Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Chapter 1 : Preparations 

  Neil was sitting on one of the benches in the locker room of the exy court in his current school. He was in Millport. He was staring at the phone in his hand. Anyone who could've been watching him would've been able to see that his mind was elsewhere. Not that he cared about that at the moment.

  After a while, Neil let out a quite sigh. He still couldn't believe that he had time-traveled 5 years back into the past. He was slowly adjusting to this weird phenomenon. The day it happened, Neil was so distraught that he was in a full-blown panic attack for a while.

  It was his 4th year and Andrew's final year at PSU. Both of them had recovered a lot from their traumas that even Betsy was delighted at their strong mental fortitude and recovery. They had went to bed after their usual rooftop visit. He closed his eyes seeing Andrew and woke up to a random abandoned house. His first thought to the situation was-- a nightmare. But it felt too real. His body was sore. As if he had survived another close encounter with-- No. How could that be? Neil looked at his surroundings and found his all-too familiar duffel that he was apparently using as a pillow. Neil felt cold. Slowly, he recognized his current location. Why was he in Arizona? How? He yanked his duffel close, opened it frantically and took out his phone, freezing when he saw the date. It was the year of his mother's death.

  Neil couldn't breathe. Does this mean he was in the past? 5 years? No, how's that possible? What's happening? Andrew. Where's Andrew? Is he back too? Or is he alone?  Doesn't this mean Nathan's alive? Nathan. Lola. Romero. Jackson. Riko. Dra-- No.

  Neil breathed in and out. He practiced the breathing techniques Betsy had taught him and finally calmed. This was an opportunity. Although currently he didn't know if Andrew was back or not, he did know the future and he'd try his best to use it to his advantage. Neil got up and decided to get enrolled in his old school right away. Then, he'd contact his uncle. The only one most likely to help him. His uncle, who has treated him like a true family. Abram brings surprise, uncle.

    __________________________________________

  Neil shook his thoughts away and stood up. It took him a week to get enrolled back to his school, apply for the exy team, and organize his plans for the future. He had burned his shrine of Kevin Day and Riko Moriyama on the third day. He had also burned the contact lists that was coded between rhymes and numbers since he had actually retained all of them and therefore didn't need the papers. His binder now contained only coordinates for where the money was hidden and the few money slips. Neil was now ready to contact his uncle. He went to his temporary residence that he found in a relatively secluded area. After making sure he was alone, he dialed his uncle's number. The line connected after three rings.

 "Who's this?" A clear voice with thick British accent responded.

 "This is Abram, uncle."

 "Abram? Is that you? Where are you? Hold up. Is everything okay?"

 Neil smiled, feeling warm by his uncle's concern. "It's me. Uncle Stuart, I need help. I'm in Millport. Can you come get me?"

 "Of course, Ram. Where's Mary? Is she okay?"

 "Mom's dead. That bastard killed her."

 "...." A pause.
 "That fucki--!"  Another pause.
 "Abram. What about you, are you okay? I'm coming to pick you up. Ill see you at the airport."

 "I'm fine. See you."
 Neil hung up. He swung his duffel over his shoulder and headed to the airport right away. He was sure his uncle was going to catch the earliest plane after hearing him. He grinned.

 Mission : Reunite with Stuart and gain Hatford support.
 - Begin.

    __________________________________________


 Stuart picked Neil after landing and immediately caught the next flight back once he was sure Neil was alright. He didn't ask his nephew any questions on the way and Neil didn't say anything either. The car finally pulled up in front of a hotel. Neil was led inside by his uncle and Neil had a feeling that the hotel was owned by the Hatfords. The men, the bodyguards, stopped outside the room while Neil and Stuart entered. Neil threw his duffel on the bed in front of him and sat on it. Stuart looked at him and remained quiet. For some reason he wasn't sure why, Neil decided he wasn't going to break the silence.

 After a few minutes of silence, his uncle gave in.

 "You little shit." Sigh. "Come back with me to the Hatfords, Abram. We'll take care of you."

 Neil looked around the room as if admiring the designs before responding, "No. I want to become a free Hatford, uncle. It's what I wanted to talk to you about. Hear me out."

 Stuart made a go on gesture and sat down beside him.

 "I'll agree to visit the other Hatfords, and even willingly perform any mission I'm tasked with while also helping translate important documents of both legal and illegal means. I'm fluent in more than 5 languages." Neil said, and ammended, "If. If you agree to a few of my conditions."

 Stuart let out another sigh. "Are you seriously negotiating right now, Abram? You know we-- I'd never force you to do anything. Whatever you want, I'll try to do it for you, kid."

 Neil knew that. However, his conscience wouldn't allow him to take without giving anything. A trait developed in the process of falling in love with Andrew Minyard. Neil smiled inwardly.

 "I know. But I insist, Uncle Stuart."

 He continued.

 "First off, I want to legally become Neil. I know you have connections with someone in the FBI. Just make me Neil Abram Hatford. I'll use my current alias as 'Neil Josten' to evade Nathan's people but I want to officially become Neil Hatford."

 Neil stated and waited for his uncle's nod before continuing, "Secondly, I want to hone my skills with knives and guns. It's for the mission and tasks I might do for the family. However, these must be limited to only three times a week."

 Stuart was now listening as a Hatford and not as Abram's uncle. He listened attentively to Neil and nodded. Good. Final condition.
 Neil took a deep breath.

 "And lastly, I want to play exy. I'm done running. I've enrolled in Millport's only high school with an exy team, which I'm sure you've found out. I-"

"Alright."

 Neil let out a sigh of relief. This went well. He was ready to argue with his uncle but it's good that it hadn't come to that point.

 "But. I want to modify some of those terms." Stuart held up his index finger. "One, you are going to accept all treatment that a Hatford receives. Yes, that includes having one bodyguard and dressing like a Hatford." He held up another finger. "Two, you are to talk to me everyday. I need to know if you need any help. Inform me. I've already failed to protect your mother, Abram. Don't prevent me from helping you too."

His uncle spoke softly at the end. Neil heard the emotions threatening to break in his uncle's voice. He bit his lip. He nodded slowly. He could do that. Stuart gave him a warm smile and pulled him into a big hug. Neil relaxed in the hug. Away from his uncle's eyes, Neil slowly grinned widely.

Mission : Reunite with Stuart and gain Hatford support.
- Success!

