^ Cute ^

.

.

[Narrator's POV]

"Beka, Beka, Beka!" Yuri calls excitedly as he hurries into the bedroom. He jumps onto the bed and shakes Otabek. "Otabek Altin, wake up!"

Otabek groans and pushes Yuri off the bed.

Yuri lands with a hard thud. "Ouch! Thank god I won't have to share a bed with you anymore, you lazy sack of potatoes!"

"What?" Otabek murmurs sleepily.

"You're bed has arrived!" Yuri exclaims. "I've already cleaned out the spare room and put it in there."

Otabek yawns and sits up. "Cool...wait, what? How did you move it by yourself?"

"It's in pieces, dummy. That's what happens when you have it delivered from online." Yuri answers. "We have to put it together!"

"That's why you're so excited? Because we have to build the bed." Otabek says, unimpressed.

"Yeah, it'll be fun!" Yuri replies happily.

"If you say so." Otabek sighs.

.

[Yuri's POV]

Otabek and I gather the tools I had bought and head into the spare room.

"I hope I grabbed the right stuff, I don't really know much about tools." I admit as I examine the instructions.

"That's okay, I know quite a lot." Otabek replies.

"That's good I finally have a handyman in the house." I say, plopping down beside the pile of furniture parts.

Otabek kneels on the other side along with the toolbox. "Hopefully you're not as useless with tools as I am with cooking."

"That's impossible." I joke.

My phone beeps. I open it to see the picture of Otabek, Liza and I at the club in Kazakhstan, she had tagged me in it. I smile and click on her profile.

My jaw drops.

"What is it?" Otabek asks.

I'm staring down at a picture of Liza and Opal the DJ kissing.

"I don't think Liza is straight." I observe.

Otabek laughs. "Bout time you cottoned on."

"Hey, I was a little tipsy and very delirious that night." I say defensively.

"I'll say. You kept telling me how hot DJ's are." Otabek chuckles. "It was very nice being complimented by you, though."

My cheeks begin to heat up. "I compliment you...sometimes."

"Not without getting all embarrassed like you are now." Otabek replies coolly.

I avert my eyes anxiously.

"It's as simple as this," Otabek says. "Yura, you might not like it but I think you look cute with your hair back in that pink headband and I wish I knew how to braid hair like my sister because she was right, you looked beautiful; but that doesn't mean you aren't an intensely hot male also."

By the time Otabek finished this detailed sentence, my face was burning.

My heart is beating really fast again, only this time it doesn't feel so bad. I feel all bubbly inside like I always do when Otabek compliments me...but it's because I appreciate his approval as my older and cooler best friend, he could be thinking about it a completely different way for all I know.

I shift my gaze around the room and tap my fingers nervously. Acting normal feels strange when I have so much running through my mind right now. Should I just straight up ask him?

"Alina seems to be good at a number of things you can't do. How is it that your nine year old sister manages to braid hair and cook better than you?" I tease.

Otabek laughs. "I don't know, everyone's good at something."

Good. I have lightened the mood with some friendly banter, now is the time.

"Speaking of your sister," I continue casually. "She's a bit of a cheeky one, isn't she? I mean, she told me that you said we would make good husbands."

Otabek doesn't respond, he seems frozen in his spot. Is he weirded out?

I force an awkward laugh. "Obviously, I told her that is ridiculous...right?"

Otabek clears his throat and continues unpacking the toolbox with his head down. "Yeah...ridiculous."

I let out a sigh of relief. I knew it was stupid. Otabek doesn't love me, at least not in the way Alina says he does.

But my heart is still pounding. It's thumping so intensely that it makes my chest hurt.

Why? Otabek doesn't love me. Everything is fine.

My hands are shaking. Am I nervous? There is nothing to be nervous about now, Otabek doesn't love me.

Otabek doesn't love me.

I suddenly feel as though I can't breathe. I try to stand up but my legs are quivering. My knees buckle but I regain my balance and continue to wobble towards the door.

