Aside from his Grandpa, and Victor while they had trained on the same rink together, and occasionally Mila and Yakov, Yuri could think of no other person he was comfortable being around for long periods of time. Even then, he avoided physical contact, or extended conversation. Honestly, five feet away was sometimes too close, and he would indicate that was the case by swearing up a storm and unknowingly hissing like a cat, much to Victor's amusement.

He never let anyone in and never let anyone close, or as close as he was with his grandpa.

Until he met Otabek.

Something drew him to the older boy, like nothing had ever before, not skating, not cats, nothing. Moments after meeting him, and escaping from insane fangirls on the back of Otabek's motorcycle, he had found he was comfortable there. Perched on the back of the rumbling black bike, wind in his face, the scent of leather, and cold air, and male in front of him. And when he had leaned close, because he was nervous and his hands were cold, dammit, he had discovered that he really did like the warm, and slightly musky scent of the older male controlling the bike.

It was also the first time he ever regretted calling someone an asshole for looking at him.

Throughout the ride, he just breathed in the fresh air, relished the feeling of freedom, and the pavement flying beneath him, seeming to go by at a speed beyond comprehension. He heard the deep hum in Otabek's chest as they flowed around a smooth turn, and could feel the gentle expansion of the skater's calm breathing. He found he could think, and just feel, rather than feel pressed to hide his face from the media, fangirls, and the public. Didn't have to put on a show, and didn't have to deal with people. He could just be, and he found he didn't quite know what to do with the open and freeing feeling, as it was so new and private to him. He was used to public and pressing intimate questions, or about his skating, but never did he have privacy. He was no celebrity, but Yuri knew he was well known in the skating world, and among Russia's ice rinks.

He wondered if Otabek had started riding his motorcycle for that reason. For the freedom.

He huddled closer as they went around a turn again, heading uphill. He didn't know it, but Otabek was smiling, just a faint smile as Yuri's arms tightened slightly around his waist.

Months after the grand Prix final, Yuri couldn't help but feel like something was missing from his life. He was training harder than ever, working with Lilia and Yakov as his coaches, and his programs were flawless. But he felt something was missing.

He and Otabek had been texting for months now, having exchanged numbers secretly after the final, at the airport when they both went to catch their respective flights. The Kazakhstani male had maintained his usual blank look on his face, but when Yuri had shyly given him his number, blushing the whole time and mentally cursing himself for it, he had felt his dark eyes soften at the shy and somewhat vulnerable look in the Russian's eyes. Still, he had accepted the small scrap of paper with the digits scrawled on it without comment, tucking it in his jacket pocket, and then faced the Russian once more.

"Thanks for becoming friends with me." He said simply, because elegance and subtleness had never been his style. Yuri blushed even harder, all of a sudden finding his shoes to be way more interesting than the very, very fascinating and extremely attractive skater in front of him.

"Yeah. You too."

And then, Otabek had let go of his suitcase, and had moved forward with one graceful step, and had Yuri fitted against his body with one movement. He found that the warmth from the leather jacket Otabek wore was comfortable, and the clean and male and musky scent he could smell was soothing, but the thing he most noticed was that he didn't feel trapped, and cramped like he did with all other hugs. He found that he wanted to stay, and could probably do this for a long time. He found his arms had snaked around the older male's back unbidden, and he was hugging him back in the same, gentle, and warm way, his face nestled into Otabek's well muscled and warm chest. This moment, he knew he would remember for a long time for the intimacy of it, and the fact that he had never hugged Otabek before. He found that he loved it, and never wanted to pull away.

They were forced apart by people bustling by, luggage moving past, and Otabek's flight being called for boarding. They separated reluctantly, and Yuri gave him a smile, his green eyes actually brightening with happiness, even though he was blushing and all he wanted was to dive back into that warm hug. Damn it, what were these garbage mushy feelings?

"See you soon, Otabek. Maybe I'll come and visit. Text me?"

The older male nodded, and replied, "Yes. I will." And gave a small, rare smile of his own, and Yuri felt his blush spread, and darken. If he had thought he was attractive before... nothing compared to the way his eyes melted to a warm chocolate when he smiled fondly.

"Goodbye Yuri." He said, warm accented Russian, sending butterflies through his belly, and something that reminded him of love to Yuri's heart.

"Bye Otabek." He mumbled back, watching him walk gracefully off to the boarding area for his flight.

He hadn't even left the airport, when he got a text from a new number, saying, "I already miss you."

"You should come visit soon. We could hang out together." Yuri didn't let himself hesitate before pressing send. It had been about six months since he had seen the Kazakhstani skater, and he was missing him something fierce, though it had taken almost a months worth of swearing and thinking to get him to acknowledge the fact that he had feelings for Otabek. What's more though, was the fact that Yuri knew it wasn't just friendly feelings, oh no, it was that mushy, garbage lovey dovey stuff he felt for him.

... okay, not garbage. But it was the sort of feelings he normally avoided like the plague itself. He couldn't help but wonder why Otabek. The one person he was actually scared of losing, he had fallen for, and so he was afraid to tell him. He didn't know if Otabek felt that way in return. He'd rather live with an unrequited crush, than with Otabek rejecting him.

Yuri sighed, and flopped sideways into a lazy boy rocker, phone haphazardly across his lap. He was almost laying upside down in boredom when his phone flashed with an incoming text.

