Chapter Text
Shane did a walk through of frat house one last time. Rush was over and the new pledges were arriving soon, along with two transfers.
Zeta Kappa Psi was ranked number one at McGill University and Shane was its president. He ran his chapter like the navy. Every meeting was attended, every requirement met.
Rush week was one of the most important events of the semester. Parents and alumni dealt out their recommendation letters and all the houses prepared for war.
Every house planned for months down to preference night when the astronomical numbers they started with were dwindled down to the select many.
They had recruited 35 pledges, including the transfers. Bid day this year was bigger than any previous year. Every fraternity and sorority was fighting for notoriety now that the seniors graduated and new people sat their boards.
Shane had been president for a year now and knew the shift was coming. He prepared for it. Everyone would be gunning for their spot at the top and Shane was sure as shit not going to give it up.
Shane Hollander was not one to lose what he wants. He was the only child of one of the most influential families in Canada, part of every honor society on campus, captain of the hockey team, and the reason Zeta Kappa Psi was the best.
“Fifteen minutes until the run starts. Everything is fine, Hallzy. We killed rush week and the house is spotless. We got this.” Hayden said from the top of the stairs.
The other active members were already pregaming in the back yard for the barbeque that they prepared for the day. Everyone agreed to a more laid back theme for the day so Shane was sporting black workout shorts, a white long sleeve with ZKΨ written on the front and a black backwards hat.
Shane stuck his head out to the backyard.
“Get it together! You have fifteen minutes until the pledges arrive. Embarrass our letters and I’ll have all your parking passes cancelled. Good luck fighting all the freshmen for the princess parking in front of the dining hall.”
Everyone began to scramble towards their positions. Half would wait in the front of the house and the others would line the entrance in the foyer.
Their letters stood proud as a moniker at the top of their house and the other houses had their members lined up already too.
The sororities on the other side of Greek Street were all dressed in different themes and blasting music throughout their lawns. The other fraternities varied in numbers but everyone was putting in all the effort they could come up with.
Pledges would be running from the student hall all the way to their new houses. Shane remembers his bid day. The second he saw those three letters embossed in gold lettering on his bid card, he bolted. There was no other house he wanted. He was a Zeta the moment he entered the first day of rush.
“Get ready! Good luck! And here they come!” Rose, social chair of Phi Sigma, screamed through a microphone.
Shane steeled his spine and stood at the top of the entrance steps. The sounds of a stampede were instant. A flurry of dresses sped past them as the new sisters found their houses. Then came the fraternity pledges.
The collisions were instant and Shane braced as someone crashed into him. Cheers and screams were muffled as a head of golden curls blurred his vision.
“What a welcome! Boston didn’t do it up like this! Canada is not as boring as they say, yes?” an accented voice said as he pulled away.
Shane’s brain short circuited for a second. Or five.
In front of him stood the hottest man Shane had ever seen. Blue eyes that reminded him of the lake at his family’s cottage. A smile that could power all of Canada for decades and a body that had to have been stolen from the Gods because they would have never released it willingly.
Jesus Christ.
When his brain decided to rejoin the celebration, Shane ran every new name through his mind. From Boston and an accent. Russian.
Ilya Rozanov.
One of the new transfers from the Boston University chapter. Grades that rival Shane’s, joining the hockey team this semester, and son of Irina Rozanova, his mother’s new business partner.
“No one does it like us, Rozanov.” Shane said, a smirk creeping on his face.
His mother had briefed Shane on the Rozanovs and that Ilya would be joining him at McGill but he had yet to see what he looked like. His mother knew exactly what she was doing by waiting.
“Shane Hollander. We finally meet.”
Fuck. Say it again. Say my name.
Before Shane could say anything else, more bodies began crashing around them. The music had long been muffled by all the excited new members. Shane was dragged back into the house for the welcome speech and Ilya was being dragged towards his new brothers.
