Chapter Text
The problem began when Brian seemed extra harsh while watching the guys run through stroking practice with Tracy. Nobody knew why he kept making comments about somebody having shitty edges or not having deep enough knees. He usually kept that to himself until the end of the session to discuss calmly. He seemed surprised at his own harshness, but nothing about that made him stop yelling near-insults across the ice.
What really alerted them to something being wrong was when Tracy stopped in the middle of a pattern and turned to him and yelled, “Brian, shut up and let me teach my skaters. You get your time, I get my time. Get off the ice if you’re just gonna fuss at the boys like your old ass could do half as well.”
Literally everybody stopped. Tracy had never insulted anyone in her life, they all thought. Brian looked startled. “W-what?”
Tracy looked just as shocked. “I have no idea why I said that!” She looked around. “I’m so sorry, guys. I’m usually able to keep that stuff in my head- shit,” she said, then gave Brian an apologetic look. “I don’t know what’s wrong. I’m so sorry. It’s like I have no filter!”
“Yeah I like you better with a filter,” Brian blurted out, then snapped his mouth shut. “I… didn’t mean to say that either.”
“This is really, really weird,” Yuzuru said, crossing his arms. “Usually you do not fight, now you act like me and sister,” he said, then frowned. “I not mean say that. Weird.”
“Yeah, usually you just complain about them behind their backs, not to their faces,” Javier said, then gasped. “Okay, what’s going on?! I didn’t mean to say that!”
Jason skated over. “Guys, I think something is wrong with you. I mean more than what’s usually wrong like being drama queens-“ Jason gasped and put a hand over his mouth. “Oh my God, I didn’t mean to call you all drama queens even if you are- crap!”
Conrad doubled over laughing. “Oh my God, it’s got Jason, too! Finally we get to hear what he really thinks when he acts like he’s too nice to admit we’re all assholes.” Conrad frowned. “Wait, what?”
“At least Jason will listen to me and let me vent when I’m sad and not wimp out like you, you useless friend,” Junhwan said at his side, only go gape. “I don’t mean it, you are good friend, you just do not listen well sometime- oh my God, what is happening to us?!”
Joseph whistled. “Damn, I wondered when Jun would go off, but I didn’t think it would be involuntary.” He looked around. “Shit, I didn’t mean to say that out loud either!”
There was a moment of panic when they all started blurting things out and blabbering and asking what was going on before Tracy shouted. “QUIET!” They all looked at her. “Let’s get out of the public area and figure out what the heck is happening,” she said, and Brian nodded.
“My office now, guys.”
~
They all sat in silence, clearly afraid that if they spoke it would be filterless again. “Somebody has to say something, guys. We’ve gotta figure out what’s going on,” Brian said gently.
When nobody spoke up, he looked at Tracy helplessly. “I know,” Yuzuru said, looking around the office. “Let’s test it! If we really cannot have ‘filter’ or tell lie, we ask and person confess. If person does not confess, we are not curse.”
Javier nodded. “Okay, but who? And how do we make sure nobody says something really hurtful or dangerous?”
They were all quiet for a moment before Junhwan smiled. “I know! Jason!” They all looked at Jason, who looked nervous. “Jason never thinks mean things and he is an open book, so he probably has no really bad secrets to spill.”
“Um, maybe?” Jason said, grimacing. “Do I have to?”
Yuzuru nodded. “It is good idea, you have sweetest brain of all people here. You too good and nice to say bad bad something.” He looked at Brian, who looked doubtful.
“Okay, say you ask him and he confesses. What are you going to ask that’s mild and not too personal?” he asked.
Conrad perked up. “I know!” He looked at Jason. “Jason, what’s a harmless secret you’ve never told anybody?” he asked, and Jason’s eyes widened in panic and he slapped a hand over his mouth. “Oh come on, it can’t be anything bad if it’s harmless.”
Jason dropped his hand and his mouth started moving before he could try to stop it. “I LOST MY VIRGINITY AT THE SOCHI OLYMPICS!” He yelped and smacked his hands over his mouth again.
Everybody chuckled and Yuzuru smiled. “That nothing ‘big’, lot of people do sex at Olympics.”
Jason’s hands dropped again and he looked desperate for them to come back to his face. “IN A THREESOME WITH GUS KENWORTY AND DAISUKE TAKAHASHI- AHHHH!” Jason screamed, then covered his entire face with his hands this time.
There was silence so thick you could hear a pin drop. “With who?!” Javier asked, gaping. “Oh my God.”
