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Chapter Text

“Yuuri, are you sure you want to do this?” Hana anxiously asked as she pulled over the large black van to the nearest empty parking lot.

Hana’s face was slightly distorted with worried lines and it made Yuuri’s lips twitch into a slight smile.

“Hana, I am sure I can handle it fine. We are just reading over the script today, that’s all.”

“You know I am not talking about the reading, Yuuri. This project… It’s controversial, don’t you think?”

Yuuri silently looked at the back of Hana’s brunette hair from his back seat and let out a small sigh. It has been a month since Yuuri sent out his contract to the director and Hana was still not letting this go. Of course, Yuuri understood but… He never heard this kind of project before. He wanted to be part of it. He wanted to test out his limits, he wanted… Yuuri grabbed the sleeves of his own beige sweater and looked down to his jeans before he raised his head to meet the gaze of his manager through the back mirror.

“Don’t worry. I promise. I need to go, Hana. I will let you know when we finish.”

“... Okay.”

A slight nod and a worried glance passed to Yuuri as he pushed the sliding door of the van and stepped out into the parking lot. Since it was late autumn, the weather had been going colder and colder. Yuuri zipped up his long black parka and entered one of the largest entertainment buildings in Japan.

Several workers noticed who he was and gave a polite nod, hurrying to finish their errands and work. Yuuri silently passed them and walked towards the elevators.

“Yuuri-senpai!”

An unmistakable voice echoed the big lobby hall as it bounced off the white marble floors and walls.

“Minami-kun?”

Minami Kenjiro, a young star who was slowly rising to his fame and who had been in various variety shows with Yuuri, ecstatically waved his hand as he ran towards Yuuri.

“Yuuri-senpai, it’s been long! I haven’t seen you since SMAPXSMAP!”

“Yes, it has been long. I was resting for a while, but you had been busy, haven’t you?”

A bell chimed as the elevator doors opened and let out a couple of workers who silently greeted Yuuri and Minami. Minami frantically shook his head as Yuuri let out a small hearty laugh.

“I just went out to a couple of entertainment shows,” Minami replied bashfully as they entered the elevator. Yuuri pressed the 12th button and hummed.

“But going to oversea entertainment shows is a big accomplishment, Minami-kun. Especially the Korean variety shows. After all, the K-trend is really worldwide.”

“Oh, yes, I suppose so… Oh, right! Seung-Gil-san is also participating in this project, right?”

Yuuri thought about the Instagram photo Seung-Gil posted a few weeks ago. The Korean man was standing in front of a skating rink and holding the “Yuri on Ice” script with its title blatantly showing. When one of the Korea’s star actors announced his debut on Japanese afternoon drama, it broke every Korean network portals. Korean and international fans of Seung-Gil were eager to search more about the upcoming Japanese drama and almost topped the search engine of the Korean drama “Goblin” on Chinese websites.

“Yes, I believe he’s coming today.”

“Do you know who we are meeting today, senpai? The head director had been very private about it...”

“I…”

Yuuri thought for a while and realised, no, he didn’t know. Well, there was Phichit who announced that he was going to be the Thai figure skater and best friend of the Japanese figure skater - which was funny on its own because Phichit was Yuuri’s best friend. And there was a Canadian actor, an American actor… The casting department had done some international scouting and Yuuri was honestly impressed. He heard some rumours about the casting of the Russian figure skaters who would be actually Russian actors but he never heard the truth about it.

“I suppose we will see today.”

The elevator bell chimed as it announced the arrival of their floor and Yuuri threw a sly smirk at Minami, leaving the flustered teenager in the elevator.

*

“Yuuri!”

A bubbly Thai actor greeted happily as the main actor of the show entered the room full of directors, staff members, actors and actresses. Yuuri politely bowed in different directions and walked towards his best friend as Minami took a seat across him.

“Hi, Phichit.”

Yuuri smiled warmly to his energetic friend whom he maintained contact after his Thai movie debut. Thailand was hot and humid but Yuuri absolutely loved filming the scenes, and ninety percent of that reason was because of Phichit. It was hard not to love the Thai man and his cheerful smiles.

“How was your break? Ready for the comeback, Mr. Top Japan Star?”

Phichit gently poked his elbow to Yuuri’s left side as Yuuri emitted a flustered laugh.

“Oh, please, you are giving me too much credit.”

As Yuuri smiled to his best friend, he glanced around the room with his peripheral vision and noticed the other actors and actresses. He noticed the Canadian actor was talking to the Swiss actor, American to Chinese, and there were two Italians who were deeply engaged in a conversation. There were Japanese actors and actresses as well whom Yuuri knew of but never had the chance to work together. They all had been acknowledged by the public and directors. No wonder the internet broke when they found out the casting members; this was something big. This was something very big.

“This is diamond level casting, don’t you think?”

Phichit spoke out as Yuuri glanced around the room, looking at the filming crew members. The head writer was Kubo-sensei who won countless times in Drama Academy Awards for best script and along with her, the head director was Yamamoto-sensei who was well known for her artistically beautiful directing.

“Yes,” Yuuri softly replied as he saw several empty seats. The reading session was not going to start until half an hour later so the other actors and actresses should be coming soon.

“You know, I was really surprised when I heard about the other main actor.”

“Huh?”

Phichit turned his head to see the confused look across Yuuri’s countenance and raised an eyebrow.

“You haven’t heard?”

“Heard what?”

There was an announcement? Yuuri thought the casting members were supposed to be a secret until the reading session. He furrowed his eyebrows and cocked his head to a side.

“Well, Yuuri,"

Another rush of actors and actresses came into the room and greeted the others. Yuuri stood up with other seated crew members as well and politely greeted them. Then, he spotted Seung-Gil and smiled slightly with a wave of a hand.

Seung-Gil, who debuted much earlier than Yuuri but still respecting the age difference like the main Korean culture, was quite literally terrified when Yuuri called him ‘senpai’ when Yuuri first met him on a Japanese variety show. From then on, Yuuri treated Seung-Gil as a younger brother.

When the Korean man took a sight of Yuuri, he quickly rushed towards him and gave another polite bow.

