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It’s the middle of summer and the hockey camps are in full swing.
Currently, Ilya is with the 8-10 age group doing shooting practice. They take turns trying to get a goal, and then fall into a fit of laughter after each of Ilya’s reactions. If the puck doesn’t go in, he makes sure to pull all the attention onto himself.
To others, it might seem like Ilya doesn’t take this seriously enough, as he picks up one of the girls and spins her in a circle, celebrating as though she just won a cup. But Shane knows how much his support and kindness means to those kids.
In a way, Ilya gets to give what he never got from his own coaches. And it’s not like Shane isn’t supportive of these kids’ wins and losses, he’s just coming at it from a different place.
He grew up with his parents love and support, so the only pressure Shane really felt came from himself. Because of that, when he’s trying to help the kids, he wants to make sure they aren’t too hard on themselves the way he always was.
Ilya on the other hand, is making sure they feel zero external embarrassment. And of course, that they have fun. No one ever told Ilya that fun was a possibility.
With a slight shake of his head, Shane refocuses on his own group of kids who he’s teaching to skate with the help of Max. A couple days into camp, most of them are starting to get the hand of it, but there’s one little boy who still struggles.
Shane and Max had agreed to let Noah try on his own for a bit, not wanting to baby him too much. But as the 6 year old falls for the millionth time today and starts crying, Shane cannot help but give in to his instincts.
He gives Max a look to let him know what he’s about to do, then goes and scoops Noah up into his arms. They sit next to each other on the bench for a few minutes, Shane stroking his back kindly, as Noah catches his breath.
Finally, with a shaky voice, he speaks “It’s just too hard Mr. Shane. I’ll never play if I keep falling.”
“Hey, that’s okay. You’ll get it eventually, you just have to keep practicing.” Shane reaches over and wipes the last of Noah’s tears “The only reason you’ll never play hockey again, is if you give up. So don't.”
“But, what’s wrong with me? Why is it so easy for everyone else? YOU never fall.”
Shane opens his mouth to respond, but is cut off by Ilya who seems to have been listening to their conversation. “Ah, that is where you are wrong little Noah. Shane here falls all the time!”
“Really?” Both Shane and Noah ask at the same time, though they say it with comepletly different tones.
"Da, yes really. In fact, there was this one time he fell and I couldn't stop laughing for five minutes, it was so silly. Should I tell you the story?"
With an excited nod from Noah, he gets into this large convoluted story about how Shane apparently tried to take a shot at practice, lost all balance, and not only fell on the ice, but slid all the way into the net. It's not true of course, but Shane can't bring himself to mind as he watches Ilya animatedly explain every detail.
In moments like this, Shane considers what him and Ilya might be like as parents. He can't imagine that he'd be very cool or fun, but maybe he could still be a good dad. He'd have to do a lot more research, but Shane thinks he's decent with these campers at least.
Ilya on the other hand would be a perfect dad. Kids already love him and that's without getting to experience all of Ilya's soft, loving sides. He would be considered the 'fun' dad of course, but more than that, Ilya would probably be the one that gives the best comfort. He's the kind of person who just makes you feel safe and sound.
"And that only happened last month." The sound of giggles pulls Shane out of his head to catch the tail end of the story, and he decides to jump in.
"How about this, there's two more days left. Let's keep trying, one day at a time, and see how it goes."
"Okay..." Noah says softly "but what if I still keep falling? What if I never become a champion like you?"
Ilya shakes his head "But see today, how Shane faces fears and skates again? That is what makes him a champion."
"He's right. It isn't about knowing you can do it, its about trying even though you don't know the outcome."
"Yes exactly. Who knows, maybe Shane falls again tomorrow, it won't stop him from hockey."
Maybe Shane should be surprised by how easily they finish each others sentences, but it happens so often nowadays that it no longer phases him. Instead, he wonders at how natural if feels to comfort Noah together.
It seems Shane might be better at this than he thought. He holds up two fingers in front of Noah and asks "Alright so two more days, we're gonna keep trying right?"
The boy is already nodding his head before he finishes his question, but Ilya seems to have other plans.
"Ah, but two days... that's too long. Let's just go skate now."
With that, he grabs Noah's hands and leads him back onto the ice. Ilya skates backwards and takes him around the perimeter of the ice. Shane just sits and watches as Ilya gives helpful tips and barely avoids crashing into any of the other on the ice. After a few loops, he loosens his grip and eventually even lets go of Noah's hands fully. He stays close as the boy gets a few feet of distance on his own (a new record!) before he falls once again.
Except, this time, Noah doesn't get emotional at all. His smile turns into full belly laughs as Ilya pretends to wipe out right next to him. The pair sit on the ice for a bit without a care in the world.
Around them, groups of kids are still doing various hockey drills with their coaches, amongst whom is Max, probably wondering why Shane hasn't returned yet. But all Shane can focus on is his beautiful husband probably changing that kids life.
Shane feels a familiar warmth fill his chest and thinks to himself, 'this is what the camps are all about'.
~
Later that day, the kids are all sitting in their pickup lines talking and playing games like Uno or Chopsticks. The volunteers walk back and forth to help bring each kid to the the front when their parents arrive.
Usually, Ilya and Shane will stay close to the front doors to greet them, and in some situations talk to guardians about a child's behaviour. Thankfully, most of the kids are good and they don't typically have any incidents.
Shane watches fondly as Noah and a couple of his friends play a small game of Duck, Duck, Go, and nudges Ilya to make him look as well. "I want one."
When Ilya sees what Shane is pointing out, he puts on a fake shocked face "What!?! You will kidnap Noah?"
"Shut up. That's not what I meant, asshole."
"Лапочка…" Ilya lightly holds his hand "they all have loving homes to go to. You cannot just take one."
"Well, what about kids who don't have good homes? I've been doing some research and I think maybe we could foster or something."
Shane is feeling very embarrassed right now, unsure of how Ilya will react. What if he doesn't want kids and thinks that Shane's just a big idiot for even suggesting such a thing? What if he laughs at Shane for thinking he could be a good dad? Despite all his fears, Shane forces himself to hold eye contact and not shy away. He's choosing to trust Ilya with all his vulnerability.
He sees as the gears in Ilya's head turn and his playful demeanor dies down "You are serious about this?"
"Yes." The anticipation is nearly killing him but Shane refuses to cry "I mean, only if you want to."
"We should maybe talk about this properly. Later." Ilya smiles brightly and squeezes Shane's hand tighter "But yes. I think... I think yes. I want."