Chapter 4: First Impressions

Almost two weeks went by since Victor's initial encounter with his parents and since Yuri had agreed to meet them. Victor was nervous as all hell about introducing his parents to the love of his life. He wasn't sure how they would treat him or what they would say to him. Yuri was a pretty likable person, but because of the kind of people Victor's parents were, any positive qualities wouldn't matter to them. Victor hoped that somehow, they would like Yuri upon meeting him today. He paced back and forth in the bedroom thinking and preparing himself for whatever could happen today. He stopped, took a deep breath, and slowly let it out as he went to the living room to join Yuri.

"Ready?" Yuri asked as soon as he saw Victor.
"Yup. Let's get going" he said to Yuri grabbing his keys.
"Makkachin, we'll be gone for a bit so be a good pup until we get back" Victor said kneeling down to hug and pet his beloved poodle.

Makkachin licked Victor's face then went over to the couch to nap. Yuri and Victor went out the front door and began the drive to the place Victor used to call home at one point in his life. They spent the car ride chatting about various thing whether it be about the wedding or thoughts they had in general. Things got pretty quiet after they got off the expressway and were in a quaint, little town. Yuri mostly looked out the window taking in the scenery. He had never really been to other parts of Russia. He mostly stayed in the area's near and around St. Petersburg. Victor's mind drew back to the whole reason they were out in the first place. He tried not to think more about it than he already has been. Instead he kept focused on driving without saying anything. Yuri had noticed the silence as he became curious about the neighborhood that they were in.

"Is this where you grew up?" Yuri asked looking at all of the different shops and businesses around.
"Yeah. It's a nice little town" Victor said recalling more positive memories of his past.

Victor began to point out different places and areas where he used to spend his time when he was younger. He talked about what was the same and what all had changed since he left this town as a teen. Yuri listen intently as Victor spoke and shared memories of his own life with him. Victor had this passionate look in his eyes that Yuri admired. Victor said less as they approached a more residential area filled with larger houses. The car began to slow as they reached their destination and soon stopped. The moment of truth was approaching. Would his parents finally be willing to accept Victor and his relationship, or would they remain the same and unmoved? Victor wasn't sure of what the outcome would be. He didn't think too much about it though. Victor turned off the engine and they both took off their seatbelts and sat in the car for a moment before getting out.

"Yuri, I just want to thank you again, for doing this. You really didn't have to."
"I know, but I just want to show I care."
"Also, I apologize in advance for anything my parents might say to you or in general."

"That's okay. I kind of figured what I might be signing up for."
"Alright, here goes nothing."

They exited the car, and walked up to the front door.

"I can't believe this is actually happening…" Victor whispered to himself.
"It'll be fine." Yuri said as he grabbed Victor's right hand and kissed the golden ring on it.

Normally if one of them was feeling nervous or anxious, the other would take their hand and kiss the ring they gave each other for reassurance and luck. Despite Yuri's words, Victor wasn't entirely confident of things being fine himself. He began to feel nervous thinking of all the possible things that could happen tonight, yet also calmed by Yuri's presence. Victor knocked on the door and the couple waited outside for an answer. Not long went by before Victor's mother greeted the two of them at the door.

"Victor, good to see you again" his mother said as she opened the door. Victor simply smiled. His mother turned to Yuri and looked him up and down.
"You must be Yuri. Nice to meet you" she said as she welcomed both of them inside.

"Nice to meet you too" Yuri said nervously.

She led both of them down the hall to the dining room and told them to have a seat. She then went to the other room to inform her husband that Victor and Yuri had arrived and that dinner would be ready soon. She then went back to the kitchen to finish preparing the meal. Meanwhile, Victor and Yuri sat down at the table and waited.

"So far so good" Victor said settling down.

"Yeah. Your mom seems, okay. Not too sure how she feels about me though…" Yuri stated.
"She probably just thinks you're cute. I sure do think you are" Victor said caressing and holding his chin.

"Well, of course you think so. When aren't you calling me cute."

"Probably when I'm sleeping."

"Uh, not even then…" Yuri said revealing to Victor that even in his sleep, sometimes Victor will roll over to cuddle while muttering things about how much he loves Yuri or thinks he's cute.

