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They always have been watching, and they always will be watching. It was just part of their life, and they both had gotten used to it.
It didn't mean Shane had to like it. Eyes had been on him since he was a teenager, scrutinizing every move he made, taking apart every public moment of his life.
He managed to build a public persona and maintain it for years, the Golden Boy of Canada and all that. And then the fanmail leak happened, and everything went to hell.
It had been a terrible couple of months, the media pressure and the whole 'trip-gate'… but it did turn out better than Shane had expected. He was out, he was proud, and he was playing on the same team as his husband. Giving up the C wasn't easy, but it was worth it.
And now here they were, on their first proper vacation together, as a couple.
It was Ilya's idea, of course, the whole trip. He had asked Shane what he thought about not going to the cottage for the whole summer.
"Come on, I finally have my flashy Canadian passport. And there is this five-star resort in Fiji I always wanted to go to. It has its own lagoon access, very private. Very pretty."
"And very expensive, I bet. I don't know what's wrong with the cottage. It's free, it has its own lake, and it's super private."
"Come oooon, Shane. We can more than afford it. We are millionaires. Don't be so boring, live a little."
And because Shane could very rarely say no to his husband, they were soon on their way to Fiji, on their first public vacation. Thankfully, the place was far enough away and secluded enough for people who didn't really care about hockey. Their usual incognito baseball cap-sunglasses combo did the trick and got them to the resort in relative privacy.
"You have to admit, it's very pretty," Ilya said as they arrived at their room. Well, it was more like a whole villa all for themselves, but Ilya never really cared about semantics.
Shane reluctantly agreed, already unpacking their suitcases. "I just think we could have used the money for more important things. Like the charity we run, or do you need to be reminded how important our cause is?"
Ilya pulled him close and wrapped his arms around his neck. "Solnyshko, when was last time you did something for yourself? You deserve this. We deserve this. We had one hell of a year, but now I can show off my hot as fuck husband, and I will enjoy every minute of it."
Shane smiled softly, reaching up to press a soft peck on Ilya's lips. "I have a hot husband too, what a coincidence."
"Come on, husband. The unpacking can wait. Let's check out the laguna."
It was nice, Shane had to admit. The sky and the water were a very special hue of blue. There were people around, but it wasn't very crowded, so they did easily secure a pair of lounge beds. Instead of taking the other one, Ilya sat down behind Shane, his arms already around his waist and his face in the crook of his neck.
"Ilya, what are you doing?"Shane asked, flustered, trying to wiggle out of Ilya's hold.
"Enjoying the fact that I can do this now." Ilya peppered kisses up and down Shane's spine. "I spent too much time loving you in the dark. It's nice to do it in the light."
Shane could feel his heart squeezing, and he turned his head sideways so he could look behind his shoulder.
"We both deserve sunshine."