#My pocket sized yuri you will always be famous and loved by me

[hexy-lynesdein]

Alice: If a beautiful woman disagrees with me, I will immediately change my views. I have no principles.

Lilia: Well, maybe you should have principles.

Alice: You're right, maybe I should.

[ochazukeland]

Pocket Monsters EP 52: Fierce Fight! Pokemon Hinamatsuri

Now I know why nobody wanted to sub this particular episode... I imagine it was very hard to localize this one to other languages hahaha. Took me a loooong time to prepare this because real life is kicking my butt lol sorry about that, I hope you enjoy this anyway!

This episode needs tons of translation notes due to the dozen of Japanese culture references. Long long post below the cut, together with the download link, translation notes and comments about this particular episode:

So… I’m not really allowed to tell you where to get that specific Japanese video without having access to Amazon Japan, but if you google… idk, something like [RAW] Pokemon 7 TV series, on a website that sounds like a cat meowing… who knows what you might find there?

DOWNLOAD LINK (ENG subs in .ass format): https://www.dropbox.com/s/jtrdu8vr7roglxt/%5BRAW%5D%20Pokemon%20-%2052%20%5B480p%5D.ass?dl=0

How to watch this: save both the video and the .ass subtitle file in the same folder, keeping the same name in both files (for instance, ep2015.mkv and ep2015.ass), open VLC and have fun.

——————————

Translation notes:

- Satoshi/Ash, Kasumi/Misty, Takeshi/Brock, Musashi/Jessie, Kojirō/James, Nyarth/Meowth, Takuya/Fiorello Cappuccino.

- Beroringa/Licktung, Fushigidane/Bulbasaur, Rokon/Vulpix, Hitodeman/Staryu, Okorizaru/Primeape (their trainer calls it "Oko-chan"), Weezing/Matadogas. Pikachu is Pikachu, Kingler is also Kingler and Arbok is also Arbok. 

- About location names... Hanada Gym = Cerulean Gym. This episode's city is called "Ohina-Town", I don't think there was a name for it in the English version, though.

- Move game-wise, I tried to keep their respective ENG names.

- In order to understand better this episode, you should be familiar with Hinamatsuri, a special festive day in Japan on March 3rd - if not, the Wikipedia article should help you a lot to get the context and some of the jokes included in this episode. 

- Sorry, I had to omit one detail in the subs: the shop announcer specifically says "優勝商品は、キュウクツの豪華三段飾り特製ポケモンひな人形です。" about the challenge prize - "The winner's prize is Kyūkutsu's gorgeous three-tiered display with specially made Hina-Pokemon dolls"... Kyūkutsu it is supposed to be the doll maker's company name and a reference to the irl Kyūgetsu - a very famous hina doll maker. I included it briefly in a later scene but without the details to avoid cluttering the screen.

- About Meowth's "salaryman sadness" comment ("サラリーマンの哀愁だニャ"), it's supposed to be a jab at how Jessie's super "consideration" for her boss is... a souvenir given out of duty/obligation that she got for a very cheap price, some random fancy-looking goods from a department store that was obviosuly just an excuse to her personal massive shopping spree. It's a quite... 'Japanese society joke' that I'm not sure if has the same effect when translated? 

- The competition announcer is parodying a kotowaza (a kind of Japanese proverb) when he morphs into different types of pokemon. "(...)Tateba Rūjura | Suwareba Purin | Aruku sugata wa Nazonokusa" (立てばルージュラ座ればプリン歩く姿はナゾノクサ) sounds like "Tateba Shakuyaku | Suwareba Botan | Aruku sugata wa Yuri no hana" (立てば芍薬座れば牡丹歩く姿は百合の花) - aka "the ideal behavior of a beautiful lady".

- It's not really explicitly explained, but you get Hina dolls and display them on Hinamatsuri to wish your daughters happiness and growth/health. It's not bad to inherit them from your family, but it's easy to understand Misty's frustration when all of her older sisters got luxurious sets of their own and only later on she was gifted... those exact same Ohina-sama sets.

- Misty's violent outburst around the 10min mark is an answer to Ash's comment when he muttered "ハナダ美人３姉妹とその出がらしだったっけー". In this sentence, he was recalling how Misty sisters were the three beautiful sisters of Cerulean, while Misty herself.... the 'dagarashi' - aka used tea leaves. That's so mean after that dramatic flashback, he just called her insipid/second-handed/leftovers lol!

- Had to include Japanese honorifics again this time because it's one of this episode's gags: the announcer calls the contestants "-chan", except one participant, Musashi"-san"... where the first is an endearing/cute diminutive honorific, the latter is the general most commonplace polite honorific, of course that blatant differentiation makes her furious lol.

- About Psyduck... "Yes, his head seems to hurt" - Fiorello said はい、彼は頭が痛そうです。, so instead of "their head seems to hurt" I kept the pronoun the character used.

- Talking about Fiorello, you don't necessarily translate "yes" when someone says "hai" but I kind of wanted to highlight how weird he sounds just answering it to pretty much everything the announcer says lol. 

Other random notes:

- Characters in OS used to be so intense sometimes, Misty was on fire this episode, hahaha! If Ash was a turbo brat in the previous episode I subbed, she's the one unstoppable this time lol. James and Meowth are also not very subtle offering help to Jessie by erasing Misty off the world hahaha

- Jessie and Misty were fighting for a size number 9 blue dress, in Japan that should be for 163cm~170cm people and usually tagged as M size for female-style clothing (around B83-85W63-64H89-91cm) as far as I know. 

- Fiorello/Takuya is surprisingly... weird. Considering the context and the decade when the episode aired in Japan, his name is probably a reference to ex-SMAP Kimura Takuya.

- Ugh, Satoshi's DO WANT when he see the Hina set with the Pikachu Odairi-sama, sooo cute ><. Kojiro and Nyarth are so, ah the feels, that episode conclusion is so precious, I love it so much.

- The ED song, Pocket ni Fantasy, always slays my feelings. It only gets worse as I get older. 

- Ugh, I know, it's inconsistent, I have just noticed I am translating "ゲット" (getto) as both 'catch' and 'get' @_@; Please let me know if there's any huge errors that I need to fix (typos, not synched dialogue and so on), I'll see what I can do, hehe.

[jaeknightorbats]

Tunnel Caprica [M] part 2

Pairings: Baekhyun x Sehun (SeBaek)

Ratings: NC-17

Genre: Smut, dark romance

Description: It was a normal day for convenience store worker Byun Baekhyun when Sehun—a seemingly wealthy man—entered the store, only getting overdosed by drugs afterwards.  It was the encounter that would change Baekhyun’s life. It was the encounter that introduced him to a world that should never exist in this already problematic world.

Warnings: Graphic sexual content, substance use, drug overdose, alcohol, and strong language

Chapters: Part 1 , Part 2, Part 3, Part 4 (NEW!)

Synopsis: Tunnel Caprica connects two cities under the huge and long mountain ranges of the country Ioca [a-yo-ka], making it one of the longest tunnels in the world with a distance of nearly 40 kilometers. However, people choose to drive the 3-hour long pass than driving through the tunnel, because driving through the tunnel can be claustrophobic—an hour drive with nothing but repeating images of the never ending tunnel. But through the tunnel also hides the entrance to another world that Baekhyun is yet to find out.

Part 2

Word count: 4.7k

How does it feel like saving someone’s life?

It has been almost a month since the man named Oh Sehun promised Baekhyun that he was going to contact him to repay for saving Sehun’s life. But he’s never contacted Baekhyun since.

Baekhyun forgot all about it, as if it didn’t happen. It was the least he could do. Besides, he was given a huge tip—Sehun gave all the cash on his wallet. It was around $400. He even apologized if it wasn’t much, he doesn’t bring much cash, he said.

Because of it, Baekhyun was able to pay his dues on time and even bought his girlfriend a factory unlocked iPhone, which made her beyond happy. He took his previous gift from Yuri since he lost his things, together with his phone, at the parking lot the time he saved Sehun.

He felt like it was bound to happen, it helped him solve his problems. Must be really his lucky day.

Baekhyun was at his place, with his girlfriend. They had their legs tangled to one another at his bed, sucking each other’s tongues, kissing each other passionately.

Such bliss they felt as they lose their minds to feel the other.

Yuri slightly pushed Baekhyun’s chest away from her, separating their lips apart. Tips of their noses close to one another, feeling each other’s breath.

She looked into Baekhyun’s hazy eyes, biting her lips.

“We’ve been dating for more than a year,” she gulped, hesitant to say what she had on mind. Baekhyun gently smiled as he adored his partner. He stroked his hand on Yuri’s hair. She rolled her eyes away to rolled it back again to Baekhyun’s.

“You know…you can touch me, right?” She continued, “…Anywhere.”

Baekhyun’s cheeks flared, feeling a little embarrassed. “I know. It’s just that…” He fixed Yuri’s hair back to her ear and held the side of her small face. “…I respect you so much.”

“Aw,” breathed Yuri. She was flattered but embarrassed because she just made herself look horny. She held Baekhyun’s hand and kissed it. “You’re so sweet. Thank you.”

They stared to each other’s eyes dearly, as if they were the only people in the world.

“I have so much respect for you because I love you. I hope you know that.”

She closed her eyes, feeling the warmth of Baekhyun’s palm on her cheek, the warmth of his legs squeezing hers, his body heat, and his love. “I love you, Baek.”

Then, Baekhyun softly pulled Yuri to him and gave her a kiss.

It’s a weekend and Baekhyun has an 11AM shift at work. He wished he could stay with Yuri longer, but he got to work to earn money to pay the bills and to make his girl happy.

Pretty average flow at the store. There were a couple of customers who held the line, few pissed him off, but he got to stay composed—it’s his job.

“After 6 months of being away, the son of the ex-president finally came back home to his homeland.”

“It’s that peak season again.” An old customer in front of the counter turned his head from the television back to Baekhyun, trying to start a short conversation.

“Well, yeah. It’s almost summer,” Baekhyun replied with a friendly smile.

The old man scowled. “Who are you talking to?”

Baekhyun scoffed and watched the grumpy man walked away after he paid his items.

Baekhyun suddenly received a text. A text from Yuri. Seeing her name on his cellphone screen always made him smile.

‘I miss you, B,’ it said.

He bit his lips to control the joy he was feeling.

“Now, what are you grinning about?”

Baekhyun shoot his phone behind his back pocket as soon as he could when he heard his manager spoke.

He faced the person in front of him.

Wait, no. It wasn’t his manager.

“Mr. Sehun?”

The man, Sehun, sneered as he placed a bottle of sparkling water at the counter. Baekhyun slowly walked forward to scan his item. He didn’t know what to feel, maybe surprised.

Sehun was wearing casual clothes, a simple plain T-shirt, pants, and a baseball cap. He wasn’t wearing sunglasses. Completely different from what he was wearing the night Baekhyun met him—he looked like one of the people. But there was also an atmosphere around him, or how the way he moved, that differed him from other of people.

“How’s it going?” Baekhyun asked, that’s the only thing he could think of. The man in front of him seemed well and healthy compared weeks ago when he was trying to revive him.

“I’ve been busy traveling so I wasn’t able to contact you.” Sehun opened the bottle of water and drank it after he gave his payment. “Besides, I’ve been looking for you here the same time I went here before. Twice, I think? You weren’t here.”

Surprised, Baekhyun’s brows climbed his forehead. “What?”

“Yeah, I asked someone here.”

“Why though?”

Sehun sneered, looking at Baekhyun as if the answer wasn’t obvious. “You saved my ass, man! C’mon.”

“Excuse me.” Suddenly, a soft voice behind Sehun’s took the attention of both. It was the next customer.

“Anyway,” Sehun looked back to Baekhyun, reaching for his hand, so, Baekhyun took it. “Come to my party tonight. You must come.”

Sehun turned his back to Baekhyun, raised his arm with two finger lifted, and slightly waved. “Ciao.”

There was a piece of paper on Baekhyun’s hand. He opened it, and there was an address written on it.

Baekhyun was on a completely different area of the district, he was outside the city. The peaceful side, where each house or establishment he drove by were far apart.

# 1228 Grand Aria Estates, Cayman.

Located at west side of the district, where one could get the best view of the majestic mountain range of his country, Ioca—the Turris Caelo mountains, which also meant the Heaven Tower mountains. People treat the mountains sacred because it became their shield from the horrid weather that wanted to cross their country. The mountains have saved Ioca from calamities countless times.