    __________________________________________

 

It had been months since his reunion with his uncle. He was assigned a bodyguard the very next day. A man named Sien. Sien was skilled with the knife. Not as talented as Neil but his experience made him one of the best. He was assigned to help Neil develop his skills with knives while also acting as his bodyguard. Two birds with one stone. He got along with Sien very well. Sien was 23years old. He had medium length black hair that he often tied up in a bun and blood red eyes. He was one of the best assasin of the Hatfords and went with the moniker 'Rethaes'. With the help of Sien's guidance and his own talent in knife-weilding, Neil had become an expert. Knives were now like an extension of his own body and he could weild them with great ease.

 In these months, he had joined in quite a few missions of eliminating small gangs, traitors and even silent assassinations. Other times, he'd participate in meetings, helping translate a lot of works, spend time with his uncle, two cousins, or important figures of the Hatfords. A few people had even started calling him 'Young Hatford' and even 'Deadly Blue'.

 His school life went by in a breeze as well. The difference only being his increased exy stats, maths grades, and the sharp look in his eyes. Compared to the old him, his current self was well-fed, in nice clothes, has a proper house (Stuart had gotten him one immediately after hearing he was squatting) and had a friend (Sien). The year in Millport slid by so quickly Neil didn't realize it was already the last match of highschool exy.

 Neil was filling giddy with excitement. Tonight. Tonight was the night he'd meet Andrew. Neil didn't hold back himself this time. After coming to the past, he devoted everything to exy and played better than his past self. Not as good as he was in his 4th year but good enough as when he was halfway through his first year in Palmetto. So Kevin will definitely come. He couldn't wait. Kevin coming meant Andrew coming as well. He would do anything to bring victory to his team tonight. After all, Andrew would be watching him.

Other than anticipation, he was feeling scared as well. What if Andrew didn't come back to the past like he did? Wouldn't that mean he's really alone? No, let's keep hope. A few more hours. See you soon, Andrew, Kevin.

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Chapter Text

Chapter 2 : Meetings

  Neil fought for air as the final buzzer sounded. He was basking in the cheers of the crowd and his teammates' screams of joy. His heart was threatening to beat out of his chest in the light of scoring the winning goal of the game. His goal made the Millport Miners league champions for the first time ever. His teammates couldn't help themselves from forming a dogpile with him at the centre. They were soaked with glee and in the spur of the moment, grabbed him and began hoisting him. Neil was laughing as well.  

  “Neil, great game! I thought for sure we were going into overtime,” Coach Hernandez congratulated him, grinning like never before. He looked so proud. Neil nodded before being bombarded again with his teammates. After a while, they all scattered to the locker room. Neil waited for everyone to be done before showering. He was clean now and felt as light as a feather. A tap against the door frame brought his attention to the figure of a grinning Sien, shaking his hand which had a new packet of Marlboro Reds.

 "Well well well. Look what I have here-- your favorite pack of cigs. I was so ready to comfort you with them after you lost tonight, but color me surprised! You actually won!" Neil grinned widely, "Lucky you didn't bet about it." He chuckled at the nostalgic memories of the Foxes. "Still, give me one. I'd never say no to those anytime." He gestured towards Sien's hands.

They had only taken a few drags when Coach Hernandez appeared. His eyes bounced from Neil to Sien and back like a ping pong ball before stopping on Neil. "I'll go straight to the point, kid. There's someone here to see you."  Neil's heart skipped a beat. In his peripheral vision he saw Sien tense up, brows furrowing. Which was natural, after all, no one should want to see 'Neil Josten'. Neil ignored him for now.

 "Who?" His voice must've given away his curiosity or anticipation or whatever because Sien shot him a questioning look before relaxing slightly. He was still on guard but less so. Hernandez eagerly replied, "He's a recruiter. He came to see you play."

Sien huffed, "People recruit from Millport? Sorry not sorry I refuse to believe they came here all of a sudden without any prompting. You did something. Explain." Neil inwardly applauded Sien for his amazing cognitive skills. Hernandez was silent for a moment before responding, "He put on a notice saying he was short on his striker line, and I figured it was worth a shot. He's here because I sent him your files and a video tape. Hear him out, will you?"

Sien started to say something but movement around the corridor stopped him. Neil must've tensed up at a point because he felt himself relax upon recognizing the man joining them. A grumpy man with flower tribal tattoos on his hands came into view. Coach Wymack finally made his appearance. Andrew's here. He's here. Neil could feel his heartbeat increasing.

Coach Wymack stopped in front of them and introduced himself. He admitted to have been listening for a while and tried to explain about an unfortunate incident with his last recruit. He talked about his scholarship and confidentiality clauses for signing at PSU. Sien surprisingly let the man finish his speech. He glanced at Neil for a second before looking back to the corridor. Neil knew Sien was leaving the choice to him. Neil already knew his answer but he needed to act.

"Why me? Who's signing me?"

"Kevin Day--"

"I am." Wymack was cut in with a very familiar voice he had unfortunately not missed. Kevin arrogant Day has made his presence known. "Don't consider yourself special. I'll admit you are great for your age but you'll need to improve more. I could point out at least a dozen of your mistakes tonight. Had your coach sent us only your files, I would've thrown it away but he sent us a tape. You play like you have everything to lose. But also like you have everything to win. You are worthy to play with--" Kevin continued blabbering his nonsense but he had already lost Neil's attention.

A short blonde man had captured it the moment he joined the now crowd. Andrew. He looked young. Other than his height, everything was slightly different. His eyes, hazel brown eyes-- stared at his blue ones. (Neil had stopped wearing the contacts but his hair was still dyed black.)

Neil stared at him for a while when suddenly, belatedly, he realized, there was no recognition behind those eyes. To make matters more confusing, this Andrew was sober. What? If Andrew was sober, wouldn't that mean he was back in the past with him? But Andrew didn't recognize him. What's happening? Wasn't Andrew still on his drugs during this time? He needed information. This was wrong. This is different. Neil regretted not keeping track with the Foxes till then.

A hand at his back jolted him back to the present. He looked up to find Sien beside him. Sien motioned with his eyes towards their audience. It looked like Kevin's speech was over and they were waiting for his response. Neil dragged his eyes back to Andrew. His heart was broken. Whatever was happening, he would figure it out and he'd do it while staying close to Andrew. He looked at Wymack and nodded. He signed the contract. Wymack invited him to stay over at his house a week after graduation. He didn't say why but Neil was sure it was because he thought Neil had trouble with his family. You don't come out of missions unscathed and you don't spar without collecting cuts and bruises. Though none of them commented, he had felt their eyes lingering on the visible ones.

He agreed. Sien silently shook his head after slanting him an incredulous look. Neil felt Andrew's eyes on him the whole time till their departure. He left with Sien to their residence. "Sien. I want information on Andrew Minyard and Kevin Day by tomorrow. And get me a plane to California next week. I'll leave immediately after graduation." Neil adressed Sien as soon as he sat down on the couch.