The both of them looked into each other's eyes laughing and smiling as they pressed their foreheads together. Victor wanted to kiss Yuri right now, but he rather not put himself or Yuri in a situation for if either of his parents were to walk in. Who knows how they would react. They barely liked the mere idea of him being with a man, but to actually see him intimate with Yuri would probably be too much for them and might even make the situation dangerous. He knew what his parents were capable of, and anything was possible with them. As they were laughing, Victor's father entered the room and cleared his throat. The laughing stopped and the smiles quickly faded.

"Ahem. Victor."
"Father."
"Yuri, I assume."
"Uh, y-yes sir. It's nice to meet you."

His father didn't reply. He hardly looked at Yuri. The man simply sat down directly across from Victor at the table. He didn't say anything to either of them. He only glared directly at Victor, who was staring past him, and glanced at Yuri every so often, who kept his head down looking at the plate sitting on the table in front of him. Something about Victor's father instilled slight unease into Yuri. His entire demeanor was intimidating between the short responses and dagger like stares. Yuri was intent on not saying anything in fear of upsetting the man. Victor sensed the fear Yuri felt and placed a hand on top of his for reassurance. As soon as Victor did that, the man's eyes narrowed even more at both of them. Victor remained unfazed by his father's disposition, and Yuri focused only on the hand resting on top of his.

The silence among them seemed to go on forever, with awkward stares and glances going back and forth. Thankfully, they didn't have to wait in silence for too much longer. Victor's mother entered the dining room with dinner ready. She placed the dish down on the table and began serving her husband first, then Victor and Yuri, and herself last.

"I assume introductions already took place" the woman said finally taking a seat next to her husband.

"Yes. I walked in on these two giggling like school girls" the man said dryly, and somewhat disgusted.
"I take it you found something funny?" the women inquired to Victor and Yuri.
"Ah, it was nothing" Victor said, not really wanting to give them the reason why or come up with an excuse.

Everyone started eating without saying much of anything aside from small talk here and there, the typical how was your day and how have you been conversation. Things were fine until Victor's father started to speak up more.

"So, you're also one of those…. 'weirdos' who likes other men huh?" Victor's father asked Yuri. "Who would have thought I'd let another fa—freak into this house."

Victor shot his father a sharp glare as soon as he heard the first syllable come out, a look that dared him to say what he was going to say before the man quickly changed his word choice. The man continued rambling on about nonsensical things about "the type of people" Yuri and Victor were. Yuri's eyebrows pressed together as he tried to maintain a friendly smile. He didn't say anything. He wasn't even sure if he should say anything at all. "How does someone even respond to that?" he thought to himself. Yuri still didn't reply, as he was mostly shocked and at a loss for words and not really given an opportunity to talk. Victor on the other hand wasn't having it.

"Look, you can say what you want about me, but I refuse to allow your verbal abuse towards my fiancé." Victor said balling his hand into a fist.

"There are worse words I could have said instead."

"Or you could have said nothing at all." Victor said still clenching his fist.

Victor and his father glared at each other as tensions began to rise. Victor's mother stepped in before things got out of hand. She tugged on the man's sleeve and told him that Yuri was still a guest and should be treated as such. She then proceeded to change the subject asking Yuri more appropriate questions about himself.

"Yuri, you're from Japan, how do you like living in Russia?" she asked genuinely.

"Well, it's a lot colder, but so far I've liked it here."

The Russian man and woman proceeded to ask Victor and Yuri more about their relationship, questions like how and where they met and how long they've been together. They also asked Yuri more about his life back in Japan.

"How do your parents feel about this?" Victor's mother asked. Yuri shot her a confused look not sure what she meant at first. "The whole getting married to… a ma—umm, to Victor" she clarified.

"Oh. Well they couldn't be happier for me and him. I think to say they're overjoyed would be an understatement" Yuri said laughing timidly, with Victor laughing along in agreeance. "They're really excited and proud of everything I've done so far."

