Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

“I assure you. I am more than mature enough.”

The big bad coach scoffed, but nevertheless did not loosen his grip. “I don’t doubt that for a second. But I don’t want to be copped with neglection charges just because you wanted a drink.”

“Nobody has to know. I’m in a private place. I won’t go outside- I promise.”

Wymack opened his mouth to argue when there was a sharp knock on the door. None of the Foxes knocked so hesitantly, so slowly- they always either opened the door without knocking or they would bang on the door loud enough to wake up the whole building.

But whoever this was didn’t know the door was unlocked, and they probably weren’t aware it was David Wymack’s door they were knocking on.

Wymack gave a look that parraled the looks he'd give during practice. Behind the coach, the bottle of gold sat untouched. There was no way Wymack would be retuning that to its rightful owner. Sighing, Elias spun on his heel and swung the door open. He wasn't exactly sure who he was looking at when he stepped into the dimly lit motel hallway. A cloaked figure leaned against the opposite wall, though leaning was a bit of a stretch. The figure was slouched over, huddling within the black coat they had wrapped tightly around themself.

Upon the sound of the door slamming shut, the figure raised their head. Elias let out a strained laugh as he caught sight of the ‘2’ tattooed below a green eye. A rather bruised and dark green eye.

“Kevin Day,” Elias said slowly, testing each syllable, watching the man in front of him. Wymack hadn’t wanted to drive home after the banquet, so he’d booked the cheapest motel there was. The best for my players, Nicky had mocked under his breath. So seeing someone as renowned as Kevin Day standing under the broken light in the middle of buttfuck nowhere was quite jarring.

At least it was to Elias.

“You’re a bit far from home, aren'tcha?”

The so called ‘son of exy’ seemed to want to scowl, but all Elias could see was the wince and the slight tremble of Day’s face. There was something holding the guy back. Elias had never come face-to-face with Kevin Day, or any of the Ravens for that matter, but he knew that someone like Kevin Day would never want to talk to Wymack or his team on their own volition. Why Kevin was here, was a mystery that Elias yearned to uncover.

There was the unmistakeable sharp scent of iron, and the black suit that Kevin was wearing- a duplicate of the ones the Ravens were known to wear during such events as a winter banquet- couldn’t completely hide the splats of blood that had gotten onto the motel’s desolate flooring.

“Where’s your Coach?” Kevin said quietly, his voice akin to what driving on gravel sounds like.

“You’ve got a broken wing,” Elias noticed how the Raven clutched his hand close to his stomach, and how his left hand was in what looked like a makeshift splint. “Injured and far from home, I wonder how that happened.”

The door behind Elias was wretched open. Wymack said something, to either Elias or the injured bird, before dragging Kevin into the motel room. “What happened to you?” He cursed; senses too used to blood to cringe away from the crusting blood.

“I-,” the broken bird hesitated, as if he had forgotten why he had come here. He was looking at Wymack like he expected Coach to know why he, Kevin Day, was in a desolate motel room at an hour until midnight.

“Warhaven. Do something useful and get Abby.” The coach said when Kevin hesitated.

Elias shrugged, unamused. “I could, but what do I get in return?”

Wymack grit his teeth, maybe the iron smell was getting to him. “You know the answer. Go get Abby. Now.”

Elias did what he was told and fetched Abby, who hadn’t hesitated to grab her first aid kit and head to Wymack’s room. Not even after Elias warned her of a strange man who was in Wymack's room- nothing stopped her from her mission.

"What happened?" Abby spoke softly, to Kevin, sending Wymack a wary look. The coach had moved to the edge of the room, and had taken on a familiar stance. One that could be compared to his stance at exy games.

Now uncloaked, Elias took in Kevin's injuries. The blood appeared to have come from the cuts around Kevin's wrist. Long and deep, they didn't look self-inflicted. His hand appeared to have gotten quite the beating, as it was covered in deep purple and brown bruises. It was broken, that much Elias was sure. No matter how good Abby was, he'd need to go to the hospital and have it casted.

Kevin seemed to have done two things while Elias had been away. He had gotten both calm and distraught at the same time, how wonderful. "Riko. He..."

Abby shushed him and Elias watched her unwrap the makeshift bandaged Kevin had wrapped around himself. It was black- something Elias was unsurprised to see. It seemed everything the Ravens owned was black or red, natural or not. There didn’t seem to be much blood, but Elias caught the scowl that came from Kevin when Abby inspected his hand.

Wymack was leaning against the far wall, his knowledge in medicine as scarce as Eli’s. He caught Elias watching him and held out a bottle. “Here, take it and go. Don’t say a word about this to anyone.”

Elias smiled and grabbed the bottle. "Aye aye Coach," playfully making the motion to zipping his mouth shut. He waved to Kevin, who hadn’t turned his eyes to him, and quietly closed the door behind him, closing off the smell of blood from the rest of the building.

~~~

On the way back to the room he would only be spending in for the next twelve hours, Elias came across Nicholas and the two twins.

“What’s got you so excited?” Nicky waggled his brows, eyeing the hotel rooms Elias had just passed. “Had a good night?”

“I’m about to,” Elias held the bottle in his hands up, but kept a tight grip around it, he knew how much the cousins loved alcohol, and he didn’t waste a half hour of his time just for it to be stolen from him.

Nicky eyed the bottle and pouted. “I’m sure you can spare some, Elias. Maybe spare a bit of something else too?”

“Unless you want to share with Seth, I don’t think you’ll enjoy it.” He sided past Nicky but stopped in front of the twins. “Though there is something that has happened. It seems a bird has flown into the fox den, and it’s wing has been broken on its way.”

“Cut the cynicism.” Aaron said, managing to snatch the bottle from Eli’s hands, who watched him pop open the bottle Elias had been saving all of that bus trip for.

“I don’t suppose you had anything to do with this, did you?” He asked the other, silent blonde, who merely stared at him- his drugs already diluted by the alcohol. “My my, you’ve been snooping where you shouldn’t. Those things have dire consequences.”

"What's that supposed to mean?" Aaron mumbled from around the bottle, swatting Nicky’s hand away.

"Well, my dearest.” He grabbed the bottle back from Aaron’s hands. “Kevin Day has left the Nest and flown straight for the Fox he tried to recruit." He smiled at Andrew as he capped the bottle. "What a lovely coincidence."

~~~

It was lightly snowing when the Foxes left the motel the next morning. A few Foxes cursed Wymack for waking them up so early, especially when you considered that they were currently running a few hours ahead of schedule.

“Why’re we leaving so early?” Nicky whined to Wymack. “We’re five hours ahead of schedule.”

“Do you think I care about the schedule?” Wymack stopped Nicky from getting on the bus.

“Coach?”

Elias shivered and held back a curse. He hated the goddamn cold and the snow it brought with it. His eyes scanned the bus windows, but the windows were all fogged up- hopefully from being warmer, not colder than outside.

“There is something all of you should know before we leave.” Wymack beckoned Abby forward, who had just left the hotel, huddling a person under her arm. “We have a new member joining us for the ride home.”

The Foxes were all silent as Kevin came into view. His hands were covered by a coat that Elias supposed was brand new, and he was shielding his head away from stray eyes. As he came closer to the lone streetlight the Foxes stood under, the Foxes all slowly started realising who exactly was clutched in Abby’s arms.

“You’ve got to be fucking kidding me.” Seth was the first to react, and if Elias hadn’t been holding him back, he would’ve probably tackled Kevin. His feet skid across the snow from the effort, and he barely caught the look Seth shot him.

