Chapter 1

Hayden Hayden was pretty sure that the blood on Marlow’s face was from his knuckles. What the fuck was the guy even doing here? He scowled across the waiting room, hoping Marlow would take the hint. Hayden had only just arrived because he’d had to call Yuna and David before leaving the rink. Apparently they were on their way soon, but they were still a few hours out. So Hayden had quickly made his way over to the hospital. Unfortunately, it was apparently only one visitor at a time, and someone was already in there. Who it was, Hayden had no idea. Marlow seemed to notice the disdainful look Hayden was giving him, because he spoke up, sounding annoyed. “Look, man, I’m really sorry about Hollander and I hope he’s okay but relax. It’s hockey. Shit happens.” “Why are you even here, then?” Hayden shot back. Marlow huffed. “Captain’s orders.” “What?” Marlow shrugged. “Yeah, Cap’s real fucking pissed at me.” ”You’re telling me that Rozanov asked you to come check on Shane?” Hayden said, his tone dubious. It wasn’t unheard of, players visiting their opponents after particularly bad hits, but this was Rozanov. He was the asshole who’d knocked out two of Hayden’s teeth, and he certainly hadn’t personally visited to make sure Hayden was alright. Marlow shrugged. “It was a pretty bad hit. And I really do hope Hollander is okay, man. Trust me, I didn’t do it on purpose.” “I know.” Hayden would never accuse another player of purposely sending someone to hospital. Most of the guys were good, decent guys, and hockey was a rough game. “Anyway, I think you got your payback already, dude.” Marlow grinned, gesturing to the huge black and purple shiner that was covering his left eye. Hayden grinned back. “Yeah. Guess I have to forgive you now.” A few minutes passed in silence, thankfully less tense than before. Hayden checked his phone. On seeing the multiple texts from Yuna asking for updates on her son, he groaned, glancing at the clock. Whoever the fuck was in there needed to hurry up. “You know who’s in there with him now? I tried to go straight in but they said it’s one visitor at a time. And I need to get updates for Shane’s parents.” Marlow looked confused for a moment. “Oh, shit. I guess forgot to say, but - Roz is in there right now.” ”What?” “Yeah, he wanted to go in and apologise first, as Captain, and then he said I can go in.” Hayden just stared at him. What the fuck? Well, there was no possible way that Ilya Rozanov actually had good intentions in doing this. So fuck the rules, Hayden was going to go find his best friend. He stormed down the hall, ignoring Marlow’s shout behind him. He got to the door and almost burst through when something stopped him cold. Behind him, Marlow smacked straight into his back, as he’d not expected Hayden to freeze to a dead stop in the middle of the hall. “Bro, what the fuck?” But Hayden couldn’t respond. Because, through the glass window, he could see his best friend reaching up to pull Ilya fucking Rozanov into a deep, frantic kiss.

Hayden Hey this is Hayden. Hayden Hayden Pike Hayden Just thought after what we witnessed the other day I'd get your number. Hayden I know we didn’t really have a proper discussion on what we saw but I want you to guarantee you won’t tell anyone. Hayden Also, watched the game back and Shane was looking behind him, totally not your fault, I'm sorry. Hayden Guess now we know who he was looking at, huh? Cliff Hey Pike, all good here. My lips are sealed. Cliff LOL

Cliff Has Hollander said anything to you about Rozy yet? Hayden No. Hayden I'm waiting for him to bring it up to me. Hayden Jackie says not to rush him until he's ready to come out on his own. Hayden And that we're assholes for spying. Hayden Jackie's my wife BTW. Cliff Yeah my girlfriend Emma said the same about Roz. Cliff Guess we'll have to wait for them to tell us themselves. Cliff Surely it won't be that long.

Cliff This is random but how long do you think this has been going on? Hayden Idk. Hayden He never even told me he was gay. Hayden I mean he was super cagey about this girl Lily for ages. Hayden Starting to suspect it was a guy. Hayden But that only stopped just before Rose. Hayden So I'm guessing since All Stars?? Cliff You are a moron. Hayden ???????????????? Hayden Go fuck yourself Marlow. Cliff Lily… Cliff Sound familiar??? Hayden Oh my GOD. Hayden Ilya Cliff Well done for catching on, smart guy. Hayden FU. Cliff Okay sorry. Cliff I'll admit I only realised that Ilya's 'Montreal Girl' called 'Jane' was Shane like 2 days ago. Cliff Bit embarrassing. Hayden I guess we’re both morons. Cliff But this means its been going on for years!! Cliff I mean, Roz was texting ‘Jane’ back in his Rook year. Hayden WHAT Hayden Holy shit??? Hayden I only noticed Shane was texting Lily since idk maybe like 2015??? Hayden Since rookie year… Hayden Motherfuckers.