Sien raised an eyebrow at him but didn't say anything at his odd behavior. This is why he liked Sien. He rarely talked or questioned his desicions but did his job and duties with absolute precision. "Will do, Ram. Though I think you should inform about this to Stuart yourself. I'll need to get myself a house near your college." Sien huffed. "Oh. Want to eat out tonight? In celebration of your win? I'm sure Stuart could make time for that. And you'd be able to tell him the news in person as well."

"Hm. Yeah, let's do that."

•

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Chapter Text

Torture You Deserve

He's screwed.

He's in deep predicament. Neil thought as he went through the data collected by Sien. It was completely different than what he knew.

According to the papers in his hands, Andrew Minyard, a former Doe, moved not 13 houses, but 10. Three houses less than from his original timeline. Not only that, this Andrew apparently wasn't ordered to get medicated by the court. A therapist stood up for him in his trial which tilted the case in his favor. Not Betsy. A man in his thirties named Lucias. Nonetheless, the other things remained the same-- him living with the Spears, his mother dying after their reunion (which Neil knew was Andrew's doing), Nicky taking guardianship over the twins, Kevin and Riko coming to recruit him, him joining the Palmetto Foxes, drugging Matt-- everything was the same. Except those small details that changed everything while changing nothing. Is this the butterfly effect?

But he hadn't done anything to cause such change. Was it the man named Lucias? His Andrew had never mentioned someone with that name. Andrew had told him once that none of the therapists he'd been assigned to stayed with him before Betsy. Also, the Andrew he knew was medicated. All these led to one possible conclusion-- He was in another universe. An alternate universe where Andrew was not medicated.

This brings up the question-- Is the difference in this universe only Andrew? Or there are other factors that have changed? Could he hold a silver of hope that some of Andrew's foster family had been good? Or would it be stupid of him to assume such? What about Kevin? Neil scrambled the pages, reaching the one with Kevin's info.

Kevin Day, son of Kayleigh Day, son of exy, and brother of Riko Moriyama, Number Two of the Perfect Court; Okay, these are the same. Broke his hand in a skiing accident; Sien added a note beside that info : We know that's bullshit. A pesky bug did it. Neil scoffed. You don't say. Now a Palmetto Fox. And the usual informations.

So, nothing's changed for Kevin.

Just as Neil was about to skim through the rest, he suddenly caught the name Hatford in one of the paragraphs. What's Kevin got to do with the Hatfords? With that, he dived into the file with rapt attention.

Neil had finally graduated. His uncle had come to see him immediately before he left for his flight to California. He hadn't told his uncle why he was going there and his uncle didn't ask. Somehow he felt that Stuart already knew what he was upto. He didn't care.

Tonight, Drake would die a gruesome death. He'll bleed that fucker to the ground. There was no way he was letting that filth pollute the air any longer. Time for cleanup.

After landing himself in California, Neil contacted Sien to send him the location of a house perfect for torture nearby. He had one of his numerous contacts bring him specific torture tools and headed towards Drake's house-- with the Butcher's smile adorning his face.

After making sure Drake was home, Neil went up to ring the doorbell. He made himself look scared and defeated. Drake answered the door to snark at whoever disturbed him but stops when he sees Neil. He felt him running his eyes up and down, landing on Neil’s face after what feels like minutes. “Hello, can I help you?” Drake tried to make his voice sound concerned and kind, to keep the darkness out of his voice, and failed miserably. Neil was relieved to see that Drake was still Drake and so he'd have no guilt killing him.

"Um, I'm sorry. But, I think I'm lost. Uh...I was here with my uncle and I think I lost him somewhere. My phone's dead and I only have a few dollars with me. If it's not any trouble, can..can you give me a lift? I'll pay you for the ride after." Neil says, speeding up the longer he talks, making himself appear nervous. Drake couldn't hide the excitement fast enough as he thinks he did. Neil barely stopped himself from choking him then and there.

"Oh, of course. It's no trouble. What's your address? Just a min, let me grab my keys." Drake went in and grabbed his keys without waiting for a response. Neil let himself be guided to the car and gave him the address. He acted like an innocent boy happily blabbering about this and that. He purposely dropped hints like he was living alone and that his uncle was probably not home yet and saw Drake getting happier every minute. Oh, Drake. You don't know what you're walking into. The Grim Reaper is here to collect your life today.     

Drake was tied upside-down to the ceiling fan in a basement.

When Drake had parked his car near the address Neil had given him, Neil 'invited' him inside to 'pay' him back. Drake grinned at the invitation and went inside the house only to blackout immediately. Neil had hit him at the back of his neck swiftly and with the help of Sien, who was already present there, dragged him to the basement and hung him upside-down.

Sien handed him the torture box he had requested. "You have 5 hours. The cleaners will arrive by then. Basement's sound-proof. I'll be waiting out if you need anything. Have fun." Sien announced as he left. Oh yes, he will indeed have fun torturing Drake.

Neil went upto Drake and slit both the inner part of his forearms a few times. Fresh blood dripped rapidly, forming a pool of it in a few minutes. Neil circled him a few times before taking out his phone and taking a picture. Then he kicked Drake hard in his face. The satisfactory crunch resulting from his nose breaking filled the empty room. Drake groaned for a while before suddenly screaming. The pain was finally settling in. Neil let out a twisted laugh.

"AGH!! Y-you! Wh-where am I?! Release me!" Drake started squirming and shouting, splattering blood around in the process. The cuts were opening wider the more he moved. Good. Squirm like the worm you are.

"Shut. Up." Neil kicked the side of his abdomen next. "The only thing you need to know is you are dying tonight." Neil grinned his father's smile as he stabbed Drake's thighs once, twice, thrice. Drake screamed and repeatedly begged him to stop.

"STOP! STOPPP WHY ARE YOU DOING THIS?!?! AAGGHH--" Neil took out a hammer and striked Drake's groin. "AAAAHHHHHH!!!!!"

"Hmm...you're not bleeding hard enough. Let's fix that." Neil started. Drake was a crying mess and his voice was becoming hoarse. Being tied upside-down was now making him dizzy.

Neil held the torture box and took out a tool called the nail opener. Also called the thumbscrewer, used in denailing-- a viscious form of torture. Like the name suggest, these were used to break the nails of prisoners, traitors, hostages, etc. Ever broke a nail? It hurts like hell. Neil smiled with his teeth while bringing the device to Drake. Drake went white with fear. His eyes dilated and he started shaking with pure terror.

"NO NO NO!! PLEASE- I'M SORRY I'M SORRY!! STOP!! NO, DON'T PLEASE NO NO!!!"

