Work Text:
February 2021
„You’re smiling like an idiot,“ Troy said when he dropped down next to Ilya who sat in his cubby after a loss against Detroit on home ice. They were bagging wins—finally! But not all games were won, so the tight 3–2 loss was fine.
„Am I?“ Ilya asked without glancing up from his phone. He hasn’t even taken off his pads yet while the rest of the Centaurs were pretty much already showered and getting into their post-game suits to head home.
„Yes. You’re having plans for tonight?“ Troy sneaked a glance over Ilya’s shoulder. „With Jane?“ Ilya promptly sent his phone to sleep before Troy was able to see more than a name with a heart emoji at the top of a message thread. Ilya was still sporting a dopey grin. Troy nudged his shoulder against Ilya’s, looking for friendly contact but avoiding his captain’s sweat drenched pads.
„Maybe,“ Ilya answered vaguely.
„Well, then I think you should head for the showers. You stink.“ Troy chuckled and Ilya joined. They were both in a good mood.
„Probably. Are you going home with Harris?“ Ilya started to unbuckle his pads, stripping to his base layer. Troy nodded.
„Yeah, he promised me dinner.“
„Only dinner?“ Ilya smirked and waggled his eyebrows. Troy felt his face turn hot. The night was probably going to turn into blowjobs and soft kisses on Harris’s bed but Ilya was already way too invested into their relationship so Troy only pressed his lips together. Ilya bellowed out a laugh.
„Good for you!“ Ilya pointed towards the shower. „Ah, I should—“ Troy jumped up.
„Yes! Sorry. Good talk. Good night, cap.“ Troy rushed out the locker room. Oh god!, Troy thought. „Good talk?“ Troy murmured to himself. Why was he so awkward sometimes?
He walked down the tunnel heading toward the parking lot were he was supposed to meet Harris. But apparently Harris had some idea for social media content because in front of the door leading to the cars a tripod with a camera was propped up. Every player heading home had to surpass the camera and Harris holding up a sign.
„Who on the team would be your emergency contact? And why?“, he read out loud. He faked having to think about it. „Eh. Could it also be someone from the staff?“
„Yes, of course,“ Harris answered and beamed at him. Troy stepped closer and placed a kiss on Harris cheek. He smelled faintly like the cold stank of the arena but prominently he still smelled like apples. Like Harris. It was familiar and home.
„Well, then. Jerry, the equipment guy. He seems responsible,“ Troy answered into the camera. He grinned widely.
„Hey!“ Harris exclaimed and swatted Troy’s shoulder. Troy laughed.
„It’s you, of course,“ Troy said and leaned into a proper kiss. It was soft and sweet and Harris was probably going to use some of it as content. But Troy was fine with that. He loved Harris and everyone should know that this kind man was his.
„Are we heading out?“, he asked. Harris shook his head.
„I’m still waiting for Roz. He’s a fan favorite.“ He pointed to the camera. Troy pouted. Harris chuckled and traced his fingers over Troy’s side over his ribs. A pleasant shiver ran down his spine. He leaned into Harris’s touch. „You’re my favorite though.“
The bang of the locker room door shutting announced Ilya’s imminent arrival. He was typing on his phone. His hair was still wet from the shower and droplets left dark marks on the fabric of his fitted gray suit. Troy always had to admit Roz was hot. He definitely wasn’t his type and it looked like, according to his phone, he was a taken man. But Troy was unsure if this was a recent development or if Ilya had been with Jane for longer. He could also be totally wrong and Jane wasn’t Ilya’s significant other. He only had seen the short glimpse of his phone screen. Troy also really didn’t have a reason to speculate. Roz was his friend and would probably at some point tell him if he felt it was important. Even though Roz’s life has always been very public he was still a private person for all the things that matter and Troy was extremely self-conscious but also somewhat proud that Ilya had trusted him with coming out to him. And since moving to Ottawa Ilya’s tabloid articles decreased in numbers, not that Troy kept track but Harris did to ensure he was able to react fast for any social media faux pas on behalf of the team and therefore Troy was often times in the loop. Their dinner chats were often filled with news from Harris’s job and Troy listened contently, happy that Harris had so much to talk about.
„Ilya!“ Harris addressed the man walking towards them. His gaze snapped up and he squinted at the sign.