“Kevin Day? Why is he here?” Dan asked, far calmer than Seth was behaving. “Coach?”

Wymack sighed and rubbed his temples, then he turned a scorching look to Elias. “I thought you would’ve told everyone by now. It would’ve saved me the trouble.”

Elias shrugged off Allison’s glare. “You told me to keep my mouth shut.”

Wymack pointed an accusing finger to Eli. “Since when do you listen to me? Get on the bus. All of you.”

Elias watched Abby whisper something to Kevin, who only nodded. Abby handed Kevin her phone before patting Eli on the shoulder and walking up the steps to the bus. Elias stayed in place. By the time the last Fox had shuffled onto the bus, Kevin was finished with his two-word phone call and Elias was watching him in the cold parking lot of the motel.

Kevin realised someone was staring at him and looked up, scowling when he found Elias smiling at him. “We’re going to have so much fun, Day. It’ll be so much better than the Nest.”

Elias didn’t wait for Wymack to finish his threat before he was climbing the bus steps. He took the spare seat beside Janie and watched as Kevin staggered onto the bus. Abby held out her hand to Kevin, who without looking at anything else, grabbed her hand and sat down, his back turned to the Foxes.

Chapter Text

Elias watched Kevin stalk around the court like he owned the place. He couldn't help but feel a mix of annoyance and admiration. How long would it take for him to crack under the pressure? Was he really as untouchable as he seemed? Beside him, Andrew was watching the man too.

“How long did it take?” was all Elias asked, not tearing his eyes away from Kevin. Although Kevin had quickly gotten accustomed to Palmetto and liked to prowl around the court like a lion, he still seemed like a bird to Elias. All flighty and not hesitant to screech at anybody who got to close- or in this circumstance, did the wrong thing.

“Long enough,” was all the blonde replied with.

After the long bus ride back to Palmetto, Wymack had ushered the Foxes inside the stadium and sat them all down. He then proceeded to inform the Foxes about Kevin’s ‘unlucky accident’ that turned out to be less than an accident, and more of a calculated decision. Kevin had kept his mouth shut, letting Wymack speak for him, and Elias saw his eyes shoot from one side of the room to the other, taking in his surroundings.

He had been jittery, Elias noted, as he watched Kevin’s foot bounce up and down relentlessly. But then Kevin locked eyes with a certain blonde, and he immediately went still. Elias thought for a moment that Andrew had threatened Kevin, and that maybe Kevin was thinking over his decision for running to Wymack of all people. But then Elias saw Kevin’s shoulders droop low; all tension dispelled into the air.

“-assistant coach.” Wymack finished, and Elias only looked up from Kevin when Seth shot out of his seat.

“Fucking what?!” Seth yelled. “You’ve got to kidding me, that piece of shit?” he shot a finger at Kevin, who stared at his palms- or his broken wrist.

“What else did you expect?” Janie said calmly, but Elias noted she was huddling into herself. “He can’t exactly leave Edgar Allan without an acceptable excuse. The Raven fans are probably going to go crazy as is. But finding out he became an assistant coach? That would soften the blow.”

Ah. So that’s why Seth was outraged. Assistant coach Kevin Day. Even Elias hadn’t thought of that. He’d been far more concerned with more important things. Elias watched as Seth exploded with anger, his voice echoing through the room. He understood Seth's outrage, but there was something more beneath the surface. Seth's words held a deeper pain, a sense of betrayal that resonated with Elias. He couldn't help but wonder if Seth's anger was really directed solely at Kevin or if there were other unresolved issues at play.

"You'd hope." Matt murmured, frowning at their captain.

“Maybe this is a discussion we should be having later,” Dan spoke up, placing a hand on Matt’s forearm. “When we’ve gotten some sleep and aren’t covered in blood,” she directed that to Kevin, who again, did not look up.

“Or, we could have it now.”

Wymack, who had been watching from the side, finally stepped forward, placing his hand down on Kevin’s right shoulder. “Wilds is right, we’ll continue this conversation tomorrow.”

No one spoke their objections, if they had any, and went about retrieving their things. Kevin, ever the mute, kept his eyes downwards and avoided everyone as he made his way to the door that led to the stadium.

“Pathetic,” 06 seethed under his breath. “didn’t say one fucking word. Thinks he’s better than us.”

Dan sighed but followed Wymack into his office, possibly to talk about the damage control the Foxes would surely need before the next term.

Elias huffed at Andrews response. “So,” he said carefully, eying the raven that looked out of place on the orange court. “How long do you think it’ll take him to crack?”

Nicky shrugged. “A week, tops.”

“He won’t crack.”

Elias eyed the person beside him but didn’t bother commenting as he got up to leave. He didn’t know how to feel about Kevin’s new position on his team, but he’d worry about that after the New Year. Speaking of, winter break was right around the corner, and he’d just been promised more than an eventful New Year.

~~~

“Are you sure?” Matt said from the door.

“One hundred percent.” Elias finished zipping his bag. “Hopefully my absence doesn’t throw too much of a downpour onto your plans.”

Matt snorted and turned around to answer Dan. Perhaps Elias should’ve felt sorry. He had promised that he’d spend Winter break and New Years with Matt and his family, but that had been at the beginning of the school year, and as Elias knew, things change all the time.

Dan was at the door when Elias got out of the bathroom. “You know that there’s an extra seat in the car if you change your mind?”

“Mmhm, yes I am aware, Danny. You’ve said this to me once or twice before. Besides, how come you’re not this insistent of the others? What about Seth and Allison?”

“They have their own plans.” Renee answered when Elias wedged past the girls to get to the kitchen. As hard as Elias tried to ditch Matt or Dan or even Renee, they always managed to follow him around like lost ducklings.

“And I have mine. So, although I do enjoy each and every one of your companies, I do have things on my bucket list I would like to complete.”

Matt scratched his head and smiled sheepishly at his roommate. “It was a nice try.”

“Do promise me this Elias.” Dan said right after Matt left to pack the car. “Please, don’t get into any trouble.”

Elias didn’t say he’d do otherwise, but he didn’t make a promise to her either.

~~~

Winter break flew by, and before Elias knew it, the new term was staring him right in the face, all blazing eyes, and tense shoulders.

“Something wrong?” he asked Dan cautiously, watching her face carefully so he’d know when to make a run for it.

“Coach told you to keep a low profile,” she said in a low voice, holding up her phone where a picture of Elias doing a certain something that made him wonder how the paparazzi had gotten that particular shot.

Elias shrugged, nodding at the picture that showed his good side. Well done paparazzi. “That is low profile. Unless it’s opposite day, and instead you wanted me to be high profile?”

Dan shook her head and sighed, stepping back. “I don’t think I can do this with you anymore.” She dropped her phone in her bag and went to sit down beside Matt, who rubbed her shoulder and gave Elias an awkward smile.

Elias continued greeting his teammates, waving at Renee and receiving a nervous smile from Janie. He earned a huff from Aaron as he stopped in front of the other couch, where narrowed green eyes were glaring up at him.

“Kevin,” Elias said slowly. Truth be told, he’d forgotten about the new member. It jarred Elias for a second, realising where he was sitting- right between the cousins.

That explained the curse Seth had let out when they entered, and possibly Allison’s unfriendly expression when Elias had greeted her.

Kevin’s nose flared, but that was the only response Elias received before Wymack entered, pointing to his lone chair between the two couches. Elias assumed he was angry more about the press that had been hounding him since Kevin’s press conference, than the shit Elias had been up to on the Winter break.

