El cisne Ch. 25 sneak peek
Javi's not sure what he's expecting when Takahiko swipes him in but watching Tatsuki hold an argument with a squawking swan is definitely not at the top of the list.
“You know what? I don’t even want to know,” he says with a shake of his head. “Have you seen Yuzuru? He hasn’t been answering my texts.”
Tatsuki glances at the bird in the room, which has gone still.
“Hard not to, considering we’re roommates.” A wry, knowing look, like he’s hiding a secret. “But he’s...out right now. I expect he'll be back. Probably late.” Tatsuki grimaces. “He’s a terrible roommate like that. Kicks too."
The swan snaps at his hand. Tatsuki doesn’t even blink.
Javi fails to stop his jaw from dropping.
“You named it after your teammate?”
“It’s a ‘he,’” Tatsuki says firmly.
Javi feels the beginnings of a migraine and wonders why the hell he’s put himself in this situation. He's beginning to understand why exactly the two had ended up making alternate living arrangements in Sochi.
"Not that it's any of my business, but do you mind telling me why exactly there's a swan sitting on your bed? Your swan. And don’t lie. This isn’t the first time I’ve seen this damn bird, have I?” It was not in Javi's nature to be suspicious but this was simply too much to overlook. Moscow. Nice. Sochi, even, if it hadn’t been a hallucination that night. Once was a fluke. Twice was a coincidence. Thrice was three swans too many.
Javi has no idea how Team Japan had taken care of the necessary paperwork to clear their feathered mascot for international air travel but Javi wouldn’t put it past them to just adopt one just because it was cute.
Tatsuki silently confers with the bird, which sits there on the bed, its webbed feet tucked neatly under a thick coat of feathers, neck arched imperiously, the avian equivalent of smugness.
Tatsuki holds up his hands and sighs.
“You caught me,” he says. “He’s on loan from university.”
“Actually, he’s my muse.”