"Woah, are you okay?" Otabek asks. "Where are you going?"

"I think I'm still a bit light headed from yesterday's sickness." I lie as I stumble out of the room.

My chest is aching. It hurts. Why does it hurt?

I lock myself in the bathroom and look into the mirror. My skin is pale and my eyes are red. I slowly lift up a shaky hand and place it on my wet cheek, warm tears trickling down my face.

I'm...crying?

My whole body feels weak. I collapse onto the cold bathroom tiles and stare at down the floor, my vision blurred by tears.

I see...aha...

I'm crying because it hurts...and it hurts because...

Otabek doesn't love me.

Is this what heartache feels like? Now I know why Georgi's skating routines are so damn dramatic.

I curl my knees into my chest and burry my face to muffle my sobs.

There is no longer a warm, fuzzy feeling bubbling up inside me. I feel empty and cold...I don't like this feeling. I wish it would go away. I wish I never felt the warmth that was taken from me.

Memories of all the fun I have had with Otabek come back to me, all the reasons I fell in love with him in the first place.

That's not true... I don't wish it all away. I want his warmth.

I remember all the times he made me feel warm and all the times I went out of my way to feel it again. I thought I just wanted a friend and Otabek was looking for more, but it was actually the other way around. I have been following him around like a lovesick puppy this whole time, it's no wonder everyone looks at me with that same sceptical expression.

"Something's changed about you...Otabek figured it out within the first couple of weeks being here."

Suddenly, a horrible realisation washes over me. Could it be that Otabek noticed? What am I going to do? I don't want him to go away. I want to be close to him, even if it's only as a friend. He's been acting normal and I have to do the same. If it doesn't bother him then I can't let it bother me. I have to pull myself together. I am not going to freak out and ruin our friendship.

I'll just pretend like nothing happened.

.

Later that day...

.

[Otabek's POV]

Yuri went straight to back to bed this morning. He was so excited about building the bed and then he just suddenly shut himself up in his room. I'm worried about him, is he really sick? What if I made him uncomfortable when I complimented him. I have been too pushy lately, I said I would be happy being with him as a friend and I need to live up to that. I can't pressure him into loving me back so if nothing I have done has worked so far then I need to just forget it and be there for him now.

I muster up my courage and knock on Yuri's bedroom door.

"Yura?" I say softly as I peer into the room.

There is a big lump of blankets curled up on the bed that is unmistakably a hiding Yuri.

"I-I feel really sick." He croaks from beneath the blankets. "I, erm, don't want you to catch it..."

"Is there anything you need? Are you hungry?" I question.

"No." Yuri answers shortly. "I'm fine."

"Yura, let me take care of you." I urge him, stepping closer.

"No." Yuri refuses. "I—I don't want you to catch it. Go away."

I sit beside the lump of blankets on the bed. "I don't care if I get sick."

Yuri shudders beneath the blankets, pulling them in tighter around him. "Why do you have to be so nice..." He murmurs sadly.

"Because I care about you." I answer honestly.

"No you don't. That's ridiculous." Yuri mutters.

"What?" I reply.

"Just please...go away." Yuri whispers.

I'm alarmed by the amount of sadness in his voice. I want to be here for him but I don't know what to do. He is hurting and for some reason my being here is just making it worse.

I get up and cross the room silently, stopping at the door.

"Alright, get better soon Yura. This bed won't build itself." I say with as much happiness as I could muster.

.

[Yuri's POV]

Otabek leaves, the bedroom door clicking shut behind him.

Acting normal hurts. I know I said I would stay friends with him, but I'm going to need some time. Of course my feelings won't go away in a day but I at least need some time to dwell on them. This is the first time I have ever felt this way. So many things that I don't understand are rushing through my head.

I cradle my hands into my aching chest, as if trying to hold my pounding heart in place.

Stupid Otabek...