Chapter Text
It had been a fine morning by the time Bood was getting ready to leave. He still wouldn’t tell Ilya who was going to replace him, which made Ilya’s brain skitter with worry, but they wouldn’t do anything to make him worse, surely. Already he was feeling better. It felt odd to have a revolving door of his friends and teammates coming to babysit him, but it helped. They helped.
The doorbell rang in the afternoon. Ilya tugged it open to see none other than Hayden Pike on his doorstep, sans children. Ilya blinked once, twice and then, “No.” He shut the door in Pike’s face.
He could hear Hayden’s sigh through the door which was followed quickly by feverish knocking, “Rozanov! Let me in! Shane’ll be pissed if you don’t!”
Well… that was a compelling argument. Gritting his teeth, Ilya tugged the door open again and begrudgingly let the man inside. On one shoulder was a duffel bag, and on the other an insulated one. Ilya hoped that one of Jackie’s casseroles was inside.
The men were silent as Hayden walked to the kitchen like he owned the place. From the doorway Ilya frowned, arms crossed over his chest. Several excruciating moments passed, “You being here is going to make my depression worse.”
Hayden’s head snapped towards Ilya so quickly he was convinced the man was going to break his neck. And wouldn’t Shane be pissed if that happened. “You’re fucking kidding me.”
“No, is not joke. I am very serious.”
“Fine, then you tell Shane why you’re alone tonight and I’ll tell the kids that they’re Uncle Ilya didn’t actually want their handmade cards or gifts that they’ve spent the last several days making.”
Ilya froze. Fuck. Hayden Pike did know where to land a hit these days, even if they didn’t get along as well as Shane hoped off ice, they did, unfortunately, know each other pretty well. A beat passed. Two.
“You came from Montreal.” Not a question. An uncomfortable feeling wiggled somewhere behind Ilya’s ribs. Affection, maybe. Gratitude? How horrific.
Hayden pulled out a casserole dish, thank God, and put it in the fridge. He didn’t look at Ilya, “Of course I did.”
“Why?”
“Shane was scared and… the kids care. Jackie, too.”
“But not you? It is not Jackie who is here right now.”
“Don’t be an asshole, Razanov.” Pike snapped.
Once again, they lapsed into silence. Ilya took the time to tug out his phone. By now he knew that they had a separate group chat that was strictly about him, which… made him feel a little excluded, even if he understood why they were doing it. Were they talking about him? Babying him behind his back? Or even worse: pitying him?
Shanebug
Ilya: you are a traitor
Shane: what? No i’m not
Ilya: Hayden Pike is in our house
Shane: oh
Shane: yeah
Shane: He was worried
Ilya: no, he is here because of you
Ilya: and you thought him being here was good idea?????
Shane: yes and I stand by that
Shane: maybe you two will finally get along
Ilya: impossible
Phone put away, he slowly made his way around the kitchen to the living room, keeping his front facing Hayden like he was going to jump the kitchen island and attack him. Neither he nor Hayden had said anything else and the silence was smothering them both. Ilya figured they both were too proud to speak, until Hayden did the impossible, “I was worried too.”
Ilya sat bolt upright on the couch, twisting around to look at Hayden who was standing like a tin soldier in the kitchen. The marble island between them served to keep them comfortably separated, “What?”
“I won’t say it again.”
“No, no, Hayden Pike admits he cares for me? Ilya Rozanov?”
“I didn’t say I cared. I said I was worried, it’s completely different-”
“Yes, well, whatever.” He waved his hand dismissively, even as he could feel tears prickling at the corners of his eyes. Hayden Pike. Drove two hours to stay the night with a man he claimed to hate. His chest constricted uncomfortably. Was he dying? Was this a heart attack? The whole team was showing up for him, was taking time out of their busy schedules to make sure that he was safe and okay. Ilya had never had so many people care so openly for him.
Suddenly he was on his feet, swaying slightly. Hayden was moving in an instant, even if he was the fifteenth best Metro, he still was agile and quick on his feet, “Rozanov?”
“I have- I have to make a call.” He managed to choke out before rushing to the bedroom.
The call was, of course, to Shane. It took longer than he’d expected for his husband to answer, and when he did he sounded out of breath, “Ilya? Is everything okay?”
Their text conversation had been less than an hour previous. Was he worried that he and Hayden had killed each other? Ilya made a face no one else could see; Shane probably did.
“Fine. Everything is fine.” He hated the way that his voice shook, “Why are you breathing so hard?”