Cayman was considered as the wealthiest and most exclusive suburb in his district, if not in Ioca. Baekhyun knew the area, but he hardly came by—he has no business there. Now, he has.

It was already past 9:00 PM, Baekhyun was in front of the gates of the residential village, as written on the paper. He rode his third-hand car to reach the place since it wasn’t exactly an easy place to find. 

He had a little fight with Yuri before she let him attend the party. At first, Baekhyun didn’t want to come because he felt intimidated—there was no doubt that it would be a party for the rich. He’s heard of the residential village—the price of a single square-meter lot still blew his mind. He could live for years with that kind of money.

Yuri initially thought a woman has invited Baekhyun to a party once Baekhyun mentioned anything about a party. She started jumping conclusions. But when she learned it was the man who Baekhyun saved—the man who gave Baekhyun $400—invited him to the party, Yuri forced Baekhyun to attend. She thought there could be some bigger reward waiting for her boyfriend. She even helped him which clothes should he wear—she wanted her boyfriend to look slick. They didn’t know what kind of party he’ll be attending but Yuri made him wear something he could wear at any type of party—a tight jean, a black V-neck shirt, a suit they bought at the thrift shop the last minute, and a black class B leather shoes without socks to finish it all.

Yuri wanted to come herself but it was Baekhyun who doesn’t let her. He knew what alcohol could do to Yuri, he didn’t want Yuri to embarrass herself in front of people they don’t know. This made Yuri infuriated. Shouting until their throats sore. At the end, Yuri still pushed Baekhyun to attend and she only had one instruction to Baekhyun: “Don’t fool around.”

The tall iron rails began to roll open after the guards confirmed that Baekhyun was invited to Sehun’s party. The guard took his license and checked the trunk and bottom of his car with a ferocious Rottweiler tied on his hand—it was a strict security, which made Baekhyun feel a little more intimidated.

He regretted everything and wanted to go back, he should’ve brought Yuri with him, at least. But there was no turning back, Sehun already knew he reached his address.

He drove slowly by the hills. It was dark and peaceful, it looked like a very safe and quiet neighborhood. Baekhyun realized how ridiculously rich the man he saved as he drove passed by the different sizes of mansions and villas in the village.

He wouldn’t be surprised if Sehun lived next to a famous celebrity or personality.

 He finally saw a house—a large house—with a line of luxury cars parked outside.

This must be the one.

He parked a little farther away from the house. He was a little embarrassed by his ride. He took a deep breath before getting out of the car.

He said ‘tonight’. It’s a party, so it should start late.

He observed the house as he got nearer by the gates. Gates as almost tall as the main gates of the village. A classic white two-floor mansion with red bricked roofs. A fairly big driveway to the main doors. A lot of cars. All lights shined through the window. He could hear indistinct music from the house, it wasn’t very loud but he could hear it.

1228, written on one of the pillars of the gate.

He stood outside the gates and rang the doorbell. Without any word, the gate buzzed and automatically opened. He spotted two men in suits, with gears hanging on their ears, must be some guard. As he walked on the driveway, the main door opened, a man walked outside his doorsteps, and stood there waited for Baekhyun. It was Sehun. Hands on pocket, looking tall and sharp, with broad shoulders, on his black mandarin collared shirt under a white suit—he was shining. He had his hair gelled up to the back of his and and it shined under the light. He was looking very slick.

Sehun stared at the man who avoided eye contact with him.

“You’re late,” said Sehun as soon as Baekhyun reached a close distance to him. “I don’t like late people.”

Baekhyun’s heart almost dropped, nervously stepping on the short stairs to the main doors. Sehun seemed serious. “Uh yeah. I thought—“

Sehun howled, breaking his serious face on. “I was kidding! Haha. You looked so tense. C’mere.” Sehun wrapped an arm to Baekhyun’s shoulders and they entered the house.

Baekhyun nervously laughed. It wasn’t a good joke.

“Seriously, though, I value time very much.”

Baekhyun forced a laugh from his nose. But you didn’t state what time.

“But I’m glad you made it. I thought you weren’t gonna make it. You missed dinner, though. Have you eaten?” Baekhyun nodded to Sehun’s question. “You look good, by the way,” Sehun added.

Sehun released Baekhyun from his arm. Baekhyun got to breathe better. A waiter in suit, holding a tray of champagne, stopped in front of them, Sehun took one glass then gave it to Baekhyun.

What am I doing here? I don’t belong here.

Baekhyun was stiff from his position, feeling overly intimidated by everything. Even the waiter who was serving them intimidated him.

His stomach doesn’t feel good.

He looked at the glass on his hand, he’s never drank champagne in his life. But he may need it to gain some courage so he could go through the party.

Baekhyun slightly swirled the narrow glass near his nose, because he doesn’t know how to drink it, then the nice subtle aroma of the liquid that sort of smelled like flowers and fruits entered his nose. He took a sip of it, and it tasted like how it smelled but a little funkier because of the bubbles and the alcohol content. He liked the taste of it, so, he drank it all in one shot, surprising Sehun.

“I know right?” expressed Sehun, with a smug look on his face. “Tasted good, huh?”

“Yeah.” Baekhyun forced a smile after tasting the drink. He may have not drank all types of alcohol in his life, but he knew he needed something stronger.

People gave them short attention as they walked inside the house until they reached the backyard. Baekhyun only assumed that people were turning their heads to them because he was with the host. Or maybe he was wearing such simple clothes. Sehun nodded to whoever he laid his eyes on and made eye contact with. They walked through the house until they reached the huge backyard.

Baekhyun assumed that the party would be loud—the one with DJs and loud music, lots of young people such as themselves, or maybe even younger. But it wasn’t, it was rather quaint. It was a sophisticated party.

High tables scattered around the backyard, occupied by people in suits and dresses, mostly suits. Everyone dressed interestingly, or what he liked to call it—weird fashion. It was the battle of who has the largest earrings and jewelries for women. Men were much more simple, but some wanted to stand out with their colored suits.

Classical music played across the yard.

“Hey, Sehun.” A man walked towards them with a glass of dark golden drink on his hand. “So, are you going to buy it?”

While Sehun was minding his own business, a waiter carrying a bottle of liquor and a couple of small, cube glasses on a tray passed by them, catching Baekhyun’s attention.

That’s what I need.

“Sir, wait,” he called the waiter, in a timid voice. “Two, please.” He coughed, slightly cracking his voice.

The waiter poured the clear liquid to two glasses. Baekhyun then took glasses of alcohol, which seemed like tequila, or something hard. He drank it both in one shot one after another without holding back.

It was tequila. The alcohol went smoothly through Baekhyun’s throat, but he instantly felt the fire ran through his face. “Wow,” he mouthed. He could feel his ears firing up. He never had something like that. He returned the glasses back to the waiter.

“Woah,” said Sehun, he watched Baekhyun took his shots.

Baekhyun gave a half smile. “Just trying to catch up.”

“Haha, you’re funny. By the way,” Sehun turned to the man he was talking to. “Chen, this is the man who saved my life—Baekhyun. But don’t tell my father.”

Both of them laughed, even Baekhyun. Then, the man named Chen shook hands with Baekhyun. “Thank you,” Chen said. “Otherwise, sales would be slow.” It seemed like a joke because Sehun laughed. But Baekhyun didn’t get the joke, he only pretended to laugh.

Chen nodded his head to Sehun then to Baekhyun and walked to another table. The other two went for an empty table.

“That man sell art,” Sehun said as if explaining everything what just happened. “He thinks he’s good, but he’s all right. Good artists aren’t interested in money.”

Baekhyun nodded, pretending he was interested. The taste of the strong liquid he just consumed still lingered on his palate, and could still feel the after effects it had. His mind was still on the shot.

 “So, what’s this party all about?” Baekhyun has been meaning to ask.

“Nothing much, really. Catching up, I guess.”

“Rich people,” Baekhyun muttered to himself, hoping Sehun didn’t hear it.

“What?”

Baekhyun immediately shook his head.

“It’s been busy. Everyone’s been out, traveling—be it business or leisure. Guess we finally had the time to catch up,” Sehun added.  “Also that’s why I couldn’t contact you immediately.”

“Yeah, you did mention.” Baekhyun slowly nodded, roaming around his eyes to observe the place. Then, one particular person took his attention. “Wait, is that—“

He looked at Sehun for confirmation, and Sehun turned at the direction where Baekhyun had his eyes on.

“Minseok?” Sehun smirked, returning his look back at Baekhyun. “Yeah, it’s been hard for him lately. Media doesn’t understand privacy.”

Baekhyun shouldn’t be that surprised to see someone he saw on the television, Sehun lived in such a luxurious neighborhood. But he wasn’t expecting to see someone like Kim Minseok.

Kim Minseok was the one who Kang Sunmi, a fifteen year-old, filed a divorce with. He’s been in the news a lot lately. Kim Minseok was 34 years old when he married the 13-year-old girl. He’s now 36.

Baekhyun felt repulsed. “What the heck is he doing here?” He couldn’t stand the fact that he was in a same room as the person who married and abused a child. It absolutely appalled him.

Sehun only observed Baekhyun’s reaction. “He’s actually my friend, and heavily misunderstood.”

Without thinking of his actions—and how could he, the tequila hit him strong, it made his head feel a little funny—he expressed a bitter face. “What?! It’s absur—“

Then, Baekhyun noticed the face that Sehun was wearing—he didn’t look happy. It washed away the disgust that was painted on his face. It scared him.

Sehun walked closer to Baekhyun, facing opposite the high table with elbow leaning on it—he was closer to Baekhyun’s ears. Sehun said in a low voice, “You have no idea how easy it is to accuse a 36-year-old pedophile.”

Baekhyun’s couldn’t blink an eye, his face was rigid with tension.

Sehun added, “That girl—Sunmi, and her mom demanded $20 million from Minseok just to not go public about the divorce. Even threatened him that they’ll accuse him of abuse when Minseok never did. He fucking loved that girl.”

Hearing the price baffled Baekhyun’s mind. They talked about money as if they have such large amount always at their disposal. Baekhyun couldn’t speak for a second, trying to process it all.

“Women,” Sehun grumbled.

Baekhyun hesistantly asked, “If that’s true… why isn’t that on the news?”

Sehun slightly scoffed, shaking his head. “You just did the face what the whole society thinks of people like Minseok. It’s pointless. We don’t want fanning the flame, now do we, Baekhyun?”

Baekhyun’s brows furrowed. He’s got a point.

Women can be so cruel. He’s started to feel sympathy towards the accused.

He shook his head upon an absurd realization. No, I shouldn’t feel sympathy. It’s wrong. It’s wrong.

“So, they would let the girl win?” Baekhyun asked seriously.

Sehun stopped, looking into Baekhyun’s eyes. “What the heck is this seriousness all about?” he threw his hand to Baekhyun’s chest. “Let’s enjoy the party!”

They started to roam around the yard, meeting and greeting whoever needed Sehun’s attention. There were so much he didn’t understand, but Baekhyun kept drinking a glass of champagne. The drink was actually working—he could feel the effects of the alcohol to him. He knew he couldn’t walk straight.

Baekhyun was starting to like the party. He never knew that such delicate parties were something he was looking for; he was always used to, and always heard of, the loud ones to be more fun. There was something fancy in these type of parties—well, because it was—and it made him feel a little good and a little high class and up above compared to the people he knew. It was a nice feeling.

“Hey, man!” An obviously drunk guy approached them, he seemed a little younger than them.

Sehun faked a smile, it was already obvious to Baekhyun that Sehun didn’t want to be associated with the guy. “Jaemin.”

The guy, Jaemin, threw a hearty pat at Sehun’s shoulder. He leaned closer to Sehun’s ears. “Hey, w-why didn’t you come to my party?!” He couldn’t even speak his words properly. “You know what? You know what? The plane was amazing,” he emphasized, smiling smugly, as if trying to make Sehun jealous.

Sehun jerked Jaemin’s hand off him, but still kept his grace and said as politely as he could, “I think you’ve had a little more than enough on your booze.”

“No, no!” Jaemin wavered on his place. “You know! You should’ve seen…” An indistinct voice followed after he whispered something to Sehun.

The light in Sehun’s eyes changed.

It made Baekhyun wonder.

Sehun light patted the guy’s chest and said, “Yeah, I think it’s time for you to go home.”

Sehun walked towards Baekhyun, shaking his head. “Nouveau riche,” he mumbled with an accent that Baekhyun couldn’t distinguish.

“Nuvo what?” Baekhyun’s brows creased, trying to pronounce what he just heard.

