Work Text:
The camera powers into life.
Two relatively recognisable teenage girls, one with dense auburn curls and striking hazel eyes, the other dark hair with bright blue eyes. Both pretty. Nothing in physically in common to explain the reason for this video.
The auburn curls is older, protectively leaning over the other girl by habit and instinct rather than force. The more you look at the younger of the two the more you realise that they are not a teenager despite her significant height, her face makes you believe she’s no older than 11.
“Hello I am Irina Rozanov!” The elder of the two cheerily announced, the younger needed a gentle prompt,
“And I’m Maya Hollander-Landry!”
“And we’re step-sisters twice over! Long story short story time we’re explaining our parents almost love square!” Irina laughed as Maya readied the visual prompts.
A whiteboard is lifted into the camera view and four photos are pinned to the board:
Ilya Rozanov
Svetlana Vetrova
Shane Hollander
Rose Landry
Maya pops the lid off the whiteboard pen and writes beside each name:
Ilya Rozanov - papa
Svetlana Vetrova - mama
Shane Hollander - dad
Rose Landry - mum
Irina draws a thick line between Ilya and Svetlana before clearing her throat to begin,
“Papa and mama met as children and grew up together, they entered an arranged marriage in name and Russia only when Papa was drafted to the NHL. They were 19 when they got married,”
Maya picked up, “Irina was born when they were 20. But this is where daddy comes in!”
“Yes. Papa and Mama were a lavender marriage and both had extra marital affairs which is where,” Irina dramatically draws another different colour line to Shane, “Dad comes in,”
“Dad and Papa met in Saskatchewan in 2009 for the International Prospect Cup but it takes until June 2010 for them to actually start dating,” Maya smiled sweetly.
Irina leaned over her to the camera to hold up a little sign that reads: ‘they were hooking up not dating but she doesn’t know that yet’ the sign disappeared as quickly as it reappeared.
“Anyways it stays like this for six years! That is when they break up and Dad meets and starts dating Mum,” she turns to Maya, “And that is how we got this little trouble!” Maya grinned sweetly,
“But then grandpa died in March 2017, so,” she creates intentional holes between Ilya and Svetlana and Shane and Rose, “Both relationships come to there natural conclusion, Papa and Mama get their marriage annulled then Dad and Mum break up. Leaving them all single.”
Maya doesn’t really remember the next bit as she was less than a year old when 2017 came around so she’s nodding to everything Irina is saying.
“So Dad and Papa reconnect. It’s also the summer that Scott came out, we love you Kip but your dating a dinosaur,” yeah she’s her father’s daughter Irina, “Dad invites Papa to the cottage for the summer and that is when Maya and I meet and Mama and Mum meet.”
New lines are redrawn on the board, lines between Shane and Ilya then Svetlana and Rose. Irina has several photos from that summer despite only just being six she remembers it well and loved having baby Maya around. But in the background of every one their parents were falling in love.
What started as a community of shared parenting with children who liked each other became Shane and Ilya, Rose and Svetlana. It did take a bit of getting used to from both children. Ilya and Shane no longer deny the magnetic connection between them getting married in 2020 with their daughters as bridesmaids.
Rose and Svetlana took more time, they had arranged custody with the boys so that the girls could be together at theirs then come back to their respective mother’s homes. What started as wine nights to not go insane when the girls are with the boys became a little more each time, in the boys defence Rose and Svetlana took just as long to name their relationship, getting married themselves in 2022.
The girls are step-sisters twice over and frankly it’s cute.
There is some adult talk in the background about more siblings joining the girls but it’s a subject for another time as there is no way they’d be able to separate the siblings like that.
“Yeah so that is how our parents pretty much have a love square!” Irina laughed scuffling up Maya’s hair only for Anya to go running over trying to join in on the playtime.