Hayden Holy shit did you just see that??? Hayden Scott motherfucking Hunter!!! Cliff I know! Hayden Do you think it will change things? Hayden With you know. Hayden What we know. Cliff Fuck knows. Cliff I fucking hope so, I can’t contain this secret for much longer. Cliff I mean, Hollander and Rozanov?? This is the news of the century and we can’t fucking tell anyone. Cliff I texted him about Scott the other day. Thought maybe he’d at least tell me he’s into dudes. Cliff No such luck. Cliff He just said Hunter should be arrested for cradle robbing… Cliff LOL Hayden 🙄 Cliff Come on, that was pretty funny. Hayden I like Hunter. Hayden He’s a nice guy. Cliff 🙄

Cliff Roz being cagey about where he’s going this summer, any insider information?? Hayden Interesting… Cliff ??? Hayden Shane just texted saying he’s going on a ‘silent retreat’ for two weeks. Hayden AKA not to be disturbed Hayden AKA calls only Cliff And you’re supposed to believe that? Cliff Your boy is a shit liar. Cliff LOL Hayden Leave him alone! Hayden But yes, he’s a dumbass if he thinks he’s getting away with this silent retreat lie. Hayden You think Rozanov is going to Shane’s cottage for the summer? Cliff Big step. Cliff Aw Cliff They’d be cute if they weren’t ruining my life. Hayden Fucking tell me about it.

Hayden Erm. Hayden I need help. Hayden Brain bleach if you have it. Hayden Possibly therapy… Cliff ??????? Hayden Do not under any circumstances call Rozanov. Cliff ????? Cliff Explain. Hayden I just called Shane. Hayden Pretty sure Roz was giving him head on the other side. Hayden Just a warning for you. Cliff Ha! Hayden My suffering is not funny. Cliff Hahaha Cliff Thanks for the heads up. Cliff Get it? Hayden I'm blocking you. Cliff LOL

Cliff Hey Hayden Hi? Cliff Hollander said anything to you about the cottage? Cliff Rozy's lips are sealed. Cliff I thought for sure them taking this big step would mean them telling us. Hayden I KNOW Hayden I don’t know how much longer I can keep this a secret. Hayden IM DYING MARLEAU Hayden DYING Cliff You need to chill. Hayden How can I when I know my bestfriend is secretly fucking Ilya fucking Rozanov???? Hayden That information haunts me, Marlow. Hayden And I can’t even discuss with anyone except you!!!! Hayden And Jackie, but she's no help. Hayden She doesn't understand how evil Rozanov is!!! Cliff ...

Cliff Rozy just told me he's moving to Ottawa next year???? Cliff ???????????????? Cliff Fucking Ottawa Cliff Did you know about this? Cliff Pike. Hayden WTF!!! Hayden Are you sure he's not fucking with you?? Cliff He was dead serious. Hayden Are you sure? Hayden This is Rozanov we're talking about. Hayden He's an asshole just for the fun of it. Cliff Hey! Cliff I was gonna defend my boy but you're actually not wrong so… Hayden Exactly Hayden So. Hayden Ottawa… Hayden Surely this can't be real. Cliff I just asked Coach. Cliff Apparently this is not a joke. Cliff Management is PISSED. Hayden Somehow not surprised. Hayden Can't imagine any team would be happy about losing their best player. Hayden FUCK Hayden FUCK Hayden Pretend you never saw that. Hayden That never happened. Cliff ... Cliff Knew you were a secret fan. Cliff You want a jersey for Christmas? I’ll mail it to you, special order :) Hayden If you send me a Rozanov jersey I will burn it to ash. Hayden Going back to the Rozanov moving to Ottawa news… Hayden This has got to be for Shane, surely. Hayden Right?? Cliff 100% Cliff I tried to get Roz to admit it but no such luck. Hayden This is INSANE! Hayden Proud of my boy. Hayden He has this man WHIPPEDDDDDDD. Cliff Unfortunately you are not wrong. Cliff It’s actually embarrassing how whipped this man is. Cliff And I can't even make fun of him for it! Cliff And we've lost our best player!!!!! Cliff (as confirmed by you, Hayden Pike) Cliff This is torture. Cliff I actually think their relationship is going to kill me. Hayden Now who's being dramatic... Hayden Welcome to the club ;)

