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If it had been up to Yuuri, Viktor would never have found out about the poster collection that he had stashed under his bed. He wasn’t stupid, he knew that Viktor knew what a huge fan he had been, but he had taken solace in the fact that Viktor wasn't aware of how bad it was. And yet, here he was, standing in the door way to his bedroom watching Viktor spreading his collection of shame around the floor. He knew he should have thrown them away to avoid exactly this situation, but Yuuri hadn’t been able to bring himself to part with them.
Viktor hadn't noticed him yet and Yuuri wondered just how quickly he could run away and become a monk or something so no one he knew would ever again see his face. He took a quick step backwards but bumped into the door, causing it to crash back against the wall. He winced as Viktor’s blue eyes turned to him. Viktor blinked up at him as he clutched one of the posters to his chest and his mouth formed a perfect “o”.
“Yuuri,” Viktor hugged the poster a little tighter, nearly crinkling it and he slowly rose to his feet.
“I’m sorry,” Yuuri gasped, not sure what he was apologizing for. If anything, Viktor should be apologizing to him for snooping.
“Why?” Viktor asked. He stepped carefully past the posters and news clippings he had spread around.
“I-I…” Yuuri stuttered and stepped backwards again, pressing himself flush against the wall like he could melt into it.
“Yuuri,” Viktor said softly. He crossed the gap between them quickly and wrapped Yuuri in a hug, the poster he had been hugging still clutched him his hand as they wrapped around Yuuri’s shoulders. “Yuuri,” he whispered over and over.
“You’re… You’re not mad? Or grossed out or whatever?” Yuuri gasped out.
Viktor’s arms tightened around him for a moment before he pulled back and Yuuri could swear lit looked like Viktor was about to cry. “This was only sold for two weeks…”
Yuuri looked down at the poster that Viktor was holding and immediately recognized it. It was from a shoot Viktor had done right after he had cut his hair. The turn out had been dismal, Viktor’s fans rebelling against the change. Back then, Viktor had been wrapped up in what the public thought of him and it had broken his heart that people hated his new look.
“A week and a half,” Yuuri corrected quietly. “It was pulled so fast, I was lucky to get one.”
“Lucky?” Viktor blinked at him in shock. “Everyone hated that I cut my hair.”
“Hmm,” Yuuri hummed, and despite the blush that still sat on his cheeks he took the poster from Viktor’s hands. “Well, I just thought it looked like the pretty fairy I liked had turned into a beautiful prince.” His blush immediately darkened and he hid his face in his hands, the poster hiding him from Viktor.
“Yuuuuurriiiiii,” Viktor pulled Yuuri into another hug, careful not to crush the poster between them. “You think I look like a prince?”
“Was that not the theme of the shoot?” Yuuri’s voice was muffled in his hands.
“Oh, so I don’t look like a prince now?” Viktor pouted, but he couldn’t hide the glee from his eyes when Yuuri dropped his hands and gapped at him.
“That’s not-“ Yuuri cut himself off and turned away. “What are you doing in here anyway?”
“I was waiting for you,” Viktor allowed the change of subject, grudgingly.
“Under my bed?” Yuuri asked, peeking over his shoulder.
“I was going to scare you,” Viktor replied. “But then I found something better.”
Yuuri stared at him, blankly. “Scare me?”
Viktor nodded but then froze. “I shouldn't have told you! Now I can’t do it another time!”
Yuuri giggled, despite himself. “Why, Viktor?”
“Why not?” Viktor blinked innocently.
“No one has ever been able to get me with jump scares, for one,” Yuuri replied and laughed again when Viktor pouted. He looked down at the poster still in his hands and bit his lip.
“What are you thinking?” Viktor asked.
“Why did you cut it?” Yuuri asked.
“Fear,” Viktor said quietly after a long pause.
“What?” Yuuri blinked.
Viktor sighed. He hadn't ever told anyone but Yakov why he had cut his hair and Yakov only knew because he was there. He decided that he would tell Yuuri his secret in exchange for the invasion of privacy he had committed with the posters. “Just before I cut it, I was at a meet and greet and someone pulled my hair. I didn’t know why but it bothered me a bit. It wasn’t until later that I realized someone had cut a chunk of it out and it terrified me, so I cut it all off.”
Yuuri’s eyes widened as Viktor explained and he clenched his fists. “How dare they,” he whispered. “Where are they, I’ll- I’ll…”
Viktor looked shocked at his reaction and tried to sooth him. “It was along time ago and in Russia. I don’t really think about it anymore.”
Yuuri pulled out his phone and began furiously texting before Viktor could even react. He was muttering under his breath as he pounded his phone screen harder than necessary and while Viktor couldn't entirely make out what he was saying, he thought he caught “I’ll find them” and “no one hurts my Vitya”.
“What are you doing?” Viktor asked hesitantly.
“Getting help,” Yuuri all but growled.
Viktor almost took a step back, the tone unexpected from his sweet, shy student. “Yuuri, please,” Viktor said, biting his lip. “No one knows but you… I’d rather keep it that way.”
Yuuri paused and looked over Viktor who was shifting and looking almost uncomfortable. He relaxed a little and let his hands drop to his sides, the unsent text message he had been composing forgotten. “Okay.”
Viktor had been staring at the floor looked up at Yuuri. “Really?”
Yuuri nodded. “Our secret?”
Viktor beamed at him. “Yes. Just like your posters!”
Yuuri groaned. “No, I’d rather you forget you saw these.”
“Yuuuurrriiiiiiiii!” Viktor whined and pranced back into the room. “How can I forget you have every poster I produced? And look at this one! This is a new clipping in Russian! Can you even read this?”
Yuuri blushed, his anger from moments ago forgotten. “I translated it on the back…”
Viktor flipped it over and laughed. “You’re amazing Yuuri.”
Yuuri blushed darker and settled next to Viktor on the floor. “Can you tell me about some of them? I want to know what it was like from your perspective…”
Viktor beamed. “Of course!”
They spent the rest of the day on the floor, Viktor telling Yuuri all kinds of stories behind he rather extensive poster collection. Maybe one day, Viktor would let Yuuri see his own collection of Yuuri posters he had stashed away in St. Petersburg that he had impulse bought en masse after first meeting the Japanese skater. He would bet Yuuri’s blush would be unendingly pretty when he found out. Viktor couldn't wait.