Chapter Text
The racket of multiple voices coming from the backyard of the Omicron Chi house had Shane not even bothering with the front door, immediately heading around back to where he knew the fire pit was. According to Ilya, the house brothers always held a bonfire and barbecue night the weekend before spring finals. Significant others were always invited, too, so Shane had a feeling it would be a pretty decent-sized group.
The first brother he spotted was Bood, set up at the grill at the very edge of the house’s back deck. Shane waved, catching his attention.
“Hey Shane!” Bood called from up on the deck. “Hot dog or hamburger? I also have a few bratwursts, too.”
“Hamburger is good for me!” Shane called back. “Need any help?”
“Nah, I’m good, man. But thanks,” Bood replied. “Go hang with everyone else, it’ll be some time before everything’s ready.”
Shane was met with a chorus of greetings as he rounded the deck, approaching the group, all sitting in an assortment of Adirondack and camp chairs surrounding a fire pit. Even though it was early May, it was still a bit chilly out, and the evening would only grow cooler as the sun set, so Shane was thankful he’d worn a sweatshirt. It was technically Ilya’s, but he’d stolen it some time ago, and Ilya had never asked for it back
Ilya caught his eye from across the fire, his face immediately softening. He patted his thigh, beckoning for Shane to come over and sit in his lap. The side of Shane that wanted to sit in Ilya’s lap warred with the opposition within him to being summoned like a dog. To be fair, there weren’t any open seats around him, so it was either sit on the opposite side of the fire, or sit in his boyfriend’s lap. One of those options sounded far more appealing than the other.
As he approached, he considered just standing by Ilya in order to prove a point, but as soon as he was within distance, Ilya was grabbing him and manhandling him into his lap.
“Hi, moya lyubov,” Ilya murmured before pressing a kiss just under Shane’s ear and pulling him close.
If anyone asked, Shane would blame the heat radiating off the bonfire for the redness in his cheeks. He loved when Ilya used Russian pet names for him, even if sometimes they were a little ridiculous. They were a great way to help Shane learn. Russian wasn’t easy, but he was trying to do his best to teach himself, for Ilya. He’d even found time in his fall schedule to take an intro Russian language class. He hadn’t told Ilya yet, wanting it to be a surprise.
“You sure this thing can hold the two of us?”
The wooden Adirondack chair seemed sturdy, but neither of them was exactly small.
“Yes. You worry too much,” Ilya chided, then tugged at the sleeve of Shane’s sweatshirt. “This looks familiar, hm?”
“Does it?” Shane asked, feigning innocence. “I stole it from some asshole frat guy. Maybe you know him.”
Ilya just pinched his side playfully, and Shane settled back into his boyfriend’s warm body as he picked up on the conversation around them. Everyone was discussing their plans for either the summer or post-graduation. Shane was thankful he and Ilya had figured out what they’d be doing some weeks ago. It was one less thing for both of them to stress about as finals loomed.
“I got the internship in Montreal,” Ilya said when the questioning came his way. “So I will be staying in the house with Troy and Dykstra. Is a forty-minute drive to the city, but better than finding a short-term lease in Montreal for the summer.”
“I’m heading back to Ottawa,” Shane said. “The Bank of Canada has a summer collegiate position, so I’ll be doing that.”
“But he will be spending every weekend here,” Ilya said, grinning.
“You sound very sure of that,” Shane countered, even if it was true.
“What, you want me to come visit you at your parents' house?” Ilya asked, raising his brows. “Says the man who would not even have phone sex with me while he was home over Christmas.”
“Oh my god,” Shane exclaimed, mortified. “Please shut up.”
“Well, as the one in the house who holds the misfortune of sharing a wall with Ilya, probably for the best you don’t terrorize your parents with the noise you two make,” Wyatt said. “Why do you think I’ve been spending most nights at Lisa’s lately?”
