Somehow in the days that came after Otabek's arrival, Yuri had forgotten the minor detail that while his best friend was in St. Petersburg to be with him for the first part of his recovery, Otabek still had to get ready for the Grand Prix Final. This meant that he would spend almost as much of his day at the rink at the old couple, so Yuri honestly didn't find himself with much more company than he had before Otabek came out to visit.
Admittedly, Otabek did his best to come back to the apartment during his lunch breaks and rushed back as soon as practice was over. Yuri was of course grateful for his best friend flying to another country just to keep him company, but he was getting antsy from lack of mental stimulation. Most days, Yuri never even bothered to put on proper clothes since he had to wear a horrendous knee brace and none of his regular pants would fit over the damned thing. So more often than not, Yuri had taken to lounging around the apartment in nothing but his tiger striped boxer briefs and maybe a loose shirt, typically stolen from Viktor's wardrobe. Viktor and Yuuri would groan and tell their younger friend to put on some pants, but Otabek remained true to form and never once mentioned the subject or his opinion on the matter. Yuri simply shrugged that off as the fact that Otabek almost never expressed what he was feeling about anything, much less something as trivial as his best friend parading around the familiar house in his underwear.
Yuri's attitude was that he wasn't going to be seen in public any time soon, so what did it even matter if he got dressed? Most nights after the little group had eaten dinner, he just switched into a fresh pair of boxers and settled on the couch for more movies and Netflix, Otabek typically situated on the opposite end of the couch with Yuri's feet propped up on his lap. It was a routine, but it wasn't enough to keep Yuri from slowly losing his mind. He'd been begging Viktor and Otabek to let him tag along to the rink, just to be somewhere else and be near the ice, even though he couldn't step foot on it. Just being close by would be enough to set his heart a little at ease, but his wannabe guardians and best friend both denied him, saying it was too much of a risk for him to be in a situation where he could potentially fall and further damage his knee.
At that point, Yuri had resigned himself to being bored out of his skull until further notice. At one point, Otabek took him out to dinner to help him get out of the apartment, but Yuri was in so much pain that halfway through dinner he was unable to finish his food and had to beg Otabek to get it to go so they could go home. Of course Otabek obliged and even carried Yuri on his back the entire way back to Viktor and Yuuri's apartment.
By the time the morning of his surgery came around, it was almost a relief to Yuri since it was an actual excuse to leave the apartment, even if he was going to the hospital. Otabek, Yuuri, Viktor, and Mila all took the morning off to go with him, both for moral support and because he was required to have someone drive him home and stay with him for the first 24 hours after the surgery. He pretended to be annoyed that they were all there and hovering, barking insults at them while the nurse prodded him and used his distraction as an opportunity to stab the IV into the top of his hand.
"Shit! That hurt!" Yuri snapped at the nurse, who leveled him with a cold glare.
Whatever, I can't be the only person to yell at her for stabbing them with a needle. Yuri thought to himself, meeting her glare with one of his own.
"Yura," Otabek sighed beside him.
Yuri remained silent for a beat before realizing that Otabek was chastising him for being rude to the woman for doing her job. He muttered a barely audible apology, but he was fairly certain the nurse either couldn't hear him or chose to ignore it while she walked out of the waiting area. Yuri wanted to take a selfie for Snapchat with his IV hooked up and the lovely hospital gown and hairnet that he'd been forced into, but he couldn't move his hand without a sharp pain thanks to the IV and so quickly gave up on the idea.
Of course, that just meant Viktor took the opportunity to take a quick photo of Yuri and post it on Instagram before the blonde could even register what his mentor had done. Once he saw his phone lighting up with notifications, he couldn't help but let out a low groan. The Yuri's Angels were beside themselves with worry, and he was just dreading the comments that would come from all of the other professional skaters seeing him like this.
"Damn it, old man. Please tell me you at least put a filter on that because I'm sure I look like absolute hell right now," Yuri groaned into his hands.
"Of course, Yurio! I'm not that mean!" Viktor's voice was sing-song and excited for reasons unbeknownst to everyone else except maybe Yuuri.