„Ah. Hazy. No questions asked,“ he answered and headed out. „See you!“ Roz shouted before he vanished. He was kind of an odd man.
„Am I anyones emergency contact choice?“, Troy asked while Harris took down his equipment. Harris didn’t look up from what he was doing.
„You’re mine,“ he answered. Troy groaned. „Do you really want to know?“
„Do I need to be offended?“
„No. They all chose Wyatt. Which is actually kind of sweet, don’t you think?“ Troy muttered somewhat noncommittal.
„It makes sense. If it weren’t for you I would probably choose him, too. Roz is too chaotic. I’m still a bit bummed, though.—Wait! Who did Hazy choose?“
„Lisa—his wife. And when I reminded him that it was supposed to be someone from the team he began to stutter and ran out.“ Harris laughed. He shouldered his equipment bag and gestured to leave. Troy followed him. He reached for Harris’s hand that didn’t cling to his shoulder strap and weaved his fingers through his.
The car ride was soothingly calm. Harris was humming a soft tune while steering the car through the light snow. Troy was happy. He savored this after a game which was always loud and hectic. He loved Harris’s chatty nature but Harris also knew there was also a time for quiet. Troy’s mind wandered off. His life has changed so much to a much more happy place. He had a great team that was getting better game by game. He had a great coach, he had great friends—true friends, and he had Harris. They had plans to have a shorter vacation with his mom this summer. He hadn’t seen or heard from his father. So overall Troy was really fucking happy. „I think Roz has a girlfriend,“ Troy said into the quiet of the car. Harris stopped his humming.
„What makes you think that?“
„I’ve just been thinking about how lucky I am with you and my friends here around and he also looks fucking happy lately. He sometimes looks at his phone like I would when you text me. And I’ve seen a contact saved as ‚Jane‘ with a heart emoji today on his screen before he locked his phone quickly.“ Harris hummed in understanding. Troy knew Harris was reminiscing now on all encounters with Ilya in the last few weeks to see if he’d come to the same conclusion.
Harris pushed the button of the hands-free-system of his car. „Call Captain,“ he demanded. It wouldn’t understand Ilya’s name and called weird places, therefore Harris added the nickname. Troy stared at Harris. „What are you doing?“ he asked while the speaker played the dial tone. Ilya picked up before Harris could answer Troy.
„Harris? Something up?“ Ilya’s voice was tinny and distorted through the speaker.
„Hi Ilya! Some bird told me you have a partner. I wanted to invite you two for dinner,“ Harris said louder than probably necessary. Troy glared at him.
„That bird being Troy?“ Ilya suspected.
„He saw the contact on your phone.“ He really threw Troy under the bus here. Seriously?
„Ah. Jane is not in town right now, though. But maybe brunch next Thursday, yes? But I have to discuss first if it’s okay for Jane. We don’t see each other often.“ Troy’s mouth fell open.
„That sounds lovely!“
„If yes, we could do potluck kind of thing. I will send you list.“ Troy blinked multiple times in disbelieve.
„Great, Ilya! Have a good night.“
„Oh, I will. Bye, Harris. Bye, Barrett,“ Ilya said and hung up. Troy stared at Harris. He put in the turn signal to merge onto the street Harris lived on.
„He didn’t even deny it!“ Troy exclaimed.
„Why would he?“
„Because it’s Roz we’re talking about. Russian menace Roz. The person that loves to cause chaos. The person that had multiple occasions to tell me he was in a relationship.“ Troy threw his hands in the air. Harris chuckled.
„Maybe it wasn’t official until recently?“ Troy grumbled in response.
Thursday came. Troy woke up entangled into Harris’s sheet and soft duvet. The previous night’s game had been brutal and Troy’s bones and muscles ached. He had received multiple nasty hits into the boards from Comeau, the defenseman of the Voyageurs. He also already had sported a bruise on his chin yesterday night from a hit from Shane Hollander that had resulted in him being pushed into Bood’s helmet face first. That had been an awkward ordeal. Hollander had stolen the puck from him that way and scored the final goal that locked in the Centaur’s 4–1 loss.
Troy groaned while pushing away the covers. Harris’s side of the bed was already cold. He must’ve woken up early. He heard the clanking of pots and pans and humming from the nearby kitchen. He pulled on a pair of sweatpants and a hoodie to fight the cold and followed the scent of baked goods.