“Sorry that my boyfriend and I love each other very much and like to express that love loudly -” Ilya started before Shane cut him off.
His heart still sputtered a little every time one of them used that word. Even if it had been over four months, the knowledge that Ilya was his still gave him a rush. It still wasn’t enough to cancel out his current humiliation.
“Speaking of Lisa,” Shane said, desperate to change the subject, “I saw you got into med school in Toronto. That’s really exciting, congrats.”
“Thanks, Shane!” Lisa grinned.
The conversation thankfully recentered on Lisa and Wyatt and their plans to move to Toronto together. Shane was only half paying attention, if he was being honest, drawing inward now that the attention was off him and thinking of his own upcoming summer plans.
Being a two-hour drive apart wouldn’t be easy after basically living in each other’s pockets for the last few months, but it was certainly better than Ilya having to go back to Moscow - for a multitude of reasons. Shane had been incredibly thankful that everything had worked out for Ilya, too, and that he’d been accepted to an internship nearby. He was even more grateful that Ilya got to stay in Canada for the summer so he could actually enjoy it for once.
Shane would be spending the majority of his weekends with Ilya, though he knew his parents would want to meet him at some point, which was simultaneously exciting and terrifying. He’d even convinced them to let him and Ilya have a weekend at the family summer cottage alone before both their internships started. Summer would fly by, and then they’d be living ten minutes’ waking distance from each other again for another whole school year. Shane was also already planning on asking Ilya to come home with him for winter break next year, but he was going to wait until at least fall semester to do so. Asking seven months ahead of time felt like jumping the gun just a bit.
The idea that they’d be the ones graduating a year from now was a little daunting, so Shane just reminded himself he still had plenty of time before he really had to worry about it. Whatever came next, they’d figure it out together.
Ilya squeezed at his waist, breaking him from his thoughts. “You are quiet. Everything okay?”
“Yeah, sorry, just a little lost in thought,” Shane said.
The rest of the group was still engrossed in their own conversation, so they paid Shane and Ilya no mind. Moments like this, when it was the two of them in their own little world, it felt like they were the only two people on earth.
“Hmm. What are you thinking about?”
“Just the future,” Shane said, then clarified, “our future.”
Ilya’s face flashed through a multitude of expressions before it finally settled on something achingly tender.
“‘Our’ future, huh?” He asked, quietly.
“Yeah,” Shane confirmed.
“I like the sound of that,” Ilya said, voice thick.
“Me too,” Shane murmured. And because he couldn’t resist saying it every chance he got, he added, “love you.”
“Love you more,” Ilya replied.
“Not possible,” Shane countered.
Loving Ilya was as easy as breathing for Shane. The love he held for Ilya felt innate, like it had always been a part of him and had simply been waiting to be awoken. He’d spend the rest of his life showing that to Ilya in any and every way he could.
Ilya pulled Shane closer, hiding his face in the sleeve of his sweatshirt. Shane ran his hands comfortingly through Ilya’s curls, giving him a moment. It still surprised Ilya sometimes when he was faced with the reality of how much Shane loved him. Shane knew it wasn’t by any fault of his own, but because of the way his father and brother had treated him growing up. Shane hated those assholes for that alone.
“I am very glad I met you,” Ilya finally said.
“Me too,” Shane whispered, not allowing himself to think about whatever somber alternate reality existed out there where he’d just gone home after that fated date party over a year ago and they’d never met.
He snuggled infinitesimally closer to Ilya, pressing a kiss to his temple. The “what ifs” didn’t matter. They’d both been so stupid, trying to fight the inevitable. Now that they were together, it felt like the surest thing in the world. He honestly didn’t even think there was a universe out there in which they didn’t meet and fall in love.
Whatever the future held - whether that future was the summer to come or the following school year or even life after that - it didn’t matter. They were a team now, and they had each other, for the rest of their lives, if Shane had anything to say about it. The two of them would face it all together, hand in hand.