July 30th, 2025- The Next Day- 6 Months-

Yuri's POV 1st Person

I wake gently, drifting out of sleep in a comfortable haze of warmth and peace. I don't yet open my eyes, savoring my presence in the land of the in-between. I feel that my head's raised slightly and I have my arms wrapped around something. I smile sleepily, my husband's home. I'm not used to waking up with him anymore and it's a wonderful surprise.

"Good morning," He whispers, stroking my hair as he watches my sleeping face. 

"Mm," I mumble back, never having been much of a morning person and taking quite a while to fully wake. I do open my eyes however, my husband's face enough motivation to do so. Through my partially closed lids, I see him lean down for a kiss, one that I easily return. I nestle into his shoulder and absorb his warmth, too comfortable to change position. As I dream lazily, my brain making up random storylines that bleed into one another with no rhyme or reason, though in a pleasant way, my husband watches me. A small smile plays on his lips and I know he feels the way I do; even through my sleep muddled brain, this is a perfect moment. It lasts a bit longer, but eventually, my mind rouses enough to leave the dreamlike state I had been so happily occupying. 

"Do you want breakfast?" Otabek asks me and I nod, preparing to get out of bed. He stops me however with a hand on my shoulder and a kiss on the cheek. "I'll do it, you stay here." He leaves the room and makes his way down to the kitchen, leaving the door open for Potya. The cat hops onto the bed and sidles up to me, purring and rubbing herself along my shoulder. I sit up and pet her, thinking about what my husband has just said. 'I'll do it, you stay here.' I know exactly what that's about and can't blame him for being worried. Yesterday was an... exciting day for us, and not in any way a good one. I think we're both anxious to make sure that there's never a chance for a repeat of my little incident. Last night when we got home from the hospital, Otabek took one look at the stairs, swept me into his arms, and carried me up before I could say a word. It was sweet, as is the breakfast in bed idea, but it can't last forever, nor do I want it to. This whole thing was just a one-time freak accident, nothing to worry about. Right?

The door swings open and my husband enters, carrying a tray with two plates of food on it. A beautiful sight. I move Potya to my other side and scoot over, making room on the bed. As we eat we make light conversation about unimportant things, culminating in me teasing him about his inability to do a Donut Spin. "It's so easy!" I laugh.

"I don't know how," He begins, "You could ever form that impression," He gives me a mock withering look, only able to hold it a second, however, before it folds into a smile. "What do you want to do today?" He asks me once we finally calm down a bit. "Yakov heard and gave me the day off." That's awkward, my coach talking about my pregnancy; yikes.

"I don't know," I say, racking my brain for something interesting, "The house is pretty boring- believe me, I know." Otabek seems to be at a loss for ideas as well but then exclaims,

"I know exactly what we're going to do!" I give him a skeptical glance as he stands up, obviously excited and eager to announce his idea.

"Which is...?" I question him.

"Nothing," He says simply and smiles, coming around to my side of the bed and pulling me to my feet. "While I'm sure you're bored out of your mind by staying here constantly -sorry about that by the way-" He adds and I just roll my eyes with a vaguely annoyed smile. "It can actually be really fun to just be lazy and watch movies all day. We could make popcorn and just do whatever," He seems so enthusiastic about this I can't help but agree, neglecting to mention that I've seen every movie on Netflix 1,000 times over. 

After leaving the bedroom without getting dressed (because, really, what's the point?) we pause at the top of the stairs. Otabek gives me a nervous glance, to which I return a (hopefully) reassuring smile. I grip the railing tightly and reach the bottom in one piece, my husband looking relieved as I do. 

We're halfway through the first movie; Anastasia, because why the hell not? When my phone chimes. I open it and find a notification from Instagram, the user being one of the Yuri's Angels. I open the post and find myself surprised by its contents. It's comprised of a picture of a tiny pair of cat ears (The Angels seem to think this is my trademark even though I vehemently insist it is not) and a onesie with the image of a skate on it, bearing the words; My first steps were on the ice! 

Otabek glances over at my screen and smiles, raising an eyebrow, "That's sweet, if not a bit creepy."

"Isn't everything they do a bit creepy?" I murmur and continue gazing at the picture. I hadn't even thought about baby things; do we need clothes? Okay, yes, we need clothes, and probably a shit ton of other stuff I haven't even considered yet too. Although apparently my fans have. Well, I feel guilty. "I completely forgot about this," I turn to face my husband. "We still have months, we don't need anything yet- right?"

"I think we're good for now," He says, though looking far from convinced, "Although I guess it couldn't hurt to look." 

That's where the rest of our day goes. Movie set aside and ignored, we surf Amazon and browse their dauntingly expansive infant section. We don't get anything, that would be crazy, but make a list on the site, helping us to put our thoughts in order. I laugh when a suggestion pops up for toddler's ice skates, and have to fight the urge to add them to the list- we have years before that becomes a possibility- though I know it will. 

Eventually, we tire ourselves out of online shopping, and, feeling as though we made good progress for the day, return to our nothing. I'd forgotten how much fun it was just to hang out, the entire experience made so much more enjoyable with my husband home, and highlighting just how much I miss not being able to spend every day with him. At the thought, it seems a sad look appears upon my face, for Otabek at once seeks to comfort me, even without the knowledge as to why. 

"What's wrong?" He asks me gently, giving me a kiss on the head.

"Nothing," I hesitate, feeling like an idiot, "I just miss you sometimes," I lower my gaze as my face burns, though knowing Otabek doesn't care in the least. He takes my face in his hand and forces me gently to meet his eyes.

"I know," He says quietly, and I can he feels guilty, "I miss you too. I just don't quite know what to do." I nod, knowing exactly how he feels. "Skating doesn't feel right without you." I smile slightly and kiss him,

"We'll survive," I say and I can tell it's not a compromise either of us like or want, but finding no better alternative. "It's only a few months until the season's over. Not long now." We both know that that's not true, that the worst has yet to come. The season hasn't even started and once it does, practice will be longer and more frequent, if possible, than ever before. Not to mention competitions; Otabek's an international competitor on the Grand Prix Circuit, he'll have to leave the country for every event. And at that point, I won't be able to follow, so I'll truly be home alone. The thought of this is disheartening, but I push it away; we'll cross that bridge when we come to it. 

Several hours, a few movies, and many silly teasing matches later, we decide that we're hungry and in need of Chinese food. Otabek offers to go out, but I decline, deciding to accompany him on the short walk to our favorite take-out restaurant. The weather's nice, being very warm as it's nearly August and the cool breeze refreshing. We walk hand in hand down the high street and enjoy the sights and sounds of the city around us. Once our order's ready we decide, on a whim, to visit the Summer Gardens, not having been there in a while and loving the spot. 

We sit down on the fountain's edge as we had many weeks before. I smile at the memory, I was so freaked out when I told Otabek, and so happy when he knew. As if seeing it in present time, I watch myself in my mind's eye throwing up in the paths, and my husband spinning me around only minutes afterward. As if reading my thoughts, Otabek puts an arm around me and a hand on my, now prominent, bump. "I love you," He says quietly in the fading light.

"I love you too," I reply, and today truly is a perfect day.