Archive of Our Own ^beta

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Out of nowhere all the Foxes where somehow all together in a room that no one knew where the fuck it is, by now they have been here for a while and they had found out that it looked like a cinema confusing everyone even more but the turning point was when they realised that Neil was nowhere to be seen. By now everyone had calmed down, they had searched around finding nothing else than what was already known.

They all sat down with Andrew and his lot on the front sits, behind them Renee and the other and behind them all were Waymack and Abby.
Once everyone was sat down weirdly enough the TV started playing making some of them jump in surprise.
What was weirder and shocking is that in front of them the TV was showing Neil but not the Neil they had come to find out had Auburn hair and cold blue eyes but the one they had meet earlier that year with black hair and brown eyes.
He was sitting on some bleachers with a cigarette between his fingers “well he looks like he is in a desperate need of a happy meal” said Aaron making everyone look at him but before they could say anything the screen started Narrating what was happening.
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Neil Josten let his cigarette burn to the filter without taking a drag. He didn't want the nicotine; he wanted the acrid smoke that reminded him of his mother. If he inhaled slowly enough, he could almost taste the ghost of gasoline and fire. It was at once revolting and comforting, and it sent a sick shiver down his spine.

Andrew now knows why Neil would more often than not just kept his cigaret close and breathe it in, but this all felt wrong they were seeing things that Neil never gave permission to and that made Andrew angry but there was really nothing to do here since the screen kept on going.
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Skipping some of the text in the book
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He wondered—not for the first time—if his mother was looking down at him. He hoped not. She'd beat him to hell and back if she saw him sitting around moping like this.

“She sounds lovely” said Matt earning some small laughs from some but Waymack followed with “You know Neil‘s mother like he has said till now is dead so why would he keep the story of his parents not being there was because of business, why hide the fact that one of his parents is dead no one even knows his father” he tried to be quiet wanting to say most of it to Abby and he was right it was but everyone knew that there had to be a reason there they were Foxes after all.
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Skipped some stuff
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Coach Hernandez propped the locker room door open and sat beside Neil.
"I didn't see your parents at the game," Hernandez said. "They're out of town," Neil said.
"Still or again?"
Neither, but Neil wouldn't say that. He knew his teachers
and coach were tired of hearing the same excuse any time they asked after his parents, but it was as easy a lie as it was overused. It explained why no one would ever see the Jostens around town and why Neil had a predilection for sleeping on school grounds. It wasn't that he didn't have a place to live. It was more that his living situation wasn't legal. Millport was a dying town, which meant there were dozens of houses on the market that would never sell. He'd appropriated one last summer in a quiet neighborhood populated mostly by senior citizens. His neighbors rarely left the comfort of their couches and daily soaps, but every time he came and went he risked getting spotted. If people realized he was squatting they'd start asking difficult questions. It was usually easier to break into the locker room and sleep there. Why Hernandez let him get away with it and didn't notify the authorities, Neil didn't know. He thought it best not to ask.

At this point everyone knew that Neil had a past but for most excluding Andrew and Kevin there was still the question about where his father is and how he managed because he still had to pay for things like food and it did not seem like he had anything going on.
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"I'll call them later with the score," he said, because Hernandez was still watching him. "They didn't miss much."
"Not yet, maybe," Hernandez said. "There's someone here to see you."

“Wait is this when you guys went to go and sign him up?” asked Nicky with a exited voice “looks like it” answered Kevin “you know I don’t get why we are here doing this” said Aaron “well I don’t see any way out of here or you trying to find one” answered Allison but before it could escalate any further the scene continued.
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To someone who'd spent half his life outrunning his past they were words from a nightmare.

At that Renee had locked eyes with Andrew both having their own understanding of the situation and after a moment Andrew saw Kevin who after the banquet before Winter break when Neil went to the Raven Tower seemed to know something but has jet to say what, but till now the some what truth that Neil had given him checked out.

Chapter Text

At that Renee had locked eyes with Andrew both having their own understanding of the situation and after a moment Andrew saw Kevin who after the banquet before Winter break when Neil went to the Raven Tower seemed to know something but has jet to say what, but till now the some what truth that Neil had given him checked out.
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Neil leaped to his feet and slung his bag over his shoulder, but the scuff of a shoe behind him warned him he was too late to escape. Neil twisted to see a large stranger standing in the locker room doorway. The wife beater the man wore showed off sleeves of tribal flame tattoos. One hand was stuffed into his jeans pocket. The other held a thick file. His stance was casual, but the look in his brown eyes was intent.

“Poor him he looks like he seen a ghost” Dan said with a smile on her face “yea coach must have really scared him” added Matt, coach Waymack looked embarrassed at that.
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"I don't know you," Neil said.
"He's from a university," Hernandez said. "He came to see you play tonight."
"Bullshit," Neil said. "No one recruits from Millport. No one knows where it is."
"There's this thing called a map," the stranger said. "You might have heard of it."

“What a good way about making a good first impression to someone” said Abby with sarcasm making some laugh, Waymack grumbled on about something but no one really paid attention.
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It took Neil two tries to find his voice. "You can't be serious."
"Very serious, and very out of time," the man said.
He tossed his file onto the bleacher where Neil had been sitting. Neil's name was scrawled across the front in black marker. Neil thought about flipping the folder open, but what was the point? The man this coach had researched so carefully wasn't real and wouldn't exist much longer. In five weeks Neil would graduate and in six he'd be someone else somewhere very far away from here. It didn't matter how much he liked being Neil Josten. He'd stayed here too long as it was.

They were shocked, what did all that mean? Neil did not exist and would have basically disappeared if they had waited any longer, Andrew him self knew that Neil was a big mystery after all these talks on the ruff top but Neil himself has never said much about his past more about himself with the exception of showing him his scars his middle name and parents that were killed by the Miroyamas.

Neil should be used to this by now. He'd spent the last eight years on the run, spinning lie after lie to leave a twisted trail behind him.

It was even more surprising that he had been doing this for eight years making him about 10 years old, Renee had a look of understanding she knew what it like to hide, the upperclassmen had tiny bits of pity on their expression and all that showed Waymack that he was right to sign Neil up.

Twenty-two names stood between him and the truth, and he knew what would happen if anyone finally connected the dots. Signing with a college team meant more than standing still. It meant he'd be stepping into a spotlight.

And there it was Neil never failed to surprise someone more then once, 22 names Neil had changed names 22 times “you guys do realise that from what we just heard there is someone on the Team that we don’t know what his actual name is and has lied about everything, I can’t be the only one that doesn’t like this” said Aaron looking towards his brother “hey we all have past and Neil is no different, he deserves a place here” said Dan “What do you say about this Andrew” asked Aaron his brother thinking that he was going to agree with him “I don’t know about you but I know he actual name and it seems like Kevin does too” said Andrew shrugging, everyone’s eyes fell on Kevin who did not look back at any of them “so what is it?” asked Nicky “I don’t think it’s my right to tell” Kevin looked panicked while saying that, everyone turned to look back at Andrew but when they saw that he was ignoring what was going on the shifted back to Kevin “come on you never shut up in practice but now you want to keep to yourself, we are going to find out anyways so why not now?” said Alison and looked back at the screen.

Prison couldn't stop his father for long, and Neil wouldn't survive a rematch with him.

Many eyes narrowed at that, a mixture of worry and seriousness, Andrew’s eyebrows were put together in a frown his eyes dark and Kevin looked like he was about to throw up “what does he mean by rematch?” asked Matt not really getting a answer from anyone but the question made Kevin look even paler.
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Then former national champion Kevin Day joined the line. It was the greatest thing that could happen to the Foxes and it meant Neil could never accept Wymack's offer.

“Wow it seems like he really dislikes or maybe disliked you Kevin, do you know why?”asked Nicky looking at Kevin who looked better then before but was still not answering anything so they all focused back to the scene.

Neil hadn't seen Kevin in almost eight years, and he'd never be ready to see him again. Some doors had to stay closed; Neil's life depended on it.

“Wait wait wait you knew Neil before this?” said Matt “did you know that it was him you were signing him?” asked Dan “no I didn’t recognise him, I know who he was after the winter banquet where he was talking to Riko” answered Kevin “how did Riko know who he was?” asked Renee “I don’t know how he found out” and with that they went back to watching.

"You can't be here," Neil said.
"Yet here I stand," Wymack said. "Need a pen?" "No," Neil said. "No. I'm not playing for you." "I misheard you."
"You signed Kevin."
"And Kevin's signing you, so—"

“I actually want to know how you guys manage to sign him up, he seems dead serious about not to” asked Alison and at that Waymack gave a groan remembering what happened, Kevin sighed and Andrew had a amused look.

Chapter Text

“I actually want to know how you guys manage to sign him up, he seems dead serious about not to” asked Alison and at that Waymack gave a groan remembering what happened, Kevin sighed and Andrew had a amused look.

Neil didn't stick around for the rest.
He bolted up the bleachers for the locker room. Metal clanged beneath his shoes, not quite loud enough to drown out Hernandez's startled query. Neil didn't look back to see if they were following. All he knew, all that mattered, was getting as far away from here as possible.
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Neil wasn't fast enough.
He was halfway through the locker room when he realized he wasn't alone. There was someone waiting for him in the lounge between him and the front door. Light glinted off a bright yellow racquet as the stranger took a swing, and Neil was going too fast to stop. Wood slammed into his gut hard enough to crush his lungs into his spine. He didn't remember falling, but suddenly he was on his hands and knees, scrabbling ineffectually at the floor as he tried to breathe. He'd puke if he could only manage that first gasp, but his body refused to cooperate.
The buzzing in his ears was Wymack's furious voice, but he sounded a thousand miles away.

It was silent at the beginning, to stunned to speak and then it started. Aaron had a smug smile on his face, the other were saying this about how Neil could have broken something(Dan,Matt,Abby), Waymack was done with everything Kevin too and Andrew was ignoring them all.
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The world crackled black, then came into too-sharp focus as air finally hit Neil's tortured lungs.

“Poor him” said Matt feeling for his friend
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Andrew smiled down at Neil and tapped two fingers to his temple in salute. "Better luck next time."
"Fuck you," Neil said.

“well that was something but I guess at the end it all worked out” said Nicky “exactly” said Andrew earning him a glare from Waymack.
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It'd been years since Neil stood in the same room as Kevin, years since they'd watched Neil's father cut a screaming man into a hundred bloody pieces.

…….. Now that was something that nobody was ready for, it was silent with surprise, shock and horror. Kevin was the worst looking, he looked sick and ready to throw up as if he was remembering what Neil meant by that, but by time everyone started understanding what was happening, Neil is on the run from his father that has most likely killed people “you guys still think it was a good idea” asked Aaron horror clear on his face no one really knew what to say even Andrew was not ready for the witch was shown only by the slight shift of his eyebrows understanding why Neil was so set on on Andrew not being able to protect him, it would be a lie saying that it was not scary knowing that but somehow it was even more shocking to know that Neil has been running from all that for how many years.
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He'd had an enviable and unavoidable learning curve, but he'd still fought hard to not shine.
Had he slipped? Had it been too obvious that he had past experience he wasn't talking about? How had he caught Kevin's eye despite his best attempts to stay hidden? If it was that easy for Kevin, what sort of beacon was he sending to his father's people?

And after now knowing all that they understood why Neil thinks like that, signing up would but him in the spotlight what he has been avoiding for so long and it was showing by what they were hearing.
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His inexperience. If Kevin remembered him, he'd know that file was a lie. He'd know about Neil's little league teams. He'd remember the scrimmage interrupted by that man's murder. "That's why," Neil said quietly.
"That's the only kind of striker worth playing with." Relief made Neil sick to his stomach. Kevin didn't recognize him and this was just a horrible coincidence. Maybe it was the world's way of showing him what could happen if he stayed in the same place for too long. Next time it might not be Kevin. Next time it might be his father.

As time passes even more things were coming to light about Neil, “hey Kevin what does he mean by little league team” asked Matt “when Neil was 10 he had come to the Raven tower for the tryouts and as we all know he was there this winter with that being one of the reasons”
for some that explained why he was there but Andrew knew the other reason too.
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He should tear Wymack's contract into a thousand pieces and leave.
Leaving meant living, but Neil's way of living was survival, nothing more. It was new names and new places and never looking back. It was packing up and going as soon as he started to feel settled. This last year, without his mother at his side, it meant being completely alone and adrift. He didn't know if he was ready for that.
He didn't know if he was ready to give up Exy again, either. It was the only thing that made him feel real. Wymack's contract was permission to keep playing and a chance to pretend at being normal a little while longer.

“It would have been better for everyo-“ but before Aaron could finish his sentence he was interrupted by Andrew “don’t finish that sentence“ he and Aaron had a stare of for a bit before Aaron backed away.

Chapter Text

“It would have been better for everyo-“ but before Aaron could finish his sentence he was interrupted by Andrew “don’t finish that sentence“ he and Aaron had a stare of for a bit before Aaron backed away.
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Survival instincts warred with need and twisted into an almost debilitating panic. "I have to talk to my mother," Neil said, because he didn't know what else to say.
"What for?" Wymack asked. "You're legal, aren't you? Your file says you're nineteen."
Neil was eighteen, but he wasn't going to contradict what his forged paperwork said.

“You know at this point nothing should be surprising” said Waymack, Andrew was at this point piecing things together, he new that Neil has been running for 8 years meaning he ran away with his mother at 10 after meeting Kevin, his mother has been dead about a year now and his father is a psycho and a killer.
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If his mother knew he was even considering this, she'd be furious. It was probably a good thing she'd never know, but Neil didn't think "good" was supposed to feel like a knife in his chest. "I'll talk to her tonight."
"We can give you a lift home."
"I'm fine”.

“but would she not be happy for him?” asked Matt “you never know maybe she hated exy for what ever reason” answered Abby “well it’s kind of refreshing to hear him saying ‘I’m fine’ even when he clearly isn’t” said Nicky.
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Wymack waited until they were gone, then turned a serious look on Neil.
"You need one of us to talk to your parents?" "I'm fine," Neil said again.
Wymack didn't even try for subtlety with his next question. "Are they the ones who hurt you?"
Neil stared at him at a complete loss. It was blunt enough to be rude on so many levels that there wasn't a good place to start answering it.

“Wow that could have not gone worse” said Dan “Well I’m sure coach didn’t mean for it to sound that way, right coach” said Renee smiling a reassuring smile and the other where laughing at how offend Neil seemed to be at coach’s question. But the reaction he gave looked like it meant that his mother is not that bad.
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Wymack didn't wait long for a response before going in search of Hernandez.
The back door banged shut behind him, and Neil's nerves broke. He ran for the bathroom and made it to a stall just in time to dry-heave into a toilet.
He could imagine his mother's rage if she knew what he was doing. He remembered too well the savage yank of her hands in his hair. All these years spent trying to keep moving and hidden, and now he was going to destroy their hard work. She would never forgive him for this and he knew it, and that did nothing at all to help the clenching feeling in his gut.
"I'm sorry," he gasped out between wet coughs. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry."

Everyone was shocked and saddened Aaron looked kind of angry too but the only thing that showed that what they had seen had any effect to Andrew was that Andrew‘s eyes had darkened ever so slightly, but every time they heard about Neil’s mother it all seemed to get worse making a mystery and nothing would change the fact that this was the first time they had seen Neil have a break down like that.
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He stumbled over to the sinks to rinse his mouth out and stared himself down in the mirrors that hung above them. With black hair and brown eyes, he looked plain and average: no one to notice in a crowd, no one to stick in one's memory. That was what he wanted, but he wondered if it could hold up against news cameras. He grimaced a little at his reflection and leaned closer to the mirror, tugging hard at chunks of hair to check his roots. They were dark enough that he relaxed and leaned back a bit.

It was making sense why he chose these colours for his hair and eyes since blending in is the best to do if hiding, they all saw how all this effected Neil having to come out of hiding and place himself in front of cameras was strategically the worst thing to do.

Chapter Text

The screen had gone black a while ago and everyone was talking about everything the had just seen and what they learned some even trying to pry things out of Kevin but not going far. Before they knew it the screen started again showing Neil in an airport.
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Neil long ago lost count of how many airports he'd seen. Whatever insane number it was, he'd never gotten comfortable with them. There were too many people to keep an eye on, and flying with falsified passports was always risky. He'd inherited his mother's connections after her death, so he knew the work was good, but his heart did double-time every time someone asked to see his papers.

“Wow look at that he has connections that can provide him falsified passports” said Aaron with a sarcastic surprised tone “Well it doesn’t look like his is wrong about them being a good work since it has worked till now” said Alison.
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Aaron Minyard was oft-referred to as "the normal one" of the two, though that was usually followed by a debate over whether or not he could be sane when he shared genes with Andrew.

Alison was full on laughing at that, Dan and Matt were trying to silence their laughter with their hands over their moths, Abby was sharing as amused expression together with Waymack and Andrew and Aaron looked offended and was about to say something but the scene just went on cutting him off.
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Neil watched the numbers tick above the door so he wouldn't look at Kevin's reflection. Unease over being so high off the ground was almost distraction enough. He preferred staying to lower levels so he could make an easy escape if need be.

Again that was not surprising with everyone mostly understanding why that was but had to be exhausting to think about all this everyday.
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Jumping out the window here was definitely out of the question. He made a mental note to find any and all fire escapes.

Once again beating all odds the room was overwhelmed by shock, they all were not believing what was just said “ok guys please tell me that i did not just hear Neil say with other words that if Waymack’s apartment was on a lower level he would be jumping out of the windows” said Nicky “you are not the only one” said Dan “oh my fucking god” murmured Waymack messaging his tempel.
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Wymack's apartment was number 724. They gathered around the door so Aaron could dig the key out of his pocket. It took him two tries to remember which one he'd put it in. Neil didn't notice when he found it and unlocked the door. He was too busy staring at Aaron's pants pockets. They were much too flat to be hiding a pack of cigarettes, but Neil had seen Aaron put the pack away before crossing the street at the airport.

Andrew raised an eyebrow at that seeing how Neil starting to put the piece together to figure out what was happening would be interesting, “sheesh for a moment there I thought it was going somewhere else” Nicky said earning him a glare from Aaron who had a disgusted expression and Alison laughed at that making him even more pissed but then Waymack suddenly remembered something “wait a minute didn’t I task Nicky with bringing him from the airport not only that but it was Aaron who was actually Andrew got him” “no what, you must have seen wrong coach” said Nicky and Waymack was about to say something but was interrupted by Abby “it’s all right after all nothing bad happened” and Waymack just huffed murmuring something under his breath and turned back to the screen but not before he saw the upperclassman except Renee and Nicky wiggle their eyebrows “I swear to god stop or you will be running marathons for the hole fucking year” he said shutting everyone up.
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Neil had known since April he'd be crashing on Coach Wymack's couch for a couple weeks. He'd known, in the days following Wymack's visit, that it would be uncomfortable. He still wasn't prepared for the way his stomach roiled inside him now. He'd been on his own since his mother died, and the last man he'd lived with was his father. How was he supposed to let Wymack lock the door every night with both of them under the same roof? He couldn't possibly sleep here; every time Wymack breathed Neil would wake up and wonder who was after him. Maybe he should back out and check into a hotel, but how was he supposed to explain that to Wymack? Would he have to explain? Wymack thought Neil's parents were abusive, so maybe he'd understand Neil's reticence.

That sure was a mood changer, no one had really seen or absorbed any sign that Neil was uncomfortable with the idea of staying with Waymack but it explained a lot to Waymack about why he had flinched back then “that idiot” said Waymack “if he had a problem he should have just said so” he continued “it’s alright coach we know that you would do your best to help Neil was new and he didn’t know” said Renee with a sympathetic smile they turned their attention back to the screen.

Chapter Text

That sure was a mood changer, no one had really seen or absorbed any sign that Neil was uncomfortable with the idea of staying with Waymack but it explained a lot to Waymack about why he had flinched back then “that idiot” said Waymack “if he had a problem he should have just said so” he continued “it’s alright coach we know that you would do your best to help Neil was new and he didn’t know” said Renee with a sympathetic smile they turned their attention back to the screen.
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Neil was halfway across the room to look out the window when Nicky spoke up behind him.
"What was that all about?"
Neil's blood turned to slush. It wasn't the words that got him but the language Nicky used. German was Neil's second language thanks to three years spent living in Austria, Germany, and Switzerland.

They knew that Neil could speak German but not exactly how much time he was there or if he had even lived there so that was an interesting fact to know, “it’s funny how scared he got from just hearing one language” said Aaron with a smirk.
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He remembered more of Europe than he wanted to; most of their time there had been a cold mess. He knew the tang of blood in his mouth was just his imagination, but it was sharp enough to choke him. He could feel his heartbeat on every inch of his skin, going so fast it set him trembling head to toe.
How did they know he spoke German?
Neil had half a mind to run for it, but then Aaron answered, and Neil realized with a sick rush Nicky wasn't talking to him. No, they were talking about him, not intending for him to understand. Neil forced himself to move, finishing his trip to the window. He pushed the curtains back and put his hands to the glass, needing something to steady him while his heart tried to ease back to a normal rhythm.

“Not very comforting hearing him say that he is ready to just bold out every chance he gets or if something happens“ said Matt looking worried “well nothing like that has happened yet so I think it’s fine” said Dan with a shrug not sure her self if what she said was true.
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“Kevin doesn't do excited," Aaron agreed, "but since Exy is the only thing he cares about, no one wants you on our court more than he does."
Neil's answer got stuck somewhere in his throat as he processed that. It was the same thing Aaron said in the car, almost, except Aaron sounded apathetic now where he'd been scornful earlier. Between that sudden change in attitude, the disappearing pack of cigarettes, and the matching outfits, Neil was starting to second-guess what was going on here. These were just small things, but Neil had learned to survive on the fine details.

“He is good at this, he is going to what was going on in no time” said Alison the upperclassmen n and the two adults where agreeing and Andrew’s lot excluding Andrew who looked like he didn’t give a single fuck but was just the slightest interested the other looked kind of embarrassed
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"Worth the fights, too?" Neil asked. "Like that one two weeks ago that Aaron said got completely out of hand. How many people got injured in that, again?"
There was a slight pause as Aaron thought, and for a moment Neil decided he'd imagined things. Then Aaron answered, "Eleven."
It was the right answer; Neil had read about the brawl in an article. But he and Aaron hadn't had that conversation in the car and Aaron should have known that. Too late, Neil remembered Nicky's exasperated accusation in the living room: "What the hell did you say to him, Andrew?" Neil had assumed Nicky was referring to their first meeting in Millport, but Nicky had been talking about the car ride from the airport. It wasn't Aaron who picked Neil up from the airport after all. Neil was annoyed by the trick and relieved he'd seen through it, but caution overrode both.

“Haha you fell right in his trap” said Alison with a mocking smile towards Aaron who looked embarrassed about being caught and found out so easily but was still sending a glare right back at her making her smirk even wider than what it was before, Andrew and Renee where amused both with his skills and how quick he found out.
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"Success."
"Ready, Neil?" Nicky asked. "We should probably beat it before Coach shows up.""Why?" Neil pointed at the liquor. "Is this a robbery in progress?"
"Maybe it is. Will you tell Coach on us?" Andrew asked, sounding entertained by the notion. "So much for being a team player. I guess you really are a Fox."
"No," Neil said, "but I would ask him why you're not medicated."
There was a heartbeat of startled silence. The only one who didn't react was Andrew; even Kevin looked surprised.
Nicky was the first to find his tongue, but he reverted to German to ask Aaron, "Am I crazy? Did I just see that happen?"
"Don't look at me," Aaron said.
"I'd prefer an answer in English," Neil said.

By now the upperclassmen where full on laughing excluding Renee who was mostly just smiling at their reaction, Waymack was laughing too, Abby was hiding her laugh behind her hand, Andrew ignored all of that and the others were still embarrassed “omg if only I could save this moment somewhere, did you see your faces” said Alison between laughter witch Kevin Nicky and Aaron all answered with a long groan.
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After a moment's debate, he shrugged his bag off his shoulder. The thought of leaving it behind made his skin crawl, considering what was hidden inside it, but he didn't trust Andrew's intentions. Neil didn't know why Andrew was sober or why he'd picked Neil up from the airport when it now seemed Wymack had tasked Nicky with that responsibility, but he didn't think Andrew was done playing yet. Neil trusted Wymack more than he did Andrew right now and hoped he wasn't making a mistake.

“That kind of makes me want to know what is in there” said Nicky getting a few glances from the others but not anything more since most likely some of the others might be thinking the same thing.
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Wymack looked at Neil again. "How safe is safe?"
Neil had never been an easy read before, but then, he'd never let the situation get so completely out of hand, either. On the run his mother had always stayed in control, weaving the perfect stories and choosing ideal marks to help them. Neil had fumbled his way through his transition to Millport, but he could have cut and run at any time if he didn't like the way things were going. This, he desperately wanted to make work, for however long he could hold onto it.
"It's all I have," Neil said at length.

“His mother sounds like she has experience with all that” said Dan but was followed by Alison “you know we should really go shopping with him for more clothes he has not enough” and Nicky agreed with a nod before going back to watching.
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Neil looked down at the key in his palm, at the security Wymack so easily and unquestioningly gave him. Maybe Neil wouldn't get any sleep tonight, and maybe he'd spend the next couple weeks waking up every time Wymack snored a little too loud, but maybe Neil really was okay here for now.

“Coach really is the best” said Dan and others agreed making Waymack embarrassed “Neil he must have stayed up all night hearing coach snore” said Andrew with a sarcastic tone but a straight face as always “I swear to god Minyard say one more thing and you be running marathons the rest of this year” said Waymack and Andrew shrugged before going back.
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Neil couldn't anticipate Kevin; he couldn't ask how much Kevin remembered about his past and he wouldn't know until too late what finally triggered Kevin into remembering him. But Andrew was just a psychotic midget, and Neil had grown up around violence.