“It’s been a while, Yuuri-hyung.”

“Yes, it has been! I am glad you are doing this project, Seung-Gil.”

A bright smile formed on Seung-Gil, making him glow.

“Oh, and this is my friend, Phichit. Phichit, this is my oversea younger brother, Seung-Gil.”

Phichit smiled brightly to the new face as he shook hands with the polite Korean actor.

“So you must be the Seung-Gil that Yuuri told me about! Here, here! Have a seat beside me!”

Yuuri softly smiled as his best friend warmed up to the Korean actor. Well, now that the rush had calmed down, Yuuri leant towards his best friend and asked.

“Phichit, what was the other actor - “

Yuuri’s sentence was cut off short when the door creaked and the murmur of actors and actresses rose. Phichit, who glanced at his best friend slightly smirked and shrugged off his shoulders.

“Told you, you would be surprised,” he whispered to his friend’s ear.

There, standing in front of the room’s entrance, was the hottest Hollywood model turned actor who was topping the Number One bachelor chart in People’s magazines for five consecutive years.

“Hello! Nice to meet you, everyone!”

The Viktor Nikiforov.

*

Why didn’t he know? If a popular full-time Hollywood model who became an actor a year and a half ago was going to debut on Japanese TV screen, it was something that the whole internet would talk about. Especially if it was Viktor Nikiforov. Has he been living as a hermit for so long?

Well, he needed to get fit for the shoot - the director had been very persistent about having good butt and thighs, and Yuuri had to force himself not to laugh when the directing staff members looked embarrassed for asking such morbid things (After all, spending 10 years in entertainment industry, he heard a lot of different requests and asking for good butt and thighs were on the polite side) - so he barely had time to take care of his social media. After the vigorous workout, he passed out the moment he got out of his shower.

Yuuri made a mental scowl and stood up to greet the fellow actor whom he was sure he was going to spend a lot of time with.

“Nice to meet you, Nikiforov-san.”

Yuuri held out a hand and politely smiled at the Russian-American man.

“Oh, please call me Viktor! It is an absolute pleasure to work with you!”

The bubbly personality strongly reminded Yuuri of his best friend and the heart-shaped smile made Yuuri's smile a bit broader. From what he knew, Viktor was 27 but the man, with his bright personality, looked no older than 24.

“Likewise, Viktor.”

A bright warm smile naturally formed along Yuuri’s lips and Viktor's eyes widened a fraction. The moment evaporated when the head director softly called out, “ah-no."

“Thank you for coming today..! There are several others who couldn’t make it today because of their abrupt schedules but I am sure we are in good hands.”

The writer’s delighted tone definitely conveyed her excitement and Yuuri could not help but smile along with her.

“I am certain there had been some serious thoughts while you signed the contract with us but we would make sure not to fail you..! I’ve always wanted to make this story alive but never had the chance, not to mention that it contains a controversial idea.”

The other actors and actresses silently nodded.

“But, since we are coming into a new era, I thought I want to make this happen. Really happen. This is one of my treasured works, and I am very glad I could have fantastic actors and actresses who would play my characters. Thank you very much.”

Kubo-sensei deeply bowed towards the crew members and a round of applause echoed the room with whistles. The head writer laughed slightly as she took her seat and started to explain the script.

“The reason why I didn’t create any names for my characters were because I wanted to use your real names.”

A slight confusion spread across the room and Yuuri glanced at his right side, the seat where Viktor sat. The young cheerful expression was gone from his face and the newly debuted actor looked very serious.

“I wanted to enhance the message that these kinds of love are happening near us, that we need to embrace them and understand that they are love too. So, I believed using the real names that we are so used to hear on media would increase the sentiment.”

That was actually a very good idea, Yuuri silently thought as Phichit hummed beneath his breath and Viktor nodded along with others. Yuuri looked around the room and saw the bright and eager eyes of the actors and actresses. They all seemed to be excited to film the drama. He looked at his best friend, who smiled back brightly, and Seung-Gil, who made a cute peace sign. Then, he turned his head towards Viktor, who was tentatively listening to the head writer.

Viktor smiled brightly like a child running in a field of sunflowers.

Alright.

Yuuri glanced at the head writer who was continuing her explanation and softly smiled.

This is definitely going to be something big.

*

“That, was, awesome!”

Phichit cried out as the crew members walked out of the meeting room.

“Yeah, we all clicked well, not to mention that Jean was very good at portraying the Canadian figure skater.”

“Haha, Yuuri, I think we know who is the real diamond of our cast,” the said Canadian smiled mischievously.

“Yes, Yuuri-hyung, who’s that shy Japanese figure skater again? Hmm?”

“It’s called acting,” Yuuri remarked with a wave of a hand, causing others to laugh. Viktor, who has been silently walking beside Yuuri was pretty much beaming with respect.

“But, it was incredible! You just became the main character the moment you read the line!”

The delighted look on Viktor’s face and tensioned up voice, caused Yuuri to stifle a laughter. Of course, he had years of experience but it meant more preparation to know the character inside and out in order to act in the most desirable way. The longer he lived in the entertainment industry, he became more aware of how much his career depended on his interpretation skills and fans’ love.

“Thank you, I guess my preparation has not been wasted. I searched a lot about figure skaters and wondered what kind of man this figure skater Yuuri Katsuki would be like… And I went to actual figure skating competitions to see what kind of atmosphere it would create and...”

Yuuri trailed off as his surrounding became eerily quiet.

“... Why?”

“That’s a lot of dedication, Yuuri. No wonder you are Mr. Top Japan Star!”

Phichit exclaimed and flung his arms around Yuuri’s shoulders. Yuuri raised an eyebrow and looked at his best friend after a good 360-degree eye roll.

“How do you think I got to where I am right now?”

“Ooooh, snarky Yuuri is back in full force!”

The acting members went down to the parking lot with excitement, talking to each to other with ease after hours of the reading session. They already exchanged their contacts and Yuuri couldn’t help but feel like this was the best casting group he has ever been placed.