JJ and Hayden stood on each of his sides as the pledges were rounded up into the main hall. The right wall was adorned with every medal and trophy the house had ever won and the left had the chapter picture along with their crest and the pictures of everyone on the board. Shane’s picture stood on top.
“Welcome, pledges! As of today you are a Zeta. In this house that means something. As you should know our fraternity is the oldest on campus and we pride ourselves on our perseverance. In two months you will be officially initiated into our chapter but make no mistake, you already represent us. We are number one because we know what we’re worth and what it takes to bring pride to our letters. I am Shane Hollander, president of Zeta Kappa Psi. Learn your brother's names. They will be the ones to help you survive finals and drag you out of bed when the hangover hits. We show up for each other and respect each other. And if the pride flag out front hasn’t made it clear, we don't tolerate hate here. If you have a problem with your president being gay or any member for that matter, you can get the fuck out of my house and out of my chapter. Enjoy the barbecue and tomorrow morning we'll go over what the next week will look like.”
Everyone began shuffling into the backyard and the music was turned up full blast. The semester had just started and rush was over. The real competition was about to start.
“Wonderful speech, Hollander. Very presedenty.” Rozanov said as he leaned in the doorframe.
His broad shoulders took up most of the space. Damn, this man was huge. All his muscles were all on display.
Fuck me up against that doorframe. Our founders would understand.
“You think that's good, wait until the Olympiad. My best work is when we're competing.”
Their house has won the Greek week Olympiad three years in a row and Shane was aiming for a fourth. A week of different challenges and competitions against every Greek house.
“Oh I am sure, Mr. Hockey captain. Mr. President. I have heard a lot about you. You do not disappoint. Very sexy.”
Rozanov raked his eyes over Shane’s body, top to bottom and back up again. He held Shane’s gaze like nothing had happened.
Interesting.
“I aim to please. Or at least get a reaction.” Shane said.
Rozanov licked his lips and plastered on a smirk before turning towards the backyard.
Let it be known that Shane Hollander had great self control but he also knew he was a fucking brat. It was a part of his nature and Ilya Rozanov had decided to put himself in his line of sight.
He would have that man but he would come crawling to him.
~~~~~~~~~~~
The meeting hall was packed to the brim. Shane had implemented an accountability system for chapter meetings so no one could miss. Classes were scheduled around the meeting so no one had an excuse. Headquarters would never have a complaint about chapter minutes.
“Listen up! We have a lot to cover.” Kip, their social chair, said.
“We have Welcome week. Every house will be throwing a party. Do not let that blind you to the fact that we will drag you through the quad if you pass out drunk. No Zeta is getting shit faced to the point of collapse. Shane will personally ruin you if you do. Phi Sigma is throwing the first party of the week tonight and we will all attend. Lisa is our Sweetheart and we need to support her house. For those of you who don't know, a Sweetheart for our fraternity is chosen by votes and Hayes campaigned his ass off for Lisa so his girlfriend is now our sweetheart. Also on the fraternity side, Harris of Pi Phi is our Dream Man. Troy campaigned for him.”
“You all will respect my boyfriend's apple pies and thank him when he drops them off.” Troy says from the back of the room.
“Our first social will be with Alpha Lambda Nu fraternity. The theme is Neon Nights. Glow sticks, florescent or pastel colors and I don't want to hear that you don't own anything. Go shopping or convince one of the sorority sisters to help you tie dye. If any of you ruin my theme, I'll do more than ban you from the next event. Do not fuck with me.” Kip continued.
Kip was the greatest social chair on the whole campus. He was an arts history major and it helped his creativity ten fold.
He was also ruthless if anyone messed up his socials.
Once a guy deliberately bought the wrong decorations and Kip had Harris flood his social media until all he saw were ads for the right decorations. No one has crossed him since.
“Next month we are hosting a Halloween party. We all voted against a chapter costume so everyone has free reign on what they want to wear. Budget for alcohol has already been confirmed but if you want to add you can.”