“Sit down. Shut up. And listen to me.” Wymack ordered, shooting everyone a glare. “I personally don’t give two fucks about your opinions, and I implore you to be quiet.” He took a moment to eye each Fox before setting his papers down. “Kevin.”

Kevin didn’t seem phased as he stood up, taking up the same stance Wymack had been in. “As your assistant coach-.”

And that was where all hell broke loose.

An hour later, Elias was all geared up and was regretting the comments he had made about Kevin’s soft raven wings. Apparently, a raven never forgot a face, or an action it seemed.

Kevin was, for a lack of better words, beating them on the court as he stood in Wymack’s stead.

Elias eyed his teammates and noted that Dan had finally lost her patient expression now that she had been battered too many times to count. While his players were basically dying on the court, Wymack watched on with a sadistic glint in his eye. Elias hoped this wasn’t going to become a common occurrence, but watching Kevin blow his whistle stomped out that hope and pissed on it.

“He can go blow on something else,” Elias heard Seth mutter, taking a swig of his bottle. Elias was about to reply, possibly to offer ideas on what Kevin could blow on, but then he noticed Kevin stomping towards them. Elias had decided to sit out this practice, stick to the edge of the court and hope neither Coach nor Assistant-Coach cursed him for his indolence. Elias had gone by rather unnoticed, but of course Kevin had sound hearing whenever his name was mentioned.

“Get back on the court,” he scowled, making a shooing motion with his still-healing hand.

Elias smiled, showing his teeth. "Oh, how kind of you to offer your expertise, Assistant-Coach. I'll get right on it." His voice dripping with sarcasm.

Kevin more or less ignored him and instead turned to Seth, pointing his racket at him. Before Seth could tackle Kevin, Elias pushed them both away from the wall.

Elias eyed Seth’s clenched fists. “I’m going to fucking murder him.”

“And I’ll help you bury the body. But first, we’d need to get through his little bodyguard.” Elias motioned to Andrew. It hadn’t escaped any of the Foxes attention that Andrew had seemed almost like a wall to anyone who stood even one foot in Kevin’s vicinity, showing off his sharp blades to anyone who got an ounce hardy on Day.

The rest of practice went by brutally slow. If Elias had a copper for every time Kevin made a comment on the Foxes substandard playing styles, he’d be bigger than the statue of Liberty.

Chapter Text

Elias never understood his brother. He didn’t know why his brother acted how he acted, did what he did, and said the things he said.

But looking at Kevin Day, Elias felt for the first time, that he understood his brother.

“This is weird.”

“Agreed.”

Kevin didn’t seem to hear Elias and Nicky’s conversation, and neither did he bother to acknowledge them. He simply stood in the middle of the overtly-orange coloured court and stared. Elias had come to the court early that morning, mostly because Wymack had threatened to cut his brakes if he was late to one more practice, but also because Elias did have agency and screw whoever said he didn’t.

Kevin hadn’t picked up an exy racket, and neither did Elias expect him to. According to Abby, Kevin’s hand had suffered numerous fractures and he probably wouldn’t be able to play with his left hand ever again. Whatever Riko had done certainly was not done in the brotherly love that Elias, and the public, had assumed.

“Nicky…when did the cold war end?” Elias pondered aloud, making sure that his voice carried to the edge of the court.

Like he had assumed, Kevin’s stance changed.

Nicky was confused for a moment. “I don’t know…1979?”

“No,” Elias slapped Nicky’s shoulder. “That doesn’t sound right. Hmm, when was it…?”

Nicky perked up. “Oh! It’s still going on, isn’t it?”

“No no, it’s ended. I know it’s ended.” He thought for a moment. "Did you know that the Battle of Waterloo was actually won by Napoleon?"

"Oh, really? I thought it was that Duke who claimed victory."

Kevin had wandered closer, similar to a shitting kitten. It hadn’t taken Elias long to figure out Kevin was a history nerd major, and when Kevin was angry his face seemed to rival a squeezed lemons, and that just made Elias laugh.

Elias smirked. "Nope, just a common misconception. Napoleon had a brilliant strategy, but the weather was against him, or was it his height- you should know not to trust a small man."

Kevin cut in. “You're both idiots. The battle turned in favor of Wellington due to the timely arrival of Prussian reinforcements. Napoleon's forces were outnumbered and exhausted.”

“Okay Kev, what is the name of Marie Antoinette's son?”

Kevin scowled at the nickname. “Why would I know that?”

“Because you’re a history buff?” Nicky smiled and attempted to nudge Kevin’s shoulder, but he had already placed down his water bottle and was beginning to get back onto the court.

“Oh fantastic, you’re bonding.” Wymack said from behind the door. “Kevin. A word?”

After whatever chat Wymack had had with Kevin, it left the ex-raven pale and rather less chitter-y, which made their practice somewhat more tolerable. It was only until after Elias and the Foxes had bathed that Wymack finally let everyone in on what paled the mighty Kevin Day.

Dan smacked her lips. “So…you’re saying that the Moriyamas…”

“Are a part of the fucking yakuza.” Nicky finished for her.

The Japanese Mafia. Not the worst thing Elias had assumed, but also not the best for the foxes…

“Wait. If Riko wanted to, he could just…cover up anything he wanted to and be done with it?” Janie asked. She had gotten quieter the last few weeks, and with this new information, it seemed like she about to snap. She was currently huddling into herself, Allison glared as Janie leaned closer to the blonde.

“No. He’s not that irrational and the Ma-.”

“Not that irrational? I’d hate to be the bearer of bad news, but he broke your hand!” Dan's face flushed with rage, her fists clenched at her sides. She couldn't contain her fury any longer. She leapt from the couch and began waving her arms around frantically. Nicky was in a similar predicament. His rosy complexion had gone an odd green, and he looked like he was about to bend over and cough up a lung. Nobody else seemed to be quite jarred from the sudden news that the Edgar Allan Ravens were part of the mob.

“That wasn’t an impulsive decision.” Kevin murmured under his breath, rubbing his wrist unconsciously.

“Fucking hell,” someone muttered.

Elias sucked on his teeth. “Well, this was a fun conversation, and possibly our last- sorry.” He said when he met Wymack's pissed expression. “But although I don’t know much about the Yakuza, I do know that Kevin’s presence here won’t be too much of a problem.”

“Can you explain that?” Allison shot him an incredulous look. One thing that Allison Reynolds did well was make other people know they’re stupid.

“Not really. But if Riko wanted Kevin that badly, he’d have come by and swept him out of our hands by now. Of course, I don’t claim to know Riko’s inner workings, and nor do I think Riko has a rational mind, considering his track record, but Kevin’s been here for how long? Nearly a month and nothing bad has happened.”

“You don’t know him like I do.” Kevin hissed his breath. He looked worlds apart.

Dan took a second too long to tear her eyes from Elias, but when she did, he inwardly clapped his hands. “He has a point. Coach Moriyama doesn't seem too bothered with Kevin being here. We'd receive word surely?”

“Until he wants him back,” Seth huffed. He had been eerily quiet and less fist-y, and a closer look at his eyes could tell anyone why that reason was.

“We’ll deal with that when the time comes.” Wymack rubbed his temple. “Get out of here. All of you.”

The Foxes slowly filed out of the room and Elias watched Wymack squeeze Kevin’s shoulder before he stepped into his office. Dan sighed but didn’t question either Coach or Assistant-Coach, and soon left the room with her arm around Matt’s back.

“We’re going out for drinks; do you want to come with?” Renee stood over Elias, who had not left his seat.