“I ran to my phone.” Shane muttered. Ilya imagined he was running his fingers through his hair roughly, possibly pulling on the roots.
“I did not mean to scare you.”
“You didn’t.” Shane lied. Like a liar.
Ilya didn’t bother fighting with him, he just grunted softly. Shane did not let the silence sit for very long, “You’re sure you’re okay?”
A beat passed. Two. “I am okay.” Ilya said, finding that to be the honest truth. He did feel okay, he felt better than he had in nearly a week, if he was being honest. “I am overwhelmed. Pike came from Montreal.”
“Of course he did. I’d fly home if you needed me to.”
“But is not the same.” Ilya argued, “You are my husband-” Something he always delighted in saying outloud, “he is… he is Hayden Pike. Father to four children. He drove from Montreal, two hours from his family to babysit me.”
Ilya could hear the frown in Shane’s voice when he said, “He’s not babysitting you, Ilya. He’s keeping you company. That’s what they’ve all been doing. Because they care for you.”
It was still hard to believe that after all this time, that others could care about Ilya so deeply they’d drop everything for him.
“You’d do it for them.”
That was true. Ilya would do anything for his team and even Hayden Pike on a good day. He’d do everything and then some for Shane. He breathed in slowly, eyes slipping closed, “Is hard.”
“I know, baby.” Shane whispered, “I’m sorry I’m not there.”
“Is okay. Not your fault.”
“I know.” Shane said in a way that wouldn’t have been convincing to a baby, but Ilya chose to believe him. They could fight about it when they were both home, preferably at the cottage where they could both relax and breathe and fully be themselves. The versions only they got to see.
They talked for a while longer, until Shane was yelled at by the director of the commercial he was filming. Before he hung up Shane said ‘I love you’ far more than necessary (three times) and Ilya said it back each and every time, even throwing in an extra for good measure.
Heading to the living room felt like a humiliation ritual. Hayden had to know where Ilya went; even if he didn’t Ilya had practically run away after they got just a little too close to feelings. It was like a much more tame version of the tuna melt incident.
He expected Hayden to chirp him. He almost hoped that he would because then it would all go back to normal and they could pretend that Hayden Pike hadn’t said he worried about Ilya. Instead, Hayden was in the kitchen, putting together the meal that Jackie had provided, with the phone pressed against his ear as he moved around the space.
“I know, Jack- I- yes. I did- I’m trying-” He rubbed a hand through his hair, “Jack, please-” His eyes darted up, catching with Ilya’s, “I gotta go, babe. I love you so much. Yeah, I call later to help with- yes, I have the book- okay. Yes. Love you. Bye. “
He hung up, went quiet as he slid the casserole into the oven, “I promised the kids we’d call later so I could read to them.” He explained.
Ilya nodded slowly, “Good book?”
“Yeah. We’ve started on chapter books, Charlotte’s Web.”
“Could I-”
“Yes.”
“You don’t even know what I was going to ask.”
“You want to read to them?”
“Yes.”
“Then, yes.”
“Good.”
“Good.”
“Yes, good.”
More silence passed. Ilya was going to explode if things didn’t get better. But Anya, ever the perfect girl, knew just when to throw herself into a situation to make it better. She trotted into the space, pressed herself firmly against Hayden’s legs.
“Traitor.” Ilya muttered under his breath, even as Hayden squatted down and cooed at her.
Once Hayden had pet his fill he stood and grabbed a bag from his duffel. He slid it across the counter, almost like it was an offering to a hungry bear he was trying to appease, “From the kids.” He explained.
Ilya grabbed it wearily. It was a plain, reusable bag, on the lighter side. It was unlikely that Hayden would put a bomb in the bag when he was going through all this trouble to keep him safe…
Against his better judgement Ilya opened it. Sitting on top were four cards, one from each of the children, even if Amber’s was a little on the illegible side. Arthur, Jade, and Ruby’s were well done with plenty of colors. They all expressed the same sentiment; Get Well Soon, Uncle Ilya!
He swallowed around the lump in his throat, even if it was difficult. They had no idea. Ruby and Jade were only a few years younger than he had been when he found his mother, and by then he was so aware that he was losing her. He knew that his mother going quiet for days on end wasn’t a universal experience. These kids would never have to go through the same. They wouldn’t have to know the pain of watching a parent slip away, not even their uncle, not if Ilya could help it.
