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Hayden Pike noticed that something was wrong when Shane returned from his Boston Lily hookup like someone had drop kicked his puppy. He was visibly shaken up and it looked like he’s going to cry real soon.
“Something happened with Boston Lily?” Hayden asked.
“No.” Shane said but it was clearly a lie.
Hayden wasn’t the most observant person but even he could tell that Shane was lying. That was evident because he was pacing around the room, muttering something to himself.
“I mean kinda..” He then looked Hayden in his eyes. “Fuck.. Hayden, I think I fucked up..” Shane was now on the verge of having a panic attack.
“Hey, Shane..” Hayden gently grabbed him by his shoulders and sat him on the bed. “It’s going to be alright, okay? Just breathe..” He tried to calm his friend down.
When he calmed down, Hayden bring him a glass of water. “Shane.. do you want to tell me what happened?”
Shane nodded. “Um.. I went to Lily’s place and she made me tuna melts..”
“Tuna melts? You ate tuna melts? With your strict diet?” Hayden interrupted.
“Shut the fuck up Hayden! Let me talk..” Shane snapped.
“Sorry..” Hayden mouthed.
“She made me tuna melts and gave me ginger ale and it was nice..” Shane sighed. The memories of the kisses, the touches, the smell of tuna melts and even the cold feeling of the ginger ale in his hand folded his mind. For a moment he thought he’d start crying. “But then she called out my first name and.. and I panicked and just ran away..”
Hayden listened and nodded along.
“God I fucked it up so bad..” Shane grunted.
“Why did you panicked? I thought you two were like.. serious, you know?” Hayden asked. “I mean, you two were texting for like years now.”
“What? No.. we’re.. we’re not serious or anything.. it was just sex.” Shane signed. “And I guess that’s why I ran.. I got scared the she wanted something more. Even though we agreed that it wouldn’t be anything more than just hookups.”
“Wow.. okay.” Hayden said. “Look, I don’t judge, you do you I guess but do you want to be something with Lily?”
Shane thought about the time he had with Illya, the look in his eyes when he ran out of his penthouse. “I don’t know.. maybe I do..” He started crying quietly.
“Hey.. it’s alright.” Hayden moved closer and hugged him tightly. “Then maybe you should talk about it with her.”
Cliff Marlow knew that there was something wrong with his captain when he walked into the gym. He was weirdly quiet and looked like a kid who’s favourite toy was taken away.
“Everything alright Rozy?” He asked.
“Shut your idiot mouth Marly!” Ilya snapped back and got on the stationary bike, ignoring the rest of his players.
“What’s up with him?” Connors asked.
“I don’t know man..” Marlow shrugged. “Could be something with his Montreal chick.”
“What? What would she be doing here?” Connors frowned.
“I don’t know dude.. but the last time I saw him he had the ‘Jane’ look..” Marlow said.
“Jane look? The fuck is that supposed to mean?” St-Simon suddenly joined them.
“It’s the face he has when he’s texting with his Montreal chick, Jane, you know?” Marlow explained.
“I hear you idiots.” Ilya cleared his throat.
“Sorry cap.” They all said and returned to their workouts.
After they finished, Cliff cornered Ilya in the locker room.
“What’s up with you today Rozy?” He asked. “Did something happen between you and Jane?”
Ilya’s eyes widened. “What is it to you Marlow?”
“You’re my friend Rozy. And my captain. I want to know if you’re doing anything.” Cliff said.
Ilya was quiet for a moment. “I think I messed up with Jane.” He finally said, sitting on the bench.
“Oh shit.” Cliff muttered and sat next to him.
“Yeah.” Ilya huffed. “I said too much and she ran.”
“Od damn.. I’m sorry Rozy.” Cliff said and offered a gentle pat on the shoulder. “But you can still talk it out, no?”
“I don’t know Marly.” Ilya stood up and walked towards the door. “I tried texting after she left but still no answer.”
With those words, he left the room.
Marlow thought this couldn’t get any worse but when the news of Shane Hollander dating the beautiful actress Rose Landry broke out, Ilya looked like an empty vessel.
Was he jealous of Hollander? Was Rose Landry his mysterious Jane? No.. that’s dumb she doesn’t live in Montreal.
Marlow figured that Ilya’s bad mood was probably caused his falling out with Jane.
The game against Boston was going terribly. Shane played like he’s never played before.
Hayden assumed that it was because he’s still thinking about Lily but who would think about some random girl when you’re banging Rose Landry.
The only positive thing was that Rozanov also played terribly.
But then, during the second period when Boston was leading 3:2, something unexpected happened.
Ilya had the puck and was skating toward Montreal’s cage. Marlow was supporting him on his left. But then, out of nowhere, Comeau came from the front and slammed Ilya into the boards. It was a rather brutal hit, leaving Ilya motionless on the ice.
“Oh fuck.” Comeau mumbles before he was shoved by Marlow.