This time the silence was for the first time not out of shock or horror this time the silence kept only for seconds before the room was engulfed on laughter because leave it to Neil to say whatever he wants in the most inappropriate moment, even Renee had a hand in front of her mouth to cover most of her laughter, Aaron had at first enjoyed it but it was short lived since insulting Andrew’s hight was the same as insulting his even if Neil had put psychotic in front so yea he was was now sour again and as for Andrew he had not changed he was still looking as apathetic as ever.

Chapter Text

After a break the screen turned back on.
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"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. Told you they were boning. When's your birthday?"
"It was in March," Neil lied.

“Wow even his birthday is a lie” said Nicky “well it is smart to have a false birthdate with every new identity because it would make it even harder to connect all these identities together” pointed Renee out, everyone nodded and went back to watching.
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"Oh, we missed it. But we recruited you in April, so that should count as the world's greatest present. What'd your girlfriend get you?"
Neil looked at him. "What?"
"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."
Neil stared at him, wondering how Nicky could care about such things when the stadium was right there. They knew the code to get inside, but they were standing around like his answer was the secret password. Neil looked from Nicky to the keypad and back again.

“Idk who’s worse he or Kevin” said Alison “we could maybe make a challenge about it to see who would win“ after everything was back to being quiet they continued.
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"What's it matter?" he asked.
"I'm curious," Nicky said.
"He means nosey," Aaron said.
"I don't swing either way," Neil said. "Let's go in." "Bullshit," Nicky said.
"I don't," Neil said, and impatience put an edge in his voice. It wasn't quite the truth, but it was close enough. "Are we going in or not?"

Andrew raised a eyebrow at that but not enough for anyone else to actually see it “So does that mean he does swing?” asked Nicky but since no one really could answer it was left there “but why would he lie about that?” asked Alison “we don’t know but he must have a reason”
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Neil's heart skipped a beat. "You lived in Germany?"
He tried to do the math in his head, guessing Nicky's age against how long ago he'd been in high school. Chances were Neil had already moved on to Switzerland by the time Nicky made it to German soil, but it was such a close call Neil couldn't breathe.

“seeing and hearing what he thought on time is really weird because while he looked ‘normal’ on the outside inside he was freaking out about everything” said Dan “yea I mean why was he so scared about Nicky being in Germany in the same time he was and even if it doesn’t mean that they could have somehow out of all odds been on the same place, it’s just stupid at this point” said Aaron with a scowl some of the class men where going to protest about what he said but Waymack stepped in “everyone just stay quiet and continue the quicker we are done the better” and like that they continued.
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Imagining life in such simplistic terms was so ridiculous Neil almost laughed. He kept the vicious twist of his mouth off his face through sheer willpower alone. Something still must have shown, because Kevin gave his racquet a hard tug.
"Focus."
Neil tried to picture the world as if Neil Josten was really all there ever had been and would be. It was almost enough to make him despise the persona when he could see it in such easy terms, but he swallowed that distaste and turned his mental gaze toward Exy.

It was to be understood Neil who is convinced that he has no future to not like the fact that the made Neil josten persona could have a future better that his and the Foxes could see that.
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Had the game ever been his, or had it been pulling him to this point? Exy was the only bright point of his shattered childhood. He remembered his mother bringing him to little league Exy games, traveling an hour outside of Baltimore to where no one knew his father and the coaches would actually let him play. He remembered her cheering for him as if their every move and word wasn't scrutinized by gun-toting bodyguards. The memories were fragmented and dreamlike, distorted by the bloody reality of his father's work, but he clung to them. They were the only times he'd ever seen his mother smile.

Neil talking about his mother confused most of the because he would be talking about her being good but at the same time what he had said back in Millport was wrong in a way that made them uneasy. What they just heard easily explained why he had a obsession towards exy but at the same time it was horrible being reminded that Neil’s father whatever he was and having people with guns labelled as bodyguards around your child to what sounded like monitor him was awful. “I don’t even know the man’s name but I hate him and I don’t know what to think of his mother” said Alison others nodded and Kevin whenever Neil’s father was brought up looked like he was going to throw up, Andrew had only narrowed his eyebrows a bit mostly observing and putting the puzzle pieces together .
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Andrew leaned toward Kevin and put a hand to his mouth, but he didn't bother to lower his voice. "He has to hide his ouches, Kevin. I broke into Coach's cabinet and read his files. Bruises, you think, or scars? I think scars, too. Can't be bruises if his parents aren't around to beat him, right?"
Neil felt cold all over. "What did you just say?"

Everyone but Kevin and Andrew were surprised and shocked they knew how ruthless he was but that somehow take the cake, that moment Andrew really was targeting him.

Chapter Text

Everyone but Kevin and Andrew were surprised and shocked they knew how ruthless he was but that somehow take the cake, that moment Andrew really was targeting him.
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Neil barely heard him. "You had no right to read my file!"
He regretted not flipping open the folder when Wymack put it down by him at the stadium. He couldn't believe Hernandez had said such things in his letters to Wymack. He knew Hernandez had to explain his situation, or at least as much as Hernandez understood it to be, to prove Neil was a fit for the Foxes' halfway-house team. Neil still felt betrayed, and on its heels was anger that Andrew had dug up those papers about him.

“Well it’s understandable why he would be angry” said Abby and everyone knew but at the same time Andrew had his reasons to be wary about Neil at the beginning.
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Andrew laughed, sounding delighted to have crossed such a personal line. "Relax, relax, relax. I made that up. We were locked in Coach Arizona's office to watch your game on the local TV station, and he said our secret meet-and-greet would be easy since you always shower alone last. Told Coach he still couldn't find your parents. Coach asked if they'd be a problem, and Arizona said he didn't know because he hadn't met them a single time. Said they spent a lot of time commuting to their jobs in Phoenix and no time at all checking in on you. But I'm right, aren't I?" Neil opened his mouth, then closed it before he gave Andrew a piece of his mind. Andrew wanted him to react, so Neil had to reel it in. He sucked in a slow breath through gritted teeth and counted to ten. He only made it to five before Andrew's smile was too much.
Neil didn't believe Andrew about the showers, but it was better to investigate than stay here and take a swing at Andrew.

“Well that is better than him actually snooping around” said Nicky with a awkward laugh “I don’t know about you but I would want to see what would have happened if you know Neil actually punched Andrew” said Alison and Andrew looked at her with a apathetic look that showed nothing but he was testing her, Aaron narrowed his eyes glaring at her and she was looking right back with her head held high, everyone knew that if Neil had punched Andrew it would escalate real quick.
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"Do I have to?" Neil asked.
"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 it, but he let it slide for now.

“You know what I just realised, every time Neil met a new person or was about to meet the he always says he will not be getting along with them” said Dan “it is probably a default reaction since he has trusted no one till know” said Renee giving a sad smile Dan gave a nod since that made sense, being on the run doesn’t sound like it is easy to trust people.
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It was after ten when Wymack decided it was time to go, and Neil left with him. Getting in the car alone with him was the hardest thing Neil had done all day. Andrew was crazy, but Neil had an ingrained distrust of men old enough to be his father. He spent the entire ride frozen and silent in the passenger seat. Maybe Wymack noticed the rigid set to his shoulders, because he said nothing to Neil until they were back at his apartment.

Wymack had a sad look but was accompanied with a angry one most likely towards him self for not realising it sooner his shoulders were tense when Abby put a hand on his shoulder “hey you didn’t know it’s ok” she said “but he should have said something even a lie” he answered “look at it this way, it was something knew for him and right know it is better then what we are seeing” as Abby said that she gave his shoulder a squeeze and Wymack gave a short nod and they went back to watching.

Chapter Text

The screen started playing again.
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Kevin barely waited for them to stop at his side before dividing them up with a flick of his fingers. "Aaron is with me. Nicky and Andrew get the child. Two-man team scrimmage with an empty away goal."
"I'm not a child," Neil said. "You're only a year older than I am." Two, really, but he wasn't about to tell them he'd lied about both his birthday and his age.

“So does anyone know how old he is or when his actual birthday is?” asked Alison but all just shook their heads no one really having a clue.
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“Get off my racquet."
"Make me?" Andrew said, spreading his arms in invitation. "Try, anyway."
"Don't tempt me."
"Such fierce words from such a little creature," Andrew said. "You're not very bright. Typical of a jock."
"Hypocrite," Neil said.

“Neil’s come back never fail to amaze me” said Dan, it was true it showed at kathi’s show at the banquet and when ever and it was most likely because of that that some groaned with annoyance seeing how much trouble comes from it.
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He ran back to Wymack's place, keeping his pace slower than usual, and took the stairs up to the seventh floor. The apartment door was unlocked, and Wymack was waiting for him in the hall with a can of coffee grinds in his hand.
"Kevin called ahead to say you wouldn't be on the court tomorrow and that I should entertain you with clips of past games. He said you tried to blow your arms out against Andrew. I said you weren't that stupid. Which one of us is right?"
"I might have gotten carried away," Neil said.

“Yea ‘might’ have been a little carried away” said Wymack he knew what was about to happen but know it was different since he knew the reason for such a strong reaction “yea no definitely did not” said Matt.
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Wymack tossed the coffee to him. Neil caught it instinctively, but he couldn't hold onto it. It bounced off the floor at his feet and the lid popped off to spill grinds everywhere. Wymack stalked toward Neil with a snarled, "You idiot."

It was funny seeing that, Neil could be bleeding out and still try to act it out as if everything is fine, Wymack tho he had a stern expression that was unseen by some but Andrew and Renee and it earned a eyebrow raise from both of them when turning back the locked eyes for just a second and turned.
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Retreating from a furious older man was so instinctive Neil didn't realize he'd flinched until Wymack froze. Wymack's face went almost dangerously blank and Neil dropped his gaze. He was careful not to look away from Wymack entirely. He needed to see when Wymack started moving again. He waited for Wymack to say something. After an endless, brittle silence, he realized Wymack wouldn't speak until he did.

Andrew and Renee where right something was going to happen but it was still sight to see, Wymack had a blank expression rivalling the one on the screen and the other had a sad/shocked one expect Aaron who hates Neil so he doesn’t really care “has he said anything about taking to someone” said Abby “it’s Neil we are talking about, he would rather die then actually talk to someone” said Dan, they all knew that getting Neil to talk to anyone even Betsy would not be easy.
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"Today was my mistake," Neil said quietly. "It won't happen a second time."
Wymack didn't answer. He didn't come closer, either. At length he pointed at the ground in front of him. "Come here. No," he said when Neil started to reach for the mess at his feet. "Leave it."
Neil stepped over it and went to stand in front of Wymack: within arm's reach but just barely. He'd perfected that trick as a kid. He could look at anyone's arms and judge the safe distance from them in a heartbeat. If they had to move to hit him, he had enough time to dodge. Either way he wouldn't catch the full intended force of their blow.

Andrew and Renee understood how important something like that would be for someone like them and they understood it beings able to know the safe distance to be is like having the upper hand, to know that if someone tries anything you could still be able to avoid or at least like Neil said not chat the full force of the attack, the others excluding Aaron had that look that looked at Neil like he was a hurt puppy but if Neil was here the only thing he would want it would be pity “if only I could see his father” said Matt anger present in his voice what came next was unsaid but everyone knew what he meant “well we don’t know who he is or how capable he is” said Renee with thinking expression her eyes a little dark and Andrew had a similar expression.
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"Look at me," Wymack said. "Right now."
Neil dragged his stare up from Wymack's chest to his face. Wymack's expression was still too blank for Neil to feel safe, but he knew better than to look away again. "I want you to understand something," Wymack said. "I am a loud, grouchy old man. I like to yell and throw things. But I don't throw punches unless some punk is dumb enough to try me first. I have never, ever hit someone without provocation, and I'm sure as hell not going to start with you. You hear me?"

“Aw coach you don’t have to be so hard on your self” said Nicky to brighten up the mood it changed nothing but he still tried.
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Neil didn't believe him, but he said, "Yes, Coach."
"I'm serious," Wymack said. "Don't you dare be more afraid of me than you are of Andrew."
Neil could have told him it was Wymack's age that made him such a problem, but he didn't think Wymack wanted to hear it. There was no solution to that problem. "Yes, Coach."

It was sad to see Neil like that and it was worse to see that this is how he thought, like he knows there is nothing to be done the way he thought that Wymack would do nothing and that if he said anything it would not be taken seriously.

Chapter Text

It was sad to see Neil like that and it was worse to see that this is how he thought, like he knows there is nothing to be done the way he thought that Wymack would do nothing and that if he said anything it would not be taken seriously.
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He didn't care if he blew out his arms again if it meant Kevin would stop riding him like he was an incompetent preschooler.

That line did a good job of lifting even the slightest pressure of the room “I can only imagine what he was put through” said Alison with a sigh and a smirk that was barely noticeable with what happened before still fresh and Kevin answered with a glare “well if had been better it would have not been like that” others raised their eyebrows at that, of course Kevin would say that.
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Neil didn't watch them leave. He sat on home bench and stared at the court, listening to the door close behind them. He reached over and picked a ball out of the bucket, turning it over and over in his fingers.
"Court," Neil whispered, then gave himself a violent shake.
He squeezed the ball until his fingers ached, mentally retracing his steps backward. He went to Arizona, then across Nevada to California. He remembered the black sands beach along California's lost coast where his mother finally gave up the fight. He hadn't even realized she'd been injured so badly after running into his father in Seattle.

And of course the shock came back but this was different they knew that his mother was dead but not because of his father, it was bad horrible but it was good to hear that he had ran into his father and was still alive even if he had lost his mother.
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She'd bled most of the way through Oregon, but he hadn't thought it was serious. He hadn't known she was bleeding out on the inside, a kidney and her liver ruptured, her intestines bruised beyond repair.
He didn't know when she figured it out, if she'd known by Portland that something was seriously wrong but was too scared to stop or if she hadn't seen her death coming until they crossed the California border and she started losing consciousness.

“Omg I’m about to throw up” said Nicky and he was not the only one Kevin Aaron the upperclassmen and Abby were the same Wymack Renee and Andrew with a dark stare masking what they were feelings but they still had a feeling of sadness present but Andrew was the one that looked the most uninterested one but he was remembering what Neil had said about his mother and father, they were killed by the Moriyamas but now that the truth was out it looks like his father killed his mother so what role did the Moriyamas play in this.
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She should have gone to a hospital, but she'd turned them down the treacherous path to the lost coast instead. They stopped six feet from the tide and she made him repeat every promise she'd ever dragged out of him: don't look back, don't slow down, and don't trust anyone. Be anyone but himself, and never be anyone for too long.
By the time Neil understood she was saying goodbye, it was too late.
She died gasping for one more breath, panting with something that might have been words or his name or fear. Neil could still feel her fingernails digging into his arms as she fought not to slip away, and the memory left him shaking all over.

They understood his mother and the promise because after seeing this they didn’t know what will happen if his father found him but at the same time what mother would want for her child to be on the run than actually getting help from the police, “what happened then they went there but why would she decide to die than survive?” asked Abby, it was strange for someone to not try and save themselves.
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Her abdomen felt like stone when he touched her, swollen and hard. He tried pulling her from her seat only once, but the sound of her dried blood ripping off the vinyl like Velcro killed him.

That got a strong reaction out of everyone even Andrew had his eyes partly widen it was a disturbing explanation that stuck with someone.
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He burned the car instead, dumping every emergency case of gasoline they'd bought along the way onto the seats so it'd scorch her down to the bone.

From everything they heard it was the best option but it still hurt them (-Aaron) to see Neil dump the gasoline all over the car, they wonder how he has yet to break down but it was most likely shock that did not allow him to and they continued watching Neil put the car on fire.
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He hadn't cried when the flames caught, and he hadn't flinched when he pulled her cooling bones out. He filled her backpack with everything that was left of her, carried her two miles down the beach, and buried her as deep as he could. By the time he found the highway again he was numb with shock, and he lasted another day before he fell to his knees on the roadside and puked his guts out. Somehow he'd made it to San Francisco, but he only stayed a day before setting off for Millport. He took it one step and one mile and one day at a time because anything else was too much for him to handle in his grief.

Even if from what they had seen they were still debating if his mother is as bad as his father or even a tiny bit better and if she deserved death it still was no way close for Neil to deserve to not only burn her and stay there to watch but having to actually take every remain of his mother and put her in a bag was horrible, at the same time Neil who had to do all that kept on going. And it was even worse was that it happened a little while before he had gone and settled at Millport as it must have bin from roughly a year to a year before the foxes signed him up.

Chapter Text

Even if from what they had seen they were still debating if his mother is as bad as his father or even a tiny bit better and if she deserved death it still was no way close for Neil to deserve to not only burn her and stay there to watch but having to actually take every remain of his mother and put her in a bag was horrible, at the same time Neil who had to do all that kept on going. And it was even worse was that it happened a little while before he had gone and settled at Millport as it must have bin from roughly a year to a year before the foxes signed him up.
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Neil stared at the court in front of him and swallowed once, twice, against the nausea that was crawling up his throat. This was why Wymack's contract, Kevin's lofty ambitions, and Andrew's words meant nothing in the end. It didn't matter what they offered or promised him. Neil wasn't like them. He was nothing and no one, and he always would be. Court wasn't for people like him. He'd take what he could learn and enjoy it while he could, but this was a dream he'd have to wake up from eventually. Wanting anything more than that would just make it harder to walk away.

“He should just suck it up, if he wanted to leave so badly why is he not gone?” said Aaron, he was annoyed because why did he have to stay here and watch someone’s past or life or what ever but his arrogance did not last long when everyone looked at him anger present well Renee had a sad expression and Andrew didn’t show much of his emotions but his anger was still there just hidden behind a blank one “l’m just saying” he continued “Minyard there is a reason everyone is here so leave comments like these out next time or there will be a Marathon waiting for you” said Wymack with not much heat just a statement Aaron just narrowed his eyes and turned back not saying anything and the others followed.
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"They're a gang," Neil said slowly.
Wymack nodded, watching him carefully and waiting to see how Neil took it. Neil barely noticed the attention. He was thinking back to the last time he'd seen Kevin and Riko together. He remembered scrimmaging and arguing footwork with them. Their game came to an abrupt halt when they were called upstairs. If Neil closed his eyes now he could remember every detail of the room they went to, from its floor-to-ceiling tinted windows to the heavy conference table dominating it. The floor was carpeted, but someone had laid a tarp down on top of it to catch all the blood.

“It’s disgusting and sick to think that they let children witness that” said Abby with disgust and anger in her voice and she was not the only one it was sickening,disgusting and disturbing to think or maybe better said hear and see that someone like that exists, to let a children about 10 and a bit older to see that, Renee too even if she herself had seen people get killed and she herself kill she was older a teen and was later helped but this was totally different they had been children and it meant that that was most likely not the only time Neil had been through something like that.
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Neil finally knew where he'd been and why. He'd never understood how they went from Exy practices to murder or why Kevin and Riko were there too. But if the Moriyamas were a gang, it made sense. Neil's father worked out of Baltimore and held the eastern ports with an iron grip. His territory's western border would have ended at West Virginia. In that sense he was Tetsuji Moriyama's neighbor, and that would have brought him to Kengo's attention. Neil's father and Riko's father were business partners; that's why Neil was allowed to practice at Edgar Allan's stadium.

The room was filled with again shock and understanding, it made now more sense just like Neil said it was adding up and it was big to find out that Neil’s father and Moriyama were business partners.
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Neil didn't remember the Moriyamas, but they'd definitely remember him if they'd done business with his father. The Butcher of Baltimore wasn't a man easily forgotten. Neither was his wife, who'd stolen five million dollars the night she ran away with the Butcher's only son. The Butcher turned his people inside-out for years hunting them down. All of his contacts would have heard of it.

The Butcher, he was heard of being someone that no one knew who it was and was his victims where never found and that was Neil’s father who he was running away from “oh fuck me” said Aaron and no one said anything but at the same time Neil’s mother was something else to steal 5 million from a man like that and take your son running was amazingly brave.

Chapter Text

They went on after a pause
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Neil was impatient to have the whole team together at last.

“Aw he couldn’t wait to meet us” said Matt and the other upperclassmen had smiles on their faces.
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Once they were here, Kevin would have an entire team to yell at and would have to leave Neil alone.

“Aww” mimicked Aaron, Nicky was laughing, Andrew had his eyebrows raised, Kevin glared at everyone, the upperclassmen’s faces had fallen excluding Renee who was had a amused expression and Wymack was laughing at everyone’s reaction with Abby trying to shush him but failing since she too was laughing but tried to hide it “come on I am not that bad” said Kevin huffing and waving his arms around witch made everyone look at him with disbelief but that made everyone start laughing even harder even Andrew might had the corners of his mouth twitching upwards but was quick to hide it “whatever let’s you sleep better at night” said Alison waving a dismissive hand at him.
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Neil was much better at instigating fights than winning them, but it'd be worth losing if he could just put a fist through Kevin's face once. Starting a fight was too out of character for who he portrayed "Neil" to be, though. As much as Neil hated coming across as a pushover, he didn't have a choice.

“So starting a fight is somehow not something ‘Neil’ would do but punching Riko somehow is?” Said said Nicky and everyone groaned remembering the day but it was still satisfying to hear and see Riko getting punched “as wrong as it was I wish I could see it happen again” said Matt and he continued “you should have seen it it was awesome” Wymack was glaring at him “no no one is getting to punch Riko again, let’s just keep on going”.
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If he wanted something useful, there was only one obvious choice.
Foreign languages were the keys to freedom he couldn't live without. Neil was fluent in German. He was second-best at French, thanks to eight months in France and ten months in Montreal. His grasp on them was fading with disuse, though he watched and read foreign news online to keep from losing them entirely. He perused the modern languages section, debating. There were five languages available as majors and another three that could be minored in. The smart choice was to go with Spanish. Neil's Spanish had never been good and it was long gone by now, washed out by the German and French that followed. If he could pick it up again, it opened up a world of opportunities in the southern hemisphere.

What Neil was saying or better said what he was thinking was correct the more languages he knew the better it would be for him and they were all impressed Neil knows how to speak so many languages and that made them want to know if he knows anymore or if he had been to any other place while on the run.
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She checked her watch. "He'll be here before you know it. Since you've got time to spare, we might as well get your physical over with."
"Physical?"
"Just a general check-up: weight, height, all that good stuff. We have to do it today instead of tomorrow because there's blood work involved. I can't let you on the court until you've slept it off. When's the last time you saw a doctor?"
"A long time ago."
"Don't like doctors?"
"Doctors don't like me. Is it necessary?"
"You're not playing until I sign off on you, so yes," Abby
said, unlocking the medical room door and pushing it open.

“I somehow don’t think it would be impossible for Neil to make doctors hate him” said Dan witch was true Neil could have been forced to go to a doctor and still try to convince everyone that he was alright.
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She flicked on the light on her way inside, seemingly oblivious to the way Neil hadn't moved. It took her a couple minutes before she came looking for him. "Sometime today, preferably. I've got a lot of you to get through."

Abby’s mood seemed to drop by the seconds knowing were this was going and if anyone noticed no one said something about it.
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Then she motioned at him and said, "Shirt off."
Neil stared at her. "Why?"
"I can't check track marks through cotton, Neil."
"I don't do drugs."
"Good on you," Abby said. "Keep it that way. Now take it off."
Neil looked past her at the closed door and said nothing.
Abby looked at him and said nothing either. After five minutes of this, she was the first to give in. "I want to make this as painless as possible, but I can't help you if you can't help me. Tell me why you won't take off your shirt."
Neil looked for a delicate way to say it. The best he managed was, "I'm not okay."

After that they knew it was bad only because even if they had known Neil for a short while Neil never actually admitted that he was it fine.
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She put a finger to his chin and turned his face back toward her. "Neil, I work for the Foxes. None of you are okay. Chances are I've seen a lot worse than whatever it is you're trying to hide from me." Neil's smile was humorless. "I hope not."
"Trust me," Abby said. "I'm not going to judge you. I'm here to help, remember? I'm your nurse now. That door is closed, and it comes with a lock. What happens in here stays in here."
"You won't tell Coach?"
"This isn't his business," Abby said, gesturing between them with her free hand. "I only report to him if I think it'll affect your performance on the court or if you're breaking the law and I need an intervention."
Neil stared at her, wondering if he could believe her and knowing he didn't have a choice. His skin was already crawling in anticipation of her reaction.

Abby was already getting ready to look away, she had seen it once and it hurt her even more to see it twice, Wymack but a hand on her shoulder and squeezed as reassurance.
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"You can't ask me about them," he said at last. "I won't talk to you about it. Okay?"
"Okay," Abby agreed easily. "But know that when you want to, I'm here, and so is Betsy."
Neil wasn't going to tell that psychiatrist a thing, but he nodded. Abby dropped her hand, and Neil pulled his shirt over his head before he could lose his nerve.
Abby thought she was ready. Neil knew she wouldn't be, and he was right. Her mouth parted on a silent breath and her expression went blank. She wasn't fast enough to hide her flinch, and Neil saw her shoulders go rigid with tension. He stared at her face as she stared at him, watching her gaze sweep over the brutal marks of a hideous childhood.

