Chapter Text
“Wait--,” The man on the screen reached his hand out to stop the woman who had started to walk away from him. She didn’t move away from his touch, his facial expression relaxing from its previous twist of worry. The woman turned around to face him, tears welling up in her eyes. The man ran a hand through his silver hair, taking a steadying breath before he continued. “I wish the circumstances were better, Sonia. I don’t want to see you go.”
The woman’s eyes widened for a second before she put a hand on the man’s cheek, gently brushing her thumb over the tears that had started to fall from his eyes. “I don’t want to go,” She whispered, her voice wavering at the end. She was close to letting her own tears fall, breaking her attempts at composure. She leaned in to kiss him then, the two of them moving against each other with a sense of desperation. They both knew that this was the last time.
They parted for a second, looking into each other’s eyes and letting their crystalline tears fall from their eyelashes before they clutched onto each other again, hugging tightly as the screen faded to black.
Yuuri sniffled as the theater lights faded back on, blinking a couple of times to adjust to the change in lighting. Phichit held out the tissue box that they had brought and Yuuri took a tissue with a smile of thanks, dabbing at the corners of his eyes.
“They really turned up the emotional factor on that one, didn’t they?” Phichit asked from the seat beside him.
Yuuri nodded as he blew his nose. “I don’t think I’ve ever cried that hard in my life.”
Phichit sighed, getting up from his seat and Yuuri followed suit, leading them down the red carpet of the theater and towards the door. “If I were Sonia I would have stayed. Yeah, it would have been hard, but I think she would have been happier.”
“How do you know she didn’t stay?” He held the door open for his friend and they walked into the lobby, the tiled flooring reflecting the illuminated movie posters that hung on every wall. “Of course she had made a promise that she’d leave Barcelona, but that doesn’t mean that she did in the end.”
Phichit hummed. “You think she gave up her dream to stay with the guy of her dreams?”
“I mean, it’s not practical, but I think it’d be a nice ending,” Yuuri smiled to himself. He looked to his right, his eyes lighting up when he saw the poster for the movie that they had just come out of. Agape… it featured Viktor Nikiforov as a photographer in Barcelona who falls in love with the beautiful ballet dancer Sonia Navarro. The movie documented the course of their relationship stunningly, the twist being when Sonia receives an offer to join the most prestigious ballet company in France. In the end Sonia had to go, it was her dream, after all, but Viktor's character couldn’t bare to lose her.
“Phichit,” Yuuri got his friends attention and pointed to the poster. They both grinned and ran over to it, standing in front and making peace signs as Phichit snapped a photo. It was a little tradition of theirs, every time that Viktor starred in a new movie.
Yuuri leaned over Phichit’s shoulder to look at the photo. “I think this is our best one yet,” Phichit said.
Yuuri smiled, agreeing. “It was also Viktor’s best film yet.”
Phichit raised his eyebrows, a teasing smile on his lips. “Are you saying that it’s even better than Stammi Vicino?”
Yuuri paused to think for a little. “I’d have to watch it again to make sure, but it just might be.”
Phichit shook his head, laughing as he turned back to the movie poster. It featured Viktor and the lead actress ballroom dancing, Viktor’s silver hair shining in the fabricated moonlight.
“Do you think that they photoshopped him to make him look that hot?”
Yuuri snorted, looking at the poster. Viktor’s jaw line was strong and well defined, and his face didn’t have a single flaw, but instead, it looked almost as if he was glowing. “I’m sure a little, but I’m pretty sure he always looks that nice."
Phichit didn’t reply at first, gazing at the poster again. “Yeah. It’s definitely photoshop,” He said before walking towards the door, earning a laugh from Yuuri as he ran to catch up.
They headed to their apartment from there, gleefully discussing their favorite parts of the film. “Did you see the look in Viktor’s eyes when he saw her dance for the first time? His acting was so incredible, and you could literally see the love in his eyes,” Yuuri followed Phichit into their apartment, closing the door behind him.
“Don’t forget that confession scene on the bridge,” Phichit added, sitting down on the couch.