"Ah, so now you know the use of that word? Didn't you ignore the 'Nos' and 'Don'ts' and 'Please' all this time? You didn't acknowledge those cries, why should I acknowledge yours?" Neil remarked viciously while giving a freezing glare that promised nothing but pain. His voice a dangerous low, chilling every bone in Drake's body. It was then Drake understood what was happening to him.

Neil didn't wait. He grabbed one of Drake's finger and started breaking his nail. Blood exploded like a fountain while Drake screamed so loudly-- he might've damaged his vocal cord. The floor Neil was standing on was filled with blood everywhere with more falling. Neil took his sweet time breaking each and every nail in Drake's hands.

"These hands have ruined so many children's lives. You held them down with these hands. These hands were used to smother their screams. These hands violated them. These hands. These filthy hands. Oh. Don't worry. Your mouth will be dealt with after this." Neil mockingly comforted him. To Drake, Neil looked like the incarnation of Devil himself. His icy blue eyes was sure to give him PTSD if he lived. Not that he will. Drake desperately wished he was dead. He wanted this horrendous torture to stop. He repeatedly begged him for forgiveness and slowly his voice lulled to soft whisper of whimpers.

Drake Spear was finally died. He will not be missed. Neil felt peace.

Neil walked upstairs to where Sien was waiting.

It had been 4hours so he had an hour before the cleaner arrived. Sien looked up at him upon his arrival and handed him a bag of clean clothes. Neil was thankful for that. He couldn't spare another second soaked in Drake's blood. He showered quickly and got changed.

He sat down beside Sien while drinking water. "I want Drake's body to be found." Sien shifted towards him at that and waited for him to elaborate. "I want the news of his brutal death to be known to all. Can you do it?"

Sien stayed silent for a minute. Then he spoke, "I'm flattered you think so highly of my ability to erase traces. Yeah, sure. But you got to tell me what he did, man. I deserve that, dont you think?"

"He was a rapist. A pedophile. Fucker even tried to rape me." It wasn't the truth, but it was close enough. After all, it's true Drake did plan to do that. Neil saw Sien's eyes darken as he took in Neil's words.

He remained quite for so long Neil thought he wouldn't say anything. But then he spoke, "He died too easily then." Neil shook his head internally. He felt what he did was enough. Drake died a slow, painful death.

"Consider it done. Hmm...what about Stuart? Do you want me to report this to him?"

"Do what you want. He'll figure out it was me anyway. Ugh, I'm hungry. When's the cleaner coming??"

"Where did all the earlier patience go? I've bought us burgers while you were in there. Come on." Sien ushered a whining Neil to the living room.

If anyone were to ask if they weren't bothered about eating in a house where a murder had been just committed, they'd look incredulous. There wasn't anything wrong in the house at all. What body? The two friends were just eating burgers.

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Chapter Text

It had been a week since Drake's murder and three days since his body was found.

The police had found him near an alleyway leaning against a bloodied wall with the message : Always Keep Your Hands To Yourself. The morbid scene caused the officers to grimace the entire time. The deceased's mouth was stuffed with a cactus. They couldn't figure out why and who would do something so horrible. At least, until a few brave teenagers started speaking up.

The news blew up the following evening. As if someone deliberately fanned the flame. Internet, newspapers, television-- It was everywhere.

It was impossible for Andrew to miss it. After all, as a former foster child having a connection to the 'victim', he was bound to be contacted by the police.

Andrew's first reaction to the news has been disbelief. He had been scrolling through his phone when he stumbled upon the post. Slowly reading through the caption, he swiped through the pictures. Recognization filled his thoughts. It was truly Drake. A small feeling of satisfaction, peace, joy -- bloomed in him. Though he was sure nothing showed in his face. He had only felt this kind of satisfaction once-- when he killed Tilda.

He searched up every information related to the incident immediately. Someone had finally got rid of Drake. Who? Doesn't matter. Whoever they were, they had unknowingly removed a burden from Andrew's life, had avenged dozens of lost childhood. Andrew spent the night watching every video, article, crime news he could find on the case. Listened attentively at the descriptions of torture that had been subjected and found himself smiling. A tiny smile, barely formed, but still there. The reason-- the writing on the wall.

Is it bad that he might've become a fan of the killer? Probably not. It was very Andrew-like, no? Hmm. What are they calling the killer? Is this their first kill? Were they also perhaps another survivor like him? He'd like to meet them once, Andrew thinks. He saved the videos, took a screenshot of the lovely scenary, and went to bed. He didn't have any nightmares that night.

It was a good night.

Neil stared at the suitcase by his feet.

The only other baggage he had now. With the original contents of his binder removed, he didn't need to carry the duffel around. He had brought a new, smaller binder to store the money slips and it was securedly stored inside the suitcase.

He was waiting at the arrivals for Andrew to come pick him up. He swept his eyes through the crowd and immediately spotted the blonde staring at him. Neil waved his hand as he made his way over. The blonde watched him approach, then turned around, rightfully assuming Neil would follow.

They crossed the road without bothering to stop looking for incoming cars. Neil followed him silently. Andrew stopped near his car and was surprised at Neil's non-reaction. Neil could tell. This Andrew was more expressive.

"Bag goes in the trunk." Andrew said, breaking the silence. Neil nodded. He sat in the passenger's seat and Andrew took off.

After a few minutes of comfortable silence, Andrew addressed Neil. "So, Neil Josten, huh?"

"Yes." Neil responded, silently wondering if this Andrew would try to pretend to be Aaron as well. If so, he was looking forward to messing with them.

"Hmm. Let's play a game, Neil. 5 points for every right answer and -1 for every wrong one. You in?", Andrew suggested.

" No threshold for positive or negative points? Or like prizes or consequences? Where's the thrill in that?"

"You agree to the game, I start proceeding to the rules." 

Neil grins. "I'm in."

Andrew hums and didn't say anything. Neil basked in the silence. He was comfortable and could see from Andrew's relaxed shoulder, that he was too. After a few minutes, Andrew spoke again.

"We rotate the game. I'll ask a question and you'd need to guess the answer. Which, if correct, earns you 5 points and if wrong, you lose 1. Then, it'd be your turn. Fun, isn't it?" Andrew said, with a hint of amusement. He looked at Neil at the last sentence.

Neil thought about it and compared it to the Truth-for-Truth game he had with his- no-- other Andrew. Forgive me, Andrew, but this game seems better.

"Seems so." Neil replied, smiling. "What else?"

"No limit for positive points. But." Andrew paused deliberately, as if to create dramatic suspense and highlight his next words.

