ACT 4

rain in my eyes

"My gift, Yuuri?" was the third thing Viktor said after 'hello' and 'how are you'.

Yuuri frowned. Really can't wait for your gift, can you?

Viktor bit his lip and smiled sheepishly.

Yuuri huffed out a sigh, then he smiled and stepped aside. I guess you've waited long enough.

Viktor took a seat on the leather couch while Caesar greeted him, jumping up onto his lap and licking his face. "Hi, boy," Viktor whispered, affectionately scratching the dog's head. Caesar yawned and panted happily. "Do you know what my gift is?" Caesar gazed back silently. "Yeah. Me neither. I'm sure it'll be nice."

Yuuri sat across from Viktor, and that's when he noticed a brown portfolio sitting on the glass coffee table. Yuuri gestured to it. Viktor looked at it skeptically, then back at Yuuri, who smiled softly. Open it.

"Alright," Viktor said. Slowly, he reached for it, and opened it up.

A looseleaf. His eyes swept over the page.

'Part 3: Rough outline

Henry dies (NO! DO YOU WANT THE FANS TO HATE YOU?)

Henry gets injured (ok)

Henry goes in battle but is ok

Maybe gets shellshock? (like septimus smith? ha)

- Olivia is pregnant!

- boy? girl?

- olivia is sent suitors, enter ""edgy new character!""

- family feud

- henry gets charged with theft & sent to jail ! (think of how 2 get him out of jail)

- somebody has to die and i just don't know who!

- how to end this?

- blah blah blah (The rest of the sentence is illegible.)

- writing stuff

- money now please and thanks (The rest of the sentence has been scribbled out.)

- つかれた。'

It took him only a second to understand what this single piece of paper meant, and what it held, and what it informed.

Viktor slowly looked up at Yuuri. "Is this," he managed to choke out, almost forgetting to sign while doing so. "Is this...legit?"

To that, Yuuri smiled, and he nodded.

"Oh my god," Viktor said, already breathless. "Really?"

Yes, Yuuri said. This is her work, her handwriting, her notes.

Viktor felt like he's going to hyperventilate. "Oh my god," he said again. His heart rapidly knocked against his ribcage. "Oh my god. Where," he said. "did you get this?"

To that, Yuuri's smile fell, and he looked down at his lap. Suddenly he was looking quite ashamed, and Viktor was confused.

Excitement replaced with worry, Viktor reached out to touch Yuuri's knee and he kept it there until they locked eyes. "Yuuri," Viktor whispered. "What is it?"

Yuuri looked back at him (with wide, endlessly patient eyes), and he blushed and lowered his lashes and looked rather embarrassed.

He stood abruptly, and Viktor watched him. Then, he gestured for Viktor to follow him.

And so he did, and quickly. They went down the hall, the hall Viktor hadn't gone down until his very moment, to a room, in which Yuuri stopped before it and turned to lean his back against it, momentarily, and looked up at Viktor.

I trust you, he said, and that's all he said, and then he turned around and opened the door.

Viktor cautiously stepped through, not knowing what he should expect or what he was going to see.

He saw a beautiful bedroom, a beautiful bed, a beautiful rug, a beautiful floor, beautiful walls, beautiful windows. In the corner sat an elegant writing desk, and for some reason Viktor was drawn to it. He slowly moved towards it, and sat down.

Papers everywhere. Pencils and pens and crumbled paper and neat paper and neat stacks of paper and disorganized stacks of paper and they all seemed to have words written down, words thrown on the page, words regurgitated from other texts, words hastily scribbled down like an afterthought, neat words on neat lines and messy words on messy lines with messy connotations and then pleasant connotations and words like anathema and clandestine and ambivalent and lines like he was favourably disposed about the proposals and she was drawn to his subtle, simple, sweet beauty and the name Henry and Olivia and there was a laptop open to a Word document that was 214 pages long and all these tabs open that said 'VERSION1' and 'UNFINISHEDVERSION4' and 'Move 23 files to trash?' and there were at least twelve different copies of Yukiko's first book in a stack and at least eighteen different copies of Yukiko's second book in a stack and they were all signed and had the golden seal of '#1 New York Times Bestseller' and—

—Viktor stood there, silent, taking it all in, not sure what to think or what to say or what to do. His mind went blank.

