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Shane has been struggling a lot since the Metros turned their back on him. For 11 years, his life has revolved around this team, he has done everything for them. Today, he realizes well that he had a toxic relationship with them, he thought they were like a second family for him, but a real family does not deny its members for its sexuality or its partner. The only good things this team has brought him are three Stanley Cups and Hayden, his best friend.
Shane forgave Hayden for posting the video where he and Ilya are kissing. It was an accident that ruined his career in subways but helped him open his eyes. Ilya always struggles with his best friend, because he remains a person who comes out for him, but Ilya makes efforts just to continue seeing Jacki and the children.
And Ilya, the love of his life, who supports him in all this ordeal, because his team, the Centaurs, have very well taken the news, they even all came to their wedding. Shane has never seen Ilya so happy since he met him.
Shane’s contract at the metros is ending, they don’t want to renew it, anyway Shane had no desire to stay and he has a little idea where to go, he has been hiding this surprise from Ilya for two months even though Ilya harasses him every day to know now it’s the end of July and Shane still can’t believe that he kept his tongue.
“You’re really not going to tell me anything? “
Shane looked up skywards, Ilya and him have been relaxing in front of the TV on the sofa of the chalet since the beginning of the morning and Ilya has been looking at it for 10 minutes.
“Ilya, you can ask me as many questions as you want, but I won’t tell you anything until I sign the contract.”
“But why ? I am your husband, you can tell me anything! It’s not a big deal if you sign with the Minnesota Wild, as we said, it’s for better and for worse, especially for worse if that’s what it is.
“Fuck you, Rozanov.”
“Rozanov-Hollander, you mean.” said Ilya with a smile.
Ilya is really impatient. He made all the possible theories about which hockey club Shane will join, but he was always wrong. One morning, Ilya even asked Shane if he was joining Boston and he had the laugh of his life. Shane Hollander, a Boston Bruins? Barely a foot in Boston, Shane would get killed by the first fan he came across. They have become so bad since Ilya left and now that everyone knows it’s because of Shane, it’s better not to take a risk.
"I don’t understand why you keep all his discussions about your transfer so secret, especially to me, your husband, the love of your life, the one who makes you enjoy so strongly that the neighbor who is 2 km away could hear you-"
“Ilya, I understood. I just want to have no bad surprises. You know how I am, a very vigilant man. So I prefer to wait until everything is good. So today, we are going to relax, swim, go take Alya for a walk, eat and fuck."
“Okay, okay, but not in that order.” Ilya jumped on Shane and began to kiss his neck tenderly.
“Hmmm it doesn’t bother me.”
Shane had a whole plan in mind, on Wednesday he would go sign his contract, because yes, he has already found his club since Hayden forced his coming out. A certain coach from Ottawa sent him a nice private message, saying that he was supporting him and if he didn’t know where to go, the Centaurs' family would always be open to him and he took him at his word. Wednesday he will officially become a teammate of Ilya, damn it they will become the first married couple to play together in the league and her husband doesn’t even know it!
But Shane always has the impression that everything is going to fall apart and that coach Wiebe is going to send him a message to tell him that in the end they cannot accept him on the team; putting such a big fake joy into Ilya would break his heart. So he keeps all this secret with Weibe and the CEO. If everything goes well, on Wednesday he signs and he can finally announce it to everyone on Saturday at the Bood barbecue.
“Shane, you can be part of the Philadelphia Flyers, Edmonton Oilers or even the New York Admirals, even if you have to put up with this damn Scott Hunters, I would feel very bad for you but I would support you, because I love you with all my heart and every thing you decide to do I will be behind you, always. Ya lyublyu tebya." confessed Ilya.
Shane had tears in his eyes, damn he doesn’t know what kind thing he did in his previous life to deserve this man, but Ilya is the perfect man on earth and it’s him who has it.
“I love you too, my love, now fuck me.”
“With pleasure, my dear”
My God, it’s done.
Shane Hollander is officially an Ottawa Centaurs, fucking shit.
He is alone, on a Wednesday afternoon, he told Ilya that he was going shopping in the city and Ilya stayed at the chalet with Anya. He wants to shout it from the rooftops but was told that he had to wait for the green light from the administration to talk about it. Normally it will be done by now on Saturday and he can announce it to his family, his future teammates and his very dear husband.