"Negative points for every -10 makes the loser owe the winner a favor. You can reject the favor of course. For which, an alternate favor will be asked. Get it?"

Neil hummed. "How would we guess though? There's no rule about giving clues?"

"Nope." Andrew said, popping the p. "It'd depend solely on observation skills, and gut feeling." Andrew sped up his car. Zig-zaging past cars before making a sharp turn. "Oh. The crucial rule, the core part of the game-- No lies."

"As long as you don't either." Neil shrugged.

He didn't comment on Andrew's driving. He knew he wouldn't crash the car. Then he briefly entertained the idea of getting Andrew the Maserati. The other Andrew liked that car a lot-- Neil didn't know much about cars then and he was clueless about them even now. But Andrew liked the car, and that was enough reason for him to consider getting it.

"Great. I'll go first. Which twin do you think I am?"

"Andrew." Neil answered, smiling.

His confident voice made Andrew look at him. His eyebrows raised in amusement. "5 points to Neil. How'd you know? I could've been Aaron." Andrew focused on the road again. Neil realized they were almost near Wymack's apartment. How did the time flew by so fast?

"I've only met you, you know? Between you and Aaron, I mean. I don't mistake someone I've met." Neil said.

Andrew didn't say anything. He hummed and continued driving. In two minutes, Neil had arrived at Wymack's apartment. First time in this universe, sure, but he knew this apartment for years now. A place he knows will always be home for him. He shoved the nostalgic thoughts down, and took a deep breath before getting out of the car.

He's back.

To Palmetto.

To the Foxes.

To the place that provided him his everything.

Neil Josten will survive again.

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Neil got off the car and was introduced to the cousins all over again.

Nicky made a fuss upon seeing his blue eyes and threw comments on how cute and adorable he was. The following warning from Andrew shut him up immediately. Andrew and Aaron were wearing the same clothes and Neil wondered if their relationship was good in this universe. He got his answer when the car was brought up. Nicky tried to 'ease' Aaron to not react to Andrew's taunt.

They went upto the apartment. Neil didn't linger in front of the room this time. He went inside and manuevered around with great familiarity.

"What the? Am I crazy or did he just walk like he knew the place?" Nicky spoke quietly in German behind him.

"You're overthinking. He was probably just curious and went by quickly." Aaron replied in the same language. Nicky didn't say anything.

Neil turned around and Nicky smiled brightly. "So, you've made yourself familiar with Coach's. Good for me, I don't need to give you a tour then." He said in English. Neil decided he was going to hide his German fluency longer this time.

Just then Andrew and Kevin reappeared. The vodka in their hand being evidence of what they were upto.

"Who's that for?" He pointed at Andrew's hand.

"Us. Me and Kevin. Kevin mostly. Feel free to join us."

Neil shook his head. "It's fine. I don't drink."

"Will you snitch on us then? So much for being a fox." Andrew snided.

"No. But-- "

Neil got cut off by the door opening. Wymack appeared and the vodka disappeared somewhere between Andrew and Kevin.

Everything went the same way after that. Coach gave him keys and he grasped them firmly. He missed the keys. He needed two more keys to complete his set. Neil didn't hide his suitcase this time and left it beside the couch. It was locked, after all-- with a good lock.

Nicky blabbered about this and that on their way to the lift. As soon as they were in it, Andrew crowded him to the corner. Neil lifted his eyebrow at him in question. Andrew just stared at his eyes, looking for something. Whatever he was searching for, he might've found it as he leaned back from his space without saying anything. It was....odd.

Neil couldn't ponder about it long because the lift had already brought them to the ground. Nicky, Aaron, Kevin, Andrew, all moved towards the car. Nicky called after him.

"Ready for this?" He asked, smiling wide with his teeth.

"You bet." Neil grinned as well.

This was the start of one hell of a year.

And he was ready.

•

•

•

Chapter Text

Flashbacks

Neil spotted the Foxhole Court long before they made it to the stadium parking lot. It was almost the same, if not more brighter. His heart was beating with the anticipation of standing on the court again. He couldn't help but think back to all the events that centered around this orange block.

Neil went up to the fence and stared through it at the outer grounds. Every hair on his body stood on end, and his heartbeat echoing in his ears sounded like an Exy ball rebounding off a court wall.
Nicky clapped a hand to Neil's shoulder. "All the orange grows on you," he promised.

It did. "Let me in."

"Come on," Nicky said, and led him down the fence. They'd reached the end of the gates—they'd parked by 24, and the next was 1. He knew every nook and corner of the place like the back of his hand but that didn't stop him from drinking it all up again. He followed Nicky while his eyes roamed the all familiar space.

"This is our entrance," Nicky said. "Code changes every couple months, but Coach always lets us know when it does.
Right now it's 0508. May and August, get it? Coach and Abby's birth months. They are totally boning. When's your birthday?"

"It was in January." Neil answered truthfully. He was now legally Neil Hatford thanks to his uncle and his uncle had set his original birthday in those documents.

"Oh, we missed it. That's a shame. What'd your girlfriend get you?"

Neil looked at him. He had forgotten how flirty Nicky was with him at the start. How he had ignored his rejection and kissed him at Eden's. He frowned and twisted his lips at the memory.

He took to ignoring the question and looked back at the keypad. He knew the code, he didn't have to wait for anyone to open it for him. He could go in but that would seem weird, dodging a simple question like that. Neil didn't notice it last time but Kevin and Andrew were looking forward to his answer if their silence was anything to go by.

"Come on, cute face like yours has to have a girlfriend. Unless you swing my way, of course, in which case please tell me now and save me the trouble of having to figure it out." Nicky continued.

He took a deep breath and decided to give Nicky a chance. He'll see if his rejection gets ignored this time as well. "I'm not interested, Nicky."

Nicky face dimmed a little. He grimaced and tried to smile but it didn't reach his eyes. "Haha, don't tell me you're a homophobe as well?"

Neil was surprised how he came off like that when all he did was say no. But maybe Nicky was a bit more sensitive this time around. Being around Seth and other homophobes might've affected him more than he showed.

"No. I'm just not interested. Are we going in or not?" He tried to shift the mood back to Exy and hoped Nicky relaxed a little.

Everything went the same after that. Nicky gave him a tour of the locker room, the office, the lobby where most of the meetings occurred, the Foxes from the frames and finally the stadium.

"Lights," Aaron called from somewhere behind them.
Neil heard the hum of electricity before the lights came on, starting with emergency lights at his feet and cascading upwards. The stadium came to life before his eyes, row after row of alternating orange and white seats disappearing into sky-high rafters and the court lighting up in front of him. Neil was moving before the ceiling lights turned on, crossing the inner court to the court walls.