Victor looked over at Yuri admirably as he talked about his parents and how he's happy to make them proud. Victor glanced over at his parents and his expression changed. The contrast between his own parents and Yuri's was clear cut. Two people who loved their son unconditionally versus two individuals who rejected their son in an instant. His parents noticed the look Victor was giving them and avoided his gaze as they realized the difference between themselves and what Yuri was describing.

Yuri continued talking about Japan and his own family, with Victor adding in his own experiences from Japan. For the most part, things were going well with Victor's parents. Dinner was wrapped up and everyone moved to the living room to continue to conversing. Victor and Yuri sat down on the sofa next to each other, while Victor's parents sat down on the love seat across from them. His parents wasted no time diving into the questions they've been curious about all night.

"So, which one of you is the man, and which one of you is the woman?" His father asked.

"Umm… we're both the man…?" Yuri said confused.
"But who does the cooking and cleaning, while the other is out working?" His mother included.
"We both do all of those things… with and for each other." Victor firmly stated.

His parents seemed perplexed as they tried to wrap their heads around the couple's pairing.

"It's simple, we go to practice together, we come home and cook dinner together, clean the dishes together, watch tv together" Victor explained in basic terms.

"Well what do you plan to do about children…?" the woman asked.

Victor and Yuri both looked at each other and blushed. Neither of them have ever really given the idea of children serious thought. It may have come up in conversations as a passing thought and as a possibility for them, but they haven't actually sat down and talked about it.

"We have… options for if or when the time comes" Victor said.

"You're both men, how do you two even…well you know? Do the act?" The man asked.
"Before I go into detail about my sex life, let me ask you this: would you be asking me this if I was with a woman?" Victor countered to his father in a serious tone.
"No, but—"

"Good!" Victor interrupted, "Well it usually starts with kissing, some touching and grabbing, then I'll usually put my hand down—"

"Stop! I don't care." His father said slightly mortified and regretting even asking anything.

Victor placed his hand in front of his mouth to hide his smile and to muffle some of the snickering coming from him. Yuri had a smirk on his face but was also blushing, not sure what Victor was going to say just now and if he was even going to go that far into detail about their sexual escapades. Victor's father seemed thoroughly annoyed while his mother's face was bright red from feeling embarrassment as her son was prepared to talk pretty openly about his sex life and give out such personal details. Victor mostly did this to shut his father up and get his parents to see how ridiculous they were being with their questions. The woman let out a huff of air to alleviate the embarrassment and to try and move on from what just happened.

"It's great you want to share things with us, but there are some things we don't want or need to know. Not only that, but you're having sex before your even married." the blue eyed woman said stopping herself before she went into a tirade like her husband did earlier in the night.

"Well, you did ask" Victor shrugged with a smirk ignoring her comment about premarital sex.

The man and the woman both rolled their eyes and as they took a moment to think before they spoke again. Their questions became a little less personal and invasive and instead went on to ask both Victor and Yuri about the wedding. Their questions were still wrapped in dated gender roles like asking if one of them was going to wear a dress. Victor jokingly said he would, but he and Yuri had already decided on tuxedos which they would soon be fitted for. Yuri and Victor happily talked about what they had planned so far for their wedding, while the Russian man and woman listened curiously.

Victor was surprised by how little in opposition his parent had to say. How calm and okay they appeared to be with everything. They seemed nothing like the abusive parents he was forced to leave in his earlier years. He wouldn't say they were completely open minded at this point, but they were definitely less judgmental, at least outwardly. He was sure they had a slew of remarks in their heads that they were trying to keep to themselves. With Yuri being a guest to their home, he figured they were playing up the role being a good host to uphold their image. Regardless of if they were actually starting to come around or just putting up a front, Victor still felt like something was different about them. It almost freaked him out a little, but he didn't dwell on it too much.

As the evening grew later and conversations died down, Victor and Yuri decided to head back home before it became too late. Victor told his parents goodnight and his mother led him and Yuri back to the front door. She told Yuri again that it was nice meeting him and waved goodbye to both of them as they headed back to the car.

"That went a lot better than expected. Maybe they really are trying" Victor said hopeful.

"Yeah… that went pretty well. I was afraid of saying the wrong thing, or making a bad impression" Yuri said.

"You were fine. I don't know if I can thank you enough for this" Victor said before getting into the car.

