Archive of Our Own ^beta

When Yuri landed the last one of his jumps, something didn’t feel right. 

The pain in his hip came suddenly after landing the jump, along with a concerning clicking sound that reached his ears. With only seconds left, he masked the pain, trying not to let it shine through on his face as he skated the last moves. They weren’t too difficult, and he completed them without any mistakes, not feeling too much pain either. He had to put more weight on his right hip, the one that hurt, for the end position and it took everything in him to hold it and not fall down right away. When the music stopped and the cheering was deafening, his position deflated, his legs giving out from relief and he dropped to the cold ice. He had made it. He made it . The cheering drowned out any other thoughts and then Victor came into view, standing by the rink with his arms open. With his last energy he rose to his feet, grimacing for a second at the pain that suddenly peeked the euphoria he was feeling. He skated slightly tilted, almost with a limp, towards Victor, his coach, his everything . He threw himself in those secure arms and felt like he could finally breathe again. 

He got the skates off and somehow made it to the “kiss and cry” to receive his points, but his mind was in a daze after his performance. He heard the points, felt Victor shake him, and a smile took over his features. He had done his best, and it was good , and he was satisfied. The adrenaline finally started to drain out of his body and he could feel fatigue make his limbs heavy. 

After a while of just sitting and breathing alone, he rose to go watch the other contestants when he felt it again, the same pain like the one on the ice before. He had forgotten. The clicking sound, a sudden pain shooting from his hip down his leg, up his back and a terrifying lack of balance. A second too late, he realised that his right leg couldn’t support any weight, and his other tired muscles couldn’t compensate. 

He was falling.

He flailed, his arms waving around, trying to find anything to latch on to. He managed to grab a chair nearby, slowing down the fall and reducing the hard impact on the floor. A second later, he was seated on his aching bum, legs a jumble before him, arm slung over a poor cushioned chair. He was alone. No one saw. Where was Victor?

Probably watching the other contestants already. He had been so slow, so tired. And now he was on his butt on the floor. It took his brain another moment to actually comprehend what had happened, and more importantly, what that meant . He was injured. He had fallen because he had been in pain. A pain that was still present. Yuri’s breathing suddenly sped up. I’m injured . How? He had never sustained an injury before, had no idea what to do with an injury. For being a top elite skater, he really was inexperienced when it came to this. Do not panic . He could probably resolve this on his own, it might just be that he overworked himself, the pain might pass soon. He rose to his feet, determined not to let the pain bother him, and certainly not anyone else. It wasn’t necessary to worry people, especially Victor, if the pain would just pass soon anyway. The stiffness in his hip was new and uncomfortable, but he managed to walk - more like limp- with most of his weight on his good leg and support from the wall. He was determined to go watch the other’s skate. 

Victor was having the time of his life. He had never imagined that being at a competition could feel this enjoyable. Without skating, and now that Yuri was done too, there was no pressure on his shoulders, no stress or adrenaline coursing through him. He loved skating, but it was nice, peaceful almost, to watch the others skate. 

Two skaters after Yuri had passed already, and Victor looked around in confusion as there still were no signs of the other man anywhere. He thought that giving him some space to breathe after his performance was good, but this was a bit of a stretch. He threw one last glance at the ice, saw a beautiful jump, smiled and walked back to the “kiss and cry”. He walked slowly, lost in thought, and almost missed the figure sitting on the floor, if not for the sharp intake of breath just as he passed. He looked down and almost stumbled from the sight that met him. It was Yuri, head thrown back against the wall, eyebrows tightly drawn together, mouth in a pained line, with tears wetting his lashes. He was in pain. He had his hands pressed hard against his right hip, his leg lying limp. 

A second later, Victor was on the floor in front of the skater, pressing a cold hand to his forehead. Yuri’s eyes jerked open, filled with panic and pain. Victor smiled gently at the other, who just stared back at him. “Yuri, are you okay?” He, of course, knew that the figure skater was not okay, though he felt the need to ask, to try to ease the tension in Yuri’s body with soothing, meaningless words. He felt that it was enough if only one of them panicked, and Yuri was doing that part well on his own. “I… “ Yuri tried to say, but ended up just shaking his head jerkily instead. His breath was laboured and fear was present in his eyes. “You’re gonna be just fine," replied Victor. “Huh? How can you know? I don’t even know what’s wrong with me, it just started hurting out of nowhere on the ice and then I think I might have made it worse just now, but I thought it was gonna pass, not start to hurt more and I… I don’t know what to do, Victor.” The last words were whispered with fear lacing them, and Victor couldn’t stop himself from cupping Yuri’s cheeks in his hands, forcing the jittery man to look at him. “I said, you are going to be just fine, okay? Trust me.” 