"I'll be there tomorrow."

He choked, and his hands started shaking with excitement. A smile lit his face, and he opened his messaging app, typing a fast reply.

"Holy shit. When does your flight land?" And then, after he pressed send, he found himself holding up his phone, getting angle right, and sending Otabek a picture of the smile he was wearing, green eyes bright, and his blond hair in a loose mess over one eye.

A couple minutes later, he got a reply.

"I land at 2:30. Can you get me at the airport?" Yuri grinned, and then his eyes grew wide when a photo came through. Otabek's eyes were warm chocolate, hair slightly messy and still damp from a recent shower, a towel around his neck, and completely shirtless, a few droplets of water along his collarbones and down his solid chest, the skin smooth and a shade of tan that had his mouth watering. But what surprised him the most, was the soft and fond smile across his lips.

"Yeah. I can get you." Yuri replied, beyond flustered and blushing like crazy. "You look good there." He closed his eyes and pressed send.

A couple moments passed. He phone flashed, and he snatched it up faster than ever before. Mentally cursing himself for being so damn excited, even though he was alone in his small apartment, aside from his cat.

"I liked that photo of you." Yuri blushed and flopped back on the Lazy boy, smiling and almost giddy that he hadn't been rejected.

He didn't know it, but when Otabek got the photo of Yuri, he had just gotten out of the shower, clothed in only a pair of sweats after a long day's practice. He blushed and then smiled in a way no one had seen before, before saving the photo and taking the one he had sent to Yuri.

After a sleepless night filled with bursts of excitement, a lot of rolling over, occasional texts and updates from Otabek, and a lot of blushing, it was time to head out to go pick up Otabek from the airport. Yuri didn't understand why he felt so self conscious, and nervous all of a sudden. He was just picking up a friend from the goddamn airport; people did that sort of shit all the time.

Granted, they didn't always pick up very attractive, very smart, very beautiful skaters from the airport, and this skater in particular Yuri had a crush on the size of fucking Russia. No matter how much he tried to hide it, and talk himself down, he was nervous and blushing the whole cab ride there, and through the walk down the maze of hallways and open areas filled with thousands of people to where Otabek's flight would unload.

He hid himself in a corner, his hood up and covering his eyes, drinking a bottle of water and watching the doors where those on the flight would come through to find their friends and family. Otabek's flight had just landed, or so the various computer screens told him, and there were staff members, excited travelers, and people bustling around the flight area. Yuri found himself glaring at anyone who got too close, in hopes of avoiding fangirls or anyone who would recognize him.

So when a stream of people began to flow into the airport from the plane, he found himself anxiously looking for Otabek, though he wasn't hard to find. He had a certain presence about him, and even though he wasn't especially tall, he was clearly visible in his black jacket and dark jeans, a duffle bag over one shoulder, and his tired, but awake eyes looking for something. Yuri instantly rose from his slump against the wall in the corner and made a beeline for the older man, a smile gracing his normally grumpy features and making his eyes shine.

Otabek dropped his duffel bag, and accepted Yuri into his warm body, arms secure and soothing around his back and waist, cheek pressed against Yuri's hair. Yuri found his arms were around Otabek's broad shoulders and slim waist, avoiding the backpack he wore, but he didn't care. He was finally with Otabek again, and that was all that mattered to him now, and not even the people moving past and the noise of airport deterred him. He just breathed in the surprisingly familiar scent of the man he was hugging, and found that once again, like the first time he had embraced him, that he never wanted to let go.

"Hello." Came Otabek's soft, but accented Russian, the warmth in his tone showing the happiness he was feeling altogether too well.

"Hi." Yuri mumbled back into his t-shirt, unwilling to let go of the Kazakhtani. Eventually though, he did pull back and look up at the slightly taller man. Otabek was smiling, a warm smile Yuri had only ever seen once before, and he relished in it. He also noticed that he hadn't let him go, just pulled back a bit, one arm still around his waist. He had a strange look in his eyes, like he was warring with himself against doing something, and Yuri opened to his mouth to question him about it, looking up to better study him.

"Wha-" he started to ask, but before he could, Otabek leaned down slightly, and his mouth touched Yuri's. Green eyes widened, and brown eyes closed. A gloved hand cupped his cheek, fingers tangling in his blond hair, and the other arm pulled him closer around his waist.

Yuri's hands tightened in the t-shirt Otabek was wearing, where they had been pressed against his chest, and his eyes closed in happiness and pleasure. His mouth opened slightly against the other male's, and his head twisted to the side, and he felt the barest brush of Otabek's tongue against his, causing his body to shudder and move closer to the older male. He pulled back to breathe, and met Otabek's eyes again, blushing and smiling slightly. The Kazakhstani matched his blush and smile, brown eyes a shade of warm chocolate, and streaks of shimmering gold through the irises that he had never seen before.

"We should go." He said simply, picking up his duffel bag, but never leaving Yuri's side.

Yuri nodded wordlessly. He was still in shock from the kiss. His first kiss. He guessed it made sense that it had happened in an airport. He found he wanted to kiss Otabek again, something that confused him, but he knew it had to do with the crush he had on the older skater. A crush he now knew was returned equally, if not more so.

They walked off, to go catch a cab.