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“Minako-sensei!” Yuuri exclaimed, face turning a bright shade of red, “I absolutely do not have a crush on Victor!”
He stared at Minako with his mouth hanging wide open like a stunned goldfish, as she rolled her eyes dramatically, huffing a little. “Sure, Yuuri. Tell that to the bazillion posters you have of him on your bedroom wall, ” she drawled, the alcohol evidently getting to her, “Literally everyone knows you’re more than a little nuts over him.”
“W-What? That’s not true! I’m pretty sure no one knows about my love for Victor,” Yuuri defended himself anxiously, his hands flailing about uselessly, the way they always did when he got nervous. There was utter silence for a moment as the two of them processed the words that had just left his mouth. And then, Minako burst out chuckling, a care-less and beautiful sound that would have been crude on others but was strangely endearing on her.
Minako swirled the sake she had in her glass expertly. “Oh my, Yuuri,” she started, breathless after the hearty laugh, “How bold. Was that a confession I spy?” Yuuri flushed a shade darker, a feat Minako had not thought was possible, till now.
Not surprisingly, Yuuri wore the blush well.
Yuuri lowered his voice a little, leaning across the table towards her. “Yea, OK, fine. I admit it: I do have a crush on Victor,” Yuuri whispered, wincing visibly as Minako flashed a triumphant grin, “But, how do I get him to like me back?” Minako’s eyes widened in surprise, her drunkard face twisting in pure confusion.
“Are you seriously asking me, a mere Beta, for flirting techniques? I thought seduction was second nature to Omegas!” Minako all but shouted, waving her arms airily around her.
Yuuri hissed loudly, covering her mouth with his hands before she could rattle out more secrets in a drunken stupor. “Minako-sensei! Lower your volume!” he chided, brows knitted together in worry, “I’m supposed to let people think I’m a Beta, remember? If word gets out that I’m an omega, I will be kicked out of the Alpha & Beta Category and I won’t be able to skate on the same ice as Victor!”
Minako batted his hands away. “Chill out, you little piggy. Anyways, back to the main topic, the way to get Victor to fall for you is to…” she said, abruptly pausing for effect, “be a heartbreaker.” Yuuri let out a strangled “huh?!?” and clambered away from the brunette, knocking over a glass in the process.
“Impossible! Impossible! Impossible!” Yuuri shrieked, “There is no way that me, a virgin without an ounce of experience in love, will be able to act like a heartbreaker! Much less in front of Victor, the world’s most wanted Alpha bachelor!” This time, it was Minako’s turn to shush him up.
“Be quiet! Yuuri, do you want Victor to fall in love with you?” Minako asked steadily, her eyes burning with resolve that was very rarely seen.
Yuuri gulped, nodding his head obediently, his demeanour mimicking that of a kicked puppy. “But, how are you sure that Victor likes heartbreakers? I mean, he barely knows me.” Minako rolled her eyes again, the second time this evening.
“I’m just talking from experience as a Beta,” Minako stated, “but Alphas absolutely adore the look of danger. Heck, give them danger and you’ll get them falling for a stranger, a player.” Yuuri let out a breath he did not know he had been holding.
“So?” she questioned, quirking her eyebrows upwards, “Are you ready?”
Yuuri took a deep breath and mentally uttered a silent prayer.
Here goes nothing.
-
Rule #1: Have fun. But baby, when you’re done, you gotta be the first to run.
Under the dim light of the changing room of the Hasetsu Skating Rink, Yuuri frowned at the piece of paper he had just unfolded. What did Minako-sensei even mean? The message seemed so cryptic and Yuuri just couldn’t wrap his pretty little head around it.
