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How to calm your boyfriend's nerves when he doesn't know he's your boyfriend

Summary:

On the morning of the Short Program, Victor thinks about how he can settle Yuuri's performance-damning nerves

Notes:

Not even a kiss this time folks. I'm a sucker for a slow burn

(See the end of the work for more notes.)

Work Text:

Victor is a seductive flirt, and he's been seducing Yuuri since the moment Yuuri found him in his family's onsen.

It took a while for Yuuri to warm up to his advances. Victor could still recall how Yuuri would physically retreat from him in the early days. But it had been Victor’s greatest joy to watch the object of his attentions grow in confidence, both on and off the ice. No longer did he shrink from Victor’s touch, which was a relief because honestly, pride notwithstanding that had dealt him quite a blow. But he had shelved his hurt feelings as he came to understand that Yuuri wasn’t trying to hurt him; Yuuri was trying to protect himself.

He smiles to himself as he scrolls through his feed, stopping on Phichit’s photos from last night. He drank in Yuuri’s expression; he looked so flustered with Victor’s naked form draped over him. It was downright adorable. He looked at his own expression, the unmistakeable bedroom eyes, cursing the camera for interrupting the moment drunk!Victor had been trying to initiate. His free hand slapped over his eyes, an irrepressible grin on his face.

“What are you smiling about?” Yuuri’s voice enquired, and Victor quickly hit the home button to hide the photo. He was pretty sure Yuuri hadn’t seen it yet.

“Oh, just thinking about how well you’re going to do today.” He sang, springing up from where he reclined on the narrow single. He crossed easily to Yuuri in two long strides and caught him in a hug. Yuuri stilled in his arms, and Victor ruffled his hair, gently giving him a reassuring squeeze before releasing him.

“Things got pretty wild last night, didn’t they?” Victor wandered towards the kitchenette of their shared hotel room, hitting the switch on the kettle and taking two mugs from the cupboard.

He heard Yuuri groan, a quiet noise of frustration, and he smirked to himself. A glance over his shoulder showed that although he sounded fed up, Yuuri was smiling.

“Mou,” he exclaimed, momentarily slipping into his native tongue before chastising Victor. “You really need to get your drinking under control. What will the media say?”

Victor shrugged noncommittally; he had never much cared for the opinions of others. And without a coach of his own to yell at him, he felt giddy with the freedom his current position afforded him.

“I never thought in a million years I’d one day be helping Victor Nikiforov get dressed.” Victor sighed as his mind flew to half a dozen fantasies, the image of a sultry Yuuri, eyes half lidded with lust, peeling the clothes from Victor’s body like he was unwrapping a present.

He was returned to reality by Yuuri moving closer, watching Victor preparing their coffee. Yuuri silently watched as Victor tore open four packets of sugar and upended them all into one cup.

Victor glanced slyly at him as he stirred. Yuuri’s attention had been arrested by the view from their window, and Victor drank in the sight of him, his pale skin bathed in the pink and gold glow of the sunrise.

His expression was tense, clearly overthinking and worrying about today’s short program, his old fears and worries getting the better of him.

“Yuuri,” Victor’s gentle voice calling his name brought him out of his thoughts, and he gratefully accepted the warm mug Victor pressed into his hands.

“You’re going to be amazing today.” Victor told him, willing him to absorb the confidence Victor himself felt in him. Nope, he’s still tense. What will take the pressure off so he can skate freely?

Before the qualifiers, Victor had told him to seduce him with everything he had. Yuuri had without a doubt improved. His Eros was becoming more polished every time he skated it. The problem was those jumps. Yuuri still lacked the confidence to land every jump when the pressure was on. As his coach, Victor was determined to help him overcome that pressure so the world could admire him skating at his very best.

They sipped their coffee in silence, each wrapped up in their own thoughts. Victor felt like he was unveiling Yuuri before the world today, and if that was how he felt, he imagined the pressure Yuuri was feeling was likely tenfold at least.

He glanced over at Yuuri again, taking in his posture, the way his body turned towards Victor even as he hid his face away. How his eyes slid away from Victor’s gaze as a faint blush spread across his cheeks when he was caught staring.

Suddenly it hit him that Yuuri’s lack of confidence was holding him back in more areas than just on the ice, and Victor knew exactly what Yuuri needed to skate his very best.

“Yuuri,” he would never tire of calling his name. He sang the syllables, gently taking the half-drunk coffee from him and pulling him into a hug. His arms slid around him, hands pressing him close as he nuzzled Yuuri’s neck, waiting for Yuuri to respond to his touch.

He felt Yuuri’s shoulders tense, then relax as his body moulded into his, their chest pressed so close he could felt their heart beats hammering loudly in his ears. He couldn’t even tell which belonged to him.

“Yuuri,” he spoke directly into his ear, voice low and wavering slightly as he fought his desire to kiss and lick and nibble at Yurri’s throat.

“Today I want you to skate so that everyone knows you’re mine.”

He felt Yuuri swallow and the drumming of their heart beats was almost deafening. Yuuri was holding on to him like his life depended on it.

A knock on their door broke the spell and Victor released him reluctantly as Yuuri pulled away, but it had worked. His step was lighter as he answered the door, his smile was genuine as he greeted Phichit warmly. And Victor returned to his coffee, a smug smile fixed on his face. He would remind Yuuri as many times as necessary today that he was skating for him, that Yuuri was seducing him. And that Yuuri wasn’t a pork cutlet bowl or an imaginary woman in a story. Yuuri was Yuuri and he was dancing to seduce Victor. And Victor had been seduced long ago.

Notes:

I'm in this for life now. In six short weeks everything has become about these two. I just love them so much.