The crack of blades on ice echoed throughout the empty stadium. A lone figure glided around the rink, quickly gaining speed. With a bend of the knees, he launched himself into the air. Three mid-air spins were completed before the figure smashed down elbows first onto the ice. Fail.

    Again he sped, jumped, and fell. Again. Again. Why couldn't he do it? Shouts of encouragement and advice were thrown across the rink by his coach. “Try it again Channie! Remember: straighten your back and clear your head! You can do it!” With a nod, Chanyeol tried again.

    Left leg over right, right over left, Chanyeol jumped up, spun three times, and landed on long shaking legs. He landed. This was good. “Yes! Again! You can do it again Chanyeol!” Chanyeol shook his head. He had had enough practice for today. As he stepped off the ice another athlete stepped on, but Chanyeol was too distressed to even spare a glance.

    “Chanyeol. Don't worry! You've gone through your program hundreds of times back home! It's no difference here! Well, this ice has more of a Russian bite to it but that isn't a problem, eh?” Chanyeol's coach joked, round red cheeks curving around his grin. “It's just the nerves gettin' to ya! Relax boy! We still got a week 'til the show starts!” “Thanks John,” Chanyeol smiled and dropped down onto a bench. The plump Canadian man really knew how to make him feel better. Although, a corner of his mind still sneered in disapproval. He had to try harder. The opening ceremony of the 2014 Olympics loomed just a week ahead and Chanyeol felt that he had to win gold for Canada, or else he would just let everyone down.

    Chanyeol dragged his focus away from his thoughts and onto the ice where the black-clad skater dropped down into a sit spin before rising back up into an I-spin. He looked so young, and so graceful. Chanyeol felt a pang of jealousy at the boy's skill, but couldn't look away. His eyes wandered over the lines of the skater's slim body. Chanyeol closed his eyes. What am I doing? he thought. This is a guy! Sure, he may have a pretty face, plump lips, hips that sure did NOT lie... but he is a guy! Not that there's anything wrong with being gay, but Chanyeol never liked guys. He sure as hell wasn't about to start while he's in Sochi; surrounded by men dressed in tight pants. That would be downright unfortunate.

    With a deep sigh the giant stood, leaving with his coach to find something to eat.

“Whbu waf thabth?” Chanyeol asked his coach around a mouthful of sandwich. A crease formed between the coach's brows. “Chew some food, boy. I can't make out a word you said.”

    “He said, 'Who was that?’” The coach jumped at the voice behind him. He turned around, rosy cheeks pulling upwards as his blue eyes met Kris' deep brown ones. “Who was who? Another athlete?”

    “Ehey Kris! You scared me there for a second! Take a seat!”

    When Kris slouched into the chair next to Chanyeol, John began, “Well Kris, Channie here is a bit curious about a skater we just saw at the stadium. The boy is new to the game, a youngster for sure, only 19 years old. His name is Baekzuru Hyunyu; representing Japan. And, although I've never seen him skate before today, I heard good stuff.” Kris raised a brow, turning to his friend. “Don't worry Chanyeol, I know you're gonna totally beat the little bi-” “Language!” hissed the rosy coach. “You guys are supposed to be the friendly Canadian athletes! You're gonna blow our cover!” Kris rolled his eyes at John's joke, “I'm a Canadian hockey player, I can swear as much as I want to.” “Yes but I don't want you corrupting my little papillion de patinage” The coach turned to Chanyeol and fluttered his eyelashes. Chanyeol roared with laughter, slapping his knees. A smile ghosted along Kris' lips as well, but he refused to show his amusement. He was too cool for that.

After they finished eating, the two athletes bid goodbye to John and made their to their dorms.

___

    Frigid Russian winds blew across the Olympic village, the air right out from Chanyeol and Kris' lungs. “Why is it so damn cold..” grumbled Kris bemusedly through his scarf. “I'm glad I play hockey indoors... I actually feel bad for the poor ers that compete in skiing. Their spandex suits probably freeze right to their asses.” Chanyeol doubled over laughing. Kris? Feeling bad for people? As if!

    A sharp finger tapped on his shoulder. “Excuse me, you dropped this.” Chanyeol shifted in the direction of the voice and his eyes locked with the almond eyes of the boy he had oogled at the stadium. He was glad only his eyes peeked through his layers, or else the boy would have surely seen him blush.

    “Do...you want it back?” the boy asked after a moment of Chanyeol staring awkwardly at him. He was holding Chanyeol's cellphone towards the Canadians.

    “Oh! Yes, um, thank you...”

    “Baekzuru. Baekzuru Hyunyu.” said the boy, his smile bending his eyes into crescents. Chanyeol was floored by the boy as he dazedly shook his gloved hand. “I... I am.. my name is Patrick Chanyeol.” Kris smirked at his friend's awkwardness. So this was the fabulous Baekzuru. He was... shorter than Kris expected.

