Wiebe would love to be able to claim this had been a deliberate strategy when he decided to put Shane and Ilya on separate lines but have them go out as a unit on the power play but that's simply not true. It was just an unexpected but fortunate byproduct of that.

It's All Stars and a camera catches them sitting together on the bench during the skills competition, leaning in and whispering to each other, clearly trying to be sneaky. They're both kind of smiling, looking like they're trying not to laugh. Then Ilya says something that makes Shane crack up and have to hide his face while he's trying to pull himself together. This moment gets giffed and everyone is dying to know what made the famously cool and collected Shane Hollander laugh like that.

Project Hail Mary // Incorrect quotes 5/?

Bonus:

“Though quiet in his wrath, the god-kissed Prince of Hollander kindgom dealt devastation on those seeking his ruin.”

One of these is your classic TMZ highly invasive round-the-corner spy shot of Shane and Ilya--like, waiting for an Uber, is what it looks like, and the bass from inside the club is pounding and you can barely hear what they're saying except that the guy standing next to them is also TMZ and he's got a directional mic sticking out of his pocket pointed at them and when he gets into position you can hear Shane Hollander, like, fucking giggle.

"I'm sorry," Shane says, and his arms are around Ilya's neck. "I got--I'm a little drunk."

"It's okay," Ilya says, and he brushes a hand through Shane's hair. "Did you have fun?"

"Ye-s-s-s," Shane says, nodding his head decisively. "We won the Cu-p."

"Yes we did. I am proud of you."

"I'm proud of you!" Shane cups a hand around the back of Ilya's neck and giggles again into his shoulder. "Why aren't you drunk? I drank the same things as you--"

"I'm drunk," Ilya chuckles. "But I have twenty pounds on you and I am Russian, so."

"That's not a thing. That's not really a thing." Shane sighs and goes a bit boneless against Ilya's body and says, "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have, uh--"

"Shh. You said you had fun, and this is all that matters. My beautiful winner." He kisses the side of Shane's face, loudly and repeatedly.

Shane makes a sound that Twitter, TikTok and Instagram comment sections will all agree is a purr.

so the friendship is based on the fact that in some way both parties think the other man is beneath them. hayden is trying to take on a paternal older brother role because he thinks shane is awkward and lonely and in need of straight male guidance, and in that guidance he never made any space to actually get to know shane because he’s so busy trying to show shane how to be a regular man. and shane is going along with it because all he’s ever wanted is to be a regular man but also, god he can’t imagine anything more pathetic. and so the cracks start to show once shane starts bucking against hayden’s guidance because shane doesn’t WANT to be like hayden. shane doesn’t LIKE hayden. shane has never liked hayden, and hayden has never liked shane, that was never what the relationship was about.