„Morning,“ Troy said in a gruff sleepy voice. That startled Harris. He recovered fast and smiled broadly.
„Hello. Sleep well?“ He kneaded dough on the counter. In front of him was a deep dish with apple filling that Harris had prepared the day before.
„Like a rock. Montreal destroyed us yesterday. I’m glad we have PTs. I fear otherwise I wouldn’t have been able to get up this morning.“ Troy sat down in the chair closest to Harris with a groan. Harris didn’t have one of those open kitchens with bar stools. His kitchen was a bit smaller and kind of cluttered with stuff. „Can I help you?“
„No, I’m fine. Everything is pretty much done. This—“he pointed towards the apple pie „—needs to go into the oven like an hour before they arrive. I swapped out the sugar with sweetener though so we can all eat it.“ Ilya had sent Harris an extensive list with no-go foods for their potluck. Troy had a glance at it and wasn’t able to figure out the common denominator, except maybe unhealthy? Everything good, sugary and fatty would not be served today. But somehow also banana porridge was on the list and a specific brand of milk. Maybe Jane was some fitness influencer that meticulously tracked her food and was in fear of bloating? One of his former teammates in Toronto had a girlfriend like that. Troy didn’t know if they were still together. He hoped not but he also didn’t keep track on his previous team except for their on-ice performance. She was a lovely woman. Very kind and truly altruistic. Troy always felt that she had evolved into this kind of influencer for that relationship and was pushed into that lifestyle. He told himself to check on her later.
Troy stretched out his spine with a few cracks, then slumped back into the chair. „I feel old,“ he complained. Harris laughed at his antics. He placed the dough in strips over the apple pie and swiped his hands on his apron. It left white flour marks. „Ah, you could get the juice from outside so it can thaw,“ Harris ordered him. He nodded. Harris had placed some of the juice bottles from his family’s orchard on the balcony as to have fresh cold juice without using fridge space. Troy brushed off some snow off the bottles and brought in two of them. They were a bit frozen but not completely solid. But the things on the balcony rarely froze thoroughly. He placed them on the dinner table and began to pull out plates, cutlery and mugs for the four of them.
„You’re the best,“ Harris told him. He snaked his arms around Troy’s waist after he placed the dish in the oven. Harris planted soft kisses onto Troy’s neck. Troy hummed contently and pushed himself into Harris hug. Harris’s hands wandered up his chest, then down and below his hoodie and up again. His hands were warm against Troy’s skin.
„Maybe we should cancel the brunch,“ Troy suggested. With his eyes closed he savored the touch.
„Aren’t you curious who Ilya’s significant other is? And I didn’t make that pie to only have it for the two of us.“
„Of course I want to know!“ Troy grumbled. „But why did we say yes to a brunch after a game against Montreal, again?“
„You forgot.“ Harris squeezed his chest. Troy huffed out air.
„I know. Don’t remind me.“ Troy turned in Harris’s embrace to face him. He had some apple sauce on his cheek and Troy kissed it away. He hummed. Even though the sugar was missing the filling was sweet and delicious. Harris had obviously combined sweeteners to avoid the recognizable taste of one sweetener alone. He pressed his lips on Harris’s. He also tasted like apple pie filling and coffee. They deepened the kiss and Troy swept his tongue around Harris’s. His hands wandered up Troy’s back and Troy planted his hands on Harris’s butt.
„As much as I like this, we should get dressed,“ Harris said between kisses.
The timer for the pie went off the same time as the doorbell rang. „Can you open them? I’ll get the pie,“ Harris said, his hands already stuffed into oven mittens.
„You’ll be fine, moya lyubov,“ a distinctive Russian voice said calmly before Troy could open the door the whole way. Ilya grinned at him and next to him was Shane fucking Hollander? His hands were clutched around the handle of a tote bag that was filled to the brim. His lips were pressed into a shy smile and a slight flush was on his face. He and Ilya stood closely next to each other in Harris’s doorway.
„Hi. Barrett, you know Shane Hollander. Shane, you know Troy Barrett,“ Ilya introduced them with a vague hand gesture pointing between them. Roz beamed and his whole body seemed to buzz. Troy opened his mouth but was unable to speak. He squinted. His brain wanted to find a solution that made sense on why Shane Hollander was standing next to his captain in the hallway of Harris’s apartment for a brunch intended to meet Ilya’s girlfriend. He came back blank. No solution in sight. Harris was suddenly behind him and place a hand on Troy’s back.