Everyone had a look of horror most trying to hide it behind a blank expression, Andrew had already seen this so it was no surprise for him since Neil showed him when he came back sober. “Oh my god Is that a bullet wound” said Matt freaking out witch made almost everyone else freak out too but it continued before that.
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It started at the base of his throat, a looping scar curving down over his collarbone. A pucker with jagged edges was a finger-width away, courtesy of a bullet that hit him right on the edge of his Kevlar vest. A shapeless patch of pale skin from his left shoulder to his navel marked where he'd jumped out of a moving car and torn himself raw on the asphalt. Faded scars crisscrossed here and there from his life on the run, either from stupid accidents, desperate escapes, or conflicts with local lowlifes. Along his abdomen were larger overlapping lines from confrontations with his father's people while on the run. His father wasn't called the Butcher for nothing; his weapon of choice was a cleaver. All of his men were well-versed in knife- fighting, and more than one of them had tried to stick Neil like a pig.

“It’s crazy to think that all this was happening from the age of 10 till now” said Abby and she was right having to run away from literally trying to kill you at such a young age seems like something out of a horror movie just like the scars they were seeing, it was sick to know that there were people that were actually hunting and trying to kill a child.
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And there on his right shoulder was the perfect outline of half a hot iron.

That scar confused some it didn’t look anything like the other scars and even Andrew looked tense since Neil had not really explained that one.
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Neil didn't remember what he'd said or done to irritate his father so much.

It was silent no one was saying anything it was to quiet to be comfortable, by seconds the hatred they had for Neil’s father was growing quicker then anything else.
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Likely it was after another one of the local police's visits. The police and feds had nothing concrete to pin on his father, but they came around as often as they could in hopes of finding something.

Hearing that was frustrating, the police having suspicions but not being able to do anything without evidence it was crazy
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Neil's job was to stay quiet and still until they left again. Neil guessed he'd twitched a little too much, because as soon as they were gone his father ripped the iron from his mother's hands and smacked Neil with it. Neil still remembered how his skin looked as it peeled off with the metal.

Because he ‘twitched a little too much’ that sentence was going through everyone’s heads, even if it was horrible it happened it did not happen because he had said something suspicious that could give him up but because he had twitched, because a literal child had twitched a little too much in front of some police and feds people “tell me that I am not the only one that would gladly kill right now” said Alison she had her eyes narrowed just like everyone else and most agreed (-Aaron who ‘did not care’ and Kevin who just the memory of that man made him look like he had seen a ghost).

There was a break before they continued.
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He flicked a questioning look at Wymack, who shook his head, and turned back on Neil. "That's a joke, right? You should see how much I crammed into my truck—and how much I had to leave behind—and you expect to last a year with one bag? That thing have magical expanding powers I don't know about or something?"
"You get to take him shopping later this week," Wymack said. "On your time, not mine. I'm sick of seeing him in the same clothes over and over. Just let me know when you're going and I'll give you the p-card so we can expense it."
Neil was mildly offended. "I have money."
"Good for you," Wymack said. "I thought you two were leaving."
"Didn't miss you at all," Matt said, but there was no heat in his voice. "Let's go, Neil."

“You know he always says he has the money but has never really proven it” said Alison and Andrew just ignored that having actually seen first had how much he had and that he was the one that brought him the Maserati “maybe he still has some of the money his mother stole from his father” said Renne “yeah you are right I totally forgot about that” said Nicky and continued with “I mean it did say she stole 5 million” and everyone else nodded some most likely beginning to guess how much he might have.

Chapter Text

“You know he always says he has the money but has never really proven it” said Alison and Andrew just ignored that having actually seen first had how much he had and that he was the one that brought him the Maserati “maybe he still has some of the money his mother stole from his father” said Renne “yeah you are right I totally forgot about that” said Nicky and continued with “I mean it did say she stole 5 million” and everyone else nodded some most likely beginning to guess how much he might have.
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Sleeping alone would be disorienting. He'd gotten in the habit of sleeping in his mother's bed, as her paranoia didn't want him out of her reach. They slept back to back, guarding each other, the guns under their pillows uncomfortable but reassuring lumps.

They didn’t know that but it made sense running for your life meant he had to protect himself when cornered so a gun did not shock them so much as it made them sad thinking how hard it must be to be sleeping and then out of nowhere have to defend yourself and escape.
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He ripped the cardboard padding off his small safe, skimmed the directions and warnings, and pushed everything else aside to get his bag. It took work to get the drawer open, since his duffel was such a tight fit, but he finally pried the duffel loose and dropped it in front of him. He unzipped it in one long move, folded the flap out of the way, and froze.
On first glance, his bag looked undisturbed. Everything was still in there in the same order he'd left it in, folded but crinkled from recent rough treatment. But Neil got his paranoia from his mother and he packed his clothes in a very specific way. Even a cautious thief would be fooled, since Neil folded everything the same. Neil's code was in the tags. He always bent the tags twice on a shirt in the top layer.
Someone had gone through Neil's things and put it all back—the same order, the same layers, the same neat folds—but the tags were all pressed flat by a too-careful hand.

That was the craziest thing they heard no way did he actually, Renee was amused seeing how smart a move like that is and funny to know that that is how Andrew got caught even Andrew himself was amused not really having realised how he got caught it was a funny little detail that was easy to miss.
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Neil yanked The clippings were glued to computer paper, which Neil put back-to-back in the plastic slips to create a hidden inner pocket. In those pockets were Neil's most important possessions.
Most slips hid money: certificates for five-digit amounts he could cash out when he needed them, numbers detailing where he and his mother had hidden money while on the run, and rubber-banded stacks of bills.

They didn’t know how much he had but that was not someone’s answer not only that there were some more hidden around the world “looks like he does have the money” Dan said and the others nodded.
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A list of emergency contacts, coded as an immature nursery rhyme, was toward the back. Only one of them lived in the United States. His mother married into an American crime family, but she'd been raised in a British one.

Somehow it was becoming more and more crazy but that explained how she had the nerve to actually go through with the plan of running away and stealing 5 million “does that mean Neil can speak British or at least a British accent? Because that would be something” Asked Nicky in thought and that made Alison to think of something “how about a bet on if he was taught to speak in a British accent or not” after she said that it was game, by the end everyone excluding Kevin because it was nothing related to exy, Aaron who did not give a fuck and Andrew who was not interested.
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Her brother, Stuart Hatford, gave her the list when she ran away from her husband. She in turn gave it to Neil when she died.

“Not gonna lie but that name reminds me of something I have definitely heard the name ‘Hatford’ somewhere” Alison said “well it is a crime family so maybe that’s why” said Dan “do you know anything about it” said Alison as she looked at Kevin “no not really I had met his father but never really his mother or even have ever heard something about a Hatford family” he answered so they kept on going since no one knew it would be a waist just sitting there.
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Stuart's phone number was on the next page, buried in a sheet covered top to bottom with random numbers. Neil could only find it using his birth name. It was down as many rows as there were letters in his first name and over as many as there were in his last. Neil had never called it, and he hoped he never had to. There was no point in running away from a murderous family if he just ran into the arms of another one.

And again it made sense why they had not gone to stay there with them but continued running.
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The last slip in his binder contained a forged optometrist's note. Neil didn't need a prescription, but he couldn't buy colored contacts without a measurement of his eyes' diameter and curvature. Tucked in with it was a box of brown lenses.
Neil thumbed through the money and did the math in his head. He came up with the right amount, but that didn't make him feel better. If someone had gone through his things and found this binder, then found what it was hiding, how was he supposed to explain himself? Just in cash and certificates Neil was carrying a quarter of a million dollars.

They saw where he was coming from, they know now why he had all these but if they were the ones finding all that it would be very hard for him to explain why he had all that.

Chapter Text

They saw where he was coming from, they know now why he had all these but if they were the ones finding all that it would be very hard for him to explain why he had all that.
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The fact someone had deliberately come in here and dug through his bag made his stomach hurt with hot anger. The smart thing to do was pretend to not notice anything amiss and wait for the thief to come to him. That was what his mother would do. Unfortunately, Neil had inherited his father's temper, and he'd finally had enough.
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It could have been Matt, but Neil doubted it. It wasn't that he trusted Matt; Neil didn't trust anybody, especially not a man he'd just met. Timing cleared Matt because there was no way he could get to the airport and back, help the girls get their things upstairs, and still have time to unpack and repack Neil's bag. That left one obvious suspect.
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Neil slipped a finger into the spine of his binder and pulled out the two thin needles that remained of his mother's set of lock picks. He held them between his lips so he wouldn't lose them and set the lock on his safe. He stuffed his binder inside, slammed it closed, and hooked a second lock through the safe's handle. He gave the handle a couple fierce yanks to make sure the locks caught and shoved the safe under his pile of clothes. He spit the picks into his palm and stormed out of his room, slowing just long enough to lock the door behind him.
Neil checked Andrew's door and was unsurprised to find it locked. Neil crouched and got to work, but it didn't take long. It was a cheap lock and easier to handle than the one at his old locker room. Whoever built the dormitory hadn't counted on people like Neil and Andrew, it seemed. Neil rose to his feet, stuffed his picks in his pocket, and shoved the bedroom door open.

It was weird but entertaining seeing Neil’s thought process and how quick he can process little details to figure things out and if the upperclassmen thought that it was funny seeing Andrew’s lot getting figured out by Neil was funny no one said anything.
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If the cousins were going to keep using German thinking they could go behind everyone's backs with it, Neil would keep his fluency a secret until the last possible moment. That didn't mean Neil couldn't hit back, so he switched to French and focused his anger on Kevin.

“Poor Kevin he was doing nothing” said Matt with a laugh and Kevin glared with his hands shaking the slightest bit as he clasped the together as he remembered what Neil had called him that day and Andrew was watching him curiously since he had not said what Neil had said that day.
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"Stay out of my things," he snapped. He wished he could take some satisfaction in the shell-shocked looks the language and his furious tone earned, but he felt nothing. "The next time one of you goes where you don't belong I swear I'll make you regret it."
It was an age before anyone responded. Nicky was too busy gaping at Neil to say anything, and Aaron was staring at Kevin as he waited for a translation. Andrew's surprise gave way to what a fool might mistake for delight, and he leaned forward on the desk.

“Looks like we are going to see how it ended with Kevin choking Neil” said Dan witch made Wymack and Abby look at her with surprise “what did you say?” asked Wymack “it’s alright coach I don’t think there are any hard feelings left” said Nicky ignoring the look coach send his way.
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"A frightened child like you?"
"Fuck you, cripple."
Across the room Kevin's face went white. "What did you call me?"
"I called you a deadweight has-been," Neil said.
Kevin was out of his chair so fast he knocked it over. Neil
backed out of the room and slammed the door closed between them. He'd only made it two steps back toward his room when Kevin yanked the door open again.
Kevin got his hands on Neil's neck in an instant and slammed Neil up against the opposite wall. Neil dug his fingers into Kevin's wrists, trying to loosen Kevin's grip enough that he could breathe.

Everyone was surprised months wide open from shock even Andrew’s eyes were widened the slightest bit with his eyebrows raised. Andrew had said to the upperclassmen that Neil had started the fight but for him to go to Kevin with a direct hit at that showed how angry Neil was but it was not really an excuse “damm no wonder he said that he was better at starting fights then actually winning the” said Aaron “yeah no shit Sherlock” said Wymack.

Chapter Text

After they shock they got from what Neil said past they continued.
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"So you speak French."
"Yes," Neil said.
Nicky waited a beat to see if he'd elaborate on his own. "Why French?"
"My mother's family is French." It was a lie that probably had his British mother rolling over in her sandy grave. "She didn't really give me a choice on which language to study at school.“

“You know it’s sad but then he says something like that and it’s like do I laugh or cry?” said said Nicky and it was true for them it was minutes ago that they learned that his mother had died but Neil’s comments or more like thoughts are hard to look past.
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His skin stung with the memory of his mother's heavy blows. Life on the run meant no time for friends or relationships, but that didn't stop Neil from checking out girls as he grew older. His mother's watchful eye noticed his lingering looks and increasing distraction. Afraid he'd spill their secrets over a childish crush, she beat him like she could kill his hormones with her bare hands. A few years of this violence and Neil finally got the hint: girls were too dangerous to consort with.

Whatever they thought of his mother before was made clear, yea maybe it was dangerous to make friends or relationships but for her to beat him enough so that he stops doing something what would be considered normal his age was just crazy it brought rage to all of them and sadness to now that when Neil meant that he didn’t swing it was because she had beaten it out of his head, Andrew was looking at his brother at this since he wanted to see how he would react to this since he was in a similar situation beaten by his mother on multiple occasions even if it was not for the same reason as Neil’s mother, Aaron was avoiding the screen not really happy for the fact that he had something similar with Neil and his eyes fell on his brother he glared at him but Andrew ignored it and raised a eyebrow at that Aaron looked away and Andrew shrugged.

Chapter Text

The screen continued.
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Nicky grinned and gave Neil's hair another tug. "Speaking of, ditch them tonight. Your contacts, I mean."
Neil's stomach roiled. "Shut up."
Nicky gave an exaggerated look around as if checking for eavesdroppers. "Look, it's not like they're a secret. Anyone who's looking can see the ring in your eyes that means you're wearing lenses. I saw 'em day one. I just didn't think they were fashion lenses until Andrew said so. And seriously? Brown? How boring can you be?"
"I like brown."
"Andrew doesn't," Nicky said. "Take them out."
"No."
"Please," Nicky said. "No one's going to see you but us,
and we already know they're a lie. Don't wear them." "Or what?" Neil asked.
Nicky's silence was answer enough. Neil was ready to brush that warning off, but he caught himself. He was sure he could hold his ground against Andrew, but he wasn't facing Andrew alone. He was going out with Andrew's entire group half the state away from here. Nicky was honestly trying to help him get the night off on the right foot. Neil didn't think much of that consideration. He knew which side Nicky would take if things got ugly.

“At least he’s smart enough to understand that” said Aaron and it was the truth but the upperclassmen still sent dirty looks at Andrew’s direction excluding Renee that stayed out of it with a smile.
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When he was finished changing, he took a long minute to study his reflection. He wasn't sure what to make of the result. No matter how many times he and his mother changed their identities and languages, one thing stayed the same: they aimed for nondescript fashion that would blend in with an everyday crowd. Neil wore faded tees and plain jeans and worn sneakers, generally in pale colors that helped wash him out further.
This outfit was the complete opposite, and every piece of it was black.

“And I must say it is a waist that he doesn’t buy himself a new wardrobe” said Nicky some of the upperclassmen were agreeing and were about to start talking about what genre of clothes would better suit him “shut up” said Aaron not really caring or in the mood to listen to shit and they did eventually quite down and kept on watching.
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there weren't any open holes. He was sure he could feel his scars through the thin cloth.
There was only one thing left to change. Neil's stomach churned a little with nerves when he took his contacts out. He blinked a couple times, adjusting to their absence, and flushed the brown lenses down the toilet. A glance at the mirror almost took his breath away. It'd been over a year since Neil had seen his real eyes, since he never left bed without putting his contacts in. His eyes were a chilly shade of blue that only looked brighter against his black hair and clothes. He couldn't look at them for long; they were his father's eyes.

By now everyone had known what his eyes looked like together with his hair and it was true that hey looked good but knowing that because they are that colour he hates the look of them because it looks like something of his father’s is nerve racking.
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Neil gathered his clothes and left the bathroom. As he turned into his bedroom to drop his clothes off, he caught a glimpse of Andrew's group in the living room. Andrew had picked his lock again. Neil debated how much damage the thick heels of his new boots would do against Andrew's face and liked what his mind came up with.

At that most of the upperclassmen cracked a smile Andrew had like always only a eyebrow raised looking amused Nicky had a nervous laugh not really wanting to imagine it happening because I would most likely had ended with someone in a hospital or maybe worst Aaron on the opposite had a smirk thinking that I would not be a bad idea seeing Neil beaten and Kevin a frown because that would come in the way of almighty Exy.
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"Cracker dust," Nicky said as he ripped his packet open. "Heard of it? Tastes like sugar and salt and gives you a small rush. Sure you don't want in?"
"Drugs are stupid."
"Ouch," Andrew said with a cold smile. "That's judgmental."
"I'm not going to apologize for thinking you're being idiotic."
"Is your spine the spine of the righteous?" Andrew wondered. "Are you trying your best to step on my toes because you're feeling the tragic weight of the holier than thou?"
"Righteousness is for people who don't know any better." "Easy, easy," Nicky said, distributing shots around the table. The bartender had put a bit of soda in a shot glass for Neil for this round, and Nicky set it down in front of Neil. "Dust isn't bad. It just makes the night more interesting. You think Kevin would risk his future over a night out at the club?"
"What future?" Neil asked.
Kevin shot Neil a black look, but Nicky intervened before he could say anything.

Even the dark look Kevin gave everyone was not enough to stop anyone from laughing even Andrew who remembered that day like the palm of his hand had the tiniest smirk on his face even Abby who did not approve of the dust part had nothing to say and was laughing too.
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"Drink with us if you won't dust with us," Nicky said, holding his open packet in one hand and his shot in the other. "Down the hatch on three."
Arguing would be fruitless when the four had left their common sense at the door, so Neil picked up his glass in silence. Nicky counted them off, and Neil knocked his shot back. As soon as it hit the back of his throat, Neil knew he'd made a serious mistake.

“Here we go” said Alison, most of the cheerfulness had vanished and was taken over by nervousness.

Chapter Text

“Here we go” said Alison, most of the cheerfulness had vanished and was taken over by nervousness.
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His sodas had tasted sweet, but this shot was almost unbearably so, and the aftertaste on Neil's tongue wasn't sugar. Neil lurched to his feet, but Andrew grabbed him by his hair and slammed him back into his seat. A cruel twist pulled his head back at a dangerous angle, and Andrew slammed Neil's hand flat against the tabletop. Neil lifted his other hand to pry Andrew's fingers off, but Nicky caught his wrist.

“haha” Nicky laughed a nervous laugh and was scratching the back of his head while the upperclassmen (-Renee), Abby and Wymack were sending them dark looks, that was way different then with Matt. Matt had taken the drugs on his own this time they were doing it with out Neil’s approval.
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"Don't sleep. I'll kill you."
"Will you?" Andrew asked. "Will you do it yourself, or will you pay someone else to handle the mess? You certainly have enough money to outsource it to a proper hit man. One wonders what a no-one like you is doing with such a fortune."

“Well he does have the money and is not using it, and I am against that idea” said Alison sending dirty looks at them “no one is killing anyone” said Wymack “we have been over this, what happened happened get over it” he continued successfully stopping any other argument from starting.
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"Don't tempt me to prove you wrong. How about I call the police and ask them to run a real check on you? You think they'll find anything interesting?"
"That's a hollow threat," Neil said. "The police would never do favors for someone like you."
"I know a cop who would," Andrew said. "If I called him tonight and told him you're a serious problem child, he'd make it a priority. How cold is your trail?"
"Shut up," Neil said.

“It makes me wonder if someone actually made a background check on Neil how many of his past names will they find or if they will be able to find out about the truth” said Renee “Riko already knows” said Andrew out of nowhere supporting some but it quickly turned to shock and the mood fell “after all that’s were he was for the winter” he continued, it was something that slipped through their heads and it made them think if Riko knows does that mean that other know too, that detail was something that made the skin of most crawl if his father knows what happens next? “do you think he has said anything about it to his father” asked Matt towards Kevin “how should I know” he said back in a offended voice but continued talking “he did say his father was in prison so maybe not?” they didn’t know but they all hoped not because Andrew protecting Kevin from Riko was different from protecting someone from literal serial killers.
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This kiss tasted worse, and Neil went numb from his mouth down.
The rest of the night was shattered colors and lights.

Shock had again taken over the room, no one had anything to say not like they could say anything and Nicky looked guilty not looking at anyone but his hands but the other had their eyes at him even Renee had a disapproving expression with dark eyes but all of it was pale at competition of the look Andrew was wearing the grip he had on his chair being the only thing keeping his on his sit as to not go for his cousin’s throat “Nicky” Andrew started making Nicky flinch “what was that” he asked, Nicky didn’t answer looking more guilty by the second “I said to leave it didn’t I?” he continued with more fire then before, Nicky could only open his mouth to try saying anything but nothing came out making Andrew even angrier and just when he was about to stand up he was stopped by his brother’s hand on his wrist “leave it for now whatever there is to say say it after we leave this place” said Wymack, Andrew yanked his hand out of his brother’s hand and send a glare at Nicky before he sat back down not like he couldn’t do anything if he wanted to do something he would but not now.

Chapter Text

They continued after it all calmed down, Andrew still had his hand gripping the chair but it was better than anyone dying right now.
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Neil knew that voice. Suddenly the events of the previous night slammed awake in his mind, flickering laser lights and music and bodies and Andrew's voice at his ear. He bolted upright but didn't make it far. The resulting pain had him collapsing against the mattress once more. Nicky caught at his hair to push his head off the side of the bed. There was a trash can there that Neil barely registered before he was throwing up into it.
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Nicky murmured reassurances Neil couldn't really hear.
As soon as Neil could breathe again, he twisted and shoved at Nicky as hard as he could. He was too sick and weak to push Nicky off the other side of the bed, but the boots he was still wearing would leave bruises on Nicky's arms and chest.
"Hey, hey," Nicky said, trying to deflect him. "It's fine. Ouch! Relax, will you?"
"Don't you fucking touch me," Neil said savagely.

“well it’s good that he at least likes the boots” said Aaron looking bored it got some smiles out of some but not any strong reactions.
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Nicky retreated from Neil and sat on the edge of the bed instead. Neil struggled to get up, using the headboard and nightstand as support. Standing took so much out of him he had to stop and catch his breath once he made it there.

The eyes of most in the room were dark, it was not only Nicky they were angry at he might have kissed Neil with out permission but they had drugged Neil.
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"He's awake?" someone asked from the door.
Neil snatched the alarm clock up and hurled it at the new arrival, who ducked out of the way just in time. It crashed off the doorframe. Aaron waited until it had fallen to the floor before stepping back into the doorway.

The upperclassmen and Andrew himself looked amused at what was happening on the screen.
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Neil meant to look for another weapon, but moving so fast turned his stomach inside out. He grabbed at the trash can again and choked so hard he almost fell over.
"Where's Andrew?" Nicky asked, climbing off the bed and coming around to Neil's side.
"He and Kevin went to get us brunch."
"I don't think Neil can eat anything."
"He can watch."
Nicky laid a careful hand on Neil's shoulder. "Come on. I'll get you some water."
Neil shook him off, but his legs didn't want to carry him.
Nicky let him try standing twice before looping an arm around Neil's back and steadying him. "Easy, now. I'm just going to help you to the kitchen, okay? No funny stuff, I promise."
"Like I trust you."
"Like you've got a choice," Aaron said, and left ahead of them.

The room what still field with disapproval, anger and to many other emotions but it was stable now and it was starting to calm down.
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Nicky helped Neil down the hall to the kitchen and set him up at the table with a glass of water. Neil's throat burned, but he refused to drink it. He settled for glaring at Nicky. Nicky looked to Aaron for help. Aaron stared back over the top of his coffee mug, unsympathetic and unhelpful. Nicky sighed and turned to Neil again.
"Can I check on your head, or are you going to bite me if I touch you?"
"What did I say last night?" Neil asked.
"Nothing to me besides an admirably creative death threat." Nicky's mouth quirked in the start of a smile but he suppressed it, maybe understanding Neil would punch him for it.

“Well I do understand why he did it” said Matt while he send a look at Nicky who laughed nervously looking away from him.
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"I don't know how your conversation with Andrew went, but it didn't end well. Rumor has it you paid a busboy a hundred bucks to knock you out. Way to cut our night short."
Neil didn't remember that, and the gaps in his memory left him cold all over.

“What did he say?” said Abby looking at Andrew’s lot, she had a concerned expression since she was most likely worried about what they just heard meanwhile Andrew’s lot did not say anything, Andrew had a face that showed that he was unamused, Aaron did not care enough to answer anything about Neil, Kevin was just Kevin not having been effected because it did not interfere with Exy and Nicky who didn’t really have to say anything so he kind of shrugged and kept on going, “I have to say that is awesome, just pay someone to knock you out” said Alison with something close to fire in her eyes witch earned a disapproving look for some but somehow it felt like it was something that Neil would do.
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"Drink up," Nicky said. "You'll need all the water you can get today. Crackers'll dehydrate you like no one's business."
Neil answered by upending his glass onto the floor. "That's mature," Aaron said.
Neil threw the glass at him. Aaron smacked it away and let
it shatter on the ground.
Nicky sighed. "Don't say I didn't warn you. You can have
the shower first, okay? By the time you're out Andrew will be back and you can ask him about last night."
Nicky guided Neil to the bathroom. He started to say something else, but Neil shut the door in his face and locked it.

It was kind of funny seeing Neil act that way, the upperclassmen enjoying the moments of Neil’s comments towards Andrew’s lot “I have to say that Neil right no is a total mood” said Alison making some smile, even Andrew had a raised eyebrow not because of what she said but seeing what was happening on screen since it was kind of amusing to see the arguing like children.
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Neil took advantage of the privacy to seethe, giving himself a full thirty seconds to silently rage over last night's stupidity. Then he balled it up and shoved it deep. Anger wasn't going to help him right now, and it wouldn't erase whatever did or didn't happen last night.

“He is right, with anger he would have not been able to think straight” said Renee she knew herself that in a situation like that it would be better to ignore it for now, the others understood as well since it was given that if Neil acted with anger something similar to what had happened with Kevin was bound to happen again.
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A window between the mirror and the shower had white translucent glass to block the outside world. Right now, the window was the only thing that really mattered. Nicky wanted Neil to wait for Andrew, but Neil couldn't stick around that long. There was no way he was getting in the car with them for the long ride back to Palmetto. He'd get the answers and explanations he needed, but not in unfamiliar territory with all of them against him.
In the zippered coin section of his wallet was an emergency pair of contacts.