"You don't look like hell, Yura," Otabek offered from his seat beside Yuri's bed. The Russian offered his friend a soft smile before going back to scowling at Viktor, who was now blissfully unaware of Yuri's anger while he scrolled through Twitter on his phone.
Mila came over and sat on the edge of the bed Yuri was propped up in, bumping his shoulder affectionately. "How are you holding out?"
He shrugged in response, not entirely sure how to put into words how he was feeling. So far he'd kept his anxiety and frustration with the situation mostly to himself, although he was sure Otabek and Katsuki had picked up on a lot of it. Instead of talking about his problems like a normal, well-adjusted human being would, Yuri just looked away and began fiddling with the line of the IV he was hooked up to.
"Stop that," Mila scolded, grabbing Yuri's hand. "If you pull it out she'll have to put it back in. And you were already pissed the first time."
"Ugh, shut up!" The blonde groaned. "This situation already sucks, I don't need you smothering me like a mother hen!"
There was a pause before Mila said anything. "I'm sorry, Yuri. I know this sucks. You'll get through it though."
"But what if I don't?!" Yuri snapped, loudly enough that everyone else in their little waiting area felt silent and stared at him in surprise.
He bowed his head and let his curtain of long blonde hair cover his eyes and tried to even out his breathing. When he finally spoke again, he heard his voice crack embarrassingly. "What if I've permanently fucked up my knee and can never skate again? What if I can, but my performances are crap and I'll never be as good as I once was? It's only been a week and I'm losing my damn mind without being able to skate, how am I expected to make it through the rest of my life, let alone the next six months?"
By now Yuri's breathing was rapid and he was trying desperately to catch his breath, but somehow trying to force himself to breathe normally was only making it worse. He gripped the blanket around his legs so tight that his knuckles turned white, and he let out such a pained noise that at first nobody was sure if it was his leg that caused it or the panic attack that was clearly settling in.
Katsuki immediately jumped into action and walked over to his younger friend. "Hey, Yurio. I'm going to sit down next to you, okay?"
Yuri merely nodded and promptly buried his face in his hands. He could feel Otabek hovering and trying to determine the best way to help but clearly lost and knew it was killing him that he didn't know how to help. Mila was looking between the two Yuri's and decided to step back when Viktor motioned her away.
"Just focus on my voice, Yurio. You've seen me when I'm panicking, do you remember the grounding exercises that you've walked me through before?" Katsuki was speaking in low, soothing tones.
The blonde nodded his response again, unable to get enough air in his lungs to form any words, not that he would trust his voice right now.
"Good," the Japanese man replied. "Now apply it to yourself. Start identifying things you can touch, things you can hear, things you can smell…"
Eventually, Yuuri was able to talk the younger man down. Viktor had run off to grab a nurse and explain the situation during the whole ordeal, so when she came back to Yuri's bed, she brought a syringe up to the line in the IV and injected something into it. Within minutes, Yuri felt his breathing and heart rate slow down, and he was finally able to collapse back onto the thin pillow provided for him. The nurse explained to his companions that she had given him a sedative, which was common for patients going into surgery. It would keep him calm until he got into the operating room and was put under.
When she left and Yuri was clearly calm again, Otabek switched places with Yuuri. He fidgeted for a second trying to decide what to do now, but Yuri wordlessly reached out to him in the way a young child does when looking to be held. Otabek immediately folded him into soft embrace, running his fingers through long, blonde hair as Yuri sighed and settled his face into his shoulder.
The drugs had definitely kicked in because the next words Yuri said were, "Mm, you smell so good, Beka."
Otabek let out a soft laugh but could feel the tips of his ears starting to burn red. "Thanks, Yura. Are you feeling better now?"
"Mm hmm," Yuri hummed, nuzzling his friend's shoulder and rubbing his cheek against Otabek's affectionately, just like a cat would.
Otabek thought the whole situation would be adorable if they weren't being awkwardly stared at by Yuuri, Viktor, and Mila from the other side of the bed, and if it wasn't so clearly drug induced.
"Plisetsky?" A doctor in blue scrubs called as he opened the privacy curtain in the area.
"That's me," Yuri said, looking up from Otabek's shoulder.
"Alright, time for you to head into the OR. Please follow me," The doctor grabbed the IV stand to bring with them before offering an arm for Yuri to lean on.