“I will buy Russian vodka. You will all learn quality.” Ilya says from his seat.
A couple laughs rang through. Halloween and Russian vodka would surely be an experience.
Kip wrapped up his notes and took his seat.
“Any questions?” Shane asks as he walks up to the front.
No one raised their hand.
“Okay. Ilya and Cliff, your rooms are ready for move in since you're technically not new members, just transfers. Let the house coordinator know if you need anything else.”
The rest of the meeting went smoothly. Welcome week was mostly house parties and endless alcohol. Shane went to a few but only drank at the Phi Sigma parties.
He made his way back to his room. The president of the fraternity got the main room in the whole house. It took up the entire third floor and overlooked Greek Street.
The exposed wood and floor to ceiling windows made it feel detached from everything else.
Shane enjoyed the quiet it gave him.
Greek life sometimes felt like a bunch of raccoons got thrown in a barrel and they were Shane’s raccoons to handle.
Like the time he had to pull JJ out of a campus dumpster because he thought he could jump over it while drunk.
At least in his room all he had to worry about was how feral he felt at the thought of Ilya Rozanov.
He felt like a baby gay all over again. It's not like he hasn't known his sexuality for years. He had dated in high school but he was never attracted to anyone at McGill past a rare one night stand. Not until now.
And he knew Ilya checked him out. Queer eyes realize. He at least found Shane attractive but didn't try to make any move at the barbecue and Shane was not about to start chasing anyone.
Not even a man who looked like he could create his own cult on accident.
Shane would feel it out first. See how many buttons he could push before it forced Ilya to show his hand.
Or before Ilya broke his resolve.
~~~~~~~~~~~
The party was in full swing when Shane made his way across the street. The theme was Malibu Beach house and Rose had made sure everyone stayed on theme.
Shane wore black and white polka dot swim shorts that would probably get him banned from beaches across the world and sunglasses Rose insisted were a part of the outfit.
The backyard was half dance floor while the other half had a giant ground pool. Pink and gold decorations hung around the edges and brought the theme together.
The patio had the fire pit going with chairs surrounding it and sober sisters making sure no one got too close.
Shane could see Troy, Cliff and Ilya dancing with a couple girls on the dance floor.
“You made it!” Rose screamed as she barreled towards him. She was dressed in a pink bikini and big white sunglasses.
“You know I wasn't going to miss this. How are your new members doing?” Shane asked, still watching the dance floor.
“Amazing. We got 30 girls this year. Highest out of all the sororities so you know the rest are going to hate us but who cares. You going to tell me why you're staring at tall, blonde and Russian like you want to eat him?”
“Because I want to climb that man like a tree.” Shane said plainly.
Rose squealed and grabbed his arm, pulling him towards the pool. She sat on the steps at the shallow end.
“Has Shane Hollander finally found a man worthy of him?”
“What is that supposed to mean?”
“It means that half of the campus has been throwing themselves at you and I have been trying to set you up with Miles since we met and you have paid no attention to any of it and now you can’t take your eyes off of the Russian Ken doll.”
Ilya really did look like a Ken doll tonight. His curls had been slicked back and he wore some pink swim shorts that matched with Troy’s. They even had pink shot necklaces hanging around their necks.
Fuck, Shane wanted to lick those abs so bad.
“You have eyes. He looks like he was made in a lab just to drive me insane. It would be easy to just put him in the hot guy compartment in my brain but he’s so fucking smart too, Rose. Our GPAs are matched and he’s taking up the Recruitment chair position like nothing. It’s day two and he showed me a spreadsheet of recruitment events we can do. I almost dropped to my knees, Rose! I wanted to suck his dick because of a spreadsheet!”
It had to be some sort of record that he was this far gone.
“Well he hasn’t stopped looking this way either and he isn’t looking at me.”
Shane turned his head and sure enough Ilya was looking at them from where he was. He was still dancing with a girl plastered to his chest but he was hardly paying attention to her.