He had been on this court for years, had played on it more times than he could count and yet the sight took his breath away. Memories of playing with the Foxes and their opponents flashed by like a movie on 2x speed. Neil felt himself smiling and he couldn't wait to be around his family again.

"Oh," Nicky said, leaning against the wall a short ways down from Neil. "No wonder he chose you."

Neil shook his memories off and went to get his gears. He was better now than he was during his original first year and he was looking forward to messing with Kevin.

•

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•

"Where's Andrew?" Neil asked. He knew medicated Andrew would've been dozed up and out cold somewhere but he didn't know how that would change here. Would this Andrew actually play Exy? The thought made him shiver with excitement.

"Oh. He's lying on the benches somewhere perhaps. He's so blank, you know? Sometimes I'm scared to even look at him. I wonder at times if he'd been better had he taken the medicines."

A dark rage was closing in on Neil at Nicky's words. So that's how Nicky would've thought if original Andrew was never medicated. He wasn't liking this universe's Nicky. It didn't sit right with him whenever anyone talked about Andrew like that.

"He's not crazy." Neil snarled. He couldn't help it. Neil had once promised Andrew that he would fight anyone who called him soulless. The promise doesn't change just because he's in another timeline.

Nicky was startled at Neil's sudden animosity and fumbled at his next sentence. But Neil couldn't bear to look at Nicky anymore and left towards the stadium instead.

After a few minutes Nicky and Aaron joined him. Nicky tried to dissipate the earlier sour atmosphere between them by teaching Neil the drills with more enthusiasm and failing. Aaron just guided him like he did.

Neil shoved everything back down his memory lane and focused on Exy. He purposefully messed up twice in each drill and made them perfectly on his thirds, making him look like a fast learner. He was better than before and his mood lifted up a little.

Soon, Nicky and Aaron became tired and even though Neil wasn't, he had to act like he was. He glanced back towards the Foxes benches through the wall and saw Kevin looking at him. Beside him, Andrew sat with one leg propped on the bench and his signature bored look on his face. As if feeling eyes on him, he turned and stared right back at Neil.

"I can see why Kevin picked you." Aaron spoke. "You're really good. Better than us if I'm being honest. Fast learner too."

"And, looks like Kevin's ready to get his hands on you." Nicky piped up looking at the direction where Neil was.

Neil hummed and made it out the door.

Andrew didn't say anything to anyone but he did give Aaron and Nicky a once-over for injuries. That remained the same it seems.

Nicky and Aaron went away to the lockers, leaving Neil with Kevin and Andrew.

"Well? Think I can meet your expectations, Day?"

Kevin huffed. "I'll make sure you do. Give your game to me. If you won't play with me, then you'll play for me. You can't go there on your own, so give your game to me."

For a moment, Neil was back at the Nest. Riko saying the exact same words as he tried to force Neil to sign the contracts. No. He won't. He wouldn't.

You will! Riko's voice haunted him.
I won't! You can't make me! He snarked back.
Jean bring the damn—!!

"No." Neil replied, immediately shutting Kevin up. The incredulous look on his face would've made Neil laugh if it weren't for the lingering flashback. He glanced at Andrew and found his footing back. He took in a shaky breath hoping it'd come off as being exhausted. He looked back at Kevin.

"Sorry to upset and burst your bubble, Day, but I'm Andrew Minyard's fan, not yours." Neil tilted his head towards Andrew at the last sentence before swiftly moving past them towards the exit.

When he was out of sight, he took in a few deep breaths. Riko wasn't dead yet but he will be. Neil promised himself. Then, he let out a quite laugh remembering the look on Kevin's face. It was so worth it.

The ride to Abby's was filled with Nicky's chattering and occasional answers from Aaron. The earlier flashback had drained Neil's energy so closed his eyes to avoid any more conversations. With a sulky Kevin and a strangely pleased Andrew driving the car, Neil could say it was the perfect ride.

They arrived at Abby's in due time. The front door was unlocked, so they let themselves in without knocking, and they were greeted by the thick smells of garlic and warm tomato sauce. Coach Wymack and Abby were in the kitchen already.

Coach and Nicky bickered a little while Abby scolded them. Andrew and Aaron silently moved out of the way towards the tables. Neil waited for Abby to notice him. She did a minute later.

"You'd be Neil, then. I'm Abby. I'm nurse for the team and temporary landlord for this bunch. They're not giving you too much trouble, are they?"

"No. They're alright." Neil replied politely.

"Where's Bee?" Andrew asked, the first thing he'd said after a while. "Didn't you invite her?"

"I did. But she declined. She thought it'd make things awkward." Abby answered while going back to the dishes.

Andrew looked at Neil and Neil knew what he'd say.

"That's a shame. Bee's a shrink. Used to work in the juvie system, but now she's here. She deals with the really serious cases on campus: suicide watch, budding psychopaths, that sort of thing. That makes her our designated handler. You'll meet her in August."

"Do I have to?" Neil asked, grimacing at the thought again.

"It's mandatory once a semester for athletes," Abby confirmed. "The first time is a casual meet-and-greet so you get to know her and find out where her office is. The second session is in spring. Of course, you're free to visit her any time you like, and she'll talk to you more about scheduling while you're there. Counseling services are included in your tuition, so you might as well make use of it."

"Betsy's amazing," Nicky said. "You'll love her."

Neil doubted that. Betsy might just label him as mental and enroll him to an asylum if he said things like time-travelling and universe hopping, if not about his traumas. He didn't say anything though, and quietly sat down on the chair next to Andrew.

He straightened up and wasn't surprised to see all of them taken aback by his sitting choice but he still couldn't keep his fists from clenching.

Conversations died as everyone got settled and served up what they wanted, but it started up again as they dug into chunks of steaming lasagna. From time to time the table split as Kevin and Wymack got caught up talking about spring training and recruits at other schools and Nicky regaled the other half of the table with gossip about movies and celebrities Neil still didn't know most of. Andrew watched Kevin and Wymack, but he had nothing to contribute to the conversation. Instead he hummed to himself and pushed his food around his plate.

Sometime around then, Neil's phone started ringing. (Yes, he had indeed gotten one after much pestering from his uncle.) It was Sien. He had probably settled somewhere around campus by now.

He could feel several eyes on him as he answered the call. Neil's own gaze then bounced from everyone's while bringing the phone next to his ears and looked away.

"Yeah?"

"Ram. I've settled in a house nearby the Fox Tower. We need to discuss further our next plans, including your sparring days and missions and I need to show you the house as well. When are you available?"

Oh, right. There's that. "I'll tell you later tonight."