“No. I have plans.”

From the corner of his eye, Elias saw Renee’s lip twitch. Truth be told, Renee unnerved Elias, but he knew enough about her that she was harmless, or as harmless as a born again Christian could be.

“We shouldn’t be alone tonight.”

“Perhaps.” Sighing, Elias stood up. He smiled down at Renee, who’s grey eyes seemed sharp in the fluorescent lighting of the room. “Maybe another night? I’m not up for drinking tonight.”

Renee nodded after a prolonged moment and proceeded to walk Elias to his car. He watched through the rear-view mirror as Renee climbed into Allison’s car and then he began driving out of the carpark, proceeding to exit Palmetto, and soon, South Carolina.

Chapter Text

The news about Janie’s near-suicide had blasted a hole through the Foxes moods on Monday morning, but not nearly as much as the news about their new striker.

Hearing about Kevin Day becoming the Foxes assistant coach had raised a few eyebrows. Especially when both the Ravens and the Raven’s coach didn’t seem to even acknowledge the removal. But Kevin Day going from being on one of the best exy teams to one of the worst caused quite a stir in the public.

It was safe to say that the Foxes did not have a boring week leading up to the quarterfinals.

“The police showed up at our door last night,” Matt was telling Elias. “Said they got an anonymous tip we were growing weed to pay off the stadium expenses.”

“They didn’t look under my bed, did they?” Elias joked, chuckling at the look Dan threw him.

“Speaking of,” Allison spoke up, pulling at her shoelace. “Where’d you go last night?”

Elias waved her off and opened his locker. “Here and there.”

Any further comments about Elias’s nightly tirades were cut off when the cousins and Kevin entered the room. Elias had heard Allison referring to them as the ‘monsters’ after they had taken Matt out at the start of the year- something that Elias had had the honour of receiving a front row view of watching Dan go completely batshit -and Elias thought the term was a tad bit out of place.

Allison bared her teeth but nonetheless turned her back to the cousins (+ Kevin). Matt and Dan didn’t acknowledge their presence, and Seth was nowhere in sight. Only Renee stood and welcomed them with a warm smile.

Wymack soon walked into the room, and Elias noted he looked tired. It was unclear whether he was exhausted from Janie’s recent departure or because of the sudden unwarranted attention the general exy-fan population had suddenly given the Foxes. But Elias was glad that their Coach was so tired that he had forgotten to call them either maggots, roaches, or heavens forbid, assholes.

“We need to talk about the problem.” Dan said, far calmer than Allison.

“I agree. There are several problems we need to address.” Wymack sighed and dropped his folders onto the round table that sat in the middle of the room. “The NCAA is back on my ass. They’re not liking that our numbers are once again under the standard, and…” he flicked a look to the cousins (+ Day). “We’re signing Kevin as starting striker for the new season.”

Elias rolled his eyes. Perhaps he should have expected this. He for sure was not the best player on the team, nor did he attempt to be, but being replaced by the Foxes’ new glory whore definitely caused an ouchy. “Not even one day and my sparkly status has already been taken from me?”

“You had your chance,” Kevin said, or maybe it was Wymack? Elias thought they were beginning to sound too much alike from the another to distinguish them properly.

~~~

Elias sat on the rooftop of the Foxes dorm, the night sky stretching above him. He could feel the weight of the day pressing down on him, and Andrew's presence beside him provided an unlikely comfort.

“Did you know about Kevin’s plan to leave the Ravens?” He asks, waving the goalkeeper's cigarette smoke away from his face. The scent of smoke was not unfamiliar to Elias, and unfortunately the blonde liked to blow smoke into the faces of whoever was unlucky to be near him.

Andrew took a drag from his cigarette, the faint glow illuminating his face. “No,” he replied. He had taken his last dose a while ago and was clearly going through withdrawal, but still, Andrew refrained from taking his next dose. Instead, he breathed through the cigarette like it was his lifeforce.

Silence settled between them, broken only by the sound of the night breeze rustling through the leaves.

“And yet you’ve both been buddy-buddy with each other as soon as he got here.”

“You think too much.”

“I do, don’t I.”

Elias let them sit in silence before a thought came to him. He had seen how Renee had tried to integrate herself into the others’ lives. She’d been friends with Dan and Allison when Elias had enrolled at Palmetto earlier that year. She’d never bothered talking with Seth or Elias, but right after Kevin dropped the bomb about the Moriyamas, Elias saw Renee beginning to incorporate herself into the boy’s lives more.

Elias turned to face him, his curiosity piqued. "Do you and Renee really think you two can protect us from Riko?"

Andrew's eyes flickered to Elias, his gaze intense. After a few moments of silence, he lifted his head slightly, as if coming to a realization. "It's a start," he replied, his tone emotionless as ever.

"But it isn't foolproof," Elias grinned at the blonde. "There are never any guarantees."

Andrew's gaze remained locked on Elias, his expression inscrutable. After a few more moments of silence, he reached a silent understanding.

That night, Elias and Andrew came to an agreement. Elias went to sleep that night glad that he once again only belonged to himself.

~~~

It was late at night when there was a knock on Room 317. Elias was safe and tucked into his bed, but the walls were thin so he could hear the tell-tale sound of a body crashing into the wall and Matt’s exhausted voice.

The building soon quietened, and with the sound of the door slamming shut echoing off the walls, Elias soon drifted back off to sleep.

It was four days later- Saturday night -that the knocking returned.

Seth and Matt had gone out. Matt with Dan to go out for a date and a movie, and Seth with Allison to who knows where. That meant Elias was the only one in the dorm. He ignored the sound at first, choosing to believe he'd be the last anyone would go to for an emergency, but then the knocking turned into a blown-out about-to-break-down-the-door-because-theres-a-serial-killer-at-your-door sound.

Elias expected a pizza-man, or maybe one of his devout ‘friends’, but not-

“Kevin Day. We have to stop meeting like this.”

Kevin scowled at Elias’s clothing, or lack thereof. “We have practice.”

Elias had surely been struck to the head. Perhaps he had fallen off the top bunk and had developed a lapse of amnesia. A quick look behind him cleared him of that doubt.

“At 10 O’clock at night? Did Riko damage your frontal cortex too? I need my sleep.”

Perhaps Elias should begin paying attention during practice. Had Matt or Seth hit Kevin and he hadn’t noticed?

“You need as much practice as you can get if I’m going to get you to Finals.”

Elias laughed. “You? Finals? You’re not going to be the one to take us to Finals, Kevin.” He took glee in Kevin’s scowl. “Besides, Seth’s your man. Maybe even Dan. I’m a benchwarmer, which means my job is to warm cold, hard surfaces.”

Kevin didn’t seem fazed. “I’ve seen your plays. I know you’re holding back.”

So that's what this was about.

“My plays? You mean from high school? Because let me tell you something; I’m a different person.”

“People don't change that much.”

Elias got comfortable against the wall. He supposed he’d be standing there for quite some time. “Is this what you spoke to Seth about the other night?”

“It is.”

“And? What was his answer?” Elias smiled at Kevin’s scrunched face. “His answer is my answer.”

Kevin muttered something. “You don’t really have a choice.”

“Do I?”

Kevin showed his pearly white teeth; shame Riko hadn’t broken any of them. “I don’t care for your opinion. Your teammates are going to graduate and then you’ll be left as the only striker. Then what, the NCAA will probably make another ranking just for the lowest of the lows.”