Reluctantly, Otabek released Yuri from his hold, whispering a soft, "Davai," in his ear.
Yuri beamed for a second and gave him their signature thumbs up before accepting the doctor's arm and using it to leverage himself up and out of the bed.
Yuuri and Viktor both came over to give Yuri a hug, wishing him luck and telling him that they would be waiting for him outside to take him home as soon as his surgery was over. Yuri told the two old men to stop doting on him and that he'd see them in an hour and a half. He did, however, grab Yuuri in a brief hug and mumbled, "Thanks for before, Katsudon," before turning to Mila.
Mila gave him a quick, albeit suffocating, hug and a kiss on the cheek with a promise that if the surgeon screwed this up, she would personally kick his ass. Yuri didn't think that there was ever a time that he was more proud to call her one of his friends and returned the hug in full.
The last thing he remembered was being instructed to lie down on the operating table while the doctor asked him about his skating. Just as Yuri started to explain, he suddenly was aware of the fuzziness around him and that somebody calling his name. The person sounded far away and as his eyes fluttered open, he realized that he was in the recovery area. For a second, the sensation of being in one place one second and then somewhere entirely new the next fucked with his mind a little, but he quickly passed back out as the leftover anesthesia kicked in. At some point later, he was vaguely aware of Otabek helping him up and into Viktor's car and he hissed in pain when his leg tried to bend like he normally would while getting into a car, then of Otabek's soothing voice as he dozed off again.
Some hours later, Yuri's eyes finally fluttered open and he was able to take in his surroundings. His head still felt fuzzy in the way it did when coming out of either a really deep sleep or a hangover, but after a few minutes of blinking rapidly the room around him finally came into focus.
He was back in the guest bedroom at Viktor and Katsuki's apartment, although he had no recollection of getting there. It was dark outside, so he figured it must be the middle of the night, and he therefore was a little annoyed to realize that he had slept the entire day away. Realizing he was twisted up into an uncomfortable pretzel, he tried to shift his weight into a more comfortable position, but a shooting pain shot up his leg. When he looked down, he realized that his leg had been wrapped in several layers of bandages and held in place with a brace. Every little movement caused him to hiss in pain and it took everything in him not to let out a broken sob.
Beside him, he heard stirring and was shocked when he looked over to see Otabek dozing next to him on the bed. The apartment was a fairly spacious three bedroom, so Otabek had so far spent his entire stay in the third bedroom. In the back of his mind, Yuri knew that the only reason Otabek was in here was to make sure nothing happened to him while he was sleeping off the drugs he'd been given in the hospital, but that didn't stop the flutter in his stomach.
As if he had sensed Yuri staring at him, Otabek cracked open an eye and looked like he was still trying to figure out where he was for a second.
"Yura?" he murmured quietly, gauging Yuri's response. "Are you awake?"
"Yeah," Yuri sighed, rolling over to face his best friend while taking extra care to use his core to do all of the turning and not let his leg get wrenched over.
Otabek let Yuri get settled before asking, "How are you feeling?"
"Not good. My leg hurts so fucking much, Beka," Yuri whined. "Where are my pain meds?"
The look Otabek gave him was one of regret and sympathy as he reached out and brushed a stray piece of hair back behind Yuri's ear. "You just took them two hours ago, Yura. I can't let you have any more for a few more hours."
Yuri finally let out the sob he had been choking back, "Fuck, it hurts! Bekaaaa!"
Although Yuri was not crying again, he was definitely breathing harder and clearly trying to force his body to push through the pain. He hated the look Otabek was giving him, like Yuri was some pathetic puppy that was crying but he couldn't let him have his way. He knew Otabek would give him the medicine if he knew it was safe, but fuck nobody had warned him just how much pain this surgery was going to cause.
Not knowing what to say, Otabek finally just moved closer to Yuri and pulled him into his arms. He kept murmuring to Yuri to try and sleep, although Yuri just replied with more high pitched whines. Otabek felt like he was trying to comfort a wounded animal as Yuri buried his head into Otabek's shoulder.