“Well, I guess I should go too,” said Yuuri as he waved off his best friend and others. After all, he has a night photo shoot and Hana would be livid if he doesn’t catch enough sleep and ruin his ‘beautiful youthful skin.’

“Wait!”

“... Yes…?”

The Russian-American who had been quiet for a long time quickly grabbed Yuuri’s wrist. After realising that he might have been rude in Japanese culture, he took a bit of time to look sheepish.

“I, I have seen your works for a long time and I wondered… If you could help me. It’s my first time filming a drama, and it’s my first time debuting on an oversea project… I don’t really know much about the Japanese culture and perhaps that was why the directors chose me and -"

When Viktor prolonged his sentence, Yuuri gave a slight nod as if he was asking for the other to continue.

“It would be great if I could spend some time with you before filming.”

Viktor, with bright blue eyes that reminded Yuuri of ocean and sky, looked straight into Yuuri’s eyes with resolute expression etched on his countenance. The burning desire to learn more, to achieve more, to entice the audience could be felt through those blue sparkling eyes.

Yuuri felt like he was looking at his mirror.

Was it his bright eyes? Or his heart-shaped smile? Maybe it was his worldly known heavenly look? Perhaps it was his determination and adoration painted over his face whenever he looked at Yuuri.

But something stirred within Yuuri like the moment he read ‘Yuri on Ice’ script. It was almost like gravitation, something he couldn’t shrug off. Something that made his heart race, his veins pump, and his soul glow.

So, Yuuri - who never spent time with newly met actors or actresses unless they established some friendship - simply nodded like this kind of thing had happened more than once and he was used to it.

“No problem. I will text you after my schedule.”

“Thank you, Yuuri.”

Viktor warmly smiled and Yuuri could not take off his eyes from the Russian-American’s face. The man had a really beautiful face and Yuuri really appreciated it. Who wouldn’t appreciate beauty in an entertainment industry, anyway?

At least that was what Yuuri firmly believed as he got into his van and Hana confusedly questioned why his face was pinkish.

Yeah, it was just because Viktor was pretty.

Chapter Text

The soft black cotton pleasantly rubbed Yuuri’s bare top as the Japanese actor stretched on his most prized furniture in his house: the bed. Last night’s photo shoot was hectic, he did not even care how he looked like at the end of the work. He just wanted some sleep, and by meaning sleep, he wanted good solid at least 5 hours sleep.

So he did that.

Of course.

He glanced at the digital clock on his bedside table, its vivid red numbers glaring 9:30 AM. Then, he looked up to his white ceiling and silently eye traced the stubble texture as he tried to remember whether there was any work today. No, he did not have any work. Thank god.

His body felt heavy and numb as if he had a massive workout with tonnes of weight; which was not far from the truth if he counted all the clothes and bags he had to wear in layers for that ‘aesthetic look.’ Seriously, who the heck would wear clothes in that kind of fashion?

With a lot of reluctance and half-attempted self-motivation, Yuuri lethargically got out of his most beloved place on the entire planet and dragged himself towards the bathroom. The polished wooden floor almost reflected Yuuri’s figure, showing the refined abs that were covered under layers of winter clothes yesterday night. Yuuri stopped in front of his bathroom sink and turned on the cold water while looking at his sleep-hazed face.

It was almost a daily routine for him to look at his face for solid thirty minutes, finding out what kind of angles looked the best for him. After all, his daily life was full of sneaked photos and bombarding paparazzi. Not to mention that he needed to pose for commercials. Yuuri let out a long sigh as he splashed himself the cold water and proceeded on his skin routine.

He glanced at the cluttered bottles of high-end products that he received from the brands and chose his go-to Bioderma eye-cream. Yuuri hummed under his breath as he applied a thin layer on his entire face and grabbed his phone that was lying beside a sunglass case to check his Instagram feed. It has been a while since he updated his Instagram and a lot of his fans were commenting on the last photo, asking how he was doing. Yuuri softly smiled at his devoted fans’ sweet comments which definitely helped him to energise.

Yuuri cocked his head to a side as he brushed back his damp bangs and scrolled down on other actors and actresses’ photos. The international actors and actresses of YOI crew seemed to have a dinner together yesterday. There were a lot of photos of the international stars in one of the famous izakaya in Tokyo.

Then, he realised that one of the main actors of the show was not present in any of the photos.

Where’s Viktor?

Yuuri fully expected the Russian-American man to attend the dinner. Curious on what the man was up to, he deliberately searched the man’s Instagram account and clicked on the profile.

‘In front of the famous Tokyo Tower!’
‘Is this what real ramen taste like?!’
‘SUSHI TRAINS I REPEAT SUSHI TRAINS’
‘Look at this street! So cool!’
‘Tokyo Banana was awesome!’
‘Even the street vendors are so cool???’
‘OOOHHH IS THIS TAKOYAKI??? SHOULD I GET IT???’
‘I GOT THE TAKOYAKI’
‘THERE'S SO MUCH GOOD FOOD ARIGATOU EVERYONE!’

There were at least 10 photos that had been uploaded yesterday and Yuuri blankly looked at the captions. He blinked once. He blinked twice. The moment he blinked thrice, he woke up from his trance and burst out a laughter that echoed the washroom. Yuuri shook his head from side to side with a slight twitch at the corner of his lips.

“Viktor Nikiforov, aren’t you an enigma.”

Yuuri took one last look at all the food photos and excited selfies of the hottest bachelor in North America as changed his pyjama bottom into a comfortable pair of dark jeans. With his hair slicked back and him only wearing the jeans, it brought him back to a jean commerical he shoot couple of years ago.

He glanced at his phone then back to the mirror.

Well.

I guess that would be the update photo.

*

Viktor Nikiforov had never been so fast in his life.

He was browsing through a certain famous Japanese actor’s Instagram when an Instagram alert appeared on top of his phone screen. He was going to dismiss it, believing that it was another notice that someone liked his photo.

But the name caught his attention right away.

yuuri.katsuki posted a picture!

Without a moment of hesitation, he clicked the notification button and waited for the photo to load.

“Oh. Oh…. oh.”