“New money. It’s French. Let’s go.” They both turned their backs to Jaemin and started walking again. “His parents are scam… brilliant, but a scam.” He added, “They made people believe in social media that their company were donating something like money, trees, or food. But they’re really only keeping their money to themselves, and still gain hundreds of thousands of followers. It’s infuriating. And people are just so fucking stupid.”

“Yeah, that sounds infuriating,” said Baekhyun, not really interested. Sehun kept sharing things to him that he never asked about, but he could only nod and agree.

“No, it’s not because of that. But because of his fucking ego. He thinks he’s all high and mighty. His parents bought that fucking plane, not him.”

“Plane? Wow,” Baekhyun reacted, as if it only occurred to him what they talked about. “People can actually buy planes?”

Sehun looked at him, raising an eyebrow. “’Course, you can.”

“How much that costs?”

Sehun scoffed. “Not cheap.”

“E-hey!” A loud voice suddenly distracted the two from walking.

It was a middle-aged, tall woman wearing an African patterned maxi dress. It seemed like a dress robe to Baekhyun—a fancy, fashionable dress robe. Her dangling bracelets made a sound as she opened her arms wide open, waiting for them, waiting for Sehun. Sehun gave a big smile, also seemed excited after seeing her

They both hugged each other out and kissed both of their cheeks with their cheeks. The woman looked at Baekhyun with a mischievous and flirty look. “So, who’s this cute guy you’re with?”

Sehun patted Baekhyun’s shoulder with a tight grip. “This is Byun Baekhyun. A friend.”

Baekhyun smiled at the woman, shy to say anything to the pretty woman.

“Oooh. Hi, Baekhyun.” The woman lightly pulled Baekhyun’s shoulder closer to her to kiss him both on the cheek.

“Baekhyun, this is good friend Maria or Mimi.”

“Mimi,” Baekhyun repeated. He found the nickname weird, Mimi was a foreign name for a local face.

“So.” Sehun grinned, rubbing his hands, and regaining Mimi’s attention back to him.

Mimi seemed like she already understood what Sehun was trying to say. She looked at the guy behind her who was in a simple suit, and the guy behind him understood Mimi. He took something on his inner pockets and gave it to Sehun.

Sehun bit his lips, still grinning, and raised a small clear plastic zip bag with white, tiny pills in it.

It didn’t take long for Baekhyun to figure it out—it was obviously drugs. It didn’t surprise him. If he could guess what it was, it could be ecstasy.

Sehun exhaled in satisfactory through his nose, shaking his head to Mimi. “I love you, Mimi. You’re the best.”

“Of course, anything for you, my dear.” They both hugged each other. “But, I must be going.”

“What? You just got here.”

“I really must be going. The kids,” she shrugged as if she couldn’t do anything that she has kids waiting for her at home. “But it was good seeing you.”

Sehun clicked his tongue. “That’s very sweet of you for stopping by.”

“Of course!” Mimi gracefully waved her hand to both Sehun and Baekhyun as she left the yard followed by her guard or something.

Sehun waited for her to leave from their sight.

“Do you take pills?” He then asked, offering Baekhyun a pill.

“No, I’m good.”

“You sure? This is shit premium. You don’t see this every day.”

Baekhyun stared at the white pill that was resting on Sehun’s palm. He shook his head. “Nah, I really rather not.”

“Okay.” Sehun shrugged. “Suit yourself.” He drank the pill and took a sip of whiskey that he was holding.

Even though Baekhyun was enjoying the party, he was starting to feel impatient why was he ever invited to the party at the first place.

They transferred inside, sitting at a sofa. Some people were still enjoying the party, some people had to go.

“Hey,” called Sehun to Baekhyun. “I’d really appreciate if you don’t tell anybody about what happened. Well, except to the ones we’ve already told here.”

Baekhyun was feeling a little laggy, and feeling a little hot. His face was all greasy, but he didn’t care. “Yeah, ok,” he replied, tipsy. He understood what Sehun was talking about—about him being overdosed.

Sehun clicked his tongue, slightly shaking his head. “My parents’ worse than jail. But damn, I’m glad you didn’t call the fucking ambulance. That’d be even worse than prison!” He paused. “My thanks to you.”

Baekhyun just scoffed.

Oh wait. He forgot to document the party and post it later on social media. He had a sudden urge to take his new phone out and share he’s on a fancy party. Bet I’d impress a lot of people.

So, he recorded a simple 10 second video.

“So, how’s your sex life?”

Baekhyun was surprised by the unexpected transition after he finished recording. The question wasn’t about his life, his job, his financial state, not even his love life, but Sehun asked about his sex life.

“What?” he said with a little giggle, eyes a little droopy. The alcohol was making his muscles a little heavier.

“You heard me.”

Baekhyun scoffed, leaning back to the sofa. He looked at Sehun, feeling ridiculed. Baekhyun felt a sense of insecurity pierced through him. He couldn’t admit that he’s never done it. Kids losing their virginities at 15, and he’s almost 30—still a virgin. It’s an embarrassment, but it was also his choice.

“So?” Sehun was waiting.

Baekhyun laughed through his nose, still couldn’t speak a word. He wanted to lie about it, but for some reason, he didn’t know what to say. “Mm—Uh” He was basically slurring words.

Sehun reclined back with eyes wide open after concluding something on his mind. “No.” He leaned forward, very close to Baekhyun’s face and said in a low voice. “You’ve never done it?”

“No!” Baekhyun denied, moving away from Sehun. “Of course, n-“ Baekhyun’s voice got lower.

“So, when was the last time? Earlier?” Sehun was high, all right. The grin on his face was creeping Baekhyun out.

Baekhyun couldn’t form a word again. He emptied the glass that he was having.

Sehun realized what his friend was hiding but decided to not say anything.

“So, who was the one you’re texting earlier? And why were you all so fucking grinning? Girl or boy?”

Baekhyun cringed. “Of course, she’s a girl. What the hell?”

“What? People appreciate my open mind-ness.” Sehun shrugged with open arms. “How old is she?”

“23.”

“Nice. So, she your girlfr—“

“Yeah, she’s my girlfriend. Why do you ask so much questions?”

Sehun stayed silent and respected Baekhyun. They both stayed silent for a while, observing the party, Baekhyun drinking another booze.

“What’s this party all about? Again?” Baekhyun asked. He felt calmer and stupid—he realized that he just raised his voice in front of a millionaire.

“Are you enjoying yourself?” asked Sehun, ignoring Baekhyun’s question.

Baekhyun bounced his head as a response. He looked at Sehun. He noticed that there was something different about him, about his eyes. Something clicked. He didn’t know what exactly, but it was intriguing.

“Follow me.” Sehun stood up, buttoning his unbuttoned white suit, and started to walk.

Baekhyun watched him walk, then he later followed.

Maybe this is it, he thought. The reward I’m waiting for.

He kept following Sehun who was walking straight. He realized Sehun only had one drink, and it was the whiskey after he took the pill. He checked the time on his watch. He had to frown hard to see the image on his wobbling wrist clearly.

It’s almost midnight.

To be continued...

A/N: Send notes. Follow me on twitter for updates @/jaeandbats

**

Previous chapter / Next chapter 

**

Tunnel Caprica: Part 1 / Part 2 / Part 3 / Part 4 (NEW!)

[askthedespairkids]

Junpei’s Backstory

//HEYYYYY REMEMBER WHEN I SAID I’D MAKE THIS FOR THE 2 YEAR ANNIVERSARY OF THE BLOG AND THEN I NEVER DID

//WELL AFTER 5 MONTHS IT’S DONE BUT DON’T EXPECT IT TO BE MY BEST WRITING

//I’ve just done little snips of his life before Hope’s Peak just to put a lot of things into context so don’t expect one long arc of story. It’s just key points in the lead up to him being accepted into Hope’s Peak

//Hope you all enjoy

Yuri Yamahiro. Hisako Nakagiri. Tomoko Uyeno. Popular. Known. Seen. Loved by everyone. Those girls could do anything and this school would love them all the same.

 “Bullshit.” Junpei said to himself. The bell rang to signify the day had ended, he watched from the back of his class as all the small groups of friends magnetised to each other.

 “Do you have any plans today?”

 “Did you get what Aramoto-sensei was talking about?”

 “I was gonna head to that new café that opened up, you guys wanna go check it out with me?”

 Usual boring conversations. Nobody took notice of Junpei as he packed up his stuff, he had no reason to linger in the school. Technically the newspaper club was having a meeting today, but they’d never notice if he didn’t show up. They didn’t acknowledge if he was there half the time. He left the classroom, trying to make sure he didn’t bump into any of the other students that wouldn’t have even realised he was there otherwise.

 He made his way to the shoe lockers, stopping when he saw two boys putting what looked like tacks into somebody’s shoes. They snickered to each other before putting the shoes back in the locker and leaving the building. Junpei took a second to decide what to do. Trying to warn the person would be hard considering they probably wouldn’t take notice of Junpei.

 “Ugh…” He sighed to himself, taking the shoes from the locker and dumping the tacks into a nearby bin.

 “Ah…not again.” Junpei looked back to see a black haired boy frowning. Must be his shoes. “…why me…?” The boy’s amber eyes looked like they were tearing up. Junpei looked sadly onward. There wasn’t really much else he could do at this point. He placed the shoes next to the boy’s feet and moved over to his own shoe locker unnoticed.

 “Huh…?” He heard the boy behind him. “Did they fall out…?” Junpei smiled a little. It felt good to know that he helped the boy out, even if he didn’t know Junpei existed.

 --

 “Shit!” Junpei cursed, feeling around his pockets outside the convenience store. He was supposed to pick up groceries on his way home, he must have left his money on the desk in his room this morning. Not great. Really not great.

 “No way!” He looked over to see those girls, Yuri, Hisako, and Tomoko. “You mean Yumi-chan really-!”

 “For like, a full ten minutes!” Hisako grinned. “What a whore, right?” Oh great. How kind of them to talk about their ‘friend’ like that.

 “I don’t think Hiroyuki-kun would have been complaining about it if she’s so willing to put out.” Yuri’s ugly laugh went right through Junpei. He felt one of them bump against his shoulder when he wasn’t paying attention.

 “Huh?” Tomoko looked down at Junpei. “Hey, junior, wanna watch where you’re going?!” Junpei scowled. He hated it when people called him anything because of his height. “Wait…are you a middle schooler?”

 “That’s the boy’s uniform!” Yuri pointed out. “You’re from our school, but I don’t think I’ve ever seen you before. Blond kids usually stand out more.”

 “I wish.” Junpei answered, disinterested. He wasn’t noticed much, and he was easily forgotten about. “…you were talking about Kinoshita-san…?”

 The girls collectively glared at Junpei. “Hey, kid maybe you should mind your own business.” Tomoko sneered.

 “I mean, even if I tried to tell someone they would never believe it. I mean, who the fuck am I?” Junpei said. The girls exchanged glances that seemed to agree with him. “Whatever…I don’t really have time to hang about. Gotta head home quickly.” He did a half-bow before walking away from the trio of girls.

 “Hey, hold on! We don’t even know who you are!” Hisako yelled after him.

 “Wouldn’t matter if I told you, trust me!” He called back. Girls like that…he wouldn’t want to be remembered by them anyway.

 --

 “I’m home.” Junpei said, kicking off his shoes and walking into his house. A rather large house, not mansion sized, but still rather large. There wasn’t any initial response from when he entered but the door to the living room opened, a black haired girl with a choppy hairstyle stepped out, she seemed to be talking to someone on the phone. “…hey, Misaki.” Junpei half-waved.

 “Not now. I’m trying to get in contact with Ito-san.” His sister said.

 “That politician guy? You got the job then.”

 “Obviously.” Misaki and their brother, Suibuki had just graduated from Hope’s Peak last spring. As soon as she left Misaki, who had been enrolled as the Ultimate Campaign Manager, had been receiving offer after offer from famous politicians across the globe to help them with their campaign.

 Misaki looked down at Junpei. “…where are the groceries?”

 “Ah! Right! I left the money on my desk this morning. I’ll need to rush back out and get it. I just hope I can go and get back before Suibuki gets home-“

 “Eh...?” Junpei froze. He and Misaki looked up to see a crimson haired boy that sat in a messy style glaring down at Junpei from atop the staircase. “Just what the fuck do you think you’re doin’, Asshat? Going and forgetting to bring money for groceries like a fucking idiot!”