“You fucking bastard!” Marlow yelled as he launched himself towards Marlow.
Shane watched in horror as Ilya laid on the ice without moving a muscle.
“Ilya..” He whispered underneath his breath. He wished he was closer so he could make sure he’s okay.
Share, and the rest of the players were rushed into their boxes but he wasn’t going to move just yet.
“Is he alright?” Shane asked one of the referees.
“Get it your box Hollander.” The referee ordered.
“I just want to know. How is he?” Shane asked again.
“In the box Hollander! I’m not going to ask again.” The referee continued to push him away.
“Fuck you! I want to know!” Shane suddenly yelled back.
The referee was now losing his patience. “Hollander! Get in your box or you’re getting a penalty!”
Shane was ready to yell again when Hayden grabbed him and forcibly dragged him away.
“What the hell are you doing Hollzy?” Hayden hissed.
“Shut up Hayden.” Shane mumbles as he watched Ilya getting carried out of the ice on a stretcher with Marlow close behind.
As Ilya was lying on the stretcher, trying to keep his eyes open. “Ugh..” He grunted.
“Rozy, how are you doing man?” Cliff asked.
“J-Shane..” Ilya mumbled. “Need.. Shane.”
“What? I don’t understand you.” Cliff continued.
“Shane..”
“Oh! You want me to tell Jane?” Cliff deduced. “Yeah. I’ll do that.”
After Ilya was loaded into the ambulance and rushed to the Boston Hospital, Cliff returned to his teammates.
When the match starts again, Boston managed to keep their lead and score two more goals, securing them a victory. Although, no one was really happy about it.
Marlow made it to locker room and after a quick shower he changed into his regular clothes.
The sound of notifications caught his attention. The sounds were coming from Ilya’s phone. They were from Jane.
Jane: I saw what happened.
Jane: I hope you’re alright
Jane: please.. please just text me as soon as you can
Jane: Ilya.. I’m really sorry I ran..
Jane: please just be okay..
Marlow felt bad for reading the messages. They were clearly not meant for him. He sighed and shoved the phone into Ilya’s back, along with his clothes and wallet.
Back in the Montreal locker room everyone was bummed about the match results and some of them were even somewhat concerned about the accident.
Shane was definitely not doing well. He was basically the first one to get out of the shower, get dressed and ran out off the arena.
Once he was outside, he pulled out his phone and opened the conversation with Lily. The last few text read.
Lily: please don’t go.
Lily: we can talk about it..
Lily: I’m sorry
Shane wanted to cry. He wasn’t even thinking when he wrote his messages.
Jane: I’ve saw what happened.
Jane: I hope you’re alright
Jane: please.. please just text me as soon as you can
Jane: Ilya.. I’m really sorry I ran..
Jane: please just be okay..
“Hey. What’s up with you today?” Hayden’s voice suddenly came from behind him.
“What?” Shane quickly shoved his phone in his pocket. “Nothing.. it was just a bad game.. and a terrible hit.. you know, with Ily- Rozanov.” He corrected himself.
“Oh yeah.. I mean I hope he’s good.” Hayden said. “But like, it’s Rozanov so I’m not sad he’s hurt either. He kinda deserves it.” He added.
“Hayden!” Shane frowned. “That’s mean.. even if it’s Rozanov.”
“Alright.. alright.. Sorry.” Hayden rolled his eyes. He wanted to say something else but was interrupted by Shane’s phone. There was new message from Lily.
When Marlow got to the hospital, he stopped by the reception desk.
“Hello, I’m looking for Ilya Rozanov. Do you know what room he’s in?” He asked. “I’m his teammate.”
The woman behind the desk turned to him. “Of course sir. Could you please state your name?”
“Clifford Marlow.” Marlow said.
She typed something on the keyboard. “Ah yes.. here you are. Mr. Rozanov is in room 112. The doctor will be with him soon, she’ll brief you on his condition.”
“Thanks.” Marlow said and went for the elevators.
When he got on the right floor and find the correct room, he firstly knocked.
“Yes? Come in.” A woman’s voice said.
Marlow opened the door and walked in.
“Marly!” Ilya mumbled. He sounded weirdly happy. Marlow assumed that they put him on some painkillers and that’s just a side effect. “You are here!”
“Yeah man.. I wanted to know how are you doing.” Marlow said.
“I’m doctor Mercer, I was just checking on Mr. Rozanov.” The woman said. “He had suffered a concussion and dislocated his shoulder. He’ll be able to play again after some rest. Just keep him away from screens for now, okay?
“Okay.. that’s, that’s good.. I think. Could have been worse.” Marlow mumbled.
Doctor Mercer then left to check on her other patients, leaving them alone.
“Hey.. I brought your stuff over.” Marlow said and placed the duffel bag he was holding on an armchair next to Ilya’s bed.
“Thank youuu..” Ilya said.
Marlow chuckled. “They got you on some good stuff, huh?”
