Summary:

“My - it’s my,” Shane pants, his hand flapping like Ilya’s sometimes does when he’s searching for an English translation that he can’t quite remember. Shane’s heart squeezes painfully. “He’s-“ He wants to say my boyfriend is on that plane. He wants to cry, and throw things, and scream the love of my life might be dying while we stand here. But he doesn’t. He can’t. His voice can’t find the words, can’t find the strength to speak, and even if he could - would he? Would Shane tell the whole world that for him, it has always been Ilya? Will only ever be Ilya? (Or, the plane scene in The Long Game goes a little differently.)