 “Keep it down, Sui, I don’t need the extra noise while I’m on the phone.” Misaki complained, going back to the living room. Suibuki clicked his tongue as his lanky frame moved down the stairs and stood threateningly over Junpei.

 “I- uh-“ Junpei kept his eyes to the floor. “I…I’m sorry-“

 “Grovel.” Suibuki said. “Maybe I’ll give you a warning if you do.”

 Junpei paused before getting on his hands and knees, finding himself shaking slightly. “I…I’m sorry I was so stupid that I forgot to take something as basic as money for buying groceries. Please forgive for it…sir…”

 “….pfft…” Suibuki struggled to contain his laugh. “God, you’re so fucking pathetic!” He grinned sadistically. “Hurry up and go get the groceries.”

 Junpei slowly stood up and moved for the stairs. He got lucky that time. It was rare for him to actually accept an apology. He must be in a good mood.

 Junpei went into his room and quickly scooped the money into his hand. Was this enough to cover what he planned to get…? He might need to skip out of getting the new magazine issue. Whatever, if it kept Suibuki at bay then it’ll be fine.

 His eyes ended up on a black laptop sitting on his desk. His mother had sent him it as a birthday gift back in April. His parents were always on business trips. It was usually just Junpei, Misaki, and Suibuki in the house. It was nice his parents would send gifts but…it feels slightly hollow when they’re never around.

 Shaking the thought away, Junpei headed back downstairs and put his shoes back on. He could hear the TV from the living room, one of those dumb game shows Suibuki always watched. “…this is my life.” Junpei sighed to himself before heading out the door.

 --

 The three siblings sat around the table for dinner, Suibuki had a dark expression and was grumbling under his breath. Neither were ever good signs. “Bad day?” Misaki said, earning a glare from her brother. “I’ll take it as a yes.”

 “Why the fuck wouldn’t they hire me, huh?! Don’t they know who I am?! I’m the Ultimate Actor and they went with a newbie actor?! Like, what the fuck?!” He slammed his fist on the table.

 “Maybe their budget for the movie couldn’t afford you therefore they had no choice?” Misaki suggested.

 “Or they didn’t think you were right for the part-“ The bowl flew across the table and smashed against the wall behind Junpei. Junpei fell out of his seat whilst Suibuki stood up from his. The latter stood over the younger brother and grabbed the collar of his shirt, hauling him off the floor. “I d-didn’t mean anything b-by it!”

“A bit fuckin’ late for that!” Suibuki’s fist reeled back before Misaki quickly caught him by the wrist. “Eh…?” He looked over at his sister who had a disinterested expression despite the obviously serious situation in front of her.

 “Mother and father will be home tomorrow. A bruise wouldn’t heal quickly enough.” She spoke coldly and Suibuki gritted his teeth, dropping Junpei. “It’s possible that they wished to test new talent. You don’t need to prove your skills since you claimed the Ultimate title.”

 “…yeah. Probably.” Suibuki scratched the back of his neck, glaring at Junpei who was keeping his head down as he started to clean up the mess Suibuki had made. “Tch! I’m going to my room. Don’t come in, I’m gonna jack-off or somethin’.” He left the room.

 “Noted.” Misaki said with distaste glancing down at her younger brother. “…leave the glass. I’ll gather that myself. If you got a cut, then Suibuki would get angry.” Misaki had never been the victim of her brother but having to watch it all the time had made her numb to it all. Junpei knew his sister cared but she couldn’t show it directly otherwise she might end up on Suibuki’s bad side, but she was always the one to calm him down in the end.

 “…right. Thank you, Misaki.” Junpei nodded, cradling his hand against his chest and stepping away from the mess.

 --

 ~4 Months later~

 Orochi and Junpei had been friends for around a month by this point and had been walking home together for just under 3 weeks. Junpei felt a lot better being around Orochi. Having a friend for once made things seem a little more hopeful. “Thanks again, by the way. For the other day.” Orochi had asked Junpei to help him with a computer virus he had accidentally downloaded. “I never knew you were so good with computers.”

 “I never had friends before last month, so I had a lot of time to have a hobby. I chose computers. I’m an introvert anyway, so it should be something I can work on in my room…do you have a hobby?”

 “Ah…I suppose I like to read about Psychology. Coding too. Like you, I didn’t have any friends before you. My parents have a lot of books lying around about stuff like that, so I got kind of hooked. Weird, right?”

 “Not really. I think it’s kind of cool.” Junpei smiled.

 “…y’know. You spend so much time on the internet. Have you ever thought about running a blog for your own? I mean, I know you do one for the Newspaper club, but you don’t even get credit for that. Kinda shitty of them to not acknowledge you.”

 “Used to it.” Junpei laughed a little, he had considered the idea, but…”I wouldn’t even know what to write about.”

 “You hear about so much stuff at school, right? Make a gossip blog. Make up a fake name and they’ll never find out it’s you. Frankly, I think you’d do well.” There was a momentary silence. “Ah, this is your house, right?” Junpei nodded and stopped.

 “…I’ll see you tomorrow.” Junpei smiled and waved Orochi off. A gossip blog. Hmm…

 --

 ~2 Months Later~

 “Yo-chan, you’ve really blown up.” Orochi ripped a screenshot of Junpei’s blog off the wall. “This article about Ashido-kun and Igarashi-chan was pretty surprising. How did you even hear about it?”

 “I was in the bathroom and heard Ashido-kun bragging about it to one of his friends. I think he got what he wanted. He was so prepared to talk about Igarashi-san like she’s some item, then he can tell it to the whole school.” Junpei smirked. He was like the secret police or something, exposing people for who they really are. Even if people didn’t know who he was, he was still appreciated by the school for once. That was enough.

 “Alright, ready to head home?” Orochi held out his hand. Junpei nodded, taking Orochi’s hand as they left the school. Nobody even said anything, they were so caught up in the drama being exposed that Orochi had been left alone by the bullies from his class.

 When they had reached Junpei’s street, they could spot Suibuki waiting outside the house, leaning ominously against the wall. “Uh-oh…” Junpei sighed. “I’m in trouble, probably. Either that, or he’s just finished smoking or something.”

“You want me to stay? I can be a witness.” Orochi put a hand on Junpei’s shoulder. Suibuki’s expression seemed to darken when he did this. “…I’m definitely staying.” Orochi said.

 “Ka-chan, you don’t need to-“ But Orochi was already walking with Junpei up the street.

 Suibuki moved too, ready to intercept the pair. “Oi…! Junpei.” He growled. “A letter for you came today.” Junpei tilted his head. “…you think you’re fucking smart, don’t you? Hope’s Peak sending a letter for the Ultimate Blogger? The fuck is that supposed to mean?!”

 “H…Hope’s Peak? Ultimate Blogger?” Junpei repeated, looking up at Orochi who was smiling widely, then back to Suibuki. “Is it real?”

 “Course it’s fuckin’ real!” He spat. “You think you’re so clever, don’t’cha?! Acting like a talentless little shit all because you’ve been trying to show me up in secret. I’m right, ain’t I?!” He stepped forward. It was then that Junpei caught the scent of alcohol from him.

 “Suibuki. You’re drunk, you don’t want anybody seeing you like this.” Junpei tried to reason.

 “Shut the fuck up!” Suibuki yelled, hauling Junpei off the group by his shirt collar. “I’m the fuckin’ talented one in this family! You’re garbage, understand?! No! You’re less than garbage! You’re the fucking garbage that gets left in the dumpster and rots forever!”

 “Hey, let him go!” Orochi tried to pry Suibuki off Junpei.

 Suibuki’s eyes seemed to twitch. “I don’t want some random faggot touching me!” Junpei saw him reach into his pocket and saw something small and silver shine in the sunlight.

 “No!” Junpei kicked him in the gut as Suibuki swiped at Orochi, it had knocked off his aim but Orochi suddenly screamed in pain. Suibuki dropped the pocket knife, Junpei looked down to see Orochi clutching his eye, blood was seeping through his fingers.

 “Wh…” It had suddenly dawned on Suibuki what had happened. “Sh-shit!” He dropped Junpei and went pale. “A…ambulance…”

 --

 Junpei sat with Orochi’s mother in the hospital’s waiting room. He had to tell the police that some gang member had jumped he and Orochi. Suibuki forced him to lie to the police of all people, for what? Because Junpei was finally recognised for something? Because he felt threatened? That suddenly meant that his only friend needed to lose an eye?

 “Oro-chan always talks about you…” Orochi’s mother spoke, “I feel terrible that this is how we met. I’m always busy and Oro-chan’s father isn’t around, so I’m glad he’s got a friend like you to be there for him when I haven’t been able to.”

 “…Ka-chan’s important to me. I’m sorry I couldn’t protect him.”

 “No, it isn’t your fault. Oro-chan used to be so lonely and I couldn’t do anything to help it. These past few months have been such a change that I actually teared up from happiness a few times during work.” She takes Junpei’s hands in her own. Her hands feel shaky. Weak. Orochi mentioned she worked two jobs to pay the bills and it was clear how it had taken a toll on her. Her eyes were the same colour as Orochi’s but they weren’t as bright, like the light had been sucked out her life.

 “Miss Kamisaka.” The doctor came out of the room. “He’ll recover, but he had to stitch his eye closed.”

 “C-closed…? Couldn’t you give him a glass eye or something?!” Junpei said.

 “He didn’t want it. He said he’d rather seal it up.” She replied. “He needs to rest up, but you’re welcome to come back tomorrow. Will that be okay?”

 “Y…yes, I suppose.” Orochi’s mother nodded slowly. She produced a small stuffed bear. “Could you give this to him…? It was his favourite when he was a child. I…I don’t even know if he still likes it-“

 “He does.” Junpei promised. Orochi’s mother pursed her lips and nodded, looking ready to burst into tears. “Please give it to him.” Junpei bowed as he requested it. The doctor smiled and took the small bear.

 --

 That night, Junpei stared at the laptop with the blog on screen. “This was you…your fault.” He wasn’t sure if he was talking about the blog or himself. Orochi had just lost an eye. That was a permanent thing that couldn’t be undone. And it was because of his stupid blog. He hurt his own friend. It was his fault. Suibuki never would have done that if he never made the blog. It was his fault. His Fault. His Fault-

 There was a notification. An E-mail.

 …

 Junpei clicked on the E-mail. “I heard of your talents and figured you could be really useful for the future of the world. Care to help me? Reply soon, kiddo…Enoshima.”

[moonlitjiminn]

Bliss | Jimin, You

I am currently watching Yuri on Ice. And this is what came out of it

Nothing else has ever made my heart beat before you came along

Jimin took in a deep breath before opening his eyes to the flashing lights and the loud cheers, but most of all, the music he was all too familiar with.

His arms started moving to the flow of the song, his legs started to draw lines through the ice, exactly how he had practiced.

There he goes, our pride, our face, our role model, the commentators boomed. 3 time world champion of the under 30s figure skating annual competitions!

When the beat picked up, he started to push his skated faster into the ice, feeling his body remember the choreography before his mind did.

Looks like he’s going to do his infamous Biellmann spin, and there he goes!

Jimin smiled, accomplishing his first hard move.

Is that a flying jump he’s attempting? It is!

Jimin crouched before boosting himself up in the air, feeling the air blowing through this hair before landing into a spin. When his spin was finished, his free leg rising higher and higher, and he drew himself into a haircutter, bending his back so much that his head was missing for a few seconds, before he pulled it up and Biellmann spin.

For the last five seconds, he sprinted across the ice, his arms spread out wide, his head tilted back just slightly and his eyes closed. He felt the wind rushing through his hair and he couldn’t help but smile.

Looks like the performance is over, the commentator remarked.

This was Jimin’s favourite part of each performance, no matter where he was, or what competition he was in, the last bit of the song was solely dedicated to him skating a straight line, head back, a mix of emotions streaming through him.

I would have given him a 10/10 if I were judging, but is that a bit biased? I think out of all his moves that last final sprint was my favourite, it’s always my favourite.

Jimin finished when the music did, his arms in the same position as if was when he dashed through the ice, wide spread like an eagle’s wings. He grinned, feeling the rise and fall of his chest in great amounts.

The crowd cheered while he bowed before slowly drifting off to the exit of the rink.

“That was amazing!” Jimin’s coach exclaimed while he smiled at him, waddling to the TV stand. He knew the procedure, interview, skate, interview.

“Thanks coach,” he huffed, throwing an arm over his shoulder.

“Park Jimin!” the interviewer by the TV stand called when he saw him.

“Hello,” Jimin bowed humbly, show casing his practiced smile.

“That was an amazing performance!”