Viktor blinked couple of times and soundly gulped. The photo had the Japanese actor only wearing a pair of jeans, showing off his toned abs and upper muscles. His raven hair was slicked back and the seductive deep brown eyes reflected on the mirror.

The caption simply stated, ‘#throwback’.

Thousands of hearts were given and comments were posted within mere seconds. So this was how it was like to be on top of the world. Viktor looked at the photo for a moment and pressed over the heart.

Soon, another photo was uploaded with Yuuri wearing a Tom Ford black cashmere turtleneck and black Valentino overcoat.

‘I need an approval. A good date look?’

A date? Yuuri was telling the whole fan base he was going to go out on a date? Viktor visibly scowled as he commented hurriedly along with Yuuri’s devotees.

real.viktornikiforov you are going on a date?

A comment with his mention appeared almost right away.

yuuri.katsuki Yes.

Viktor’s scowl deepened.

real.viktornikiforov with whom?

For a moment there was no reply and Viktor paled. Did he overstep the boundary? Why was he so interested anyway? Why was his chest so tight? Why was it bothering him from the start? Viktor, get a grip of yourself -

A photo updated right at the moment before Viktor threw himself into a turmoil.

A picture of Yuuri, hair combed and styled to a side, in his Mercedes-AMG S65 Coupe while wearing a pair of black Prada sunglasses stared right back to Viktor’s already widened eyes.

yuuri.katsuki You. Check your iMessage, Viktor.

Viktor Nikiforov had never been so fast in his life.

*

Yuuri silently wondered what made him to post the latest photo. He could almost imagine Phichit posting at least hundred of comments on that particular update.

Yuuri hummed softly to “History Maker”, their opening OST which already charted as number one in JPopsuki. Office workers passed his car without much of a glance as they hurried towards their workplace.

Yuuri looked at the reply Viktor sent, an address and two full sentences of ‘thank you’s and crying emojis. He let out a soft chortle. Viktor was a different man than he expected and the magazine interviews did not do justice on the man’s intriguing personality.

Yuuri glanced over his front passenger seat’s window and met with a pair of startling blue eyes.

“Ready for brunch?” Yuuri asked, pulling down his sunglasses for a second, with a slight smirk as Viktor opened the door. He looked over Viktor’s outfit and raised an eyebrow.

It was a casual look; an ivory Saint Laurent fisherman turtleneck sweater and beige Burberry overcoat with dark blue jeans. Yuuri doubted Viktor thought about intentionally making their outfit look similar but it was cute to think Viktor subconsciously picked out the outfits that somehow matched Yuuri’s.

“So. I’ve seen your Instagram photos.”

A faint blush that bloomed on Viktor’s cheeks made Yuuri’s smirk to spread.

“Are you liking your stay in Japan?” Yuuri casually started the conversation as he turned on the engine and drove to the bustling main street. The midday sunlight shone brightly and made its way through the suntanned windows. A glare reflected off Yuuri’s sunglasses and bounced towards Viktor’s cheek, casting an ethereal glow to the pale Russian-American’s skin.

“Yes! I got lost couple of times but I kind of got help from fans on Instagram. I’ve started learning Japanese when I realized I was going to sign YOI contract but I guess it’s still not that great.”

Viktor sheepishly smiled and ran his fingers through the back of his silver hair.

“Well, you don’t need to worry about getting lost anymore.”

Viktor turned his head and looked at Yuuri’s profile view, providing the perfect angle to notice the Japanese man’s chiseled jawline, high nose, and perfectly shaped lips. Even though his eyes were covered by the sunglasses, it was not a hard guess for anyone to predict that the man was handsome regardless of whether they knew Yuuri or not.

A red light came on and Yuuri stepped on his break. Busy pedestrians - some with suits and others with casual clothing - walked pass in front of them, not even a single one of them realising who were in the car.

When Viktor continuously stared at Yuuri with confused look, Yuuri turned his head and fully greeted the questioning blue eyes.

“You have me now, don’t you?”

*

Viktor wondered if someone could die from blushing too much.

Because he felt like he could. He really could be the world’s first person to die from embarrassment.

He felt like a teenager who just met their favourite idol in a fan meeting. He wanted to react like he would usually do in Hollywood, full of confidence and casanova-ness, but in front of Yuuri, the effort seemed futile.

After all, it was almost as similar to a teenager meeting the favourite idol. Except he was not a teenager but a 27-year-old grown man with steady career and reasonably big fan base.

Viktor’s cheeks were still rosy when Yuuri parked his car in front of a restaurant parking lot and handed his car key to the valet parker. Yuuri simply smiled broadly as Viktor slowly emerged from the car and walked along with him.

“Table reserved under Katsuki please.”

Yuuri’s smooth voice was even smoother when he spoke in Japanese. The attendee bowed and led the way to a private room. The restaurant had a traditional Japanese interior - wooden furniture, slightly dimmed lighting, and intricate wooden carvings of koi hanging from ceilings - with a bit of westernized traits. The paced clicking sound of the bamboo fountain created a peaceful atmosphere. The attendee asked their coats and hung them in the corner of the room where a wooden hanger stood.

“I didn’t know you reserved a restaurant,” Viktor truthfully said as he curiously looked around the room.

“I wanted to give you a traditional Japanese cuisine guide. Washoku is one of the easiest ways to start indulging in our culture.” Yuuri replied with ease as he motioned for Viktor to take a seat.

“I think you’ll like it, Viktor.”

The way Yuuri spoke his name, in calm and steady tone, was so different from others who called his name. There always seemed to be a strong cacophony with his K but Yuuri somehow managed to make his name round. Perhaps it was because of his tone of voice?

It definitely should be nominated as the Eighth Wonder of the World.

“Thank you, Yuuri… You didn’t have to do this.”

A warm fuzzy feeling nestled in Viktor’s guts and he could not ignore it as Yuuri’s grin slowly formed across his pink lips.

“Don’t worry. It’s my pleasure. I hope you enjoy the dishes; this is one of my favourite restaurants in Tokyo.”

When three waitresses and waiters silently came into the room, both of their arms full of plates, Viktor could understand why this was Yuuri’s favourite restaurant. The food looked absolutely heavenly.

