I just feel like I cannot express my love for Ilya enough. He's just my special little guy. I think there was real growth in both the characters in the book and I'm glad their arc didn't end with Heated Rivalry. I was so sad they got outed the way they did and didn't get to do in on their own terms but I think the way they handled it was very admirable and brave, particularly Shane who was the most worried and anxious about keeping their secret a secret. When push came to shove he fought for Ilya and with how kind of absent he'd been in noticing Ilya's depression, it proved he still deserves him. I think Ilya's depression was handled well with the ups and downs and how his progress was not linear and was complicated.