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“Are you sure this was a good idea?” Yuuri asks, brow furrowed in anxiety as he watches their children fan out across the park.
Beside him, Victor is laying down a large patterned cloth, and a sizeable basket is at their feet. Yuuri already knows that the basket is laden with paper plates and plastic eating utensils, as well as a wide assortment of sandwiches, snacks, and even a small cake. And he’s chosen a good spot, too; Victor had made a beeline for the large tree which towers over them now, providing ample shade for when they decide to sit down and eat.
It makes him realize that Victor really went all-out on the preparations for this, and for a brief moment, Yuuri’s heart is squeezed by a familiar fondness for his husband.
Still, it doesn’t change the fact that they’ve taken a sudden and unexpected day off, leaving poor Yurio at the rink to deal with their multiple students all by himself. And all because Victor had wanted it to be a ‘surprise’. Yuuri inwardly winces in anticipation of the expletive-filled lecture Yurio is sure to give them the next time he sees them.
Victor’s reply pulls him out of his thoughts.
“It’s just what we need, zvezda.” He smooths down the cloth and starts unpacking the basket as he speaks. “Between my coaching, your dance lessons, and the kids’ schedules, we’ve barely had any time to spend together as a family!”
And, well. Yuuri would be hard-pressed to deny that. His eyes drift back over to the kids in question.
They’re all chasing the family dog, a white poodle named Tsarina, around the grassy green expanse of the park. Their daughter Evgeniya, only six years old, stumbles after the dog in her clumsy way, heart-shaped smile never faltering. Her twin sister Yuki follows timidly after her, her expression slightly worried as Evgeniya nearly trips over her own feet.
Their oldest daughter, the ten-year-old Hoshiko, walks at a much milder pace. She’s apparently more interested in watching than participating, though she does so with a small smile on her face.
Finally, their eldest and only son Stepan has taken it upon himself to lead the chase, barreling after Tsarina with all the enthusiasm a twelve-year-old can muster.
Yuuri feels a pang of sorrow that Makkachin isn’t there with them, even years after his peaceful passing. But still, Victor is right. The last time all six (seven, including Tsarina) of them were together was Hoshiko’s last ballet recital. Which was… two months ago. Hell, Yuuri’s hardly even had any alone time with his husband, let alone the kids.
He looks back to Victor, only to find him standing up, the contents of the basket laid out around them on the cloth. He smiles at his handiwork for a moment before crossing over to where Yuuri stands and wrapping his arms around his waist, pulling their chests flush against each other.
Even after all these years, Yuuri blushes at Victor’s affections.
“Just relax, Yuuri,” murmurs Victor. “Today is about our family. About us.”
He lowers his face closer to Yuuri’s as he speaks, and when he finishes, their lips are a hair’s breadth apart. Yuuri smiles and lets his eyes slip closed, ready to receive Victor’s kiss…
When a loud bark and peals of laughter snap them out of their daze. They both look to the children and see that Tsarina has evidently turned the tables – she’s tackled Stepan, pinning him to the ground with her paws while she eagerly laps at his face. The girls are giggling at them from the sidelines.
Yuuri can’t help himself; he lets out a little laugh, too. As does Victor, who gives Yuuri a quick peck on the cheek before disengaging himself from their hug and jogging over to join the kids. He glances over his shoulder at Yuuri, and oh. The expression on Victor’s face is so full of love and affection, his eyes soft and his smile wide, that Yuuri has to lean against the tree lest his knees give out.
It doesn’t help that Victor then decides to join Stepan on the ground, dropping to his knees and throwing his hand over his heart in an overdramatic manner.
“Oh, mighty Rina, please have mercy on my boy!” he begs. Tsarina tilts her head at him, but doesn’t move to release Stepan.
Evgeniya and Yuki both giggle louder at their father’s antics, but Hoshiko goes to join him, throwing herself into an equally overdramatic dogeza pose.
“Great Rina-chan, take my life instead!” she says, in a tone clearly imitative of Victor.
Tsarina looks at her, then settles all of her weight firmly on Stepan.
Stepan grunts, “Oof!”
Soon Evgeniya joins in the effort to appeal to “The Mighty Rina”, and Yuki is a heap on the grass, laughing boisterously.
Yuuri lets out a fond sigh and, without another moment’s hesitation, moves to join his family.
Eventually, once Tsarina deigns to release Stepan from her clutches, Yuuri manages to herd everyone back over to the picnic area so they can eat. It’s a peaceful hour or so as everyone digs in on the sandwiches Victor brought, and Tsarina gnaws quietly on a toy bone they brought for her.
Yuuri feels more at ease than he has been in months, and he’s surprised at that. He hadn’t realized how stressful his routine had been lately. Usually around this time he’s either teaching ballet, helping Victor choreograph routines for their students, or on the ice helping their students directly.
He doesn’t even remember the last time he sat still for more than ten minutes, let alone an hour.
And it’s an hour well-spent. The kids’ chatter fills the air around them as a comforting source of noise, and Victor’s warm weight leans against him as an anchor, reminding Yuuri that, despite its dreamlike quality, the scene surrounding him is real.
Yuuri feels a light touch on his hand and turns his head to see Yuki peering up at him.