“What did you tell them?” He asked quietly, dragging his finger gently over a stick figure portrait of himself next to Shane. They were both done in yellow marker with black eyes, black uniforms. It was Aruthur’s creation; he’d tried to do their numbers but the ‘2’ in ‘24’ was backwards.
“That I was staying the night because you didn’t feel well. That sometimes adults need a little help too, and it’s always important to ask for help when you need it. We didn’t want to… we didn’t want them to think you had a bug but didn’t want to…”
“No, no, is good. Better this way. They are… I do not want them to be afraid I will leave them.”
“No, that would make my life too easy.” It was said in a way that was obvious Hayden hadn’t even thought twice about it. It was funny, a good chirp considering their current situation.
Ilya barked out a laugh, Hayden’s eyes widened comically, “Oh, I mean- fuck, Rozanov, I didn’t mean-”
“No, no, is okay. Is very funny. But let’s not tell Shane, yes?”
“Please. Oh fuck, he’d kill me.”
“Yes, but would be funny.” Ilya laughed again, even wiped away an errant tear that had found its way to his eye.
Once they’d both calmed down they dug into the gifts that had also been sent. There was one of Amber’s favorite tiara’s, which Ilya was touched by; she loved that thing. Arthur sent one of his stuffed animals, Hayden explained that it always made Arthur feel better and he was hoping it would do the same for Ilya. Ilya didn’t even bother to hide his tears. Ruby and Jade made bead bracelets and necklaces for him. Ilya didn’t think he’d ever take them off. One said ‘Best Uncle Ever’ and another had ‘BFF’ on it. Hayden said the girls each had an identical one.
“This is… this is more than I-” Ilya wanted to say more than he deserved. But Galina would be furious at him for rebuking the love and care of the Pike children who so clearly adored him. He took a deep breath and instead slipped the bracelets on his wrist. They fit surprisingly well, “I will thank them later.”
Hayden nodded, “Yes, and you’ll come to dinner once Shane is home. Maybe pull babysitting duty?”
Ilya snorted, “You want alone time? Pike, you have enough children.”
Hayden laughed, a genuine laugh, and found an oven mitt to throw at Ilya’s head. Ilya dodged with all the grace of a the second best hockey player in the league.
_/ \_ _/\_ _/\_
His night with Hayden hadn’t been as terrible as Ilya had thought it would be. They got into spats and ate dinner on separate ends of the couch, but they found they both enjoyed the Star Wars franchise. After reading a chapter from Charlotte's Web to the kids they ended up watching two Star Wars movies before they both fell asleep on the couch. Despite having spent half the night with his neck bent at an absolutely horrific angle, Ilya woke up feeling refreshed and even… well rested. His mind was clearer than it had been in days.
“Hayden, who is in group chat about me?”
Hayden inhaled his coffee, “What? What group chat. There is no group chat.”
“Sure. None at all to coordinate who is staying here and when.”
“Uh…” Hayden stared blankly at Ilya for several beats too long.
“No help, just like on ice. I will figure it out myself.”
Ilya spent the morning doing just that. Obviously it had to have Troy, Harris, Shane, Bood, and Hayden. He rubbed his forehead. Who had come by that first day? Hazy and Haas too. And… Dykstra was in Manitoba so maybe but if he cut his finishing trip short Ilya would never forgive himself.
Intruders
Ilya: Am I missing anyone?
Troy: …we were found out then?
Ilya: Yes, Hayden spilled all your secrets
Hayden: No I did not! Also I’m right here!
Ilya: Oh you are still here? House felt so empty
Hayden: asshole
Haas: Ilya! Hi! You’re texting us again!
Ilya: am feeling better today
Shane: you are?
Shane: you promise you are?
Ilya: would not lie about this
Ilya: I am probably fine to be alone now
Hayes: NO
Ilya: …no?
Hayes: I am NOT missing my sleepover with you because you think you’re better now
Haas: I’m just good to do whatever’s best for you! I won’t come if you don’t want!
Bood: You’re missing Dykstra but his service is spotty
Hayes: No I REFUSE
Hayes: I had PLANS
Hayes: PLEASE let me stay Roz
Hayes: please please pelase please please
Ilya: what is order left?
Troy: Haas tonight
Shane: …my parents were coming with dinner tonight
Ilya: AND YOU SAID NOTHING
Shane: I didn’t want to overwhelm you!
Shane: You know they don’t need much entertaining
Shane: We didn’t want you to think you were obligated to host them
Ilya: And you all knew this?