With that, he put down his phone. Nicky predictably started pouring questions at him at once.

"Who was that, Neil? A friend? Family?"

"Seemed too short of a convo for family." Aaron added. Neil snorted inwardly. As if he'd know.

"Cousin." He lied as he glanced to Wymack and Andrew and elaborated, "He was with me that day."

Wymack nodded and went back to his food. The man had his priorities sorted. Nicky continued.

"Cool. He must've called to know if you've arrived. Did you not call him at all? How many cousins do you have by the way?"

"No and 2." Neil pushed his food around. He wasn't feeling hungry. When was the last time he felt hungry, really? Lately, he's been needing Sien to remind him to eat every time.

It was after ten when Wymack decided it was time to go, and Neil left with him. The ride to Wymack's apartment was silent and Neil was grateful for that. He didn't have any energy left to talk. When Wymack closed and locked the front door behind them, he asked, "Are they going to be a problem?"

Neil shook his head.

"They don't understand boundaries," Wymack said. "If they cross a line and you can't get them to back off, you come to me. Understand? I don't have perfect control over Andrew, but Kevin owes us his life and I can get to Andrew through him."

Neil wanted to say that it won't be necessary but he settled for nodding. He went down the hall to get his suitcase from Wymack's couch.

"Nice clothes."

Neil nodded again. His uncle forced all these clothes on him. And well, understandable, blend according to the environment.

"Laundry room is in the basement. Detergent's in the bathroom cabinet under the sink. Use what you need, and take what you want from the kitchen. It'll piss me off more if you act like a skittish stray cat than it will if you eat the last bowl of cereal."

Neil smirked and held back a laugh. He missed Coach.

"I've got paperwork to go over. You good?"

"I might go visit my cousin. He bought a house nearby."

Wymack arched an eyebrow at that but wisely didn't comment anything. He nodded and went to his desk.

Neil took out his phone and texted Sien to come pick him up. He took his more comfortable clothes and went to change in the bathroom.

Sien was waiting in front of the apartment when Neil went down. Neither of them said anything as the car pulled off to the night.

•

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Chapter Text

Neil sneaked back into Wymack's apartment after returning from Sien's. It was almost one in the morning and he silently hoped for Coach to be asleep.

No such luck.

Wymack was up waiting for him on his couch. He looked up at Neil upon his entrance and uttered a quiet "finally" before getting up and moving back to his room.

Neil would've felt guilty for making Wymack stay up for him if he wasn't so tired himself. He had sparred with Sien a little and ended up with a new collection of bruises. With the additional effect of the flashback that evening, he was in need of a good sleep.

Without allowing his thoughts to go haywire again, he crashed face-first onto the couch and swiftly fell asleep.

__________________________________________


Neil woke up at 6 in the morning and went for his regular run. On the way back, he ran past a store. Something familiar about the store had him pause.

After juggling hard with his memories, he finally remembered why. It was the store where he'd been stuck once after dissociating one night. Andrew had came to pick him up as it had been raining cats and dogs. (Neil had been running in the rain despite that and thus predictably caught a cold the next day.)

Neil smiled at the memory and made towards the store. Since he was here anyway, he could buy something for Andrew. Maybe there would be some of his favorite ice-creams.

After purchasing six different pints of Häagen-Dazs ice creams, Neil ran back to his temporary residence, changed out, and went back to the court.

Andrew and his lot arrived not much later and Kevin instructed them towards their position. He was then trying to get Andrew to the goal with failure. Andrew just took back his seat from yesterday and acted like he couldn't hear Kevin.

Neil smiled inwardly at the display and started for them. Aaron and Nicky came out with their gears and was about to go to the field when they spotted him coming towards them. Nicky opened his mouth to say something but stopped when he noticed the package on his hands.

Neil ignored him and dropped the package on Andrew's lap.

Andrew stared at the cold package on him for a while before finally looking at Neil. Kevin, on the other hand, sputtered so hard that it took him a while to react.

"Are those ice-creams?! How many are there? Don't tell me you have a sweet tooth as well?! You shouldn't eat these the first thing in the morning! This is bad for your health and you should eat healthy! Wait. Are all these for Andrew? No, gimme that—"

Kevin ranted and reached out for the package only to be swatted away by Andrew, who slowly took out a pint and stared right at Kevin as he opened and started eating chunks of it.

Kevin made an inhuman noise that could've been classified as a shriek and turned his anger on Neil. So, mission annoying Kevin accomplished. Now, run. He dodged Kevin's hands as they tried to grab him and took off in a run.

Nicky laughed and followed right after them. Neil didn't look back at the twins again after that.

•
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•

Andrew has Nicky pressed against the wall with a knife at his ribs.

Neil didn't know when that happened. All he remembered was Nicky's comments on him needing a push and Aaron's remark on him scheming to rape Neil. He must've frozen up at the memory of Lola's hands on his hips and her grinding up against him longer than he thought. The German language brought him back.

"You know I'd never hurt him. If he says yes—"

"I said no."

"Jesus, you're greedy," Nicky said. "You already have Kevin. Why does it—" Nicky shut up and Neil knew why.

Neil had given Nicky a chance, and while his comments had been harmless they had caused him to dissociate for a while. There was no way Andrew wouldn't have clocked that. Even if he didn't, he'd had given Nicky the same treatment anyway. Neil looked between Andrew and Nicky and let out a sigh.

"Andrew."

"Quiet," Nicky said in English, barely louder than a breath of air. "Quiet. It's fine."

"Andrew." Neil called again when the blonde didn't acknowledge him. Andrew titled his head towards him after a beat.

"Kevin's waiting. Let's go. Also, Nicky, you really should stop making those type of comments to me. I don't like them. And my answer is still no."

Andrew waited a beat before letting go of Nicky and moving towards the door. Nicky was shell-shocked at his words and it took him a moment to nod. He then grimaced and pulled his head away. Taking the subtle hint of unexpected dismissal, Neil followed Andrew's way out.

Kevin was impatiently waiting for them. Or mostly, him. When he didn't see Nicky or Aaron behind him he snarled a few curses. The absentees made their appearance ten minutes later. Kevin arranged them the same way he did in the original but he didn't call Neil a child this time. Huh.

After a few scrimmages, he dismissed the backliners and puller Neil towards the goal with Andrew swaying on his racket in front of it. Neil knew where this was going and he was looking forward to it.

"You stay here and fire on Andrew until he's tired. Maybe you'll score once."

Andrew quirked an eyebrow at that and lifted his weight off his racket.

With that, Kevin turned around and left, slamming the door behind him on his way out. Neil collected the bucket of balls from the north home corner where they'd stored it during their scrimmages and began shooting against Andrew.