"Beka, I really miss Grandpa. I wish he was here with me right now," Yuri whispered, although he wasn't entirely sure Otabek hadn't fallen back asleep already.
Then, he heard the reply, "I know Yura. You have me, Viktor, Yuuri, and Mila though. Yakov and Lilia too, even if they're living somewhere else in retirement now. We're still your family."
Yuri released a breath and nodded, wrapping his arms around Otabek's waist and forcing himself to finally lie completely still.
Eventually, Yuri's breathing evened out and he was able to start drifting off despite the constant pain in his right leg. He briefly thought in the back of his mind that the way he and Otabek had been behaving lately was not how friends typically acted around each other, but he was too tired to think much of it. He was just grateful to have his favorite person here in his time of need, giving him both the emotional and physical affection he had never received from anyone as a child other than Grandpa.
The next few days were a blur of Yuri drifting in and out of sleep between the pain, boredom, and anesthesia hangover. He would wake up every few hours and try to eat something, but the prescribed pain medication made him horribly sick so he wasn't able to keep down anything other than water and crackers. Yuuri, Viktor, and Otabek all took turns staying home with Yuri so he could have help moving around, getting food, and eventually wrapping his knee in plastic wrap to keep it dry while he showered and changed the dressings.
The entire time, Yuri whined and bitched about his knee. It was swollen, stiff, and any time he tried to bend it more than 45 degrees, he'd be hit with a fresh wave of pain that resulted in a string of expletives his companions had long since grown immune to. And while he appreciated the doting everyone was doing over him, Yuri really, really missed his independence. Being the incredibly stubborn person he was, the fact that he couldn't do any basic things for himself was killing him as quickly as the inability to be on the ice. There were more than a few times he had to keep himself from yelling at everyone to back the fuck off already and let him be for just a couple of hours.
And then Otabek's last day in St. Petersburg came. Yuri had tried hard not to think about it too much, but he knew Otabek had to go back to Almaty to keep training for the Grand Prix Final. At this point, the final was only a few weeks away, and Otabek had to get back to seriously training if he wanted to medal, especially with JJ's programs being as strong as they were this season.
After much whining and coercion, Yuri finally convinced everyone that he should be allowed to come back to the rink to watch practice. He was walking mostly unassisted, and had already had his post-op checkup where the doctor said he was on track to heal properly. His knee still wasn't bending very well, but it was a lot better than the days immediately after his surgery.
So he spent his final afternoon with Otabek in St. Petersburg, watching his best friend work with Viktor and Katsuki on his routine and choreography and incessantly taking pictures for Instagram, Twitter, and Snapchat. The Yuri's Angels went absolutely nuts from all of the photos, and the Nishigori brats sent teasing comments about how focused he was on Otabek while he couldn't skate himself.
Yuri scowled at the screen. He may not be able to skate himself, but the all too familiar chill in the air, sound of blades cutting into the ice, and smell of the rink was enough to start putting his nerves a little more at ease after being away for several weeks. He didn't think that he'd spent this much time away from the ice since he first started to seriously train as a child. Besides, if he couldn't win against that damned JJ this year, then Beka was the next best person to do so. He wouldn't dare to be associated with a skater that wasn't one of the best in the world.
At some point while he was replying to the triplets, Mila came over and sat down next to him, staying unusually silent for several minutes while watching Otabek throw himself into a triple axel. Viktor immediately starting pointing out how he needed to fix his position before Otabek's skates had even hit the ice, so while the two were engaged in that discussion, Mila finally looked at Yuri and broke the silence.
"So when are you going to tell him you love him?"
Yuri choked on the water he was drinking and glared at the redhead.
"Shut up, hag. He's just my best friend."
Mila shrugged and got up to return to the ice. Before leaving, she looked pointedly at Yuri and said, "He leaves tomorrow. Make tonight count."
Yuri just stared blankly at her retreating back while Mila made her way over to where Katsuki was waiting to go over her choreography for her free skate.
That night, Otabek, Viktor, and Yuuri blessedly helped Yuri move back to his own apartment, now that he was finally back to being able to do most basic household things by himself. Walking back into his own place, Yuri could instantly feel the tension that he'd been carrying for the past several weeks drain from his shoulders. It was the first step back towards regaining his independence during the recovery and damn if it didn't feel great.
