Deep Edges | Yuzuru Hanyu

53.

Izumi was a bit too late to stop Nanami and in just a few moments, the man was knocking on the door impatiently.

The coach only made sure that Izumi was sitting and steady on the couch before opening the door.

Yuzuru didn't spare her a second glance, immediately going to the woman sitting there, looking more vulnerable than he had ever seen her, almost weak.

He didn't even say anything before his arms wrapped around her in a warm embrace.

"I fucking knew I shouldn't let him be alone with you."

"He's my fiance" she muttered weakly against his chest, sobbing hard and uncontrollably.

"Do I look like I care who he is?"

As mad as Yuzu was, his touch on her was soft and caring, as it always was. They cuddled on the couch as he just allowed her to cry, not making any effort to tell her to stop. It was almost as if he knew that she needed to get all of her frustrations off her body.

"Have you eaten anything?" Nanami eventually asked. It had already been some time since she finished her performance but she hadn't eaten anything. If anything, she just threw up every remaining bits of food still lingering in her system

"Not really... I'm not hungry either."

"You have to eat." Yuzuru said softly. "You need all of your strength for the Free."

He knew her well enough to use Figure skating goals to convince her to take care of herself. Izumi even wondered if that's the strategy he used on himself.

"I threw up before leaving my room, I doubt I can get anything to stay on my stomach." she eventually admitted reluctantly, causing even more worry to the people watching her.

"I will get you tea, you need something with sugar before you pass out."

Part of Izumi wondered if this was Nanami-sensei's way to leave them all alone to deal with this and she had to admit that if that was the reasoning, then the woman was even better than what she initially thought.

Being with Yuzuru like that made her feel stupid. She could have all of this with him but was choosing to stay with the other man, at least for a few more months.

"I was wondering where this hoodie was." he said, trying to lighten up the mood with a change of topics. Maybe distraction was the best call after all.

Izumi instantly smiled, even if weakly.

"I forgot I had it."

"Looks better on you anyway."

"Yuzu... I know you want to know..."

"I didn't ask."

"But you do wonder."

"I do, but I have a feeling that if I get to know the true extent of whatever he did, I will probably lose my mind and go after him. It's probably best if I don't know the full story."

"I can't even imagine seeing you snap like that."

"Well, when it comes to you, I've learned a long time ago that nothing is normal with how I react."

"Thank you... you know, for being here, despite everything."

Yuzuru wanted to tell her that he would always be there, he wanted to tell her that he loved her with all of his being, but even if she wasn't on the best of terms with the jerk, she still wasn't a single woman. He just couldn't say those things without getting dangerously close to what could be considered forbidden territory.

"Always." was all he ended up saying.

"It will be over soon. I think that when we get back to Japan, and since you're not around, everything will go back to normal."

There was a lot that he could answer to that, but he just hummed. Had he told her what he really thought, Izumi would probably deem him too jealous.

"Zumi... Are you pregnant?" He asked, mostly out of a need to understand why she was still with this man, rather than just tell him to pack his bags. The fact that she had thrown up was making him wary about the matter.

She seemed dumbfounded for a few seconds.

"I want the Olympic medal, you really think I would risk a pregnancy now?"

"Just making sure."

"Akito doesn't know, but I have an implant precisely to be sure I won't risk it."

"Why didn't you tell him?"

Izumi just shrugged her shoulders.

"It just never came up."

It was BS and they both knew it, but Yuzu didn't say anything else.

"At least you know you weren't throwing up because of that."

"That was purely from being disgusted in myself, nothing else."

Yuzuru's eyes turned red in reaction, she could see the rage emitting from his body and immediately placed her hand on his cheek, in an attempt to make him look at her and calm down.

"Every new thing you tell me about this jerk makes me want to kill him."

"We both know you wouldn't take a life."

"He's challenging every ounce of principle I may have."

"I'm fine. I can handle it."

"You shouldn't handle it, that's precisely the problem. Dating someone is not about giving them even more things to worry about. It's supposed to help and take some of that tension and heavyweight from your shoulders."

Her eyes were focused on his.
Yuzuru could see it, her will to close the distance.

Hell, he probably would have if they weren't talking about the man she was marrying soon.

"You can say, that I'm making a mistake."

"You know I won't. I respect your choices but I also know that I can't say everything I think. I'm way too emotionally invested in this to have an impartial opinion."

"I won't marry him."

Yuzuru stared at her for a few seconds, mouth slightly open but a hidden smile on his lips.

"You won't?"

All he wanted was to kiss her, but he needed to make sure he understood exactly what she meant.

"I won't. But... I need to ask you something I have zero rights to ask."

"Then ask."

"Will you wait for me?"