“He does really think of everything” said Dan “it’s a given since if anyone was on the run for so long changing identities every so often they would acquire skills like these” Renee said with a dark look on her face since the thought of a little child having to run from everything and learn things the hard way.
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Neil ripped open the foil packets and put them on, then changed out of his club clothes and into the jeans and tee. The outfit was almost a perfect fit. Remembering how they'd figured out his size only ignited his anger further. Neil stuffed his discarded club clothes into the toilet, shoving them as deep into the water as he could and closing the lid on them.

At the beginning it was silent but it did not last long when laughter took over with the upperclassmen being the loudest excluding Nicky and Aaron who most likely had to be the ones to clean it up. When it calmed down a bit from the jokes and insults flying around they continued.
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He rattled the shower curtain open, cut on the water as high as he could, and pulled the curtain closed again. The sound of the water was almost enough to hide the sound of Neil opening the window. Getting out took some serious wiggling since it wasn't quite big enough for him, but desperation was a valuable lubricant. Lingering sickness from the drugs kept him from moving as quickly as he wanted to, but he'd traveled in far worse shape and he refused to give up. He cut through the subdivision without knowing where he was going and thumbed through his wallet to count bills. He'd taken to carrying several hundred dollars on him at a time, preparations for the worst-case scenario of not having his binder around. He had more than enough to get back to the upstate.

“Know that it’s actually mentioned I really want to know how he did it, how he managed to get back” said Matt voice filed with interest with caught the attention of some that wanted to know too and Wymack who gave a angry sign making it known to the others that he knew how “damm that bad?” said Matt witch he got a look from coach with the meaning of yea that bad behind it.
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Following the larger streets brought him out onto a main road at last. He only had to go a few blocks before he could flag down a taxi. It took him to the nearest gas station at his request. There was a decrepit pay phone at the edge of the parking lot.

“Looks like that’s when he called and said that Andrew might be coming to see trough his things” said Matt.
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Neil hung up and went inside the gas station. He stocked up on water bottles and a map,
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Neil snagged a notepad and pen last and checked out.

“While I can understand the other things why a notepad and pen?” said Aaron thinking of what he might use it for and he was not the only one thinking they were weird things to buy.
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The cashier loaned him a phonebook so Neil could look up the number to a taxi service. The cab came by five minutes later and Neil took it to the nearest truck stop on Interstate 20.
There were a dozen or so big-rigs parked across the giant parking lot, most of them collected around the gas pumps. Neil was comforted by the number and sat on the sidewalk to unfold his map. He found three combinations of major roads that would get him to the northwestern region of the state and tucked his map away. He swallowed against the edges of nausea and approached the nearest trucker with a smile on his face.
"Good morning. I'm a sociology major, working on my summer project. Can I ask where you're headed?"

That took all of them by surprise from how quickly he changed and to how clever that idea was.
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It took four tries before Neil found a northbound driver. The rig was taking 77, which wasn't Neil's first choice, but at least it crossed I-85 near Charlotte, North Carolina. That was the interstate Neil needed if he wanted to get back to Palmetto. Finding a truck was only half the problem. Convincing a driver to take a stranger along was the other.
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He offered the driver his politest smile. "Would you be willing to give me a lift as far as Charlotte? I can pay you fifty dollars for the ride and for answering a couple questions about what it's like working this job."
"I'm not into taking on passengers," the driver said.
Neil accepted that without argument and moved on. None of the other five were going where he needed them to, so he waited off to one side as the twelve trucks were slowly replaced. When the set was complete, he tried again. This time he struck gold on the third try. Not only was the woman willing to take
him, but she was going northwest on I-26. It was a faster route to 85. Neil only had to wait until the tank was full and then they were off.

“Wow he actually did it” said Abby, everyone was amused wanting to keep watching and finding out how it would unfold.
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Neil had hitchhiked like this before from New Mexico to Phoenix. Remembering the interview he'd made up was easy. He took notes on everything the driver said, careful to play the part of an interested student, and the drive passed relatively easily. She left him at a truck stop outside Spartanburg and pulled away with a honk of her horn.
It was easier to catch a ride from there. Neil went through the interview all over again. The driver had questions for him as well, and Neil made up his answers as he went. It took some work to convince the driver that yes, he was fine getting dropped off on the interstate, but Neil got what he wanted. The truck pulled off onto the shoulder a quarter-mile from Neil's exit. Neil paid him and climbed out onto the grass.

“I have to admit that’s very smart, the notepad and pen were a good choice” said Nicky the others were again amazed and amused there was really not anything else there it was a well thought out plan and it worked perfectly.

Chapter Text

“I have to admit that’s very smart, the notepad and pen were a good choice” said Nicky the others were again amazed and amused there was really not anything else there it was a well thought out plan and it worked perfectly.
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It was a little after noon by then. The queasiness had faded, but his head still ached. Neil took his exit on foot and walked to the nearest gas station. He bought a couple bottles of water, sat outside on the sidewalk to drink them, and bought a few more. While he waited for the pounding to die down he studied his map. It was about eleven miles to campus from here. The road was small enough he wouldn't likely catch a ride, but Neil was okay walking it. It'd be faster to run that far, but he wasn't feeling well enough to try it.
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Without truckers to distract him Neil could use the walk to think. The only clear memory he had of last night was Andrew's accusation. He didn't know what else Andrew had asked him or what he'd said in response. Hopefully he'd been smart enough to lie through his teeth despite the drugs.
One thing was for sure, though. Neil couldn't afford another night out like that. If Andrew really thought Neil was a threat to Kevin, how far would he go to prove it? Neil didn't want to see what came next, but avoiding that meant compromising. He had to tell Andrew something. The truth was out of the question, but Andrew would smell a lie a mile away. What Neil needed was something in-between that could explain everything: his money, his appearance, and his obsession with Kevin.
Neil spent the entirety of the three-hour walk sorting out a perfect half-truth. The details he was going to give up made his blood run cold, but if he could get Andrew to keep quiet about them somehow, Kevin couldn't use them to identify him.
Neil wasn't quite ready to face Andrew yet and he didn't want to deal with his teammates' curiosity over his prolonged absence, so he went to Wymack's apartment instead.

“So now we it looks like we are going to see what his lie was” said Nicky it was interesting to find out what he had said to get Andrew of his back.
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By the time he arrived it was half past four. Wymack had made Neil keep the spare key, but Neil knocked on his door anyway. Wymack wrenched the door open like he wanted to take it off his hinges, but surprise washed out the fury on his face when he saw Neil.
"Where the hell have you been?" Wymack demanded, looking Neil up and down. "Andrew got back from Columbia hours ago. Matt called me to say you weren't with them."
"I took a different route."
"Yeah?" Wymack gestured at his drenched clothes and sweaty skin. "What'd you do, run here?"

“Little die he know it was actually close to the truth then what he thought“ said Matt in a joking manner and Wymack responded with a dirty look his way “Boyd I swear to god” “yep sorry coach” Matt apologised with out meaning it and rolled his eyes.
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"Walked," Neil said, and Wymack stared at him. Neil realized too late Wymack was being sarcastic. He couldn't take it back, so Neil traced his path in the air with a finger. "I hitchhiked to Spartanburg, then to Northlake, and I walked here from there. I know it's kind of sudden, but can I stay here for a little while?"
Wymack grabbed his elbow and hauled him inside. He slowed just long enough to slam the door behind Neil. "Are you stupid or just crazy? Do you have any idea what could have happened to you between here and there? What were you thinking?"

“Actually telling the truth there is no way nothing is wrong with him” said Aaron said it got some glances from the other but it was not something that would not be true so it quickly kept on going.

Chapter Text

“Actually telling the truth there is no way nothing is wrong with him” said Aaron said it got some glances from the other but it was not something that would not be true so it quickly kept on going.
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He was carrying a towel and an armful of clothes, all of which he shoved at Neil.
"You're a sopping mess. Get out of my sight and clean up before I wring your neck."

“It was was not really his fault, he didn’t ask for that” said Dan who was now looking at Andrew just to make a point and not really start a fire and Andrew ignored her.
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Neil decided to cut in before Andrew shared any of his theories. "Coach, I need to talk to Andrew for a minute. Can we use your office?"
"No," Wymack said. "I don't trust you two not to kill each other, so you're staying right here until this is resolved."
That left only one option, but Neil hated losing his wild card so early in the game. He hoped Wymack couldn't speak German and switched languages to lay into Andrew. "What the hell is your problem? How can you threaten Nicky for coming onto me but condone drugging me out of my mind against my will? Why can't you just leave me alone?"
That wiped the irritation off Andrew's face. It was forever before Andrew answered in German. "That's unexpected. Did no one tell you I hate surprises?"
"What makes you think I care?"
"How many languages do you speak, runaway?" Neil ignored that. "Tell me why you did that."
"I already did," Andrew said. "I'm still waiting for your answer."
"I answered you. I told you I'm not a mole. You're insane if you think I am."
"Then correct me."
"Give me a reason."
"Besides the obvious?" Andrew said. "If I can't get an
answer from you, I'll get it wherever I can. How about I start with your parents?"
"Good luck," Neil said, feeling cold all over. "They're dead."
"Did you kill them?"
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"I didn't kill my parents," Neil said, but he couldn't go on. Fear was an iron grip around his lungs, making it impossible to breathe. Neil trusted the story he'd patched together on his walk, but he didn't want to say it aloud. The words came out in jagged pieces and he hoped his struggle added realism to the lies. "Riko's family did."
That got Andrew's attention. Neil swallowed hard, trying to clear the tightness from his throat, and forced himself to explain.
"My father was a gopher for a group who did business with the Moriyamas. In the grand scheme of things he wasn't worth much, but he knew a lot of names and he knew how to move product. He did some business out of Edgar Allan, which is how I met Kevin and Riko. I didn't know who they were back then. I was just excited to meet kids my age. I thought we were going to be friends. Then my father started getting cocky, started getting stupid, and tried skimming from payments. He took Moriyama money that was meant for his boss. They found out, of course. The Moriyamas executed him and my mother before his boss could get to him. I took what he'd stolen and ran. I've been running ever since."

It was quite, everyone was comparing the lie he just said and the truth they had learned. For how Neil was with his truths it was the best lie/truth he could come up with and how it seemed it did the job with getting Andrew of his back. But at the same time some felt hurt with Neil´s reaction to speaking about anything from his past.
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Andrew wasn't smiling anymore, but Neil was. He felt it as it curved across his lips and knew it was a sick, ghastly expression. He dug his fingernails into his mouth, trying to claw the look off his face, but it was frozen in place.

The atmosphere had thickened, they were watching the way Neil was trying to take the smile out of his face, it was sad to see how panicked he was on the inside and how awful it was that he couldn’t contain a smile like that how it was happening without him wanting it to it was sad and horrible.
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"I'm lucky Kevin doesn't recognize me," Neil said. "I don't know if he even remembers meeting me, but I remember him. Seeing him helps me remember my parents. He's all I have left of my real life. But if Kevin or Riko recognizes me and word makes it back to my father's boss, I know what will happen to me."

It was sick to think that Neil has come to terms that he might actually die, that him staying was cutting it to close and his chances were not that many.
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Neil waited until their voices faded before unlocking his safe. He found everything where it was supposed to be. As he slipped the lock into place again he realized his hand was trembling. He held up his shaky fingers where he could see them better and wondered at the equally weak flutter in his chest.

Most were watching with sad eyes, seeing what Neil saying anything close to the truth did to him it was sad/horrible but now they could only continue for now.

Chapter Text

They were in the middle of small talk when the screen started, with the dark atmosphere from before having cleared out.
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"Tell me a little about yourself, Neil."
"What do you want me to say?" "Where are you from?" "Millport, Arizona."
"I haven't heard of it."
"It's a small place," Neil said. "The only people who live there are either too old to move out or too young to escape. There's nothing to do except play sports or bingo. We only moved there because it's halfway between Tucson and Phoenix. My mother worked in one and my father the other."
"What do they do?"
Neil hadn't talked about his family much in Millport, but he'd arrived in Arizona already knowing who the Jostens were and what their problems were like. The answers he'd kept from
his high school classmates and coach would have to be good enough for Betsy.
"Mom is an engineer," Neil said. "Dad's halfway through CDL training."

“I don’t know how he was able to you know keep track of what he said to who, I know I would fuck it up” said Nicky “for most it would be hard but we have to keep in mind that Neil learned to lie for most of his life so something like this is easier for him to do” said Renee and Nicky nodded in understanding.
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"Will they come out to watch your first match?"
Neil affected surprise. "No. Why would they? They don't like sports."
"But Exy is obviously very important to you, and you are their child," Betsy said. "What you've accomplished here is nothing short of amazing. I wondered if they might come out to support you."
"No. They don't really—" Neil gestured as if searching for words. "We're not close like that. They made sure I got to school and got my checkups and kept my grades up, that kind of thing, but they didn't know my teachers' names or watch any of my games. It's not going to change now that I'm in college. They live their lives; I live mine. It works for us."
"Does it?"
"I said it does," Neil said. "I don't want to talk about my parents with you."

“Well it looks like he doesn’t want to talk with anyone about his parents, at least not the truth” said Aaron with a roll of his eyes, it got him some looks from someone but no one really wanted to start anything so nothing was said.
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Unlike his English class, the chemistry professor only spent a few minutes reviewing the syllabus before starting on an overview of introductory chemistry. His voice was an unwavering monotone that could put any living creature to sleep. Neil resorted to stabbing himself with a pen every time he started drifting off.

Moments like these really never failed to bring the mood up it was refreshing and a nice break from the other depressing shit, but to not know when they will leave and how many more things they are going to see always left a bad taste behind.
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His room was empty when he showed up, so Neil settled at his desk with his syllabi. It was only the first day of school and he already had three assignments: a short paper, a fifty-page chapter to read, and a page of questions about said chapter. Neil debated for a minute as to which one sounded least painful. Five minutes later he was still uninspired, so he put his head down on his desk.
He didn't realize he'd fallen asleep until a gunshot jarred him awake. Neil bolted upright so fast he sent his pile of textbooks crashing to the ground.

Caught the attention of all of them, not knowing how something like that could happen with out anyone knowing anything or find out about it. It put everyone on edge, but nothing bad would have happened right? The didn’t notice anything wrong with him the next days so it rose to many questions.
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Too late he realized the crack he'd heard wasn't a gun but the lock snapping undone on the suite door. A bemused Matt stood in the doorway.

It brought relief to everyone some letting their sighs of relief out louder than others “ah shit I really thought” said Alison, some where looking at Matt who looked embarrassed him himself having forgotten it it was funny to see him so panicked about it but it don’t last long when they started to realize that it would have not been the first time something like that might have actually happened. They remember the shot wound he had, it changed the mood so quickly it could give anyone a backlash.
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"Hard at work already, I see," Matt said dryly. "Something like that."
"I'd say it gets easier, but." Matt shrugged. "You should
probably cut back on your late practices now that classes are in session."
"I'm fine," Neil said. He knew he'd never give up those practices. If he had to choose between class work and Exy, the answer was obvious. Neil was only here for a couple more months. He wasn't going to give up a single second of his time on the court no matter what else it cost him.
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"You say that an awful lot," Matt said. "I'm starting to think you don't know what it means."
There wasn't really a good way to answer that, so Neil let it slide. Luckily Matt didn't push it but crossed the room to his computer. Neil spent the last half-hour until practice thinking about October and the Ravens.

They had no time to even smile at the oh so tru comment Matt had said it was swallowed by Neil’s monologue, him saying that he would leave the panic he felt when thinking about the Ravens, but something was known he had not left yet. It brought relief even if they knew it was dangerous for them all but it still washed relief over them.

Chapter Text

They sat in silence till the screen started up again.
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"Well?" Allison asked, startling Neil from his thoughts. "What are you going to do about a date?"
They'd spent most of lunch talking about the Exy kickoff banquet. Every school in the southeast would put in an
appearance, including the Ravens. Neil wasn't planning on attending, but he hadn't yet figured out the logistics of skipping it.

“Sometimes I wished I had let him skip” said Wymack with nostalgia most likely thinking about the trouble that would have been avoided, snickering could be heard all around but was silenced when Wymack lifted his head from where it was resting in his hand and glared around.
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"You're running out of time to find a date. Ask Aaron to set you up with a Vixen. I'm sure Katelyn knows a pretty face or two."
The last thing Neil wanted to do was hook up with a cheerleader. He had no fond memories of Millport's high school squad.

“That now just makes me want to now what happened” Alison said her face filled with curiosity and saying she was the only one would be a lie but it looked like nothing was said from Neil or explained so it was left unanswered.
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"You guys suck."
"I'd rather be a Fox than a Jackal if you win by hurting your opponents," Neil said. "You're a team of pathetic bullies."
She shoved against him chest-to-chest. "Say that again. I dare you."
Neil wasn't impressed by her attitude. He gave her a bored look and pressed one finger hard against her shoulder. "Get out of my face. You already got carded once. Start another fight and you'll be out the rest of the game."

Whistling was heard from the upperclassmen and Nicky, Wymack looked proud of what Neil said, Abby had a smile, Aaron just looked the other way and Andrew just looked bored. “You tell her” said Matt his arms kicking upwards in celebration, they waited till it all settled down before continuing.

Chapter Text

After it was quiet it started up again.
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When Neil's alarm went off at one the following morning, it took a minute of groggy staring before he remembered why he was getting up. He stuffed his alarm clock under his pillow, wished Kevin and Wymack both an early death, and dragged himself to the edge of his bed.

This time no one could keep their laughter down and the offended look Kevin gave made it even louder and Wymack himself looked like he could take Neil up on that offer.
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Someone pounded on their suite door. Neil went down the hall to answer it. The hall light was brighter than Neil expected. Neil rubbed his eyes again, both to get the spots out of them and so he wouldn't have to look at Wymack. It should be impossible for Wymack to look so awake at this hour, but there he was looking completely refreshed.

“I will take that as a compliment, thank you” said Wymack, it send another wave of laughter in witch even Kevin had a smile on his face. It was funny and nice for them to slowly learn about Neil, even if most things are not funny and nice they still learned things but it still made it guilty that they are not hearing it from him and that changed nothing.
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The cushions were big enough to comfortably seat two athletes or let one curl up and nap. In his tired state Neil thought it was the greatest bus ever invented.

“It really is” said Renee sending a smile at coach, they were all happy to have a coach like Wymack. Abby put a hand on Wymack’s shoulder and squeezed with a smile witch had Wymack act like a shy kid, saying that it was not such a big thing and let’s just say that embarrassed Wymack send them all laughing again.
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"I don't have fans, and they don't want my answers," Neil said.
"Be smart, Neil." She spoke with the air of one who'd seen far more of the world than a simple teenager had. Neil wanted to hit her for it.

“Thank god he didn’t act on that thought, I can already see the headlines” said Wymack with a shudder “I do think she would deserve it” said Nicky “yeah no shit Sherlock, I’d happy to do it myself” said Alison with a grin “no as long as hitting said person cases trouble no one is doing shit even if it’s well deserved” said Wymack glaring at the two, nothing was said after but it was understood that even that warning wouldn’t stop anyone from hitting anyone else if it came down to it.

Chapter Text

The screen started again.
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Wymack looked at Neil. "Are you seriously retarded or something? You would have been safer back at Palmetto after all."

“I mean he did try and tell you that it was your own fault coach” Matt said but the dirty glare he got from Wymack shut him up and he looked away trying to get coach’s attention away from him.

Chapter Text

All talk was silenced by the screen continuing.
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Andrew nudged Neil with his elbow and said in German,
"Hey, Neil. Isn't that amazing? Isn't that touching? Look how they weep over you. Ah, such misplaced concern. Tell them you can take care of yourself."
Andrew was daring him to cross a line, to give up a little more of the lie that was Neil Josten. It went against everything Neil knew to give in, but he'd chosen this path. He'd chosen Andrew. He buried his fear as deep as he could and answered in German.
"They're not stupid enough to think it's only a drink."
"Oh shit," Nicky said, switching languages in a heartbeat. "Since when do you speak German? Andrew, you knew about this? Why didn't you tell us?"
"Boring," Andrew said. "Figure things out for yourself once in a while."
Nicky waggled a hand at Aaron. "Quick. Have we said anything totally incriminating these past few months?"
"Aside from your endless inappropriate comments about what you'd like to do to him, I don't think so. Looks like you've managed to completely embarrass yourself in both languages." Aaron looked at Neil. "When were you going to tell us?"
"I wasn't," Neil said. "After everything I've put up with from you this year I figured I didn't owe you any favors."
Aaron shrugged and let it slide. Nicky rubbed at his face and muttered under his breath.

“You know that look looks good on you Nicky” said Alison with a smirk referring to the shock that was on Nicky’s face in the screen “haha very funny” he answered back “yes it is actually that’s why I said it” she said back with a eye roll and bored tone and all that was ignored by everyone else who continued.
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"Don't buy me things."
"Sure, next time Andrew says to outfit you, I'll just tell him no. I can see that going over marvelously." Nicky rolled his eyes.
"Then let me pay you back."
"How to say this?" Nicky thought it over for a second, then gave up on tact. "You could obviously use the money more than he could right now. Let Andrew give you things if he wants to. He's not normally the gifting type, so it's kind of fun."
"I have my own money," Neil said. "I don't need handouts."
"Really?" Nicky asked, sending Neil's clothes a meaningful look.

They were laughing again “on my defence he doesn’t look the part ok” Nicky said and that was a fact, Neil looked more like a homeless person than a person that could buy himself clothes.
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"I might be sick," Nicky said miserably.
Neil looked at him, surprised by how hard Nicky and Aaron were taking it. He wondered if he was supposed to feel something besides shock, but a mental check came back clean. He'd grown up around death. It was nothing to him now but ice in his system and a reminder to keep moving. Seth should have been an exception, since Neil had been living with him for months, but Neil had never liked him.

It was quite so much so a pin dropping could be heard, no one had said anything until now about Seth and having his play in front of them was something else. Alison herself had kind of ignored whenever he was medicine, but hearing Neil’s own thoughts were stirring to many emotions all together.
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Despite Andrew's promises and confidence, chances were good Neil was going to leave Palmetto State in a casket before spring.

They gaped at that, for someone to just know that is going to end up dead it was something else and they even felt sorry for him, somehow feeling guilty of not making him trust them enough for him to open up.

Chapter Text

They didn’t waist time talking, yes it was awkward but Seth’s death was something that happened ages ago so there was no point for any strong emotions now that could come later.
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He forgave himself for being jaded. At eighteen years old, he'd seen more people die than he could comfortably count. Death was unpleasant, but it was a familiar and tolerable ache in his chest. Seth Gordon's unexpected overdose Saturday night should have meant something more to Neil since they'd been teammates and roommates for three months, but Neil felt nothing.

Nothing was said even if Aaron wanted to point out how fucked up that was he knew not to. Neil’s reaction was what could be considered normal with a past like his so there really was no room for anyone to comment on it.
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This week it was the last four digits of Abby's phone number. Neil was starting to think his teammates were right about Wymack and Abby's invisible relationship.

At that looks where thrown at Wymack and Abby trying to see if it does anything that shows them the truth. Abby looked embarrassed but Wymack on the other hand looked just about ready to start writing them up for marathons so it was quickly dropped as they continued watching.
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Neil had a love-hate relationship with his reflection out of necessity. He was the spitting image of the murderous father he'd run away from eight years ago.
Hair dye and contacts were the easiest way to hide his face, but keeping up with it when he lived with the Foxes was exhausting. He checked his roots twice a day every day and slept with his back to the room so he could take his contacts out at night. The case was kept in his pillow case and he had spare lenses in his wallet. It was tricky, but it helped keep him alive and safe. Neil didn't think it was going to be enough anymore.

Hearing the way Neil admits to hating his reflection just because it looks just like his father didn’t do anything with bringing the mood up it made them even sicker, knowing how hard it would be for Neil himself and hearing how exhausting it was hiding it from the the whole time did nothing to better the mood.

Chapter Text

The screen continued as all the talking stopped.
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"Why is chemistry so awful?" Neil asked, reaching for the next assignment.
"If I figure it out, you'll be the first to know," Dan said. "You could always ask Aaron for help. He's majoring in biological sciences."
Neil would rather fail than spend more time with Aaron.

Aaron scuffed at that with a sour expression and his next words filled with disgust “Like I’d want to spend more time with him” “it’s ok it’s ok don’t worry no one thought otherwise, you don’t really try to hide your hatred towards other people” said Matt “shut up” Aaron said back with a growl “see that’s what I am talking about” “fuck you” no mind was paid to what came after so they just kept on going.
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His Spanish homework was easier to get through, but his history was too boring to stand. Neil dropped that book on top of his chemistry one and stared blankly at his English assignment. He gave the paper a half-hearted effort, then dug around in his backpack for his math book. As he did he realized Matt and Dan were watching him.
"How many classes are you taking?" Dan asked, frowning at him. "Six," Neil said.

“Damm how is he still alive” asked Nicky “i know right” followed Dan after him “I am just happy we found out when we did because if not it would have stayed like that” she continued.
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"You aren't serious," Dan said. "Why?"
Neil looked from her to Matt. "That's what the catalogue suggested." Dan grimaced at him, but Matt answered. "That schedule is for people graduating in four years. Your contract's five for a reason. Everyone knows you can't take a full course load and play on a team."
"Four classes," Dan said, holding up her fingers at him. "That's all it takes to be considered a full-time student. That's the most I want you taking this semester, okay? Figure out which two are going to make your life the most difficult and get rid of them. You're not doing us or yourself any favors by burning out this early."
"Can I drop classes?" Neil asked, surprised.
"In your first two weeks, yes," Matt said. "Where's your schedule? Let me see."
Neil dug it out of a binder and brought it over. Dan motioned for Neil to sit on her free side.