Victor had seen a number of injuries and accidents in his time as a skater, had even sustained a few himself. In comparison to Yuri, he had more experience, and was his acting coach. He knew what he was talking about, but it was hard for the first-time-ever injured Yuri to understand that. He looked shaken and scared and Victor’s heart ached for him, but finally Victor could do what he wanted without any protests. Take care of Yuri. 

“Wait here for a second, Yuri. I’ll be back,” Victor shouted, already half-sprinting through the corridor. Yuri rested his head against the wall again, closing his eyes and trying to breathe. He opened them when he heard quick footsteps nearing him and saw Victor returning with a water bottle. “Here, drink,” he said. “How’s this gonna help anything?” Yuri muttered grumpily. “It’ll at least keep you from fainting,” Victor replied with ease. Yuri grabbed the bottle and drank half of it in one go. “Good. Now, do you think it’ll be easier for you to walk, with me supporting you, or if I just carry you?” Victor asked. Yuri spluttered, his cheeks warming up at the thought of being so close to Victor. But then he got himself on track by reminding himself that this was actually serious. He thought about it, the pain and stiffness, and lack of balance when he tried to walk and decided that he did not want to tumble to the ground one more time today. He hadn’t even been able to limp back to the rink without falling on his ass. He didn’t want to risk everyone getting a glimpse of that. But was it better to let everyone see him in the arms of the Victor Nikiforov? He didn’t know. “Carry me.” The words were whispered so quietly that he knew Victor wouldn’t hear them. “What was that?” Victor asked. “Carry me-” Yuri repeated in a slightly higher voice, “-please.” “Alright,” was Victor’s reply, and Yuri didn’t think he was mistaken about the pleased smile that pulled at the corners of his lips. 

Being lent a hand, Yuri was pulled to his feet, careful to keep all weight on his left leg. Victor’s hands went behind his shoulders and to the back of his knees and the next second he was in the air, carried by strong arms. Victor had picked him up like he weighed nothing and it made Yuri’s cheeks burn a bright red. Hiding his face in the crook of Victor’s neck, he put his arms around his neck to be more comfortable. Victor started walking back to the ice, now with a Yuri secure in his arms. Yuri found it oddly nice, being carried like this. The gentle sway and the secure hold made him forget about the pain in his hip and his panicked mind winded down a little. 

As soon as Victor felt that Yuri was breathing a bit easier, he started the questions. He had had a plan of action; first, calm Yuri down, second, move him, and now third, actually ask and find out what kind of injury they are dealing with. He started by asking, “Where does it hurt, Yuri?” Yuri’s face, which had been buried very comfortably in the juncture between his shoulder and neck, now looked up, catching his questioning gaze. “Uhh… It’s my hip, I think. My right hip,” the ravenette replied. “Yuri, to know what is wrong, I’m gonna need a bit more than that. Like, when did it start?” Now, Yuri was back to leaning his head against Victor, but he didn’t mind. “It… It started when I landed my last jump, just a jolt of pain and a sort of clicky sound that came from my hip. It didn’t hurt a lot, so I completed everything and then kinda forgot about it afterwards. Well, until I wanted to walk back to the rink. Then, it made the click sound again, and the pain was all the way up my back and down my leg. When I tried to put weight on it, I fell.“ 

When Yuri finished speaking, a tiny crease had appeared between Victor’s eyebrows and Yuri felt a twinge of guilt for being such a burden. But then Victor’s intense gaze was on him and he said, “I’m sorry. For not seeing that you were in pain and being there to catch you when you fell.” He looked down at the floor, still walking. Soon they would be back at the rink, where all the others were. Yuri was struck mute after hearing Victor speak those words, having never considered that Victor might feel that way, like he was the failure , and he needed to let Victor know that none of this was his fault before it was too late. “Victor, wait! Stop, for just a second.” Yuri drew a breath. “This wasn’t any of your fault. You’re helping me now, and that’s all that matters.” The two men locked eyes, and then Victor gave a nod, and smiled. Yuri breathed out in relief and smiled back. 

