Posting Date: August 9, 2026
Title: Hooped Rivalry
Artist: @adromelke
Author: @tea-or-die
Fic Summary: High on pain meds after a fall, pole dancer and aerial hoopist Shane Hollander invites his biggest rival to come spend the summer at his cottage. Ilya Rozanov is not the kind of person who hangs out with guys like Shane, so it's a big surprise when Rozanov accepts the invitation. Together, they make the kind of magic other athletes can only dream of, and Shane finds himself hoping Rozanov never lets him go.
Snippet: Hey, Ilya starts out. I do not go back to Russia until third week of June. Was your offer genuine? It would have been almost out of character, if he hadn’t tacked on, Or do you forget inviting your biggest rival to your studio this summer? ;) Shane just shakes his head, composing his reply. It’s the last day of May, he’s only got a little bit of time to make sure Ilya knows this is worth it.
While he considered being just as flippant as Ilya, Shane wants the other man to know that his offer is genuine. He really would like to work with him over the summer, honing their skills together and maybe even coming up with a pairs routine they could trial when the season opens back up. He doesn’t expect them to rank very high if they do, but Shane can’t shake the idea of working the pole with Rozanov instead of against him.
Hey. Shane mirrors Ilya’s opening. The offer was absolutely genuine. I would love to have you work with me in my studio this summer. Though he thinks about it for several minutes, he can’t come up with anything else to say. At least, not anything that won’t make him look like an idiot.
Is in Ottawa, ya? You have suggestion for hotel?
That won’t do at all. There’s no way Shane wants to waste any of their time due to a commute. My place is pretty big, he shoots back. You are more than welcome to stay here. There’s enough space that we would be able to stay out of each others’ way.
And what if I don’t want to stay out of your way? ;)
Shane swallows hard. His mind starts running the odds on how Rozanov wants him to take that. Is it supposed to be silly? Flirty? A threat? Maybe even all three. With a deep breath, he responds. Then I guess we’ll just have to dance around each other. There, that’s a witty enough response. He thinks.
I like that idea very much, Ilya sends back. What is address? With another deep breath, Shane drops his location in the chat. He makes sure Ilya knows he’s welcome to come up as soon as he’s able, asking that he just give Shane at least a few hours notice before just showing up. He gets a reassurance that there will be a message at least a day in advance, then Ilya lets him know he’s got to go, his father is calling him.
No worries, Shane shoots back. Talk to you soon.
He’s not sure how long he sits there staring at his phone after that final message. His heart rate, which had skyrocketed during the conversation, slowly begins to return to normal. Forcing himself to unbend his fingers from where they have a death grip on his phone, Shane sets the device down and heads into the kitchen. He’s starving, and he knows there’s at least a couple of cans of tuna in the cupboard. Damn, he’s going to have to order groceries.