“I can’t, he always gets that look that just agh” Alison said throwing her hands out “I could see him being their child” said Nicky it was kind of nice watching Neil like that and they liked helping him.
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That made history and chemistry his prime choices, since he hated them. Neil wasn't a fan of his English or Speech classes, but those lessons might come in handy somehow when he had to run away. He needed his Spanish lessons for sure, and math was at least interesting.
Matt passed Neil his laptop when it booted, and Dan and Matt watched as Neil logged into his student profile. Matt reached across Dan to point out the appropriate links to follow.

“Damm he just called math interesting” said Nicky with a sad expression looking at Neil like he has gone the wrong way.
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"Better?" Dan asked when his modified schedule loaded. "Look here. You had a break between history and speech, right? Now you've got two open periods. You can squeeze your tutor hours in there if you want. You have one morning class on Tuesdays and Thursdays, so you have all that time until practice for sleeping and homework. Works out perfectly, don't you think?"
Neil was more interested in the sleeping than the homework part.

Neil’s comment brought laughter in the room, some just smiling and the other laughing. It was refreshing to see and hear Neil acting like that, for him to know how to be a normal kid well as normal as a fox can be.

Chapter Text

The screen started.
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Neil hadn't been directly responsible for someone's death in years, though he knew how many people died in his mother's quest to keep them safe. Neil never wanted to be his father, but he didn't want to turn into his mother, either. They were different kinds of heartless and Neil, for all his problems connecting with other people, didn't want to be a monster. The way this season was starting, though, maybe it was inevitable he'd turn into his parents.

It came out of nowhere, it took the breath of most away shocking the others filling the room with sadness and a serious atmosphere. There was not really something to be said, they all knew that Neil had a degree of guilt even if it was not clearly seen but for them to know how Seth’s death made him think that he was becoming like he parents. They couldn’t say anything it could maybe be the guilt of not saying anything earlier or sadness of hearing that

Chapter Text

The mood of the room didn’t change much before the screen started again.
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He kept making snide remarks about Neil's inexperience and spinelessness. Neil wanted to shove Herrera to the floor and charge the goal to prove him wrong. If he missed, Herrera would remind him the rest of the game. If he scored, Kevin would take advantage of the reset to scold him. It was a lose-lose situation and the rest of the game wasn't going much better.

That lightened the mood it was kind of funny to see Neil from holding back because if he did anything he was going to get scolded by Kevin but still no one was laughing it was on the inside.
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Neil pushed free of Herrera's crumpling body and swore at the flare of heat in his shoulder. If it wasn't for his shoulder armor, Herrera's knee might have dislocated his arm on impact.
Someone pounded on the wall nearby. It might have been support from the subs for dropping his mark like that, but it was more likely Wymack or Kevin furious over such a risky move. Neil would worry
about them later.

“He should worry about that, getting hurt is not a joke if he was badly hurt he should have said so” said Kevin fuming “but you have to agree it was a great move” said Matt witch earned a glare from Kevin, Wymack and a slap on the hand by Dan witch he laughed at “sorry sorry”.
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As he listened to them, Neil realized he was happy. It was such an unexpected and unfamiliar feeling he lost track of the conversation for a minute. He couldn't remember the last time he'd felt this included or safe. It was nice but dangerous. Someone with a past like his, whose very survival depended on secrecy and lies, couldn't afford to let his guard down. But as Nicky laughed and leaned closer to talk about one of Neil's goals, Neil thought maybe he'd be okay just for a night.

Neil’s speech brought tears to some (Nicky, Matt, and Abby) and the other were smiling, they were happy to know that they had made Neil feel like that, moments like these caused them to think that they would be there for him when he needed them.

Chapter Text

The last scene had lightened the room’s atmosphere even the slightest bit and the screen continued.
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It'd be tricky getting a job when he couldn't give employers his social security number, and every time he moved he needed a new name, a new face, and a new place to live. Costs added up fast.
Disguises were cheap. A new hairstyle, a new color, some contacts, and an accent were usually enough to fool people. Neil used his mother's British accent when he was overseas and his father's American accent when he was in the United States.

“Ok the answers the question to if he is able to talk with a British accent” said Alison “I kind of want to hear him talking with a accent” said Nicky and Andrew shot a glare at him. The glare seemed to got the message through to stop talking about it, Andrew ignored the look Renee send his way refusing to give anything away continuing with his glare at his cousin. It didn’t last long before everyone got settled again and they continued.
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"Dan asked me to get a list from Katelyn," Aaron said. "Who are these people?" Neil asked.
"They're the single Vixens."
"They're all women," Nicky said. "That doesn't help us." "Nicky," Neil started.
Nicky plucked the list from Neil's fingers and crumpled it. "Your ignorance is endearing, Neil. You're nineteen and you've never looked at Allison's tits? There's no way you're straight. You and I really need to sit down and talk about this sometime."

“You know now that we actually know the truth behind that I do kind of sound like an idiot” said Nicky embarrassed when all eyes were on him “when are you not one” said Aaron. Talking to Neil about his orientation didn’t seem to brother him and they knew that not only Nicky said things to Neil so it was just a quick look and then the continued.
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"Stop being a bad influence," Kevin told Nicky. "I am going to make him Court. It'll be easier if he remains heterosexual. You know more than any of us how prejudiced people can be. Imagine the impact it would have on his career."
"We aren't really having this conversation," Neil said.
Nicky clapped his hands to either side of Neil's head as if trying to shield Neil from their argument. It didn't really work, as he missed Neil's ears completely. "You worry about Neil's career. I'll worry about his personal happiness. Come on, Kevin. Even you have to admit this is really weird."
Andrew threw his hands up. "Newsflash, Nicky: Neil isn't normal!" "This is beyond abnormal."
"I am standing right here," Neil said, "and I can hear you."
Nicky sighed dramatically and let go. "Fine, fine. Take a cheerleader
if you want to."
"I'm not taking anyone," Neil said. "I don't even want to go to this
thing."

All and were laughing at the scene except Andrew who ignored it, Aaron who didn’t care and Kevin who didn’t see why it was so funny what he had said he meant it . “I swear to god I should have listened to him and let him stay behind” said a frustrated Wymack witch earned him a pat on the back by Abby.
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Nicky still looked a little leery as he stopped at Neil's side. Neil looked at the massive bundle of clothes in his arms, none of which looked appropriate for a banquet. He wasn't going to ask, but Nicky noticed the glance and puffed up with pride.
"I have good taste in clothes, right? If you want to try them on you can, but you don't have to. I know they'll fit."
"Why would I try them on?"
"Oh, because these are yours." Nicky said it like Neil should already know that, then kept going before Neil could react. "Did you know Coach has been waiting for us to fix your wardrobe since, like, June? He threatened to sign us up for a marathon if we didn't do something about it. A freaking marathon, Neil. Guys like me aren't supposed to run that far. Do me a favor and don't argue about it."

“And I still have to figure out we it took ya all so long” said Wymack while sending a look at everyone, no one said anything because there really was not much to get past a scolding but before Wymack could go on he was stopped by the screen.
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"There's nothing wrong with the clothes I have."
"Can we go back to the part where I said not to argue? I remember it pretty clearly considering it happened just five seconds ago." Nicky moved the clothes out of Neil's reach when Neil moved as if to take them from him. "Um, no. I'll hang onto this. You're supposed to be finding pants."
Neil silently counted to ten, but it didn't do much against his flaring impatience. "I am not shopping with any of you ever again."
"So you think. Man, I'm starting to see why Andrew left you here," Nicky said. "Good thing he ignored me when I told him to take you along."
"Take me along where?"
"Oh, you know," Nicky said vaguely. "Task at hand, Neil. The longer you stall the longer we're stuck here."

“I can’t it awesome, the monsters treating Neil like a kid is to much fun” said Alison between laughter and it cracked some smiles and laughter from others. Ones it was quite again they kept going.
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Slacks were easy to pick out, but Nicky rejected the first several shirts Neil considered. Finally Neil gave up and let Nicky choose something for him.

“I can’t believe that I am saying this but yes Nicky had every right to not go along Neil’s suggestion, I mean yea dude didn’t have a choice but to wear these old clothes but damm his fashion sense is just nonexistent” said Alison “I know right” Nicky commented.
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They went up to the registers together, but then Nicky refused to let go of Neil's unwanted clothes. He batted at Neil's hands and turned stubbornly away.
"Why would you pay for all this when you didn't want it in the first place? Technically the university is paying for it, since Coach is going to expense it. Hey," Nicky said, retreating when Neil tried again to wrest the stack from his arms. "Touch it again and I'll bite you. Don't think I won't. I will. I'm a biter. Just ask Erik."
"Stop embarrassing us." Kevin pushed them apart. "Find a different register, Nicky."
"I can buy my own things," Neil said when Nicky pranced off.
Kevin gave him a slow head-to-toe. Neil's jeans were so faded they were whitish-gray, and the hems of his shirt were frayed and coming undone. This wasn't the first time someone had looked at Neil like he
was street trash, but from Kevin condescension was a thousand times more effective.
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"I can't stand you," Neil said.
"I don't care." Kevin pointed over Neil's head at the waiting cashier. "Let's go."

This got mixed feelings from everyone. On one side they where siding with the other and on the other side they all knew why Neil had all these problems with getting new clothes since he was raised to buy old clothes so he doesn’t stand out and they didn’t know what to say so they where happy when the scene continued.
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Andrew finished what he was doing, snapped the phone
shut, and tossed it at Neil. Catching it was instinctive, but Neil froze at the next words out of Andrew's mouth. "Who is Neil going to text?"
"Um, me, for starters," Nicky said, like that should be obvious. "What." Neil couldn't even make it a question.
He uncurled his fingers and stared at the gray phone resting in his
palm. He didn't think a small thing like this should hurt so much, but the grief that punched through him left him in pieces. The roaring in his ears sounded like the ocean. For a moment he was back there on the beach watching fire eat through the car. He remembered how it smelled, the salt of the water and the sick stench of burning flesh. He could still feel the sand on his fingers, warm up top where the sun shone and cold deep down where he'd left his mother's bones.
He'd saved their phones for last. Every time they moved they got new cell phones, prepaid burners they could ditch at the first hint of trouble. He wanted to keep hers. He wanted something real to hold onto in her absence. Even then he'd known better. He threw them into the waves before leaving the beach. He'd never gotten a new one for himself. He'd never seen a point; Neil had no one in the world he could call.

Dread filled the room every time Neil mentioned the day his mother died and this time was no different and it seemed that every time she was mentioned there was something new with it, like now the new detail about phones. It was a given that he would not want ore need a phone with people after him with could track the with making everything more dangerous. “I think I might not be going to a beach for a while” said Dan expressing what most where feeling after they heard about the way his mother died, it was not a secret that beaches were going to be a tough place for a while.
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"Neil."
The urgent tone of Nicky's voice finally cut through the buzzing in Neil's ears. Neil dragged his stare up to Nicky's face and realized too late Nicky had been speaking to him. Nicky's expression was tight with concern.
Neil swallowed hard and tried to remember how to breathe. He closed his fingers around the phone so he wouldn't have to look at it and held it out toward Nicky. "No."
Nicky held up his hands. He looked less like he was warding off the phone and more like he was trying to calm a cornered animal.

“Not wrong I really thought that making the wrong move could have him run out of there” said Nicky sad written all over his face.
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"Neil," he said, speaking very slowly and carefully, "we kind of need you to hold onto that. We need a way to get in touch with you this year."
"You have this way of making people want to kill you," Andrew said.
Nicky looked pained by that tactless explanation but he didn't take his eyes off Neil. "What if Coach needs to talk to you about something or Riko's freaky fans start causing trouble? Last year got really crazy toward the end, and this year isn't off to a good start. That's our just-in- case. You'll make us all feel better if we know we can find you."
"I can't." It was too ragged and too honest, but Neil couldn't help it. If he didn't get rid of that phone he was going to be sick. "Nicky, I—"
"Okay, okay," Nicky said, taking Neil's hand in both of his. "We'll figure it out."
Neil thought he'd feel better when Nicky had the phone, but the overwhelming sense of loss still knotted up his lungs. He tugged his hand free and took the bags of clothes Nicky had hooked over his arm. He didn't have to ask for the keys. Andrew pilfered them from Nicky's pocket and held them up in offering.
Neil grabbed them, but Andrew held on for a moment. Andrew leaned forward on his perch and smiled at Neil. "Hey, Neil. Honesty looks awful on you."
Neil wrenched the keys out of his grasp and walked away to the sound of Andrew's laughter. He didn't go back inside afterward, but they came out to find him not much later. No one mentioned the cell phone and, although Nicky kept shooting him worried looks in the rearview mirror, no one spoke to Neil on the ride back to campus.

It was again quite. Quite being a familiar thing, like always there was nothing to say or anything to lighten the atmosphere with so everyone went with the safer option of being quiet except Aaron who would gladly not give a fuck about Neil.
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The silence couldn't last, though Neil wished it would. He came out
of the bathroom in half of his gear for his night practice with Kevin and found Kevin had already left the locker room. The scattered clothes on the bench hinted he'd been kicked out before he was ready.
Andrew was straddling the bench as he waited for Neil, and in front of him was Neil's new phone. Neil glanced down at it instinctively and quickly jerked his stare up to Andrew's face. Andrew wasn't smiling anymore. He'd skipped his nine o'clock dose so he could start winding down for bed even though he was usually out with Kevin and Neil until midnight.
"A man can only have so many issues," Andrew said.
"I don't need a phone."
"Who needs one more than you do this year?"
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Andrew took his own phone out of his pocket and set it down beside
Neil's. His was black but otherwise seemed to be the same model. He flicked both open and pressed a couple buttons. A few seconds later Andrew's phone started to ring. Neil expected a generic ringtone, but a man started singing. It didn't sound like something Andrew would assign to his phone until Neil listened to the lyrics. It was a song about runaways.
Neil crossed the room and sat facing Andrew on the bench. He scooped Andrew's phone up and crushed the reject button with his thumb. "You're not funny."

“I am sorry for Neil but I have to agree it was kind of funny” said Matt.

Chapter Text

“I am sorry for Neil but I have to agree it was kind of funny” said Matt.
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"Neither are you. You put a noose around your neck and handed the loose end to Riko," Andrew said. "I distinctly remember saying I would watch your back. Give me one good reason why you'd make that difficult for me."
"I survived for eight years because no one could find me," Neil said. "That's not why."
"Are we doing the honesty thing again?"
"Do we need to?" Andrew asked, taking his phone from Neil. "You
start."
Neil turned his new phone in circles on the bench, unwilling and
unable to pick it up. "You know, most parents give their children phones so they can keep track of them throughout the day. I had one because of the people my father worked with. My parents wanted to know they could reach me if the worst should happen. 'Just in case'," Neil said, echoing Nicky's words.
"When I ran away, I kept the phone. I saw my parents die, but I kept thinking maybe I was wrong. Maybe one day they'd call and say it was an act. They'd say I could come home and things would be fine. But the only time it rang it was that man demanding I bring him back his money. I haven't had a phone since. I shouldn't have one now. Who am I supposed to call?"
"Nicky, Coach, the suicide hotline, I don't care."
"I'm remembering why I don't like you."
"I'm surprised you forgot in the first place."
"Maybe I didn't." Neil pushed the phone Andrew's way. "There has to
be a better way."
"You could occasionally grow a spine," Andrew suggested. "I know
it's a difficult concept for someone whose kneejerk reaction is to run away at the first sign of trouble, but try it sometime. You might actually like it."
"What I'd like is to put this phone through your teeth."
"See, that's more interesting."
"I'm not here for your entertainment," Neil said.
"But, as expected, you are talented enough to multitask. Question for
you, Neil. Do I look dead to you?" He pointed up at his face, waited for Neil to answer, and didn't seem surprised when Neil didn't. "Here."
Andrew beckoned Neil closer as if he wanted to show Neil something on his phone's small screen. He flipped the phone open one- handed and pressed down hard on a single button. There was silence, then the distant hum of Andrew's phone dialing out. Between them Neil's phone started to sing. The words were different than Andrew's ringtone, but the voice was the same. Neil knew it was from the same miserable song. The lyrics hurt just as much as Andrew's had. Neil stared down at the phone and let it ring.
"Your phone is ringing," Andrew said. "You should answer it."
Neil picked it up with numb fingers and opened it. He spared only a second to look at Andrew's name on the screen before he answered and put it to his ear.
"Your parents are dead, you are not fine, and nothing is going to be okay," Andrew said. "This is not news to you. But from now until May you are still Neil Josten and I am still the man who said he would keep you alive.
"I don't care if you use this phone tomorrow. I don't care if you never use it again. But you are going to keep it on you because one day you might need it." Andrew put a finger to the underside of Neil's chin and forced Neil's head up until they were looking at each other. "On that day you're not going to run. You're going to think about what I promised you and you're going to make the call. Tell me you understand."
Neil's voice had left him, but he managed a nod.

“Damm I might start thinking that the monster is not actually a monster after all” said Alison amusement dripping from her voice as she levelled her own glare towards Andrew who was watching her with a blank expression.
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Neil had no idea why the team's psychiatrist was programmed as an emergency contact. He had no intention of speaking to Betsy Dobson again. Neil deleted her information.

“Yes of course he you do that” said Wymack face palming mean while there was quite snickering all around.
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Neil's phone went off the next morning and startled five years off his
life expectancy. Neil was packing his things to leave his Spanish class when he heard the distinctive buzz. He dropped his textbook immediately and dug his phone out of the depths of his bag, mind going a million miles an hour on everything that could be going wrong.
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A message was blinking at him in his inbox. Neil's heart slowed a bit when he saw Nicky's name attached to it, because Nicky was the last person Neil thought would be the bearer of bad news.

“Poor Neil” said Dan with a smile, “I take that as a compliment” said Nicky and there was some laughter around.
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He opened the message anyway and found a two-character smiley staring back at him. Neil waited to see if anything else came through, but that appeared to be it.
The next time his phone went off, it was Dan: "nicky said u have a phone y/y".
"Yes," Neil sent back, and hoped that was enough.
Seconds later Dan was back with "bout time thought u'd never get one".
Neil considered asking her how she was doing in her English classes but took the higher road of silence.

Dan had her mouth open shocked but not the bad kind just shocked, the others where openly laughing and she playfully smacked Matt on his hand she herself smiling, “don’t tell me he doesn’t know that slang exists” said Alison with a sign as she calmed down “well it would be possible since you know his past would make it hard to have been friends with anyone” asked Renne if something could drop a mood quickly it was that, most took a pained expression and realisation hit Neil’s first friends where them since when his mother was alive he couldn’t be close to anyone, it was obvious that Neil was new to this friendship thing and now it was made clear as to why.
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Foxes spent seven hours together at practices every day and roomed with each other at Fox Tower. How they had anything left to say to each other was beyond him. He wanted to turn the messaging off somehow or tell them this wasn't why he had a phone. Phones were for emergencies, not running commentary on a teacher's boring lecture. Neil refrained because he knew he was in the wrong this time, but he still jumped every time his phone hummed at him.
The others were undeterred by his silence. Nicky peppered him throughout the day and through most of Thursday. Finally Neil's patience wore thin enough to say something. He sat on the stairs of the hall where he had his tutoring session and painstakingly typed a message out.
"What happens when you use up all your messages and then need them?"
Nicky's response was almost immediate. "???" A couple seconds later he came back with something more useful: "our plan has unlimited txt. we can't use them up. man i try tho :)".
Neil sighed and gave the fight up as a lost cause.
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"Question again," Nicky said. "Do you honestly think you'd have used it if you had an emergency? No, really. You didn't see your face when Andrew gave you that, Neil. That wasn't disinterest or shock. That was like, mental meltdown the likes of which I haven't seen in years. I don't know why, but I know it wouldn't have occurred to you to call us if something went wrong."
Neil knew he was right, but he said, "You don't know that."

“I am always right” Nicky said a smug expression and his head held high “no you are not” commented Aaron who rolled his eyes.
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"Couldn't risk it. We didn't want to find out the hard way just how screwed your mental wiring is."
"I called Matt from Columbia when I needed help."
"Yeah," Nicky said, unimpressed. "So we all heard. You called Matt, gave him your 'I'm fine' song and dance routine, and then hitchhiked with strangers back to campus. Maybe you remember?" Nicky waited, but Neil couldn't defend himself against an accusation like that.

“Man that had been a intense day, I don’t want to ever relive that” said Matt with a shudder as Dan gave him as sympathetic shoulder rub.

Chapter Text

(Idk how to start this)
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Wymack nodded and turned on Neil.
"You," he said, "attempt to behave this time. Don't pick fights with him today."
"Yes, Coach."
Wymack looked skeptical but didn't argue. "Let's go, then."

“Yep and he totally didn’t” said Aaron witch earned him a look from Wymack but he rolled his eyes not really caring.
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Judging by Neil's quick headcount, the Ravens hadn't brought dates. They hadn't brought any color along, either.

“no way he should have said that out loud” said Nick between laughter as everyone else was laughing too, Neil’s inner thoughts or more like inner insults were more often then not the thing that almost never failed to brighten the mood and the atmosphere. “You know we should probably do a scrapbook with every snarky comment he has made” said Matt and at that Alison, Nicky, Dan where nodding and Wymack signed loudly.
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There was nothing friendly on his face tonight.
"You look familiar," Jean said in heavily accented English.
"If you watched Kathy's show you saw me there," Neil said.
"Ah, you are right. That must be it. What was your name again?
Alex? Stefan? Chris?"
For a moment Neil thought he'd fallen over. He felt the world lurch
out from under him and take his stomach with it. A second or minute or eternity later he realized he hadn't moved at all. He wasn't even breathing.

Everyone grimaced at that now understanding how serious that moment had been, even if they where there they had not known yet but now watching it again it ran a shiver across some since that was most likely that moment Riko knew. And seeing what it did to Neil didn’t make it any better.
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"It's Neil."
"Hmm?" Jean titled his head to one side as if that would help him see Neil better. "You don't look much like a Neil."
"Blame my mother," Neil said. "She named me."
"How is she doing, by the way?" Riko asked.
Neil looked into Riko's dark eyes and felt like he was dying.

“I can’t, if I could just punch his teeth in” said Matt since now it was made very clearly what Riko wanted.
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Nicky dug his fingers into Neil's thigh under the table, a silent and desperate reminder to keep his mouth shut. Neil left half-moon marks on
the back of Nicky's hand with his fingernails and counted to ten. He only made it to four before Riko opened his mouth again.
"What a coward," Riko said with exaggerated disappointment. "Just like his mother."

Like the last comment about Neil’s mother it was on purpose, them knowing the truth just made it 10 times clearer what Riko wanted to achieve. “I think now I don’t really care if he actually talked shit” said Wymack his shoulders tense.
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Neil stopped counting.
"You know, I get it," Neil said. "Being raised as a superstar must be really, really difficult for you. Always a commodity, never a human being, not a single person in your family thinking you're worth a damn off the court—yeah, sounds rough. Kevin and I talk about your intricate and endless daddy issues all the time."
"Neil," Kevin said, low and frantic.
Neil ignored him. "I know it's not entirely your fault that you are mentally unbalanced and infected with these delusions of grandeur, and I know you're physically incapable of holding a decent conversation with anyone like every other normal human being can, but I don't think any of us should have to put up with this much of your bullshit. Pity only gets you so many concessions, and you used yours up about six insults ago. So please, please, just shut the fuck up and leave us alone."
Jaws dropped up and down the line; Raven symmetry shattered as they stared at Neil in stupefied disbelief. Riko's expression could have frozen hell, but Neil was too upset to be afraid. He'd have a nervous breakdown later. Right now he leaned forward and looked down the table at Dan, who sat with her face buried in her hands.
"Dan, I said please. I tried to be nice."

Everyone that was there to witness it was smirking except Kevin who again looked like a truck had got him, Wymack and Abby who were not there had been shocked just like the other on screen “it’s kind of funny how he dragged Kevin in to that” said Alison witch was answered by a glare or what Kevin tried to make look like glare but was not able do to the sick feeling he had on his stomach.
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"Neil has no place in Riko's games," Kevin said. "He is a Fox."
"He is not a Fox!"
"Funny," Neil said in French. Jean wasn't expecting him to understand them and shot Neil a startled look. "I'm pretty sure the contract I signed said Palmetto State University."
"A contract does not change facts," Jean said. "Did you forget who bought you?"
"Bought me," Neil repeated. "Nobody bought me."
Kevin frowned, lost. "Jean, what are you talking about?"
Jean looked like he swallowed a stone. "You don't know." It was
supposed to be an accusation, but it fell flat. Jean shot an incredulous look between them. "How can you not know? Why else would you have recruited him, Kevin?"
"He has potential," Kevin said.

“It’s funny how Kevin who had actually met Neil didn’t know who he was and what he was getting in to when recruiting him” said Alison wanting to make it sound like a joke but didn’t work much, “in my defence how was I supposed to recognise someone who I met for a day or so about what like 8 years ago, mind i remind you he had his hair dyed and eye contacts” said Kevin even if he was not so loud as other times since remembering that day made him look sicker by the minute.