“Thank you, thank you,” he bowed again, his smile never leaving his face.

“Let’s check your score,” they turned around, the four judges’ names on the board, and next to them were the empty boxes which were to be filled with their given scores.

The first one flashed a 9.5/10

The crowd cheered, and Jimin couldn’t help but start beaming.

The second score was the same and Jimin’s eyes widened.

The third was a bit delayed but when it turned on, Jimin almost fell from surprise.

A ten?

That was an unthinkable dream he had had, getting a ten from at least one judge in his lifetime.

The last box flashed on, and again, Jimin winced.

Another ten?

The crowd’s cheers turned into screams, cries of joy.

“Thirty nine out of forty!” the interviewer boomed, “Wow! The highest score of the night, and also your own personal best, am I right?”

Jimin was frozen, his mouth hanging open.

“U-Uh yeah, sorry, I’m a bit flustered at the moment,” Jimin gushed, his smile growing and his eyes turning into small slits. The spectators gathered in front of them giggled and he nodded. “Yes, it’s actually my personal best, and honestly my personal goal. My goal had always been to get a ten from at least one judge, I can’t believe- I can’t believe I’ve actually achieved it.”

“Well, it’s not like you didn’t deserve it,” he said into the mic and Jimin blinked forcefully.

“Thank you,” bowing again, he turned to the audience, “Thank you so much.”

--

“I can’t believe it!” his coach threw his fist in the air, “I can’t believe it!”

“Me too, coach, honestly, I can’t believe I won.”

“No, that, I believe,” he shrugged, “You’re the best skater here, of course you were going to win.”

Jimin gave him an ‘are-you-serious-don’t-be-so-stuck-up’ look before he shook his head.

“You’ve gotta admit, there’s nothing that gets better than you.”

“Hyu- Coach,” he said firmly, “Let’s not get a big head.”

He smiled, walking closer and slapping the younger on his bare back, “This is why you’re my favourite skater.”

“Coach, I’m your only skater,” Jimin remarked.

“Anyway,” he said, and Jimin rolled his eyes, “I just can’t believe you got not just one, but two tens.”

“Same, I’m so happy right now.”

Jimin brushed the ice off his blades before setting them aside. After putting on a shirt, he heaved on a jacket and threw his duffel bag over his shoulder, and gripped his skates with the hand he hadn’t thrown over his coach’s shoulders.

“This means I’m going to internationals, doesn’t it?”

“Well of course!”

“And it also means you’re treating Hanwoo tonight, right?”

“Well of-” he stopped, narrowing his eyes at him, “Yah.”

Jimin chuckled, “Sorted then!”

--

The next day, Jimin had the day off, which was uncommon, considering he was in the skating rink 24/7. But he decided to cherish the day, it was one of his rare chances of exploring the city. Although he had been to Seoul countless times before, he had spent his whole time there in waiting rooms, locker rooms, and finally skating rinks.

He had never really been around the city.

So he decided to walk.

Leaving his hotel room, he took a cab, and asked the driver to take him to one of the remote places of Seoul. After paying him, he stepped out, skimming the place.

It was definitely less busy then where he was staying, in the heart of the chaos, but it wasn’t bare.

There were cars speeding past on the roads, and people power walking the sidewalks to get to appointments and to work, and he loved the busy, yet not busy life.

He started walking to his right, pulling the hood of his hoodie over his head and his hands buried in his pockets. Looking around, he took in the scenery, and man was it beautiful. It wasn’t just the tall sky scrapers that appealed to him, but the mountains in the distance, was gorgeous.

That was when he came across a large building complex and his eyes scanned it from top to bottom.

He knew what it was.

A small smile grew on his lips as he felt his feet start moving on their own to the entrance.

He knew he wanted to have a rest from skating that day, but, he couldn’t help his inner desires when they wanted to come out.

Looking around, he was surprised to see only one person on the rink. He remembered his childhood days when the skating rinks used to be filled to the brim with people, adults, and children. So it was weird that only one person was there.

But he was happy.

More ice for me.

Sauntering to the skates bench, he leaned over it, looking to see if there was anyone in.

“Hmm… that’s weird.”

Turning around, he thought he should ask the girl skating if there was anyone meant to be behind the bench, but what he saw made him speechless.

She was freestyling – or so he assumed – and her body was moving so freely with the music. He turns were perfect, and so were her jumps. Every time she prepared for a jump, Jimin felt him heave a sharp intake but when she executed it the way she did, his exhale came with some awe.

She was amazing.

She finished skating by sprinting in a large circle around the rink, which made Jimin smile, reminding himself of the way he always finished his performances.

But she stopped herself, the minute she saw Jimin, her blades immediately skidding against the ice.

“Oh! I’m so sorry, we’re not actually open today, I think I accidentally left the door open, I’m so sorry,” she skated closer and clung onto the barrier, just in front of Jimin.

He was waiting for her to make a remark about how he’s the most famous Korean athlete at the moment, and not the mention the youngest and most charming figure skating champion.

But when she didn’t, he continued.

“Really? Oh, sorry, I didn’t know that…”

“You can come back tomorrow at this time though!” she chirped, “We’ll be open then.”

“Oh,” his face fell and she furrowed her eyebrows at this, “I’m only going to be in Seoul today, I won’t be able to come tomorrow, but it was a nice visit, thanks for y-”

“You’re only here for the day?” she asked and he nodded.

“Uhm,” she bit her lip, looking at her watch. “Eh, I’ll lend you the ice this one time.”

“What? Really?”

“Yeah, why not,” she shrugged, coming out of the rink and walking into the back room before appearing at the bench. “So, what size?”

“Uh, 280,” he tried to remember.

“Alright,” she walked over to the shelves and pulled out the skates, “So are you a Korean or a foreigner? Because your Korean is very good.”

“I’m a Korean,” Jimin said, taking the skates, “I’m from Busan and I haven’t really been up here for leisure.”

“Ah…” she nodded before disappearing and coming out of the door again seconds later. “Well, I’ll let you skate, I’m going to go and lock the back doors.”

“Alright, thank you,” he bent down and put on the ice skates and stepped on the ice. He warmed himself up, skating the whole rink in circles over and again before he bent his arm up slowly, his other arm bending to the side, and he straightened his back.

Even without music his body moved on its own, and he found himself jumping into a triple spin, his arms bent in and then stretched out both arms, in a flourish as he finished, not forgetting his usual sprinting down the centre of the rink.

He closed his eyes, hearing the screams of the audience despite the fact that it was so silent in the arena that he could actually hear his skates skidding across the ice echoing through the whole place.

As he stood still, panting, he heard another pair of skates sneaking up behind him.

“You’re amazing!”

“No,” he smirked, “I’m Jimin.”

She raised both her eyebrows, “Was that a joke? Am I meant to be laughing? My dad has better jokes than that.”

He sighed, “I tried.”

“I’m Gemma,” she held her hand out to him and he shook it. “Jimin, that name sounds familiar, but I just can’t-”

“It’s a pretty common name,” he cut her off, not wanting her to dig deeper.

“Well, I guess it is,” she nodded, “But as I was saying, you’re so good at skating! You should join a figure skating class or something!”

Jimin stifled a laugh, “Really? Should I?”

“Yeah! You look like you’d be a star skater if you joined, to be honest!”

“Thanks,” he chuckled, “Maybe I’ll join one.”

“If you ever become famous, you’d have to thank me.”

“Oh yeah,” he nodded, “And, you were pretty good yourself, do you skate?”

“Huh? Me? Oh noooo,” she shook her head, “I used to skate, up until two years ago, but then I injured my ankle and, I was told I couldn’t skate ever again.”

Jimin’s heart sank.

He thought about the possibility of that happening to him and he hated it.

“Oh, I’m so sorry,” Jimin said, sympathetically but she shrugged.

“It’s okay, I’m over it, I just haven’t properly figure skated through those two years.”

“You should take it up again, you’re really good!” and Jimin knew it was true.

He never really found anyone good enough, not because his standard was too high, but because everyone else’s style was much too different to his.

But Gemma’s was different.

“You think?” she asked, skating circles around Jimin.

“Yeah!” he crossed her circle and started to skate side by side with her, “Can I come back tomorrow?”

He didn’t know where that came from.

Maybe it was the fact that this skating rink reminded him so much of the one back in his hometown. Or maybe it was the fact that he wanted to skate more freely like he was doing then.

But he knew, that he wanted to stay.

“I thought you said you were leaving?”

“Yeah, I’m meant to be, but I can be a bit rebellious, you see?”

Or was there another reason?

She smiled, “I don’t know if I should be encouraging this rebellion, what if you’re a criminal and-”

“I’m not a criminal, I assure you,” he said with a laugh, “But if you must know, I needed to go back to Busan to start my training, it’s nothing all that serious.”

Was it because he finally found another thing that made his heart beat, like skating did?

“Training? Training for what?”

“Oh, just this competition,” he waved it off, “My coach won’t kill me if he knew what I was doing.”

“Hm…” she rubbed her chin and Jimin loved it when she did this, it was a mix of mischief and genuine worry.

“I don’t even know why I’m asking for your permission,” he realised, “I’m coming tomorrow.”

With that, he stopped skating side by side with her and slid to the barriers, resting his hand on them and skating the perimeters with his hand still on the barrier.

Suddenly a loud tone started ringing through the hall and Jimin jumped, reaching into his pocket and seeing his coach calling him.

“Hello?”

“Yah, where are you? You’re not in your hotel room, where are you?”

“Oh, sorry Coach, I found this rink when I was walking and, I guess, I just started skating.”

“How many times have I told you to call me hyung when we’re not training, and you need to be back here for our train tomorrow morning.”

“Uh, hyung, about that,” he stopped skating and looked over at Gemma before looking back at the ice, “Can I stay one more day?”

“What?”

“Can I stay one more day? I really like the rink here, I just wanted to rest one more day, please hyung? And honestly, it won’t even be like resting, I’ll be skating all day, I promise.”

“Jimin…” his tone was warning, “I can’t-”

“Pleeeeease hyung?”

“Ugh,” his coach sighed, “Fine, just one more day, but you have to be back after that! The internationals in Seoul is in-”

“A month, I know, I know,” he rolled his eyes.

“Okay, Jimin, I’m going to see you in a day, right?”

“Yes, sir!”

He hung up, looking apologetically at Gemma.

“Where were we?” he asked and she shook her head.

“You were asking my permission to take the day off training tomorrow.”

[chazzfox]

When It’s Love: Chapt 3

This is such a short chapter, oops, but it’s really cute???

The pair found Viktor and Yuuri about an hour later at a high-end jewelry shop. Otabek and Yuri had exchanged glances that told each other they weren't particularly interested in going in, but, it looked like the other two would be there for a while.

When they entered, Viktor, Yuuri, and lady currently showing them some bracelets all looked up. "Aaaah, you made it!" Viktor said with a friendly wave.

Yuuri smiled at them and waved as well. "Hi! We won't be here too long, I don't think."

"We've already been here too long," Yuri complained taking a few steps in and looking around.

Otabek didn't go into those sorts of places and he felt awkward. He looked in some of the display cases near them, seeing necklaces with diamonds and rubies, sapphires...pretty things that glistened in the light but held no meaning for him. "What are you two buying?" he asked, because he never saw them wear expensive jewelry either.

"A gift," Yuuri answered quietly. "Something for my mother. She doesn't really wear jewelry often, but something nice for a special occassion..."

Viktor was looking at a sterling silver bracelet that had pink sapphires set in it, or so that's what the saleslady was saying. "Yes! She is always so welcoming to us, and we wanted to get her something as a surprise." Viktor told the woman to keep that bracelet out as he examined another.

What a nice gesture, Otabek thought. With a pang of guilt he realized he still had yet to actually meet and thank Yuuri's mother. "Ah, that is kind of you."

"Leaving his dad out?" Yuri asked, his arms crossed and looking uncomfortable.

"No, we're going to get him some high end liquor and the like," Yuuri said, looking nervous. "He can get silly when he's drunk, but he'll appreciate it a lot."

"Is he like you? If so I don't want to be anywhere near when he drinks." Yuri took a few steps backwards and looked at some rings himself. Otabek doubted he was really even looking at them, just directing his gaze somewhere.

Before Yuuri could answer, Viktor piped up. "Oh he's worse than Yuuri! I'l take the one with the pink stones," he anwered the saleslady in the same breath, and Yuri groaned.

