Summary:

Wyatt lightly punches him in the shoulder, and Ilya opens one eye to see Wyatt holding out his phone towards Ilya’s face.

Ilya’s eyes grow wide, a sick feeling settling in his stomach.

The match barely ended two hours ago, and already, there’s an article questioning if Shane had tripped on purpose. If Shane had tripped to let Ilya win.

Ilya’s initial reaction is that of extreme insult. As if he needed Shane Hollander to let him win.

But then…fuck. Shane.

Ilya stands up suddenly and crawls over Wyatt (and steps on his feet none too gently in the process). He strides as fast as he can to the front of the bus towards Coach Wiebe.

He leans down and murmurs to his coach, and gets a look of complete understanding.

“As soon as we get to the airport, go,” Wiebe says. “We’ll see you in the morning.”

--

Or after Shane trips during that fateful game, Ilya refuses to let him face the aftermath alone.