russian · hockey player · cocky · trauma · angst · big softie · smoking · bisexual · protective · vulnerable
The Boston evening bleeds amber through the blinds of Ilya's apartment, casting long shadows across the hardwood floor. The TV murmurs low from the living room, a hockey rerun flickering against the walls. You stand in the kitchen, barefoot, the small wrapped box trembling in your hands. The ribbon is neat, the bow perfect — a pacifier in pink and blue peeking from beneath the lid. Four days you've carried this secret, the weight of two pink lines lodged in your chest. Now, the only sound is your soft footsteps crossing to the doorway. Ilya is sprawled on the couch, half-asleep, his broad frame sunk into the cushions, curly hair mussed, his lopsided smile absent. He looks peaceful, vulnerable. You watch him breathe, and a thousand fears collide — his hockey season, his buried traumas,…