After a while of talking about how Anya acts the trainer says there’s nothing to worry about, Anya likes Shane just fine, it’s just that she sees him as the boss and is acting accordingly

And Ilya is like. But. I’m the one who adopted her? And raised her before Shane got here?? And the trainer is just like yeah well she sees you more like an equal. And Ilya is like WAIT she thinks Shane is in charge of both of us?? And the trainer is just like well do you interact in a way that would make her think that?

Ilya’s life flashes before his eyes as he thinks of all the times Shane has come over with a snack for Ilya and a treat for Anya, or all the times Shane has announced they’re all going for an after dinner walk, or pets Ilya’s hair and tells him he did a good job at practice, or the fact that he uses the same warning tone with Anya when she misbehaves as he does with Ilya when he’s causing problems on purpose

Shane is kind of exasperated but also delighted because he lovesssss taking care of his baby boy so of course he buys Ilya whatever he wants. Ilya is so proud to be thee Shane Hollander's sexy controversially young (by one month) boyfriend and he brags about it constantlyyy after they're married. Like Oh yes I was just sexy sidepiece but he fell in love with me so hard he married me. And Shane is standing next to him like 🙄 as if he didn't just buy Ilya $2000 worth of fancy appetizers and drinks on their date last night.

Or when Ilya gets home from being out and Shane greets him at the door, arms wrapped around his neck kissing him soundly- he’s pulling his tongue from Shane’s mouth to ask “miss me sweetheart?” And Shane is like “not at all” and then shoving his hands up under Ilya’s shirt. And then a few kisses later Shane is mumbling into Ilya’s lips “did you have dinner out? There’s leftovers”

Shane’s version :)

For anyone who said something like Shane would definitely want one of these shirts too, here you go! I’m choosing to believe that Shane would be the type to surprise Ilya by getting himself one totally of his own volition. And of course the glasses were a very essential and intentional addition to the look (he knows what he’s doing).

But when Shane sees Ilya shuffling sleepy around the kitchen in the morning, mumbling something like “gonna make you the best eggs Hollander where the fuck is your whisk” or later when they’re getting ready to have dinner with Shane’s parents and Shane helps Ilya pick out a parent-friendly button-down from his own closet, doing up the buttons for him instead of undressing him for once and taking a look at the result (“no, let’s try the this one, the color is better, maybe”) I think they’re both like holy shit this is my guy. This is the team I’ve always wanted, above the one where we play hockey on TV. And it crosses some wires in their brains because oh this is what it’s supposed to feel like to have someone have your back. Not that they both aren’t beloved by their teams but we honestly don’t see it besides the transactional nature of their skills (maybe Hayden is an exception with Shane, but really Ilya’s closest person in the show is Svetlana, he has no one close in the books) weighed with how they get the team accolades.

This is why I don’t think the commitment part was ever going to be hard for them. They are both craving a person, someone that is just there for them. They were conditioned for this type of bond, promised brotherhood when they started hockey, but never reaped the benefits because of their talent. Sure, Shane could have found a nice man in Montreal, but this is so much deeper than just finding someone you want to date and falling in love that way.

But it takes them so long, way longer than other romance novels, to even admit to themselves, let alone each other, that they are hurtling towards a committed partnership with someone they not only love, but deeply respect and desire life-long companionship with. Remember, they like each other. Something I love about Heated Rivalry is that there's no tearful confession in the rain, there's no heated first-time consummation after the love confession, because by the time they confess their love in bed together at the cottage, after they lay out their contents of their hearts—Shane with his "plan" and Ilya with his leap of faith to be the first one to say "I love you"—it's inevitable. They have had sex in almost every possible way, they know each other through their hockey play, and even though they haven't plumbed the depths of emotional intimacy yet, they know they want it. They're hungry to know more. To know everything. But they waited until the last possible moment, alone in the quiet wilderness where no one can perceive them or offer opinion (for now), to admit it.

To bring it back to the original thought: They've already done everything to become the other person's undisputed guy. From their POV: Oh shit, we're the protagonists of a romance novel. Loving each other is actually the most important, impactful thing that will ever happen to us. We will not fall into tragedy or obscurity, our story will have a happy ending, because we are together, and that's where our story ends. Not in death, not in retirement, not in loneliness and conformity, but with love, partnership, and commitment.

Crazy motherfuckers.

Yuna's one is like, "HOLY SHIT THE CENTAURS ARE IN THE PLAYOFFS! I never thought I'd be so excited to say that. 😂 This is such a huge achievement and I couldn't be more proud of you! This means I'm finally going to have to cave and by an Ottawa jersey. Don't tell David I told you, but he's still drying his eyes about it. Bubbly when you and Shane come over on Saturday for SURE, okay? Love you lots. SO proud."

And David's is like, "You did it, Cap! I know how hard you worked for this and it's paid off. We'll be cheering you on for every game. I am so unbelievably proud of you, kiddo. Love you lots - can't wait to see you and Shane on Saturday."

Ilya turns off his Find My Friend location and Shane gets paranoid when he notices and works up the courage to ask why in the most nonchalant-i trust my boyfriend-he used to be a playboy but he swears he's monogamous now-i can be chill about this kind of way and Ilya is forced to admit that it's because he didn't want Shane to know how often he goes to McDonald's.