“Yuuri!” came the sweet purl of Victor’s voice and Yuuri shuddered. Oh god, the Alpha’s voice was really getting to him and Yuuri mentally reminded himself to increase his intake on his omega hormones medication. “Training’s over already, Yuuri. You did well today!” Victor continued, running a hand through Yuuri’s hair affectionately, “Did you have fun?” The way Victor said his name was like electricity in the air - it made Yuuri on edge and his spine tingled slightly. Over time, the praises Victor had given Yuuri had snowballed, and each time words of praise were showered upon Yuuri, he felt an internal warmth course throughout his body, a nagging feeling of satisfaction that he had pleased his alpha.
“Y-Yes, I had fun!” Yuuri answered enthusiastically.
Victor smiled tenderly. “Great,” Victor intoned, “Would you like to head over to the arcade after this? I’ve always wanted to go there!” Was that, pray he asked, a date? Yuuri lit up at the thought of spending more time with Victor.
Have fun. But baby, when you’re done, you gotta be the first to run. Just then Minako’s words clouded his mind. Yuuri stilled himself. On one hand he was supposed to be a heartbreaker, but on the other hand, he really desired spending more time with Victor.
“Sure thing!” Yuuri replied, fingering the piece of paper he had in his pocket unconsciously.
Victor hummed pleasantly. He placed a firm hand around Yuuri’s waist in a bid to guide him out of the door and Yuuri whimpered involuntarily at the sheer possessiveness of the action. Yuuri felt his insides melt into goo and his legs gave out under him, too shaken by the alpha’s display of power. “Woah there,” Victor steadied Yuuri, a worried expression knotting across his face, “You alright there?” Yuuri let out a grunt, signalling a tentative yes, and hoped Victor would not detect his natural biology.
Victor held a quizzed frown on his face, but at least the worry had dissipated from his being and Yuuri shot him a lop-sided smile.
God, he really needed to get Victor out of his system. When Yuuri thought no one was looking, he popped a few more omega pheromones-controlling pills into his mouth.
Sorry, Minako-sensei.
Rule #1: Broken.
-
Rule #2: Don’t get attached to somebody you could lose.
“Wow!” Victor gushed, eyes sparkling like a kid in a candy shop, “It’s beautiful! Look at that gigantic poodle plushie - ah! It looks just like Makkachin!” Victor wandered around the arcade, mesmerised by the flashing neon lights and the never-ending sounds of pinball machines. “Geez, what are you reading, Yuuri?” Victor questioned with childish anger, cocking his head behind to glance at Yuuri, “You’re missing out on all these delightful sights!”
Yuuri gasped as he was tackled from behind by a rather warm Victor. Hurriedly, he chucked the paper from Minako-sensei away in his pocket. Though Victor’s body was generally on the hotter range of the temperature spectrum (and ahem ahem on various other spectrums as well), his nose was ice cold and Yuuri giggled helplessly as his neck was abused by Victor’s frigid snout. “What’s that paper about?” Victor teased, pouting as he continued to attack Yuuri’s neck, “As your coach, I-”
Victor suddenly stopped short and grew uncharacteristically quiet. Wordlessly, he disentangled himself from Yuuri. Yuuri’s giggling died down and he panted heavily, steadying himself after the onslaught. “Oh my goodness, Victor!” Yuuri commented, “I thought I would die from being tickled.” Victor had his back turned away from him and was unusually still, his face hidden away. “Victor?” Yuuri called out.
Flashing the same mega-watt grin that reportedly, according to tabloids and sports magazines, “incurred lust in the loins of allies and enemies alike”, Victor whipped around, his ivory hair swaying ever so slightly. And sexily, could Yuuri add.
Damn were those blasted tabloids and sports magazines right.
“Come on now, Yuuri!” Victor commanded in the same happy-go-lucky tone as before, “Let’s take a purikura!” With that, the two unceremoniously entered an empty purikura booth. “A picture with my darling little piggy would serve as a good memento when I go back to Russia.” Normally Yuuri would blush at being called so affectionately but not today, not now. Yuuri’s eyes widened in fright. Russia? Did he just say he was going back to Russia? He absolutely could not believe his ears.