While Otabek dragged the last of his and Yuri's bags back into the apartment, Yuuri asked Yuri one last time if he needed anything else from them, but the younger man was already none too subtly pushing the other two out the door. With a promise that they'd be back tomorrow to take Otabek back to the airport, Yuri slammed the door in their faces and collapsed on his own couch, feeling like he could finally breathe again.
His cat, Potya, jumped up into his lap, grateful to see someone other than Mila or Georgi for the first time since Yuri's injury. He was grateful that they'd been taking care of her while he was gone, and he was frankly a little surprised she wasn't pissed at him for leaving her alone. Despite that, he started rubbing her ears and she purred contentedly, curling up on his lap and promptly falling asleep.
Otabek came out of the bedroom and plopped down on the couch next to Yuri, reaching over to give Potya a quick pet. The two sat there for a few minutes in silence, enjoying the quiet of Yuri's apartment after the noisiness of Viktor and Yuuri's place the last two weeks, Potya's purring the only sound besides the hum of the refrigerator.
"We should go get dinner. I don't have any food here since I haven't been home in so long," Yuri said, finally looking over at Otabek.
Otabek hummed in response, his usual terminology for "sure." After some debating (mostly from Otabek because he refused to let Yuri walk more than a few blocks), they settled on a little café down the street. It was actually fairly similar to the one they had gone to when they first met in Barcelona five years before, so the irony of the situation was not lost on Yuri.
By the time the two ordered their dinner and the waiter had returned with their drinks (Yuri was finally off the pain meds and so was more than ready to order a glass of wine with his dinner) they had settled into a casual conversation about skating and life in general. Yuri told Otabek how happy he was that he'd spent the last two weeks with him while he recovered, and Otabek smiled and assured him that he was always happy to be with Yuri.
"So Beka," Yuri began while taking a sip of his wine, "What am I supposed to do without you now? You're the only reason my recovery has been tolerable so far. I have no idea what I'm supposed to do with myself when you go back to Almaty tomorrow."
Otabek laughed and reached across the table to poke Yuri in the cheek. "I think you'll survive. You've gotten along without me just fine for most of your life."
Yuri pouted, "Not fair. I can't skate for a long time still and everyone else is training for the Grand Prix Final. What the fuck am I going to do with myself?"
Otabek took a sip of his own wine, looking thoughtful for a few seconds. "Come visit me in Almaty."
Tilting his head back to down the last of his wine, Yuri waived the waiter back for a refill before responding. "Are you sure? I don't want to distract you from training."
"Of course, Yura. Besides, you can come watch me skate and help me out. My coach is great and all, but he isn't a three time World champion and Olympic silver medalist like a certain somebody I know."
Yuri felt himself flush at the compliment but smirked nonetheless. "Well it's hard to argue with that logic."
Otabek laughed at that and they continued to chat away happily until their food arrived. It was about an hour later that they had finished and paid the bill, so the two began the walk back to Yuri's apartment. As they stepped outside into the cold night air, fat snowflakes began to fall and Yuri suddenly had an idea.
"Hey Beka, let's take a selfie in the snow! We haven't taken one together the whole time you've been here!"
Otabek nodded his agreement and stepped over next to Yuri to get into the camera frame. He slung his arm around Yuri's shoulder and gave the camera his typical stoic stare, while Yuri stuck his tongue out in a way he thought made him look badass. The picture came out perfect, with the snow falling in a way that made it look like its own filter. He immediately uploaded the picture to Instagram with the caption, "Beka's last night in St. Petersburg. Thank you for being here with me. I wish you didn't have to go back to Almaty, but I need you to kick Jjleroy15! 's ass. I'll be cheering you on from home, Beka. Davai! #bestfriend #bff #favoriteperson #thankyou"
Yuri didn't think he'd ever had the notifications pop up so quickly. The Yuri's Angels and Otababes were absolutely eating it up. JJ even replied to the picture and said, Hah! Best of luck winning against the KING! I'll see your hero in a few weeks, Fairy of Russia! By the time he got home, he'd turned his phone off to keep from getting annoyed by the constant dinging noise from his phone.