Cliff This fucking sucks. Cliff Everyone’s freaking out about the press conference man. Cliff What are you saying to your guys about it? Hayden Nothing. Hayden Don't want to give anything away. Hayden I'm terrible with secrets. Hayden Best thing is to keep the mouth shut. Cliff This is stressing me out. Cliff Everyone is so confused. Cliff I think the guys think the charity is cool and everything. Cliff But announcing a friendship with Hollander? Cliff They're freaking out. Hayden I know right!! Hayden The team hasn't stopped talking about it ALL DAY and I’m dying. Hayden Fuck someone just asked me if I knew they were friends. Hayden I just said no but I don’t think I was very convincing. Hayden I’m not a good liar, okay? Hayden Marlow. Hayden I’m cracking under the pressure. Hayden God, this is so stressful. Hayden I want to kill these fuckers for putting me through this.

Hayden Hey Hayden I just asked Shane outright if he’s with Rozanov. Hayden And he just fucking told me. Hayden Just like that! Hayden Apparently it was as easy as that… Hayden All that stress of keeping their secret. Hayden And these grey hairs I got were for NOTHING!!! Cliff You’ve got to be fucking kidding me.

Chapter 2

Chapter Notes

part one of this chapter is for @phoenixpixie who commented asking my muses to do their work on the whole fanmail-gate incident, and part two is for @lila_Luna who requested a part 2 of hayden/cliff bestism at the wedding, and also @unfinishedduets, @ifitisntpassionthenwhat, @madrey7 & @anewdaysend who threw their votes in for this idea. i hope this lives up to expectations ;)

You have (1) missed call from Cliff Marlow. You have (2) missed calls from Cliff Marlow. You have (3) missed calls from Cliff Marlow. Cliff I know it’s late in Montreal but pick up the fucking phone, Pike. Hayden Pike has notifications silenced. Notify anyway. Cliff Pike. Cliff Pike!!!!! Cliff Wake the fuck up. Hayden Fucking hell Marlow I have a newborn that doesn’t bother me this much. Hayden It’s half four in the fucking morning. Hayden You better have a good reason for waking me up. Cliff Are you fucking joking???? Cliff Have you not been online??? Cliff Go on fucking twitter right now. Hayden Holy fucking shit Hayden Fuck Hayden Fuck Hayden Fuck Hayden Fuck I need to call Shane. I’ll call you in a bit. Hayden He’s not picking up. Anything from Roz???? Cliff No. Hayden They’re probably asleep. Hayden Fuck. Is there any way we can get this taken down?? I've reported every video I've seen but should I like call someone?? Hayden Why am I so shit at social media Hayden How do you even get a video taken down?? Cliff Dude, it's all over the internet. Cliff The original video got 1.5 mill views. Cliff There's no going back now. Cliff Sorry to break it to you. Hayden Fuck. Hayden They’ll know that I didn’t mean to do this right? Hayden Like I would never have done this on purpose. Hayden I swear. Cliff Dude, relax. I believe you. Cliff We’ve kept this secret for years. Cliff It’s fucking Brad’s fault, not yours. Hayden Who the fuck is Brad?? Hayden Oh. Hayden Right. Fan mail guy. Hayden What a fucking dick! Hayden Fucking Brad Hayden We kept this secret for years and Brad doesn’t even wait a day?? Hayden Why do people have to SUCK? Hayden God, what the fuck am I gonna tell Shane Hayden Cliff, I’m freaking out here Hayden What if he never talks to me again??? Cliff Hayden. Fucking relax. Cliff What happened is fucked up. Cliff But there’s no way Hollander will blame you for this. Cliff He’s too nice. Cliff Trust me, it'll be fine, bro. Just try and talk to him. Hayden Okay. Going over in the morning if they don't answer by 9am. Cliff Good idea. Hayden Thanks for letting me know. Cliff I would say anytime, but let's not repeat this... Cliff LOL Hayden Not the fucking time, bro. Cliff Fair enough. Cliff Good luck tomorrow. Cliff Call if you need back up. Hayden Thanks.