“Yess.. but it be better with my Любимый here.”
Marlow raised his eyebrow. He did not know what Ilya just said but he had an idea. “Oh. You mean Jane? Right?”
“Да.. Shane..” Ilya smiled. “But he won’t come.. he likes Rose Landry now.” The smile quickly disappeared.
“What what?” Marlow blinked few times. At first he thought that he had heard it wrong but when Ilya mentioned Rose Landry..
“Your Montreal chick is Shane Hollander?!” Cliff tried to whisper.
“Да..” Ilya nodded.
“Oh shit.. no wonder you looked like a body without a soul lately..” Cliff said. “But I think he’d want to know if you’re okay. He texted you and sounded pretty worried.”
“Text?” Ilya mumbled.
“Yeah. I’ll text back saying where you are and what you’re conditioning is, okay?” Cliff asked. “And I won’t say that I know. Don’t worry.”
“Okay.”
Cliff took Ilya’s phone and after he was told the combination to unlock it, he texted Shane.
Lily: Hey, this is Cliff Marlow. Illya’s in Pilgram Boston Hospital. He’s in the room 112.
Lily: he’s got concussion and a dislocated shoulder.
Lily: do you want to stop by?
Now he would wait for an answer.
In the hindsight Hayden probably shouldn’t spy on Shane’s texts but he was somewhat curious about this mysterious Lily. So he peeking around Shane’s shoulder.
That was probably a mistake.
“Why is Marlow texting you for Lily’s phone?”
“Becauselilyisilyarizanov.” Shane quickly muttered. He didn’t even realised what he had said.
“I’m sorry? You gotta run that by me again..” Hayden said.
“Uhh..” Shane felt a wave of stress and fear wash over him. This wasn’t supposed to come out this way. Fuck.. he was going to break down.
“Hey..hey. It’s alright. I’m not going to judge.” Hayden tried to confront him. “Hey, let’s sit down.. okay?”
Shane nodded and they sat down on the concrete.
“Okay.. could you repeat what you just said?”
Shane was quiet for a moment and took a deep breath. “Boston Lily doesn’t exist. It’s Ilya Rozanov.”
Hayden regretted ever asking.
“So when did you and Hollander start doing this?” Cliff asked. “I thought you two were like rivals?”
“Summer before our rookie season..” Ilya said.
“Holy shit.” Cliff’s eyes widened. “That’s.. that’s something else. I mean I’m not against you being like gay or something. I’m supportive and willing to beat anyone who isn’t.”
“Bisexual.” Ilya chuckled. “But I am grateful for your support Marly.”
“No problem dude..” Cliff nodded. “Hey, you think if you call Shane he’d come to see you? As like a captain checking on another captain? It sounds something like he would do.”
“Tomorrow..” Ilya said, he sounded pretty vulnerable right now. “You be here, yes? Tomorrow?”
“Of course. But I’m going to head out now, you should rest.” Cliff assured him.
“Okay.. night night.”
“Bye Rozy.”
“What do you mean Lily is Ilya Rozanov?!” Hayden finally said. “I thought you’re dating Rose Landry?”
“I am but we aren’t compatible, I think..” There was a long pause. “Hayden.. I’m gay.”
“That’s okay. I’m happy for you.” Hayden smiled. “And I promise I will tell anyone off if they ever say anything mean to you.” He promised.
Shane chuckled. “Thanks Hayden.. I appreciate it.”
“But I do have one question though.. If you’re gay, why do you date Rose Landry?”
There was another awkward pause. “I wasn’t sure I was..” Shane mumbled.
“So you were banging with Rozanov and just thought you were dudes being dudes?” Hayden snorted.
“Shut up Hayden.” Shane shoved him.
…
“You’re gonna see him in the hospital?”
Shane sighed. “I don’t know..” he shrugged, “I don’t know if he wants to see me.”
Hayden nodded. “I still think you should. It shows your sportsmanship and it’s good for your reputation.”
“Fine.. I’ll go there tomorrow.”
The next day Cliff went back to the hospital and waited with Ilya until the door opened and Shane walked in.
“Shane!” Ilya called out excitedly.
“Ilya..” Shane exhaled.
Cliff just watched them for a moment before getting up from the chair.
“Well.. I’m just going to leave you alone to.. talk.” He announced and left the room.
When the door behind Cliff closed, Shane swiftly walked towards Ilya, gently grabbing his hand.
“Hey..” Shane said softly. “How are you feeling?”
“Better..” Ilya grinned.
“I was worried about you.” Shane whispered and leaned closer to kiss him.
“Whoa!” Ilya moved away. “You cheat on Rose Landry?”
“What? No.. we talked yesterday and decided that it’s better if we’re just friends..” Shane said.
“Oh. So you don’t date Rose Landry?”
“No, I don’t.” Shane shook his head.
“Okay then.” Ilya hummed, clearly thinking about something. “Give me kiss.” He finally said.
And so he did.