They made it just in time to see Yurio’s performance, both managing to sneak in unnoticed. Victor placed Yuri down on the ground at the rink, allowing him to lean on his body and the border around the ice, thus not drawing any attention to his injury. 

Next came the points. Although Yurio won, Yuri couldn’t find it in himself to be very disappointed. It was when they were called up to the podium that Yuri suddenly froze. He couldn’t walk on his own. What am I gonna do? In the next second, he felt Victor move beside him, coming closer and then winding one arm of Yuri’s around his shoulders. “Lean on me, okay Yuri?” he said with a smile. They made their way to the podium together, Yuri limping badly, but managing thanks to Victor. By now, the audience and everyone else had seen and probably understood that Yuri was injured. In the speakers, the commentators' voices were heard saying, “Katsuki Yuri, getting the silver medal, seems to have sustained some injury, and he’s supported by his coach, Victor, to make it to the podium. He’s limping badly, but still has a smile on his face.”

When he made it up, Victor left his side, first assuring that he could in fact, stand on his own, before stepping down. He received the medal with pride in his heart, eyes sparkling, shining with the bright future he knew was ahead of him, if he chose it. He smiled for the cameras, genuinely. After a while, it got harder to stand upright, the pain coming back, along with the fatigue. Stumbling slightly at the commotion happening around him, Yuri almost lost his balance completely, when an arm took a steady hold of him by the waist. He turned his head and saw Victor, standing beside him, smiling and laughing. Looking absolutely ethereal. Sharing his happiness. He leaned against him, showing him the medal. Even though it was no gold and Victor was teasing, they were both happy with the outcome. Well, maybe except for the getting-injured part. Now that he thinks about it, Victor didn’t even get to tell him what was actually wrong with him.

He started to get more anxious again, the pain coming back the more he had to shift around for photos and cameras. He leaned more and more of his weight on Victor, who didn’t seem to notice at first, but soon was almost carrying all of Yuri’s weight. 

Suddenly, when most of Yuri’s energy was gone and he could barely stand anymore, eyes and limbs heavy with exhaustion, Victor raised one hand in the air, stopping all commotion around them. Yuri raised his head in confusion, as all the photographers halted their movement. “As you all know, Yuri has been injured. It is not serious, but he cannot stand here any longer, but must go for treatment right away.” Victor’s voice was authoritative, allowing no questions. “After that, we might do interviews. But only if his condition allows it.” Victor then proceeded to almost lift Yuri away from all the people. Cries of congratulation rang in the air as they made their way out of sight. As soon as they were alone, Victor didn’t hesitate to pick Yuri up in his arms, the way he had before. “Rest my little Yuri, and I’ll take you back to the hotel,” Victor’s sweet voice whispered gently to him. Yuri smiled into his shoulder, grateful. 

By the time they arrived at the hotel, Yuri was almost asleep in Victor’s arms. The walk had been short, and the air outside wasn’t too cold. Victor went inside, gently pushing the door closed behind them in their little room, as not to disturb Yuri’s rest. His beautiful ravenette had worked so hard; now he deserved to be looked after, taken care of. Pampered. Victor would do his best with that, as he had tried to do with everything else. 

He gently placed Yuri on the large bed, the stirring waking him up even more. “Mmh… Victor. Where are we?” Yuri mumbled, eyes still closed. “At the hotel, my love.” “Mkay.” Victor couldn’t help the fond smile that took over his lips at the state of Yuri, how vulnerable and adorable he was. “I’m gonna change your clothes Yuri, so you can sleep more comfortably. Is that okay?” The nod and smile he got in return made his heart warm. He started to gently remove Yuri’s skating costume, it being quite the task, considering the delicateness of the piece. Stripped almost naked, he went to retrieve one of his oversized hoodies for the other. It was soft and big and baby blue. “~Yuri,” he sing-songed, patting the boy lightly to be able to get him into the shirt. All done, Victor asked, “Ready for sleep, love?” Yuri frowned, shaking his head and said, “Hungry. Want something sweet. And water.” Victor laughed at this, finding the other skater absolutely endearing, and went to comply. 