Chapter Text

“It’s funny how Kevin who had actually met Neil didn’t know who he was and what he was getting in to when recruiting him” said Alison wanting to make it sound like a joke but didn’t work much, “in my defence how was I supposed to recognise someone who I met for a day or so about what like 8 years ago, mind i remind you he had his hair dyed and eye contacts” said Kevin even if he was not so loud as other times since remembering that day made him look sicker by the minute.
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Neil didn't need to be told twice, but he didn't get far. Jean turned back on him before Neil had finished pushing in his chair and beckoned for him to listen. His French was almost too fast for Neil to follow, but Neil understood more than he wanted to.
"Riko will have a few minutes of your time later," Jean said. "I suggest you speak with him if you do not want everyone to know you are the Butcher's son."
Hearing his father's name aloud was a kick in the chest. The noise Kevin made at his side was worse. Neil reacted without thinking, clapping a hand to Kevin's chest and shoving him as far back from the
table as he could. Kevin stumbled back so fast he almost fell. Neil didn't look back at him, but he couldn't tune out Kevin's hoarse denial.
"That's not true."
"Shut up," Neil said, but he didn't know which one of them he was speaking to. "Don't say anything else."
"Run along," Jean said. "It's what you're best at, isn't it?"

“tell me he didn’t actually go along with that” said Wymack frustration clear in his voice as ever there was no need for anyone to say anything about it since everyone could already guess that he did.
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Wymack turned on Neil next. "Did you or did you not tell me you weren't going to start a fight?"
Nicky spoke up on Neil's other side. "In Neil's defense—"
"I didn't ask you," Wymack interrupted. "Neil, talk to me."
In his head Neil was already counting steps to freedom.
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"Butcher," a quiet voice called in French.
Neil looked over his shoulder. Jean had come around the circle at some point and was standing a short space away. He tilted his head in an order and Neil followed his stare to see Riko stepping off the court. Neil didn't look back to see if any of his teammates noticed his exit and kept a casual pace on his way to the door. He stepped into the inner court in time to see Riko disappearing into the home locker room. Neil took a breath to steel his nerves and followed.

“Ah fuck come on” could be loudly heard around the room coming from Wymack. Everyone was now more aware of the situation wanting to see how it would unfold from there.
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He turned on his heel to face Neil, and they eyed each other across the room. Finally Riko smiled. It was a horrible expression, but not nearly as bad as the words that followed it.
"Nathaniel, it has been so long."
Neil's fear was hot and thick in his chest. He could barely breathe around it. He prayed his expression didn't give him away even as he knew it was too late. "My name is Neil."
"Do not lie to me again. You will not enjoy the consequences." Riko gave Neil a beat to respond. "Imagine my surprise when the results came back. Your fingerprints," he elaborated, with a mocking twitch to his smile. "Kathy gave me your glass as a souvenir. All it took was a smile and a kiss. It seems she is growing up to be quite the cougar."
Neil's stomach knotted up inside him.

“Now that is just creepy” said Nicky.
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He'd accepted a cup of water at the start of Kathy Ferdinand's talk show and hadn't thought twice about leaving it behind afterward. He'd assumed Kathy's crew would see to it. His mother would beat him half to death if she were still alive. All that time and money spent covering their tracks—destroyed by a simple batch of nerves.

Again the quietness that came when ever Neil mother was mentioned was now present but paired with anger as Neil said what would had happened to him if she was there.
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"Explain something to me." Riko started across the room on slow steps. "Jean says Kevin did not know who you are. After seeing Kevin's reaction I am inclined to believe him. Perhaps I can understand, as I know how blind Kevin can be when it comes to Exy. I might even forgive him for sheltering you from me. But you must know who you are, so I am very, very curious to know what you think you are doing."
"I'm just trying to get by," Neil said, squeezing his arms so tight across his chest he thought he'd crush his own lungs. "If I'd known our families were business partners I wouldn't have signed the contract."
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Riko stopped so close to him they were touching, and it took all Neil had in him to not lean away. Neil hadn't realized before that they were almost the same height. Riko's Japanese genes had betrayed him just as Neil's tiny mother had betrayed Neil.

“Ok but can we talk about the way that he is face to face with a mafia relative but his thoughts are from wrecked to oh look he is short” said Nicky with a tiered look like most in the room.
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"You're lying," Riko said.
"I am not." Neil hated the thread of desperation that worked its way into his voice. "I don't want to cause any trouble for your family. I don't want you to cause any trouble for mine. I'm just here for a year and then I'm gone again, I promise."
"You don't want to cause any trouble for my family," Riko echoed, as if hearing them a second time would make them easier to understand. "You have already cost my family a sizable fortune and eight years of trouble."
"How?" Neil asked. "The money I took was my father's."
"If you think acting stupid will save you, you are sadly mistaken." "I'm not acting," Neil said, finally giving in and taking a step back.

“Ok that is becoming more questionable by the second what is happening?” said Nicky but he was not the only one thinking it so now it better to just sit back and see what would come next.
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"My mother said it was my father's money. She never even told me about you. If I'd known the money was yours—"
"Nothing your father owned was his!" Riko snapped.
Neil's words died in his throat. He stared blankly at Riko. Riko stared back at him, looking for deceit on his face. Whatever he found only served to infuriate him further. Riko grabbed Neil by his shoulders and slammed him into the wall. Neil's head hit hard enough to rattle his teeth.

Riko slamming Neil onto the wall made everyone’s nerves to sky rocket but nothing was becoming clear why was Riko so mad.
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"I refuse to believe she never told you. All that time running and you never asked why?”

“He is really getting on my nerves right now, Neil clearly has no clue what the fuck is his problem?” Said Matt. Andrew had a look that meant that he was thinking all this over so he can figure out what Riko meant and by the end of it he had a guess but said nothing wanting to confirm it first.
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Neil gave Riko an incredulous look. "Have you met my father? I didn't have to ask."
A door banged open down the hall, and Matt called Neil's name. They only had seconds before he found them, but that was enough time for Riko to lean in. He kept his voice down but packed a world of venom into his words.
"You were not running from your father, Nathaniel. You were running from his master."

Andrew and other knew what that could possibly mean and Kevin’s reaction just confirmed it, Riko was saying that the butcher belonged to the Moriyama’s.
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The thought of anyone keeping the Butcher on a leash was insane. "He didn't have one."
Riko pushed back, putting space between them right before Matt rounded the corner. Matt leveled a furious look at Riko as he moved up alongside Neil.

Most send a look at Matt only now finding out that he was there but said nothing.
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"What is going on here?"
Neil ignored him and insisted, "He didn't have one."
Riko pointed a finger up at his own face and waited. Neil stared back as his brain refused to put the last pieces together. What Riko was suggesting was impossible.

“I have to say that Denial doesn’t look any good on Neil” said Alison with a grimace and made other roll their eyes on her comment.
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The Butcher was one of the biggest names on the eastern seaboard. He made Baltimore his home, but his territory extended from D.C. to outer Newark. He had a fiercely loyal syndicate and a penchant for grotesque executions. No one told the Butcher what to do. But Riko's incensed reaction didn't seem like an act and he had nothing to gain by lying to Neil, especially considering how easily Kevin could set things straight.
Kevin was going to say yes to all of this. Neil knew it, and he wasn't ready to hear that yet. If the Moriyamas really were powerful enough to keep a man like the Butcher under lock and key Neil was so far in over his head he might as well be six feet under.
"I don't believe you," Neil said, but even he heard the dread in his voice.
"Denial is more infuriating than ignorance," Riko said. "You will speak to Kevin at the next available opportunity and have him explain this to you in little words your small mind can understand. Learn your place. I will never tolerate this level of disrespect from you again. Do you understand?"
Neil was already in his coffin. He might as well nail it shut. "Yeah, I understand you're a complete asshole."

“Come on” quietly Wymack said rubbing his hand across his face.

Chapter Text

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Neil didn't look up from his plate to return Wymack's stare.
"You want to tell me why you have a hard-on for antagonizing Riko?" Wymack asked.

“Wow that is something I don’t want to hear ever again” said Alison her face twisted with a grimace.
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"He started it," Neil muttered into his tortilla.
"That doesn't mean you have to sink to his level. Were you listening when I told you what kind of person he is, what kind of family he's from?"
"Yes, Coach."
"You said that last night when I told you to behave," Wymack said. "Your lip-service 'yes Coach' isn't going to be enough anymore. Don't lie
to me about the important shit."
"I can't help it," Neil said. He tried to chew slower, but he was fast
running out of burrito to hide behind. He opted for deflection instead.
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Neil just looked at him, and Wymack stared back. Neil got tired of the staredown first and finished off his breakfast. He started to get up to clear away his plate, but Wymack took it from him. Wymack dumped it in the dishwasher and poured himself a second cup of coffee. Instead of returning to the table he turned and leaned against the counter as he considered Neil.
"I'm starting to think I misjudged you," Wymack said. "I just don't know how or where. I know I'm not completely wrong, but you're still not adding up right."
"Now you sound like Andrew."
"That's because they're his words," Wymack said. When Neil frowned at him, Wymack shrugged and knocked back some of his coffee. "First day of practice I told everyone Edgar Allan had transferred districts, you remember? Andrew spent that night here with me. At first I figured he was mad at Kevin for lying to him, but he was more worked up about you. I mostly tuned him out then, but I probably should have listened."
"Andrew and I are working on our trust issues. Sort of."
"He says you're a pathological liar," Wymack said. "I'm starting to believe him."
"It's what I was raised to be," Neil said.
"Attempt to tell the truth at least once," Wymack said.

A truth like that put everyone on edge, coach might had thought that it was a lie but watching the truth right in front of them it was clear that Neil was right.
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"Tell me why someone who came here early to get away from his parents and who flinched away from me the first time he thought I was going to strike him goes so far out of his way to offend someone like Riko Moriyama. I would have thought you'd have better survival instincts."
Neil slouched a little in his chair and fidgeted with the edge of the table. Wymack deserved some sort of explanation, but the only one Neil had to offer was one he'd hoped to avoid sharing.
"Riko's my age," Neil said, trying not to choke on his words. "If you knew what my parents were capable of you'd understand why I don't trust men who are old enough to be my father. I know here," Neil gestured at his temple, "that you're not going to hurt me, but it's instinctive to react. I'm sorry."

What Neil said had most looking like they were sick, Neil’s father was a serial killer a psycho working for the mafia, Neil’s mother who came from her own crime family had gotten her 10 year old son and run away, running from people that were out to kill them. It hurt to see him apologizing for something that is not his fault.
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"Why did Riko say he bought me?" Neil asked.
Kevin was silent for so long Neil almost hoped this was all a sick dream, but finally Kevin spoke. "You're not really him," Kevin said, so low Neil barely understood his words. "Tell me you aren't really Nathaniel."
Neil tried not to flinch at the sound of his real name and didn't quite succeed. "Don't call me that. It doesn't matter who I used to be. I'm Neil now."
"It is not that simple," Kevin said, louder and dismayed. "Why are you here?"
"I had nowhere else to go," Neil said. "When you showed up in Arizona I thought you'd come because you recognized me, but then you gave no sign you remembered me. I thought maybe I could stay until you figured things out."
"You thought," Kevin said, voice sharp with something too hysterical to be scorn. "You are a fucking idiot."
"I was desperate," Neil shot back.
"I can't believe your mother agreed to this."
"My mother is dead," Neil said. Kevin opened his mouth, but Neil
didn't want to hear it. "She died last year and I buried her on the west coast. I have nothing and no one else, Kevin. That's why I signed with you. I figured the chances of you remembering me were slim and I gambled on you not knowing the truth about my family."
"How could we not remember you?" Kevin asked.
Neil shook his head. "I didn't know when I came here that the Moriyamas and my father were business partners."
"They were not partners." Kevin sounded almost as offended as Riko had.
"I didn't know," Neil repeated. "Until Coach told me about the Moriyamas this May I knew nothing about Riko's family. After that I thought maybe that's why we met so long ago. I thought Riko's father and mine were discussing territories and borders. But last night Riko said my father belongs to the Moriyamas. What did he mean by that? Why did he say he bought me?"
"Don't lie to me," Kevin said. "We are in enough trouble as it is."
"My mother didn't tell me why we were running," Neil said. "I never asked her why she finally had enough. I was just glad to get away. We never talked about anything real after that. It was always about the weather or our current language or the local culture—the next time she had anything meaningful to say to me was when she was dying. Even then she didn't talk about my father. Not once did she mention the Moriyamas. If she had, I wouldn't be here right now, would I? So tell me the truth."
Kevin stared at him for an endless minute, then scrubbed fiercely at his face and muttered something in hoarse Japanese. Neil considered reaching out and shaking him, but Kevin dropped his hands to his lap and explained.
"Your father was Lord Kengo's right-hand man, the most trusted weapon in Lord Kengo's arsenal. The territory he held, he held for the Moriyamas. He was the force that kept the empire in line and the name that would take the fall if the government ever caught on.
"His power made you a loose end. You could never inherit his syndicate," Kevin said.
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"Lord Kengo handpicks his people very carefully to bolster his throne. Nepotism fractures that upward loyalty and leads families to think of their own successes first. He could have had you killed to keep things simple, but he gave you a chance to earn your keep. Your mother enrolled you in little leagues so you could learn Exy. The day you met us was your audition."
"Wait," Neil said. "Wait. What?"
"You were supposed to be like me," Kevin said. "You were a gift, another player for the master to train. You had two days to win him over: an initial scrimmage with us to show off your potential and a second scrimmage to prove you could adapt to and implement his instructions and criticisms. If afterward he decided you weren't worth his time you would be executed by your own father."

The air was thick with horror, two days to prove your worth or be killed by your father. They all had a question that they hoped was going to be answered soon.
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Neil swallowed hard. "How did I do?"

Neil asked the question everyone was dreading the answer to, they held their breath as they waited for the answer.
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"Your mother wouldn't risk failure," Kevin said. "You never made it to the second practice. She disappeared with you overnight."
The heat in Neil's stomach could have been nausea or rage, but he didn't know who he was angry at. His mother had hated his fascination with Exy his entire life. She'd told him over and over he'd never touch a racquet again but she never told him why. He couldn't understand why she had never explained the totality of what they were running from.

They released their breath but it was not that easy. Neil’s mother was a mystery she took her child and run risking their lives but at the same time she beat him half to death because he kissed a girl, it made them wonder why she didn’t say anything it was weird but they knew that they didn’t like her, yes she did save Neil but beating him because of kissing anyone was absurd.
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"I'm going to be sick," Neil said, getting to his feet.
He was halfway up before Kevin grabbed his wrist to stop him. "Nathaniel, wait."
Neil wrenched free so hard he almost sent Kevin sprawling. "Don't call me that!"
He backed out of Kevin's reach, but Kevin got to his feet as if to follow him. Neil put out a hand to warn him off.

Most signed and shook their heads at that Kevin’s tactics he never really knew when to give up, Andrew was looking at him from the side just looking with a blank stare.
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"Notoriety can't save a security risk like you," Kevin said. "You know too much. You could destroy your father's territory by speaking to the wrong people. They knew your mother would never betray her family to the Feds, but you are an unpredictable and frightened child."
Kevin shook his head and bulled on when Neil started to argue. "The master wants to salvage you. He's going to sign you to the Raven lineup in spring. So long as you keep quiet and keep your head down he won't tell the main family he's found you."
"I'm not a Raven," Neil said. "I never will be."
"Then run," Kevin insisted, low and frantic.

Chapter Text

Some looked at Kevin with a disapproving look “come on I meant it in a good way him staying is literally killing him, we saw how he came back after winter break“ they knew that what he was saying was true and it hurt to know.
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"It's the only way you'll survive."
Neil closed his eyes and tried to breathe. His heartbeat was loud as gunfire in his ears, drumming holes into his brain. He dug his hands into his shirt, trying to feel his scars through the cotton. When he breathed he smelled saltwater and blood. For a moment he was three thousand miles away, stumbling alone and broken down the highway toward San
Francisco. Neil's fingers ached with the need for a cigarette. His legs burned with the desire to run.
But Neil's feet stayed planted, and he opened his eyes again. "No." "Don't be stupid."
"Running won't save me this time," Neil said. "If the Moriyamas
really do think I'm a threat they'll send people after me. My mother and I could barely outrun my father. How am I supposed to escape his boss?"
"At least you'd have a chance," Kevin said quietly.
"A chance to die somewhere else all by myself," Neil said, and Kevin looked away.

They knew there was no other way that it could have been said it really was like that, he was on his own after his mother’s death and now he has them if he leaves he would be on his own but them knowing this couldn’t prevent the flinches that came from some.
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Neil crouched and pressed his hands to the orange paint. "I don't want to run. I don't want to be a Raven. I don't want to be Nathaniel. I want to be Neil Josten. I want to be a Fox. I want to play with you this year and I want us to make it to championships. And in spring when the Moriyamas come for me I'll do what they're so afraid I will. I'll go to the FBI and tell them everything. Let them kill me. It'll be too late by then."

If the horrified faces of some didn’t say much they were all shocked except Kevin who was there. Neil had just explained how he was going to die or a plan it made them sick and it showed even Andrew’s eyebrows had frowned it was horrible and no one moved or tried to say anything the were shocked at what had played.
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Kevin was silent for an endless minute, then said, "You should be Court."
It was barely a whisper, but it cut Neil to the bone. It was a resentful goodbye to the bright future Kevin had wanted for Neil. Kevin recruited Neil because he believed in Neil's potential. He brought him to the Foxes intending to make a star athlete out of him. Despite his condescending attitude and his dismissals of Neil's best efforts Kevin honestly expected Neil to make the national team after graduation. Now Kevin knew it was all for naught; Neil would be dead by May.
"Will you still teach me?" Neil asked.
Kevin was quiet again, but not for long this time. "Every night."

If that before took a toll on them this had everyone almost on tiers, gasping and sounds of surprise were everywhere. It was horrible to hear him say that he knew he was going to die even then he was ready to at least take them down with him.
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"Don't tell Andrew about any of this, Kevin."
"I can't," Kevin said. "He won't respect your choice."
Neil started for the door, but Kevin put a hand on his shoulder to stop him. "Neil."
There was a world of regret in that name, but it was a promise, too. Neil pulled himself back together piece by broken piece and followed Kevin off the Foxhole Court.

They understood the slightest bit why he didn’t want Andrew to know they had made a promise and now he was saying that he was dying, Andrew himself had his eyes narrowed not much but enough to know that he was considering it.
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"The coffee that interesting?"
Neil wondered if the Foxes secretly installed him with a tracking chip and turned towards Nicky's voice.

“That is a good idea” said Wymack sighing the tension from before slowly leaving from everyone.
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He and his mother had serious issues, consequence of her background and his terrifying childhood. By the end he wondered if it was survival or love that kept them together so long. Knowing now she'd run to protect him skewed his perspective a little, but he'd violently disliked her for half his life. Despite that, losing her was the worst thing that ever happened to him.

It was bad but good to hear at the same time since that meant that Neil knew how bad she treated him but then again had to live with that for years.
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"Andrew did care. That's what went wrong."
Nicky blinked at him. "What?"
"Andrew came home for Aaron, right? It wouldn't have taken him long to realize Aaron was a wreck. Andrew would have traced Aaron's problems back to their mother. Maybe he didn't kill her for giving him up. Maybe he did it to protect Aaron."
Nicky looked skeptical. "That is a seriously big maybe, Neil."
"Is it?" Neil asked. "Do you remember how Andrew ended up on his medication?"
"Yeah," Nicky said, then went quiet as he thought about it.
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"She was hurting Aaron, so Andrew stopped her," Neil said. "Aaron should have been grateful, but he mourned her like he didn't care what she'd done to them. He took sides."
"You really think so?"
"It makes sense to me," Neil said. It might even explain why Andrew hated Katelyn, though Neil wasn't sure which interpretation to go with: that Andrew wouldn't let another girl come between them, or that he was still punishing Aaron for choosing the wrong side three years ago. "I'm guessing they've never talked about how she died."

Everyone had their eyes on Andrew and Aaron to find answers except Renee who knew, what Neil was saying might have been a stretch but now it made more sense. The twins didn’t give anything ignoring the looks, Aaron looked angry but no one was sure if it was because of what Neil had just said or the whole story and Andrew might have even looked amused seeing how Neil just put the story right with just guessing but he was not going to say anything to the other and he didn’t really care about what his brother believed. “Oh come on is no one going to answer?” said Alison “bingo” said Andrew not even bothering to look back at her as she sighed.

Chapter Text

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Andrew and Aaron were nineteen for another month, Kevin was twenty, and Nicky was twenty-three. Apparently Neil overestimated their maturity level.

“Says the one that literally makes like a child when anything is said about the way he dresses himself” said Aaron glaring at everyone who had giggled.
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"Never mind. I'll find something for you."
"I'll dress up as a college student," Neil said.
"No," Nicky said, and pushed a couple hangers around. "You're going to be a zombie cowboy."
"You're making that up."
"Shhhh." Nicky pulled a costume off the rack and draped it over one arm. "You are absolutely impossible to put up with sometimes. I might ban you from shopping with us ever again."
"I tried banning myself last time," Neil said. "It obviously didn't work."

Some were now openly laughing “that just proves my point” said Aaron with a huff as he was annoyed.
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It had to be a big case; Higgins must be desperate if he'd crossed the country on his own dime for a lead. Neil said nothing about it to the others, though. Andrew hadn't given away any of Neil's secrets, so Neil wouldn't give up his.
The best he could do was change the subject. "Before I forget, Andrew said I could invite you to the Halloween party at Eden's Twilight. It's on the twenty-seventh."

“I still can’t believe he convinced him to let us” said Dan as she send a look at Andrew witch he openly ignored her.
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Having nine people along on a Friday night meant Andrew had to
make an actual reservation at Sweetie's, no matter that they got there at half-past ten. A small crowd of people was waiting at the hostess stand, but the L-shaped corner booth was marked with a RESERVED placard. The booth was technically intended for eight people, not nine in costumes, but it helped that Aaron and Andrew were pint-sized.

Everyone was gaping at that and Aaron looked the angriest of them all, Andrew on the other hand didn’t show much his eyebrow might have twitched and might have been a sign showing that he might be annoyed but no one saw it. It didn’t take long for the room to blast off laughing some laughing hard enough to bring tears and Aaron opted to glare at the others fuming.
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"Most everyone is waiting for something to happen with you two. Even Nicky thinks it's inevitable. But Renee promised Allison nothing would come of it. Allison said as much to Seth. Why?"
"Does it matter?"
Neil gave an uncomfortable shrug. "Yes? No? It should be—it is— irrelevant, but..." He hesitated, but Andrew said nothing, unwilling to make this easy on him. Neil shouldn't be surprised by Andrew's attitude, but he was annoyed regardless. "I'm just trying to understand."
"Sometimes you're interesting enough to keep around. Other times you're so astoundingly stupid I can barely stand the sight of you."
Neil scowled at him. "Forget it. I'll ask Renee."
"You'll have to stop avoiding her first."
Neil didn't waste his time answering that.

The laughter from before had long died and was over taken by confusion and it became stronger when Renee snickered just the slightest bit as she understood what Andrew meant and what happened the next time Neil came to talk with her “what are you not sharing with the class Renee?” asked Alison but sighed when Renee’s answer was a gesture of her zipping her lips shut “come on” said Alison as they continue.

Chapter Text

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"Fortunately for me, I was not as smart as I thought I was. When I was fifteen the police caught me, and my lawyer traded my testimony for a reduced sentence. My words got a lot of people in trouble, including my mother. My lawyer explained my home life so the court would understand my lack of positive role models. His findings sent both my mother and her then-lover to prison on assorted charges. They were beaten to death by angry members of the gang I helped put away."
"I'm sorry," Neil said, when in reality he was a little jealous. Both she and Wymack lost their parents to prison violence, but no one dared attack his father. It would solve a world of problems for Neil if a few inmates could just work up enough aggression and courage.

“The first time I saw someone being jealous about his parents not dying in prison, I mean definitely wish he dies there too but wow” said Nicky and he was right it’s not everyday that someone admits to wishing that his dad died in prison but everyone in the room understood.
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"Then why don't you and Andrew work?" Neil asked.
"I'm sorry," Renee said. "Work how?"
"Why haven't you asked him out?"
The look on her face said it was the last question she'd expected from
him.

“Oh maybe we will actually get an answer” said Alison with a smirk.
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She bought herself time by motioning Neil into the next shop. Neil went in first but stepped aside so she could lead the way. The look she gave him on her way by was assessing, but she turned to the task at hand soon enough and rummaged through the trinkets on the closest shelf.
"What is all this about, if you don't mind my asking?" she asked. "You've never seemed interested before."
"I'm not," Neil said, but that didn't make sense considering he'd been the one to bring it up.
Neil grasped for a good way to explain. He didn't want to tell her he'd spent Friday night thinking about dying. He hadn't wanted to think about a future he didn't have, so he stood at the railing and thought about his teammates instead.

That killed most of the energy in the room, Neil had admitted that he had spend his time thinking about dying and the only thing that could distract him was to think about them.
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"Never mind," he said.
He started to turn away, but Renee said, "I'm not Andrew's type, Neil. There's nothing between us."
"Allison said that," Neil said, searching Renee's face for the truth. "She told Seth not to worry about you two getting together. But the others are all waiting for something to happen. You have to know how many times they've bet on you. If you can say 'no' so easily to me, why haven't you set anyone else straight yet?"
"It's complicated," Renee said, "and we profit more from silence. Allison believed me when I said I wouldn't fall for Andrew. The others stopped listening when Andrew and I started talking more. I reward Allison's trust in me by stacking the odds in her favor on any bets about us. She and I split the proceeds.