And so they were only in that store for a few minutes, which was good because it had been small and somewhat stuffy feeling. The cool air outside was extremely welcome and Otabek took his time walking with Yuri while the other two walked in front. He didn't ask where they were going, not particularly minding.

His attention was on Yuri anyway, who had gotten quiet. He bumped him with his shoulder. "What's up?"

"Mmmm." At first Yuri's only response was nothing but that sound. After a beat he looked at Otabek, his voice down low. "I just don't feel like talking much."

"That's cool." Otabek hadn't forgotten their past few conversations.

"I feel like I should say something, though."

"Why?"

Yuri looked ahead. "You're here."

"So?" Otabek watched him, but Yuri didn't really respond. "For once we can not have to worry about our interaction relying so much on speech. Just enjoy my company as you have been," he said, offering a little smile.

Yuri looked at him, blinked, and smiled back. "Yea..."

"Ooh look at you two." Otabek and Viktor looked forward as Viktor spoke suddenly, having paused with Yuuri. He and Yuuri both wore big smiles on their faces. "Talking all low, were you whispering together?"

"No..." Otabek blushed and silently cursed himself for doing so.

Yuuri chuckled and reached for Viktor's arm. "Come on."

"Ah, but I love watching romance blossom," Viktor murmured with a sigh.

"ROMANCE!?" Yuri yelped.

"R-r-r.." Otabek couldn't even spit it out, his face far too hot and red.

"You two, being together so much, lingering, those smiles..." Viktor was tapping his lips thoughtfully. It was irritating.

"Viktor-" Yuuri's face wore a look of concern. "Don't push them."

"Them? We're not a couple!" Yuri snapped. "We're friends! Why do you guys have to put a label on everything! I'm not freakin' dating Otabek, he's my friend! I'm not into him and will never be into him that way so shut the fuck up!"

Never be into him? Ouch. "We're not dating," Otabek said simply. He felt like he should say more. But Yuri's words extinguished any fire he had to argue with.

"See!" Yuri yelled and pointed at Otabek. "Not dating! No interest in dating him either!"

Otabek nodded, feeling weak. His stomach suddenly ached. He watched too as the expressions on the happy couple's faces changed. Viktor looked disappointed, and Yuuri looked very concerned. The air between all of them was awkward. And unfortunately 'all of them' included the people on the street who had heard and stopped.

Past the bakery was a more populated shopping area of small local shops. It wasn't too crowded, but it was not a place to have a loud argument and draw attention to themselves. Some folks were reaching for their cell phones to take photos - they were kind of famous after all.

Once again Yuuri tried to get Viktor's attention. "We need to keep going and give them some space. Come on, Viktor."

"But..." Viktor gave Yuuri a very lost sort of look.

Yuuri shook his head and took his arm. "Let's go. We have other shops we wanted to hit," he told him. He shot Otabek and Yuri an apologetic look before he was able to turn Viktor away. "Look, we'll meet up with you two at home."

"Okay," Otabek replied. Yuri didn't bother saying anything at all as the other two slowly walked off, Viktor looking over his shoulder. He had a frown. Otabek knew a frown on Viktor's face was not a good thing.

For a minute they stood in an awkward silence. When the other two were out of hearing distance Yuri finally said something. "Anyway...well I still want to take you shopping." Yuri crossed his arms over himself and looked around.

"Sure," Otabek said flatly. "Where do you want to take me, then? I don't know any of these places." He could make out what some shops were from illustrations on the signs and decor but since he couldn't read or speak Japanese it was difficult.

Yuri pointed at a large shop off to their right. It had large windows and quite a few customers, with clothing in the windows. "There. They have some great clothes and I want something new."

He wasn't in the mood for shopping for clothes, but Otabek nodded regardless. "Okay." He headed in that direction. His feet felt heavy and the breeze in the air felt way too cold. "I might find something."

Yuri caught up to him, speeding up and walking alongside him with his hands shoved in his pockets. "I'll make sure you do! I'm sure there might be something in there you like."

"Mmmm."

"It's a big store."

"Uh-huh." Otabek couldn't find an urge to make conversation. It made the awkwardness hover in  wretched way. He wanted to say something to Yuri, but he had no idea what.

Yuri appeared to catch on and didn't say much upon going inside the store. For a lot of customers it wasn't terribly crowded. There was lots of space for people to move by each other and clothing wasn't crammed in. It was on the quiet side with low music and low lighting.

He would have preferred noise. On a normal day the quiet was appreciated, but he wanted something to make their own lack of talking a little more bearable. But aside from a person asking if they needed any help, there was nothing.

And even worse, Otabek didn't know what to look for.

He wasn't really in the market for clothes aside from maybe new gloves. And while the clothing varied in styles and brands, he didn't know if he liked anything. So he followed Yuri over to the men's section to begin looking around. The first thing he ssaw was just rows and rows of pants, which didn't seem promising.

"I like the shirts back here," Yuri said suddenly, leading him to a back corner. "I get some of my tiger print stuff here, and once I found underwear with siamese cats on them. Uh, in a different section, but I mean in this store."

Otabek was left to wonder what section. "Anything with bears?" he asked quietly.

Yuri paused and looked at him. "Bears?"

"You know I like bears." He had some bear figures at home, and bear stickers on some of his belongings. Then there were his stuffed animals....

"Well..." Yuri shrugged and kept going. "Sure, but you don't ever wear bears on your clothes."

That was true. But maybe he could do something different, get a surly, protective bear on him. One that symbolized him. Nothing scary, nothing roaring and drawing attention, nothing sleeping and being lazy. But a quiet and observant bear, that vigilant creature, that would be perfect.

His thoughts were broken when Yuri spoke again, and by then they had reached that corner of clothing. "No bears, though, at least not that I've seen."

"Ah...alright." He was a little disappointed, and stood back as Yuri dug through some animal print clothing. He'd look soon, maybe, but he was going to let Yuri do his thing.

It wasn't long before Yuri pulled out a black shirt with short sleeves. "What do you think of this?" It had a tiger's head on it, eyes slanted with a fearsome smile on it's face. It's sharp teeth just barely showed while it's tongue curved out to lick it's muzzle as though it was licking its lips. The tiger seemed to be saying 'bring it on, I fucking dare you'.

Otabek kind of liked it, because it looked like Yuri. "That's cool. You should get it."

"Oh, I will." Yuri practically shoved the shirt in Otabek's hands to make him hold it. "That one is my size. I'm getting one in your size now."

"Huh? Why?" Otabek asked, surprised.

"Because we're getting matching shirts. I said I wanted to get you something. And-and I want it to be something that matches with me. So even when you go home you can't escape me." He smirked over his shoulder.

His body felt hot, and his face flushed. Hadn't Yuri expressed outside how he would never have an interest in dating Otabek? And now what he was saying - they were best friends, but still! "I- Yuri, why would I want to escape you?" he asked, because that was odd as well.

Yuri shrugged and turned around with a shirt. "I don't know. But I'm not taking the chance. This will fit, right?" He held the shirt up in front of Otabek.

It might be loose, but that was fine. "Yea, sure. That looks good."

"Would you wear it...?" Yuri asked, biting his lip a little.

Ah, he was so cute. Otabek broke into a smile. "Yes, of course I would. Tell you what, let's wear them as soon as we wake up tomorrow."

Yuri lit right up. "Awesome! Okay!" And then he started past Otabek, grabbed his hand, and pulled him along, Otabek nearly tripping in the process.

Otabek laughed. "Woah! You don't want anything else?"

"Nah. This is all I came in to look for. Did you want anything else?" Yuri asked, dragging him through the racks of clothing and trying to avoid people.

"New gloves, maybe."

"Okay!" Yuri steered him toward the men's accessories section so they could look, and took his own shirt from Otabek to allow him to try on gloves.

The gloves hung from a wall, and there were all sorts of options, from pink and blue star print to gloriously yellow and fluffy. There were plain black as well, and things Otabek liked, but...he nudged Yuri. "Hey. Pick something for me. Whatever you pick, I'll wear." He trusted him.

Yuri blinked at him and then grinned before turning back to the wall. He studied it and reached for the yellow, fluffy things. He glanced at Otabek. "Even if I picked these?"

He sure hoped he didn't, but he'd wear them so he nodded. "I'd be pretty mad, but I would wear them. With you. In public."

Yuri stuck his tongue out at him. "Ugh, fine. UUuuhmmm..." He tapped his mouth with a finger and looked over the selections. "This is hard. There are a few that you'd like for sure, but I want to pick something that you know I picked."

"I'll know-"

"No I mean, it has to stand out enough that when we're around anyone we know, they have to look at them and know I chose."

"Oh." Otabek nodded.

Finally after about a minute of staring, Yuri reached for a pair. He selected a grey pair with black leopard spots on them. They went farther past his wrists than he was used to but that wasn't a big deal. "These. I like these a lot. Put them on?"

"Mmm, okay." Otabek took the pair from him and slipped them on. They were soft, almost too soft, but his fingers poked out the openings easily and movement was easy. They didn't bug him even for how far up his arm they went. "These are nice! We can get these, then."

"I can get them." Yuri held out his hand as Otabek pulled the gloves off. "These clothes are my treat." He reached up and grabbed a pair of the same gloves. Then he looked at Otabek, face tinted pink. "I - I really want us to match," he said.

"Ah Yuri." Otabek carefully thought out his next action, but decided to do it despite thinking about the earlier conversation with Viktor and Yuuri. He reached forward and rested one hand on Yuri's cheek. The blonde's eyes went wide as his friend's thumb stroked his skin lightly. "You don't have to validate it. I'd love to match you, okay?" He dropped his hand.

"I-well, well good!" Yuri said, sounding all loud and confident, but his face betrayed him. He still looked shocked and Otabek felt weirdly proud he could do that. "Let's buy this shit and get out of here!"

"Sounds good," Otabek said calmly, and then yelped when Yuri grabbed his hand again to haul him in another direction. "Yuri!"

"Let's get going, come on hurry up!"

Yuri's grip on his hand was tight, and Otabek smiled.

They went for a walk in town, making sure to avoid the other two if they saw them. Otabek found it hard to shake the conversation from earlier, even as they had fun window shopping and stopping for some snacks. Blossoming romance? And Yuri, saying he had no interest in Otabek?

He told himself that wasn't true, and that it was merely a cover. Then he told himself he was projecting his own forming feelings on Yuri and that he needed to fucking stop. Friends cuddled, friends held hands, and friends were very close. Just because Yuri was affectionate and sweet with him didn't mean anything much, did it?

It was so confusing. And Otabek felt a mild hate for himself, realizing that yes, he did indeed have a crush on his best friend. Everything only served to make it worse too. The matching shirts, the touches, how could they be just friends?

But they were. He needed to stop. He needed to watch himself. And he needed to not retreat to his mind like he was doing because if he was too unresponsive, Yuri noticed and gave him a bit of a look. So he would speak again. On the way home Yuri did speak up. "Are you okay? You seemed to drift off a few times today..."

It was evening by then. Lights came on outside the shops around them. "Yea, I'm fine. It's just a new place and all that." That was sort of true. He'd traveled a lot so it was rare to get overwhelmed by new places.

"Oh." Yuri shrugged.

"Hey, there you two are!" a voice called and bother their heads turned to see Yuuri waving at them, Viktor next to him. "Wait up!"

The happy couple hurried to catch up with them and Otabek watched Yuri's eyes narrow. "What do you guys want?" Yuri asked.

"To walk home with you," answered Viktor and Otabek couldn't put his finger on it, but it was like he was holding back. Viktor looked kind of helpless and like he wanted to say a lot more. He didn't.

"That's all?" asked Yuri, clearly suspicious.

"Yes." Yuuri nodded. "Tired ourselves out, we're ready to go. Did you two have fun?"

Otabek nodded. "Definitely. It's a nice town you've got here."

"We shopped, it was great, can we go?" Yuri asked. He was agitated, very agitated and Otabek could feel it radiating off him. It was worrying.

Yuuri nodded and answered while Viktor was trying to. "Sure, let's go. You guys don't want to stop for any hot drinks?"

"No thank you," Otabek answered before Yuri could snap. He could tell he wanted to. And he knew it was because of Viktor poking them earlier. "I think we're just ready to get home," he said, trying to sound friendly.

"Okay!" Viktor answered in a singsong voice. "I'm ready to go too Yuuri, let's go. I want to get out of these pants and I think you should help me."

"Viktor, could you not..." Yuuri rolled his eyes but let Viktor grasp his arm to turn him around before he slid an arm around his waist to start walking.

