Rating:

General Audiences

Archive Warning:

No Archive Warnings Apply

Category:

M/M

Fandoms:

Heated Rivalry (TV), Game Changers Series - Rachel Reid

Relationships:

Shane Hollander & Hayden Pike, Shane Hollander/Ilya Rozanov, Cliff Marlow | Cliff Marleau & Ilya Rozanov

Characters:

Hayden Pike, Shane Hollander, Carter Vaughn, Cliff Marlow | Cliff Marleau, Ilya Rozanov

Additional Tags:

Good Friend Hayden Pike, POV Hayden Pike, Hayden Pike Finds Out About Shane Hollander/Ilya Rozanov, Episode: s01e05 I'll Believe in Anything (Heated Rivalry), Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, POV Ilya Rozanov, Cliff Marlow | Cliff Marleau Finds Out About Shane Hollander/Ilya Rozanov

Language:

English

Stats:

Published: 2026-02-21 Completed: 2026-02-27 Words: 10,168 Chapters: 2/2

all-stars weekend, 2017

Summary

“I saw you with Rozanov earlier,” he mentions, trying to sound casual. “I was surprised he wasn’t immediately telling you how weak your backhand is.”

Shane grins a little. “Oh, do you also think my backhand is weak, Hayden?”

Well, it’s not the best part of Shane’s hockey skillset, but Hayden assumes that Shane knows this too. “I don’t think there’s anything about the way you play hockey that anyone should consider weak,” he says.

“Thanks, Hayden,” Shane replies genuinely, like he isn’t the best player in the NHL. “Rozanov was fine. We were just catching up.”

Does anyone just catch up with Ilya Rozanov? Is that possible without him chirping you? Hayden has never experienced this.

Hayden is invited to his first All-Stars game in 2017 and he is very excited to go. As he gets to know the All-Stars from the other teams, makes fast friends with Carter Vaughn and even admits that Boston is kind of good, he also accidentally discovers that Shane is in a relationship. With Ilya Rozanov.

In chapter 2, Ilya deals with the consequences of Hayden finding out as he slowly befriends Hayden, though he will of course deny this.

Notes

So my beta reader challenged me to write a Hayden-POV fic a couple of weeks ago and then the Monday Megathread on the Heated Rivalry Fanfic Reddit was for Hayden (hi to all following along there!), so here we are. Our boy is an All-Star now! (Ilya is flabbergasted).

Chapter 1: all-stars weekend, 2017

Hayden is invited to All-Star Weekend for the first time. He reckons it’s old hat to most of the other players by now, but since this is his first time he’s genuinely excited. He can’t wait to hang out with the other players, play in the skill games and of course play the game, which has for once been divided up between the two conferences. 

He knows he’s not the best player on the Voyageurs. Shane is on another level and Hayden genuinely believes his teammate and friend is the best ice hockey player in the NHL right now. Hayden is not a flashy player or someone especially fun to watch. He’s not good at anything in particular. The reason he made it all the way into a Stanley Cup winning team is because he’s dependable and solid. He works hard, puts in the hours and always reaches a certain level of play no matter how the others are doing.

Admittedly, this season has been his best season stats-wise so far. It’s also not been Shane’s best season so far, who has been a bit more erratic and would be the first one to admit that too, so the focus shifts a bit more to others like Hayden. He can’t say he minds it and that he’s not enjoying it, because he is. It’s nice to be noticed and recognised! Hayden doesn’t think there’s anything wrong with that.

Plus, it’s hard not to notice how pleased Shane is for him and how he almost seems relieved when one of the members of PR comes into the dressing room asking for Hayden instead of Shane. Hayden never wanted Shane to carry the press burden alone most of the time and he’s happy he’s being allowed to step in more. 

“You’ve picked a great first year to be selected for All-Stars, Hayd,” Shane tells him as they board the plane together and sit down. “It’ll be great to be in Florida.”

It’s been freezing in Montreal for what feels like weeks now, so Hayden is also looking forward to a few days of sun. Unfortunately their schedule of away games hasn’t flown them towards any warmer destinations recently either. 

“Was Jackie very disappointed that she couldn’t make it?” Shane wonders.

“She told me she’ll come next time,” Hayden says with a light smile. He appreciates that his wife thinks he’ll make it to the All-Stars game for a second time. 

Jackie was very happy for Hayden when he told her he’d been selected for the All-Stars Weekend. Of course he wanted her to come as well, but Jackie had been more pragmatic about the decision and reasoned that with her pregnancy and the three other kids it made more sense for her to stay in Montreal this time. 

Hayden knows he’s going to miss her terribly and that he’ll video call her every day. He also knows that it’s nice to have a few days to himself with the best players in the league.

Besides, with his romantic partner absent he does at leave have his partner in hockey with him. There’s no one else who he’d rather be with for his first All-Star Weekend.

Shane nods. “Next year, then,” he says with all the conviction that a best friend could muster, which in Shane’s case was always genuine. “I am assuming the NHL will realise Florida is a great hit so they’ll host it here next year too.”

Hayden concludes, not for the first time and definitely not for the last time, that he got so lucky that the Montreal Voyageurs drafted him. It gave him the career he dreamed of, it means he met the woman of his dreams and it even gave him a best friend who is ever-supportive. 

“Any state with temperatures above Montreal’s average will be nice,” Hayden agrees. Thinking of Jackie still, he asks Shane: “Did you talk to Rose at all?”

Shane recently broke up with Rose Landry after a couple of months of dating. Most people are still speculating about it and Hayden doesn’t doubt Shane will get that from the other hockey players as well. He told Hayden after a recent game that they weren’t compatible. Hayden guesses the nature of their careers means they just couldn’t make it work. 

“I messaged her today,” Shane says. “She’s jealous we’re going to Florida as well.”

“We? You and me, we? You mentioned me to Rose Landry?” Hayden is putting just a bit more emphasis on his excitement of being known by Rose, because he knows that Shane will find it amusing.

According to his grin he does find it amusing. He lightly shoves Hayden. “Be normal, Hayd. She is just a friend.”

“Please tell me about the next famous person you’re going to date, Shane, so I can practice being normal about it.”

Hayden expects Shane to tell him to shut up because he has no plans of ever dating anyone famous again, or perhaps to point out that Shane is actually famous as well. Shane doesn’t have much of an ego about being recognised, but he is aware that others would categorise him as a ‘famous person’. 

Instead, Shane looks away from him the moment he finishes his sentence. Hayden swears Shane’s cheeks are turning red.  

“Shane?” Hayden asks slowly. “Are you seeing someone else that’s famous?”