Being a Centaur is going to be so weird, Montreal was all his life, all his habits and playing with Hayden will miss him. But he knows that the future can only be radiant because he knows that the members of the Centaurs are all adorable, Ilya only praises them. Shane spoke briefly to Troy Barret, Luca Haas and Zane Boodram aka Bood at his wedding. They were so kind and warm. He is eager to start the season and to find his marks, and why not win the cup. With Ilya in his team, they can become unstoppable. He just needs to learn how to forget his former team, they were so mean to him in the end, believing that he falls on purpose to let Ilya win the match, sometimes Shane feels like he never really knew them, 3 Stanley Cups won thanks to him is not enough to prove his worth maybe?
Shane had a totally different speech a few months ago, he even subconsciously believed he really let Ilya win, but her husband taught her to understand that he has value and since then he knows that he was just enormously disturbed by the fact that his former teammates are just dirty homophobic assholes.
“Ilya, I’m home!”
“I’m in the kitchen, moya lyubov'.
Ilya in the kitchen is very unusual, the last time he cooked he burned rice because he left the pan too long on the fire.
“Ilya, what are you doing?”
“I saw a recipe for a chocolate cake that looks great on Instagram.”
The kitchen looks like a war field, there is flour from floor to ceiling.
“Darling, I can do it for you with pleasure, no need to torture you with cooking, even if I’m not going to eat it, you know very well, it makes me happy to cook for you.”
"Yes, but when you are going to be transferred, I don’t know, to the other end of the country or to the United States, it will be like at the time and we will see each other very little, so I have to cook by myself and no I will not ask your mother."
Shane was so used to the idea that he would be by Ilya’s side all the time in private life as well as professionally, that he had forgotten that Ilya himself did not know it so that it was legitimate that Ilya had to think so much about all the possibilities and that it was very likely that he would return at the same pace of meeting as when they were not going out together.
“Darling, look at me”
Ilya, head down, threw the whip filled with cake batter into the bowl and turned around, he had tears in his eyes.
“Hey, hey, honey” Shane took Ilya’s head in his hands and placed his forehead against Ilya’s forehead. “Even if I chose a club that’s on the other side of the country, it would never be like back then, because every fucking minute of free time I had, I’d get on the first plane and join my very dear husband in our cottage, because it’s the only place in the world where I want to be, that is to say in your arms. Shane kisses Ilya langourously “It will never be like before again because the world knows that Ilya Rozanov is my husband and that I need him.” Ilya ends up smiling.
“Do you trust me, Ilya Rozanov-Hollander?”
“With all my soul, Shane Hollander-Rozanov.”
Shane still had not received a message from the Ottawa Centaurs administration.
He was becoming a bit crazy. He had everything planned. He wanted to gather everyone in Bood’s garden to announce this news, see Ilya’s face shocked and proud, but instead it’s Saturday, Ilya and him are in the car to go to Bood’s place and Shane has no green light to announce it to all his family, he is on the verge of a nervous breakdown, nothing is going well.
“Shane, solntse, are you okay?”
“Yes. Why?”
« Since this morning you are very quiet, you haven’t even managed to swallow your smoothie, even if I find it horribly disgusting. You spent the morning tidying up the chalet, your left hand is trembling and you can’t stop frowning and tapping your feet, so yes my love, tell me what’s wrong?
It always takes her breath to see how her husband knows him so well, but Shane needs to invent something quickly because he didn’t last months to finally announce it to Ilya in a damn car.
“Uh...... Yes, you’re right, I am very stressed.”
“And.... Why?”
“Well, I’m officially meeting your team today.”
“Shane, you saw them at our wedding.” Ilya looked at him suspiciously.
“But it’s not the same! There we will really have time to talk to them, and this time only the really important people will be present! My parents, my best friend’s family and your team.
“Really important people, hm?”
“Yes”
“Even my team?”
"Especially your team, they have always supported you and I love them for that."
Ilya is foolishly smiling at Shane, he knows that her husband would get along with his team perfectly since he got to know them, and he needs to hear a long conversation between Shane and Troy, he knows this will be very interesting to watch.
“Well, I can’t wait for you to really meet them.”
“Yes” smiles at Shane as he takes Ilya’s hand “Me too”
“Ah finally you there!”
Ilya and Shane arrive at the Boodram in a soothing calm. Shane always felt stressed given the lack of response but having Ilya by his side even if he doesn’t know it, the real reason was reassuring. Bood’s house was of a very spring-like white wood, very pleasant to look at.
