1x01. December 2008, Regina Saskatchewan

it's the art of loving.

The fact that there are multiple times in canon (and obv countless times in fic) where people find out about hollanov and are like "could this affect how they play against each other? Have they ever let each other win???"

And the true and normal answer is, "no, of course not, they are both professionals who take their craft very seriously."

But the even MORE true answer is, "well, it DOES affect their game, in that they are even more competive with each other, because winning at hockey is a Sex Thing for them."

But they can't tell people that :/

He wanted to tell Shane that the closest he felt to home was when he was with him. It didn't matter if it was in a hotel room, Ilya's apartment, or here at Shane's cottage; he was himself when he was with Shane. He'd left Russia, he was uneasy in America, and he's spent his entire adult life drifting between continents and lovers. But now he had been reeled in by this annoying Canadian, and all he knew was that he wanted to stay. He wanted to anchor himself to Shane and just... stay.

nobody knows who Shane and Ilya really are (insp.)

Actual image of me every night since Friday

hollanov + through the decade (insp.)

Every Shane & Ilya Kiss: Season 1

Forever if you ask.

He’d left Russia, he was uneasy in America, and he’d spent his entire adult life drifting between continents and between lovers. But now he had been reeled in by this annoying Canadian, and all that he knew was that he wanted to stay. He wanted to anchor himself to Shane and just...stay.

↳ bonus:

Even though [Shane] didn’t say [I love you] first, he made that cottage a home for Ilya to be able to say it. — Hudson Williams

#all men do is lie

the two most important people in ilya's life shutting down his self loathing