Nameless Feeling- OtaYuri

The Scariest Thing

     Think of the scariest thing you can. No, worse than that. Even worse than that. They popped into your head, didn't they? They're unstoppable, menacing, and intimidating. I'm sure we're thinking of the same thing.

     Yuri's Angels, also known as my #1 fans.

     The insane, obsessed girls had chased me through the streets of Barcelona, stopping at nothing to find me. I was able to slip unnoticed into an alleyway, but it was only a matter of seconds until they found my hiding place.

All my fans were chattering at once, so it was difficult to pick out certain phrases. I did hear a few things clearly, like "Where's Yuratchka?" Or "We're about to have a fan meeting." I was running out of ideas on how to get away, for I knew these girls could sniff me out from anywhere. As if she was proving my point, an 'angel' squealed, "I can smell Yuratchka! It's coming from over here..." And yet another fan gawked over a piece of my hair she had found on the ground, making me more uncomfortable then I already was. Crap... How do I get myself out of this?

A mechanical whirl from nearby caught my attention, causing me to look away from the girls. A large, black motorcycle had sped up next to me, and  only after a moment I recognized the rider.

     "Yuri, get on." Even though he was wearing sunglasses and a helmet, I recognized the man's husky voice.

     "Huh? You're..." I started, but just then two girls in white cat ears peered down the alleyway.

     "There's Yuratchka!" The one on the right crowed loudly. "Huh? No way!" The other gushed, "It's Otabek Altin from Kazakhstan!" Otabek took off his sunglasses to glance at them, but quickly turned and threw me a helmet.

     "Huh? What?" The situation felt more like a dream than reality. Here was my knight in shining armor, rescuing me not from a dragon, but from an army of teenage girls. If I had my choice out of the two, I'd take the dragon any day. I looked back in Otabek's direction.

     "Are you coming or not?" He grumbled, but in a way that seemed he wasn't upset with me, but more with the situation we were in. I didn't hesitate, jumping behind him before the angels could catch up.

He drove to the Park Güell municipal gardens, and we climbed the stairs to the top of the pillars. At the time, I didn't believe we had anything in common, but Otabek proved me wrong. Once we made it, he leaned over the side of the wall and started to talk, and I couldn't take my eyes off him. He claimed that, five years ago, we had trained together at Yakov's summer camp.

"Really?" I inquired, "I don't remember that!" I was still staring, but Otabek was only looking down, even when he spoke to me.

"At the time, I was in my first year in the junior division." He shut his eyes, as if trying to pull the memory from the back of his head. "But I couldn't keep up with the Russian junior skaters," He opened his eyes, and I still couldn't look away from him, "so I was put in the novice class. That's where I met you." Otabek finally tilted his head up, but was still looking straight ahead, away from me. "Yuri Plisetsky had the unforgettable eyes of a soldier."

"A soldier?" I repeated, mesmerized by this man, everything from his rich, brown hair to his shining eyes. "Me? I had just moved my home rink from Moscow to St. Petersburg. I was desperate. I'd decided that I wouldn't complain until I was good enough."

     "I moved around to train, from Russia to the US and then Canada. I only managed to return to my home rink in Almaty last year. Now, more than ever, I want to win the championship for Kazakhstan." Once he finished, I clenched my fist and did what I'd wanted to do the entire time. I turned my body to face Otabek, secretly hoping he'd look at me. For some reason, I really wanted him to acknowledge my presence with more than words.

     "Otabek, why did you talk to me?" He didn't move at all, not even to blink. "I'm a rival, aren't I?"

     "I've always thought we were alike." Finally, he tilted his head towards me, and I was frozen in place. "That's all. Are you going to become friends with me or not?" I couldn't speak, I'd never been like this before. It felt like a dream, a dream come true. I awkwardly shook Otabek's hand. He was wearing leather fingerless gloves that felt warm compared to the cool breeze. We stood there for a minute or two, just hand in hand, gazing at one another.

     "Otabek? Do you like cats by any chance?"