The clang of dog food hitting metal caused a fluffy head to raise from the couch. Makkachin sat up slowly and yawned stretching his large paws in front of him. He lumbered off the couch and padded towards the kitchen doorway. Viktor placed the food bowl down and the poodle let out a soft bark. He slowly walked over and sniffed the food before taking his time to eat. "You've gotten so old huh?" Viktor pat his head and walked to the sink.

He placed both his hands on the edges of the sink, a sigh escaping him. It had been two days since Irina had left to get back to her own life, promising to check in on them occasionally. Viktor glanced at the bedroom door and started tapping his fingers restlessly on the metallic surface. I know I should give him time... but how much time? When will it be okay for me to see him. Is now okay?  Viktor was torn on these decisions. He had been in the bedroom these past few days a couple of times to leave food for Yuuri, but each time Yuuri had been under the covers and unresponsive.

Viktor wanted to talk to him; He missed his voice. Viktor clenched his hands into fists and pushed away from the sink, stumbling backwards and sinking into one of his kitchen chairs. There was a knock on the door and Viktor rested his arm over his eyes groaning softly.

He pressed both hands onto the table and pushed with all his might to heave himself out of the chair. He hobbled to the door and opened it, not even checking to see who it was.

"Hey. you look awful." The blonde hair of his old rink mate was the first thing Viktor noticed before processing that he had said something.

"Thank you." Viktor said, his mind still not very clear from his previous debate with himself.

"You're so weird." Yuri said as he let himself in, pulling both his boots off and strolling down the hall, making a sharp right into the living room; Viktor following behind. "So is the piglet here?" Yuri asked and sat down on the couch, kicking his legs up onto the coffee table.

"He's in the bedroom." Viktor said, his voice void of any emotion. Yuri scowled and sighed.

"I wouldn't have come over if I knew it was like a morgue here." Yuri pulled his legs up and rested both feet on the ground. "We should get you out of this place."

"But Yuuri is-"

"No. C'mon you just need a breather. You'll go crazy if you stay here much longer." Viktor stayed quiet, unable to argue with him. Yuri pulled Viktor to the door and helped him with his shoes and coat. They left leaving the hallway dark and quiet like the rest of the apartment.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

What time is it... is it dark? It looks dark... or are my eyes closed?.. Yuuri blinked. My eyes are open... the room is dark. Yuuri sat up slowly and put his hands on his lap. He glanced down at them and began to open and close them.

Am I doing this? Are these my hands? Yuuri thought as he lifted his arms slowly then let them fall back down to his lap. Yuuri pushed the sheets he had been under off him and looked at his legs. He lifted one, then the other. Are these mine? He bent his knee, then the other, eventually letting both his legs lie flat.

He turned his body so that both his legs were hanging over the side of the bed. He looked down at them and squinted. He pushed himself up with both hands and stumbled forward a bit. I stood up.

Yuuri took a couple unsteady steps forward towards the door. He reached a shaky hand out as he made it to the door. His hand brushed the cold doorknob and he hesitated before grabbing it gently. He opened the door and stepped through the frame. The room before him was dark, a small buzz in the silence caught his attention and he glanced to the TV. It wasn't on, but a noise still seemed to be emitting from it. He carefully made his way over to the TV and looked down at it, his eyes adjusting to the dark as he did so. He took a step back and glanced behind him.

Couch.

He walked around the coffee table and got to the couch where he sat down stiffly. His gaze swept across the dark room and he let the silence settle. The TV still buzzed softly and Yuuri closed his eyes. Why are you making noise? Are you trying to speak?

Yuuri leaned forward and stared at the black screen. Yuuri saw his reflection and jumped back slightly and looked away. What should I do? Yuuri slid off the couch and onto the ground. He crawled around the coffee table and sat on his knees in front of the TV.

"Hello." Yuuri said staring at the other Yuuri in front of him. "Are you the real Yuuri?" He asked the reflection. It blinked, but didn't say a word. "Why won't you speak?" Yuuri leaned into the screen and met the eyes of the other Yuuri.

The screen suddenly came to life, static snow screeching at him as he fell back screaming. The other Yuuri was gone.

Gone.

Would he disappear too? He let out shriek and scrambled to his feet. The room became darker as the TV seemed to get louder and louder. Yuuri's vision became blurry as he tried to return to the bedroom.

Scared...

Yuuri gasped as he stepped through the doorframe, his vision momentarily clearing a little. Tears filled his eyes as he shut the door and shuffled to the bed. He sat down on the side of the bed and felt a chill go through him.

Cold.

Yuuri pulled his legs up and put them under the covers. Yuuri's vision blurred again.

There's nothing I can do.

Yuuri felt his head grow light then heavy then light again.

What's going on.

Yuuri felt tears roll down his cheeks, but he wasn't sure if he was crying. Yuuri stared down at the sheets with a blank expression, his eyes seemed to be drained of all color. He felt...

dead inside.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Viktor threw his jacket and shoes on the ground of his foyer. He made his way into his living room, flicked on the light, and was about to go to the couch when he noticed something. the TV was on?

He walked over to the TV his face full of confusion. He glanced down at it and noticed something on the floor right in front of it. The remote sat on the ground only a couple inches away. Upon further inspection he noticed that a bunch of the buttons had been smashed down. He used his finger to pry the small rubber buttons out of the remote and after he was successful he placed it on top of the TV.

He walked into the kitchen and grabbed a mug from the cabinet left of the sink. He filled it with water and brought it over to the microwave; Setting the mug on the glass tray inside. He closed the door and pressed the 1 minute button. The microwave came to life, the light on and the tray spinning as the timer counted down slowly.

57 seconds.

Viktor rested his back against the cabinet and looked at the ceiling. It had to have been Yuuri who had turned on the TV, but why?

48 seconds.

Yuuri hadn't left the bedroom much as far as Viktor could tell, so what had compelled him to do so now? Viktor turned his attention to the bedroom door, his eyes trailing down from it to the couch.

34 seconds.

Viktor suddenly heard the sound of running water and jumped away from the cabinet, turning around quickly to see that he had left the sink on. He turned it off then put his head in his hands; He had too much on his mind.

22 seconds.

I think it's time I try and speak with him Viktor decided and nodded his head as if to reassure himself of his decision.

15 seconds.

You can do this... and if he doesn't talk to you then that'll be fine. Just seeing him will be enough. Viktor opened a drawer that was below the microwave and pulled out a tea bag.

8 seconds.

I'm so stupid... how can I fix this?

3 seconds.

This is all my fault.

2 seconds.

What should I do?

1 second.

Yuuri....

Beep beep beep beep bee...