Melody of You | Yuzuru Hanyu

47.

Yuzuru's family took the news better than they expected. Sophia assumed they knew him well enough to expect something like this all the time.

Meeting his father and sister wasn't as terrifying after knowing his mom already. His dad reminded her a lot of Yuzu, very relaxed and stress-free on most things, doing the occasional joke to lighten the mood every now and then.

During their time in Japan, dinners at the Hanyu household would be a common occurrence and one the violinist loved. The atmosphere was very different from the one she got used to at her home, her parents had always been too serious to have fun during meals. Thinking back, they rarely even had meals together given how busy they were. It was probably one of the reasons she barely kept contact these days, their distance.

Sophia didn't consider it normal for her parents to completely ignore the news of her crash and not even give her a call to ask if everything was okay. She drew the line there, if they didn't care, she wouldn't be the one reaching out.

In his family, Soph found what she never had in her home and valued it more than most people would.

Traveling to Saitama with Yuzuru was nerve-wracking. His presence in Japan was different than anywhere else. If the skater could walk randomly on the London streets and watch a concert without anyone paying him any attention, the same would never happen in his home country.

While in Sendai people seemed to respect his privacy and allow him to live a fairly regular life, as soon as they arrived in Saitama it was clear nothing would be like that.

Sophia was initially surprised by the need for bodyguards, but easily understood that decision when she saw the crowd waiting in front of the hotel.

It was hard to even understand how they knew where he was staying but she didn't bother questioning it while he informed her of the plan of action.

When he spoke, Soph understood that he had probably been dwelling on this for a while. A whole plan was done to avoid the violinist to be noticed by the crowd, as well as to make sure that she would be safe in the process.

It was chaotic to a point she had never seen. Sophia's head went to Fantasy on Ice on how different it had been, making her question why in her head. Maybe Yuzuru could answer that later.

"You understood everything?" Yuzuru asked while they were still in the car. "You will follow Tanaka once I leave and he will guide you to the reception and take the room key for you. You wait for me there ok?"

"Yes. Ok."

"I'm sorry it has to be like this." he said with a genuinely concerned face. The worry was clear in his expression and there wasn't much she could do about it but reassure him.

Sophia gave him a gentle smile and kissed his lips softly in front of his team. She figured it was okay since they knew the two were staying together.

"Don't worry, I understand."

Yuzuru grinned back and gave her one last kiss.

"I love you" he said before his team started giving him the warning that they had to go soon.

"I love you too... Go and shine, my superstar"

It surprised her how easy it was to go unnoticed. Everyone's attention was on Yuzu and no one seemed to care about the whole entourage that left the car at the same time. For Sophia, this allowed her to follow the plan accordingly without any concerns or problems.

The Japanese bodyguard that was with her was fast to retrieve the room keycard and guide her to the Elevator, dragging her bag in his hand.

"I can take my bag." She told him once they were inside the elevator

"It's okay, mam. Just doing my job."

He guided her to the room and carried the bag inside when she opened the door.

"This one is for Hanyu-san" he said as he handed her the other card. "The security team is staying on this floor, and you can contact us through this phone number" another card was placed in her hand. "Whatever we need, we can get. Ok?"

"I think I will be fine. But thank you."

"Goodnight, mam"

Almost as quick as he said those last words, he was gone, leaving her alone in the room.

Sophia finally took some time to look around the room and see where she would be living for the next week. The hotel room was really nice, but it was something she expected. Japan hotels were often on a whole new level when you compare them to Western Hospitality.

The bedroom was big, the mattress was very comfortable and a TV was hanging on the wall. The bathroom had a huge tub that she hoped to put to some use and even the shower was big enough for 2 people, something very important whenever she stayed with Yuzuru.

As expected, her boyfriend took some time getting to the room and she just took the opportunity to lay in bed and watch TV while waiting.

A soft knock on the door made her stand almost right away. She knew very well who it was.

Being graced by Yuzu's tired face as she opened the door, the violinist could help but give him a big smile in welcome.

"Hey... How was it?" She asked as he entered.

"Tiring... But I prefer giving attention to the fans before the media any day."

"Understandable"

"I just feel like laying on the bed and sleeping"

Sophia laughed softly and answered. "Well, you will need all the energy for tomorrow's practice, you deserve the rest."

"I feel bad making you wait just to have me fall asleep when I come back to you."

"I have you every day, hun. It's ok." She told him while giving his cheek a peck. "How about I run us a warm bath before you go to bed?"

He looked at her as if trying to understand if she meant it innocently and seemed relieved by her expression.

"I don't have much energy for anything else."

"I just want to take care of you. Everything else can wait"