Work Text:
Mom
How do you feel, sweetheart? It’s a big day for both my boys
We’re fine, mom. Ilya is busy picking out his ‘coming out outfit’
His words, not mine.
😂 😂 😂 He’s so silly
Well I’m rooting for you. Remember, your dad and I love and support you both, Shane.
I know. I love you too.
Hayden (new number)
Thank you for the message last night and pass it
on to Jackie as well, please.
Of course, dude! This is a huge moment for you and Rozanov.
I’ll let you know when we’re done.
Jackie said she’ll pass on all messages of support from the WAGs gc.
Just a heads up, she WILL be asking you and Rozanov both to join the group so that the other doesn’t feel excluded, and I doubt you’ll be able to turn her down.
We’ll cross that bridge when we get there.
Sending strength. You guys are amazing, seriously.
Thanks, buddy. Tell the girls uncle Ilya hasn’t forgotten
his promise to teach them skating.
Those damn traitors choosing him over their father.
I think it’s the accent.
Rose Landry
Aaaahh my baby is being so brave today
I’m so fucking proud of you, Shane Hollander!!
Thanks Rose, and that’s for everything.
Seriously, you made my gay realization much easier to process
You’re still my favourite gay boyfriend <3
An honour I will always cherish
More than your Piston cups?
If the hockey fans heard you, you’d never be allowed near another rink
Love youuuuu~~
Shane Hollander is sitting on the couch, the laptop open on the coffee table in front of him. He's been waiting 10 minutes for Ilya to finish getting dressed; he really did tell the Canadian he was putting on the "perfect coming out outfit". Shane sighed, glancing down at his Rolex for the 5th time in the last few minutes because it’s almost 11:34 and they needed to finish this if they wanted to leave at 12:00 to meet his parents for lunch. There wasn’t a lot of traffic during the week where the cottage was built, but Shane likes to give himself 5 extra minutes of traveling time to ensure he gets to his destination on time.
He is about to run his hand through his hair impatiently when he stopped, remembering that Ilya forbid him from touching his hair because the Russian wanted him to keep his hairstyle perfect. Shane looks down at the outfit llya chose for him- it wasn’t anything special, he was wearing a thick cream coloured sweater and black slacks, his feet only covered in snowflake socks. It was 3 days before Christmas, so the aircon was cranking out heat as snow steadily fell outside. There was a warning of heavy snow on the roads for the 26th.
Ilya wanted to try out a new eggnog recipe when they returned from lunch.
Shane wonders if he’ll be able to stomach anything today- the constant thrum of anxiety he feels clawing at his throat has made it hard to swallow. He’s taken to breathing through his mouth like his therapist taught him when he was 15 years old and had his first big panic attack in the middle of the night because he had a major crush on Michael Morrison, the school hockey team’s goalie, and he didn’t know what to do about it. His parents never found out why his throat suddenly closed up that evening and after getting cleared at the ER, he met with Dr Lorraine once a week for 5 months. He received great tips for breathing through anxiety attacks and which exercises to do when his mind got too loud. He never told Dr Lorraine about Michael.
The Metros captain slumped back in the couch and exits his messages after promising Rose he would call her tomorrow night.
He mindlessly checks his emails, feeling a bit guilty for ignoring the ones from sponsors and the brands he’s currently the ambassador for. But Ilya told him he wasn’t allowed to answer any work emails while on holiday, and if “they don’t like it, they take business somewhere else, those money-hungry mongrols”. Shane secretly agrees- he barely remembers a time when he truly got to just rest while at the cottage without having phone interviews for magazine, contracts to read through for renewals or businesses seeking to team up with him. His mom wasn’t happy about it at first, but once she realized this was one of those rare times when Shane wouldn’t allow her to win, she backed off and redirected all calls and emails to her. Shane worried that she herself was working too hard, but he also knew his mom was way better at saying no than he was. Besides, his dad was great at making sure she got away from her cellphone and laptop when she needed to.
As he was scrolling through his Twitter timeline (it’s a burner account and he never posts, he’s just trying to be more present when it comes to news in the NHL world), he noticed a viral tweet with fanart where a fan drew him and Ilya as kings sitting on thrones, side by side. Since creating his account and exploring the Metros and NHL tags, he’s come across these “Hollanov” fans or “shippers” as Ilya calls them. At first it made him uncomfortable knowing so many people were drawing them together and over-analyzing every single interaction they had. Shane was especially displeased at all the hate comments made towards his former relationship with Rose, even if they rightfully deduced why they broke up. But he could also see the positive tweets outweighed the negative, and many of these Hollanov fans did not tolerate hate towards Rose, any of Ilya’s public former flings and Hayden for some reason. He’s not sure if Hayden has haters because people also ships them together or just because Shane spends the most time with him.