Conrad looked horrified. “I didn’t expect that, I’m so sorry, oh my God.”
“You had sex with Daisuke Takahashi?” Joseph asked, eyes wide. “Whoa! I can’t believe you slept with another figure skater before!”
“I’ve had sex with two other figure skater- NO!” Jason clamped his hands over his mouth, shaking his head rapidly.
“Oh? Who?” Javi blurted out, only to then pale. “No, no, no, don’t say it, I’m sorry, it slipped-“
Jason whined but whatever was compelling them to speak made it impossible to stay quiet. “Max Aaron and Shoma Uno,” he confessed weakly, then doubled over, hiding his face against his knees. “Well,” he said, voice muffled. “I would say none of us have a filter or can lie.”
“SHOMA?!” Yuzuru spluttered, then flushed. He visibly was trying not to speak, but couldn’t hold it in. “Why anybody want do that?! Shoma is… is… Shoma!”
“We hook up when we have competitions together,” Jason blurted out, voice muffled by his pants. “It started when he was eighteen and we were at Skate America and we were talking and I brought up liking boys and he said he never thought about it before and then asked if I’d kiss him to see if he liked it and it went further and we had sex in my hotel room while Kori was out getting food and she caught us getting dressed and we both stopped talking for like a month even though we talk all the time but then we were in the same place again and ended up hooking up again and now it just happens every time and-“
“Someone, anyone, start talking about something else to cut him off,” Brian groaned, covering his face. “This is pretty freaking terrible, guys.”
“Patrick Chan hate me so much because he try get me to sleep with him at Sochi and I refuse him,” Yuzuru blurted out, then gasped and whimpered. “Oh no, not me!”
“I cheated on a girl with her sister in high school- Mierda why is it all about sex?!” Javi said, groaning in frustration.
“Wow, classy,” Joseph said flatly.
“Why is it just the grown-ups?” Tracy asked without choosing to, looking at Joseph, Junhwan, and Conrad.
“Probably none of us ever sex and that’s the topic right now,” Joseph said, then flushed and ducked his head.
“Neither has Yuzuru,” Javier said, then grimaced when Yuzuru glared and elbowed him in the ribs. “What?! I can’t choose what I say!”
“You so bad, bad friend,” Yuzuru hissed. “I tell you that for secret!”
“No, you told him that to try and get him to offer to sleep with you,” Tracy said, then gasped in horror, bodily turning to face the wall. “Oh my God, this is terrible!”
Javier frowned. “Wait, huh?” he asked, looking at Yuzuru, who was staring at Tracy in horror.
“Yeah, it’s pretty fucking obvious, let’s be real,” Conrad said, and a hum of approval came from almost everybody.
“Language!” Tracy said, turning back around.
Jason hummed. “I mean, can you blame him?” he asked, then his eyes widened. “I just mean you’re really hot. I mean your charm is irresistible. I MEAN YOUR VOICE IS SEXY. AH!” Jason panicked, grabbing a cushion off the couch to try and smother himself.
Javier just smirked. “Why thank you.”
“Yeah, okay, that’s pretty hot,” Conrad agreed, and Junhwan nodded.
“Almost as hot as you in sweatpants- NO!” Junhwan panicked and flew to his feet. “NO, NO, NO, NO, NO!” he cried as he ran from the office. “I QUIT, BYE!”
“Good idea,” Jason decided, running after him, but going the other direction.
Brian looked around at everybody else and sighed. “Maybe we should all call it a day. Just- just be careful who you talk to at home. Maybe go home and go straight to bed.”
“Yep! See ya!” Joseph said, jumping up to go get his things.
“Good plan,” Conrad mumbled, all but sprinting for the locker room.
“I live alone so I’m fine,” Javier said simply.
Yuzuru’s eyes widened in dawning horror. “I cannot go home this way. Mother is there.”
Brian grimaced. “Alright, maybe you should come spend the night with one of us. Say we’re talking strategy?”
Tracy chuckled. “Good luck, Brian. I’m not dealing with him, that’s for sure,” she said and then turned to leave.
Javi smirked at Brian and saluted as he stood up. “Good luck dealing with a mouthy Yuzu.”
“Oh like you are not ten time worse of me,” Yuzuru grumbled, glaring at him on his way to go get his things and meet Brian to go home.
Brian put his head in his hands and groaned. “Fuck, I’ll be bald by morning,” he mumbled into his palms.