he selfishly takes part in a holiday that's not his. It's for minako, and yuuko (and his face grew warm to match the changing winter). but he can't ignore a day that expresses devotion. appreciation. the intangible notion of love. "u-um— viktor?" a little box, with red lining and sweet chocolates. "i wanted…to say, well…" something drastic, yuuri bows, hands outstretched with the favour in palm. he's pink, and can't bare to open his eyes to face the flattery "thank you! for staying with me!"
Silver lashes flutter sluggishly against rose-kissed skin to hide wide eyes and shattered cerulean in the long moment of surprise that contorts his pretty features into something hesitant and all too soft. But a smile; perhaps too joyful and a bit too selfish, slowly drags across flushed, tender lips as realization begins to settle in. He is unused to being celebrated; unused to having cheers echo against his hears, and the weight of a gift (tangible or otherwise) placed within his palms is somewhat foreign to him. Yet, Yuuri has done nothing but celebrate him; cherish him too much and it’s drowning him in an overwhelming flurry of emotions he once swallowed back as bitter as the ocean tastes upon a chapped tongue and a bloody mouth.
And Yuuri doesn’t know; will never know the way he makes his head swim and his heart burst because Viktor is too good at hiding it, but if he looks hard enough the smile he wears is cracked and his heart is tangled somewhere within the muscles of his arms as he tries to mute the voices in his head that echo too many nasty lectures and unspoken promises. But when they’re quiet, his heart S I N G S; oh how it S C R E A M S, and it calls, over and over again, like his lungs are raw and his throat is crimson. The smile upon his lips is no longer a slow, sheepish thing; it’s a grin that makes Viktor look like he’s glowing, and it’s something reserved for only Yuuri.
He wants to dig his voice out of the depths of his gut; to tell Yuuri he’s the one who should be thanking him, but it’s stuck somewhere in his chest because Yuuri’s pink face and squeezed eyelids are too much for him. So instead he lunges forward with little warning; lean, sculpted arms reaching out to wrap tightly about the other man’s shoulders as he brings his head forward to nuzzle into the warmth and safety of Yuuri’s neck. It feels as close as home and as distant as the sun in the shuddering breath Viktor releases against the other man’s skin.
“Yuuri,” he mumbles; hot breath beating against the younger man’s shirt collar. “Yuuri,” he repeats like it’s something precious and beautiful (because the sound his name makes when it slips from Viktor’s lips is the best thing he’s heard in years). “I should be the one thanking you,” he forces out as he lifts his head from Yuuri’s shoulder; silver locks falling in front of his features as if to hide the pain that flickers through his eyes like lightning strikes. “So, thank you for staying with me, Yuuri. I owe you more than I could ever give you; more than the world could ever give you,” he breathes.
But it’s not enough, he concludes, before he pries his jaw back open to muster up the courage to say the words again (because he can never say them too often or even enough). “Thank you, thank you,” he whispers as he leans forward to press a gentle, lingering kiss upon the corners of Yuuri’s lips.















