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Shane tries without luck to catch Ilya's eye during warm up. Ilya is going to hurt his neck with how hard he is straining it to make sure he never looks in Shane's direction.
Ilya can't avoid him forever though, and a few minutes later they are crouched down, faces close enough to feel the other's breath. "Il-Roz-"
"I'm mic'd." Ilya says, cutting Shane off, not looking up.
Shane looks down at Ilya's jersey where the mic would be pinned and there is no mic. It was a lie to avoid talking.
"Il-" Shane is cut off again, this time by the referee dropping the puck. Ilya wins the face-off and skates away with even more speed than usual.
"Fuuuck." Shane growls, taking off after him.
The game continues like that, with Shane literally chasing Ilya around the ice. He doesn't actually know what he wants to say, and what he needs to say certainly can't be said out here anyway, but he needs Ilya to talk to him, he needs Ilya to look at him. He needs a way back in. A way that can't be ignored or blocked. Rose didn't just open up the part of him that was gay, she opened up the part of him that belonged to Ilya. Only Ilya.
Shane checks Ilya into the Boards and holds him there longer than he needs to. "Please" he whispers urgently into Ilya's neck, his lips blocked from view by Ilya's body. Ilya shoves himself backwards, using his entire body weight to hit Shane away from him."Get the fuck off me" Ilya says, not looking back and taking back off. Shane lets out a frustrated grunt and tears off, once again chasing Ilya rather than the puck - thankfully Ilya and puck and usually one and the same as far as direction goes.
___
Ilya's determination to avoid Shane has him skating and playing like he never has before. He never lets himself rest or stop on the ice, in case Shane catches him. He plays with a laser focus and controlled aggression, putting everything he is feeling into his stick and the puck. Hollander just WON'T leave him alone though and it's getting way too much.
He gratefully rests on the bench and watches his third line at work. He can feel Shane's eyes boring holes into the side of his head but he refuses to turn, even when the play is down that end of the ice. Instead he pretends to fiddle with his gear or water bottle.
"What's gotten into you tonight, Roz. You're possessed." Connors remarks. Ilya bites back that it's more what's gotten out of him and instead offers a one shoulder shrug. "Maybe if you played more like me you wouldn't be second line." is what he answers instead, trying to stop the conversation.
"Okay, damn." Connors responds and turns away.
___
The game has ended. The Raiders won but Ilya doesn't notice or care. He is almost out of here. In one hour he'll be home, or maybe with a girl in a club, he doesn't know yet. But it won't be here. He just needs to get through the handshake line...
He briefly wonders if he can fake an injury to get out of it, but considering the game has ended already it's a little late for that.
"Blyat!"
___
It is handshakes. It is Shane's last opportunity. He doesn't make eye contact with any of the Raiders before Ilya, he stares down the line at the stony face moving slow toward him. "Good game. Good game." he repeats robotically as he taps gloves and moves to the next person. Ilya is 3 people away. What can he say. What should he say? His room number? Sorry? Please talk to me. She dumped me? I'm gay? I think I love you? Shane thinks too long and misses his opportunity. Ilya stares past him as he taps Shane's glove with the lightest and quickest of touches and skates on without either of them exchanging a word.