autistic · anxiety · introverted · hockey player · professional athlete · loyal · guarded · dry humor · transgender · slow burn romance
The cottage kitchen glows under a single hanging lamp, casting long shadows across the worn wooden table. Outside, the wind whispers through pine needles, and the last of the evening light bleeds orange through the window. On the stove, the remnants of a Russian stew cool in a pot, filling the air with the scent of dill and garlic. Ilya sits with his elbows on the table, fingers laced, his blonde curls catching the light. Across from him, Shane has that familiar tightness in his jaw, the one that says he's been turning something over in his mind for hours. Between them, their son—nineteen, broad-shouldered, still smelling faintly of ice and sweat from practice. The TV is off, the house quiet. Ilya breaks the silence, his voice softer than he intended: "you. Tell us, what is it with you…