“No,” is the instant reply, only for it to be softened  with, “I’m not seeing anyone right now, I swear.”

“I believe you,” Hayden says cautiously, sensing the conversation suddenly became a lot more loaded. “But if you were, I would be happy for you. No matter who it is. Regardless of whether they’re famous or not.”

It’s enough to make Shane glance back at him and smile. “Thank you, Hayden,” he says. “I’m really not. But if I am, I would tell you.”

Hayden has to trust Shane will tell him. Shane is very good at keeping his cards close to his chest, so Hayden sincerely hopes that when the time comes that he has something to tell, that he will actually do so. 

 

---

 

They are among the last players to show up at the hotel. They get their room keys and head over to their rooms. Hayden takes his time changing his clothes and getting cleaned up before heading back downstairs to greet his teammates for the weekend, so he’s not surprised that Shane beat him to it.

What he is surprised by is where he finds Shane. He’s sitting at the bar with Ilya Rozanov.

Is this what happens during All-Star Weekend? Do sworn rivals become friends? 

Hayden swears he’s never seen Shane exchange a single civil sentence with Rozanov before, never mind an entire conversation. Yet that’s exactly what’s happening in front of him. Both Shane and Rozanov are sipping from their drinks and at some point Rozanov starts to laugh at something Shane says. Shane doesn’t seem to mind Rozanov’s laughter, though.

Carter Vaughn, a right-wing player from the New York Admirals, appears beside Hayden. He witnesses the bizarre spectacle unfolding in front of their eyes alongside him for a moment before breaking the silence.

“Pike!” he says cheerfully. “Good to see you, man!”

“You too, Vaughn!” Hayden replies, accepting the handshake and subsequent half-hug.

“So that’s rare, isn’t it?” Vaughn asks, indicating Shane and Rozanov. “You would know. You share a locker room with one half of that rivalry.”

“This is very rare,” Hayden is quick to agree, thankful that someone else is seeing the same thing he is. He’s not hallucinating, then. “They don’t like each other at all. Shane is always mentioning how much he can’t stand Rozanov.”

Vaughn nods in agreement. “Scotty can’t stand him either,” he says, obviously meaning the Admirals captain Scott Hunter. “I imagine he’s good to have on your team, though. We’re finally going to be playing with him in the game at least, so maybe we can see some of it up close.”

For the first time since Hayden played in the league, the NHL decided they’re not doing Team Europe vs Team America anymore. Instead they’ve gone back to the conference format that Hayden thinks a lot more people will be interested in. At some point people will have had enough of Hollander vs Rozanov and will just want to see the players of the teams that are rivals playing with each other, rather than mixing them all up.

It does mean that Shane and him, and Vaughn and Hunter as well, are going to be playing on the same team as Rozanov. 

“Maybe that’s why Shane is being friendly,” Hayden offers. “He knows they’re going to have to play together. I assume he also knows that none of us particularly like him. Someone has to play nice.”

It’s typical of Shane, who is chosen to be the captain of the Eastern conference team, to get a headstart on team bonding. Shane hates losing and won’t want to lose in the game against the Western conference either. Rozanov might be very annoying, but he is also a very good player to have on your side.

“I’d rather it’s him than Scott,” Vaughn says with a grin. “Do you want to go and find the others? We should grab a drink too.”

That’s a plan Hayden can definitely agree with. He joins Vaughn, who has clearly done this before, and after a stop at the bar (definitely not the one that Shane and Rozanov are still talking at) they mingle with the other players. 

 

---

 

Hayden gets a chance to ask Shane about Rozanov after their team dinner. They head out and back to their rooms at the same time. Rozanov had only made one jab about Hayden’s selection for All-Star Weekend, so Hayden guesses he’s feeling nice.

“I saw you with Rozanov earlier,” he mentions, trying to sound casual. “I was surprised he wasn’t immediately telling you how weak your backhand is.”

Shane grins a little. “Oh, do you also think my backhand is weak, Hayden?”

Well, it’s not the best part of Shane’s hockey skillset, but Hayden assumes that Shane knows this too. “I don’t think there’s anything about the way you play hockey that anyone should consider weak,” he says.

“Thanks, Hayden,” Shane replies genuinely, like he isn’t the best player in the NHL. “Rozanov was fine. We were just catching up.”

Does anyone just catch up with Ilya Rozanov? Is that possible without him chirping you? Hayden has never experienced this.

“And how was he?” Hayden asks.

For some reason, that gives Shane pause. “I guess he was mostly asking about me,” he says. “He’s not a guy that talks very easily.”

All Hayden saw that night was Ilya Rozanov talking. One minute he was making fun of Scott Hunter’s age to his face and the next he was asking Vaughn about Gloria, his girlfriend, like he actually cared about that at all. The next time Hayden listened in after that he was trash talking Toronto’s team with a player from Toronto sitting three seats away from him and then he somehow had to mention he had the best hotel room of them all, at a corner on the twelfth floor. 

“He’s a dick,” Hayden says, like it’s an inevitable conclusion. To him, it is.

To Shane, it seemingly isn’t. “He really isn’t so bad,” he protests mildly. “He’s just very…European.”

Hayden has no idea what that means. He doesn’t think Shane is going to get any more specific if he asks, though.    

“I guess that does take some getting used to, after years of playing against the Europeans,” he offers instead, making fun of the Europe vs America format once more.

Shane cracks a grin. “I’m glad they changed it,” he says. “I was getting tired of that format. I think this is better.”

They part ways in the elevator, since they’re both on different floors, and Hayden calls Jackie as he makes his way through the hallway and towards his room.  

By the time he sees Jade and Ruby on the videocall, Hayden has forgotten about Shane’s conversation with Ilya Rozanov. Arthur is already in bed, but the twins insisted on staying up so they could see him before bed. He tells them a bedtime story and sings them a lullaby. 

Once they’re asleep, Jackie and him talk for a while longer. He tells Jackie about the dinner and about how welcoming Vaughn was. Hayden guesses he was somewhat afraid that people were going to act like he didn’t belong at the All-Star Weekend, but between Shane commenting on next year and the others greeting him like an old friend rather than a new face he’s been reassured. 

Hayden falls asleep with Jackie on the phone, still sleeping better with her than without her, and lets the impressions of the day fall away.     

 

---

 

After the skill games and the All-Star game, that the Eastern conference team won, most of the players find each other at the downstairs bar at the hotel for one last drink. Most of their flights leave early in the morning, so there’s not much of a chance for a last catch-up over breakfast. The very early flights also don’t make for ideal conditions to go out, so the hotel bar is a compromise for many of them.