“Okay first, that’s rude. Secondly, we’re first division, not second, not third; we’re not the ‘lowest of the lows’. Thirdly, we’re near the end of the season and we aren’t even halfway up the ladder. Finally, fuck you. Master Moriyama clearly never taught you any manners.”

Kevin’s nostrils flared to great lengths- lengths of which Elias had never dared dream, and it really did seem like Kevin was about to pull one back and bring havoc to Eli’s sweet, sweet, gorgeous face.

But that didn’t happen.

“Get downstairs in five minutes. If you don’t, it’s your funeral.” Kevin didn’t give Elias time to reply before he stormed off. Down the hall, Elias spied Andrew watching them, an unlit cigarette dangling between his fingers.

“That’s abuse of power, Day!”

~~~

“Who screwed his ass this morning?” Nicky panted, on the edge of surviving a cardiac arrest. It was times like these that Elias searched high and low for their former coach and hoped he would come to the Foxes safety, but no, they were left stranded to face the wrath of the Raven’s former striker.

“I’m going to guess he got a call from the labs; this just in, Kevin Day’s father went out for milk and never returned.”

Nicky winced when he saw Aaron’s face twitch. “Dude, not so loud.”

Elias made a ‘whatever’ motion with his hand. “So? I didn’t know my daddy either,” and left his place against the wall, striding over to where Kevin was arguing with Allison.

As soon as Elias entered Kevin’s line of sight, his barbed remark was cut off. Instead, his eyes narrowed, and Elias expected to see his nape to furl up.

“If you have a problem with me, you don’t need to take it out on the team.”

Day didn’t say a word, and Allison raised a perfect brow. She watched the two strikers, but when Kevin passed her silent stare, she threw her arms up, swore at him, and stomped back to the rest of the team.

“I don’t have a problem with you; it’s your attitude I have a problem with.”

“My ‘attitude’ is a part of me. Look, I know I hurt your feelings when I said I didn’t want to play with you, but that doesn’t mean you’re allowed to chuck a tantrum and put the whole team through torture.”

Kevin rolled his eyes and pushed his hand towards Elias's face. “You didn’t hurt my feelings.”

“Didn’t I? Well, that’s great news! And it also means there’s absolutely no need to act like a child.”

Someone banged on the glass wall beside them, but Elias found it difficult to look away from Kevin. He seemed an inch away from snapping.

“I’m not the one who is being immature.”

“I disagree.”

Matt’s body was suddenly in between the strikers, blocking each other from view. “Okay you two. We have a practice to run.”

Ignoring Matt, Kevin glanced around the backliner's body. “If you want me to stop this ‘torture’, come to practice with me, tonight.”

“No. That’s past my bedtime.”

Kevin made to reach past Matt, but he found he couldn’t handle Matt’s strength. Of course the ravenette wouldn't have made such a daring move without backup, as a lump of blonde barrelling towards them was within reaching distance as Elias quickly pushed himself into Matt, who tumbled towards Kevin.

“Uh, uh, uh,” Elias side-stepped the blonde, who did not look at him. “Matty didn’t touch him, kay? So take a step back and don’t make any rash decisions.”

“No, no, no,” Dan rushed over to them. “We are not doing this again. Matt!”

She was not quick enough as Andrew used the distraction to take a swipe at Matt. Elias went to walk around them, but felt a hand on his ankle. One second he was looking at orange stadium seats, and the next he was staring up at a bright light that dared to swallowed his retinas.

“Hello?” He called out, his voice echoing right before a tight grip on his shoulder pulled him up. He could see Wymack moving his mouth, but the only sound Elias could hear was a faint buzzing.

“Quit complaining for once and listen. For an ex-Raven, you sure know how to not follow orders.”

Wymack suddenly turned to Elias. This close, Elias could see the bulging vein in his forehead. It had been growing bigger and bigger lately, perhaps he should tell Wymack that he'd need to get it checked out. “You. I’ve honestly lost all hope for you, Warhaven.” He then moved over to Dan, who seemed to be shielding their personal assassin from her boyfriend. “Get him to Abby. You,” he turned to where Seth was smearing blood on his face. “I don’t even know. Leave. All of you.”

Kevin waved his hands in a way that seemed as if he was dissatisfied and shot a sieving glare at Eli, which only earned him a flipped bird in return.

Chapter Text

To no one’s surprise, Elias used his recently discovered concussion to skip out on practice for the week. Abby chided him after learning that he had gone against her recommendation to do moderate exercise, and Wymack issued him with the punishment of running ten laps around the court.

Three laps in, Elias was bent over. His legs felt heavy, as if they were weighed down by concrete. Every step was a struggle, and his lungs burned with each labored breath. Sweat trickled down his forehead, mixing with the dust on his face, as he pushed his body to its limits. He barely registered the pats on his back as he tried to slow his heartbeat. Crushing his lungs wasn’t helping the airflow either, but at least his blood was rushing to his head.

"You alright buddy?" Matt was asking. 

Elias allowed a minute to catch his breath before he straightened with a smile. "You know, Matt, I never thought running would become my favourite hobby."

Matt grinned down at him. "Hey, at least you're getting your cardio in. Coach would be proud."

"Oh, I can already see the admiration in his eyes. Elias Warhaven, you are the fastest benchwarmer in the league."

Elias expected Wymack to be behind him, as that was his luck these days. But when he took a look around the court, he realised they were all alone. "Did I pass out? Where is everyone?"

Matt chucked a thumb over his shoulder where the Foxes were separated in their little groups. Ah, water break.

Elias spied Kevin stretching his arm. He straightened and gave Matt a grin. "Do you think he'll notice if I leave? I've lost all feeling in my legs, I'm going to pass out at this rate."

Matt chuckled but didn't reply. He didn't have to as Wymack called out to Elias.

"Yeah yeah, I'll get back to it."

"No need, I've got something else for you." Wymack waved him over and led Elias into the lounge. He then handed him a stack of DVDs. "Sit your ass down," Wymack pointed Elias towards one of the couches and made his way back to his office, not before making a subtle threat warning Elias against falling asleep.

Elias watched the videos numbly. An hour or two later, Nicky gave a chuckle as he passed him with a stoic blonde, but other than that there were minimal disruptions.

As Wymack rarely had any faith in his players, he had left his office door slightly ajar. It took a minute or two for Elias to recognise the Coach's weak tone.

Elias strained his ears, trying to make out the muffled words coming from Wymack's office. "Understandable...I understand...won't let that happen...Absolutely not."

Wymack slammed the phone down harshly. He stared at it for a moment before turning to a cabinet.

He caught Elias staring at him but ignored him for the sake of twisting the cap off a bottle and taking a straight swig of neat whiskey.

Thoughts to who could be on the other side of the phone rattled through Elias's somewhat empty head. There wasn't many people or things that could make the Foxes Coach drink, particularly on the job. "Drinking before noon? Careful Coach, the new recruit is starting to influence you." Elias chuckled but quietened at Wymack's glare.

"Why aren't you doing what I told you to do?"

"The game just ended," Elias poked his head out to watch the TV. "Longhorns won 38/27."

Wymack shook his head in reply.

"Everything alright Coach?" Asked Elias, closing the door behind him with a silent click. "That wasn't Edgar Allen, was it? Do the Ravens want their subpar striker back?"

"No, it was the board; they're concerned we won't have enough members to player next season. They've been on my ass about filling the roster."

"Oh." Elias's eyes brightened for a second. "I...I know how to swing a racket, Coach. I don't like the bench anyway; too hard, too cold. If you really want me to, I can even take Day's place! It seems like you only recruited me to warm a bench!"

Wymack ignored Elias's spiel and turned to his desk, waving a dismissive hand towards it. "Don't bother. I'm already looking into new players. I think I've found one to replace you, two-fold."

Elias followed the hand and spied the stray sheets of paper on Wymack's desk. There were a few with striking bars of text filling the pages, but laying on top was a plain sheet of paper accompanied with a USB. "Oh. Too bad, I nearly felt like playing. Who's are my to-be replacements? Can I see them?"

"Get back to the games." Wymack slammed his office door in Elias's face, who grumbled under his breath.

At least now he could daydream without the fear of Wymack catching him slacking.

It wasn't like Elias didn't or couldn't play. Before Janie left, he could equal her, though he lacked her enthusiasm and she lacked his ability to collect every card in one single game. Too many penalties left Elias on probation, one he was dreading to leave, although he itched to ditch it to play with the newest striker at his back. He'd assumed Wymack would have dropped him by now, yet the old crone seemed intent on keeping the dead weight. It wouldn't be long until the weight brought the whole ship down.

On the other hand, he knew Day was waiting out his probation with bated breath. If Elias was sure that Wymack wouldn't kill him and resurrect him to kill him again, he'd get the board to officially suspend him.

But that would mean everything he'd done would be for nought.

Elias was briefly aware of the sounds of something hitting glass and/or concrete, but kept his dry eyes focused on the CRT TV. Not long later, a pair of legs rushing passed Elias snapped him out of his reverie. He scooted back, but Wymack took to opening the stadium door. The benchwarmer got up immediately and followed the coach. He didn't know what to expect upon entering the stadium, but it was not half the team facing off against Kevin, who batted away the balls single-handedly.

Okay, that was a little dramatic.

Kevin, as usual, was standing offensively, arms crossed while the upperclassmen stood presumedly arguing with him. Nicky hadn't returned, so only Aaron stood behind Kevin, although he didn't seem concerned with what was going on at all. Elias could only assume the upperclassmen had taken the chance to bark back without a resounding bite.

"What is going on in here?" Wymack demanded. He made no move to cut in as Kevin sneered at his newest teammates, knowing Dan could manage such a petulant child. 

Dan began her explanation, but Kevin pointed a finger straight at them, cutting her off. "All this team is, is a group of children. If they don't want my help, why should I give it?"

"Nobody asked for your help!" Seth yelled out.

"Nobody's stopping you from leaving."

Kevin ignored them and stabbed his racket towards them. "Get off my court."

Eyes widening, Dan shot looks from Kevin to the team. "Your court? Let me remind you that you wanted to join us. We didn't ask for you to be here."

"Yet here he is," Wymack cut in, both verbally and physically. He put his body between the two sides and Elias watched as he was able to cool the team off. "Each and every one of you rarely get the choice to choose where to be. But you didn't get here by chance. If you don't want to suck it up and be a team, feel free to leave."

The team stayed silent. Elias almost wished for Nicky to be there, as the quiet quickly turned into awkwardness.

"This is starting to become a habit," Elias murmured into the silent stadium.

The team had never gotten along, but the hostility seemed to double after Kevin joined. While Elias liked to torment his team, he definitely wasn't the only aggressor. From what he could see, problems in the team revolved around three factors: prestige, talent, and cooperation. The team didn't like Kevin for his background, nor did they understand why he chose them in the first place. It didn't help that he made no move to explain. Kevin's near-immediate upgrade to starting striker also didn't sit well with anyone, especially considering he treated the Foxes as if every mistake they made were their own fault, not his despite him 'leading' them.

"Now cooperate or I'll be forced to take all of you out of Friday's game."

While Wymack stalked back to his office, the team was left with a final cynical comment. "We're going to be ripped apart on Friday."

Chapter Text

The anticipated Breckenridge Jackals v Palmetto Foxes game was right around the corner, or more appropriately, over the border.

The plane ride to South California was a good six hours. In that time, Elias spent it asleep, cradled by the drone of the engines and the gentle vibrations beneath his seat. However, as he dozed off, the rest of the Foxes buzzed with nervous energy, their excitement palpable in the confined space.

Restless in his slumber, Elias vaguely registered the hushed whispers and occasional shuffling behind him. He resisted the urge to turn around, not wanting to disrupt the delicate equilibrium of the moment. The anticipation in the air was thick, amplified by the snapping sound that reached his ears.

“Stop fidgeting,” Kevin hissed, to who, Elias didn't care to know. Kevin was sitting in the row behind him so the obvious answer would be one of his fangirls; the Minyards.

There was a snapping sound and Elias fought the urge to turn around. He hadn’t felt a foot pressing against his seat yet, and he didn’t want to rock the boat…or the plane? Nicky, however, didn’t have the same thought process.

Sitting beside Elias, Nicky's voice cut through the subdued atmosphere, breaking the spell of drowsiness. "You guys good? We’re just over halfway, but I think I'm getting a little peckish. Do you guys want anything?"

“No.” Kevin said, either to the food or to being good. Whichever one it was, Nicky took it as the latter.

Nicky turned to Renee, who sat on Elias' left at the window seat. “Do you want anything?” After Kevin had lost his assistant coach status, Nicky had proceeded to ignore any type of command Kevin issued. He had little command on the Foxes now, considering he was ‘one of them’.

“I’m good, thank you Nicky,” Renee smiled, ever the saint.

With a nod and a flicker of mischievousness in his eyes, Nicky unbuckled his seatbelt. He maneuverer past Wymack, who sat a few rows ahead, oblivious to the surreptitious movements of his team. Swiftly, Nicky ransacked the cart, acquiring a handful of biscoff bars with a small punch to the air. Nicky quickly came back before the stewardess noticed, not without fighting a bit of turbulence, and dropped a few biscoff bars into Elias’s lap.

The armrest between Elias and Nicky’s seat began shaking and a hand flew into Elias’s peripheral vision. Nicky fought off the stray hands whilst cursing, which earned them Wymack’s wrathful gaze.

