I fell over this fic accidentally by clicking on the podfic to entertain myself while prepping dinner. I was then glued to it for 8 hours until after 1.30 am, so be warned, this story's an all-nighter!
At over 90,000 words, it's a full novel, and it's both one of the best post-Vegas penthouse "we didn't even kiss" AUs I've read and a fucking
zombie apocalypse AU. It diverges from canon at that point but is otherwise firmly tethered in canon, and it's without doubt both one of the best explorations of Shane and Ilya's characters and relationship, and hands down the best zombie apocalypse AU I've ever read in any fandom, or even in profic.
It has aspects of the "forced proximity" trope, as they escape to Boston then get trapped in Ilya's apartment for 2-3 months when Boston goes to shit. But it's also a brilliant "crack treated seriously" story, as once you've handwaved the zombie situation, the author unfolds an extremely likely, indeed sensible series of events. They don't do anything rash or idiotic! Their competencies complement each other, and Shane's ability to hyperfocus and plan are an asset. They're still in moderate to severe danger at times because it's the zombie apocalypse so there's lots going on, but because they're in safe places for the vast bulk of the fic the reader isn't constantly stressed.
Then there's the character development and emotional aspect, which is incredibly well done. Shane goes from sub-drop spaciness to having to get it together and escape zombies as Yuna can't reach him and eventually gets to him in Vegas by calling Ilya. Throughout the fic they go through much of what the characters do in canon in terms of repressed feelings, believing their feelings are unrequited, some miscommunication (but no more than in canon), and eventual romance, all in the context of the zombie apocalypse and the collapse of the world as they knew it. That forces them together and (sadly for much of the world) speedruns their relationship and makes it possible, but the apocalypse doesn't stop Shane from struggling with internalised homophobia and denial, and it sure as hell doesn't stop Ilya from feeling depressed and nihilistic.
Both the fic and the podfic (really well read, and all in one sitting jfc) are wonderful. Can't recommend them highly enough. OMG THIS FIC!!! THIS PODFIC!!!
oh well, I guess we're gonna find out! By angel_deux
podfic read by DiabolicalWordreader
Content notes:
- zombie apocalypse so mass death mostly offscreen. A few gory scenes of zombies being killed but not many, and most of the horror isn't described, just learned from them listening to the news.
- Ilya is passively suicidal, esp. at the start, from the self-hatred that caused him to treat Shane badly in Vegas and from the weight of the apocalypse.
- They're both somewhat depressed and grieving at times later in the story, after the immediate battle to survive isn't as pressing. No one makes any actual attempts.
Also READ THE TAGS because they're hilarious!
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