"Victor, it's nothing really. I'd do this for you again if I had to."

Victor smiled as he and Yuri got in the car and headed back home. The car ride back was mostly quiet. Yuri was feeling tired, and Victor was doing a lot of thinking. Would he begin to start seeing more of his parents now? Would they gradually start to make their way back into his life? "Could this really be happening? What are my parents trying to gain from this? Are they actually being genuine for once?" Victor thought to himself. Despite everything his parents have done, part of Victor had always wished for a chance to have them back in his life, and the possibility for that felt so real right now. The thought was overwhelming creating slight anxiety. Victor stopped questioning and drowned out his thoughts with the music coming from the car radio.

Once back at home, Yuri went straight to the bedroom to get ready for bed. Victor went over to the coffee table where a pen and notepad were sitting with a list of names labelled "Wedding Guest". He pondered for a moment before sitting down with the pen and paper and adding two more names with contact info to the list. He took a deep breath in and let it out as a sigh. "Never thought I'd actually be doing this…" he thought while sitting on the sofa. He felt nothing and something at the same time. He expected to be content with this but instead he had a feeling he couldn't quite say what it was. He ignored the feeling and got up to join Yuri in bed to turn in for the night.

…
Over the next couple of days, Yuri noticed that Victor seemed a little off. On the outside things seemed fine, but Victor's usual happiness and cheeriness seemed less than usual. Yuri suspected that maybe it had something to do with his parents now vaguely being in his life again. Not only that, the stress of skating, coaching, and planning a wedding were probably also getting to him. Victor was sitting on the couch with Makkachin lying across him as he flipped through channels on the television. Yuri sat in a chair nearby and was reading a book. Things were fairly calm and quiet, but Yuri could sense that Victor was still feeling down. He wanted to do something for him to brighten his mood.

"We're going out. My treat" Yuri said getting up and taking the remote from Victor's hand.

"Oh?" Victor said amused as his eyes brightened up. "Where to?"

"I was thinking about having a nice late afternoon lunch at your favorite café" Yuri suggested.

This put a smile on Victor's face. He was surprised by the spontaneity and felt excited to be going out with Yuri. Victor was noticing his own shift in mood and felt he needed to shake the bad vibes. He got up from the couch, telling Makkachin to come along with. The engaged couple and their dog headed out and started walking towards an outdoor café not too far from where they live. The two of them held hands as they walked together enjoying the warm sunlight of late summer, early autumn day. They arrived at the café and sat at a table with Makkachin sitting under the table by their feet. A server came by to take their order and the two sat and chatted as they waited for their orders to come out.

"Hey, Yuri."
"Yeah?"
"What do you think about writing our own vows?"

"Actually, I've been thinking about that a lot."
"Really? It's been on my mind on and off too."

"I like the idea of it. It would feel more personal" Yuri said starting to think of what he might say with his vows.

"I want to tell you all the ways I love you and list off all of the things that I love about you" Victor said flashing a bright smile at his fiancé.
"Victor, the ceremony can only be so long" Yuri said jokingly implying that Victor would have a lot to say.

They laughed as they teased each other and continued on with their conversation. Their food eventually came out and they enjoyed the rest of their lunch date together. After they ate, Yuri suggested that they go to the park for a chance to spend more time together and to let Makkachin get out and have some fun. They arrived at the park and let Makkachin run around for a bit. They watched from a shaded bench as he chased squirrels and birds and other park wildlife. Victor and Yuri occasionally went through their phones looking at different wedding trinkets and decorations showing them to each other to get the other's opinion. After running around for some time Makkachin came trotting back to Victor and Yuri to rest.

"I bet Makkachin would love to play around at the wedding venue" Yuri said petting the tired dog.
Victor gasped as he thought of an idea for their wedding.
"We should have Makkachin in the wedding!" Victor suggested.
Yuri pondered the idea for the moment.

"You think so?" Yuri asked.

"Yeah just think about it! Wouldn't it be the cutest thing ever? He could even wear a doggy suit or a bowtie collar!" Victor said searching for a dog costume on his phone.

"That would be a cute addition."

