10

Yuri walked through the corridors, a lot of thoughts raced through his head. He wanted nothing more than to call Viktor or check to see if he had received any updates from Yakov. But, unfortunately, Viktor seemed to avoid him. Not even the slightest contact could be obtained without him asking for permission.

It frustrated Yuri. It had been months since they last talked. Wasn't Viktor worried about him? Shouldn't he call him, apologize, tell him that he was sorry? No matter how much time passed, Yuri knew that it would never take that long for the wound to heal. He didn't know how much time it would take for his heart to recover.

As Yuri reached his destination, he knocked softly before entering the room. Viktor was sitting in a wheelchair. He looked exhausted, but otherwise fine. He smiled brightly at Yuri as he entered the room.

"Hi, Yuri," he said. Then, he frowned. "What happened to you? Your face looks awful."

Viktor tried to laugh it off and Yuri could see right through him.

"Well," Viktor started. "I fell asleep at the office. One of the doctors had to carry me back to our apartment."

"Oh..." Yuri replied quietly. His gaze dropped to the ground and he stared at his feet. He had no idea why he felt so sad about that.

"Hey Yuri," Viktor said after a few moments of silence. "Have you seen my glasses? I lost them at the gym."

Without saying anything, Yuri took out his glasses and handed them to Viktor. Viktor smiled when he spotted them. He immediately put them on before looking up at Yuri.

"Thanks," he said.

Yuri nodded silently. He looked down, avoiding eye contact.

"So how have things been since we broke up?" Viktor asked. Yuri turned his head towards him quickly, surprised by the sudden shift of topics.

"Things have been really bad lately. Between Yakov being angry at me about everything, and Georgi and Lilia trying to keep my grades up, things haven't been good..." Yuri trailed off.

"I see," Viktor responded, nodding solemnly. "Are you doing alright though?"

"Of course!" Yuri answered. "My grades aren't important. My dad always tells me that if I can't get into college, then there will never be a future for me. Besides, I'm just a nobody anyways. It doesn't matter if I graduate high school or fail all my classes. If I can't do anything for myself, I won't make it anywhere."

"You're not a nobody though." Viktor interrupted. "Look at all that you achieved, Yurochka."

Yuri shrugged. He couldn't bring himself to admit that his goal wasn't that great. He was lucky. Everyone saw him as a loser. Even Viktor. Viktor had never once acknowledged that Yuri was talented, or that he was a capable fighter, or that his grades weren't that bad. To him, Yuri was nothing but weak.

"Anyway...I'll let you get back to sleep, I guess. See you tomorrow." Viktor smiled warmly at Yuri before turning around and exiting the room.

Yuri watched him leave and thought that perhaps Viktor did have a point. Maybe he had been underestimating himself for too long. Or maybe he didn't realize that Yuri could accomplish more than he could. Either way, the words kept repeating themselves in Yuri's mind all day. 'Maybe you are a nobody.'

Later that afternoon, Yuri was waiting in his car in the parking garage of the university. Once he finally got to school, he grabbed his bag, locked his car, and then made his way inside.

He was halfway through the hallway when he heard his name called. Turning around quickly, he saw Yuuri making his way towards him. Yuuri smiled slightly, and Yuri returned the gesture. Then, he continued to walk towards his classroom.

Once he reached the classroom, he put down his bag on his desk. He took off his coat, placed it beside his bag, and then sat down behind it.

Suddenly, Yuuri's voice rang out behind him. "Hey, Yura!"