„Don’t you want to invite them in?“ Harris said and stretched out his other hand toward Shane Hollander. He shook it. „I’m Harris.“
„Shane.“
„Ilya,“ Ilya said in the same tone and stretched out his hand towards Troy. That startled him out of his stupor. Ilya and Harris cackled over Troy’s reaction.
„Come, moya lyubov. You can put your shoes over there,“ Ilya said, wriggled himself through the gap between Troy and the doorframe and pointed towards the place where Harris kept all his footwear. He shrugged off his sneakers and jacket. Shane followed him after Troy stepped out of the way.
Ilya helped Harris serving the food. They brought some kind of spicy quinoa salat with bell peppers and spring onions, avocados, cloud bread and kimuchi (which Troy learned was the Japanese version of kimchi). Troy and Shane were already seated in front of each other at the dinner table. Shane scooted in his chair.
„Your goal yesterday was really good. How you faked a slap shot and then went for the backhand? I was impressed,“ Shane began. Troy blinked at him. Did he really get a compliment from Shane Hollander? Three-time Stanley cup winner Shane Hollander?
„Ehm, thank you.“ Troy’s face felt hot.
„Boring!“ Ilya exclaimed. „Shane’s being polite. Normally he would brag about his hat trick and his zero penalties.“ He clapped his hand on Shane’s shoulder before he sat down with a strawberry in his other hand. Some juice was running down his hand and he licked it off.
„Not everyone is proud to be sent to the sin bin.“
„Yeah, yeah. Fucking Comeau deserved it.“ Ilya had punched him after one of the various illegal hits against their teammates that the refs were too fucking blind to see. Troy wasn’t sure but he thought it was after one targeted at Haas.
„We talked about this,“ Shane said sternly. Roz pouted. Troy shook his head. What was happening? They all bickered a bit about yesterday’s game. Harris joined in and offered everyone coffee. Troy saw Shane observe the situation quietly from time to time and not joining the conversation. Harris recognized this too and always pulled Shane back into it with ease. God, he loved Harris and his easy going nature.
„Harris, where is your bathroom?“ Shane asked at some point. Harris pointed down the hall and gave a short description. Shane thanked him and excused himself.
„Why did you bring Shane Hollander?“, Troy hissed as soon as he heard the lock of the bathroom door click shut. „I thought you would bring Jane.“ Roz shrugged. Harris giggled. Why did he giggle? This wasn’t funny.
„Did she stand you up?“ Troy asked. He was frustrated and kind of mad that Jane would cancel on Ilya last minute.
„Oh, no. Not at all.“ He had a smug grin on his face. Troy glared at his captain. Then Shane was already back. Ilya reached out to him. His long arm stretched out. Shane stepped towards him also reaching out. The gesture resembled the famous ceiling painting of Adam and god from the Sistine Chapel. It was soft and tender. It wasn’t like Roz at all—at least not if dogs weren’t involved.
„Did I miss something?“ Shane asked. He stepped around Ilya and sat back in his seat.
„Just Troy stepping in the dark,“ Harris answered.
„Okay you totally lost me. I’m sorry, Shane. I’m really happy that you’re here and it’s really nice to meet you off the ice but we invited Roz and his girlfriend. And then you show up. I’m so confused.“ This was so fucking frustrating. Shane laughed.
„Girlfriend? What did Ilya say exactly?“ Shane asked for clarification. Troy huffed.
„Ehm, that he would bring Jane but had to ask her before because they don’t see each other often. But then he sent this whole ass list with things she wouldn’t eat and I really thought he would bring her.“ Shane‘s face fell soft. He turned to Roz with a smile. Troy squinted his eyes.
„Oh, he never said any gendered pronouns, Troy,“ Harris clarified. Roz‘s grin grew bigger. „Jane was clearly in the loop here.“ Harris emphasized the name and then it dawned on Troy. Jane—Shane. Fuck, he was an idiot. With a loud whack Troy let his forehead land on the table. Oh god, that actually hurt! But he deserved that. He snapped his head back up.