“Yuuri, these look marvellous.”

Unfiltered awe dripped from Viktor’s voice. Familiar bubbly laughter came across his seat and Viktor squashed down the feeling of his tingling guts. As Viktor stared at Yuuri, a short breath filled his lungs with air.

It was same.

Same sound, same voice, same small gasping of air, and the same crescent moon shaped eyes that Yuuri made when he laughed.

Viktor knew because he has seen it, heard it countless of times.

The tingling feeling did not fade away but instead amplified as Yuuri wiped the corner of his eyes with his fingers. Yuuri rested his chin on his right palm and slightly leant forward on the table, a soft mischievous grin firmly etched across his lips.

“Viktor, I think you are the marvellous one here.”

Chapter Text

“Well, aren’t you chirpy today.”

Hana commented as she stared at Yuuri getting his makeup done by several makeup artists. The Japanese actor had been eerily in a good mood since early morning. When Hana silently gave him a look, Yuuri just shrugged his right shoulder and lifted his chin up for the makeup artist to apply some lip gloss.

“Are you not telling me something?”

“Hmm, not that I know of.”

Slowly, Yuuri rose from his cushioned chair while the makeup artists gave him final touch ups and moved out of his way. Yuuri politely nodded to each one of them and grinned at Hana who was not affected by all the glamour he has been put on.

Yuuri’s hair was parted at a side and neatly combed backwards with hard wax, looking like an English agent from Kingsman. He wore a white shirt and black Gucci mohair tuxedo, perfectly tailored for him. Yuuri took a glance of himself from the full mirror across him and scanned his attire from top to bottom.

“Not bad.”

Hana almost rolled her eyes.

Almost.

“What? Fallen for me yet?”

“If you don’t stop being cheeky, I’m not going to pick you up after you are done.”

“Ah, speaking of that…”

Yuuri trailed off when an assistant staff brought a cup of water with a straw. He took a sip through the straw and the assistant softly reminded that the photo shoot would be starting in few seconds. Yuuri nodded his head and added a good amount of ‘hai’s as the assistant hurried off.

“Viktor is going to come so could you bring my car?”

Hana squinted her eyes. Did she hear it wrong?

“Viktor?”

“Yes.”

“The Viktor.”

“Yes, Hana.”

“... When did you guys become so chummy with each other?”

Yuuri silently amended his left wrist cuff and slightly twisted his head to see his manager. The left corner of his lips twitched and slowly, he formed a smirk.

“Yesterday, over dinner.”

“Wh - “

“Yuuri-san! The camera’s ready!”

“Ah. That’s my cue. Please bring my car, Hana. Thank you.”

Yuuri waved his hand and walked in front of the camera where there was a black sofa waiting for him to take a seat.

“Just do whatever you want, Yuuri. Feel free.”

The photographer gave Yuuri a thumb up, making the Japanese actor to softly smile. The staff members knew they did not have to worry about taking horrible shots. After all, the model was Yuuri Katsuki, the man who knew how to perfectly portray any character he has been given.

The moment the lighting went a bit brighter, Yuuri’s smile was replaced with a poker face. He leant forward, both of his elbows each resting on top of his knees, and heatedly stared at the camera lens. After several consecutive flashes of the camera going off, Yuuri changed his posture, pulling back and resting his back on the back of the sofa and purposefully slid his lower body down while never breaking an eye contact with the camera.

There was a valid reason why Gucci Japan was adamant on scouting Yuuri Katsuki as their new model.

After a couple of more photos and different types of clothing, Yuuri wore the final outfit; a neat navy suit that snug at right places. He wore a silver-framed glasses, completing his young CEO of a successful company look.

Makeup artists crowded him as he took a seat for a little break and re-apply some makeup. Yuuri-san, your skin is so nice. Yuuri-san, you have really long eyelashes. Yuuri-san, would you like some more water? Yuuri smiled and nodded along with them. He was planning on to make his way back to wrap up the photo shoot when a distinctive creaking sound echoed the set. Everyone turned their heads to the studio door.

“Oh. Um, I am sorry. Should I wait outside?”

Viktor Nikiforov stood at the entrance wearing a black Saint Laurent jacket over a distinctive grey Loewe anagram sweatshirt in black jeans. As expected of the model turned actor, Viktor looked like he was striding down a runway even though he was casually walking towards Yuuri with a bright smile and a box of cake.

“I brought castella. I didn’t know what the staff members would like, so…”

“... Viktor, you didn’t have to buy anything.”

“Haha, I didn’t want to come bare hand.”

Yuuri softly smiled at Viktor and handed over the cake box to the set assistant.

“Are you wrapping up soon? Or did I arrive too early?”

“We are almost finishing up. You can sit around and watch if you want.”

“Oh! May I?”

The twinkling blue eyes that shone like crystal ocean sparkled with eagerness. Yuuri would have laughed at the situation, a Hollywood’s hottest model being excited to see a Japanese actor modelling, if he did not notice how happy Viktor sounded when Yuuri suggested it. Viktor quickly took a seat closest to the main camera and politely bowed to the photographer, making the staff members to hurriedly wake up from their stupor and bow back.

When Yuuri stood in front of the camera, the bright lightening almost blinding his sight, he could see Viktor’s blue eyes so clear and shining brightly like the North Star. Their eyes connected for a mere second and Yuuri could almost feel, no, hear Viktor’s eyes twinkling even more. Yuuri softly smiled and barely registered a small gasp when a flash momentarily blinded his vision, making his sight all white and lack of a certain Russian-American man.

“Perfect angle and smile, Yuuri!”

The photographer exclaimed and Yuuri numbly nodded in response, taking in the wide - almost proud looking - smile that has been formed on Viktor. With the signal of the head photographer, the staff members started to bustle around to wrap up. Yuuri walked towards the changing area, Viktor following not far from behind, and changed back to his own black Gucci suit he wore when coming to the studio.

“Is it over?”

“I just need to see how the photos came out. After that, you have me for the rest of the day.”