Victor showed Yuri his phone which had a photo of a tuxedo dog costume that came with a top hat and a bowtie. Yuri looked down at Makkachin, then back at the phone and snickered.

"You're not seriously going to buy that, are you?" Yuri asked.

"It should be here in about two days" Victor replied in a matter-of-fact tone having just ordered it.

Yuri shook his head grinning at the man whom he would be married to in just a few months. Victor played with his dog for a little while until the silver-beige poodle got distracted by small park animals and went off on another chase. Yuri and Victor went back to looking at wedding stuff, and for a moment, Makkachin went out of their sight. Victor wasn't too worried knowing that his dog wouldn't have gone that far away from them and that he would eventually return or come if called. Sure enough, the old dog returned bounding towards his owners with a ball in his mouth.

"This isn't yours" Victor said confused taking the toy from his dog's mouth.

Behind Makkachin were two children running after him yelling to "come back" and to "give it back". The two children caught up and approached Victor and Yuri. One of them was a small girl who looked about six years old. The other was a boy who looked no older than ten.

"Your dog stole our ball!" the boy exclaimed.

"I'm sorry that he did that." Victor said returning the ball. "Makkachin, apologize."

The dog sat down in front of the girl and licked her face as she started giggling.

"Aww it's okay puppy!" the little girl said petting the poodle.

"Hey, you kind of look like Victor Nikiforov…" The boy said looking at Makkachin as he recognized the name, then up at Victor.

"Do I?" Victor said giving his famous smile and wink.

The boy's eyes lit up with excitement, as he realized who he was standing before. The girl looked at both Victor and Yuri and was equally excited.

"That must mean you're his husband Yuri Katsuki!" the girl squealed, skipping towards Yuri.

"Well, I'm not his just husband yet…" Yuri nervously corrected as the girl jumped up and down in front of him.

The two children sat between them on the bench and reached into their backpacks for pen and paper.

"Can we have an autograph!?" they both asked.

"Of course!" Victor said delighted.

Victor and Yuri took the notebooks handed to them and signed their signature. The kids were elated. They asked for a picture and Victor took the boy's phone to take a group selfie. Then the kids took photos with each skater individually. Yuri smiled casually, while Victor went on to make silly faces with his young fans, thoroughly entertaining them. Yuri couldn't help but adore the way Victor interacted with the children, eagerly answering their questions and making them laugh. The children thanked Victor and Yuri with hugs and ran off, full of energy, ready to tell everyone who they had just met.

The couple decided it would be best to start heading home before word got around where they were and they were swarmed by fans. Victor called Makkachin back from wherever he had run to and they left the park. Yuri and Victor held hands again on the way back and walked in silence for a while, as Victor was in his own world enjoying the moment together with his fiancé, and Yuri was suddenly wondering about many things.

"You know, I've been thinking…" Yuri began.

"About what?"

"What your mother said about us having kids, and then the way you interacted with those two kids at the park…"

"Are you seeing kids in our future?" Victor asked seeing what Yuri was getting at.

"Well, yeah…maybe? I just think you would make a nice father" Yuri said blushing.

"Aww, thank you for that!" Victor said happily as he began to blush thinking of himself as a father.

"I'm not so sure about myself though" Yuri said doubtfully.

"Yuri, I think you'd be a great father. You're kind, sweet, and caring…"

"You know, I never really thought of myself becoming a parent or saw kids in my future, and now what feels like the first time ever, I am thinking about it… it's all just new and different for me."

"That makes both of us then. I never really thought of parenthood as an option for myself either really, but now it's a choice that we could be making sometime down the line" Victor said taking hold of Yuri's hand.

This was one of the first real conversations they've had together about children and neither of them spoke more about it for the rest of the walk home. They simply held hands mostly silent all the way back with Makkachin running ahead in front of them. Victor was thinking about parenthood a lot more now. He did want children, but when the time was right, and when he and Yuri were both ready. They arrive back home and spend the remainder of the day relaxing together.

Later that night, Victor sat down at the table and prepared to attempt to start writing some of his vows. He stared blankly at the pen and paper before him as he felt he had so much to say, yet couldn't get anything down on the paper. No matter what his mind felt blank. He was excited to write, he wanted to write, and yet…