Yuri seated himself against the headboard to drink the water and eat his candy, becoming more lucid by the second. Victor went around the hotel room, searching the bags and looking for ice. Yuri’s injury had yet to be treated. As he thought this, he also asked, “Victor, what exactly is wrong with me? I mean, what injury do I have?” He fell silent a second, waiting for a reply. “I mean, you said it was nothing serious, but like, exactly what is it?” He continued. Victor came back to the bed, now with some sort of anti-inflammatory pill and a homemade ice-pack. “Here, put this on your hip, and take the pill. You don’t have a problem with swallowing, right?” Yuri spluttered at the last question, his shock pushing Victor for an explanation. “I mean, pills, love. Can you swallow pills?” “Oh right, yeah, without problem.” He proceeded to shove the pill in his mouth and swallow it. 

“About the injury,” Victor continued, “I think it’s a hip labral tear, meaning that some soft tissue in your hip has torn, and it keeps your hip from moving smoothly. Thus, the clicking noises when you move,” Victor explained. “Oh.” “It should be fine, and if the pain persists, we’ll go see a doctor.” Silence followed. “Oh, by the way. I remembered another symptom in the case of this injury. It's a pain in the pelvis and butt area. Does your groin hurt, Yuri~?” Victor’s remark earned him bright red cheeks, but also a bashful nod. Victor frowned. Though he teased, he didn’t want Yuri to be in much pain, not any pain at all. “Do you want me to massage it, or like put some pressure on it? In some cases, that can help.” Victor sat down beside Yuri on the bed, watching the other’s red cheeks as he stuttered on his words, “I-I dunno, maybe, yeah, if it helps… “ 

Victor shot him a reassuring smile and then carefully placed his hands on Yuri’s hip. When hands made contact with his warm skin, Yuri drew in a quick breath, gasping at the touch. Victor immediately looked up at him, eyes worried, and asked “Does it hurt?” “N-No. I was just startled, I guess.” Yuri avoided Victor’s gaze, fiddling with the rim of the hoodie he wore instead. “Please keep going,” he added in a small voice. He was in pain, but some part of him also craved Victor’s touch, wanted those warm hands on his skin. The next second Victor applied some pressure on the upper part of his thigh, his fingers grazing naked skin below his boxers. Yuri’s breath hitched, but this time less audibly, and Victor continued pressuring. “Does it feel okay?” the blonde asked. “Mm.” The pain seemed more distant now, hurting less. Victor then moved his hand to the outside of his thigh, still pressuring lightly, fingers massaging into his sore muscles. Then, in one go, Victor bent his leg, his hand slipping underneath his thigh, grabbing it firmly. He kept massaging only the back of his thigh. Yuri’s head fell back, eyes closing from the relaxing sensations in the meantime. Victor’s hand wandered up and around, putting pressure on his hip from the side, causing Yuri to flinch slightly at the short pain that came, but quickly was followed by relief. Tracing up his hip bone, Yuri stiffened slightly as Victor’s thumb found the soft juncture where hip met thigh, brushing his thumb over it. The spot was ticklish, but also very sensitive, and Yuri let out a surprised moan when Victor suddenly pressed down, his body twitching. Victor immediately looked up at him, surprise evident in his eyes, an amused smirk tugging at his lips. Yuri’s cheek burned in embarrassment, a hand coming up to scratch at his nape. He shrugged and said, “I’m ticklish.” Victor looked at the red faced boy smugly. “Just ticklish, huh?” He pressed on the spot again, rubbing it hard with his thumb. Yuri’s reaction was priceless. His lips parted in shock, hands clenching and mouth forming a wounded whimper, choked out as his eyes closed tightly. 

Victor let go then, satisfied with the reaction, and his work of, successfully managing to distract Yuri from the pain. He moved his hands, bringing them up and letting them gently caress Yuri’s cheeks, his face and hair, before leaning in and whispering, “Time to sleep, love.” He helped Yuri arrange the blankets, then slipped in beside him. Snuggling closer to get comfortable, the two boys ended up tightly cuddled together, bodies and minds quickly falling asleep from exhaustion. Yuri whispered, seconds from sleep, “Goodnight, Victor,” happiness evident in his voice.