He tried to remember the patterns in which original Andrew was focused during this time. After a few fakes and near misses Neil finally scored once against him. The once red-lit goal didn't made him overconfident and he tried his best to score again. Unfortunately this time Andrew didn't let Neil.

After a while Neil's arms started to feel heavy so he reluctantly dropped his racket and sat down next to it. Another presence sitting beside him made him realize Andrew had joined him from the goal. A peaceful silence enclosed around them before Andrew broke it.

"Why?" Andrew asked out of nowhere and without any context. An ordinary person wouldn't have been able to understand what he was asking.

But Neil was an expert in Andrew-verse and he was also a piece of shit.

"Why Häagen-Dazs or why I gave you ice-creams?"

Andrew turned an unimpressed look on him as though he wanted to throttle him right then and there. And Neil let out a laugh.

He let out a cheeky grin and rested his palm on his face. "Aren't you supposed to treat the person you like?"

•

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Chapter Text

Neil watched as Andrew's ears turned red. Although he managed to keep his poker face, his ears and neck got red whenever he was flustered.

Neil couldn't quite hide the grin on his face and Andrew pushed his face away.

"Is this a confession, Josten? Not even a week into meeting me?" Andrew asked him after getting himself in control.

"Do you want it to be?"

"I want nothing."

"But you wanted answers? Are you a word twister or just in denial?"

"Are you looking for answers cuz I'm not yours."

"I'm not looking for answers. I'm giving them. Do you want any?"

Andrew squinted his eyes at him. Neil wondered if he seemed too enthusiastic in wanting to tell Andrew everything.

The thing was, Andrew would not want to be deceived. Currently Neil knew almost everything about Andrew but Andrew didn't. He needed to balance the scale fast. And he was ready to use every opportunity. Even those date ideas Allison had drilled into his head all those years ago.

"Then let's play the game we discussed. It's your turn."

"Oh. Right." Neil had forgotten about it. Now Neil wants to know how much Andrew had observed him. "What is my favorite color?"

"With the amount of time you spent staring at the court, I'd say it orange. But something tells me it's not."

"Close enough. -1 to you. It's hazel-brown."

"There was no rule of answering if failed." Andrew stated immediately.

"No." Neil acquiesced. "But I'm offering. You don't have to if you don't want to during your turn."

Andrew nodded.

They sat in silence for a few minutes more before Andrew stood up. Neil followed him and started collecting the balls. They left the court together.

•

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•

Neil woke up to Kevin's frantic screaming the next morning. It took his foggy brain a while to figure out why. He must've heard of Edgar Allan's district change notice.

Neil let out a deep sigh. Today's gonna be a long ass day. He needs to talk to Andrew. Also Sien.

Neil sneakily came out of his room and saw the mess in the bathroom— a son panicking and his father trying to calm him. Though said father didn't even know he was the father. He tip-toed his way out of Wymacks apartment and swiftly took off in a run.

He arrived at Sien's drenched in sweat and found the man watching a movie Neil didn't care enough to know the name of. He explained to him about the district change notice and asked his uncle to start his part of plans immediately. If all went according to plan, Neil would be free of the Moriyamas by the day of Kathy's show. He hopes at least this universe would be kind enough to let things go as planned.

He went back to Wymacks apartment after an hour and saw that Kevin had already left. Wymack was sitting on the couch with a grave expression on his face as he watched the clock every now and then.

He looked up at Neil's approach and immediately let out a sigh. "Do you kids take pleasure in shortening my lifespan?" He grunted. "I didn't even notice you leaving." Wymack sent him a look for an unasked question.

Neil shrugged. "Noises woke me up, didn't want to interrupt so I took off for a run. What was that about?" Neil asked, feigning ignorance.

Wymack let out a deep sigh before explaining the Moriyama fiasco with Exy and murders and the district change. He was shocked at Neil's easy acceptance to the situation and just let him be after telling him to keep the matter under covers.

Well, Neil wouldn't have told anyone just like last time but that had only made Andrew more suspicious so he might have to break the news to Andrew this time. He would not like to be drugged a second time, thank you very much. And who knows what bullshit about time-travels he'd spew out if he was high out of his mind. Nope.

•

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•

Kevin was being too much during practice. Somehow he felt even more obnoxious than the Kevin he was used to during this time. Neil could only take so much before snapping and his patience broke at the end of practice. He threw his racket to the ground with enough force that it bounced off with a skitting sound and sent a dark look at Kevin.

"Tone down your bitchiness, Kevin. If you do not stop being obnoxious, I will walk out that door in an instant."

He must've sounded pissed off enough as Kevin shakily nodded and backed away.

Neil took a few deep breaths and headed towards Andrew who was watching their scuffle. He raised an eyebrow when Neil approached him where he was sitting beside the goalpost.

"I need to talk to you. It's important."

Andrew stared at him so Neil continued.

"Kevin will not tell you and Wymack had asked me not to but it doesn't seem right." Neil let out a sigh and invited himself to sit beside Andrew.

"You seem protective of others so much so I'll guess they're yours to protect?"

Andrew's stare had an intense look that said nothing and everything at the same time. "Another point to Neil."

Neil held Andrew's stare and asked in a somber tone, "Now guess who's coming South?"

An eerie silence settled over them for a minute or two. Neil didn't count.

"Ravens." Andrew spoke the words with such venomous tone, one would wonder whether the words were poison or his tongue was.

"Points to you."

"And let me guess, Wymack told you about them."

Andrew asked without asking and Neil knew the question.

"I woke up to Kevin panicking, left the house for a run, came back, Wymack gave a spiel about the Moriyamas and asked to zip it up."

Andrew finally looked away from Neil. Neil let him silently digest the distrust, because that was what this was. As much as Neil loved his foxes, he couldn't deny that. And he knew that to Andrew, not being trusted or believed hurt more than any pain he subjects himself to.

"Then why didnt you?"

"Didn't feel right." Neil replied. " You're obviously protecting them. So not knowing such information prevents you from taking careful measures. And hey, I didn't tell you, you see? You guessed it yourself." Neil said with a grin.

Andrew said nothing and kept on staring at a distance. Neil followed his line of sight to see who he had pierced his stare on and was unsurprised to find Kevin.

Kevin had taken to release his frustrations on Nicky and Aaron after Neil had snapped. By the looks on the backliners' faces, they're not far from snapping either.

Andrew didn't say anything else and Neil was happy to spend the rest of the time in his companiable silence.

The next few days would be spent in practice and plans and counting days to the arrival of the upperclassmen. Neil couldn't wait to have them all together. He was intrigued to see how much or less they differed in their behaviors.

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