It doesn’t seem like the early flight stopped Ilya Rozanov from going out, though, because he’s nowhere to be found.

“I don’t know about you guys,” one of the defensemen from Ottawa says. “I think if I was on a team with Rozanov full-time, I might really like the guy.”

This remark naturally gets met with some good-natured ribbing and someone calling out ‘you wish!’ from the other end of the table. Hayden is pretty sure that it takes more than Ilya Rozanov to make Ottawa a play-offs contender, but he shouldn’t judge. 

“Dykstra has a point,” Vaughn says. “If he was on our team, we would be defending him. Marlow doesn’t like him as much as he does for nothing. Besides, he’s not a bad guy. He’s just weird.”

“European,” Hayden says what Shane told him at the start of the weekend. 

“Exactly.” Vaughn points at him. “This guy gets it.”

They go for another round. Hayden switches to water and even gets a few players to join him. The rookies and the second year players at least aren’t allowed to drink yet either, so not even half of the table is drinking alcohol at this point. It’s a very sensible group of people. Shane would very much approve, Hayden thinks, but he’s not here either.

That’s something that Scott Hunter points up. “Pike, where’s your boy?” he asks.

“In his hotel room,” Hayden says immediately. “Knowing Shane, he’s studying film. He’s figuring out how we’re going to beat Columbus, I assume.”

“He’s very dedicated,” Hunter says. 

“Just like you,” Vaughn says, clapping Hunter on the back. “And you’re both very focused too. Which is why I was so surprised to hear about Hollander with Rose Landry.”

Vaughn raises his eyebrows speculatively and everyone is looking at Hayden then. It’s not like he’s ever going to tell anyone about what happened with Shane and Rose. He knows very little about it, but he also knows that Shane told him more than he told most people, J.J. and undoubtedly his parents included. Hayden does not intend to break Shane’s trust.

“They were really good together,” Hayden agrees. “But with her shooting schedule and Shane’s dedication to the Voyageurs they couldn’t make it work. They agreed to stay friends. I think they still text.”

“Rose Landry, though,” a player from Columbus says. “I would work the hardest I ever worked to make sure my relationship worked out if I was dating Rose Landry.”

Hayden has heard many chirps by now about how Shane supposedly ‘fumbled’ Rose Landry, never mind that it was an adult, mutual decision on their side. He understands that Rose is universally beloved and considered to be attractive, but it should matter far more that Shane and Rose couldn’t make it work, discussed this and came to the conclusion they should be friends.

Thankfully he doesn’t have to think of something witty to say, because a defenseman from Pittsburgh says “And that’s why he’s going to beat you in the next game!” and the rest of them laugh.

The conversation naturally goes back into hockey then, a topic Hayden is far more comfortable with. They discuss who they think are likely contenders for the play-offs and who they think should, not will, win the Cup, if they can’t pick their own teams. Hayden doesn’t like it, but he honestly and begrudgingly picks Boston, and gets the appropriate amount of laughter for it. 

 

---

 

When he returns to his hotel room it’s still early enough to be considered a reasonable hour, though he definitely missed Jade and Ruby’s bedtime. Maybe Jackie is still up so he can call her, though. He missed her badly, like he always does when he’s on the road and is caught in a quiet moment like this.

He walks into the hallway from the elevator and, much to Hayden’s surprise, finds Shane exiting a room.  Shane’s hotel room isn’t on this floor. Shane looks wrecked in the best way possible. It’s not something that Hayden has ever even seen hints of with Shane before. Shane is a very composed and put together person normally. He doesn’t think Shane wants anyone seeing him like this either. 

Oddly, he also looks wrecked in the worst way possible, like something is heavily weighing on him that he can’t shake. He’s clearly going through something. Hayden wants to ask him about it and see if there’s anything he or maybe Jackie can do. 

Then he hears Shane tell the person in the hotel room goodbye. “Good night Ilya,” he says in an undertone Hayden has never heard before. The closest tone he remembers is when Shane talks to his children, but it’s not nearly the same. It’s very fond.

Ilya. Rozanov. 

Who is in a hotel room on the same floor as Hayden. Who Shane has been talking to. Who obnoxiously kissed Shane on his cheek when he assisted a goal Shane scored during the game. And who was notably absent, just like Shane, when they gathered at the hotel bar earlier.  

Shane is dating Ilya Rozanov. That’s where he keeps disappearing whenever they play in Boston. That’s why he never sticks around when they play Boston in Montreal. And that’s who is saved in his phone as Lily. 

The door closes. Shane turns and spots Hayden immediately. 

Hayden spots the flash of panic on Shane’s face. It’s a blink and you miss it expression, one he can only recognise because he’s seen it on Shane before. If it were anyone else walking into Shane they would probably have believed whatever excuse Shane is currently coming up with, because they don’t know him. But Hayden does.

“Rozanov and I were just -” Shane starts.

Hayden shakes his head. “You don’t have to tell me,” he blurts out, interrupting Shane’s excuse. “If you don’t want to.” He needs to do better than that, so he clears his throat and continues. “But I meant what I said on the plane, Shane. I am happy for you if you’re seeing someone. No matter who it is.”

Mostly, he cannot overemphasize how weirded out he is by this turn of events, but he can’t say that out loud right now. Shane looks terrified. Hayden’s first response is clearly crucial and he’s afraid he’s fucking it up. 

“Are you…are you sure?” Shane asks, looking him up and down.

Hayden can work with that. “Of course,” he says immediately. “I care about you and I want you to be happy. If Roza- I mean, if someone is making you happy, then I support that.”

“Right,” Shane says, breathing out deeply. He looks like he’s sensing a crisis has been averted at the last minute. “Okay. We should... Should we talk about this? Do you want to talk about this?”

“Let’s talk in my room,” Hayden says.

He’s half-convinced Rozanov can hear this conversation word for word at the other side of the wall and is laughing at both of them. He definitely knows that they shouldn’t be doing this in a hotel hallway where any hotel guest, but also any of this year’s NHL All-Stars, can just walk in at any moment.

Shane nods weakly, which Hayden takes to mean that he agrees they need to get out of here. Hayden quickly makes his way to his own hotel room, unlocks the door and lets Shane in first. 

Because they’re leaving first thing in the morning Hayden already tidied up most things. The clothes that were thrown over the armchair in the corner in the morning have already been put back in his bag and the bed has been made by housekeeping. Hayden indicated the armchair so Shane can sit and sits down on the bed himself, turning towards Shane. 

“So you and Rozanov?” Hayden asks, breaking the silence that threatens to linger. 