“Do the sexy pool thing! Get in the water and then pull yourself up from the side. I’ve seen you do it before. Your abs look like a washboard. He won’t know what to do with himself.” Rose said from behind her drink so no one could see her lips move.
It wouldn’t hurt to see what happens.
Shane hands his sunglasses to Rose, slides further into the pool and dunks his head under water. The water is cool and perfect for September. He pushes his hair out of his face and braces on the side of the pool. In one swift push up movement Shane pulls himself out of the water.
When he looks up he locks eyes with Ilya. There’s a different spark there now. Darker. Hungrier.
Good.
He glances at Rose and gives her a charming smirk in full view of everyone. Shane knew the effect that look had on people. Every girl here knew he was gay but it didn’t stop them from swooning under it.
Shane decided to focus on the party rather than watching Ilya. He made his way to the bar and made himself a Moscow Mule. It was the only drink he really liked and the irony was not lost on him.
He took a seat in front of the fire pit and let the heat dry him off a bit. The music and laughter continued around him as he closed his eyes and threw his head back.
He felt a shift in the air before he heard him.
Shane opened his eyes and saw Ilya sitting across from him, the fire pit crackling between them.
“Enjoy your swim?” he asks, taking a sip of his own clear drink.
“It was more of a dip. It was nice. I’ve enjoyed swimming since I was a kid.”
“I am sure. You have summer cottage, yes? Fancy. Must be where your love of water comes from.”
What a little asshole.
“Your mom bought the cottage right next to ours. Don’t act like you are a starving artist, Ilya. Your swim trunks are literally Yves Saint Laurent.”
Ilya smirks. Why is that so fucking hot?
“Is nice to know you are not the golden boy everyone seems to think you are. You are an asshole too.”
“If they think I’m a golden boy it’s because they don’t actually know me. They just wish they did. I know I’m privileged and I have more than others but I’m not going to beat myself up about it. Luck favors the bold. I got lucky and I’m not going to waste that luck by making myself digestible to strangers.”
“I would like to know more. You make me curious. Tell me things I do not know. Introduce yourself, Shane Hollander. Who are you?” Ilya asks, genuine curiosity seeping through the playfulness.
Shane got more comfortable in his seat.
“Well I grew up in Ottawa and moved to Montreal when I was ten. I am a business administration major. I absolutely hate chocolate by itself but love chocolate covered strawberries. I don't know why but I do. During the summer I hide away at our family cottage and don't resurface until it's time to come back to school. My favorite color is blue but not a light blue. A midnight blue. My freshman year our pledge class had to get every sorority to gift us a badge during Greek week and Chi Omega would not give it to us no matter what we did so I climbed their lattice to the second floor and stole the badge out of the social chair's room. I overheard that she had it in her desk and I wasn't going to lose that challenge because one of our pledges rejected her.”
Ilya laughed so hard he spit out some of his drink.
Let me make you laugh like that forever.
“Shane Hollander, Zeta's bad boy? Impossible.” Ilya says between breaths.
“We had a deadline, Ilya! She was going to get us relegated to deep cleaning duty because Troy was gay and wasn't attracted to her. You would have done the same.”
“Probably, yes.”
“Exactly. And she couldn't rat on me because she would have to admit that she was holding out on us for a stupid reason.”
Shane could see Rose hovering close by and when they met eyes, she smiled brightly at him. He would not be hearing the end of this.
“Why business administration? I would think you would drop out and go pro for the MLH, captain.” Ilya asks.
“I learned early on that hockey would make me choose between my sexuality or my love for the sport. I'm not willing to hide in the closet when I have no reason to.” Shane shrugs. “I want to run my own real estate firm. Make it the biggest in Montreal. Even have an architect or two on my team so we can build dream homes.”
“Mr. Real Estate.” Ilya says, a big smirk on his face.
“Fuck you.” Shane says fondly, no bite behind the words.
