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FAG OUT WITH YOUR MUTUALS ONLINE NOW!!!

anyway. ilya looking out for and taking care of shane in unspoken ways during the situationship era. shane surely clocks at some point what ilya is doing for him, and I think it simultaneously touches him and makes him feel incredibly burdensome. even though really ilya is happy to do anything that would make shane comfortable. once they're married the topic does come up and they become very open about it when they're just with each other. shane also thanks him for all those times he settled shane's mind before they were even together and ilya of course says he would've done all that and more for shane, if he needed it

SORRY THAT WAS SO LONG. EVIDENTLY THIS HIT CLOSE TO HOME FOR ME. thanks for posting about this ❤️❤️❤️

okay first of all

it’s just like. ilya knowing that this is something so important that it’s Off Limits to the teasing. seeing it and it not changing how he feels about shane. wanting to carry it for him. never feeling like shane has burdened him with something.

checking the stove/doors/windows before leaving the house and before bed

rewatching the footage from their doorbell camera to double/triple/quadruple check and reassure himself that he locked the door

making sure to say “goodnight, i love you” to ilya and anya every night

And I’m also thinking about “I had a whole plan to ask you something.” I’m thinking that while this could just be another way to say “I intended to ask you,” it’s more fun to imagine Shane cooking up an elaborate scheme to get Ilya to say yes. And I’m wondering if you have any thoughts about what Shane “gonna butter him up so he comes to my cottage” Hollander might have planned. 👀

Okay but I DO have thoughts about this. I see Shane as a big romantic BUT SINCERE gestures kind of guy. I headcanon that this was part of what Rose was attracted to in him at first. Like, the way he centers her in the restaurant and then the pictures of them eating that cake (like, what if he surprised her with it after a long day of shooting?). His relationship with Rose is him trying to conform, no doubt, but it's hetero part that's him conforming, not the happy boyfriend part.

So like, imagine Shane didn't get laid out by Marleau in that game. Imagine Ilya came over after, punching in the front door code, 1919. Shane has Ilya's pants down as soon as he gets in the doorway, giving him a lazy blowjob on his knees. They barely talk, Shane pretty intent on making Ilya come, and Ilya is like, out of his mind fingers twisted in Shane's hair and babbling "Shane, oh Shane, so good, gonna come in mouth, so good" and then he takes Shane to the bedroom and returns the favor and eats him out until he can get hard again and Shane's ready for him inside. It's been a while.

"Can you stay a bit?" Shane asks, still catching his breath from riding him.

"A bit," Ilya parrots, notching his thumbs in the space between Shane's hips and thighs. "Why?"

Shane explains that he had some food delivered before. Not elaborate, but not the pre-portioned dietician-approved stuff they usually have. It's from a nice restaurant, one of Shane's favorites in Montreal. Shane reheats the food and sets the table shirtless while Ilya is just standing there like *standing guy emoji* watching Shane babble on about how he got a bunch of different entrees because he wasn't sure what Ilya liked, and Ilya is like "It will be good. I like everything, Hollander" and Shane is like "Okay, Yay" and they sit down to eat and like Shane keeps giving Ilya bites of his food on the side of Ilya's plate like "try this, it's so good" and at some point Ilya intercepts the fork and gets Shane to feed him directly, which makes Shane blush red.

And then after Shane turns on the West coast conference game that's still going, sitting on the couch pulling Ilya down to lightly cuddle with him. "You don't have to go yet, right?" and Ilya shakes his head "No, afternoon flight tomorrow" but Shane can tell Ilya is nervous, and he is too, fucking terrified, this is all so new, so Shane sits against the arm of the couch, legs out, getting Ilya to like lay back against him between his legs. And Ilya is stiff at first, but Shane just talks about the game on and Ilya responds, talking with his hands the more he gets comfortable. Turning around to grin at Shane when he says something funny, and then settling in against Shane even more relaxed every time.

And the game kind of winds down, and Seattle is like, four points ahead of the other team at the end of the third period, so they're not really paying attention. Shane's got his nose buried in Ilya's hair, smelling Shane's shampoo on his from when they showered together. He rubs his hands all over Ilya's arms, over his biceps and down to his hands, his mouth moving to kiss Ilya's ear and then his neck. Ilya, ready to fall into round two, turns around and presses Shane flat into the couch, and they make out for a while, not in a hurry to escalate, just kissing and rocking against each other. But then Ilya breaks away like:

"Ah. I meant to—" Another kiss. Desperate and deep like Ilya is about to leave forever, because that's what he'd been planning, he was going to tell Hollander that this was too much, that he can't do this anymore, that they're stupid to think they can have this, but he just wants to kiss Shane a few more seconds. Just a little more, before— "Sh—Hollander, there's something I meant to talk to you about."

"Me too," Shane says, smiling, incredibly warm and soft, squeezing his thighs around Ilya's hips. "Mine first."

Ilya hangs his head down, bumping Shane's shoulder. "Okay. You first."

"Do you want to spend the summer with me?" Shane asks first, but rambles on without waiting for Ilya's answer. "Not the whole summer. But just. I have a cottage, in the country.

"I know about your cottage," Ilya says quietly, brushing Shane's hair back.

"Yeah? Well it's private, and we could be alone. It wouldn't be like—it doesn't have to be anything— Fuck. Sorry, what I mean is we could figure things out. We'd have time."

"How much time?"

Shane smiles, cupping the side of Ilya's neck in his hand. "As much as we can spare. I know that you and I have training and everything but. There's time, right after playoffs. Anyway. What do you think?"

And Ilya doesn't know much, but he should have known better. He should have known better than to come here and think he could have Shane one last time and still end it. He should have known better than to let Hollander talk at all.

selkie studies for a warmdown

So his first post lake nap hits hard. Ilya, freshly showered, just meant to sit down on the couch for a second but he wakes up four hours later. Half his curls pressed to the side of his head, the other fluffy because he fell asleep with his hair still a bit wet. He's got faint lines on his cheek from where his face was pressed into one of the pillows. No idea what time it is or how long he's been asleep. It takes him a minute to come back online.

"Shane?", he mumbles, not fully awake yet but already searching for Shane.

"Right here", comes Shane's voice and, oh, yes he is. Ilya blinks sleepily at him. It takes him another minute to realise that his feet are in Shane's lap. One of Shane's hands is on his shin, thumb softly caressing it. In his other hand he's holding a book. Ilya watches as Shane puts his bookmark into the book, putting it on the small table next to the couch so he can give Ilya his full attention.

"Good nap?", Shane asks. And he's smiling and his eyes are warm and his thumb keeps caressing Ilya's shin and Ilya just feels so warm and safe and happy because he still can't believe he actually gets to have this. With neither of them having to rush, to leave, to pretend that they didn't want to stay in the first place.

So Ilya just nods, stretching and then settling back into the cussions. "Sorry for falling asleep", he says, voice raspy from sleep, eyes already falling closed again. Because, well. He did just fully pass out on Shane. But Shane just smiles at him, squeezing his shin.

"It's okay, Ilya. We have time. Go back to sleep, I'll be here."