Ilya Rozanov

It had sounded simple when Hayden asked.

Just a few days. Emergency. You guys are closest.

Shane had said yes before he really thought about it

Now, two days in, he wasn’t sure what part of the apartment was louder—the kids, or his own brain.

Jade and Ruby were currently arguing in the living room about whether a stuffed giraffe was “medically qualified” to be a doctor. Arthur was on the floor between them, happily smacking a plastic spoon against a toy drum like it was his life’s purpose.

Somewhere in the background, something was beeping. Shane couldn’t locate it anymore

Ilya was in the kitchen trying to reheat pasta for the third time

Shane stood in the hallway, frozen halfway between all of it

“Uncle Shane!” Ruby yelled “Jade said my giraffe is stupid.”

“I didn’t say that!” Jade shot back “I just said his neck looked a little stupid.”

Arthur screamed, for reasons unknown

Shane blinked slowly

The sound layered on top of itself—voices, banging toys, the low hum of appliances, the constant movement everywhere at once. It wasn’t even that loud, objectively

It just didn’t stop

“Hey,” Ilya called from the kitchen, calm in a way Shane was starting to resent “Can you grab the wipes?”

Shane didn’t move

“Ilya,” he said

“Yeah?”

“I think I’m—” Shane swallowed, then tried again “I think I’m done.”

That made Ilya pause. He looked over the counter

“Done how?”

Shane rubbed a hand over his face. His skin felt too tight, like it didn’t fit properly. “Like… done done.”

Another crash from the living room—Ruby had apparently decided the giraffe needed to be “resuscitated” using a cushion

Arthur started squealing

“That’s not how CPR works!” Jade yelled

Shane flinched

Ilya noticed immediately “Okay,” he said, setting the pan down “Come here.”

“I can’t—” Shane gestured vaguely at the room “It’s everywhere.”

“I know,” Ilya said simply

That didn’t help as much as it should have.

Shane tried to breathe through it, but everything felt too close. Too many inputs. Too many sounds happening at once with no space in between them

“I just need them to stop for like—five minutes,” Shane said, voice tighter now “Just five minutes of—of nothing.”

Ruby chose that exact moment to announce, very loudly, “The giraffe is back from the dead!”

Arthur shrieked in delight

Shane shut his eyes

“Ilya,” he said again, quieter this time

“I’ve got it,” Ilya replied immediately

Then, louder: “Jade. Ruby. Bedroom. Now.”

There was a beat of silence—rare, almost sacred

“What?” Jade said

“Bedroom,” Ilya repeated, still calm “Five minutes. You’re not in trouble.”

“But—” Ruby started

“Now.”

Something in Ilya’s tone made it non-negotiable

The twins hesitated, then slowly gathered their chaos and retreated, still arguing under their breath

Arthur remained, patting his spoon against the floor like he refused to be removed from the situation

Shane stayed standing in the hallway, breathing shallowly, like if he moved too much he might tip over

Ilya crossed the room, gently picking Arthur up and settling him on his hip

“Hey,” Ilya said quietly, turning back to Shane “Look at me.”

Shane tried

It took effort

His thoughts were still loud, still scattered

“I can’t—” Shane started

“I know,” Ilya said “Sit down.”

Shane hesitated, then lowered himself onto the couch like his legs had stopped negotiating

Arthur immediately reached for his face

Shane didn’t stop him

“I thought I could handle it,” Shane muttered, staring at the floor “It’s just kids. It’s just noise. It’s not even that bad.”

Ilya sat down beside him, still holding Arthur “Is a lot.”

Shane let out a shaky breath “It feels like everything is happening at once.”

“That’s because it is,” Ilya said

Shane laughed once, but it came out wrong “Great.”

Ilya shifted slightly closer “You are overstimulated.”

“I’m what?”

“Overstimulated,” Ilya repeated “It’s not dramatic. It’s just… too much input. Your brain is trying to process everything at once.”

Shane stared at him.

Then, quieter: “So I’m not just… bad at this?”

Ilya frowned slightly at that. “No, you are good.”

From the hallway, Ruby shouted, “Can we come out yet?”

Ilya didn’t even look up. “Not yet.”

Shane closed his eyes again, but this time it wasn’t as sharp.

Just tired.

“Okay,” he said eventually. “So what do I do?”

Ilya adjusted Arthur on his lap, steady and unbothered. “You breathe. And I handle the noise for a bit.”

Shane let out a slow exhale.

For the first time all day, nothing demanded anything from him for exactly three seconds.

It wasn’t peace.

But it was enough to stop him from falling apart.