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When Viktor was a young boy, his parents signed him up for ice skating lessons at the local rink - that’s where it all truly began.
Not long after, he moved to St. Petersburg to tap into ‘ice skating potential’, as his instructors had put it, and was taken underneath the wing of Yakov Feltsman and Lilia Baranovskaya, far away from his family and friends and any form of familiarity. So, to stave off the feeling of crushing loneliness, Viktor threw himself into figure skating.
He worked and worked and worked until he’d clawed his way to the top. He was good at skating and good at forgetting that - besides his mentors - he was alone. But eventually, even the high of winning lost its luster.
At the age of sixteen, Viktor found himself firmly in the spotlight of the figure skating world with no one to share it. He had Yakov and Lila, sure, and the friendship of a new, perhaps slightly overdramatic, rink mate named Georgi, but there was a scary sort of hollowness in him that just wouldn’t go away.
Perhaps that was why he found himself being driven by Yakov through the streets of St. Petersburg to an undisclosed location one day after practice had ended. Victor worried. Had he not been doing well? Had his performance been suffering because of whatever he was feeling?
Viktor played with the end of his braid, a habit he’d picked up when his hair had gotten long enough to fiddle with, and tried to shove down the bad feeling that bubbled up in his gut when he thought about any disappointment he might have caused Yakov by his lacking performance. He was so caught up in worrying that he didn’t realize that Yakov had brought the car to a stop in front of a nondescript storefront and had put the car in park with a sense of finality.
“Come on, Vitya,” Yakov said, unbuckling his seatbelt and exiting the car before Viktor could ask why in the world they were there. Just as he did, snow began to fall down on the streets of St. Petersburg. Not unusual for December.
Viktor wound his jacket tighter around himself and followed his mentor into the mystery building. He didn’t know what it was until they walked through the door. The air was warm, a stark contrast from the chill outside, and filled with the varying chirps and barks of animals displayed around the store. Viktor didn’t know what to think when Yakov turned to him, cast his hand out to the array of animals in the store, and said “Choose.”
Viktor blinked at him owlishly. “What?”
“Choose one,” he grunted, “as a birthday present from Lila and me.”
“Are you serious?” Viktor asked, clearly shocked at the surprise. The shock was quickly replaced with pure, unadulterated excitement and happiness bubbled up in his heart for the first time in what seemed like forever.
A small, almost imperceptible smile cracked on Yakov’s face as Viktor rushed past him further into the store. Around them, all sorts of animals were displayed. Through a window on the right, Viktor could see cats of all types roaming around in a large room, surrounded by a vast array of toys to play with. On their left, a similar room was filled to the brim with puppies, all wrestling around and playing with one another. The final wall was filled with giant fish tanks, home to a swirling array of multi-colored fish. On the floor of the shop, cages of all shapes were filled with birds and lizards and snakes, displayed proudly for the customers to see. Above them, a sign that hung from the ceiling read ‘All Animals Rescued and Up for Adoption’.
Viktor immediately made a beeline for the puppy room, excitement bubbling in him.
“Awww, look at them!” he cooed, watching all the dogs run around, eyes scanning the room intently.
“You can go in if you want,” a nice employee said, shooting Viktor and Yakov a wide smile.
“Yes, please!”
The employee opened the door to the puppy room and allowed the two men to enter. Viktor was immediately swarmed by puppies. It was easily the best day of his life.
“Oh my god, you’re all so adorable!”
As the pack of puppies nipped at his ankles, Viktor scanned all of them. They were all incredibly cute and he wanted to adopt each one, but he knew Yakov would never allow it. Especially since he was the one who’d be housing the puppy. Viktor would have to pick carefully.
“Now, Vitya,” he heard Yakov begin behind him, already using his lecturing voice, “a dog is a big responsibility and…”
Viktor didn’t know what Yakov said after that, because his voice faded out when Viktor saw her. The little, brown, curly-haired pup was curled up in the corner, secluded from the rest of the group, and looking at him with wide, brown eyes. Viktor’s heart broke at the sight.
Gently pushing his way through the horde of excited puppies, Viktor made his way to the secluded puppy.
“Hello, little one,” Viktor cooed gently, reaching down to pat the puppy on the head. He ran his fingers through her short, soft curls and nearly died when she nuzzled against his palm. Viktor knew instantly that he was one-hundred percent in love. The small puppy looked up at him and cocked her head to one side, curious as to what this strange human was going on about. Slowly, she uncurled herself and approached Viktor cautiously, sniffing him as she did so. After a few minutes, the puppy seemed to approve of the boy before her. She gave a small ‘yip’ before climbing her way into Viktor’s lap.
“That one’s been a little shy since she’s been here,” the employee said, watching as the puppy climbed into Viktor’s lap, placed her paws on his chest, and begun to lick at the underside of Viktor’s chin. It caused Viktor to break out into a fit of giggles, “but it seems like you’ve brought her out of her shell.”
“What do you think, Vitya?” Yakov asked him, looking at the scene with warmth in his eyes. He hadn’t seen Viktor this carefree in a long time.
A broad, heart-shaped smile was spread on Viktor’s face and his eyes sparkled with overwhelming adoration. He knew that it was the right fit immediately.
“I think I love her,” Viktor giggled again as the puppy attacked his cheeks. He rose carefully, cradling the now squirming puppy in his arms. He rubbed her exposed belly, causing one of her tiny back legs to twitch.
Viktor and Yakov followed the employee out of the room, the puppy bundled in Viktor’s arms, to the front desk.
“Alright,” the employee said, pulling out a stack of papers while mumbling to herself and clicking away at the computer, “poodle puppy, brown...Okay, if I can get you to fill out these forms, then this little girl can be home in no time.”
Yakov took the papers and began to fill them out carefully while Viktor continued to play with the puppy in his arms, cooing as she wiggled and then let out a small, high-pitched sneeze.
“Don’t worry, girl,” Viktor whispered to her, a fierce promise in his eyes. “I’m gonna take good care of you.”
“Do you have a name for her?” the employee asked Yakov, who looked directly at Viktor with a raised eyebrow.
Viktor gave a thoughtful hum and stared intently at the puppy in his arms.
“Makkachin!” Viktor shouted happily. “I want to name her Makkachin.”