“No,” Shane says, then backtracks immediately. “Yes. But it’s not what it looks like, Hayd, I swear.”

Hayden, to be honest, has no idea what it looks like. His mind has been coming up with possibilities, the one more insane than the next, since he saw Shane leave Rozanov’s room. He knows that Shane is in a relationship of some sort with Rozanov, but it’s all blanks otherwise. 

Shane’s shoulders are hunched inward and he seems to be curling up on himself, looking a lot smaller than he is in the armchair. It’s a contrast to what he looked like when he came out of Rozanov’s hotel room, when he was a lot more loose-limbed. Hayden really doesn’t want to know what happened in that hotel room between Shane and Rozanov, but it had clearly done Shane a lot of good. He isn’t relaxing anymore, that’s for sure.

“How long?” Hayden ends up asking in the end, though he can make an educated guess.

Shane makes a low noise in the back of his throat. “I - I don’t know. I don’t know what it is now. I don’t know what we’ve been.”

That gets Hayden’s defenses up immediately. “Is he leading you on?” He pauses to think about the last couple of months, about Rose, and adds, frowning: “Were you leading him on?”

“No,” Shane says before burying his head in his hands. “It’s complicated, Hayden. We hurt each other before. I recognise that now. But we’re trying -” The words are muffled and Hayden hears him sigh. “We’re trying,” Shane decides.

Hayden isn’t good at this. Shane never talks about relationships with Hayden. In fact, the only one that talks about relationships with him on any sort of deeper level is Jackie. She always knows the news about his teammates’ relationships before he does, so he goes into the locker room prepared.

This is the time to start learning, though. Shane needs him to get this right.

“Let’s uncomplicate it,” Hayden says, trying to get through this conversation by trying to figure out what Jackie would do. Jackie would narrow it down to the gist, he thinks. “You care about him, right?”

“Yes, I care about him,” Shane confirms, still talking in his hands.

“And Rozanov -”

“Ilya,” Shane corrects him, so muffled Hayden can hardly hear him.

“And Ilya cares about you.” It’s more a statement than a question in this case.

“Yes, I think so,” Shane says. 

It can’t be that simple. Hayden knows that. But why can’t they at least use that as a starting point and go from there? Hayden is going to have to take weeks to wrap his head around the idea of Shane and Rozanov together, but what matters far more is that Shane has been in some sort of relationship with Rozanov for years and has always hidden it. Hayden can process this complicated tangle later. It doesn’t need a definition right now. He needs to untangle it with Shane first, because Shane seems to be spiraling. 

“Does anyone else know?” Hayden tries. “About the two of you?”

Shane finally lifts his head again, though he doesn’t look at Hayden for longer than a few seconds. “No,” he says. “Just me and him. And you, now. And I guess Jackie when you’re going to tell her later.”

Shane is right and Shane knows he’s right, but Hayden is going to protest it regardless. “If you don’t want me to tell Jackie, I won’t tell her,” he says. “But she can keep a secret. She would never tell anyone, Shane.”

He nods a little, still looking miserable. “It’s just -” he starts and pauses, fidgeting with a loose thread on one of the pillows against the back of the armchair. “It’s not safe for Ilya to go back to Russia if it ever comes out that he’s with me.”

It’s not just the NHL then, Hayden realises. The NHL is enough of a reason for Shane and Rozanov to want to keep the relationship under wraps until they have it figured out and know what they want, but Russia’s policies complicate things much further. 

Shane seems to take Hayden’s silence as an invitation to continue. “Ilya also mentioned that his father is sick and I think he’s downplaying it. So he has to be able to go back to Russia, for when he needs to.”

Well, Shane is definitely deeper in this than Hayden anticipated if they’re already talking about their families and Shane can tell when Rozanov is downplaying something. This is something he can uncomplicate for Shane, though.

He moves to the edge of the bed so his knees almost touch Shane’s and clears his throat.

“Rozanov will be able to go back to Russia when he needs to, Shane,” he says. “No one is going to find out about this, whatever this is, until you decide you want them to. It’s been years,” he shudders to think how many years, being honest, “and no one found out. That’s not about to change. You will be fine. Rozanov will be fine.”

“Do you really think so?” Shane asks, sounding hopeful. 

“Yes, I really think so.” 

No one is going to guess Shane and Rozanov are together. It’s such an unlikely situation that Hayden didn’t realise it until it was happening in front of his eyes, and even then he was still looking for alternative reasons. Even now he’s only eighty percent sure that this is real. The other twenty percent of him assumes he’s asleep and about to wake up from this very strange dream.

“So you’re okay with me being gay?” Shane asks, voice sounding small.

“Of course,” Hayden replies immediately. That’s a question that doesn’t need any second thought. He doesn’t consider it something for him to be okay with, but that’s semantics that Shane doesn’t need from him right now. “I recognise this wasn’t how you wanted to tell me, but I’m glad I know.”

“Why?” Shane asks, eyebrows frowning. 

“Because now we can actually talk,” Hayden says. “When it’s the two of us, I mean. We don’t have to talk about girls. And you can talk to me about it. It’s Rozanov, so that part will take some getting used to, but the principle stands.”

They can be honest with each other now. Jackie can stop trying to set Shane up with her friends. Hayden can stop asking him about women. 

Shane’s shoulders relax a little and he’s even smiling when he says: “We can still talk about girls if you want to, Hayden.”

“I was talking about girls for you!” Hayden protests. “I only want to talk about one woman, Shane.”

Shane’s smile grows a little. “Well, I only want to talk about one person as well,” he admits. “So I guess we can both talk about our… Person.”

“Our partners,” Hayden suggests. 

“I would like that,” Shane says. He’s smiling fully now.

 

---

 

When they land in Columbus, Hayden has two messages from an unknown number. 

Thank you for being so nice to Shane, the first one says. The second one follows  up with At least mediocre player is not mediocre friend!

Hayden shakes his head as he messages back We’re still beating you in Montreal next game.

The reply is instant. I would not count on it, Pike

Grinning, Hayden saves the number as ‘Shane’s Lily.’ 

Chapter 2: the week after all-stars weekend, 2017

Chapter Notes

i did not plan for another chapter of this. it kind of just happened, as it does sometimes.
i elected to keep this chapter light; ilya's realistically not in the easiest time of his life right now canonically, so i like to think he finds a distraction of it all in messaging hayden and messing around with his teammates.

For a few hours, Ilya has everything he wants. 

Shane finally seems to understand what Ilya couldn’t put into words for years and while Ilya believes they’re not out of the woods yet, they’re closer than they’ve ever been. On his side of things, Ilya thinks he understands Shane clearer than he ever has too. Shane is afraid, much like him, but his emotions show themselves very differently. Shane is afraid but he’s also trying. He’s not running anymore. 

