I woke up breathless, at first I was dreaming about a boa constrictor squeezing me, but it felt way too real to be a dream, I forced myself to open my tired eyes and sure enough, I was met with Victor's sleeping face.

I blushed and tried to move his arm which only caused him to pull me against his chest, I squeaked and placed my hands against his chest. It was getting hard to breathe I was at the brink of panicking but a sudden pained look came across Victor's face causing me to worry. A whimper escaped his pink lips. "Yuuri.." I blushed when he called out my name but I was still worried about him.

His breathing became unsteady, I could feel his pulse increase against the palms of my hands that rested against his chest. His heart was pounding like crazy. "Victor." I shook his shoulder in an attempt to wake him, a pained cry startled me. Crystal-like tears trailed down his cheeks and he trembled. "Victor!" I shook him some more. "Y-Yuuri!" His eyes flew open, panic and fear filled his Caribbean ocean eyes.

He looked at me and instantly threw his arms over me pulling me even tighter and closer against him, I gasped for breath but allowed him to bury his face in the crook of my neck. His shaky breaths sent shivers down my spine. "Vic-" I winced when his tears soaked my shirt. "...did you have a nightmare?" I asked, really Yuuri? How can you ask such a stupid question? He sniffed and slowly nodded. "Do you want to talk about it? I heard it's good to talk about things that upset you."

He reluctantly pulled away and sat up staring glumly at his lap, his tears still fell it pained me greatly to see him like this. He was always there for me when I was in tears like this now it was my turn to help him; I placed both my hands on the sides of his face and lifted his head so we could meet our gazes. "It's okay Victor, I didn't know what dream you had but I assure you that it's not real." I swiped my thumbs across his cheeks and wiped away his tears.

His bottom lip trembled. "Yuuri I.." He trailed off. "It was awful! You..you were the only person with me and then...then you just disappeared!" He was shaking so bad, my heart was clenched with pain. "Victor, I'm not going anywhere." I pulled him into a hug. "We're a couple now right?" I asked with a light blush, he nodded with his head resting against my shoulder. "Then that means I'll never leave you, I promise," I said in a reassuring tone, but in a way, I still felt distant from Victor. I was still trying to process that we were both now a couple...it all seemed to happen so fast.

Eventually, he steadied his breathing and was beginning to doze off, I quietly giggled. "Guess you tired yourself out. You're just like me Victor." I stated. "I guess we both have things in common." He mumbled. "Now that doesn't sound all bad does it?" He hummed in thought, I slightly frowned. "But you shouldn't have what I have, you're too pure," I stated.

He chuckled. "...there's still a lot of things you don't know about me Yuuri..." He trailed off, his tense shoulders now went limp notifying me that he had once again fallen asleep. What exactly did he mean by that? Was there something serious about him that I didn't know about? If so then why haven't we discussed it? I quietly groaned, a headache was beginning to form. If I opened up to Victor shouldn't he open up to me too?

I mean I sort of got Yurio to open up to me a bit, but I honestly still felt guilty for making him cry. I sighed in annoyance and had an opportunity to run my fingers through Victor's silver hair. It was surprisingly soft, I could tell he used Mari's shampoo I could smell the cherry blossom scent on him, I smiled. His actions were sometimes so childish I actually found them cute.

Did I really deserve to be with this perfect man? I was sweating buckets under the layer of clothing, Victor sighed in his sleep and leaned closer against me. I was starting to get a bit claustrophobic due to how hard it was getting to breathe now, but I forced myself to stay calm for Victor's sake. I knew he needed rest.

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To say the least, I barely got a wink of sleep last night, I was recently helping my mother cook breakfast for Victor and Yurio who were both still asleep. I had a hard time trying to get Victor off of me, at first he wouldn't budge, then he wrapped his arms around my waist and held me captive in his arms. So my final solution was to just sneak and slip from his grasp which worked since I switched myself with a plush pillow. He looked absolutely adorable snuggling with the pillow and burying his face in the cushion.