Shane shudders at the memory of the Shayden hashtag.
The hockey player send the fanart to Rose, who is obsessed with them for some reason, and was about to shout up the stairs for llya to hurry up when he hears feet coming down the hallway. A few seconds later Ilya enters the lounge, smiling at Shane, his dimples showing and his ocean green eyes sparkling. Shane smiles back immediately, lightly patting the space next to him. When Ilya sits down next to him, Shane can’t help but show him the art, and Ilya laughs.
"Artist made sure you looked pretty, so I like it. Send it to me so I show Sveta" Ilya says, still grinning, and Shane nods. He and Svetlana have spoken a few times since Ilya told him that his childhood friend has secretly known about them for years. He was first wary of her, not sure how to receive the person who also shared some part of his boyfriend’s heart, but once they started speaking he couldn’t help but like the Russian girl a lot.
“Ilya will only show hard shell to the world, but I know you changed him for good” Svetlana said at the end of their first call, and Shane almost had to blink back tears as she continued, “He loves few people and things, and you are at the top of that list. I have never seen him so happy. Look after that huge, soft heart of his”
"Are you ready for this?" llya asks him, taking Shane’s slightly sweaty hand into his and squeezing it gently before pressing a kiss on the back of his knuckles. Shane nods, feeling some of the tension leaving his shoulders and taking another deep, fortifying breath. The Russian’s eyes are impossibly soft as he leans in and gives Shane a gentle, lingering kiss. Shane keeps his eyes closed for a second longer before staring at the bridge of Ilya’s perfect nose then lifting them to meet his boyfriend’s gaze again.
“We don’t have to do this today, sweetheart” Ilya murmurs but Shane is already shaking his head.
“I’m ready, Ilya. We’ve been preparing for this for over a year now, and I was the one who suggested it. Everyone is behind us, and even if this crashes and burns, we will figure it out. Together”
“Do we have to add Scott Hunter and his twink in our acknowledgements?” llya asks dryly, lifting his brow and Shane can’t help but laugh. His boyfriend couldn’t seem to get over the fact that “boring but sexy 100 000 years old” Scott Hunter managed to do the bravest, coolest thing in NHL history. “Especially when I win Stanley cup before him!” the Russian vented after he arrived at the cottage and the two men were cuddling once Shane’s very confused parents went to sleep.
“Where did you even learn ‘acknowledgements’?” Shane asks fondly and llya shrugs, pressing a soft kiss to his brow before turning his attention to the laptop.
“I’m very complex, smart hockey player, Hollander. I know things” he responds loftily and Shane snorts but doesn’t comment. llya and Shane babysat Hayden’s kids while the couple went on a date night and llya couldn’t remember what Sesame Street was called so he said “Show with the two gay puppets”.
"I will prepare laptop. Do I look good?" llya asks, turning his head briefly to wink at Shane.
"You look good" Shane says honestly, his eyes raking over llya's body. He was wearing one of his blue V-neck shirts with a pair of washed out jeans, curls gelled back and his feet bare. He’s been working out more lately so his arms and shoulders looked amazing under the tight material. He had his cross necklace on as always, and he definitely applied some of the red-tinted lip balm Rose bought him as a gift.
Even after all these years, Ilya Rozanov still managed to take Shane’s breathe away.
“Thank you, lyubimiy.” Shane smiles at the term of endearment, becoming more familiar with llya’s native language as time passed, and nodded when he asked if Shane was ready once the video recorder was on.
This was the most life-changing video he would ever make, and knowing he had the support of his loved ones made it that more easier. It had been a long, hard year for the couple as they slowly let the people most important to them know about their relationship, and they have not regretted it once. Ilya was preparing to make his transition to the Ottawa Centaurs, with Shane joining him after this final upcoming season, and the Metros captain had decided it was time to tell the world. Ilya wasn’t joking when he mentioned Scott and his boyfriend- they did make a huge impact not only on them but the entire NHL, and gave both men the courage to face the world.