When they got back to the apartment, they changed into their pajamas and decided to pull up Netflix one last time. After watching a movie together, Otabek yawned and suggested they should turn in for the night since he had to catch his flight tomorrow morning. Yuri's heart sank at that because he didn't want the night to end, knowing it meant tomorrow he'd be saying goodbye to Otabek again. It really sucked living in a different country from your best friend, and he said as much out loud while he grumpily went about getting ready for bed.
He got an affectionate hip check for that comment as Otabek pushed him over from the sink so he could brush his teeth.
Just as Yuri had settled into bed, his own bed for the first time in forever, he felt the mattress sink as Otabek got in beside him. Confused, he turned over and groggily asked, "Beka? The fuck are you doing?"
"Going to sleep," the Kazakh replied, as if nothing about him crawling into Yuri's bed was strange. After that first night after his surgery, Otabek had gone back to sleeping in the third room at Viktor and Yuuri's place. Yuri had just figured he'd do the same at his place.
"I have a perfectly comfortable couch," Yuri sighed.
"Nope, the bed is more comfortable," Otabek countered.
With a note of finality, Otabek rolled over and turned off the bedside lamp.
Green eyes blinked owlishly at his friend's back. Something in Yuri's mind told him that he should probably insist on making Otabek move to the couch, but even he wasn't such an asshole that he'd kick him out for no reason other than he wanted to be selfish and have the whole queen size bed to himself. Then again, he reasoned, it was only for one night, and Otabek would be back in Kazakhstan tomorrow. Yuri would have the bed all to himself for endless nights to come.
Besides, Beka's scent is pretty comforting, Yuri was embarrassed to catch himself thinking.
Soon enough, Yuri drifted off into the deepest sleep he'd had since his surgery. Otabek hadn't yet fallen asleep, somewhat panicking that he had made too bold of a move by insisting on sharing the bed with Yuri. But as he began to finally fall asleep, he felt Yuri wrap his slender arms around Otabek from behind, snuggling up to him in his sleep.
Otabek fell asleep with a content smile on his face.
The next day, Yuri stood in front of security at the airport with Otabek, trying hard not to get too upset over having to say goodbye to him. Viktor and Yuuri both gave Otabek hugs and thanked him for all the help he'd been during his stay. He nodded and said he was always happy to help when it came to Yuri. Viktor smiled and gave him a suspicious wink while he and his husband walked away to give Yuri and Otabek some privacy for their final goodbye.
For a second, Yuri stood awkwardly in front of his best friend, trying to decide what to do. They had woken up tangled together that morning and while neither of them had addressed it, he wasn't so sure things weren't a little awkward between them. Otabek didn't seem too fazed, but then again Otabek rarely expressed much emotion, even around Yuri.
Yuri finally gave up and threw his arms around Otabek's neck. "Thank you, Beka. For everything. I don't know what I'd do without you."
Otabek hugged him back. "You know I'll always be here for you, Yura."
Yuri couldn't help but grip the back of Otabek's leather jacket a little tighter, taking in the scent of him one last time. He wanted to burst into tears and beg him to stay in St. Petersburg, but he knew he was just being selfish. Otabek had his own goals and had to get to the Grand Prix Final for him, so instead Yuri let go to bid him farewell and serious note of "Kick JJ's ass for me."
Otabek chuckled and said he would, along with a promise to start planning a trip for Yuri to come visit him in Almaty as soon as the GPF was over.
Yuri didn't think he'd ever felt so empty as when he watched his friend disappear through the security line. He was aware of Viktor and Katsuki calling to him that it was time to go, but he flipped them off and gave himself a minute to collect himself before heading back towards the parking lot.
As he settled into the back seat of Viktor's car, Yuri noticed a new notification on his phone.
Otabek-altin liked your photo.
It was the photo from last night. He even left a comment underneath.
I'm always here for you, Yura. Can't wait for you to come to Almaty in a couple of months.
Ignoring Viktor and Katusdon's concerned questions, Yuri curled up into a ball and glared out the window for the entire ride back to his apartment. All he could find himself thinking was that something was fundamentally different now between him and Otabek, and he had no idea where to go from here.
All he knew was that he wished Otabek would come back.