Otabek and Yuri followed behind, Otabek's eyes lingering on Viktor's arm. It looked so natural, so nice around Yuuri's waist. It looked safe and relaxing. They really enjoyed each other...he wished he could get away with an arm around Yuri. He really did. It almost made him ache to know he couldn't just do that despite all the hand holding they'd been doing.

At least when they got back, cuddling with each other couldn't be far behind. And wasn't it just that morning when he was still unsure of how he felt? That had faded as his own longing became more clear...

Well he had to do something. "Hey..." he nudged Yuri and took his arm.

Yuri grinned at him and let Otabek link his arm with his own. Then Yuri shifted to walk much closer to Otabek, his other hand crossing to rest on Otabek's arm. He didn't say anything at all, and Otabek counted himself lucky.

[thatscrazyrandom]

Valentines Gift Exchange. Happy (belated) Valentine's Day @foureyedone

~ My @yuri-on-ice-valentine-exchange thing for @foureyedone ~~ Sorry if it sucks. It’s pure fluff. ~

“Are you sure you aren’t forgetting something Mickey?” Emil asked for what felt like the 50th time. Mickey got the message. He had forgotten something. But he could not for the life of him figure out what? “Uh.. Happy Birthday?” He tried. Emil rolled his eyes. “Mickey, it’s Valentine’s day.” He said quietly, unable to hide the hurt in his voice, thought he tried to play it off. He pushed a medium sized pink box towards him, and gave him one his signiture ‘light of a billion suns’ smiles. “Its okay Mickey. I understand. Open it up.” Emil said gently. Mickey was utterly horrified at himself. How had he forgotten Valentine’s day? He hadn’t forgotten it in years, not since Sara had started getting cards. He had never really celebrated it. He had gotten a card for his sister every year, but this year.. the one year he had somebody other then her that he loved to give a card too.. he had just blanked. He opened up the box and looked inside. There was a love heart shaped Valentine’s card, which read- To my grumpy Mickey, I know that I don’t have to do this so formally but I want you to have a physical reminder that I love you and adore you. Thank you for giving me a chance and making me happy. Happy Valentine’s Day Mickey.

Mickey smiled fondly, even tho the card was only making him feel worse. He put it down beside the box. In it was some proper Italian Perugina chocolate, and some photos. He took the photos aside, looking through them. There was about 15, all cut into heart shapes and strung together. He recognised some of them as ones they themselves had took and others off Sara’s social media. He absolutely loved it. It was clear that Emil had really thought about this. He stood up and hugged him tightly. “I love it Emil. I’m so sorry.” He murmured. Emil gave him a small smile and kissed him gently. “It’s okay Mickey.” He said, after they broke the kiss. “Honestly.”

It wasn’t okay to Mickey. Or.. Mila, if the stinging in his cheek said anything about it. He had gone to his sister, obviously, and Mila had happened to be there. Really, he should have been thankful Sara hadn’t slapped him as well. “Im sorry! I didn’t mean to forget. I don’t have an excuse. Sara please help me. What can I do to make it up to him?” He asked. “Mickey I can’t believe you forgot Valentine’s day! And after Emil got you all that lovely stuff.” Sara scolded him. Mickey nodded, “I know Sara please. I need to make it up to him. He says its okay but.. It’s not.” Mila nodded, “Of course it’s not. Listen up, I’ve got a plan.” She said firmly, before launching into an explanation.

Emil would be lying if he said it didn’t hurt a little that Mickey forgot Valentine’s Day.  He had told him that he really like the idea, and was excited to celebrate it with him and then Mickey just forgot. But he wasn’t one to hold a grudge. There was always next year. He finished up his training, and packed up his things, heading but to where they were staying. “Mickey! I’m home.” He called as he came through the door. There was no answer. He walked into their room. Some of his clothes were laid on the bed with a note. He dumped his bag and picked it up- “Emil, Im so sorry I forgot Valentine’s Day. This is my way of making it up to you. Put on the clothes, and come find me where we had our real first kiss.”

Emil smiled brightly. “Mickey..” he murmured. He got changed, happily following the instructions. Their real first kiss was.. at the club. He set off for the club, rereading the note while on the train. When he got there, he looked around for Mickey. Sara called out to him. “Emil! Over here.” She said. Emil jogged over to her, and before he could even say Hi, she pushed another note and sunflower into his hand. “From Mickey.” Was all she said, before leaving him alone. “Okay so I lied, but I figured you’d like this kind of cheesy stuff. A sunflower can symbolise lasting love, but it’s also the flower that reminds me most of you. So come find the place where we had our first date?”

Emil was melting inside. “Mickey is so sweet.” He murmured to himself. He put the notes in his pocket and held onto the sunflower. They had their first date when Emil had visited Mickey… Ooh yes, the restaurant. Emil remembered. It wasn’t that far, so Emil took the bus down a few blocks to the restaurant. This time he looked around for someone he knew, not just Mickey. He spotted Mila, Sara’s girlfriend and went over. “You learn quickly.” She commented as she handed him a note and a medium sized bag. “Final clue, I promise. I figured that no Valentine’s day is complete without chocolates, but I also know (and love) how much of a kid you are, so there is some other candies in there too. You can eat them on your way to the place we had our first real kiss, but don’t ruin your appetite.”

Emil looked into the bag, smiling when he saw his favourite kinds of candies. He thanked Mila before leaving. He knew where Mickey was talking about. They might have kissed for the first time at the club, but they were drunk, and it made things awkward. Their first sober kiss had been at the park, by the lake, after their second date, because Mickey was a gentleman like that. He smiled at the memory, walking back to the bus stop and taking the bus to the park, chewing on some of his candy. It was a big park, with a big lake, he had a feeling Mickey would be exactly where they had had their first kiss, so he knew where he was going. As he rounded the corner he saw what Mickey had planned. He jogged the rest of the way to him and kissed him deeply. “Mickey this is incredible.” He said, wrapping his arms arouns his neck. Mickey smiled, “I hope this makes up for forgetting this morning?” Emil nodded, “More than.” He said, looking around. Mickey had set a proper dining setting. With a small table for two and everything. There was two plates, covered, but from the smell of it, Mickey had cooked his famous pasta sauce. And in the middle of the table was a vase of red roses, and a candlestick. Mickey pulled out his seat for him, and Emil sat down. “Dinner is served.” Mickey said as he took the covers off their meals. Emil smiled brightly, almost unable to stop himself smiling. He was so happy. They ate their dinners while making light conversation. Once they were finished, they packed up the food into a picnic basket Mickey had brought, with Emil insisting on keeping the roses along with his sunflower. They weren’t far from the apartment, so they walked together, hand in hand. “I had a great time Mickey thank you.” Emil repeated, once they were getting ready for bed. Mickey smiled, “And I loved your presents this morning Emil. Thank you.” He replied, laying down and pulling Emil close. They snuggled into each other. “I love you.” “I love you too.” “Happy Valentine’s Day.” Micky laughed softly, “Happy Valentine’s Day Emil.”

[paolo-aa-blog]