Haas: Just me!
Haas: Or maybe I shouldn’t have admitted that…
Ilya: no is fine
Ilya: you can do nothing wrong
Hayes: YOU HAVENT GIVEN AND ANSWER YET
Ilya: Yes, fine. Haas and Hayes can stay
Hayes: YES YESE YES YSE
Haas: Oh! Okay! I’ll be there soon!
Ilya: good, I will kick Hayden out immediately and take Anya out for walk
Hayden: I can see you flipping me off, you dick
Ilya: you were meant to
“You are the fucking worst.” Hayden rolled his eyes. Leaning against the counter as he watched the texts roll in. Ilya waved him off.
“Maybe but you still came to babysit me.”
“Touche." You were great, slept through the night and everything.”
Hayden left the casserole in the fridge but made Ilya promise to bring the dish back; it was one of Jackie’s favorites. It would get back to them the next time they were together, and Ilya knew this as fact because Shane would make sure it did. He was so anxious about accidentally keeping people’s dishes.
Like the day before, Ilya took Anya out for a jog while they were alone. He really was feeling better now; the meds must have finally kicked in. Or maybe the support he had truly was working. Either way he felt strong and clear headed. And he desperately wanted to call Shane to have phone sex but Shane was busy being a sexy model and Ilya was going to have the team baby at his house soon. The idea of having phone sex while Luca was in the guest room made his skin crawl. He’d still do it. But Shane never would. Probably. He did have that secret exhibition kink…
Luca arrived after Ilya had showered both himself and Anya. How he was supposed to ease Ilya’s tension he had no idea. They were close, Ilya adored the kid, but he was wound tighter than Shane was.
“Relax.”
“I'm supposed to be telling you that.” Luca walked in with his bag slung over his shoulder.
Ilya shrugged a shoulder, “No need to worry so much. I will not run away on you, promise.”
Luca shuffled his feet and whispered, “I’m not… worried about that.”
“No? You are not worried about me?”
He blinked, Ilya almost felt bad for leading him into a trap. Almost. He loved to tease the kid, “What? No! Of course I am! But you said you were better and-”
“Breathe, Luca, I am only kidding. What is wrong?”
He took a deep breath, his cheeks a bright shade of red, “I’m scared of having dinner with your parents.”
Your parents. Your parents. Your parents. Not Shane’s parents. Your parents. As in Ilya’s.
He supposed they were; he called them mom and dad, went to their house frequently. David called him ‘son’, which his own blood never had. Yuna called him things like ‘honey’ and ‘sweetie’. Which no one had done since his own mama died. But it was one thing to have Shane and the Hollanders acknowledge that Ilya was theirs and another entirely for someone outside the family to speak it into existence.
Ilya was sure he was quiet for an embarrassing amount of time. He scratched at his temple, “They are good people. You have met them before?”
“I mean, yes. At the wedding! And sometimes they’re here at the parties you throw but this is-”
“Different, yes. I understand.” He walked to the couch and patted it invitingly, “But you have nothing to fear, young Luca. Come, let me tell you about the day I met the Hollanders.”
They wasted the time before David and Yuna arrived by telling stories. Luca was excited to talk about his family, Ilya was thrilled to listen. He loved that they were so close, that Luca had a support system even if they were on the other side of the world. He told Luca some of his favorite stories about the Hollanders, hoping that it would calm him down. There was literally no reason at all to be afraid of David and Yuna.
At six sharp the doorbell rang. Luca jumped, holding the pillow he’d grabbed during their conversation closer to his chest. Anya beat Ilya to the door. She jumped and yipped happily, almost like she knew who was on the other side. Honestly, she probably did.
Ilya threw the door open and grinned at the Hollanders crowding his doorstep. Yuna, who was no longer Shane’s manager, had stayed in Canada to prepare for the camps that would be starting in just a few weeks. Ilya was glad for it. Especially when she wrapped him in her arms and rocked him gently back and forth, “Hey, honey.” She murmured, “How are you doing?”
“Better now.” He murmured, face buried into her neck.
David clapped him on the shoulder as he made his way inside, the bags he carried jostled noisily. Anya was still dancing happily at his feet and David took the time to properly say hello to her after everything was settled in the kitchen. Her entire body shook with the ferocity of her wiggles.
Finally, Ilya extricated himself from Yuna, wiping away a couple of tears as he did. She cupped his cheek, ran a thumb gently over the apple of it, “Sweet boy. Come on, we brought your favorite.”
