Chapter Text
“Yakov!"
The scream pierced through the walls of the big wooden house. Georgi let out another shrill fuelled by the panic, his eyes not leaving his brother’s in his arms. “Yakov! It’s Victor!” his small lungs pleaded with a cry and even when the cold wind had burnt through his throat he needed desperately to call out for help. “Yakov!”
The day hasn’t been going as planned and it was starting to catch up to Georgi that maybe he shouldn’t have insisted on going out with his siblings if Victor hadn’t wanted to go on his first request – like he had. Victor refusing to go was a weird occurrence in itself and he should have known better, that his frozen heart wouldn’t make it to yet another white and disapproving winter.
It was like Mila always said, Victor was born from the winter, on the coldest day on earth, for a reason. Maybe the tragedy he was witnessing was enough to prove that life shouldn’t be taken for granted like Victor always reprimands him. Maybe the reason why the winter brought Victor on the coldest day on earth was that it wanted a baby and they had stolen him, taken him away from the icy weather, so Victor hardly breathing in his arms, clutching his chest, was the tragedy that would take him to his parents.
Yakov arrived within seconds and after a few heartbeats he had already taken out a vaccine. Victor always got vaccinated, every week he had at least two shots that made his frail body shiver and his small pale arm bruise. Lilia said it kept him alive, so Victor didn’t mind – Georgi guessed from the way he raised his arm every morning – even when it had taken a bit longer than it should, that Victor didn’t mind.
His heart beat too fast in his ears.
The rushing made his ears feel like they were in flames.
And as he waited for Victor to react, he prayed for the winter to keep him with them.
His tears crystalized like they would on the coldest day on earth.
And Victor woke up.