    “Nice to meet you! And you are...?” Baekzuru turned to the tall blonde standing beside Chanyeol. “Kris.” Stated the blonde coldly, not bothering to offer his hand. “Ah from the Canadian ice hockey team? I heard you guys were good.” Kris nodded. “Ok then, I guess I'll see you on the ice tomorrow, Patrick~” Baekzuru winked before he walked off, huddled against the wind.

Chanyeol woke up early the next morning with a bitter taste in his mouth and a craving for coffee. He tightened a red scarf around his flushed cheeks and headed toward the nearest McDonalds. A cheerful whistle began to trail behind him, loosely based on the tune of a Russian folksong. He glanced over his shoulder, and there approached none other than Mr. Perfect Skater himself. The boy’s nose was buried in his phone as he walked ahead, oblivious to the tall boy in his path. With a hint of amusement Chanyeol watched Baekzuru's smartphone dig into his Team Canada jacket. A look of annoyance flashed across the shorter skater's face, but was instantly replaced with a wide grin as he realized who the hindrance was.

“Patrick!” exclaimed the boy, his eyes shifting into familiar crescents.

Chanyeol, caught off-guard by Baekzuru's enthusiasm, mindlessly blurted out, “My name isn’t Patrick!” The smaller boy’s brows quirked in confusion. “Ah.. my name is actually Chanyeol. Patrick is just a name I was called in Canada… my full name is Park Chanyeol, but my coaches thought Patrick Park sounded kind of weird...”

Baekzuru's eyes widened in realization. “You must be Korean then, right? I’m actually from Korea too!” The shorter boy glowed with excitement, an excitement which Chanyeol found contagious.

“They changed my name to Baekzuru Hyunyu when I joined the Japanese team, but my name is actually Byun Baekhyun! Get it? Baekzuru Hyunyu? You can call me Baek though, most people do.” Baekhyun rambled on, and Chanyeol had to press his lips together to keep from laughing. The boy before him was amusing, and a tad annoying, but he was really cute...

As the thought registered in his mind, Chanyeol tried to shake it off, but the sight of the bubbly boy was too overpowering.

A friendly pat on his shoulder brought him back to reality, and before he knew it, Baekhyun's petite frame was walking off in the opposite direction. Chanyeol recollected his thoughts and continued his way down the road, trying to ignore the faint flutter of butterflies in his empty stomach.

___

The last week flew by, and with busy schedules and demanding coaches, Baekzuru and Chanyeol's encounters were limited to small talk and smiles exchanged across the ice. Each day found Chanyeol craving for more of Baekhyun's attention. He could only stare longingly as Baekhyun practiced his flawless jumps.

Once the opening ceremony of the winter games finished, Chanyeol found Kris and his coach among the crowd of Canadian athletes and headed across the village to get some food in his system. After a few minutes to savour their first bites, Kris leaned toward him over the wood table of the eatery. “So, you and Baekzuru huh?” Chanyeol's head snapped up to meet Kris' knowing smirk. “What?!” he choked, mid-chew. “Where did you hear that?”

“Somewhere...” Kris shrugged nonchalantly. Chanyeol shot a glare at his coach, who occupied himself with picking at a cherry tomato in his salad. The coach further ignored Chanyeol to stare longingly at Kris's hotdog. Chanyeol broke his glare in favour of laughing when Kris reminded the saddened coach of his ever-failing diet.

Kris turned back to Chanyeol. “Don't think I forgot about you, loverboy. I know your eyes have been glued to twinkle-toes nonstop for the past several days. Have you even really practiced?”

Chanyeol's face burned bright red and he stammered in protest. “I… well, knowing your competition's form and technique gives you, um, an upperhand over them!”

Kris scoffed loudly. “Yeah, I bet the only form you want an upperhand on is on our buddy Baekzuru's dic-” Chanyeol slapped his hand over Kris's lips. “Are you freaking crazy?” he squawked. Kris's cheeks puffed up against Chanyeol's fingers, holding back his laughter. He loosened Chanyeol's grip with his own. “Okay, okay I promise I won't say anything.”

“His name is Baekhyun anyway”, Chanyeol snapped as he leaned back in his chair and brushed Kris's hotdog crumbs from his palm.

___

Nervousness hung in the air when the day of Olympic figure skating short program finally arrived. Chanyeol had pushed himself extra hard in the past few practices and he had to admit that his legs were sore from all the effort. However, he was confident in his spins and had since perfected his butterfly jump. It was just over an hour before showtime and Chanyeol was in the changing room grabbing a spare towel from his locker when he saw Baekhyun opening his own, a couple of lockers away from his.

He stared as the skater rummaged through his belongings and then began to lift his shirt over his shoulders, revealing an expanse of smooth pale skin. Chanyeol's heart went insane. His rolled up towel slipped from his hands and unfurled itself onto Baekhyun's sneakers. Baekhyun felt the fabric against his shoe and reached down for it, his fingers colliding with Chanyeol's and their cheeks brushing ever so slightly. He let out a gasp, which was enough for Chanyeol to grab him by the wrists and pin him between their lockers.