~~~

Four hours later, the Foxes were staring up at glum faces.

“Tough crowd,” Nicky meeped.

This close to the end of the season, Exy fans (or anyone in the ‘know’) knew that there was absolutely no way the Palmetto Foxes would be able to edge themselves into a place in the finals, or semi-finals for that matter. This meant the Jackal fans didn’t particularly find the Palmetto Foxes that exciting, considering the so-called Breckenridge Jack-assess (thank you Allison) sat on their mighty high thrones on the top of the list.

Nevertheless, Elias was amazed to spot some clumps of people dressed head-to-toe in orange.

Less surprisingly, there were more people dressed in red than tan or even orange for that matter. Kevin, to his credit, didn't flinch or even acknowledge the Raven colours.

“We’re so going to die.”

“Have faith, Nicholas.” Elias pat the backliner’s back rather roughly. He spied past him to see Wymack talking to Abby. “What about you, Kevin. No vote of confidence for your new team?”

The jackass in question scowled and walked over to where one of the referees was making their way towards them.

“Good thing though,” Matt made his way over to them. “Gorilla’s on academic probation for the rest of the season. So we won’t be seeing him for a while.”

"Right. Like that will make a difference."

"Hey, at least you won't be leaving the game with all of your bones broken."

Allison rolled her eyes. “That might have helped before, but it looks like we’re a lost cause.” She turned a scowl to Elias. "It doesn't help that you got yourself kicked, by the way."

Indeed, they were a lost cause.