“Hey that’s cheating” said Dan “No it’s not” said Alison with sass but was stopped from saying anything else by Matt “no it definitely counts as cheating” and Nicky followed with “it’s unfair” faking a motion of wiping his tears away, Alison scoffed and ignored them all after saying again that it was not cheating and Renee was watching with a smile not adding or saying anything.
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I put my winnings aside for our Christmas Adopt-a-Family project. Allison buys manicures with hers."
"How does Andrew benefit?" Neil asked. "Free entertainment watching everyone guess?"
"Peace of mind," Renee said after a moment's consideration.
"I don't understand."
Renee hesitated again. Neil watched as she rummaged through a
collection of leather wallets. She held one up and turned it this way and that. "Andrew said you would have questions for me. I asked him what he wanted me to say if you came by, but he said he didn't care and didn't have time to play moderator. If he knew this was what you wanted to talk about I'll assume he knew this would come up."
Renee put the wallet back, let her fingers linger a few seconds longer as she debated, then turned to face Neil fully. "When I said I wasn't Andrew's type, I meant it. It's not about my looks or faith. It's that I'm a woman."
Neil heard her words but was slow to understand them.

The silence that filled the room was loud and it stayed like that for a while before it all just exploded with talking coming from most of them and was in the middle of it acting like he hears nothing scratching his ear looking at the far wall as everyone that was not talking (Aaron, Dan, Kevin) were looking at him with jaws open, the only one that didn’t say anything were Wymack and Renee because they both knew.
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He blinked at her in confusion, blinked again when it clicked, and said a little too loudly, "Oh. Then Andrew and Kevin—" Renee laughed and waved that off. "Oh, no. You'll meet Kevin's girlfriend later this year, I'm sure."

The loudness of before was gone in a heartbeat as everyone watched the screen some turning to look at Kevin and Andrew, Andrew was still ignoring them but Kevin was as shocked almost horrified and everyone was laughing at this point. The shocked voice from before having turned to laughter.
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"You're lying." Neil stared at her.
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He was more curious how Kevin found room in his heart for someone else when he lived and breathed Exy. It seemed impossible that a man could be so devoted to more than one thing.

“He says that about Kevin but he is not better himself” said Nicky.
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"I do not know your story," she continued before Neil could react. "If you've trusted Andrew with anything, he hasn't shared the details with me and he never will. But if you are as like us as we first predicted you to be, perhaps one day you can also come to see me as a friend. We're all here because we have problems, Neil. That doesn't mean all our problems are the same. Dan and Matt try to understand the things I've seen and done, but they will never fully succeed. Andrew understands me, and I him. It's comforting knowing someone else has been where we once were. If either Andrew or I can help you, please know we are here."
Neil didn't answer that; he couldn't. It was too much to think about and too much to consider. He wanted to ask her about the trial and what it was like giving testimony. He needed to know how the courts protected her and if it was worth it. If he went to the FBI in spring with proof to take his father down he'd at least like an idea of what he was getting into.

“I would have been happy to answer that but I understand his hesitation” said Renee with a sad smile.
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Andrew gave up the farce a couple seconds later and laughed. "Guess she hit him one time too many. I warned her not to lay a hand on him, but she didn't listen to me. She got what was coming to her. Does that frighten you, Neil?"
"My first memories are of people dying," Neil said. "I'm not afraid of you."
"That's why you're so interesting," Andrew said. "How aggravating."
He sounded amused, not annoyed, so Neil said, "I'll try to be more boring in the future."
"How considerate."

The room got quiet and everyone remembered the conversation that Nicky and Neil had at the library, seeing how Neil had come to the right conclusion. Aaron didn’t say anything still not able to accept it with a hard look on his face, he looked at his brother but Andrew only glanced back before going back to what he was doing.

Chapter Text

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Racquets had a few inches of leeway to account for players' different heights. Neil was stuck with the shortest racquets available. He had his mother to blame for that: the Hatfords had never been a tall bunch. He supposed he should be grateful he was at least taller than Andrew and Aaron were.

Aaron was heard making a offended noise as his face changed to annoyance and anger making the quietness from before disappear as the room laughed with what Neil said and if anyone saw the twitch of Andrew’s eyebrow no one commented on it.
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The weighted vest provided by Exites went over his clothes and reminded him a little of the Kevlar vest his mother gave him in Europe.

“Huh so he had a Kevlar vest but still managed to get shot” said Aaron reminding everyone of the bullet scar they had seen, they all looked at him with disapproval even Andrew shot a glance before going back to ignoring everything and everyone.
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Neil brought his racquet into the backseat of the car with him, not wanting such an expensive thing crammed into the trunk. Andrew had either forgotten their argument upstairs or had his attitude reset again by his medicine, because he knotted his fingers through the strings of Neil's new racquet and gave a curious tug.

“Damm the racquet getting the princess treatment” said Dan with a smile but it was not as bright as it could be because everyone knew what they were closing close to and it made the atmosphere just the dat bit darker.
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"I'll find Andrew," Neil promised in English.
"There is no need to worry," Maria said before Neil could duck inside again. "In fact, I think it's promising he has been gone this long. He'll come back when he's finished speaking with Drake."
Neil's heart skipped a beat. "What?"
"This dinner was not originally our idea," Luther said. "One of Andrew's former foster brothers came to us for help. They parted on unfriendly terms years ago, and it's been so long since they last spoke he's afraid their relationship is irreparably damaged. It made us think of our own familial problems and we were inspired to reach out again."
Luther's voice was a buzz in Neil's head, overlaid with Higgins' insistent pleas for Andrew's help. The investigation into Richard Spear was a dead end, Higgins said. Richard wasn't the man Higgins wanted to charge. He wasn't the one the Spears' foster children were too afraid to implicate. Higgins had a new suspect in mind, but Andrew threw him out of South Carolina as soon as he heard Drake's name.
"Drake," Neil said. "Was his last name Spear? Was he Richard and Cass' son?"
Luther looked hesitant. "Andrew has spoken to you about him?"
Neil let the door slam closed behind him and bolted across the kitchen. Andrew had been gone a while. Either Drake was dead or Andrew was in serious trouble. Neil didn't know which one it was but he wasn't going to this showdown empty-handed. He was good at picking fights, but he rarely won them. That didn't mean he couldn't stack the
odds in his favor.
He grabbed Aaron for backup because Aaron was closer than Kevin was and snatched his racquet on the way into the hall.

The situation made everyone sick down to their stomach, they didn’t want to know what would have happened if Neil hadn’t thought like that and the fact that Neil taking the racquet with him in the house because of how pricey it was was a good thing.
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Neil took a half-second to brace himself and drove the heel of his foot into the door as close to the knob as he could. Wood splintered around his shoe and his heel almost got caught on the jagged edges when he yanked it free.
"Jesus fuck—" Aaron started, startled, but Neil gave the door another savage kick.
This time the door popped open. Neil stumbled inside.

If they didn’t know what was happening and it was on other circumstances they might have said something about how cool that was but it didn’t feel right this moment.
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(The pounding of footsteps somewhere behind him said Kevin was running upstairs to investigate the commotion.
Neil dove forward and climbed onto the mattress at Andrew's side. He reached over him, snagged the edge of the sheets, and gave a fierce yank to free it from Drake's corpse. Neil only had the bloody sheet partway over Andrew's body before Kevin reached them. Neil didn't know how much Kevin saw. He couldn't look back to see Kevin's reaction, but the thud said Kevin recoiled from the sight in front of him and backed right into the doorframe.)

They didn’t see what was happening but they could hear it and it was still to much some had held their breaths, Aaron had anger sipping from all over him, Nicky was silently crying, Kevin wasn’t even looking at the screen even if it was black and Andrew appeared to not be carrying but it was there, the clench of his jaw and the grip he had on his chair it was horrible, they were at least happy that he was now dead.

Chapter Text

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"They arrested Aaron," Neil said.
"I know," Wymack said.
"Why?"
"Someone died on the other end of his racquet."
"It wasn't his," Neil said. "It was mine. The police took it as evidence. Will they give it back or am I going to have to get a new one?" Wymack exhaled smoke into the air between them.

“Did he really?” said Matt as he looked at Wymack with a deadpanned expression, Wymack didn’t say anything he just nodded as he let a sigh.
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The wind ripped the cloud to shreds as quickly as it formed. Neil watched Wymack watch him, then turned his attention to his cigarette. He turned it over and over between his fingers. There was still dried blood beneath his fingernails. For a moment he thought it was his mother's, clinging stubbornly to his hands after all these years. He gave his cigarette a violent shake,
dislodging those thoughts with the first clump of ash.
"Neil," Wymack said.
Neil knew that tone too well. "I'm fine."
"Give me that bullshit answer one more time and see what happens,"
Wymack said. "I stopped by the station on the way here and got a censored rundown of things. The police have labeled you as a hostile witness, you know. They said you wouldn't talk to them, not even to give them your name. They had to get that from Kevin."
"I'm fine," Neil said again. "I just don't like talking to cops." "Then don't talk to them," Wymack said. "Talk to me." "What do you want me to say?"
"The truth," Wymack said.
"No."
"Why not?"
Neil shook his head. He didn't know how to explain the fear eating a
hollow knot in his chest. Something like this demanded complete honesty, and Neil had been lying since he was old enough to speak. He didn't know how to tell the truth now. If he tried, would it still be the truth, or would he poison the words by saying them aloud? Would it be instinctive to twist it? He wouldn't risk it. Andrew didn't deserve that.

Familiar quietness filled the room as sadness overtook everyone, suddenly Neil’s words held more weight than ever before.
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"I was off-balance from kicking in the door, so Aaron was faster than I was. He caught Drake right here." He touched his head where his racquet had shattered Drake's skull. "It was a heavy, so it only took one hit. If Andrew gave you the p-card, that means the police are keeping my racquet, aren't they?"

“wow he is still stuck with the racquet and wanting it back” said Alison, there were no smart remarks it was just a remark the whole situation making it unable for anyone to make any smart remarks or jokes.
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"Would you want it back?" Betsy asked.
"Do you have any idea how much it cost?" Neil asked. "Yes, I want it back."
"It wouldn't bother you that it was used as a murder weapon?"
"It didn't kill anyone important."
"Interesting," Betsy said, but she didn't elaborate until she'd pulled
into a department store parking lot.

No one said anything, they didn’t support Neil for wanting the racquet back but everyone agreed with Neil.
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After his childhood home in Baltimore, the Hemmicks' house was the last place in the world Neil wanted to be. Andrew's car was still parked at the curb, and Betsy pulled up behind it. She offered Neil a key, but Neil made no move to take it. His brain connected the pieces but refused to accept the final picture. Andrew wouldn't even let Aaron and Kevin drive his car.
"You do have a license, don't you?" Betsy asked.
Neil had a couple, but none had his current name on it. "Yes."

“And he is aloud to drive the car? Did he even actually do the drivers test” said Aaron with a scoff.
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The door was ajar by several inches this morning, but someone had thought to tape a blanket to the doorframe like a makeshift curtain. Neil yanked it down so Luther and Maria would have to fix it again and tossed it off to one side.

There was not really something to add it made everyone sick to see but there was the slightest satisfaction with seeing what Neil did.

Chapter Text

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"Trust you." Andrew enunciated each word like he'd never heard them before. He laughed curled his fingers tight around Neil's chin. "You lie, and lie, and lie, and you think I'll trust you with his life?"
"Then don't trust 'Neil'," Neil said. "Trust me." "Oh, but who are you? Do you have a name?" "If you need one, call me Abram."
"Should I believe that?"
"I'm named after my father," Neil said. "Abram is my middle name; it's the name my mother used when she was trying to protect me from his work." It was the name he went by at his little league practices so the coach would actually let him play. It was strange hearing it aloud when no one had called Neil "Abram" in eight years.
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Neil waited, but Andrew didn't let go. With so many people watching them Neil couldn't lift his shirt. He did the next best thing and dragged one of Andrew's hands under the hem. He pressed Andrew's palm to the ugly scarring across his abdomen. Andrew's eyes dropped to Neil's shirt like he could see Neil's marred skin through the dark cotton.
"Do you understand?" Neil asked. "Nothing Riko does will make me leave him. We will both be here when you get back."
Andrew's fingers twitched against Neil's skin. "Someone lied to me. These ouches feel a little rough for a child on the run."
"The story I gave you was mostly true," Neil said. "I might have left out some critical details, but I know you're not really surprised by that. If we survive this year and you're still interested, you can ask me for them later. I think it's your turn in our secrets game, anyway."

“Yea might have left some critical details out” said Wymack.

Chapter Text

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"When Andrew finds out you've stolen his car," Matt started, but left the rest of the threat unspoken.
"Andrew knows," Neil said. "He left me his key."
Matt stared at him, startled. He opened his mouth, then closed it again. When Neil frowned at him, Matt only shook his head. Neil let it go.

Quick laughter was heard and Matt looked kind of embarrassed, what he really thought at first he didn’t mean anything bad.
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"Okay, seriously," Matt said. "What do you have against us? Andrew I sort of understand. You, I can't figure out. What have we ever done to you?"
"Besides pay your bail," Nicky supplied helpfully. "Aaron, we're going."
Aaron opened his mouth, closed it again, and fixed Nicky with an annoyed look. "You're explaining this to Andrew when he gets back."
"Oh, hell no," Nicky said, and jerked a thumb at Neil. "I'mma leave that one to him. Thanks for taking one for the team, Neil. You're a real friend." Nicky grinned over at Neil,

The laughter was loud now with everyone remembering the day, Andrew on the other hand just watched his narrowed eyes could have been past as him being pissed but there really was no heat he was just watching.
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"I'm trying to eat here," Wymack said.
"Coach doesn't have a sentimental bone in his body," Nicky told Neil. "I don't know what Abby sees in him. He must be really good in—"
"Another word and you're on dish duty," Abby said, and Nicky wisely shut up.

Before some had tried to hide their laughter but now no one really tried to as Wymack looked pissed and Abby embarrassed.
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Kevin had watched the exchange where he was sitting against the
entertainment center. When Nicky sighed and subsided, Kevin spoke up in French. "I will watch you. If you want to drink tonight," he added when Neil looked at him. "I won't let you say something you'll regret."

It went quiet as they listened to what Kevin said, it was surprising it might have even been the first time Kevin said something like that them being shocked was an understatement even Andrew’s eyebrows had shot up. They turned to look at Kevin shock clear on everyone’s faces “oh come on” said Kevin with a huff his hands moving “what’s wrong with you people” he continued “are you okay?” said Nicky with concern and Kevin answered with a glare and middle finger.
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It wouldn't have been a problem, except somehow a cheerleader ended up between Kevin and Neil. Neil recognized Marissa from the night they played JD Campbell. He didn't remember much else about her, except that she was Katelyn's roommate, but judging by the brilliant smile on her face that was good enough for her.

“Ah I remember that, poor girl” said Nicky wiping a fake tear away as the others that were there nodded, Wymack and Abby were confused and Andrew had a idea of what was going to happen.
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Neil regretted talking to her almost immediately, because she hounded him the rest of dinner. Neil had grown up making small talk with a thousand strangers all over the world, but he was long out of practice. He spent all of his time with the Foxes now, and they'd outgrown those shallow conversations months ago. If Marissa would at least talk about Exy Neil could stomach it, but she bounced between every other possible topic in the world. Neil had taken the outside seat on the bench but he still felt trapped. Leaving the restaurant after dinner was such a relief it left Neil a little lightheaded.

Snickering was heard from some seeing how bored Neil was.
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They stopped at the crosswalk to say their goodbyes and Katelyn made sure to give Aaron a kiss goodnight. Neil wasn't interested in watching, but when he turned away he found Marissa in his path again.
"I can give you my number," Marissa said.
Neil didn't remember asking for it at any point that night. "What for?"

“How can someone be so dense” said Alison with a smile as she rolled her eyes.
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It wasn't the response she was expecting, judging by the way her smile twitched. She was quick to rally, though, and she laid a hand on his arm. "I would like to get to know you better. I think we could have a lot of fun together, just the two of us. You're very interesting, Neil."
She wasn't the first to say that, but Neil wondered if Andrew's opinion of him would change when he was off his medication.

The looks from the people that were past around the room said everything, Wymack shook his head as he sighed saying that it was above his pay grade.
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"I don't know," Neil said. "They haven't mentioned it."
"Just don't spend it here, okay?" Matt asked. "If you don't have anywhere to go I'll drag you home with me. Mom's been wanting to meet the monsters, anyway, and her house is big enough to fit all of you. Just let me know."
Neil needed a moment to process that. "Thanks. I'll pass it along."
Matt nodded and went back to work.

They knew that that had been the plan till the last moment where Neil had lied about having other plans, well it was the truth only that he lied about where he was going. It made them all feel bad since they didn’t know and so try to stop him but when they found out it was to late. The question was why? Why did he go? Maybe there was more to it then what Neil had said.
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Neil turned back to his own assignment, but his thoughts had derailed too far for him to call them back. Instead he drew fox paws down the border of his paper until Kevin came for him.

“I can’t that kid is going to kill me” said Alison who was answered by Nicky nodding with agreement both acting like they had a near heart failure.
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He slid one contact out of the way for a moment, needing to see the chilly blue of his real eyes, and took strength in that.
He'd told Andrew he would stand with Kevin no matter what. He didn't intend to break that promise. "Neil" might be an easily-spooked runaway, and "Nathaniel" was a hunted young man, but "Abram" was the one shielded from and untouched by his father's bloody business. Neil would pull on every murder he'd seen and every endless, desperate night, and he'd face Riko unflinching. It was the least he could do. It was all he could do.

Breathes were held for a while and then let go as they fed of the information with Andrew’s eyebrows coming down to a frown.
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He was halfway through dinner before he realized he had yet to speak to Renee.
"Sorry," he said.
Renee sent him a curious look. "Why?"
"I'm not trying to ignore you."
"It's all right if you do," Renee said. "Kevin needs you more than I
do."
Neil nodded gratitude for her understanding.

“Did I hear it right he didn’t mean to ignore her” said Aaron with fake emotion and surprise, some laughed since they now had seen how hard Neil had tried to avoid her but Renee herself was smiling since she was just happy that there was nothing to worry about.
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"Your lack of survival instincts is supremely distressing," Riko said. "Take that look off your face before I carve it off."
Neil hadn't realized he was smiling too, a cruel look he'd inherited from his father. Neil lowered his cup so Riko could get a better look at it. "I would love to see you try. You think I'm afraid of your knife? I'm the Butcher's son."

Wymack sighed since he knew how it was going to end, he send a deadly glare towards Nicky when he herd him talk about how he was finally going to see Neil hit Riko.
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"That's three strikes." Riko dragged a finger across his throat and rolled his head against his gesture. "I am disappointed in you, Kevin. You promised the master you would take care of this. Obviously you have not, and I am very curious as to why."
"He tried," Neil said. "It didn't take."
Riko pressed a thumb to Neil's cheekbone, in the same spot where the three had their numbered tattoos.

“Someone really needs to put him in his place” said Alison rolling her eyes.

Chapter Text

“Someone really needs to put him in his place” said Alison rolling her eyes.
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"Do us all a favor and do not speak again. Your insolence has already cost you two teammates. You cannot even imagine what is coming next."
Hearing Riko confirm he'd orchestrated Seth's death made Neil sick with anger.
Andrew and Kevin had said it, but Wymack had written it off as paranoia.
Neil hadn't believed Andrew because he hadn't wanted to, but that what-if had followed him all semester.
Neil held up his free hand and showed Riko his steady fingers. "I'm shaking with fear."
"You should be," Riko said. "You think you can defy me because I am not your father, but you are forgetting one very important fact: I am the family your father was afraid of. And yes, Nathaniel, he was very afraid."
Neil lowered his hand and leaned close. "Not of you," he said, with fierce emphasis. "You're not part of that family, remember? You're the cast-off."
He hoped it would hit, but he didn't realize how deep it would cut. He'd never seen that look on Riko's face but he knew he'd signed his death warrant.

The silence that took over the room was the longest it ever had been as everyone was processing what Neil had said “No way, oh my god he didn’t” said Matt shock clear in his voice but he was still unable to hide the clearly there smile he had as he started laughing with everyone else even Andrew couldn’t keep his smirk hidden as his eyebrows shoot up with amused.
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Neil dragged his attention back to Riko's face. "I think I hit a nerve."
Riko moved like lightning, smacking the cup from Neil's hand and catching hold of his wrist. He gave a brutal twist that sent knives up Neil's arm. Neil choked on a pained curse and grabbed Riko's arm to stop him. He couldn't pry Riko's hand off but if Riko turned his wrist another half-inch he'd break something.

All they could do was watch, they knew that nothing happened to his hand but still they knew what Riko was capable of doing a good example was Kevin’s own hand, talking about Kevin poor dude looked about ready to puke his guts out and Andrew was gripping his chair’s armrest no one knows how that thing has not broken yet but who where they to say anything.
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Riko looked over his shoulder as if expecting Andrew to materialize from thin air. He let go of Neil but Neil couldn't breathe, much less move to put space between them. Two teammates, Riko had said. Neil's insolence had cost him two teammates, but Seth was only one.
Riko turned back on Neil and wagged a finger as if just remembering. "Ah, but that's right. I heard they carted him away.
Something about his brother fucking him brainless, yes? How scandalous. How traumatizing."
"Don't," Neil said.

You could hear a needle drop with such silence. Anger was building by the second and it did not help that that assholes was not done with what he was saying.
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Riko ignored him. "Drake was an interesting man, wasn't he? I should thank the police for leading me straight to him. I might not have discovered him otherwise. Did you know, Nathaniel? Oakland lawyers are some of the cheapest to buy off. It only took three phone calls to arrange the whole thing."
"You set Andrew up."
"That isn't even the best part." Riko smiled when Neil shook his head and continued. "Did you know I've bought one of the doctors at Easthaven, too? Unless you want these little therapy sessions of his to turn into therapeutic reenactments, you will be on a plane to West Virginia tomorrow morning. Jean will give your ticket to Kevin. Do you understand me?"

If all what everyone was feeling before was bad this was even worse, Neil really only said half of what Riko had said or maybe not even half. “If Neil hadn’t punched his face in I swear to god I would have happily done so for him” said Matt expression dark just like everyone’s else even Wymack had a good grip on his chair all except Andrew he knew about the ‘deal’ and he knew it was not kept but he didn’t move to explain to anyone from what it looked like they were going to see anyway.
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Neil didn't have words, so he answered with his fist. He didn't have a lot of room to swing but he made do and caught Riko right in his vulgar mouth. It knocked Riko back a step, giving Neil a little more space, and Neil caught him in the eye next.

“Matt was right it is beautiful” said Nicky as silent cheers were heated, “that was so well deserved, it’s satisfying to see” said Dan.
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Neil wanted a gun. He'd settle for Andrew's knives, but those were hidden under his pillow at Palmetto State. He dug his fingers into Wymack's arm hard enough he'd leave bruises for sure and smiled so hard it hurt.
"Yes," he said, because what else could he say? "I understand." "Apology accepted," Riko said.

“Come one not even a good punch could not even knock him out of his high horse even just for the slightest” said Alison with a dramatic eye roll.
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Neil sucked in a shaky breath and looked at Kevin. In French he asked, "Did you get it? My ticket?" Kevin stared at him and through him, too stunned to understand or respond. "Kevin, look at me."
"I'm going to kill him," Nicky said.
"No," Neil said, with a ferocity that had even Matt eyeing him warily. "We've got to break him first. If Exy is the only thing he cares about we're going to take it away from him. First we destroy his reputation, then we destroy him. I don't want us to lose a single game this spring. Can we do that?"
"Not a single damn game," Dan said in a hard voice.
Neil looked around at them, at the cold rage on their faces, and focused on Kevin. He tried again in French with an insistent, "Do you have my ticket?"
"You're not going," Kevin said. "Do you know what he'll do to you?"
"Do you know what he'll do to Andrew if I don't go?" Neil said. "I don't have a choice. I have to go. You have to trust me."
"He will break you."
"He wishes he knew how," Neil said. "Trust me. I promise I'll come back, and when I do I'll bring Andrew back with me. It's going to be fine. So do you have my ticket or don't you?"
Kevin pressed his lips into a hard, white line and looked away. "I have it."

“I can’t believe it you guys were talking about him going right in front of us” said Dan, she glanced at Kevin but didn’t say anything else since Kevin didn’t look his best.

Chapter Text

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How Neil was supposed to tell any of them his plans had changed, he didn't know. There was no way he could tell them the truth. None of them would let him go through with it. It was a small miracle Kevin was going along with this.

“Yea no shit” said Wymack with a sigh as he sunk dipper in his chair kicking his legs forward.
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Neil dropped his pillow again, then realized he had a way out. He grabbed his phone, flipped it open, and put it to his ear. When Nicky pushed the bedroom door open without knocking, Neil struck up a conversation with no one at all.
"Yes, I saw it," Neil said, glancing at Nicky to acknowledge his entrance.
Nicky had his mouth open on a greeting but went quiet when he realized Neil was on the phone. Instead of leaving, Nicky got comfortable against the doorframe to wait him out. Neil had counted on Nicky's curiosity. In the months since they first handed Neil this phone they'd never once seen him make a call on it. Neil signaled to Nicky that he was almost finished and half-turned away.
"What did you expect? You waited this long to figure it out. By now I've already made other plans. I—" Neil cut himself off, listened a moment, and bulled on. "But how long have you known he was coming? You could have said something. I don't know. I said I don't know. I'd have to—" Neil scrubbed a hand across his eyes as if the entire conversation was exhausting to deal with. "Okay. Goodbye."
He clicked his phone shut and dropped it off to one side.
For a minute, silence reigned.

“Come on it’s not my fault that Neil is a good liar” said Nicky as a answered to the looks he got from the rest, they weren’t better they all had believed it.
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Facing Riko like this went against everything his mother taught him. He'd been raised to run, to sacrifice everything and everyone to ensure his own survival. His mother had never given him ground to stand on. Maybe that was why he hadn't been strong enough to save her in the end. A jumble of lies had nothing to fight for. But Neil Josten was a Fox. Andrew called this home; Nicky called him family. Neil wasn't going to lose any of it. If two weeks with Riko was the price to keep his team safe, Neil would pay it.