Viktor’s bubbly laughter was infectious as it made Yuuri let out a small huff of laughter. There was something special about Viktor’s laugh. Yuuri could not forget it; it was engraved in the back of his mind, a laughter too light that it was almost a surprise to know it belonged to a 27-year-old man who had been dipping his life in Hollywood for several years.

“Come on, let’s look at your photos, Yuuri.”

Viktor Nikiforov was, indeed, an enigma.

*

Viktor loved Tokyo. No, scratch that, he loved Japan. Everything felt new; it was so different from tourists packed Hollywood streets. He wanted to experience everything before he went back home, back to his empty and big house, almost in the middle of nowhere due to its ridiculously long distance between big mansions.

“This is so cool!”

Viktor openly gasped as the kimono rental store helper tightened his light beige white kimono’s light caramel brown obi. Yuuri stood behind Viktor, wearing his Gucci suit and Prada sunglasses, and nodded.

“Light colour suits you.”

Viktor twisted his neck and winked boldly.

“Any colour suits me, Yuuri.”

Yuuri snorted in exaggerating motion but Viktor saw a hint of smirk that Yuuri quickly tried to hide.

After they ate the traditional Japanese cuisine, Yuuri suggested that they should go sightseeing to the famous shrines in Tokyo. Viktor, of course, did not dare to say no. He was beyond ecstatic to let Yuuri guide him through the beautifully developed city, full of modern buildings but having remnants of past mixed in.

“I love these kinds of streets!” Viktor exclaimed as they walked towards the shrine. The streets’ both sides had small antique shops that sold various miscellaneous merchandise. Lucky charms, cat statutes, kitsune plushies and more.

Since it was not a peak tourist season, there were not a lot of people crowding the streets of Meiji shrine. However, if a foreigner - a foreigner like Viktor who was taller than any average Japanese and more than average looking - wore a fancy formal kimono and walked down the Meiji shrine street with an Asian man remarkably familiar looking, it tended to attract attention.

“But, Yuuri, is it alright to walk around like this?” whispered the Russian-American as he, who was very used to intense paparazzi and crazy fans in Hollywood, could feel the stares of people in every cell of his body.

“They are not going to attack you if you worried about that.” Yuuri nonchalantly replied, without even trying to whisper.

“I, oh, okay.”

Viktor thought about all the fans he has encountered whenever he went down to the main street of Hollywood to see the latest fashion trends in person. He did have sweet fans. He had fans who celebrated his birthday every year, organised their own “Viktor Fans Meet” events, and supported him through buying all the magazines he covered. But having sweet fans did not mean that he did not know people from the other spectrum.

For a moment, only the sound of Viktor’s wooden zori clicking against the concrete filled the silence.

“Oh,”

An unexpected crack tripped Viktor’s already awkward balance as he was trying hard to maintain his naturally accommodated model walking style while wearing the zori. Yuuri, not missing a beat, quickly held Viktor’s right arm.

“Careful. You don’t want to ruin your pretty face, right?”

“I - "

Viktor abruptly closed his mouth and pouted his lips.

“I’m more than pretty. I’m gorgeous,” huffed Viktor as he placed his left hand on his hip. However, the slightly trembling right hand that tightened around Yuuri’s wrist told something else.

“Alright, alright, Mr. Gorgeous. Please do use me as your walking stick if you want to save your face from planting on the ground.”

Yuuri smirked as Viktor grumbled under his breath but did not let go of Yuuri’s wrist.

“You shouldn’t complain that much, Viktor.”

Viktor could have glared at Yuuri if he did not know the man any better.

“Because, really, have you seen a walking stick that’s as good as me?”

*

Viktor browsed through all the selfies and photos he took. There were photos of him pointing at the shrine, eating dango, and silently holding his hands together with palms facing each other while standing in front of the altar. Whenever Viktor took interest in knowing the Japanese culture and traditions, Yuuri visibly glowed and talked more. Viktor noticed that early and basked himself under Yuuri’s undivided attention. But he was genuinely interested in learning the island nation’s culture.

Just like Yuuri said, there were a couple of people who noticed who they were but never dared to venture their way towards them. There was a respectable distance and Viktor wondered if this was a cultural difference between fans. Perhaps not, Viktor silently thought as he remembered two bulked men in suits following them at an inconspicuous distance.

After several minutes of indecisiveness, Viktor uploaded a photo to his Instagram that he took of Yuuri while the Japanese actor bought two sticks of dango from a street vendor, wearing a black Gucci suit and Prada sunglasses because, honestly, that image made Viktor stifle a laughter.

real.viktornikiforov today mr. walking stick bought dango for mr. gorgeous over here woohoo

A moment later, with a bling, a notification popped up.

yuuri.katsuki posted a picture!

yuuri.katsuki Mr. Gorgeous trying to choose omamori (even though he looks like he’s the omamori itself with that kimono).

Viktor grabbed his pillow and buried his face, grumbling incoherently. He should be fine with all these flirty words. He has heard plenty and he has retorted with ease plenty of times. But…

yuuri.katsuki posted a picture!

yuuri.katsuki Thank you @real.viktornikiforov for the omamori. I will hang it on the windshield of my car. Good night, everyone.

Viktor silently stared at the photo of a lucky charm in ocean blue with silver wave patterns. It was the lucky charm that Yuuri chose without even considering other colourful charms. Viktor admired the man’s quick decision. How can you choose so fast?! Yuuri stared at him for a good moment before he replied. I don’t know. Gut feeling? It almost took an hour for him to choose a dark brown - almost black - charm with gold flower patterns.

Viktor glanced at his bedside table, the brown lucky charm placed together with several other goods he bought. The house that he rented for his YOI filming was bare except for necessary furniture, eerily reminding of his own house back in California. But that small little space, the little space that took up less than a metre square, tingled and warmly wrapped Viktor’s heart.

Tokyo was starting to feel like more than home.

Chapter Text

Viktor woke up in the morning more refreshed than ever. The sunlight that gently shone through the closed white curtains softly brightened his room. Viktor stretched on his bed, basking in the sunlight, and flipped around for his phone. He blearily looked at the too-bright lock screen, 11:45 AM, and yawned.