“Oh gosh,” Yuuri plopped down next to him. “I don’t think I could ever forget about that. He was absolutely breathtaking.”
Phichit hummed in agreement as he switched on the television, thoughtlessly flipping through the channels.
“Oh hey,” Phichit said as the screen filled with the image of Viktor, sitting in a leather chair on some late night talk show. He was dressed up in a grey suit, and was turned towards the interviewer as he spoke.
“So your new film Agape came out today,” He was cut off by the roaring cheers from the audience. Viktor acknowledged them with a small smile and a nod. The interviewer continued. “It’s a really lovely and heartbreaking film, truly.”
The audience cheered again, and Viktor let out a small laugh at their enthusiasm. “Thank you very much.”
“Now that’s not the only exciting thing happening in Viktor Nikiforov’s life,” The interviewer continued, giving a suggestive look to the audience. “You’re going to be the next star on the Bachelor next season if I’m not mistaken.”
“Yes, that’s correct,” Viktor said with a smile, earning high pitched screams from the audience.
“Do you expect anything serious to come of it?”
Viktor shrugged, flashing a smile that caused a pang in Yuuri’s heart. “I guess that all depends on the contestants.”
“Would you say that you’re a man with high standards?” The interviewer pressed.
Viktor laughed nervously, running a hand through his hair. “I just prefer to focus on my work, really.”
The interviewer nodded, tapping his pen on the desk. “So agreeing to do this show is kind of a turning point for you, is it not? Do you think you’re finally ready to share your life with someone else?”
“I guess we’ll see.”
The interviewer took that without further question, turning to look at the camera straight on. “Fair enough. And for our viewers in here and at home, applications for the upcoming season of the Bachelor are open. So, if you want to go on a date with this handsome man to my right,” Viktor smiled softly at the comment and Yuuri felt his face get hot. “I’d say that it’s worth a chance. You might just be the one.”
Viktor laughed at that last part, reaching over to shake the hand of the interviewer before leaving the chair.
Yuuri could feel a blush on his cheeks as he watched Viktor retreat, his breath catching as Viktor gave one last smile to the audience.
“You’re definitely doing that,” Phichit said, leaning back into the couch.
Yuuri shook his head. “No, I’m not,” He would never stand a chance vying for Viktor’s love in such a way. He could only imagine the type of people who would make it onto that show, the plethora of beautiful individuals who would try to win Viktor’s heart.
“Why not?”
“For one, I wouldn’t stand a chance.”
Phichit waved his hand in the air. “Puh-lease. You’d have Viktor Nikiforov falling for you in two seconds flat.”
Yuuri didn’t believe that for a second (Phichit was just being supportive, after all) but he still couldn’t help the smile that came at the thought. “No, I wouldn’t. Really.”
“Yuuri,” Phichit was grinning at him. “Are you trying to tell me you wouldn’t go on a date with Viktor Nikiforov if you had the chance?”
Yuuri stared at his friend with his mouth open for a second, trying to find words to rebut the statement. Of course he would. He had been a fan of Viktor’s for years, had seen all of his movies and knew the lines word for word. But it was impractical to think that Viktor would ever be attracted to him. He wasn’t anything special, and certainly not on par to the world that Viktor was used to. Viktor lived in a world full of talent and glamour, and of the most beautiful people life had to offer. And he fit in so well, meshing into the Hollywood scene like it was his destiny. Yuuri couldn’t compete with that even if he tried.
“You should at least send in an application. What’s the harm?”
“And what if I get in?” Yuuri questioned and Phichit raised his eyebrows.
“Would that be a bad thing?”
Yuuri paused for a second, thinking it over. The chances were pretty low of course—only 9 people were chosen for the show out of a sea of applicants, both male and female. A sea of people yearning for Viktor’s attention, as if it were that easy to earn it.
“I guess we can do it,” Yuuri said finally, giving Phichit his victory.