Hayden Pike has unsilenced his notifications. Hayden Fuck I just took my phone off DND and literally the entire team has texted me. Hayden What the fuck do I say? Hayden Fuck, some of them are PISSED. Hayden Mostly everyone's just confused as fuck. Hayden What the fuck do I do? Hayden I shouldn't say anything before talking to Shane and Roz, right? Cliff Marlow liked this message. Cliff Tell them they’re gonna get fuckin battered by me next game if they’ve got anything to say. Cliff That will shut them up. Hayden Not helpful. Cliff You asked for solutions??? Hayden Thanks, but I think I’ll choose literally any other option! Hayden Oh, wait, I take it back. Hayden I think battering should be the solution, actually. Hayden I’m about to fight my own fucking team, care to join?

Hayden I know it’s been weeks and things are settling down but can I just say Hayden Fuck. Brad. Cliff LOL Cliff Fuck Brad!!!

Cliff Heard Hollander’s moving to Ottawa? Hayden Where did you hear this?? Cliff Where’d you think Cliff Roz is fucking elated Cliff Meanwhile now we have to go up against Roz and Hollander on the same line… Cliff Is it too early to retire? Hayden You're fucking telling me. Hayden Honestly Hayden The fucking thanks we get Hayden We kept their secret for years and now this is what we get Hayden We deserve better Cliff Well… Cliff Some of us deserve better Cliff Others of us should be banned from posting on social media... Hayden Uncalled for.

Cliff Hey I just got the invite to the wedding. Cliff It's in three weeks??? Cliff Macy's losing her shit trying to find a dress. Hayden Jackie thinks they're insane. Hayden I mean three weeks seems enough time Hayden Like what do you need except tuxes and a priest or whatever, but what do I know? Cliff Jesus. Hayden What? Cliff How are you the married one? Hayden Pike disliked this message.

Hayden Jackie's asked who you're bringing so she can add her to the girls group chat. Cliff Share contact. Katie: 02876 7780 90 Hayden Errrrr Hayden What happened to Macy??? Cliff Not the one. Hayden Jesus. Hayden Am I now going to be victimised by your love life as well? Cliff Fuck off. Cliff Not all of us can meet our fucking soulmate at 19. Cliff Prick. Hayden True :) Hayden I am very lucky. Cliff And you say Roz is whipped...

Hayden Jackie wants me to check it is still Katie that you're bringing to the wedding. Hayden LOL Cliff Yes. Cliff And don't pretend this is Jackie asking, I know this is just you finishing for gossip. Cliff It's almost like you miss the stress... Hayden Never. Cliff Whatever. Cliff Will be good to see you (not on the ice) after all these years. Hayden Pike liked this message.