“W-What,” Yuuri croaked, his voice hoarse, “Why can’t you just stay here in Japan?”
“Well,I mean” Victor said thoughtfully, his eyes glinting with a foreign emotion that Yuuri could not identify, “technically my home is in Russia, though it is barely considered one. You see, it’s just me and well, I guess, Makkachin.”
Yuuri blurted out, “No! Don’t go back! You have a home here as well!” Yuuri sputtered, realising the weight of his words and what he had just offered to Victor. He had practically proposed that they be mates. Thinking fast, Yuuri tried to backtrack. “I-I mean, everyone in Hasetsu welcomes you! You see, Minako-sensei, Mari, Yuko…”
Yuuri could have continued listing more names had he not been interrupted by the sharp glare Victor had given. The glare was so terrifying not because it held ill intentions, not that it had any to begin with, but because of the way it seemed to see through Yuuri, the way it appeared to strip Yuuri of his lies, the way it made Yuuri feel so naked and bare.
“Yuuri,” Victor pronounced slowly, and Yuuri sat up straighter than ever, “You are quite attached to me, aren’t you?” Though it was phrased like a question, it was actually more of an accusation than anything else, that much even Yuuri knew.
There was a click at the back of his mind, as he remembered suddenly.
Don’t get attached to somebody you could lose.
Rule #2: Broken.
-
Rule #3: Wear your heart on your cheek. But never on your sleeve, unless you want to taste defeat.
Yuuri solemnly remembered the paper he had read before getting into the purikura. The heck? he had thought to himself. Minako-sensei sure had a flair for the theatrical…What kind of person used metaphors when giving out advice?
“Do you,” Victor asked steadily, “like me?”
Yuuri flinched at the predatory vibes Victor was exuding, cowering under the fearsome presence. “U-Um, I mean, yeah, of course I do like you. You’re my coach, after all!” Yuuri answered, deciding to tell a semi truth-lie.
Victor leaned forward, closing the gap between them in a swift fluid motion. “That’s not what I meant, Yuuri,” Victor growled, “Let’s not play dumb, shall we?” Yuuri felt his blood run cold and it was then that he finally related and understood the phrase “like a deer caught in headlights”. He felt so very hunted.
Yuuri nodded his head. “I do like you, but, I mean,” Yuuri confessed, “It’s impossible between us…I-I’m just a b-beta and betas just aren’t as compatible with an alpha. Aren’t you better off with some o-other omega?” If the secret that he had a huge crush on Victor couldn’t be kept, the very least he had to protect the truth about his nature with all his life.
There came a deep sigh and Yuuri was puzzled by it. “Yuuri, Yuuri, Yuuri,” Victor began, shaking his head, “The fact that you’re a beta is obviously a lie, on so many levels.” Yuuri felt the blood rush to his ears. What? “Firstly, whenever you lie, you stutter, a lot. And secondly, I know you’re an omega. I had my suspicions at first but it was further confirmed. There’s no mistaking it - I smelt through your medication when I was nuzzling you.”
Yuuri stumbled backwards. What a sneaky guy.
“So, what do you say we become more than,” Victor paused, as if his mind was unable to wrap around just exactly what their relationship was “friendly?”
Any other normal wannabe heartbreaker would have scoffed, smirking slyly to themselves as they coyly turned down the confession. But, heaven forbid Yuuri Katsuki, 23-year old hopeless and hapless virgin without so much as a sliver of experience in love, be anything near a heartbreaker.
“Yes,” came the response and Victor made a guttural sound that Yuuri recognised was approval.
Wear your heart on your cheek. But never on your sleeve, unless you want to taste defeat.
Rule #3: Broken.
-
Rule #4: Gotta be looking pure: kiss him goodbye at the door and leave him wanting more.
“I’ve been wondering for a long time,” Victor had said, “just what exactly are those strips of paper you’ve been reading?” Yuuri came to with a start, not even realising he had spaced out for a while after reading the advice.