Phichit threw his arms up into the air, grabbing his laptop and pulling up the application form. They mulled over it all night, with Yuuri wanting to seem more interesting than he actually was, but Phichit kept him in check, forcing him to answer all the basic questions truthfully. After Yuuri finished the last question, Phichit dressed him up in his nicest suit and slicked his hair back, taking off his glasses. They had to send in pictures of Yuuri too, and he naturally wanted to look his best.
Yuuri tried to pose in the suit, not really knowing what an “attractive” pose would even look like.
Phichit was trying to focus on Yuuri by turning his camera lens, tsking as Yuuri struggled to do something that looked even remotely natural. “Yuuri, try not to think about it. Pretend you’re not posing, you’re just… hanging out.”
Yuuri relaxed his shoulders at that, putting a hand on his hip. “I don’t know, Phichit…”
“Shh,” Phichit snapped a couple of photos. “Hey, remember that scene in Agape where Viktor’s character first sees Sonia at the ball?”
Yuuri couldn’t help the smile that came to his face as he recounted the scene. “She couldn’t see him, but Viktor was absolutely starstruck.”
Phichit nodded, snapping photos of Yuuri’s every motion. “He was so entranced he could barely move, but that’s when she came up to him.”
Yuuri brought a hand up to his mouth to hide his smile that was growing by the second. “And all he could do was to ask to take her picture.”
Phichit smiled behind the camera, taking one last shot before moving the camera away from his face. “That’s right,” He looked at the shots on the tiny screen and Yuuri, noticing Phichit was done, made his way to look over Phichit’s shoulder. They were some of the best pictures Yuuri had seen of himself, his smile lighting up his whole face.
“I think Viktor doesn’t stand a chance,” Phichit said simply, grinning to his friend and moving to transfer the photos to his laptop.
The next day they had mailed the whole package, interview, photos and all. Phichit himself had applied for an open crew position on the show, swearing that Yuuri was going to win and he wanted to be there for him every step of the way.
Yuuri appreciated Phichit’s optimism about the whole ordeal, but with every passing week Yuuri felt the anxiety that had begun to pool up in his gut get worse and worse. There was every chance in the world that it was only taking so long to hear back because he didn’t make it. He didn’t have what it would take to earn Viktor’s love, or even pique his interest.
It weighed heavily on his mind, and he would head off to the ice rink every day to skate off the anxiety, focusing his mind on the sound of the ice beneath his blades, but even then he thought about Viktor. He thought about what could possibly win Viktor over, and if he even had it in him. He skated in circles, his arms making flowing movements in the air. His heart was pounding, thoughts of that elegant man with shining silver hair constantly flooding his mind.
He didn’t stay on the ice for more than an hour today, sighing at the relief he felt after the activity as he made his way back to he and Phichit’s apartment.
He opened up the door, setting down his skate bag before throwing his keys on the table. He was half knelt down, ready to air out his skates when his phone rang.
Yuuri fumbled through his pockets, rushing to answer the unknown number once he had dug out the phone. “Hello?”
“Hi, is this Yuuri Katsuki?”
Yuuri stood up, noticing Phichit as he walked into the living room, looking at Yuuri with questioning eyes. “Yes, that’s me.”
“We’re calling from the casting office of the TV show the Bachelor. We’re calling to let you know that you’ve been chosen to be a contestant on our upcoming season. Congratulations!”
Yuuri felt like he had the wind knocked out of him, and he could barely muster the words to reply. “Really?”
“Yes! We’ve mailed your plane ticket, along with any additional information that you may need. Congratulations again, Mr. Katsuki.”
“T-thank you,” Yuuri said, hanging up as soon as he heard the dial tone coming from the other end.
“Was that--,” Phichit started, a grin plastered on his face.
Yuuri nodded, barely processing a thing. “I’m going to be a contestant on the Bachelor.”
Phichit ran over, almost tackling Yuuri with a hug. “And you’re absolutely going to seduce Viktor Nikiforov.”
“I don’t know--,” Yuuri started, and Phichit pulled away, raising a finger.
“Trust me on this. Viktor doesn’t know what’s coming.”