The weather was nice.

Perfect weather to stay in and do nothing.

Viktor hummed under his breath as he scrolled down his Instagram and saw the other YOI cast members’ posts. Was that Phichit Chulanont? The Thai actor was a huge Instagram star, well-known for his bubbly personality and amazing social skills; once you were friends with the Thai, you were stuck for the long ride.

Phichit had uploaded a lot of pictures since his stay in Japan, traveling to different places with a fellow actor, Seung-Gil Lee - a famous Korean actor who debuted with milk advertisement when he was just a eight-year-old.

There were a lot of photos of them together.

His feed was spammed with them.

Viktor raised an eyebrow at the various artsy-angled photos that were uploaded all together. He stilled over the first photo Phichit uploaded yesterday.

phichit_chulanont it’s our time to outshine them @seuggillee !!!
seunggillee we are going to get more likes than you guys @real.viktornikiforov @yuuri.katsuki

Viktor did not understand.

Then he saw his latest photo trending on the search page, thousands of other photos including him and Yuuri in different projects, and fans gushing and commenting.

“Oh.”

Viktor must have been staring at his screen for a long time. His vision glazed and he had to forcibly blink. It took a moment to realize his phone was vibrating and displaying a very familiar name on the screen.

Yuuri.

“... Yuuri?”

‘You sound surprised.’ A hint of amusement was laced into the Japanese man’s voice.

“Well,” Viktor cleared his throat and continued, “I wasn’t expecting you to call?”

‘Hm, I guess we’ve got to change that. I was thinking about going shopping.’

Viktor slowly blinked once more.

Alright.

The weather was nice enough, after all, to go shopping with the one and only Yuuri Katsuki.

*

“I am not letting you go near that red sweater.”

“But, Yuuri, it’s - “

“It’s not even winter yet, Viktor. You are not going to get an ugly, red, knitted sweater.”

Viktor continued to whine as Yuuri physically dragged him away from the shelf stacked with knitted sweaters. The sweater had a fluffy poodle and it looked very cute. Was Yuuri doubting his fashion skill?

Yuuri, with a white mask and black baseball cap, was wearing a grey Hogwarts logo printed hoodie that looked like it was bought in Universal Studio with black jeans and black parka. Completing his casual ‘I-am-just-a-normal-guy-with-ridiculously-nice-proportion’ fashion was simple black and white Adidas Superstars. The look made Yuuri appear at least five years younger.

The shopping mall, Shibuya 108, had cute little accessories and clothes that department stores did not usually have.

“Ah, have you ever taken purikura before?”

“Purikura?”

“Sticker photos.”

Viktor trailed his eyes from the point of Yuuri’s finger to a pink curtained booth. Even before he could manage to reply that, no, he had never taken sticker photos, or even ask about what sticker photos were, Yuuri grabbed Viktor’s arm and dragged him into the photo booth.

“Yuuri, what - “

A wide smile and star filled eyes stared back at Viktor.

“Trust me. It’s fun.”

Yuuri did not need to put in much effort to persuade Viktor.

Viktor knew he could trust Yuuri, anyway.

Even with his life.

*

With a bounce in his step, Viktor ruffled his soaked hair with towel and hummed a melody he heard in the shopping mall earlier in the day. His cheeks were numb from smiling ear to ear and remnants of heat lingered due to his flushing beyond healthily whenever Yuuri brushed past him; which happened quite a few times, making the Russian man to wonder if the Japanese actor was doing it on purpose.

Viktor quickly towel dried his hair and finished his nightly skin routines, his body emitting a subtle scent of the lavender shower gel. He glanced at his phone more than five times a minute, eager to upload his newly taken photos on his Instagram feed, and giddily smiled to himself while staring at his reflection. Oh god help him, he was living in his dreams! When can a man spend so much time with his most respected idol, the man who changed his career choice?

Viktor felt like he was the luckiest man in the world, no, he held the world today, right in his arms. Of course, he was the luckiest man in the world; Yuuri Katsuki was in his arms, in a sticker photo booth, and they had taken sickeningly adorable pictures. Viktor could not get his mind off of Yuuri’s soft and tender smile that stretched larger once he met Viktor’s gaze. It felt like he was back all those years ago, alone at his California home just staring at the screen of his large Samsung Ultra HD LED Curve TV all over again. That first time, that first moment, even though Yuuri didn’t know how he had impacted Viktor’s life, Viktor was eternally grateful he had come across a movie with a chubby actor and a painfully realistic depiction of caged society.

Viktor owed Yuuri his life.

No, perhaps more than his life.

Viktor gazed at his reflection and smiled.

“You’ve come so far, Viktor Nikiforov.” He barely parted his lips as he muttered it underneath his breath. For a second, Viktor’s eyes looked at a distance without focus, as if his soul was stuck somewhere in between the realms of memories. He huffed a short breath and quickly changed into a comfortable grey sweatshirt and jogging pants.

He was planning to upload a good shot of him and Yuuri standing in front of a famous ramen store in Ikebukuro when someone knocked the door.

Someone?

Viktor stilled.

His manager was not in Japan yet. He was going to come two days later. He hadn’t befriended any other actors or actresses in YOI yet and nobody knew his address from the start. Unless… unless… Viktor’s mind wandered off as he thought about the first time he went out to buy a house; somewhere far away from densely populated areas, somewhere security was high and somewhere he could be safe.

The start of his career had been too good and he was, unsurprisingly, suffering the consequences of that when a handful of “fans” started to stalk him on daily basis. It got to a point where Viktor feared to go out of his rental home in the heart of downtown Los Angeles. It was one of the worst nightmares he could ever imagine, seeing himself on tabloids and entertainment news about his personal life, and he was living it.

Did they have to know which type of underwear I prefer? Did they hide cameras in my washroom? Did they have to chase me down on the highway when I just wanted to feel the wind?

Those were questions that would never be answered. Viktor honestly wished it would stay that way and had hoped these things would not happen anymore.