Yuuri emitted a nervous laughter. “It’s nothing,” he replied shadily, shoving the paper into his pocket together with all the others. Victor hummed, his steel eyes narrowing in calculation. All of a sudden, he yelped, pointing to a space behind Yuuri.
“Yuuri, what is Makkachin doing there, in ice skates?” Victor shrieked, his eyes blasted open in what seemed like surprise.
Yuuri whipped behind him instinctively. “Wher-” Before he knew it, Victor’s hand were snaking into his pockets, poking around for the strips of paper and Yuuri felt so very violated. But in a good way…was that even possible? In a triumphant hmph, the papers were seized and Victor took them out, reading them silently, his expression unreadable and still.
“Wha-” Victor started and Yuuri cut him off hurriedly, desperate to explain himself.
“It’s not what it looks like! You see, I knew I was in love with you and so, I-I-I asked Minako-sensei for advice and she said that the best way to win over your heart was to be a heartbreaker. And well, you know, I’m the furthest thing away from being a heartbreaker, so she wrote down these rules for me. It’s actually a really stupid idea but I just, I just, wanted you to love me,” Yuuri rambled on and on, his words rapid, barely even processing them through his mind before speaking them. When he was done, he was panting heavily, his face flushed red from both the anxiety and the sudden burst of activity.
Victor pursed his lips and said nothing and Yuuri took it as a sign to apologise. “I-I’m terribly sorry, it was a horrible idea an-” The air turned soul with the smell of a frenzied omega and Victor wrinkled his nose.
“There’s nothing to apologise for. It’s not a stupid idea, really,” Victor interrupted, his hands reaching over to pat Yuuri’s head in a bid to calm his nerves. “I’m just so,” Victor thought for a while before continuing, “touched. You went to such measures for me, just for me, and I don’t really know how to put this in words - but I’ll try my very best - I’ve just fallen in love with you even more than before.”
Than before. The words echoed numbly in Yuuri’s consciousness, and he was unaware that he had spoken them aloud.
“That’s right,” Victor continued, “Than before. My my, you didn’t have to carry out such plans. I love you just the way you are - even before I knew you were an omega. And really, don’t change a single thing about yourself for I love the Yuuri that is relentless and brave in the face of adversity, the Yuuri that is so pure and innocent as to consult other people for love advice, the Yuuri that is soft and gains weight easily - I love them all and sincerely, I want to protect this, I want to protect you.”
Yuuri indulged Victor in a tender smile and a pleased tut. Indeed, he felt so very loved and so very protected and so very treasured and as he snuggled up close to the warmth of Victor’s body, he couldn’t help but think that ah, yes, this is what I want. Tentatively, he leaned upwards to plant a kiss on Victor’s lips, his mouth quivering nervously, unsure of himself and where to take this to.
Victor placed an encouraging hand on the small of Yuuri’s back, rubbing his thumb in circles and feeling Yuuri become undone before him. Their lips broke apart unsteadily, cheeks flushed from the cold and the affection of the act and then, a small giggle escaped Yuuri’s lips and after a while, Victor joined in, a deep low chuckle that reverberated throughout Yuuri’s being. “Also, the thing about me returning to Russia was a lie. There’s no way I’m leaving your side - anywhere you go is home to me,” Victor announced, peppering Yuuri’s neck up and down with kisses of varying strength.
Yuuri whined, smacking Victor’s head harmlessly. “Geez, you worried me sick!” Yuuri pouted, earning himself a soft pull of his cheeks from Victor.
“So about the last rule,” Victor teased, his tone light and playful, “how about we break that, too?” Yuuri broke into a smile and wordlessly, he rubbed his nose against Victor’s.
A yes disguised as an eskimo kiss.
Victor laughed at the cuteness of it all and pulled Yuuri towards him tighter, all intentions of taking a purikura forgotten.
Gotta be looking pure: kiss him goodbye at the door and leave him wanting more.
Rule #4: Broken.