Date On ICE

Yuri on Ice: Date on Ice (Viktor x Yuri) Inu_Sensei Source: http://archiveofourown.org/works/8486863?view_adult=true Summary: A beautiful theme that brought two diferent people together. Work Text: Title: Date on Ice Plot Writer: NerdyInuProductions Manga/Anime: Status: Complete ONESHOT Disclaimer: I don't own this Anime, Manga and its characters, but I proudly own the Plot and the Story which I thought and loved to share, hope you give me some reviews and tell me what you think. Salamat! As the Yuri now back in Japan after the Grand Prix, Yuri had won the competition he was sad going home alone from Russia, after winning he knew this would have happened, his family were worried, his only smiling only to show he was fine but to his parents they knew something is bothering him. He was happy he made new friends along the way many Grand Prix competitors, they kept in touch, but they heard little about Yuri, they are also practically worried about him, he refuse to have interviews or publicity. Especially his friend that goes the same name as him is heavily worried since he knew why he was depressed despite he won, Yuri Plisetsky kept on calling and checking up on him, sometime the Japanese Yuri would be mused to his tsundere friend being the softie. While his Singaporean friend Lee, would scold him being depressed. One day he received a call from his old best friend slash cousin, looking at the picture frame he gave a weak smile. “Sup cuz, I’ll be home at last… ten years had passed I want to see momsy and popsy” his cousin said on the phone. “You’re going home?” he said surprised. “Chill, cuz! Just visiting since our game would be in my home base Japan we’re playing in Tokyo, can you watch?” “Sure! Besides I miss you to brother” “Great, I’ll be there in a few days, me and the lads well be back from Canada from our training” “Keep safe, brother” he gave his weak smile through the video chat. Little did he know his cousin knows about his current emotional struggle and was pissed knowing it was his Russian love fault. Looking at the gold medal on his shelf together with the trophy, his tear fell after he saw his photo with his first love. Going through his phone looking at their many photos he cried silently till his eyes were puffed and red. He slept with his eyes all puffed up and dinner left untouched. The next morning when he was done washing up and headed down to help his parents, “ARF!” the dog he come to love and know knocked him down. “It can't be?” he looked at the dog with shock. “I missed you” a familiar voice ringed to his ear. “Vi-Viktor” he said in a low tone, eyes big as saucers. “Sorry I intended to make you happy by surprising you that I’m moving but I guess I made you sad and upset our friends” scratching his neck. “M-moooove?” again he was shocked. “Here” helping him stand, “Uh-huh I intend to stay after I got to know you and fell for you, however I thought of asking you seriously about being my boyfriend after the competition to keep your head clear and stop thinking that all my advances were jokes” holding his waist. “Wait, are you serious?” “Yes I and and your parents are gonna be witnesses, Yuri I’m serious, will you be mine?” he kneeled Yuri covering half of his face out of shock, his parents were watching with a smile, when suddenly Minako arrived and squealed taking out her phone and snapped many pictures. “For goodness sake Yuri say yes!” Minako shouted. And Yuri could only do is nod, Viktor lifted him and hugged him tight swirling him around. To their surprise he kissed him, “Always wanted to do that” and he touched their foreheads. “Minsako-san, can you not post that yet? I want to post it myself can you send it to me?” he requested. Later that afternoon, “Now I want my payment” Viktor smirked. “Eh? How-how much?” Yuri stammered. “Your love and life, well what I want is your whole existence” holding his hand tightly as they sat on Viktor’s old room, his staff are still there, “What do you say?” “Uhh… are you proposing?” “I am proposing but I’m not taking no for an answer so what do you think?” “Yes” he said blushing madly, suddenly Viktor pulled out a box on his pocket, and showed a silver band with many diamonds that goes around it. Viktor raised his hand that has the same ring, “Give me your hand and you’re mine and mine alone” Yuri shakily gave him his hand and Viktor put’s the ring. Viktor started to kiss him, from short kisses to a full blown make out session they ended up getting naked and slumped on the bed. Both taking a rest and panting, Viktor took Yuri’s hand that has his new ring together with his he snapped a quick photo and puts it on instagram, “Hashtag Finally Mine” he said and kissed Yuri, tagging his name too. That evening they were called for dinner they were surprised that many food was served though the couple only asked for a big bowl of katsudon for them to share since Yuri won. When it was time to sleep, “Where are you going Yuri?” Viktor stopped him. “M-my ro-room?” he trembled. “Nu-uh.. you sleep with me from now on my beloved piggy” and he pulled him to his room. Yuri held Viktor tightly thinking it was all a dream afraid he would lose him and leave him, “Yuri, what’s wrong?” he asked. “This feels like all a dream” snuggling his face on Viktor’s bare chest. “It is not Yuri I tell you, I promise when you wake up I’m still here holding you” Yuri shifted to his on his abdomen and started to kiss him. He started to take his shirt off and started another session with his new fiancée, “I’ve been meaning to ask” smirked by the Russian. “Have you gain weight again? Coz I can see chub-chubs again” he chuckled, Yuri pouted. “You sir is ruining the mood” and so they continued. The next day as promised Yuri woke up beside Viktor, touching him if he’s real, “I’m real Yuri, so go back to sleep” sinking back to the comforter and hugging Yuri’s lower abdomen, Yuri smiled and kissed his crown. Few minutes later they woke up and freshen up, heading to eat breakfast, as they were asked to help some errands suddenly more guests arrived when Mari suddenly burst, “Sister-in-law what’s wrong?” joked by Viktor. “Yurio!!!” she jumped. “Oh… Yuroi! You came to visit!” Viktor was also surprised to see their friend Pachit, Lee, Leroy, Nikola and Christophe. “VIKTOR!?” they burst. “What are you doing here?! I thought you left Yuri?!” pointed by an angry Plisetsky. “I technically didn’t, haven’t you seen my post?” he smirked. “What is all that como-“ Yuri stopped on his words, “E-e-everyone?”left his mouth hanging. Inviting them all to the lobby they talked a bit, suddenly Yuri’s phone ringed. “Oh… it’s Hiro-kun!” he said as his mother hurried to see. “I miss that boy, go ahead!” she told her son. “How’s the almost married man, doing?” Ddoing well, my friends came to visit actually, you?” “I’m cool just getting my rhythm before my game there, ohh I also sent some jerseys for you guys I actually sent too many extras just in case I don’t know your sizes so I sent a lot, I hope you can wear those in my game” “Of course, no problem, anyways when are you gonna go home? And how did…” he blushed. “You’re engaged? Well, the witches…” he flatly said. “Don’t say that, Mari-nee can hear you and if she did Minako-san and Yuuko will hang you” “Then I aint be going home” “Tubby you promised to see us” Yuri’s mom said. “Oh… hi Momsy? Hihi, and I presume that guy on your back is your beloved hubby?” Yuri blushed and his friends could hear it and kept their amusement, “Uh… I’ll introduce you to Viktor when you get home cousin” he sighed. “Great so I can beat him up for making you sad, anyways I got to go I need to warm up” as they bid Yuri then was made fun by the Russian Yuri. After that call they talked a bit while Mari offered them some tea. “Why did you name Plisetsky, Yurio?” Lee asked. “I named him that so we won't get confused” Mari replied. “And by the way, your play is very relaxing!” said Christophe. “Thank you” said Yuri. “That is why I love it here, wait till you get to know the people living here too they are all so warm and kind!” boosted Viktor. Later the new guests settled and the couple toured them around the area, when they got back there were many media waiting when Minako arrived to stop them, the guests and the couple stayed in. “Is it true you’re engaged?!” pushed by the other female reporter. “WAAAAH the other famous skaters are here too!!!” said another. “Oh my gosh, Pichit-san!” one fangirl said. As they headed in quickly to avoid the crowed, they sighed in content as they stayed at the leisure area watching some new and surprisingly they were the hot topic. “Well, Hatsetsu never change” commented by the Russian Yuri. “Haha, I never knew it’s fun here” commented by Pachit. “You’re just happy because some people have has a crush on you here” laughed by Yuri. After eating dinner and sharing Yuri’s favorite food to them, instantly they fell in love with the dish. Yuri now snuggled beside Viktor, “So I guess our first date is going to be in a hockey game?” he asked. “I guess, but I like that” hugging him tight. Maccachin snuggled to them too. When they were about to sleep his phone ringed again, seeing the caller it was his old reporting friend Hisashi. “Hello?” “Sorry to bother you all of the sudden, but the commission of sports had called me and wanted to contact you” “Huh? What seemed to be the problem this time” Yuri sat up making Viktor wake up and lean on the phone to listen. “This coming Monday, before your cousin’s game you and Viktor-san are gonna have performance for the exhibition they said it’s for the formalities and publicity since you had been refusing some interviews” “Well, do something alright?” said Viktor surprising the reporter. “”Why is Viktor-san with you?” “Well, were engaged, people who are engaged should sleep together, dasvidanya~” and Viktor pulled the phone from Yuri’s ears and turned it off. The morning later their friend joined them to the early jog and a short journey to making Yuri lose all the weight he gained. After arriving at the Ice Castle, “So what piece are you two gonna dance with?” Yurio asked. “I chose this piece called History maker” said by Viktor. “I also like the theme of it” Yuri said shyly. “You just like it because your hubby chose it~” joked by Pachit making poor Yuri blush and turn around. “Gosh you two are so cute!” commented by Christophe. “It’s not like that actually… I mean the lyrics it’s like how I started I mean I was tired off feeling depressed and I though of my performance wasn’t enough” Yuri stated and everyone listed the triplets were taking pictures of them Yuuko is having a fit on the corner. “As I met Viktor I told myself that my dream of winning will come true since he’ll be with me, and he’s been pushing me to believe and that made me feel loved and I saw no more darkness since he’s been helping with my confidence” he smiled at the Russian who hugged him from behind. “I guess you just made a history for yourself” said by Leroy. “Then that song’s perfect” added by Lee. “But your theme?” asked by Pachit. “Date on Ice” they both said. They started practicing, the others just came to watch and took some photos, Leroy and Christophe were so in to the triplet’s antics. Few days later they headed to Tokyo for the game and the opening performance, Yuri then was bombarded with many questions since they revealed that he and Viktor was engaged since many snapped a photo of them wearing the matching ring. As they were about to step in the huge buss stopped behind them, many huge guys came out much more taller than Christophe, they were all wearing combat pants and shirt that has a print Scottish lads on, one familiar and much bigger figure came. “Cousin!” Yuri had a bright smile. “Where’s my hug?” the big guy asked as many media came to cover it. “Ohhh!!! Two Katsuki’s met!” said by Hisashi. “Ugh! How’d you get big like that?” Yuri joked. “Katsudon and a lot of work out” “Stop joking, I’ve been fatting up with those cutlet bowls” he laughed. “You’re boyfie there won't appreciate if you get buffy like this, well, anyways I gotta go… the Scotts man might be looking for me. “Listen up thug, I told you to listen to every word I said and what are you doing, I just told the team to change immediately and start warm up why are you here” his coach grabbed his flannel shirt on its mid part because he can't reach. “Sorry coach I was just saying hi to my cousin” “Well, if you’re done get your ass back in there!” and there he gave the sorry guys gesture and head back in. “Wow…” commented by Viktor, “Your cousin’s big” he said with his usual smile. “I think I have a crush on him�� said Christophe which the others laughed at. Heading in the locker room where Viktor and Yuri change, Yuri had worn the while long sleeved button up neatly tucked to his pants while Viktor had worn a black one. As they walk to the rink side Viktor’s coach side suddenly got the better of him, “Wait you lips are chapped” pulling out his lip balm he applied it to Yuri who tanked him. “Don’t be nervous, I’m with you” Viktor assured and have him a tight hug and a quick kiss, the ladies beside them squealed. “Ladies and gentle men please welcome Japan’s Figure Skating Pride Yuri Katsuki and his Coach the five time world record holder and gold medalist Viktor Nikiforov!” called by the As the music started Yuri started to do his opening, “Can you hear my heartbeat? Tired of feeling never enough I close my eyes and tell myself that my dreams will come true “ This time Viktor came in both now circling the rink and everyone awed at their starting performance, witnessing Viktor’s graceful performance both of the dancers swayed with grace. “There'll be no more darkness when you believe in yourself you are unstoppable Where your destiny lies, dancing on the blades, you set my heart on fire” Yuri came close to Viktor and danced with sync. “Don't stop us now, the moment of truth We were born to make history We'll make it happen, we'll turn it around Yes, we were born to make history” Both now danced with sync and did a few jump which they landed flawless, everyone was fired up. “Can you hear my heartbeat? I've got a feeling it's never too late I close my eyes and see myself how my dreams will come true” “There'll be no more darkness when you believe in yourself you are unstoppable Where your destiny lies, dancing on the blades, you set my heart on fire” “Don't stop us now, the moment of truth We were born to make history We'll make it happen, we'll turn it around Yes, we were born to make history” The end of the song was Viktor hugged Yuri from behind which was a bet solemn since both had got their relationship embraced. (A/N: please watch the video I uploaded for reference) The announcer came on their way, their figures were shown to the big screen outside and the score board of the rink, “Wow, that was an amazing, can you tell us what is the theme of your performance?” Hisashi asked. Both replied with a smile, “Date on Ice” “Can you tell us why?” “Well, I guess it’s our first performance together and we think it’s like a date, also the music tells the story about how I started and thought of retiring, but until I met Viktor everything changed” “In short he just changed his history” Viktor this time spoke as he held Yuri by the waist, some gave both of them flowers and hugs they were then met by their friends and now they immediately chaned. EXTRA~ As they now took their place on a VIP area of the bench they watched the locker room interview of the Scott’s man Hisahi now with his friend interviewed the coach of the Scott’s man team and focused on Yuri’s cousin who is punching some bags. “Uh… Coach, this is a HJockey game right? Why is Yahiro Katsuki-san punching some bags?” “You’ll see later why” “Can we have a few words with Katsuki-san?” “Sure” said by the coach a bit. “Yo, Alastair! Get some push up, and I want some weights too don’t forhet closed fist” “GAAAAAAAAA!” he angrily said. Meanwhile at the bench, “Is he always that pissed?” Lee the Korean skater asked. “Someone must have ticked him off” Yuri scratched his cheek. “Haha, I think this is fun to watch” said Viktor with his usual chibi look. “Uh… Katsuki-san how do you feel now that you’re home?” asked the reporter. “I feel comfy I guess, since my cousin’s watching I even feel more motivated, he’s the one who pushed me to hockey since I sucked at being twinkle toes, I can't even do jumps” shaking his head as he do some pushups while two of his team mates are at his back. “How do you feel now that his engaged, I know you two are like brothers and I asked him how you feel he said a bit upset, is that true?” “Upset? Well yes he didn’t even tell me though calls, but I’m furious about his partner since he made him sad and a bit chubby” “So how do you feel about them?” “See that punching bag there?” points at the item. “Yes” “I imagined that was the Russian douche” Finally it was the start of the game three men in kilt skated the on the center of the rink and played the bag pipe as the Scott’s man entered the rink, Scottish flag were raised while Hiro raiseed his own nationality flag and that’s Japan. Everyone around cheered for him. As the game started Viktor is somehow enjoying it while the other skaters exchanged some Ohh and Ahhs due to some violent crashes. When suddenly the Japanese national Hockey team gave a violent reaction to the Scotts at the half of the game. One of the Japanese guy from the national team was confined n the box while Hiro who just came in the game suddenly was grabbed by one guy from the collar and started to punch him harsh he wasn’t punching back. “What the fuck are you doing Alastair? FUCKING HIT EM!” as the coach said that, Hiro started to demolish the poor face of his fellow country man. “Sorry lad, an order is order” and he pounded his face as it became bloody. “OOOOOOHHHH!” Viktor commented. “I’m in love” said Christophe. Yuri gave a giggle. Another came to attack him behind but he elbowed the guy while another about to tackle him, kicking his opponent’s gut he then threw his stick to the guy that’s about to launch himself. “AND FIVE MAN DOWN! THAT GUY IS TOUCHED WITH THE FIST OF SATAN!” laughed by the foreign announcer. While he grabbed the bloody guy and threw it to the glass divider wall near Yuri and Viktor, blood splatter on the glass lee look horrified while Pachit gave a laugh at Viktor since Hiro gave him the ‘I’m watching you’ sign. “Looks like he was quite ‘very’ upset with the unannounced engagement” laughed by Hisahi. As he was contained at the penalty box, he knocked he climbed out of it and headed to Yuri and Viktor, sitting beside Chistophe, “can I?” asked to get some of the popcorn. “Have as many as you want hunky” said by Christophe that Pachit laughed so hard. “What is Katsuki-san doing there?” laughed by the announcer. “Quality time!” he replied by a joke while his coach. “Get back to the box!” everyone laughed. “I’ll see you both later” he patted Viktor. Few minutes have passed when the person Hiro looked up to as a boy knocked on the other penalty box, “Hey kid, you ready?” he asked. “Thank you for politely asking, sir” the audience at the back laughed. When the box opened suddenly their teammates stopped as they saw both guys dropped their gloves and helmet and a brawl broke in, referies dared not to stop them when the olderman was down on the ground and the younger marched back to his team receiving some high fives and nuggies. I didn’t know this was a violent game” said by Leroy. “I like it!” replied by Yurio who’s been cheering ‘beat him up!’ all the time. “What did you get your cousin in to?” said Lee out of shock. “I didn’t know either” Yuri said in horror. “You’re quite a motivation ehh, Yuuuuuri” Viktor kissed him. After the game Hiro goy a cut lip and few bruise while he had gone home with the Skating party. Yuri at the back of the buss was so absurd talking to Yurio and the others while he talked to Viktor. “I’m warning you, man, I don’t want to see my big brother that depressed again, he can't even eat his dinner right nor go exercise” “Don’t worry, I promise to you that I will take care of him on the rest of our lives together” “Well, you better be since I’m leaving everything to you” he patted. Though the little demo I made earlier was for you, so remember that” and he changed seats. ~END~