Talking with Ilya came so easy. It wasn’t rushed or necessary. He could be doing shots with Phi Sig girls or dancing like he was earlier but he’s choosing to talk to Shane.
“Ouch. You speak to people this way? How will you find and woo boyfriend like this?”
Oh. That’s new.
“I don’t need to woo anyone. If I want them they’ll find me.”
Ilya raised an eyebrow at him.
“What? They must chase you?”
“I didn’t say that. I don’t mind putting in effort for the right person but at the end of the day, I want them to show up with flowers and show me how much I know I’m worth.”
Shane constantly saw his friends either lower their standards or be low standards and that was not for him. He strived to win in everything and his love life was no exception.
“My mama is very excited to work with your mother. She says they are best friends now.” Ilya says, seemingly changing the subject.
“Yeah. My mom has followed your mom’s work for a while. She was determined to meet her. She would not consider anyone else for the project. It’s probably where I get my leadership from.”
Shane had learned a lot about the Rozanovs.
Irina Rozanova was a former gold medal figure skater. She taught in Canada for a while. That's how she obtained Canadian citizenship along with her son. Then she broke out as an architect. Her buildings are all over America. It built her wealth astronomically. Now she was working with Shane’s mother to revive a dead district in Montreal.
Ilya gets a serious look on his face all of a sudden.
“Why Zeta Kappa Psi? I talked to other fraternities. They all wanted you. Zeta wasn’t even the best when you joined.”
Shane smiled. It’s been a while since someone asked him that.
“You know that my mom has the communications building named after her here? That was her major when she went here. My freshman year, everyone would remind me of it like I didn’t know. Like they were proving that they knew me on some deeper level. All the other houses did that first day of rush week. They talked like all I was was Yuna Hollander’s son. Like my black card was going to extend to them somehow.”
The party had faded into a more contained hang out rather than a rager. The fire kept burning.
“When I walked into Zeta house, I expected the same. What I got was Scott Hunter, the president back then, telling me that my snapshot was wild but my backhand could use some work. Not once did anyone bring up my mom or her influence. They watched me play hockey during tryouts and went off of that. I was Shane Hollander. That’s it. I wasn’t a legacy since my dad didn’t care for Greek life so I actually had to try to earn these letters. It was the best choice I’ve ever made.”
Ilya had a different kind of smile on his face now. One he hasn’t seen yet. He looked almost proud.
“Why did you rush Zeta in Boston?” Shane asked.
“Marly had said he was going to do rush week and wanted me to join him. I didn’t know anything about Greek life other than they partied. It was a little similar to you. My family name meant something to them. My mama tried to keep it away from my university life but it is hard when she is featured in magazines as a once in a lifetime architect. When Marly and I walked into Zeta’s house they cared more about my grades and how I could maintain Dean’s list and party every night. I only put Zeta down on preference night. Got the bid.”
Cocky little shit. Shane singled named on preference night too.
“How the fuck do you keep your grades so high and party? I saw you do a keg stand yesterday and then you talked about data analysis for prime recruitment months.”
“Is because I am a God, Hollander. I can do all.”
It was strange to meet someone so close to his own situation. Shane’s mom owned half of Montreal at this point and Ilya’s mom owned the other half.
He understood the struggles of successful parents and wanting to make your own way even if it is in Greek life.
Shane might as well throw out the whole compartment trying to contain Ilya Rozanov because he already seemed to be wrapping himself somewhere in his chest.
He saw much more than frivolous crushes and stolen moments with this man.
“Both our mothers built their own dynasties while we make our mark here.” Ilya said.
The embers of the fire pit kept holding on like they were waiting for Shane and Ilya to finish their conversation. How much time had passed? It seemed like it was only them left in the backyard. Everyone surely moved on to the next party of the night.
“It would have been nice if we were legacies, no? Started out at the top of Zeta Kappa Psi.” Ilya smiled wide.
Shane didn’t even hesitate as an image of a certain future popped in his head.
“Our children will be.”