His parents both started crying when Shane and Ilya announced that they were going to make a coming out video. Rose, bless her, just laughed and fetched them all more beer (and a ginger ale for Shane) when they told her over dinner during one of her visits to Montreal. When the couple Skyped with Svetlana, who’d been in Moscow at the time, she gave them a gorgeous smile that lit up her pretty face, and wished them luck. They both told their respective teams and management teams with varying reactions, more negative from the Metros than Shane hoped, but he had been grateful when Hayden simply hugged him and told him he’d always have Shane’s 6. He barely spoke to his own teammates now outside of practice and giving them instructions, and might have spiralled into a depressive state if it wasn’t for Hayden’s loud support in the locker rooms.
"Hello everyone! This is Ilya Rozanov and Shane Hollander." Ilya greeted, staring at the camera as he leaned forward in his seat, looking at ease. His voice was deep and unhurried as usual, and Shane found himself staring at his boyfriend rather than the camera, taking in his perfectly styled hair, gorgeous full lips and sharp jawline. He’s loved this man for nearly a decade, and continued falling in love with him every single day. Shane was going to marry him one day, he knew this with certainty, and they were going to live in a huge house with children filling it up. He and Ilya have gone through too much to not have a happy ending, and despite all the awful, endlessly tiring things they've been through the past few years, they got here. Ilya still had sad, dazed eyes some days but they worked through it together. Shane tore his eyes away from the Russian and turned his gaze to the laptop camera, smiling slightly.
"We are making this video today because we have something important to tell you all. I’m sure most of you are very confused about why Hollander –Shane- and I are even in the same room right now" Ilya continues, giving a teasing smile as his hand finding Shane's easily, fitting together perfectly like they always do. "The past 9 years have been a roller coaster of highs and lows. We have always been pitted as rivals, as two top players who would belong on opposite sides our entire careers”
"Ilya and I have gone through a lot together, both as players and people” Shane continues, taking over. They wrote a small script, more for Shane than Ilya, but he also wanted to talk from the heart. “Through hockey, Ilya and I met each other. We had a connection from the beginning, I think even before we met in 2008, in Saskatchewan. We’ve always had our eyes on each other”
“He approached me first, for anyone who is curious” Ilya interjects with a cheeky smile, and Shane sighs but doesn’t give a rebuttal. God, he can still remember how his heart was beating out of his chest while making his way towards a way younger Ilya, already looking like he had his guard up against the entire world. They’d always been so alike. “There are those of you who, of course, noticed our connection over the years. Our… compatibility." Ilya continued, smile turning warmly as he looked at Shane, who blushed as he thought of that conversation he and Ilya had at All-Star weekend just a year ago. How everything changed.
"We had a secret… rendezvous for a few years, meeting whenever we could and no one knew." Shane says, taking over again, unable to stop his eyes from softening as he remembered those earlier years, “It was easy to keep it from our family, friends, teams and from the media because I was always a private person and Ilya continued seeing other women since we were not exclusive then. But that eventually changed, and we were forced to come to terms that we wanted no one else. We never did”
“To be clear, I am bisexual and Shane is gay. He’s gayer than a rainbow coloured unicorn at a pride parade” Ilya added and Shane lightly shoves him, the Russian laughing at his own joke.
“He’s an idiot, but he’s right” Shane says with an eye roll and Ilya shrugs, looking unrepentant as always, “We love one another, and that will never change. Our family and friends support us, and that is all we will ever need. We would like to thank everyone for their constant love and support”
"I'm sure you all know what the video is about by now. We have simply decided that now is the perfect for us to be honest. We owe it to you and ourselves, especially to those who supported and believed in our relationship for the past few years. Yes we have seen the fan edits and drawings. You have helped keep us strong, and your undying devotion is both wonderful and scary” Ilya says and raises his hands up and does spirit fingers of all things. "We're queer!" Ilya says with enthusiasm and Shane sighs, unsurprised.
Ilya leans down and picks up a plastic bag. He straightens up again and digs around in it for a few seconds before throwing his hand in the air, a bunch of colourful confetti raining down. Shane laughs, shaking the confetti out of his hair. Ilya places a kiss on his cheek.
"We hope that by making this video, we not only make our loved ones proud, but we inspire other players and our fans enough to come out and not be scared to be themselves." Shane says, and Ilya ends off the video.
"We'll see you soon. Goodbye" and Shane waves awkwardly as the Russian ended the video. Ilya uploaded the video onto Instagram with the caption "THIS IS A PUBLIC ANNOUNCEMENT", and after pressing SEND, he easily lifted Shane up off the couch, carrying him to their bedroom.
News for you
-Fans react to NHL royalty Ilya Rozanov and Shane Hollander announcing their relationship via an Instagram video
-New York Admirals' Scott Hunter and boyfriend Kip Grady spotted on a cute date at the Broadway production of Cinderella.