“Chicken parmesan?” He asked hopefully.
Yuna smiled, “Of course.”
Luca still stood by the couch, seemingly frozen. He had the pillow clutched against him like a shield. Ilya tried so hard not to laugh at him! He really did but an unruly chuckle did pass his lips.
“You remember Luca Haas?”
David smiled, “Of course! You’re one hell of a player, kid.”
Luca’s ears turned pink, “Oh! Uh, thank you!”
Yuna made her way to him first, inspecting him, not unlike she had Ilya the first day they’d met, “Ilya has told us a lot of good things about you.”
“H-he has?”
“Of course! Only good things about sweet baby Luca.” Ilya beamed like a proud father.
If it was possible for him to get redder, Luca did. His whole face was lit up like a beacon. Ilya almost felt bad for delighting in his embarrassment. Yuna rolled her eyes, exasperated by Ilya’s antics at the same time that she pulled Luca into a hug, “Do you like chicken parmesan?”
The night was lovely. It passed by comfortably, with Luca slowly relaxing just like Ilya knew he would. When they were done eating (including a delicious dessert the Hollanders had picked up from the farmers market) they moved to the living room.
“Young Luca,” Ilya said seriously. Immediately, Luca sat up straighter, ready to listen to whatever Ilya wanted to tell him, “I am about to loop you in on a Hollander family secret, okay? It can not leave this house.”
Luca nodded furiously.
“Good.” Ilya disappeared down the hall, to the closet where they stored an alarming amount of puzzles; some were completed, others hadn't been touched, but the one they were currently working on sat on a puzzle board. It was a five hundred piece mountain scene. David and Yuna had picked it up on a vacation to Europe.
Ilya sat the board down reverently on the coffee table where David was sitting already, glass of water in his hand. He looked over their progress, “With Luca’s help we can finish tonight.” He declared. Ilya agreed. They didn’t have too much left to do.
Luca blinked, not having moved from where Ilya had left him, “Puzzles?”
“Yes, and if anyone on the team finds out I like them I will never be cool again.” Ilya sat down across from David.
“You do puzzles.” Luca said, blinking.
“Yes, yes, I do. Will you come help us now? I am trying to find this very specific patch of snow.”
And Luca did. He sat down, hesitantly, next to Ilya, and started looking over the pieces slowly. Ilya pretended not to see the picture Yuna took of them; Shane would be thrilled to see the three of them working on the project together. Ilya would have to make sure to ask her to send it to him too.
The night felt good. Even though he sometimes felt a flash of despair or guilt or some other emotion other than neutral or happiness. He tried to ignore it. Progress was not linear. It was okay to be sad when things were going right, and anyway, he was leaps and bounds better than where he’d been just the day before. The brain was a funny, fragile thing, and in moments like this Ilya was painfully aware of that.
Together, they finished the puzzle, just like David said they would. They decided this one was worth saving because it had involved Luca. He’d blushed and hid his face but agreed that it deserved to stay complete. Ilya promised to take the necessary steps to display it at the Hollanders in the near future.
Yuna and David left not long after that, taking their time saying goodbye to Ilya and Anya. Yuna hugged Luca tight like she knew exactly what the kid needed before they disappeared into the night.
Once they were gone neither Luca or Ilya moved for several moments.
“I love them.” Luca said to the silence.
Ilya grinned wide, “Yes, me too. I am their favorite, they have told me so.”
_/ \_ _/\_ _/\_
Luca left early the next morning after taking Anya out for a run that rivaled the ones Shane took her on. When they got back she was exhausted, falling asleep in her luxurious bed the moment they crossed the threshold.
The rookie, who wasn’t really a rookie anymore, left not long after that.
The door had barely closed when Ilya dug his phone out of his pocket to call Shane. He answered after a few rings; it would be on the earlier side where he was staying and maybe they could…
Shane answered the phone shirtless, wet from a shower, and Ilya nearly choked, “You are trying to kill me.”
Shane rolled his eyes, “Yes, after all this effort I’ve decided I’m going to take you out with my bare chest.”
“Would be very good way to go.” He hummed, very obviously raking his eyes over the parts of Shane that he could see.
“Is this why you called? To ogle me?”
“Yes.” Ilya said immediately, “Has been so long. I miss you and your pretty cock.”
Shane’s eyes widened, the angle of his face changed momentarily as the phone slipped from his grip, “Ilya.”