He swivelled around in his seat slowly, slowly, slowly, and Yuuri was sitting on his bed, twisting the drawstrings of his hoodie over and over and over and over, not wanting to look at Viktor; he looked too embarrassed to, or maybe too guilty to, or maybe he was regretting showing Viktor at all.

But eventually they made eye contact, and Viktor softened his expression. "Yuuri," he said. "Are you Kamata Yukiko?"

Yuuri flicked his gaze from his desk to Viktor's eyes, back and forth, back and forth. Then he lifted his eyes, wet his lips, and nodded slowly. Yes.

Intense excitement washed over Viktor, first a little at a time, and then all at once. His fingers shook, his heart pounding pounding slamming against his chest, begging to be set free, and he floated up to the ceiling and maybe he blacked out, he wasn't sure. All he knew was that he was talking to—had been talking to—his absolute favourite author. All this time. Viktor vibrated feverishly.

Yuuri blushed and blushed and blushed. Ashamed, he twiddled his fingers. Are you mad at me?

Viktor was taken aback. "What?" he rasped. "Mad at you? Why would I be mad at you?"

I should have told you, Yuuri signed weakly. Months ago. I'm sorry.

"No, no, no, Yuuri. Don't be sorry." In one fluid movement, Viktor leapt for Yuuri from where he was sitting, grabbing him and pulling him into a tight, warm hug. Yuuri instinctively stiffened and tensed and Viktor could feel his body screaming abort but Viktor held on tight for a long, long time.

He didn't know when he pulled back but he did, because he was then gazing into Yuuri's soft chocolate eyes. He sat back a bit, at least a good three inches back, and then he realized just how insane and wonderful this ordeal was. "This is the best day of my life," he squeaked in a voice two octaves higher than usual even though Yuuri couldn't hear it anyway. "I can't believe it! I can't believe it's you behind all this—well, I can, because you're very smart, but—but—! Oh, my god," he whispered, forgetting to sign, and covered his mouth briefly with both hands. "I can't believe I'm talking to you. I can't believe—all this time—you—you…" He squealed and jumped off the bed to bounce around the room, electrified, enlivened, animated. "You're her! You're her! I can't believe I'm actually here, with you, in this room, and—oh god," he moaned, and clutched his head with his hands. "I must have sounded so stupid to you this whole entire time! You're like—like—a scholar, and I just feel so dumb being next to you, and—"

Yuuri waved his hands wildly, tiny throaty almost indiscernible laughs escaping his mouth. Calm down.

"You don't seem to understand the gravity of the situation," Viktor griped. "Oh, my god, you are brilliant. You're wonderful, you're amazing, you're powerful, you're—you're an inspiration! To so many people, Yuuri—" He stopped to catch his breath. "Yuuri, you're fantastic."

Yuuri placed both hands over his face to show he was embarrassed, and Viktor laughed and pulled them away. "It's true," he insisted. "Everything I say about you is true and you know it. Don't you?"

No, no, Yuuri tried to protest.

"You should know it especially if you didn't know it before! Yuuri, you're amazing. This is the greatest gift I've ever received in my entire life," Viktor cried passionately, and then get up to resume bouncing around the room ecstatically.

When he had bounced off every corner in glee, he sat back down in front of Yuuri, waiting. Yuuri smiled shyly and scratched the nape of his neck. It's very sweet of you to say all that, he signed finally. I was very happy to hear you were such a big fan. It's a weird feeling but I like it. A pause. I never really used to think I was a good writer. Even now… Another pause.

"Yes?" Viktor prompted.

Even now, Yuuri continued. I still don't think I'm that good. That I don't deserve to be called a 'bestseller' because there are plenty of people out there better than me. He sighed and smiled kind of sadly. But thank you for being a fan, I appreciate your support.