Shane seemingly has his sights set on Ilya. He categorises that as a problem for another day or at least for the next time they meet. They might have to talk some more then, loathe as Ilya is to even consider it.

After the talking they do the other thing, the thing that Ilya much prefers. The thing that Ilya is going to be replaying in his head for weeks to come, because he doesn’t think he can hook up with anyone else now. It feels like he and Shane have entered a monogamous, committed relationship this night without acknowledging it out loud. Regardless of whether that sentiment is mutual from Shane’s side, Ilya knows he’s not looking at anyone else now. Not now that he knows that Shane wants him. 

Shane leaves Ilya’s hotel room despite neither of them really wanting to part. They both know it’s a bad idea for Shane to spend the night in Ilya’s hotel room. Ilya watches him put on his clothes, still sprawled on his bed. He leans in eagerly when Shane kisses him and kisses him once more before letting him go.

“Good night, Shane,” he says as Shane approaches the door.

The door is open when Shane turns back, smiling, and says: “Good night, Ilya.”

Ilya watches him leave. He watches the door close. He lets himself fall back onto the mattress and closes his eyes for a moment. He wants to bask in this feeling. He also wants to message Shane immediately. 

Despite Ilya’s obnoxious bragging about his room earlier that weekend (that he stands by, because his room is the best room), he is well-aware that it isn’t an especially soundproof room. None of the rooms are. Ilya figured that as long as Scott Hunter wasn’t next door to them that would be fine. Both Shane and him know that the rest of the players are not in their hotels right now, since they’ve either gone out or they’re at the hotel bar. 

It’s therefore a surprise when he hears Shane speak. “Rozanov and I were just -” Ilya hears him struggle with his words. He grimaces hearing Shane refer to him as ‘Rozanov’ after the evening they had together. 

It’s a second surprise when the voice that replies is Hayden Pike. Ilya guesses that Hayden Pike being invited for All-Stars Weekend at all was the first surprise of the weekend (Ilya guesses the other teams have a lot of injuries and players who canceled for whatever reason for the NHL to come to the conclusion that they have to invite Pike) and now Pike gets a surprise for himself too. 

Ilya already knows that Shane is going to talk himself out of this situation, so he sits up straight and reaches out for his phone, intending to message. 

But then he hears Pike. “You don’t have to tell me,” he says. “If you don’t want to.” Great, then that’s solved. Shane won’t tell him anything and they can leave the hallway so Ilya can get some sleep.

It’s not solved, because Pike continues. “But I meant when I said on the plane, Shane. I am happy for you if you’re seeing someone. No matter who it is.”

That gets Ilya’s attention. Apparently Shane and Pike have been talking about Shane’s love life on the plane. Ilya guesses that it has to do with Rose Landry, who he does not like at all, but it’s still interesting to hear that apparently Shane gave anything away at all. Shane is, by his own admission, a very private person. Pike must be a very good friend to him for him to say anything at all. 

But he’s not going to say anything about Ilya. That’s too far. Ilya already knows this. 

“Are you…” Shane is hesitating. Ilya can hear it in his voice, even when it’s soft and muffled and almost not audible through the door. “Are you sure?”

“Of course,” Pike replies loyally. “I care about you and I want you to be happy. If Roza-” Pike cuts himself off halfway Ilya’s last name and quickly changes it, “I mean, if someone is making you happy, then I support that.”

Pike was about to tell Shane ‘if Rozanov is making you happy then I support that.’ Ilya guesses he’s been underestimating Pike’s abilities. Obviously not his abilities on the ice, which are still very mediocre, but Pike’s loyalty to Shane is second to none. 

“Right,” Shane says. He’s still hesitant. “Okay. We should… Should we talk about this? Do you want to talk about this?”

On the one hand, Ilya wants Pike to say no. It’s none of his business what Ilya and Shane are doing. The fewer people know, the safer the secret is, and Ilya doesn’t know if he trusts Hayden Pike out of all people. God knows that he’s going to tell his wife, at least, and God knows who his wife is subsequently going to tell. This can’t get out of their control now.

But on the other hand, Ilya also wants Pike to say yes. Pike already knows that something is going on between Ilya and Shane. It might be better that Shane clarifies what Pike saw instead of letting him draw conclusions on his own. Pike has been a good friend to Shane so far and he hasn’t freaked out and demanded to be let into Ilya’s room to beat him up. Ilya might want to give him the benefit of the doubt here. 

“Let’s talk in my room,” Pike replies, faster in deciding than Ilya is. 

Ilya hears how they both leave, their footsteps dying down in the hallway. He gets up from the bed to lock the door and subsequently walks into the bathroom to clean himself up more thoroughly than he did before. 

He’s leaving early tomorrow. Too early to be up at this point, probably, he can probably get a few more hours of sleep on the plane to Toronto. This is more important, Ilya decides.

So he sits back down in his slightly messed up bed and reaches out for his phone to message Jane. Did Pike respond well?

Shane doesn’t immediately respond, so Ilya guesses he’s either still talking to Pike or already asleep. Still, he’s going to give Shane a few more minutes before attempting to sleep as well, in case he is around and does want to talk. Ilya turns on the television on an action movie he thinks he’s seen before, turns on the subtitles and tries to concentrate on the English. It’s mostly a futile exercise considering how tired he is (his talk with Shane really took it out of him), but it’s an interesting enough movie to keep him occupied.

About ten minutes in he sees his phone screen light up. It’s Shane, of course.

“How do you know that Hayden found out?” is what Shane says when Ilya answers the phone, sounding far more awake than Ilya is feeling right now. He doesn’t sound freaked out, at least, so Ilya assumes the conversation went well.

“I have secret sixth sense,” Ilya informs him. “I know when people find out my secrets.”

“Fuck you, Ilya.”

Ilya warms to Shane using his name again. “I heard the two of you through the walls. The rooms are not soundproof here. How did he respond?”

 “He was okay, I think,” Shane responds. “He was happy he knew now, so that’s nice. And he promises to keep our secret, so don’t worry about that. He said he won’t even tell Jackie. That’s his wife.”

“Pike should not be keeping secrets from his wife,” Ilya chastises. “That’s not a good thing to do.”

“He’s keeping our secret, Ilya. Isn’t that more important?”

Ilya guesses that’s true. “Do you not trust Jackie Pike?” he asks. “Do you think it is - what’s the word?” It’s far too late for him to attempt to have a serious conversation in English where he needs to find the right words. “Is it fair to expect Pike to keep this secret? Or - is it reasonable?”

