#((rood))

For me this show was the show that described what it is like to be gay. Now I’m not a hockey player, or play any sport, or even cis-bi, but still this show felt like it crawled inside my fucking brain and dissected everything I want and like.

Take the obvious part first, the sex. So much sex, kinky, but attentive sex. Never once did it feel fake or ‘just sex to have a scandalous sex scene’ every time had a reason and a small, not obvious detail to show. Both Shane and Ilya paid attention to what the other wanted and needed even when words were hard. Harder than their dicks.

On top of that, all of the intimacy outside the sex. The cuddling afterwards, holding hands, head scratching/petting, forehead kisses, or kisses where ever they could reach. It was gorgeous and showed how much they truly cared about each other, no matter how confused they were.

And they were confused! Especially Shane. He didn’t know how to even say he was gay for YEARS! And then this blonde Russian who pisses him off 24/7 got him to put words to the buzzing feelings in his head. On the same note Shane later would see when Ilya needed to get things off his chest in Russian. Like the phone call at Ilya’s Fathers funeral, he could tell Ilya didn’t know how to say what he was feeling and was scared to say it so he let him say it in Russian. And you could physically see how much that helped Ilya.

And as the relationship grew and aged you started seeing them become more domestic, inviting each other to their personal homes, having food and drinks the other likes on hand, doing things and having conversations outside of sex. It really showed how far they came and how much comfort and trust they had in each other. And when Shane’s dad caught them, Ilya didn’t hesitate to go with Shane to tell his parents. He would never leave Shane to do that by himself, just like Shane was there for Ilya when his father died or Ilya talked about his mother.