As predicted, the Foxes were ripped apart.

~~~

Not twelve hours later, Wymack was roughhousing them back into the bus right after they got out of the airport.

Elias dared turn around, ready to tell Kevin that his mission to take the Foxes to the finals had failed but stopped upon looking at the expression on Kevin’s face.

“What’s got him so excited?” He mumbled to himself, which only garnered Seth’s attention. He followed Elias’s gaze and found Kevin staring out the window peacefully. Not even a sneer marred his face. Like Elias had stated, Kevin didn’t seem displeased at all. If anything, he looked happy that he’d failed.

Noticing the attention, Kevin met their eyes.

“Are you happy now that you’ve seen us lose first-hand? So much for your helping hand, assistant coach.”

Kevin paused, seemingly lost in thought. Then he scowled, back in the present. “There’s no helping lost causes like yourselves.”

Seth shot up immediately. Whether Wymack had been eavesdropping or it was total consequence, the bus came to a complete and sudden stop, although it didn’t stop Seth from stumbling into the side of the bus.

“You say that like you’re not one of us.” Kevin tensed. “In case you forgot, Day, your past family- the Ravens? They disowned you. Your brother broke your hand and yet you sit there like you have it all. You have nothing, which like it or not, makes you one of us.”

Both Wymack and Abby did their best to dispel whatever fight that was about to break out. Kevin had stayed rather impassive, despite Andrew being knocked out cold. Although the true reason why would be revealed later, as well as the reason behind his inattentiveness.

~~~

Elias stumbled out of his last class of HSI Strategies and made a slow trek back to the Fox dorms. It was nearing the end of term, which meant every spare area was filled with students studying or arguing about group projects, sometimes a combination of both, resulting in little ability to concentrate. The dorms, being filled with jocks (the Fox dorm in particular) was the closest thing to quiet one could get at this point in time.

He neared the carpark and went to inspect his own car. Someone had popped the tyre a few weeks prior- along with popping a few other tyres for different cars in the lot. Finding it unharmed, Elias eyed his surroundings and saw Seth standing on the far side of the lot. He was standing near a tree, staring at his phone for a moment before tapping frantically. Elias called out to him, and Seth sneered in return.

He and Allison were going through one of their “offs” again. This of course meant Seth was less coherent than usual and easily triggered. The temper would stay until he went crawling back to Allison on his knees. The thought made Elias roll his eyes.

“What do you want?”

Elias slowed to a jog as he reached the older striker. “Nothing. Just finished an essay and was wondering what I’m going to do to celebrate. Whaddya say we invade the basement and hire a movie?"

The skinhead replied dismissively, which was not the reaction Elias had been hoping for.

"Okay," Elias thought for a moment. Seth was focused once again on his phone. "How about we go bar hopping? I heard Tammy’s got a deal on Friday- and there's an event at Backstreets.”

Seth scoffed, looking up from his phone. Glaring, he said. "I'm not dragging your drunk ass from bar to bar. Quit being a lightweight, then come back to me."

Groaning, Elias exclaimed. "Whatever!" It was fine, he'd find other ways to celebrate.

Seth was seemingly done with dawdling outside, as he pocketed his phone and made his way towards the dorm, abandoning Elias on the sidewalk. Elias quickly caught up to him and they rode the elevator together.

“Do you have any plans for the break?” It was doubtful that Allison would agree to spend the break with Seth so quickly after breaking up. Which left little else for Seth to go. Matt always offered to take in Elias and Seth for the breaks, and this time he was planning on spending the month in New York. While Elias was happy at being included, he didn’t want to be there for when Matt filled his truck to the brim with furniture and then therefore had to unpack said furniture.

Seth said as much with a grumble.

“How about you come with me for the break? I’m planning on going on a road trip." Seth’s glare deepened, and Elias thought for a moment that he would chew him out. They exited the elevator as Seth responded. “Where to?”

“Around,” Elias ticked off the boxes in his head. “I’m thinking ‘round up north. Get a head start before the break officially starts and get back to Pennsylvania before June.”

Seth hummed but gave no other reply. He unlocked their dorm door for them, and Matt turned to them as they entered. "Did I hear you're going north for the break?"

"You did, sorry Matty. Maybe next year."

"If you pass by New York, mom will be happy to make a bed for you," said Matt.

"I appreciate it," Elias vaulted over the back of the couch, making himself comfortable as he clicked through the TV channels. “Oh, I found out why Day seemed so happy,” he let out a short laugh. “He and Coach found my replacement.”

"Kevin did?" Matt asked incredulously.

"Yup."

"About time," Seth mumbled, pulling out a textbook. Matt slapped him on the back as he took a seat on the couch near Elias.

"Hey. At the rate he's going, he'll be replacing you too soon enough."

Seth only scoffed. "He can fucking try."

Chapter Text

The end of the season arrived quietly.

Wymack didn't torture his players as harshly; the Foxes were left out of newspaper articles; no one was morbidly hurt.

"How did you say this happened, again?" Asked Dan.

The upperclassmen were currently surrounding Elias, who laid in his bunk. He'd arrived back to the dorms only minutes before, but not without earning Matt's curious eye and then Matt's sudden questions about the strange marks around Elias' wrists and knees.

"I was mugged. Don't worry Dan, I can still run if I need to," Elias mumbled into his pillow. He wished for the upperclassmen to leave him, but his prayers went unheard as the upperclassmen stood in their little circle with the light shining overhead.

"But where? When? Do you know who it was? Have you contacted the police?" Dan bombarded him with unnecessary questions.

"And what will the police do? Besides, I might have been in the wrong too."

Elias made the mistake of turning his head towards the upperclassmen. Dan approached the bunk and stood on the bed below his- rude. "If you don't tell me what happened, I'm going to get Coach to get the answers out of you."

"Forget about it. I didn't lose anything. Just some blood, that's it."

"Blood?!" Dan exclaimed, her hands waving frantically for a moment before Renee stepped in, placing a soothing hand on her shoulder, pulling her away from the bunk.

"Elias," Renee called out, her voice distant yet filled with genuine concern. "Did you hit your head? You shouldn't sleep if you have a concussion."

"No concussion," Elias replied in a robotic tone, his exhaustion seeping through. "Just an annoying buzzing in my ear that won't leave."

"I think you should go to Abby or maybe even the hospital," Renee suggested.

Dan, who'd had enough of Elias, said. "At least tell us if you're going to drop dead within the next hour."

Elias grinned widely at her. "Doubtful."

Elias suspected that Dan waved her hands around franticly before storming out of the bedroom, turning the light off while doing so. It was quiet for a moment before he felt a hand enclose around the bar beside his head. "Just tell me this: are the others in danger."

"No," Elias reassured her.