“Jackie is very nice,” Shane says. Ilya knows that’s high praise coming from him. “She’s great, actually. And I do think not telling her will bother him.”

Ilya guesses that he was pessimistic thinking that Jackie Pike would tell the entire world. Shane thinks that she’s very nice and great, so she won’t tell anyone. 

“Then Pike should tell his wife, yes?” he asks Shane.

“I’ll let Hayden know,” Shane agrees.

“How are you feeling about Hayden knowing?” Ilya asks what he actually wants to know but what he didn’t want to lead with.

On the other side of the line, Shane is quiet for a moment. Ilya lets him have his moment. He reaches out for the remote control to turn off the television again and settles underneath the blankets. He puts his phone on speaker, turns the volume down and lays it down in front of him.

“I think I’m relieved,” Shane says. “It wasn’t easy to tell him the truth, but he took it really well. Now two people know and I trust both of them. It feels good.”

“Great, I’m in secret fight club with Hayden Pike,” Ilya says.

“Hey, you could do much worse than Hayden!” Shane protests, but Ilya can hear in his voice that he’s smiling. “Are you okay with Hayden knowing?”

Well, the cat’s out of the bag now, isn’t it? “I will tell Marlow now,” Ilya says. “You tell your hockey best friend, so I will tell mine.”

“Cliff Marlow is no Hayden Pike,” Shane says.

“No, Marlow is actually a good hockey player,” Ilya says. “And he is fun. Two things in which he differs from Pike.”

“You’re such an asshole.”

Ilya laughs softly, delighted to hear Shane call him that and not afraid to show it. He’s missed Shane. The months during which Shane was dating Rose Landry were not his favourites of the season at all. 

“So you are good, Shane?” he asks, to make sure.

“Yes, Ilya, I’m good,” Shane confirms, his voice soft. Ilya never wants to stop hearing that voice. “Should we get some sleep?”

“You are a smart man, Shane Hollander.” He waits a beat, then adds: “Can you stay on the line and talk about hockey rules? You will bore me to sleep.”

“You really are an asshole.”

That gets a grin out of Ilya. “Good night, Shane. Sleep tight.”

“Good night, Ilya.”

They hang up. Ilya picks up his phone and intends to move it to his nightstand, but reconsider this halfway through the movement. He pulls his phone back and quickly sends Shane another message.

Give me Pike’s number. I want to message him.

Shane must still be getting ready for bed, because he responds fairly fast. Why?

Do you not trust me, Jane? Ilya responds.

No is Shane’s immediate answer. The second message says He doesn’t need to hear that he’s bad at hockey. You’ve covered it this weekend. You’ll probably tell him extensively in the next Montreal vs Boston match-up too

He deserves to know the truth, Shane! Ilya responds. But no, I did not want to tell him that. I wanted to thank him.

Shane is typing and stopping to type a few times, as the text message bubble appears and disappears. Then, just as Ilya is about to decide to put his phone away and call it a night, a last message comes through.

Contact info: Hayden Pike. 

As Ilya sits at the airport, waiting for his plane to depart, he pulls out his phone as a man on a mission. He’s going to compliment Hayden Pike. And annoy him too, probably. It’s inevitable. 

He thinks about his message for a moment, then decides to start with the reason he actually wanted Pike’s number. Thank you for being so nice to Shane. Then, because he’s still himself, he adds At least mediocre player is not mediocre friend!

By the time Ilya has landed and is in the team hotel, he has a message back. We’re still beating you in Montreal next game.

What a delusional thing to say. I would not count on it, Pike.

It takes another couple of minutes, but then Pike responds again. Shane is usually at his best when we’re playing Boston. You shouldn’t be so cocky.

Ah, so you also understand that only Shane will have opportunities to score goals, yes? Ilya responds. The rest of you are not good enough to try to score against Boston.

I don’t care if only Shane scores. We’ll still win.

Satisfied, Ilya screenshots the last few messages and sends them to Shane. He knows Shane will probably take a few hours to look at his phone (not everyone is as glued to their phones as Ilya and apparently Pike too), but he can’t help it. He captions the screenshot with Pike knows you are the only good player playing for Montreal. He’s smart too!

In the evening, Ilya finally gets a message back. This is why I didn’t want to give you his number.

Well, it’s too late now. 

In the days that follow, both the Bears and the Voyageurs are competing in a string of away games. It means that Ilya falls into the familiar rhythm of airport to airport and hotel room to hotel room, playing good hockey and screwing around with his teammates. The string of away games does inevitably mean there’s a lot of downtime. Ilya watches movies and talks to his teammates, of course, but he also messages people.

He messages Hayden Pike, to be exact.

The morning after their win against Toronto, Ilya asks Pike Do you think it is a coincidence that Dallas Kent’s last name sounds so much like a bad word in English?

Pike replies You truly have a way with words, don’t you? And then You know what they say: if the shoes fits… 

The expression is something that Ilya has to look up, but he appreciates that Pike isn’t dumbing down his English for Ilya. As it turns out, the shoe fits Dallas Kent. I know how to chirp, but Kent just knows how to be a dick. That guy on his line that is always near him is a dick too.

Do you mean Troy Barrett? Pike supplies. Is there anyone you do like, other than Shane?

I like many players, Pike. Ryan Price, for example. I even kind of like you! God help him, but he does. Pike is a good friend to Shane, so that means that Ilya can tolerate him now.

I can’t believe you just put me in the same category as the most scary enforcer in the NHL Pike replies.

You could do so much worse Ilya replies.

After an overtime loss against Philadelphia that will annoy Ilya for weeks when he thinks back on it, he arrives at his hotel room to find that Pike actually messaged him first. My wife wants your number.

Was this Pike asking if he could give Ilya’s number to his wife? Do conversations not start with ‘hello’ in Montreal, Pike?

Hello, my wife wants your number is Hayden’s immediate response.

Ilya drops his bag next to his bed, shrugs off his jacket that he drops over a nearby chair and sits down on his bed, already constructing a response in his head. Does she want to talk to someone who plays for an actually good team, instead of the Voyageurs?

Fuck you is the expected response that arrives almost immediately. The second one takes a bit longer. Shane told me I could tell her, so I tried to tell her last night. I told her that Shane was seeing a man. I just didn’t mention it was you.

Ilya can only imagine how that conversation went. He doesn’t know Jackie Pike, obviously, but he knows Shane likes her and trusts her. She also married Hayden and  has children with him so she must be a saint of a woman. Very patient and kind. He’s sure that Jackie Pike spends most of the conversation trying to get a name out of Hayden, trying to steer the conversation in the right direction, to absolutely no avail.