He watched as the shorter boy's face flooded with crimson, and felt his own cheeks burning. Chanyeol crushed his lips against Baekhyun's, and almost automatically the boy's mouth parted and closed around Chanyeol's bottom lip. Chanyeol kissed him deeper; the taste overwhelming his senses. He let go of one of Baekhyun's wrists to trail his fingers down the boy’s , feeling the skater shiver against him. A small whimper escaped from Baekhyun's throat and he grabbed a handful of Chanyeol's shirt.

Suddenly, Chanyeol heard his trainer's voice approaching around the corner and he released Baekhyun from his embrace. Without another glimpse at the boy panting before him, Chanyeol ran out of the changing room with his hand hiding his swollen lips.

“-and the next skater on the ice is Baekzuru Hyunyu, representing Japan,” the announcer’s voice drifted down from the ceiling. Chanyeol leaned forward on the bench, wiping the remaining sweat off his forehead. He had just finished his short program performance; an elegant routine to Beethoven’s Moonlight Sonata. Chanyeol stumbled a few times during his skate but still came out on top, securing first place among the other competitors. His mind was clouded and he felt guilty, because of the way he left Baekhyun in the changing room an hour earlier. It was now the shorter boy’s turn to skate, and Chanyeol watched him glide onto the ice, sweeping his light brown fringe from his eyes. Once the music started, Baekhyun fell into the feeling of the performance. Chanyeol was mesmerized.

His triple axel jump was flawless, and he radiated sass and confidence in the spotlight. The judges were impressed, not only with Baekhyun’s perfect spins but also with his flirty winks and enthusiastic hips. The program was nearing its end, and Baekhyun only had a Salchow jump left, which was the most difficult to execute. He began to gain speed for the jump,  and Chanyeol held his breath in the stands. Baekhyun lifted himself off the ice with a swish of his skates. Mid-spin he locked eyes with Chanyeol across the rink, and time seemed to slow down.

On his landing, a loud scrape pierced through the stadium and Baekhyun’s body skidded across the ice. Chanyeol’s stomach dropped. Get up, get up, he begged under his breath. Baekhyun managed to recover quickly, catching up to the music and finishing the program by extending his slender leg into a camel spin. The crowd went wild, and Baekhyun came out on top, capturing first place.

Chanyeol’s throat tightened. He was so happy that Baekhyun was ok, and he could barely contain his joy at the way he jumped in excitement at winning gold, but he couldn’t help the disappointment that made its way into his heart. He didn’t win gold. Silver was nice… but he had hoped… Chanyeol shook his head at himself. He was always so competitive, even when he entered skate tournaments with his sister when he was younger.

Insecurities being thrown aside, Chanyeol stood along with most of the crowd, clapping his hands and hollering Baekhyun’s name. The gold medalist’s eyes scanned the crowd until they landed on Chanyeol and again formed crescents as he grinned happily, his arms high over his head in celebration.

The two met up again in the locker room, congratulations being thrown their way by the other skaters. Chanyeol could feel bruises forming on his shoulder where a certain Canadian coach had over-enthusiastically clapped him on the back and saw Baekhyun getting a familiar set from a laughing Russian skater.

___

Chanyeol took his time getting changed, waiting until the last skater had left the room before making his way to Baekhyun’s locker. Baekhyun slung his bag over his shoulder and dropped it in surprise when Chanyeol appeared behind his locker door. The giant spoke first. “Congratulations on winning Baek.” Baekhyun stared intently into Chanyeol’s eyes, giving no reply. Chanyeol panicked. Was he still mad at me for leaving him earlier? He smiled at me after his program! Or was he just happy that he won gold? His racing thoughts were silenced immediately as Baekhyun placed his lithe fingers on the sides of Chanyeol’s head and pulled him down by the ears for a soft kiss.

After a few seconds of shock, Chanyeol melted into his touch, winding his arms around Baekhyun to pull him closer as their kiss became more intense. Baekhyun whined in his throat at having to nearly stand on tiptoe in order to kiss the tall boy, so Chanyeol released his shoulders and hooked his arms under the shorter’s thighs, lifting him up. Baekhyun gasped at the sudden action, his lips never leaving Chanyeol’s. Eventually the two pulled away from the kiss, breathing heavily to supply their lungs with air.

“So,” panted Chanyeol, “was that an ‘I like you’ kiss, or a ‘victory’ kiss?” Baekhyun tilted his head, mulling it over in his head. “Mmmm… both.” Chanyeol laughed, spinning Baekhyun around in circles until the younger boy shrieked happily.

“I guess we’ll just have to see if you can beat me tomorrow in the long program Channie…”

“Oh, I’ll totally be the one coming out on top tomorrow, if you know what I mean...”