines!" she chimed, "Please?"
"You want to see me do a routine?" I wondered. She nodded, almost giving herself whiplash, "Alright. I can do one. Yurio! Come here!"
"What, Mama?" Yurio whined, skating over to the partition, "I'm trying to work on my spins. Celestino says they're getting too loose."
"I'm going to need your help." Hopefully, this will boost Sophie's confidence a little, too, "You want to skate with me?"
"Absolutely!" his face lit up, "What are we skating to?"
"I don't know," I thought it over, "What do you want to do?"
"Should we do Primadonna?"
"Whatever you want to do, baby," I allowed.
"Let's do Primadonna!" Yurio grabbed my phone and stole the aux cable. I love how we manage to get in here when the rink is vacant.
"Alright, Yurio," I brought him toward me, "What's the rule here?"
"Don't tell Celestino we're skating together?"
"Bingo."
Primadonna had a whole different meaning for me now. Sure. I had become a little self-centered lately. I'm just having fun. When I heard this song now, my first thought was Master. He made me this way. He turned me into the Primadonna. I just hope he knows what kind of monster he's created. But honestly, I kind of liked this monster. When our song came to an end and both Yurio and I were drained. But the only thing that mattered was that Sophie was over the moon after what she just saw.
"Yay!" she applauded, "That was so good! How do you two do it?"
"We started with dance lessons," I explained, grabbing my water bottle, "Then, it was all practice. It's a lot of work, but in the end, we can do stuff like that."
"I think I can do it!" Sophie smiled, "And you'll help me after this season, right, Violet?"
"That's right," I promised. Have I mentioned how much this little girl has stolen my heart? Because she has.
"Yay!" She's still on cloud nine.
Ring, ring.
"Hold on," I grabbed my phone…Ugh, "I have to take this. Gene, keep an eye on the babes."
"Will do, boss," Gene sent me off.
Ironic he called me boss. I slipped outside for a minute or two, "Hello?"
"Hey, cutie," my heart palpitated. It's amazing how two little words from Master had such a hold on me.
"Mike," I scolded him lightly, making sure not to sound too much like a bitch, "We talked about this. I'm with my boys today and for the next week. You will live without me."
"But I miss you," he whined, "Where are you? I want to see you."
"We were just about to leave," I told him, leaning against the wall, "I'm thinking lunch and going home."
"And I could come see you…?"
"No," I shot him down, "We'll be ok. It's just a week."
"Will we…?" It's weird to hear Master so submissive. It's kind of cute, though.
"Yes," I promised, "Look, I'll call you tonight after the boys go to bed. I have to go."
"Fine," Mike perked up, "I'll be waiting, princess."
"Bye."
Click.
"Hey, Violet," a voice called out to me, "Who was that?"
"Just…" I looked up from my phone screen at some random human being standing in front of me, "Wait, do I know you?"
"Who was on the phone?"
"Gene!" I yelled, "We got a problem!"
"What's up, Violet?" the guy asked, "We're just talking."
"No, you're not," Gene pushed him away, shielding me, "You alright, Vi?"
"Damn vultures," I cringed, "I'm going to get the kids and we'll get out of here."
"Alright," Gene kept the guy away from me while I went back into the rink and rounded up the little ones.
"Come on, guys," I waved, "I hate to cut this short, but we have to go."
"What happened, Mama?" Yuri worried.
"There's a couple reporters outside," I rolled my eyes, "Trying to get some stuff out of me."
"Of course there are," Yurio knew my feelings about press.
"It's just the nature of the beast," I shrugged, taking them out the back door.
"But that's what you have Daddy for," Sophie chimed in, "Right, Violet?"
"Yeah," I held back a smile. That's exactly why I had Gene. Gene would kick the shit out of someone for me. And I really don't know what I'd do without him.
A/N: This chapter's long as balls and out later than hell. I'm sorry. But we have the boys back. We have Violet being a mom to everyone. We have Sophie wanting to skate! Everything is fantastic! Yay! Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm going to bed. Good night. See you next chapter! xx