Whatever Renee's reply was, Elias didn't get to witness it as unconsciousness pulled him under.

~~~

The convenience stores around Palmetto were the perfect place to get your next fix.

Legal fix, of course.

Elias held a pearly white stick in his hand, twirling it between his fingers absentmindedly. The smooth surface reflected the soft glow of the setting sun, catching the glimmering specks of dust floating in the air. One side was sharpened into a diamond sort of tip, while the other was like a flat base, supposedly to keep the item upright.

"That's beautiful. If you don't buy it, I think I will."

Elias turned an unconcerned eye to Renee. He hadn't heard her approach.

He gave her a dull smile and handed her the stick. "Be my guest. It's too expensive anyway."

He left the store before seeing if Renee would buy it or not. He guessed not, as she was once again behind him not two minutes later. "Have you finished all of your assessments yet? If so, do you mind accompanying me to my next class? It's on the other side of campus."

"Of course. Lead the way."

Their walk was mostly silent. Renee started conversations, to which Elias entertained briefly only for them to fall into silence once again. Their silence was broken when Elias turned to ask Renee a question, only to see the muddled look on her face.

"Is there something wrong, Renee? Has Andrew sent you to do his bidding once again?"

Renee smiled at him angelically. Elias wasn’t an idiot, but he caught himself being carried away by that smile. “Andrew doubts your ability to look after yourself.”

He sighed, of course he does.

“Who would have thought.”

"You don't seem surprised."

Elias gave the comment a passing thought. "I know you enough to know that you don't hide things from Andrew. Or at least not for long." He gave a short wave to a passing student. "I honestly don't care what Andrew, or even you for that matter, think. If you don't believe that I can handle myself, that is your problem, not mine."

Elias had watched the smooth way Renee kept her face calm and collected, even in moment where those emotions would have been considered inappropriate. She did the same here, and Elias could even spy a slight narrow of her brow.

"Bruises don't appear like that because of nothing."

"I'm not dead, am I?" He signed, rubbing a hand through his hair. "Besides, I bruise like a peach. I once had a bruise across my face from whiplash."

"He's going to want to know why you look like that," Renee motioned towards the bruises that Elias cared not to hide. They were common enough and blended into his skin without much attention, particularly to those used to them.

"Then he can keep wondering. I'm leaving first thing tomorrow and I don't plan on coming back for a long while.”

Renee smiled. "Coach will want us to train with the new recruit."

Ah, the lucky bastard destined to take Elias' place as bench warming striker. He felt absolutely no ill will at all.

"'The Monsters' will be accommodating enough." Elias used the recently coined term. Renee gave him a disapproving look but made no attempt at standing up for her buddy.

They passed the quad and Renee led Elias up the stairs to an ancient looking building. "Matt said you're heading up North. Are you going to be alright?"

"Yeah," Elias waved her off. "I've done it before, I can do it again."

Renee stopped them in front of a closed door. Another student stood nearby, though they ignored the two Foxes. Renee smiled at Elias. "Well, I suppose I won't be seeing you until June. I guess it'll be too late to have drinks tonight?"

"Indeed. I don't want to be behind the wheel half-conscious. Nice try, Renee. I'll see you next term." He gave her a final wave before exiting the building. He now had longer to walk, but he made it to the dorms within the hour.

~~~

Relaxing in the dorm, there was a knock on their door, though it went unanswered for a minute. A few minutes after that, the door swung open, and Elias heard the sound of Nicky talking as he exited the bedroom.

“What’s up?”

Nicky rubbed his neck, shooting a look to Seth and back to Elias. "Hey, so...Kevin is looking for you."

Both Elias and Seth let out similar sounds of disgust, with Seth adding an extra threat between curses. When Elias didn’t ask any further, Nicky looked to him with pleading eyes. “Eli, you gotta understand that he’s gonna take it out on us if you don’t talk to him.”

Elias booted up a game on Matt’s tv, with Nicky pleading all the while.

“No, I already know what he wants, and I aint giving it to him. Sorry Nicky.”

“Now fuck off, Hemmick,” Seth added helpfully.

Defeated, Nicky left their dorm. He ran into someone outside their door, though their conversation was muffled. A minute later, Matt stumbled into the room, slamming the door behind him. He grinned sheepishly when Elias called over the couch. “Matty. Wanna play with us?”

~~~

The last practice of the season had Elias’ bones cracking in joy. Though, technically there was no actual practice, just Wymack beating his players senseless, the Foxes were in dull spirits.

The upperclassmen were crowded around Matt’s truck by the time Elias finished tidying up. He would see the Foxhole Court for about a month, and he was already dreading going back.

Nonetheless, a certain bed was calling for him.

“You sure you don’t want to sneak at least one in, Elias?” Allison smirked. From the look on her face, it was easy to tell that she was remembering how absolutely munted one glass of beer had made Elias.

“We can get you a soda,” Dan offered. “All of us upperclassmen are coming. You don’t need to drink with us to hang out.”

“He’s driving, so he needs to be up early,” Renee added helpfully. “You’re heading towards New York first, aren’t you?”

“If you wait a week, we can drive to New York together. There’s room for if you want to stay over,” Matt inserted, similar to his spiel that he’d done a week or so prior.

“I have a strict schedule but thank you again for the offer.”

Dan attempted once more to get Elias to go with them, seemingly uncaring about Elias’ drivers awareness. She’d tried this with him so many times before that Elias knew what to say to get her off his back. She’d been more hopeful at the beginning of the year, apparently including him in the upperclassmen’s business was the start of some goal of hers.

“Incoming,” Matt said, staring over Elias’s head.

Knowing the danger beyond, Elias went to leave. He had to get up early the next day, Renee had ever so helpfully explained to everyone. He had a perfectly good excuse to ditch them all right then and there. But of course you can’t interrupt Kevin Day from his tunnel vision.

Even under the crescent moon, Kevin could be seen sporting the same scowl he had the last time he’d been seen. It was beginning to become boring.

“Do you need something?” Dan asked for their little group, slightly wary. Kevin’s blonde minion was a few feet away, though he seemingly paid them no mind, instead sucking on a cigarette.

Kevin ignored their captain for the sake of eyeing Elias. “He knows what I want.”

“Oh Kevin, I forgot to tell you, I’m not gonna be here for…uh, until next term. Gotta road trip, you see. Speaking of, I’ll be taking my leave now.”

Kevin sneered. "I want you back here by-."

"Bla! I'm not listening! I'm going to take my sweet time, Day. No way are you taking my holiday away with your exy crap."

Kevin glared and stood to his whole height, which beside Elias, was nothing. "This is your last chance, Warhaven. If you walk away now, I’m done with you."

The brunette waved the ravenette off. "I never asked for your help."

~~~

The sun was just rising the morning when Elias leaned across the hood of his car. A last-minute oil check ended with a spill, which he was left to clean at the butt crack of dawn. He suppressed a yawn, hoping his coffee would kick in, and made a final check of his things. He didn’t want to risk being stranded.

The Fox dorm front doors open and a familiar Exy striker exited them. Seth approached the car, a scowl- seemingly permanent at this point -etched into his face. None had to wonder what, or who, had given him that expression. Considering he’d gotten back late last night (or early this morning), it was obvious he was also sporting a hangover.

“Rough night?”

Instead of answering, Seth pulled open the boot of the car and pushed the duffle bag that he’d been carrying into it. An empty plastic bag flew out from the boot with a box following suit onto the pavement. “You’ve got so much shit in here. Come help me with this.”

Elias obeyed silently and watched Seth haul the duffle into the boot, pushing random other bags to the side in an attempt to fit more stuff in the car. "What are you doing? You're not trying to make me smuggle anything, are you?"

Seth flipped him the bird before slamming the boot closed. "You invited me, dipshit. Don't tell me you're taking back your word now that I've bothered with packing my shit."

"No!" Elias held up his hands defensively, earning a few looks from passerbyers. "I'm not going to do that. Trust me, you're more than free to tag along with me. But don't make me listen to any of that RnB shit on the radio. The radio is mine."

Seth waved him off and walked over to the passengers side. He didn’t answer as Elias asked if Matt had been awake when he left. He was rather uncommunicative that morning.

Still, Elias tried. “You all good?”

“Let’s just go.”

Taking it in stride, Elias unlocked the car. “You might be feeling like shit now, but just wait until you see this baby go. It’s gonna be the highlight of your lifetime.”