“What? Is true. Do you have time before you are, what? Doing another shoot?”
“Yeah, yeah. It’s, uh, CCM today.”
Ilya grunted, not really caring that much. He wanted Shane naked and he wanted him naked now, “Well? Do you?”
“Have time? I-” Shane squinted as he looked at the time on his phone, “Yeah, yes, I have a little time.”
Ilya smirked, “Excellent. Go get on the bed for me, мой любимый.”
_/ \_ _/\_ _/\_
It didn’t last long, because of course it didn’t. It gave Ilya time to pace around the house like a ghost, looking at the state of it all. It wasn’t a disaster like it would have been if the team hadn’t come over to help him. He dreaded to think of all the cleaning he would have had to do before Shane came home. Would he have called the guys to help then? Luckily, he didn’t have to worry about it.
They had been so good to him. Even though he still felt off kilter and slightly not in his own body, he was better and he knew that was because of them. It would have taken longer if he’d had to worry about meals, cleaning, taking care of both himself and Anya. All his energy would have gone to her, as it should have, but then it would have been impossible to keep up with the other tasks.
He didn’t want to think about which of the guys had done the laundry.
He flopped onto the couch where Anya immediately perched herself, falling dramatically onto his lap in a move Shane would have said was ‘just like her dad’. He was right, of course, they were just alike. He scratched behind her ears, “We need to thank them.” He told her, “What will we do? Maybe… puppies? No. Though Harris maybe would like.” He huffed in frustration, “We will ask Shane. He won’t know but he’ll rule out all the bad ideas.”
In response Anya huffed happily.
That’s how Hayes found them when he blew into the Hollanov house like a hurricane. He knocked only once before letting himself in, “Hello!” He called out like he owned the damn place.
Ilya sat up, near dozing and a little annoyed by the loud intrusion, “You are here.”
“Yeah! I brought plenty for us to do and I didn’t think about food but I thought maybe we could watch some movies or play a video game. I know you have a great subscription-”
“I do, yes. Is very worth it. You do not have?”
“No, I do but Lisa and I both have our own PCs that we play together when she’s able to, so I if I have to pick between that and a ps5 or Xbox, I’m picking the PC, you know?”
Ilya did not know. He only had his ps5 and he loved it but over the years Wyatt had been trying very hard to get him to invest into a PC. He was, perhaps, starting to wear him down. “Ah, sure. Maybe.” He did understand wanting to spend more time with his spouse. He would do nothing but stare at Shane all day if it was socially acceptable. It wasn’t and he still did most of the time anyway.
“So, where do we want to start?” Wyatt asked, holding up bags that Ilya knew were full of DVDs and physical discs of games that no one used anymore.
Ilya gently moved Anya from his lap which felt an awful lot like a crime and pointed to his console, “Let’s start here.”
They ended up playing the most recent version of the NHL game (which had Scott Hunter on the cover, not Ilya), then moved to a Spiderman game Hazy was obsessed with for some reason. Ilya had to admit it had its merits. They took a break for leftovers before Wyatt forced Ilya to watch Into the Spiderverse which Ilya absolutely adored.
“I can not believe I had not watched this before.”
“I know! It’s so good, isn’t it!”
“Do not tell the others you got me to watch this, yes? You all already know too many of my secrets.”
Wyatt mimed zipping his lips, “Your secret is safe with me.”
Things settled after that. In the morning Wyatt helped Ilya do a deep clean of the house in preparation for Shane’s arrival home in just two days. Ilya was so excited he was going to vibrate out of his skin; he missed his husband so much it physically hurt. It was a good thing he was in therapy because he knew that was not normal. Or, he didn’t think it was anyway. Best not to dwell on it.
When Hayes left Ilya knew he was going to be truly alone for the first time in days. If anyone asked he’d never admit to being nervous about it. There was a part of him that wondered if the efforts of the team had been enough. What if he wasn’t better? What if he was just biding his time until he was alone to-
No, no, those were ridiculous thoughts. Ilya could see the sun for the first time in over a week. It was warm and bright and promised good things. Like a found family that loved him no matter what. A future that was worth fighting for. He, like his mama, was strong.
Ilya walked onto the back porch and settled into one of the Adirondack chairs. He watched Anya run through the grass, laughed as she begged for the ball to be thrown and wiggled in the mud that was still left from the day he played with Milo.
Ilya sank further into the chair, took a deep breath, and wondered in the knowledge that he was not alone.