My mind wandered to him until Makkachin whined from behind me, I came back to my senses and turned off the sink that I left on during my doze. I wiped my hands on the pink apron my mother forced me to wear and turned to look down at Makkachin. "Don't worry Makka I got breakfast for you too," I reassured and lead him near the dining room where bowls were placed for him. I kneeled to the ground where the cupboards were and opened a small door revealing Makkachin's dog chow. It was a premium kind that Victor brought for him.

Makkachin whined once again and jumped on my back, I yelped and nearly fell over due to the added weight my glasses slipped from the bridge of my nose. I had taken a shower this morning, I didn't throw on any extra layers of clothing. I tried to push Makkachin off of me gently but he was so excited, he was trying to lick my face. "M-Makkachin!" I tried to push him off once again but he just wouldn't get off.

"Now what's all the commotion?" A familiar voice called out, Victor trudged into the dining room and his eyes instantly went wide once he laid eyes on me and Makkachin. "V-Victor.."

I forced an irritated smile. "You mind helping me with Makkachin?" I asked sweetly, a blush painted his cheeks. "U-uhm.." He cleared his throat. "O..of course!" He whistled at Makkachin and called him over. Makkachin barked and scrambled off my back instantly running over to Victor and jumping on his legs. I grabbed my glasses before grabbing the heavy bag of dog chow and poured some in Makkachin's bowl and quickly put it away before he ran toward to eat.

I sighed in relief and gave Victor a thankful look. "Thanks for that Victor. I really needed your help." He still looked flustered. "Hm? What's wrong Victor?" I tilted my head to the side. "Can...can you say Vitya?" He asked shakily. I gave him a small confused pout, honestly was something wrong with him. "Vitya?" I spoke in a questionable way. He lunged at me, his hand on my waist and the other tilting my head up as he literally smashed his lips onto mine.

My heart pounded fast, my face was red with embarrassment, I quickly pulled away and covered my mouth with my hand sending a shocked look to Victor. He smiled innocently. "Sorry Yuuri, but you just met all my expectations. I really thought I was dreaming. You look so adorable." He cooked teasingly. I looked away from him and quickly passed by him heading toward the kitchen.

Just my luck I happened to bump into Yurio, he growled at me at first until he took notice of what I was wearing. "Don't. Just don't." I cut in right before he opened his mouth with a warning tone and stomped back to the kitchen where my mother had prepared pork cutlet bowls. My stomach ached, but each time I ate I always felt heavy and insecure, I hated the way I felt.

Eventually, Victor and Yurio had their big breakfast while I made up another false excuse, I changed into my normal exercise attire which consisted of sweat pants and my blue jacket. I looked at myself from my bedroom mirror and smoothed down the front, my fingers ran over my ribs tracing each and every one. I smiled at myself before heading out.

Victor and Yurio were ready. "So you called off our competition?" Yurio asked. "Yes, I just couldn't bear to compete against you," I answered truthfully, he scoffed and looked away flustered. "Whatever." He muttered and shoved his hands into the pockets of his jacket. Victor smiled at us. "Well, even so, you two need to practice your performances if you want to move on." I nodded in agreement. "Then let's get going then," I exclaimed.

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We all pushed by many people, Yurio had sunglasses to protect his eyes from all the light as did Victor which left me with trembling hands trying to block the bright lights. Hasetsu was now filled with many people, but thank goodness the ice castle was reserved for us to practice. Takeshi and his daughters were the ones keeping the people out I was grateful for that.

Entering the rink I stretched and looked at the see-through doors, people were showing their phones through the doors. It was the picture Victor took when I was sleeping with him, why did they have that picture? "Yuuri go and get your skates on!" Victor called out to me, I flinched and quickly nodded heading toward the locker rooms where Yurio was tying his skates.

I grabbed my skates from my destined locker and slipped off my shoes, I had pink socks on, I just couldn't find my own pair so I had to use Mari's socks. I blushed and quickly tried to put on my skates before Yurio noticed, but oh did I have bad luck. Victor squealed and ran up to me forcing me to sit on the bench causing me to drop my skates, he kneeled to the ground and took hold of my feet. "Yuuri you wear pink socks!? Why are you so cute!?" He glomped on me with a hug. "Just marry me already!" He pleaded.

