It’s very interesting to me that when Ilya is giving them fake names, he derives them from their first names. Instead of going for something like Rose and Holly (though admittedly Holly could be read as a hockey nickname so I understand avoiding that one), he chooses Jane and Lily. At that point they’re only ever calling each other by their surnames, and will continue in that fashion for years to come. But in their phones, Ilya has given them names that stem from their first ones. It’s not quite as vulnerable as actually using their first names, and far more subtle, but it implies to me that Ilya was already seeking some deeper connection at that point, even if he wasn’t outwardly admitting it.
And I think it makes the tuna meltdown scene that bit more heartbreaking, bc Ilya has been wanting this for so long. Names carry so much weight for them, and while he couldn’t have Shane, at least he had Jane, not just Hollander. And then he didn’t have any version at all.
Anyway. Rachel Reid the woman that u are