“How are you, captain? And how are you doing, very dear pretty-husband-of-our-captain?”
“Bood, calm down.”
“How are you Ilya, very well and you? Your wife and you had a very nice house.”
“Ah, that needs to be told to Cassie, she’s the one who chose everything.”
« It doesn’t surprise me that your wife is all done because you have a crappy taste. »
Ilya and Bood began to bicker. Meanwhile, Shane entered deeper into the house.
“Shane Hollander?”
Shane turns around with a start but ends up smiling.
“Troy! How are you?”
“Very well. We know how to talk briefly at your wedding and I would like to tell you that I have always admired you. And-”
“And that he had a big crush on you during his first year with the Centaurs and that he apologizes for asking your husband for your number.”
Troy eventually blushes furiously and looks everywhere except for Shane while he suspiciously stares at Ilya.
“Ilya, leave the son of others alone.”
« Don’t worry, it’s public knowledge that Troy likes you before going out with Harris. Isn’t it true Troy?
"Don’t worry, it’s common knowledge that Troy liked you well before going out with Harris. Isn’t that true, Troy?"
Troy gave a sigh, his ears red as a tomato.
“Shane, I just thought you were handsome, okay? I had just left my ex-boyfriend, changed teams and I thought why not try my luck with Shane Hollande who looks gay to death. But all that was before Harris."
“Wise decision, my mate.” replied Ilya with a fake smile, her arm tightly clasped over Troy’s shoulders.
Shane burst out laughing for the first time in days. And suddenly, he really started to relax. The conversations came together naturally. Luca told a ridiculous anecdote about some kind of party in the woods, Cassie was handing out glasses, the children were running everywhere, Ilya remained stuck to him while speaking happily to everyone and for the first time in a long time... Shane felt in his place.
He had a feeling of having forgotten something.
“Hey Shane” threw Luca from the terrace, phone in hand, “is it normal for LNH NEWS to announce that you are signing with the Centaurs? Damn it’s all over the internet."
The world stopped.
Shane froze. His heart skipped a beat.
“... Excuse me?”
"Yeah, look," Bood added, showing his own phone. “Breaking news: Shane Hollander officially joins the Ottawa Centaurs. They even talk about you as the missing piece to the team for taking the cup. Not bad, dude."
“Being a Centaur is pretty cool, isn’t it?” said Shane with a feverish smile.
A heavy silence fell over the garden.
“DAMN YES!” shouted Troy.
“I KNEW IT!” screamed Luca.
“I’m going to have so much work to do” said Harris with a wide-eyed smile.
“Shane, you don’t even tell your own mother?” exclaimed Yuna.
"And not even to his best friend..” murmured Hayden
"I thought the captain couldn’t hide such information from us, not cool Rozanov." retorted Bood.
Everyone was talking at the same time.
Everyone.
Except Ilya.
Shane slowly turned his head towards her husband.
Ilya was completely frozen. Her eyes fixed on the screen of her phone while reading several times to assimilate the information
Then he looked up.
“... Are you going to... join the Centaurs?”
Ilya’s voice was trembling.
“Yes” murmured Shane. “.. Surprise?”
Ilya did not answer.
He advanced with a step. Then with another one. Grabbed Shane by the collar of his t-shirt and kissed him with force.
"You fucking asshole" he blew against his lips. « Since when do you know it, how, where? I thought it was so weird that you haven’t found a club yet, we’re getting closer to the start of the season."
“Your coach sent me a message when the truth about us came out, he told me that the door will always be open for me at the Centaurs and... I didn’t hesitate for a single second."
Ilya kissed Shane "Why didn’t you tell me?"
"Basically, I had a plan, a plan that involves gathering all of you in the garden and giving a big speech, but I suppose life doesn’t like me to announce the news myself, even if for this time it was very funny !"
“Funny?”
“Did you see Wyatt’s face? I thought he was going to faint!” Shane said, laughing.
Ilya looked at her husband with happiness. He was so stressed by Shane’s choice. He would always support him but he hoped that Shane wouldn’t choose a club too far from Ottawa. But the love of his life gave him the most beautiful gift one could give him: to be able to be glued all the time to his man.
“I see what you’re thinking.”
“Really?”
“There will be rules, many rules in training.”
“Hmmmmmm of course moyey zhizni” said Ilya while kissing Shane languidly.
“I’m serious”
“Da. Da.”