Some of my favorites Part 4

Part 1 here - Part 2 here - Part 3 here

Originally I was trying to highlight some lesser known fics, some of these have gotten some good attention but I still like sharing and offering them up. I try to find ones that are a bit of a departure instead of the same story beats - many of those are lovely but I'm trying to branch out.

But first, WHY OH WHY aren't you reading The Endless Variations of You by shades_of_pemberley (10/25 WIP) ?????? I recommended it in the last part too but it's still not getting the attention it deserves. They are violinists navigating school and then their careers. The character work is really good - Ilya's dad is healthy (so far) and runs the Bolshoi Opera and supports Ilya's life abroad so there's some digging into their dynamic which is (painful but) great story-wise. Shane is deeply closeted and - I don't know how to define it exactly but he is going through it with his sexual identity. The most recent chapter dropped today and it was an emotional gut-punch and a big cliffhanger. It's so good and the music stuff is authentic (with notes and playlists) and the sex is great (and creative)!

Russia's Greatest Love Machine by OrYouCouldHaveMine - Shane is Shane and Ilya is a big-time porn star. They meet at the ESPYs and then flirt over DMs. There's good sex but also, I really like their dynamic, Shane is less experienced and closeted but still a grown man with agency. Also they communicate, sort of, which is my favorite.

State Lines by Mclrnshtposting - Shane and Ilya hooked up on the DL at uni together while Ilya was going through it with family stuff and Shane was terrified and in the closet. After they went their separate ways, Shane ended up meeting an older, successful Russian businessman, came out and got married. Now he's a trophy husband to a controlling, emotionally abusive man. Desperate for something to fill his days, Shane looks for a Russian tutor so he can learn his husband's language, and guess which curly haired PhD student takes the job? I read along with this as a WIP (recently completed) and jumped for joy every time an update hit my inbox. The characterizations, the flashbacks to the college experience, and older, therapized Ilya are absolutely mouthwatering.

The Photo by sammythemattressthief - Goddamn was this good. Shane's Shane and Ilya's Ilya but Shane mysteriously disappeared before they met at World Juniors and no one knows what happened to him. In his rookie year, Ilya goes thrifting to personalize his new place and finds a photos of Shane at the cottage that he takes home against his judgement. Then he starts dreaming about a man in the distance. It's a surprising and romantic and the plot is plotting.

hey, you could hold me closer by totheverge - Shane's a kid's hockey coach and Ilya's a depressed bartender who signs up for beginner hockey at the behest of his therapist to get out and do something. They have CHEMISTRY and it's a fun read.

Heatwave by whenthebeebuzzed - Shane's Shane and Ilya's the electrician who comes to fix his A/C during a heatwave. They get it on.

I wanna stop before we're caught (but don't stop) by JupiterJoon - Ilya owns a cafe and Shane's got an exhibitionist kink that lands him in the bathroom of the cafe jerkin' it. Reminded me a lot of the movie Secretary - two people finding love and comfort in something that looks perverse from the outside of their relationship. There's a part 2 Put it up me like puppet (love it) that is completely off the wall., quack quack quack! And hey TIL what a depth tattoo is.

Game Day by Anonymous - Shane & Ilya play for Ottawa together. It's Game 7 of the cup final against Vancouver and Ilya dies on the ice. The next day, Shane wakes up on the morning of Game Day again in a Groundhog-Day-style time loop and has to figure out how to save him. I've been reading a lot of time loops and time travel recently and this is a good one, both Shane's emotions at having to watch Ilya die over and over, and Ilya's perspective on the whole thing are well done. It's kinda dark but good (and there's a HEA).

Blood for the Blood God by agatestones - A little something different, this is a New Yorker article about an incident on the ice where Shane was called a hero and is reluctantly talking about it for the first time.

getting killed by a pretty good life by hart - A tough, angsty read but I liked it. At the cottage after coming out, Ilya starts acting erratically. As Ilya's manic episode intensifies, Shane has to figure out what's going on and how he might be able to help. There's a hopeful if not exactly happy ending.