Cliff

Cliff saw Hayden and whooped. "Pike!" Hayden grinned when he spotted him. "Fucking Marlow!" Cliff made his way through the crowd to a small group of Hollander's friends and a few Centaurs. He only recognised Hayes, the goalie, and Boodram, who he'd briefly met at an awards show once. Hollander was standing next to Roz, both of them looking dapper as fuck in their tuxes. Hollander looked at Cliff and Hayden nervously, as if he was envisioning a fight about to break out. Though most players are chill off the ice, some don't forget the fights they've had on ice and have no problems holding it against each other. Cliff thought that was dumb - it was just a game, after all. Instead, he held out his hand to dap Hayden up, pulling him into a hug and thumping him on the back. "Look who it fuckin' is! My co-conspirator. My brother in arms." Hayden rolled his eyes but thumped him back as Cliff let go. “You make it sound like we went to war together.” Cliff shrugged with a laugh. Hayden shook his head. "Good to see you, Cliff." "You too." "Wow." Hollander looked shocked by the lack of animosity. "I thought we'd be tearing Metros and Bears away from each other all night." Roz smirked. "There's still time. Just wait till everyone gets drunk." Hollander pursed his lips in response. "It's almost like you want a fight at our wedding." "Would be free entertainment." Roz shrugged, a shit-eating grin on his face. He was playing with fire there. "Our wedding isn't enough entertainment for you?" Hollander asked, exasperated. "Also why do you care if it's free, you're a millionaire." Roz pouted. "Be nice to me, is my wedding day." Hollander tried to glare at him but failed miserably as Roz crowded up to him, snaking his arms around Hollander from behind and resting his chin on the lapel of Hollander's tux. Roz muttered something in Russian in Hollander's ear, planting a kiss on his temple as he spoke. "So, where's Katie?" Hayden asked. Cliff barely held back a groan. "At the bar." "Not the one, then?" Hayden grinned. Cliff flipped him off. "Wait," Hayes interrupted. "Do you guys, like, know each other or something?" "What?" Hollander asked. "You never told me you had a friend on the Bears, Hayd!" Hayden raised an incredulous eyebrow, his gaze flickering to Roz and back. The words didn't even need to be spoken. "Pot, kettle, moy lyubimyy." Hollander blushed and raised his hands as if to take it back. "Wait, do you guys actually like each other? Is this a joke?" Boiziau asked. "Is this another secret relationship I'm unaware of?" Jackie cackled. "Okay, that's hilarious." "So, you two are, what, friends?" Roz said. "Wait," Jackie said. "You guys never told them about the hospital... incident?" The group stared at her. "What?" Hollander said. "What is the hospital incident?" "I sense drama!" Boodram sang. Hayden shrugged. "I guess once I knew about them it never came up. And Shane was already losing his shit about me knowing, I thought maybe it wasn't a good idea to tell him that Marlow also knew." "Wait, what?" Hollander asked. "What are you talking about?" "Come on, Pike, spit it out!" "Okay, okay! Back in - when was it?" "2017, I think." Cliff interjected. "Yeah, in 2017, when Marlow knocked Shane on the ice. Me and Marlow over there were in the hospital waiting room together. Then he fucking tells me that Rozanov is in your room, and I'm there conjuring up images of my best friend being smothered in his sleep by his fucking rival. Obviously, that was dumb because when we went to your room, what do we fucking see? You guys making out! Like there wasn't a fucking window on the door!" "Oh my God," Hollander groaned, ranking his hands through his hair. "Will anyone find out about us without us making out?" Roz smirked. "Not if I can help it." Shane shoved him. "Wait, Hayden, you knew since then and you never thought to mention it?" Hollander said, looking bemused. Everyone turned to Hayden. "Look, fucking hell! I have four kids, I have other things to worry about, leave me alone!" Roz smirked. "Is that your excuse for everything, Pike?" Hayden flipped him off. Roz turned to Cliff. "Okay, what's your excuse, Marly?" "Well, you fucking moved to Ottawa before I got the chance to say anything! Also, you're an awful texter, so when was I going to tell you. I mean, I'm kind of offended, because I know you used to answer the phone quickly. I'm lower down the food chain than your old booty calls used to be." He complained. "Uh, I mean-" Hollander laughed. "Don't worry, I'm well aware my husband used to be a manwhore." Roz's mouth dropped open in mock offence. "You all see how my own husband treats me! This is abuse!" "Oh, poor you." Shane rolled his eyes. "Wait, so both of you knew since 2017?" Hayes asked. "Jesus." "Yes!" Hayden said. "And it was fucking torture not being able to talk about it. I had to turn to fucking Marlow for support." Cliff snorted. "He was very stressed about it." "I was getting grey hairs, wasn't I, Jackie!" Jackie wisely kept silent, though her pursed lips showed she was trying not to laugh at her husband's expense. Roz raised an eyebrow. "Is this why you leaked us online, Pike? To preserve your youth? Because I don't think it worked." Hayden spluttered. "Obviously not, you know it wasn't on purpose - Shane, tell him!" Shane glared at his husband. "Ilya." Roz rolled his eyes. "Fine. I am joking. You are so boring, Hollander. Is my wedding day, let me have my fun." "No." Hollander said, but then immediately leaned up to kiss Roz. "I told you," Hayden smirked at Cliff. "Roz is whipped." Hollander laughed. "How much did you guys talk about us?" Cliff shrugged. "It's been a long six years." "Well, at least you're free men now." Hayes said, grinning. "It's our problem now." It sure fuckin' better be, Cliff thought as he watched Roz and Hollander ignore everyone around them to make out. Cliff gestured his beer towards Hayden. "I'll cheers to that." Hayden clinked his beer on Cliff's.

End Notes

super quick one to keep y’all fed Please drop by the Archive and comment to let the creator know if you enjoyed their work!