Viktor jumped out of his reverie when the volume of the knocking increased in strength. If he didn’t know better before, he knew now. The someone outside of his door was not his manager. He bit down his lower lip, a terrible habit he wanted to stop, and held his iPhone close to his heart. His floor was on the tenth, meaning there was no way he could jump out of the window and survive; his contact in Japan was very limited - meaning there was only one person he could trust with his life. Yuuri Katsuki.

And it was 1 o’clock in the morning.

He was not about to call the idol of his life at one in the morning because he was scared of “spy fans.”

A loud bang echoed from the hallway outside.

Another crash.

A thump.

A shake of the doorknob.

Viktor held his breath, scared to move even though the reasonable side of his brain shouted at him to do something. He was rooted to the spot like a sculpted statue in the Louvre.

Another loud round of thumps on the door shook the entrance.

It’s alright, Viktor. It’s alright. Mama’s here. Did you have a nightmare?

Viktor choked back his rush of memories as it flooded forth, non-stop.

No, don’t think, don’t think about it. No, please, no -

Oh, my dear sunlight, I’ll always be here. Why are you worried about such things?

He pressed the home button numerous times until he successfully unlocked his screen and pressed the call button to see the one phone number he could call in Japan.

‘Hello?’

Viktor breathed deeply in and out, the sound of the door denting submerged by the soothing voice of a certain Japanese man.

‘Viktor? What’s wrong?’

“... Yuuri… I’m sorry I called you so late but-”

The loud crashing sound pierced through Viktor’s eardrums. Yuuri definitely could not miss it, and a moment of silence echoed back to him from the other end of the line.

‘Viktor. Are you safe?’

It was not ‘are you alright?’, it was ‘are you safe?’

Viktor nodded even though Yuuri could not see and his voice wobbled as he forced another deep breath in.

“Yes, I’m sure… I’m sure they’ll go away but…” Viktor eyed the heavy front door. “I don’t think my door is going to survive for long if they continue to do that for much longer.”

Another silence stretched and Viktor inhaled more air. His mind was completely wiped out. It was just him and the sound of constant battering.

“Viktor. Viktor! Don’t hang up. Listen to me! Go into your room, lock the door, and hide. Be safe.” Yuuri hurriedly shouted, the sound of rustling delivered with his authoritative voice.

“Okay. Alright. I can do that,” Viktor replied with a heavily-beating heart and cautiously headed to his room, leaving behind the abused front door.

Viktor could still faintly hear Yuuri’s voice in Japanese. It sounded different, a lot less smooth and soft. There was a hint of panic, and Viktor wondered if Yuuri was this kind to everyone. The Japanese actor talked quickly - an amateur Japanese learner like Viktor could barely register what he was talking about, and he could just barely catch the words that sounded similar to English. “Security”, “bodyguards”, and “spy fans.” A good fifteen minutes passed and finally Yuuri ended the call using his other phone. Viktor cleared his throat and parted his lips.

‘Sorry, Viktor. Hold a second. Don’t hang up. Listen to me talking just for a while. I’m here for you.’

“... Okay.”

A loud bang jolted Viktor and he whipped his head towards the closed and locked white room door. Another loud thump reached his ears but it was not coming from inside his apartment, but instead, it was from the other side of the call.

“Yuuri? Are you alright?”

‘Asking the wrong question, Viktor.’

Even in a situation like this Yuuri did not lose his humorous touch, and Viktor smiled briefly. Yuuri started to talk in Japanese once again, and it was harsh, loud, and angry. He has never seen or heard Yuuri angry. His tone changed drastically and his scratching husky voice flowed through the phone. Even though it was in rapid Japanese, Viktor knew Yuuri was being merciless and giving someone hell. He definitely did not want to be on the other side of a conversation with angry Yuuri.

Was he angry? Was there a person to be angry for Viktor? Was Yuuri angry because of the situation? Or him?

A loud thump echoed through the house and Viktor sat beside his bed and curled his back inwards, hugging his two long legs under his arms, and closed his eyes. He listened to Yuuri’s angry yet comforting Japanese. He could hear his blood pumping harshly and it painfully thrummed in his veins. You have Yuuri. It’s alright. You have Yuuri. You have Yuuri. You have -

Don’t worry, Vitya. You have me.

Oh Vitya, I wish I could give you a big house. A very big house so that we could play hide-and-seek. How about that? Would you like that, sunshine?

Viktor, never ever say such things about yourself. You are perfect. You are my sunshine. You are my everything, my little sun. You are the best thing happened to me.

A big white house, big windows, and a big pool. That would be great, wouldn’t it, Vitya? Mama will do her best, okay?

Vitya, I wish I could give everything to you. I want to give you everything and anything.

Viktor, my little sun, my beautiful son.

‘ - iktor, Viktor!’

“Huh?”

Yuuri sighed, and the Russian man silently wondered how much time had passed. He peeked over his white bed and saw the digital clock. 2:20 AM. The house was silent, completely devoid of noise other than Yuuri’s deep and quickened breath.

“Yuuri?”

‘Yes, I’m here, Viktor.’

“I, I don’t hear anyone outside of my door. I think I’m fine now.”

Viktor did not hear Yuuri’s reply, only a short huff of breath.

“Yes, you are safe now, Viktor. I’m here.”

“Oh, thank you… Were you calling the security guards? Will they be guarding?”

“Yes. No.”

“Huh?”

“Because,”

A door bell rang, echoing through his house and then over the phone a second later.

“I told you. I’m here, Viktor.”

Viktor blinked. He stared dumbly at his phone and quickly stood up, bolting out from his room and, without a care for his probably messy look, threw open the battered front door with a loud screech. Who he saw was someone he had least expected to see at this ungodly hour.

Yuuri, with his ruffled hair and tint of blush across his cheeks, accompanied by harsh intakes of breath - as if he had just run up the stairs.

“Y, Yuuri?!”

“Pack up what you need the most. Don’t bring toiletries.”

Yuuri’s eyes were bright with invisible flames that sent pleasant shivers down Viktor’s spine. Now his heart was pounding for a different reason.

“I… Where are we going?”

He knew what was coming. He could feel it. He could sense it.

But he wanted to hear it.

Yuuri gazed back, unmoving and definite.

“My house.”