Maybe try again tonight Ilya suggests. Start with ‘hello’ like I taught you and then just say ‘Shane is seeing’ and then my name. You can follow this script, yes?

I don’t need a script to talk to my wife! Pike replies. Ilya is once again very successful in annoying him. Can I give her your number of not?

Yes Ilya responds, putting his phone back down. Marlow just walked in lamenting about the loss as well. This is something they need to do together, so Ilya leaves his phone on the nightstand for now.

 

Ilya finds that someone new has messaged him when he checks his phone the next morning. Marlow is hogging the bathroom, as he does more often (why does Ilya always choose to share a hotel room with this guy?), so Ilya settles into the armchair by the window and scrolls through his messages. He quickly checks if Andrei has anything of note to offer (he doesn’t and Ilya can’t say he’s surprised) and immediately responds to Shane. Then he goes back to the unknown messenger. They sent multiple messages last evening.

Hi! I’m Jackie Pike. Hayden finally told me about you! I was wondering if you wanted to come to our house for dinner the next time the Bears play the Voyageurs?

The next message is from a couple of minutes after the first one. Now that I’m thinking about it, I’m realizing that you don’t want to come to our house for dinner the next time the Bears play the Voyageurs. You’ll have more important things to do. Sorry! 

Ah, Jackie has to be Canadian, Ilya thinks. Overly polite and immediately apologising, even if she did nothing wrong. 

The third message is another minute after the last one. Maybe you can come over and have dinner with us during the offseason then. Do you have any summer plans?

Isn’t that the million dollar question, Ilya thinks. The answer is the same reason why he checks Andrei’s messages first even if it’s usually bullshit. If his father is alive by the time they get to the offseason, Ilya will be on the first plane back to Moscow. If he isn’t… Well. Ilya doesn’t want to think about that right now. He definitely can’t have dinner with Hayden and Jackie Pike and however many kids they have.

Hello, Jackie Pike. Thank you for invite. I think I will go home in offseason but maybe there is time. 

Then he also messages Pike. Your wife is nicer than you. Not like that’s hard.

At that point Marlow surfaces from the bathroom, frowning at him. “Who are you always messaging recently? Is it Svetlana? Or is there another girl that you’re going to deny you’re in love with?”

Ah. Now Ilya remembers why he keeps choosing Marlow as his roommate. “I message people I can chirp. Now I realise that is stupid, because I can just chirp you.”

Marlow sighs dramatically and heads over to his side of the room without another word. Ilya smirks, putting his phone back down on the nightstand. For once Marlow has learned his lesson.

It doesn’t last long. It never does with Marlow. 

After a win against Detroit, a team that has no chance of making the play-offs, they go out with a few of them. It isn’t a triumphant kind of going out, the kind that occurs after a hard-fought victory; Detroit is so bad right now that it almost feels like bullying to play as good and as hard as the Bears usually do. Ilya even kept the chirping to a minimum. He didn’t cut it out entirely because he knew that would rightfully be seen as disrespectful, but he doesn’t need to talk a team further down that’s already clearly down.

St. Simon, Carmichael and Connors immediately head out onto the dancefloor as soon as the five of them finish their first round. Carmichael is married but likes the chaos of the dancefloor, or so he says, whereas St. Simon and Connors are seemingly always on the lookout for a woman to spend some time with. It leaves Ilya with Cliff, who is usually right there with them. But then again, so is Ilya.

“So who have you been messaging?” Marlow asks again.

“You are so curious,” Ilya says, side-eyeing his alternate captain. 

“I’m invested,” Marlow replies.

“I’m not an investment, Marley.”

Marlow rolls his eyes, well-aware that Ilya knows what he means and is being obtuse about it on purpose. He turns to the bar and orders another beer for himself and another vodka for Ilya. Then he turns back, just in time to see Ilya pull his phone out of his pocket.

Right there for Marlow to see, Ilya opens his chat screen with Hayden Pike. He saved him as ‘Montreal’s 13th best player (Hayden Pike)’ so he’s sure that Marlow will have all the information he’s looking for.

Much to Ilya’s delight, Pike has already responded to his messages. My wife is nicer than me, you’re right about that. She doesn’t have to deal with you every time we play against Boston.

Hayden makes it so easy to annoy him. If I had to deal with you every time I was home I would be far meaner than she is, Pike.

“Hayden Pike?” Marlow asks, who is reading the messages over Ilya’s shoulder. “You’re messaging Hayden Pike? The right winger from the Voyageurs?”

“I told you, I am messaging people I can chirp,” Ilya reminds him. “Hayden Pike is very fun to chirp, but he does make it too easy.”

Subsequently, he opens his chat with Jackie. He respectfully saved her as ‘Mrs Jackie Pike’, leaving it no mystery to Cliff who this is either. 

Her response is long, much like her first few messages to Ilya have been. So you’re going to Moscow this summer? Of course you are! Well, you’re welcome here anytime, Ilya. If you ever change your mind, I would love to meet you. I know the Montreal vs Boston rivalry is unparalleled, but anyone that Shane likes is welcome here too. 

“Why is Jackie Pike inviting you for dinner?” Marlow asks, still reading along over Ilya’s shoulder.

They get their drinks, but neither one of them is paying attention to it. By now Marlow has fully leaned into Ilya and even wrapped an arm over his shoulders to be able to see him message Jackie back.

I would love to meet you too, Jackie Pike. I will let you know if there is ever time when I am near Montreal. Hayden does not need to be present. He needs to practise his backhand. Shane too. He sends the message. Beside him, he hears Marlow cackle.

“What? Is the truth,” Ilya dismisses it as he pockets his phone again. “If Pike ever wants to be 12th best Montreal player he needs to practise far more. I still can’t believe they let him be an All-Star. I guess no one else wanted to be there.”

“Why are you messaging Pike and his wife?” Marlow asks again as he lets Ilya go. Ilya assumes that watching Ilya messaging them has made him more confused, not less.

Ilya remembers telling Shane that now that Hayden knows, Ilya gets to tell ‘his Hayden.’ He isn’t sure if the relationship that Cliff and him have is remotely like the relationship that Shane and Hayden have. If anything, the equivalent to Hayden for Ilya is Svetlana, not Cliff. But in the context of hockey it’s Cliff. Ilya has known Cliff for years, has been on the same line with him for years and spends the most time with him.  