-Rose Landry rumoured to join the cast of Netflix's Yellowjackets.
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NEWS > SPORTS
Breaking news: Captain of the Boston Raiders, Ilya Rozanov and captain of the Montreal Metros, Shane Hollander, release coming-out video!
By Monica Hudson
The New York Times – posted 2 minutes ago
SHOCK WAVES RIPPLE THROUGH THE HOCKEY WORLD AS FAMOUS RIVALS HOLLANDER AND ROZANOV COME OUT AS GAY
Holly @raidersmaiden
Can the new York times be normal for once?? Shane is gay and Ilya is BISEXUAL tf
L @Hollandersballs
@raidersmaiden Ikr, why are bi people always getting erased in media
Sindy @SindyPrice
GUYS AHHHHH FUCJSBDHBSDB that video just made me feel like i snorted yaoi coke!!!!!
Rose Landry @RoseLandry99
So proud of my best friend, Shane and his gorgeous boyfriend, Ilya, on their official coming out video! I have already shared the video on all my socials, so please watch it and give them your love!
Boston Raiders @BostonRaidersOfficial
The Boston Raiders stand behind our captain, Ilya Rozanov. Any homophobic comments found under our social media posts will be reported and the users get blocked. The same will happen at games- if you are not a friend of the LGBTQA+ community, consider yourself banned from all games. To check out Ilya and Shane Hollander’s video, go to @IlyaRozanov or watch the pinned video on our social media pages.
Jenny @newyorkhunter
Lmao the Metros cant even bother to pretend to nawt be homophobic #FreeShane
Gaydar @Gaydar
Damn really need to start watching hockey bc what???? Also @SHunterNY please come on Gaydar.
Deez nuts @hockeyboydan
What the ever fuck is going on. First Scott Hunter and now Rozanov and Hollander? What happened to real men playing hockey?
Hayden Pike @HPike
@hockeyboydan Talk shit and get hit, bro
Rozy’s #1 fan @rozyredcheeks
WHHSHSHSDKSH PIKE SAID NO ONE PUTS HIS BABY SHANE IN A CORNER #bestfriendgoals
Rachelle @reidoftherachelle
So was Rose just Shane’s beard? WHAT IS GOING ON
Yuna Hollander @YunaHoll
I’ve gained another son <3 @IlyaRozanov
Katie @Katiecant
I don’t care that Shane is gay but why was he even in a relationship with Rose, that’s so cruel and I don’t understand why she’s even friends with someone like this
:) @fungazi
Anyone else also think Shane was cheating on Rose with Roza- [GUNSHOTS]
. @aminittowinit
@fungazi Not to start drama but like…
Rose Landry @RoseLandry99
I will not be engaging in any public gossip about Shane and I’s previous relationship but I will also NOT tolerate any slander towards either Shane or Ilya. You have been warned.
Svetlana @HotBabeLana
@RoseLandry99 Well said, Rose!
Rose Landry @RoseLandry99
@HotBabeLana OMG we need to do a call tonight, girl
Buttercup @btsgirl
Y-Yuri in my face oh
Hollander’s back dimples @hollanovtruther
I KNEW IT!!!!! I told you guys they were a couple. Oh my god I need to repost my Hollanov Evidence thread I made last year
Fay @nursefay100
Oh my god was THAT why Ilya was visiting Shane in the hospital last year?
Sunny @merrygoround
@nursefay WHAT!!!!!!!!!!!
Ilya Rozanov @IlyaRosanov
Thank you for all the love and support, Shane and I are overwhelmed in the best way possible at our video reaching 10 million views. We will continue to play the best hockey we can and hope we remain an inspiration to all those future players that will join the league.
Cliff Marlow @RaidersMarlow
We love you Rozy!
Scott Hunter @SHunterNY
On behalf of Kip and myself, we would like to extend our full support to Hollander and Rozanov. This was insanely brave of them, and we wish them the best for their futures.
Scott’s beard @huntersnipples
Oh my god can someone finally tell me what Shane and Scott were fighting about on the ice all those years ago, WAS IT BECAUSE OF ILYA LMAOOOOO
Hollander’s back dimples @hollanovtruther
I personally think Scott and Ilya should kiss and only I get to watch
Shane Hollander @OfficialShaneHollander
@hollanovtruther not even in your dreams, but thank you for the support. Ilya and I enjoyed your thread.
Hollander’s back dimples @hollanovtruther
@OfficialShaneHollander WAIT SHANE NOOOOOO I’M SORRY