Ilya leaned against the bar and watched Shane shake hands and slap the guys on the back. He saw him smile and laugh with everyone. He looked relaxed and confident, like a man who had his life together. Like a man who no longer questioned himself.

He let his mind drift away from the nightmare unfolding around him and back to the parking lot of a skating rink in Saskatchewan. Ilya couldn't remember exactly what Shane had said that first time they met. He only remembered the freckles scattered across his pink, flushed cheeks. He remembered Shane's hand being unfairly warm when he shook it. He remembered being studied by dark, serious eyes.

god this is just……………… I don’t even have the words man………………………………