I pushed him off of me since Yurio was giving us a weird look and stammered out my excuse. "Here I'll help." Victor grabbed my skates and slipped them onto my feet with gentle hands. I looked at him as he skillfully tied them securely. "There you go." He smiled. "Thank you, Victor." I returned the smile with a more wary look. I stood unsteadily happy that the rubber guards kept their grip and followed Victor and Yurio to the rink.

My hands were instantly numbed with the cold air. "Alright, first let's practice on some jumps," Victor announced, Yurio was the first to go, he was really amazing and surprisingly had a lot of stamina for a kid his age, but he was still so young so it was to be expected.

I was up next, I removed my guards and glided onto the ice. I needed to focus, I closed my eyes and took a calming breath before continuing my small practice routine. I was aiming for a triple toe loop first, I held my breath as I jumped. I landed perfectly and continued on with a Lutz and spin before heading toward the Salchow I always failed. Victor and Yuuri watched closely.

I jumped, the doors to the rink suddenly burst open revealing reporters and fans, I fell on the ice with a harsh thump and groaned, a pain formed on my side. I stood and skated toward Victor and Yurio who was recently being crowded by the reporters. I exited the rink and kept my distance as I slipped the guards back onto my skates. Reporters asked Victor and Yurio about their experiences here in Hasetsu and asked if anything new was coming up, I stayed at a far corner until one question, in particular, caught my attention.

"Mr.Nikiforov is it true that you and Katsuki Yuuri are a couple?" My heart dropped, Victor just laughed. "Well if you want to know why not just ask him yourself?" My eyes went wide and I quickly shook my head at him, but it was too late. Every reporter turned their attention to me and instantly rushed toward me flashing their bright lights at me and cameras flashing painful light into my eyes.

They all pressed me against the wall asking so many questions like. "What is your relationship with Victor?" And. "Do you plan to stay with him for the rest of your life?" I was panicking on the inside. Hateful thoughts invaded my mind sure, go on and ruin another person's life! My head swam dizzily as the lights blinded me, I desperately searched for Victor and Yurio.

My heartbeat quickened, I couldn't spot them anywhere.

Someone, please help me.

I looked around frantically, by now I was literally gasping for breath. The reporters just kept on asking so many questions.

Please just stop!

It was getting hard to breathe. I just couldn't handle it anymore so I...I just broke.

I fell to my knees and tugged at my hair pressing my arms against my ears, I shook in anxiety as tears blurred my vision. I took a shaky breath and yelled aloud. "Victor! Please help me!!" There were sudden shouts that were muffled by my arms, I squeezed my eyes shut and counted quietly. I couldn't control my breathing.

Finally, the crowd of reporters was sent away forcefully, I stayed curled on the floor. Someone kneeled in front of me and carefully pried my hands from my hair and moved my arms from my ears, they lifted my chin and brushed away my tears, Victor was in front of me with an apologetic look on his face, he pulled me into an embrace and rubbed my back soothingly. "Just breathe Yuuri...come on you're scaring me here."

I closed my eyes and focused on my shaky breathing, I eventually evened it out and pulled away from the embrace. "Yuuri, I'm sorry it was all my fault. I didn't mean to hurt you I...I-" I held his hand and weakly smiled at him. "I'm okay now," I reassured. "Where's Yurio?" I asked worriedly. "Ah..he's having a little chat with his other coach through the phone." He stated.

I nodded and stood with a shakiness, Victor followed and steadied me by grabbing onto my sides, I winced noticeably. "Did you hurt yourself Yuuri?" He asked worriedly. "I..I'm fine." I stammered, he gave me a look of suspicion. "Did you bruise your tummy? Let me see the cute piggy chub of yours." He teased and ran his hands over my ribs and then suddenly froze.

He looked at me. "Are these..." I gasped, I hadn't worn any extra clothing today. "Yuuri these are.." He couldn't seem to finish his sentence, so I pushed him away and ran toward the locker room instantly throwing off my skates and grabbing my shoes before running out the building. "Yuuri wait!" Victor was following me but I pushed through the crowd of many people and lost him.

I needed to get away from him and everyone else, I needed some time alone. I needed to be as far away from them as possible, and lucky for me I knew exactly where to go.