„I’m so sorry! I really didn’t get it sooner. Congratulations, I guess. I’m actually really happy for you!“ He looked Ilya straight in his face. That smug little asshole. Then it hit him again „Fuck! I wanted to ask you for his number when I came out to you. That would’ve been fucking embarrassing!“ Ilya cackled loudly almost like a hyena.
„Yes, Barrett, that would’ve been fucking embarrassing. I’m quite possessive.“ Ilya reached for Shane‘s hand and they weaved their fingers together.
„How long have you been together?“ Harris asked.
„Officially since summer 2017. On and off, since before our rookie season,“ Shane answered. Troy‘s jaw fell open. He calculated back. That was over a decade. Fuck! He snapped his head to his own boyfriend.
„You knew!“ he accused him with a pointed finger.
„I assumed, yes. I wasn’t sure until Shane stood in my doorway. It kind of dawned on me with the alias Jane. But it was also not really my secret to tell.“ Troy gasped. He jumped from his seat, surrounded the table and then pulled Roz into a hug. He was taken by surprise but ultimately reciprocated it warmly.
„Oh, god, I’m so happy for you guys!“ He went back to his seat. Shane lowered his voice and said something in Russian. Troy groaned.
„Of course he speaks Russian. You definitely deserve all the fandom you have.“ Shane blushed. Even his ears turned red.
„Only a bit. I’m still very much learning and Ilya is only teaching me shit like ‚my lawnmower‘.“ Ilya gave him a scolding look.
Then they fell into a full discussion in Russian and both Troy and Harris only looked at each other. It sounded a lot like bickering and there seemed to be no real malicious heat. Then Shane‘s face went an even darker shade of red if even possible.
„Well, point proven. You can definitely follow a conversation, Shane,“ Harris remarked.
„Okay, maybe,“ Shane grumbled. Ilya grinned proudly.
„What were you saying?“ Harris was fucking nosy.
„Shane was just surprised I remembered to sent you his no-go food list. Well, actually, he was surprised that I have a no-go food list for him.“ He turned to Shane. „I wanted you to feel save. I know for sure that heavenly smelling apple pie is Shane-safe.“ Harris nodded.
„It is. No cane sugar, no high fructose corn syrup, no self-rising flour, cardamom instead of cinnamon. A blend of different HPFB approved sweeteners to imitate sugar—not too sweet though.“
„See, they’re not like Montreal. People here care about you even if they don’t know you.“ Ilya gave Shane a soft kiss on his temple. Troy felt all mushy inside at their sight.
„Montreal didn’t react too good on your coming out, I guess,“ Harris assumed. Shane shook his head.
„They’re not actively hostile—“ Roz tilted his head at that with a sour face „—but they also didn’t take it well,“ Shane admitted.
„Yeah. Montreal didn’t take it well. I had to eat your fucking face in front of Pike and his wife so Pike would believe you and not think you—of all people—pranked him like those 90s/2000s TV shows. He asked if cameras would jump out of bushes,“ Ilya reminded Shane. Shane lowered his gaze.
„Oh, Montreal already knows about you two?“ Troy asked. Shane shook his head.
„No, only Hayden. I think the other guys would react even worse.“ Shane looked sad. Ilya ran his fingers lightly across Shane‘s cheek. He leaned into Ilya‘s touch.
„You two are too cute,“ Harris cooed. „We should eat the pie.“ He left the table and dished the apple pie onto four plates and instead of directly serving whipped cream with it, he brought a separate dish for it.
They were all gathered in the small hallway, the door open and Shane and Ilya on their way.
„Well, this was way less awkward than when Hayden found out,“ Shane said and smiled. „Thank you for having us. Next time we will invite you for dinner in Montreal. You can mourn your loss over another apple pie.“ Shane tapped his breast pocket where he had put the paper with the recipe Harris had written down for him. Even though Shane had declared that Ilya would bake it as Shane would probably burn it. „Thanks again for the recipe, Harris.“
„Of course.“ Harris engulfed first Shane and then Ilya into a warm hug. Troy fist bumped them. Ilya beamed and slung his arm around Shane’s waist. Before the door fell shut Troy could hear Ilya say „We won’t loose though. We will beat your ass and then I’ll eat it.“ Well, Troy would have to live with this image now. Harris bellowed out a laugh. Troy didn’t want to have it any other way.