“Otosan?” she starts. She’s got her eyes wide, brows raised, and head bowed slightly forward – it’s her ‘I’m going to ask for something’ face. Yuuri only knows this because Victor claims it looks exactly like his. He resists the urge to smile preemptively.
“Yes, Yuchan?”
She nibbles on her lower lip – another habit picked up from Yuuri, at least according to Victor – and fidgets with her hands in her lap. After a beat, she gets it out.
“Can we do this again?”
Yuuri blinks. “’This’?” He looks around them. “Do you mean the picnic?”
Yuki nods shyly. “Today was really fun, so…”
Evgeniya, who has apparently been eavesdropping whilst stuffing her face, also nods, but hers is much more frenetic, and causes her hair to fall out of its carefully-arranged braid. “Yeah! We should do this every day!”
“I don’t know about every day,” laughs Stepan. “But we should definitely do this more often. Hang out as a family, I mean.”
Beside him, Hoshiko grins. “It doesn’t even have to be a picnic next time! We can all take turns choosing a place!”
That causes the children to each begin listing various locations – the swimming pool, a museum, and the movies, just to name a few – and Yuuri stares at them all, dumbfounded. Beside him, Victor is grinning… at least until he sees the expression on Yuuri’s face. He leans in to whisper to his husband.
“Yuuri?” he frowns. “What’s wrong, zvezda?”
“I…” Blinking hard, Yuuri realizes he’s close to tearing up. “I’m sorry, I just…”
Yuuri looks down at his lap and swallows the lump forming in his throat. “I can’t help but feel a little guilty… Today has been wonderful, but it really only happened because we finally took a day off… Look at how excited they are. Do we not spend enough time with them?”
Victor’s expression softens, and he wraps his arms around Yuuri’s shoulders to hug him close. “Oh, Yuuri…” He brushes his lips against Yuuri’s temple. “You know it’s just been a busy few months. Once the season ends, we’ll be right back to spoiling these kids rotten, and then they’ll be absolutely sick of us.”
Yuuri lets out a soft laugh and sags against him. Admittedly, the pit of anxiety in his gut has begun to dissipate as he sits in Victor’s arms, but it’s still there, gnawing at Yuuri. “I know… You’re right. But…”
Yuuri glances back at the kids, still in the middle of arguing where they should go next. Then he looks back at his husband, eyes hopeful.
“Maybe it wouldn’t hurt to have a family day?”
He feels Victor smile against him. “Maybe.”
Victor goes for another kiss, but just like before, they’re interrupted. Only this time, it’s Evgeniya, who pretends to barf into the basket.
“Gross!” she says, face twisting.
She and Yuki both look comically disgusted, but they’re at that age where they think romance is revolting. Stepan and Hoshiko at least have the grace to only look embarrassed whenever Yuuri and Victor are affectionate. So Yuuri only smiles and shakes his head at her.
Victor has a different approach. He looks Evgeniya in the eye, turns to Yuuri, and plants a wet, smacking kiss right on his cheek.
Evgeniya responds with another screech of “YUCK!” and dashes away. At her sudden movement, Tsarina also gets up, bounding after her with a happy chorus of barking.
Victor also gets up and starts after them.
“Oh no you don’t!” he declares with a grin.
Stepan, Hoshiko, and Yuki cheer on their sister, while Yuuri chuckles to himself and leans back against the tree. Victor was right, he thinks.
This was a good idea.
Later that evening, after they packed up their supplies and returned home, Yuuri is surprised to see Yurio on their doorstep not a few minutes later.
“I’m here for the kids,” the blond grunts.
“… I’m sorry?”
Yurio’s mouth twists. “What, didn’t Victor tell you?”
Stepan bounds up to the door, a backpack slung over his shoulder. “We’re having a sleepover with Yurio-niichan!” he says excitedly.
“Oh…?” As Yuuri turns, he sees the three other kids walk into view, each with their own backpack. Tsarina pads behind them, her leash on and being held by a smugly-smiling Victor. Yuuri raises an eyebrow. “… Is Rina going, too?”
“Yes,” snaps Yurio, who tromps over and swipes the leash from Victor, all the while leveling a glare at him. Then he turns his head to address the kids. “Come on, brats, into the car!”
Giggling, they do just that; though not before giving both Victor and Yuuri goodbye kisses and hugs. Yuuri watches them go with a bit of amusement and a lot of confusion.
Once the door is closed, and Yurio’s car disappears down the road, Yuuri turns to Victor with an expectant look.
His husband smirks. “Like I mentioned before, Yuuri, it’s been a busy few months. When was the last time we had the house to ourselves… for the entire night?”
His voice takes on a suggestive tone, and Yuuri’s cheeks pink. Oh.
It… It has been a while.
After a beat, Yuuri puts on a teasing smile and strolls past Victor. “Shower, first. You’ve still got dirt and grass all over you.” He looks over his shoulder, eyes hooded flirtatiously. “And when you’re done, why don’t I find that present Chris gave me for our last anniversary?”
He’s pleased to see Victor’s pupils dilate, and he laughs when he makes a mad dash for their bedroom, shedding his clothes as he goes.
With a smile tinted with love and a confident sway to his hips, Yuuri follows his husband down the hallway, his body thrumming with anticipation for what the night will bring.