Viktor was flabbergasted. How could this young man not see how talented he was? Was he blind?! "Listen, I don't care what you think about yourself. Well, I do, but that's besides the point—look, you've influenced so many people's lives because of what you've written. You've inspired me—you know I donate and volunteer at deaf and mute communities, right?" he asked gently.

Yuuri nodded slightly.

"You know it was all because of you, right?"

Yuuri furrowed his eyebrows but said nothing.

"It was," Viktor said pointedly. "because you inspired me to. To do good for people with disabilities."

Slowly, Yuuri nodded.

"So," Viktor said. "for a couple of minutes, forget everything about what you think about yourself and think instead of what you've done for so many people around the world. And me. You care about what you've done for me, yes?"

Yuuri nodded again, cheeks pink.

"Right," Viktor said. "Exactly." He drew Yuuri in for another hug. This time, Yuuri timidly returned it. "Plus you've taught me so much," Viktor added after they pulled away. "including making me fall in love with books again. I guess I've always been too dumb to truly understand literature, but that's where you come in." He winked.

Yuuri shook his head. You're not dumb.

"You're right, I'm pretty smart," Viktor said.

Yuuri scoffed. And humble, too, so it seems.

Viktor smirked. "Dumb because I never understood reading like other people probably did. I just read for the stories and nothing else; not the themes, or symbols, or messages, or anything."

That doesn't make you dumb, Yuuri said. Just lazy.

"You see? You're already proving me wrong and correcting me! Okay, how about we make a deal?" Viktor brushed invisible dust off his pants and straightened his back. "I won't call myself dumb and you have to give yourself more credit than you think. Deal?" He held his hand up and stuck his pinky finger out.

Yuuri looked skeptically at his finger. For a second Viktor was certain he wasn't going to go through with it but soon enough their pinkies were interlocked. Deal, Yuuri said afterwards, and smiled sweetly.

He was so cute. Viktor reached out and gently squished Yuuri's cheeks between his palms. "So cute."

Yuuri went beet-red and tried to push Viktor's hands away. He pouted. Don't make fun of me.

"I'm not. You are really cute."

And you're noisy, Yuuri teased. So loud.

Viktor laughed. He poked Yuuri's cheek and briefly considered teasing him some more, eventually deciding against it "So," Viktor said, and grinned. "How's book three coming along?"

To his immense shock, Yuuri grinned back. Wanna read it?

Viktor clutched his chest as if he were having a heart attack right there and then. "Oh, god, Yuuri! Are you serious?"

Yeah, Yuuri said, looking both smug and nonchalant at the same time. That's what I've been working on for the past couple of months. I was putting it off for too long, then I got really invested in it, which is why I needed someone to walk Caesar for me. That's how busy I was. I finished half of it just the other day.

Viktor was pretty sure his jaw just unhinged from his face and shattered on the floor. Yuuri let out a tiny, hoarse laugh and reached out to close Viktor's mouth. Come on, he said, and patted Viktor's leg. I'll sneak you a copy of the draft. He got off the bed and moved to his desk and rummaged through the drawers.

Still seated on the lofty bed, Viktor watched Yuuri dig through his things, looking for the pile of papers that Viktor of all people was allowed to bestow his eyes upon, before anyone else, before Yuuri's publisher, before the bookstores. Before his fans. Before the world.

"Yeah," he said, even though Yuuri had his back turned to him. "Yeah. I'd love to."

He wondered how he ever got to be so lucky.

A/N: Does this remind anyone of a yaoi anime from like 2006? Because this whole ""secretly the author!1!"" thing was partly inspired by that lol.

God I love these two. I find them a little difficult to write sometimes because I want to get them as accurate as possible, but it does get tough occasionally. Uwah, these boys are so cute.

Please share your thoughts on this so far, I'm dying to hear what you people think! Thanks so much for reading, every reader makes a big difference to me.

Hope you enjoyed! See you in a week!

Stay classy.