The issue is that he has no idea what Shane told Hayden. Shane and him are in awkward undefined territory where they’re not in a relationship but also not not in a relationship. The main reason that Ilya is still going to Russia is his father, but that might not be true a few months from now on. But does he want to give up his motherland for a relationship that will probably have to be hidden for years? It’s easier to say that they can’t be together than to ponder the possibility of it. Ilya doesn’t have room to get into that with himself right now.

Maybe he’s starting at the wrong point, though.

“I’m bisexual,” Ilya tells Marlow, turning towards him.

Marlow frowns at him as he pushes Ilya’s glass of vodka over the bar towards him. “You’re messaging Pike and his wife because you’re bisexual? Are you into Pike now?”

“No, no, no, absolutely not,” Ilya says as he takes his vodka, needing to clear this up immediately. “Pike is consequence in another way. He saw someone leave my hotel room during All-Stars, so he knows. I am keeping tabs on him. He promised he wouldn’t tell.”

In hindsight, he guesses he understands how Marlow got to Ilya being into Hayden. But Marlow seemingly forgot that it’s Hayden Pike. He’s not a good enough player for Ilya. He’s not interesting enough for Ilya either. Sure, Ilya always tells Shane he’s boring, but Shane is so interesting in his boringness that Ilya can never get enough of it or of him. Hayden Pike is just boring.

Ilya takes a fortifying sip of his drink, trying to prepare for what is going to come out of Marlow’s mouth next. Being honest, he’s not sure if anyone is ever ready for that. People tend to say that about him, but it’s true about Marlow as well sometimes. Maybe that’s why they work well together.

“So you were with a man during the All-Stars weekend and Pike saw him and now the two of you are friends?” he tries to summarize it.

“No, not friends,” Ilya dismisses. “We are in secret fight club together. You are in it now too! We should have a group chat.”

“You, me and Pike?”

“Yes, and Hollander.”

“What does Hollander have to do with this?”

Ilya levels Marlow with a stare. Ilya watches how realisation slowly dawns on Marlow. His eyes widen and his mouth opens before he quickly swipes his beer off the bar to take a few long sips, seemingly to stop himself from saying something.

“So you and Hollander?” he asks.

Ilya takes a long look around. No one is near them. The music is loud, the bass taking part in every conversation. The bartender is serving a group of people multiple seats away from them. Their teammates are somewhere in the crowd dancing, far away enough that Ilya has lost sight of them. No one knows they’re here. No one is listening in.

With that said, he probably should have followed Shane and Pike’s example and initiated this conversation in a hotel room. Well, it’s too late now.

“Not really,” Ilya says haltingly. “We get together a lot, yes, but we are not together. I think we both want to be, but it is complicated.”

Thankfully, Marlow doesn’t pry any further. He just nods and says “I can imagine” before taking another sip of his drink, maybe sensing it’s a delicate topic. 

“So you don’t think it’s weird?” Ilya asks.

Marlow shrugs. “You and Hollander? That’s very weird,” he says. “But not because you’re both men. That part I don’t care about. It’s because you’ve been rivals for so long, though I guess you never really hated him. You just always said he was boring and had a weak backhand.”

Ilya nods. “I tell him that too,” he says. “And then he tells me to fuck off. Is very funny.”

“Of course you do.” Marlow nods like it makes total sense to him. Then he pauses, stopping the movement of taking another sip from his drink too like something just occurred to him. It looks comical and stupid. “Wait. Hollander and Rose Landry. Was that real?”

Ilya doesn’t want to think about that right now. “Why do people always talk about Rose Landry?” he complains. “It is all the others mentioned at All-Stars too. ‘Hey Shane, how is Rose Landry? Hey Shane, are you still with Rose Landry?’ It was boring. You are not boring, Marley, so don’t be boring.”

“Sorry, I didn’t know it was a touchy subject.”

“It’s not, it’s just boring.”

Marlow takes a sip of his drink then and thankfully does not bring up Rose Landry again. “So it’s just me and Pike that know about you and Hollander?” he asks.

“Yes, and Pike’s wife,” Ilya confirms. “This is a secret, Marlow. You need to keep it.”

“I won’t tell a soul,” Marlow promises immediately. “And especially not those idiots on the dancefloor right now.”

Ilya is immensely thankful for Cliff Marlow right now. Maybe he is Ilya’s Hayden Pike, because he’s immediately loyal and understands the situation without needing to go into details about it. He believes that Marlow won’t tell anyone, just like Pike won’t. 

They both glance over at their teammates. Carmichael is making a fool of himself, not the first time that evening, and Connors seems to be capable of holding a conversation with a beautiful woman for once. St. Simon is nowhere to be found. Ilya assumes he’ll turn up again at some point.

“Thank you for not finding it weird,” Ilya says.

Marlow elbows him in the side. “It makes a strange amount of sense that you’d go for the only person that might possibly be better than you at hockey,” he says. “Well, Hollander and Scott Hunter, maybe. But there is no way that they would both be stupid enough to go for you. The fact that Hollander will go for you is shocking enough in itself.”

Why is everyone currently obsessed with old man Scott Hunter? Ilya can’t say he shouldn’t have been invited to All-Stars, but he’s not anywhere near the level that Shane and Ilya play at. Cliff Marlow out of all people should know that. Maybe he only watches game highlights instead of entire games and just sees Hunter at his best instead of his worst for the rest of the game. 

“Oh, fuck you, Marley. Scott Hunter would be lucky to be with me.”

St. Simon turns up at the bar out of nowhere, having caught Marlow’s last sentence. “Scott Hunter? Are you drunk, Roz?”

“No, Marley is clearly very drunk,” Ilya replies. “He thinks Scott Hunter is a good hockey player.”  

“Well, he’s one of the better centers in the league,” St. Simon says. “Maybe even better than -”

“I can’t stand to hear this from my own teammates!” Ilya laments, interrupting St. Simon. “I am never going out with you again.”

That particular promise doesn’t last a week.

 

When he wakes in  the morning, Ilya finds that he has received multiple messages from Pike. Still half-asleep, he opens them. If I had to deal with you to come home to I would be far more frustrated than you would be coming home to me is his response to what Ilya messaged him the night before. Then he asks: Why is Cliff Marlow messaging me?

Ilya turns around in his bed and glances over at the other bed. Marlow is sitting up straight, his pillow propped up between his back and the headboard, and he’s typing rapidly. He’s definitely more awake than Ilya.

“Marley. Did you message Pike?” Ilya asks.

“I need to talk about this to someone,” Cliff responds.

Ilya nods and goes back to his phone. Yes. We have secret fight club, Pike, he responds. We are foursome now.

Hayden’s reply is instant. Please don’t.

Ilya laughs loudly as he drags himself out of bed.