They were stunned but at the same time sad, they were happy to hear that they meant something to him but at the same time it felt wrong, they could only imagine how bad it would be there.
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"This isn't a team," Neil said. "It's a cult."

“No he is right it really looks like a cult” said Alison with a disgusted expression.
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"I have some bad news for you," Neil said. "I can't outscore Raven strikers."
"It is not them you need to outplay," Jean said. "You are not a striker anymore. You never should have been one in the first place. The master is moving you to defense where you belong. He will want to know why you abandoned your position. I hope you have a good explanation for him."
"It wasn't my idea," Neil said. "Coach Hernandez had a full defense line. It was offense or nothing at all and I just wanted to play."
Neil told Hernandez he'd never touched a racquet before because he couldn't give Hernandez the names of his past coaches and teams. When Neil was recruited to the Millport Dingoes, though, it wasn't his eight- year absence from Exy that made him so clumsy on the court. It was that Neil played little leagues as a backliner. He'd had to learn the game all over again from scratch.

It surprised them all but they wanted to know how he was as a backliner it would be interesting.
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"My family has belonged to the Moriyamas since before they came to the United States. There is nowhere else for me to go, just as there is no place for you but here. Kevin is not like us; he is valuable but he is not property in the same sense. He escaped because he had family to run to."
"Andrew?" Neil guessed.
"I said family, you hard-of-hearing imbecile," Jean said. "His father. Your coach."

The reveal shocked everyone as it let no room for anyone to comment on these funny insults Jean was saying. Kevin already looked guilty and about ready to just drink it all away, he refused to look at anyone when they turned to look at him, out of everyone that looked shocked Dan looked furious “Kevin what the fuck” she said “why didn’t you say anything” same continued “I-“ Kevin tried to say something but he couldn’t but as Dan was about to say anything else Andrew cut in “come on captain Kevin here he is scared even from his own shadow” “that doesn’t count as a excuse” but before it could spiral anymore Abby put a stop to it “let’s continue this after, Dan I do understand your anger but you have to understand Kevin too” and with that Dan sat down as she said something under her breath most likely a insult towards Kevin.
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Tetsuji had brought an ornate walking cane with him. Neil had never seen him with it before and hoped that meant Tetsuji was suffering some sort of injury or illness.
Riko let his uncle enter the room first and locked the door behind them. Neil spared a moment to wonder who installed locks on a changing room door, but he pushed that thought away as quick as he could. He couldn't afford to be distracted when facing this man.
Tetsuji crossed the room to stand before him. "Nathaniel Wesninski," he said, like he found every syllable wanting. "Kneel."
Neil hid his hands in his pockets so he could clench them into fists. "No."
He thought Jean said his name, but it was barely louder than a breath of air. Neil didn't look back at him. He didn't think it was his imagination that Riko took a half-step back to put more space between himself and his uncle. A man who could keep even Riko in line wasn't a man to challenge so carelessly, but Neil had no choice.

Kevin had a look of horror on he looked ready to throw up “he is stupid” said Kevin more like whispered but the room was quite enough for it to be carried around the room for everyone to hear it made everyone anxious to see what would come next.
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"You will kneel," Tetsuji said.
Neil had a feeling he was going to regret this for the rest of his very short life, but he smiled and said, "Make me."
He saw the cane come up, but it was too fast for him to dodge.

They all were shocked even Andrew’s cold face showed surprise even the slightest amount, it was horrifying to see it happen.
This was bad very bad, Neil had just gotten beaten be a cane because he refused to listen and in here everyone knew that Neil was not someone that would listen to anything and knowing that his stay there would be for two weeks made it worse. It made them all angry, it left them wishing they could have done something to help but it was too late now.
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"Keep away from me," Neil said.
Riko pulled a switchblade from his pocket and flicked it open. "I thought you weren't afraid of my knives, Nathaniel. Was that a lie to make yourself feel better?"

“Oh my” started Nicky but couldn’t finish as fear show not only on his face but most of the others too, the only Indikator that gave away Andrew was the grip he resumed on his chair.
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Riko slipped the knife into Neil's mouth and pushed, hard enough to break the skin at the corner of Neil's mouth but not deep enough to do any real damage. "Shut up and lie down," Riko said. "We don't have a lot of time, and I promised the master to have you in line before night practice."
"I hate you," Neil said around the blade.
"Lie down," Riko said again, "and put your hands on the headboard." Neil stretched out on his back and reached over his head. Jean caught
his hands to guide them to the right place. Neil felt wood under his fingertips and grabbed hold. Jean let go of him only to snap cold metal over his wrists. Neil tried to look but the knife in his mouth wouldn't let him move. Riko felt him tense, though, and withdrew his blade. Neil looked up and regretted it immediately. Metal cuffs locked his hands to the headboard. He yanked his arms as hard as he could, nearly skinning his wrists in the effort, but the headboard didn't even creak.
"Who is your King, Nathaniel?" Riko asked.
Neil spat in his face.
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Riko pressed the knife to Neil's chest and slipped the edge under his skin.
"I'm going to make this as terrible as I know how," Riko promised him. "When it's too much for you, don't hesitate to cry."

Andrew‘s jaw could be see clenching as his knuckles were white from how hard he was holding on the armrest, his eyes dark but he was not the only one that was effected everyone had different reactions some on the edge of tears as they spoke but everything was just white noise for Andrew, he couldn’t hear anything only the buzzing that had taken over his ears. If everyone thought Riko was a psycho this confirmed it not that anyone in the room though otherwise but not long after the horror everyone felt came anger, anger towards Riko and his I am king so I am untouchable complex, anger that all this is being hidden away and anger towards themselves for not seeing through Neil’s lie and not stopping him but what could they really do? They knew that with Neil there Andrew would be unharmed it feels wrong to say that they hoped he didn’t go but seeing Neil like that broke them they just hope Riko kept his promise.

Chapter Text

The anger from before after they saw what Riko was doing was still there present as ever, Andrew on the other hand his anger might not be as present in his expression but deep inside he was furious, he knew that that stupid martyr went through all the for nothing.
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Wymack answered on the fourth ring. "You have a good reason to be bothering me on a holiday?"
"I didn't know who else to call," Neil said. He barely recognized his own voice. The last time he'd spoken he'd been screaming; apparently his vocal cords still hadn't recovered. Neil pressed his forehead to the wall and tried to breathe. He couldn't remember when breathing wasn't a chore.
"Neil?" All the gruff posturing left Wymack's voice; that sharp edge was all alarm. "Are you all right?"
Neil smiled. It felt like it tore his face open. "No. No, I'm not. I know it's kind of sudden, but can you come get me? I'm at the airport."

It was the first time anyone heard except Wymack and Abby, him actually confessing that he was not fine, it was horrible hearing how bad he sounded and looked didn’t help either. The only thing that helped is the this time Neil actually asked someone for help.
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Neil was so out of it he didn't realize Wymack had pulled up to the curb a short ways down until a heavy hand wrapped around his arm.
"Up," Wymack said. "We're getting out of here."
Neil twisted his hand in Wymack's sleeve and let Wymack haul him to his feet. Wymack got the passenger door open for him and watched as Neil climbed in. When Neil was safely tucked inside Wymack slammed the door and went around to the driver's side. Neil steeled himself for questions, but Wymack said nothing to him. Neil watched the airport disappear, watched signs blur outside the window, and let his eyes close.
When he opened them again, he was flat on his back on Wymack's couch. Wymack had dragged his desk chair into the living room to keep watch over him. A bottle of scotch sat almost empty on the coffee table between them. The lid was on but Neil could still smell it. Neil pushed himself up, wincing the entire way, and returned Wymack's guarded expression with one of his own.
"I'm sorry."
"He sounds like Neil," Wymack said, "but he doesn't look like him. I'll take your explanation from the top and without a side order of bullshit, thanks."
Neil looked at him, not understanding.

“David” whispered Abby at him it filled with disapproval towards the blunt way he had talked to Neil, he sighed as a answer to her complaint but anyone could see that there was something on his mind Wymack on the other hand knew what would be coming next.
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The answer was there, just out of reach, a flash of blue and panic and shattered glass. Neil clawed desperately at his memory, but his body caught on before his mind did. He reached up to touch his hair, and Neil remembered. Dread was acid in his veins, eating him alive from the inside out, and Neil lurched to his feet.
"No," he said, but it was too late to change things.
Wymack got up when Neil stumbled for the door, but he didn't try to stop him. Neil threw the bathroom door open and cut the light on. The face waiting for him on the mirror was horrible enough to take his legs out from under him. Neil scrabbled at the sink as he crumpled to his knees but wasn't strong enough to hold himself up.
Neil had dyed his hair brown from time to time, but never this shade, never anywhere near this shade. This was his natural color, and those were his real eyes, and this was his father's face. The bandages and bruises weren't enough to disguise the man he'd seen in the mirror. Neil thought he'd throw up but he was too weak to manage it.

To think that Neil’s own reaction to seeing his actual hair colour and eyes was going to be like that, they felt bad for him something that if they actually said in front of him would be made a big deal of because like Neil always says he is Fine.
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He finally inhaled so deep he choked on it. He coughed so hard he thought he'd break something, but on the tail-end of his coughing he was laughing.
It sounded twisted and wrong in this suffocating space, but Neil couldn't stop. He bit his hand to muffle the sound, but it didn't help. Hysteria was one hard blink away from taking over.

The tension that this room had awhile ago seemed to never go away but only becoming worse.
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"Neil," Wymack said. "I need you to talk to me."
"I think I pulled my stitches," Neil said. "I feel blood."
"Where?" Wymack asked.
"Everywhere?" Neil guessed, and tried undoing his coat buttons one-
handed.
Wymack pushed Neil's hand out of the way. Neil let Wymack fight
with the buttons and zipper, but it took both of them to get Neil's coat off. Neil caught the fingertip of one glove in his teeth and tugged, only to wince at the way his cheek twinged. Wymack noticed the expression and reached for Neil's face. Neil hadn't realized he had bandages on his face until Wymack pried gauze and tape off.
Wymack went so still Neil thought he'd turned to stone. "Neil, the fuck is on your face?"
Neil wrested his glove free and touched bare fingers to his skin. He didn't feel anything, so he caught at the sink and tried to get to his feet. Wymack let him try once on his own, then got up and hauled Neil upright. Neil wasn't ready to see his reflection again. He was less ready to see the "4" tattooed on his left cheekbone.
Wymack wasn't expecting his violent reaction. That was the only reason Neil succeeded in throwing him out of the bathroom.

“Oh my god tell me he didn’t actually go of outside running like that” said Abby horror, fear and shock all present, all eyes drifted at coach to get a answer from but the answer he gave mad them confused and scared for what would come next “no he didn’t go for a run, but something definitely worse” it made everyone uneasy but Wymack didn’t elaborate.
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Neil dove past him and ran for the kitchen. By the time Wymack caught up with him he'd already pulled a knife from the wooden block on Wymack's counter.

Everyone had a horrified expression on, what Wymack had said was right this was way worse then him just taking of running somewhere. They knew that nothing bad had happened but they couldn’t help being worried about him.
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Wymack seized his wrist before Neil could take the knife to his own face. Neil fought like a caged beast, but Wymack slammed his hand down on the counter until Neil lost his grip. Neil scrambled for the knife, but Wymack dragged Neil to the floor with him. He got both arms around Neil and held on tight, and there was nothing Neil could do but exhaust himself trying to get free.
"Hey," Wymack said at his ear, sharp and insistent. "Hey. It's all right."

They all let a breath that they were holding escape as they saw Wymack stopping Neil from turning the knife to his face, they knew there was nothing to be worried about, there was nothing that showed that Neil had done it successfully but there relief was still there.

Chapter Text

They all let a breath that they were holding escape as they saw Wymack stopping Neil from turning the knife to his face, they knew there was nothing to be worried about, there was nothing that showed that Neil had done it successfully but there relief was still there.
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It'd never been all right. It'd come close in fleeting patches, in stolen moments with his teammates and in their last-second wins, but it'd always been overshadowed by this awful truth. Every time Neil blinked he remembered a little more of his Christmas vacation. Every time he moved he felt Riko's hands and blades and fire on his skin. He'd let Riko take him apart time and time again because it was the only way to survive, because bending should have kept him from breaking, but Neil didn't know if he could pull himself back together one more time. He wasn't strong enough for this. He never had been. His mother had held him up but she was gone now.
"Neil," Wymack said.
Neil, Wymack called him, even when he looked like this, even with his father's face and his father's eyes and the Moriyamas' number on his face. Neil, Wymack called him, and more than anything Neil wanted it to be true. He stopped fighting to get free; the hands that had been trying to wrench Wymack's arms off him now held on for dear life.
"Help me," he said through gritted teeth.
"Let me," Wymack shot back, so Neil closed his eyes.

Some had at this point tears shedding at all of this, it was bad they know it but for Neil to look like, that think like and actually admit that he needed help, it felt like their lungs had been crushed. Andrew’s eyes were the ones with the most fire in them, it was hatred towards Riko and he was not the only one, everyone in the room wished they could be able to do something.
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"Can I let go of you and trust you to behave, or are you going to try and cut your face off again? I want to check on your stitches."
"I'll behave," Neil said.
"Forgive me if I don't trust you," Wymack said, but he let go.

There were quite laughter from some, they were there with the sole purpose of easing the tension in the room but it didn’t help much.
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They got back to their feet. Wymack meant it when he said he didn't trust Neil, because he took Neil back to the living room and out of eyesight of the knives. Wymack gestured at Neil to shed his shirt, but Neil couldn't move well enough to get it off. Wymack eyed him for a moment, then left to get his cooking scissors. He brandished them at Neil in a question, and Neil nodded. He held perfectly still while Wymack cut his shirt off of him.
Wymack didn't say anything about the scars. He didn't say anything about how many bandages Neil had wrapped around his chest and abdomen or how many bruises showed around the gauze. He just checked Neil over with a clinical eye and poked at every line of stitches for weaknesses. Neil stood silent and still and let him work. He'd ripped threads loose on his side, down near his waist, but that gash was almost healed anyway. Wymack pushed at Neil's skin to see if it would bleed and came back with clean fingers.
Wymack peeled off blood-crusted bandages and dropped them on the coffee table. He surveyed the damage, then left. Neil heard a drawer snick open and closed, and the faucet cut on for a couple seconds. Wymack came back with a wet wash cloth and a small first aid kit. Neil tried to take the cloth from him, but he couldn't close his fingers tight enough to hold onto it. Wymack pushed his hand out of the way and scrubbed dried blood from Neil's skin. It hurt, but Neil gritted his teeth and stayed silent.
It made him think of long nights on the road, of catching his breath in safe houses all around the world. For a moment Neil remembered how his mother's fingers felt on his skin. He remembered the bite of needles moving in and out as she threaded his broken body back together. The new heat crawling up his throat to prick at his eyes was grief. Neil blinked it away as hard as he could.
"One day we're going to talk about this," Wymack said in a low voice.
"After finals," Neil said without looking at him. "After we beat the Ravens. Then I'll tell you whatever you want to know. I'll even tell you the truth."
"I'll believe that when I see it."
Wymack carried the dirty bandages and washcloth out of the room. Neil sank onto the couch and looked at Wymack's bottle of scotch. Wymack's empty glass sat off to one side. It took no work to fill it and less to knock it back. The heat was familiar, as was the harsh aftertaste.
"I thought you didn't drink," Wymack said from the doorway.

It surprised the all, all except Wymack who Neil explained the why to. It was the first time they saw him drink so everyone wanted to see what would happen.
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"I don't," Neil said, "unless I have to. We used alcohol as anesthetics because we couldn't risk going to the hospital." The words burned his lips more than the whisky did. Neil put the glass down and let his fingers linger on the rim. He didn't let go until he was sure his hand wasn't trembling, and then he traced the ugliest of his scars with his index finger. "Too many questions. Too much lost time. It was safer to drink away the pain."
He clenched his hand and lowered it to his lap. "Is that enough, Coach? It's a truth on credit to hold you until spring."
"Yes," Wymack said. "It's enough for now."

Sighs were heard all around because of course it was going to be something about his mother and the time on the run, but don’t get it wrong it hurt them the same as other times that Neil’s past was brought up or if something new was added.
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"I didn't sign it," Neil said, looking up from his hands. He lifted his fingers to his face. He couldn't feel his tattoo, but he'd seen Kevin's often enough that he knew exactly where it was. "He gave me a contract but I wouldn't sign it. He couldn't make me. This doesn't mean anything. I'm still a Fox."
"Of course you are," Wymack said.

It made some smile, they were not bright with happiness, they were happy that yes he didn’t sign it but behind the smiles it was relief.

Chapter Text

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"Duck your head," Kevin echoed. He gestured incredulously at his own face. "Riko called me on Christmas to say he inked you. How long do you think he'll let you hide before he forces you to show it off? The press will be all over this, and they won't stop their questions at your tattoo. He's trying to get you found."

Hearing that made some of them to get worried, they knew what it meant and they knew what would happen if it actually happens, the fear that hit them was of the same that Neil was feeling.
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Fear was ice in Neil's stomach, eating its way up his throat.
Keeping it from bleeding into his voice took everything Neil had. "I'll take it as a compliment. He's trying to take me out of the game before semifinals. He wouldn't waste his time unless he thinks we really are going to be a problem for his team. That means something, doesn't it?"
"Neil."
"I'll worry about this, Kevin. I'll worry about me. You do what you do best and focus on Exy. Take us where he doesn't want us to go."
Kevin's mouth thinned to a hard line, but he didn't argue. Maybe he knew it was pointless; maybe he knew it was too late.

“I swear I can’t hear the words ‘it was too late’ anymore” said Nicky he looked sick and he was not the only one it made everyone sick to know that he was convinced that he was dying and that there was nothing else they could do about it.
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Neil unzipped it and started to shrug into it. He only got one arm through before his entire chest and side lanced white-hot with pain. He froze and blinked away the fuzz eating through his vision. "I'm sorry," he said, and regretted it immediately. He could hear pain in his voice, thick enough to slur his words. Nicky looked stricken with guilt. "I can't yet."
"I'm sorry," Nicky said. "I didn't—I wasn't thinking. Here, here. Let me. I've got it." Nicky eased the coat off Neil's arm and folded it. "I'll hold onto it until you're better, okay?"
"Okay."

A similar grimace and anger took over the room and Nicky like in the screen looked as guilty, Andrew who seemed like the calmest and unbothered inside anger burned like a wild fire mean while Renee kept an eye on him since she knew the most out of everyone else.
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He didn't realize how close he was to drifting off until Kevin's subdued French startled him awake.
"I know what he's like," Kevin said. Neil looked at him, but Kevin was studying his hands. "Riko. If you want to talk."
It was the most awkward and uncomfortable thing Kevin had ever said to him. Kevin was known for his talent, not his sensitivity. Consideration and tact were as foreign to him as the German the cousins spoke.

“Yea he is right I can’t get used to that and after a while it actually becomes scary” said Alison with a sour expression making the others laugh and making Kevin give a glare at everyone on what seemed to be the hundredth time.
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Nicky caught Neil's wrist as he lowered his hand and gave a short, fierce squeeze. Nicky likely meant it as an apology for his cousin's cold shoulder, but fire sizzled up Neil's forearm and down to his fingertips. He'd rubbed his wrists raw fighting Riko's handcuffs, and his bandages weren't thick enough to protect him from Nicky's tight grip. Neil flinched before he could stop himself.
Nicky let go like he'd been burned.

The moment effected everyone anger hot and them not being able to do anything about right now made it 10 times worse.
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When the flashing logo finally gave way to his home screen, he dialed Wymack.
"I was starting to think he'd killed you and left you to rot on the side of the road," Wymack said in lieu of hello.
"Not yet," Neil said. "We're back now."
"If anyone needs anything, I have my phone on me. Attempt to keep yours on."
"Yes, Coach," Neil said, and turned his phone off again as soon as he'd hung up.

“Oh wow how nice” said Wymack his sarcasm loud enough for the others to be able to see the annoyance behind it as they laughed quietly.
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Andrew turned to face him. "I'll take an explanation now."
"You couldn't ask for answers inside where it's warm?" Neil asked. "If you are worried about dying of exposure you're a little late."
Andrew raised a hand to Neil's face but stopped with his fingers just a breath from Neil's skin. Andrew wasn't looking at his injuries; he was staring at Neil's unguarded eyes. "Did I break my promise or were you keeping yours?"
"Neither," Neil said.
"I know you have had ample time in my absence to come up with your precious lies, but remember I gave you a truth on credit in November. It is your turn in our game and you will not lie to me." "Neither," Neil said again. "I spent Christmas in Evermore."
He shouldn't have been surprised that the first thing Andrew went
for was the bandage on his cheek. Aaron and Nicky had looked past it, not even noticing it amongst the rest of the gauze and tape. Andrew had spent too much time watching Kevin's back to not put the pieces together. He scratched up a corner of the tape and ripped the bandage off like he wanted to take Neil's face with it. Neil braced himself for violence, but Andrew's blank expression didn't change at the sight of Neil's new tattoo.
"This is a new low for even you," Andrew said. "I'm not wearing it by choice."
"You chose to go to Evermore."
"I came back."
"Riko let you go," Andrew corrected him. "We are doing too well this year and your feud is too public. No one would have believed you willingly transferred to Edgar Allan mid-season." Andrew smashed the bandage against Neil's face again and pressed the tape flat with hard fingers. "You weren't supposed to leave Kevin's side. Did you forget?"
"I promised to keep him safe," Neil said. "I didn't say I'd hound him every step of the way like you do. I kept my end of the deal."
"But not like this," Andrew said. "You already said this had nothing to do with Kevin. Why did you go?"
Neil didn't know if he could say it. Thinking about it was almost too much. Andrew was waiting, though, so Neil choked back his nausea.

For most it was weird to see the exchange between the two but it was all ignored and pushed back since they wanted to know what came next.
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"Riko said if I didn't, Dr. Proust would—"
Andrew clapped a hand over his mouth, smothering the rest of his words, and Neil knew he'd failed.
Riko said Easthaven's Dr. Proust used "therapeutic reenactments" to help his patients. It was a thin line between psychological cruelty and real physical abuse, and Riko made it clear Proust was willing to cross that line if Neil disobeyed. He should have known better than to trust Riko's word. Hatred thawed a little of the new ice in his veins, but the bored look on Andrew's face was hard to stomach.

It was quiet for a long time from the shock, disbelief, horror and anger they were speechless and what broke the silence was a sniff that came from Nicky who had tears ready to fall and nit long after fell “I am going to kill him” said Aaron his eyes were hard with hatred exact opposite from his brother who looked as bored as he was in the screen but deep done everyone was sure that he hated the fact that something like was in the open know by everyone.
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Andrew lowered his hand when Neil went quiet. "Do not make the mistake of thinking I need your protection."
"I had to try. If I had the chance to stop it but did nothing, how could I face you again? How could I live with myself?"
"Your crumbling psyche is your problem, not mine," Andrew said. "I said I would keep you alive this year. You make it infinitely more difficult for me when you actively try to get yourself killed."
"You spend all this time watching our backs," Neil said. "Who's watching yours? Don't say you are, because you and I both know you take shit care of yourself."
"You have a hearing problem," Andrew deduced. "Too many balls to the helmet, perhaps. Can you read lips?" Andrew pointed at his mouth as he spoke. "The next time someone comes for you, stand down and let me deal with it. Do you understand?"
"If it means losing you, then no," Neil said.
"I hate you," Andrew said casually. He took a last long drag from his cigarette and flicked it off the roof. "You were supposed to be a side effect of the drugs."
"I'm not a hallucination," Neil said, nonplussed.
"You are a pipe dream," Andrew said. "Go inside and leave me alone."
"You still have my keys," Neil reminded him.
Andrew dug Neil's keys out of his pocket and pried his car key off it. Instead of handing the rest back, he tossed them after his cigarette. Neil leaned out to see if they'd land on anyone, but the sidewalk below was empty. His keys clattered harmlessly against the ground. Neil straightened and looked at Andrew.
Andrew didn't return his stare but said, "Not anymore."

If the new information from before was not this fresh they would have laughed at how childish this was but after learning some thing like that it was weird to laugh right now.

Chapter Text

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He didn't remember putting his head down and definitely didn't remember falling asleep. Fingers digging into the back of his skull startled him awake. He grabbed for a gun, for a knife, for anything close enough to buy him room to flee, and sent the computer mouse skidding across the table. Neil stared blankly at it, then at the screen in front of him. Fingers clenched into a fist in his hair and Neil didn't resist as Andrew forcibly tilted his head back.
"Is your learning curve a horizontal line?" Andrew asked. "I told you yesterday to stop making my life difficult."
"And I told you I wouldn't promise anything."
Andrew let go of him and watched pitilessly as Neil rubbed at his head. Neil sat up straight and started shutting his browsers down.

They grimaced at this, it was sad for some to see how two weeks had effected by these two weeks spend in Edgar Allan, Kevin had a face of understanding since he knew how hard it was to break the Ravens schedule.
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When she was done with his upper half she still had to take care of his legs. The striped bruises across his thighs, left there by heavy racquets, had her pursing her lips in outrage. There were layers of them, fresher purple ones over fading green and yellow. Neil's knees weren't better off, consequence of falling to them so many times.
"Coach won't let me on the court until you clear me," Neil said. "How soon can you?"
Abby looked at him like he was speaking a foreign language. "You can gear up when you don't look like you were trampled in the derby."
"I'm getting better," Neil said. "Besides, I played in worse shape at Evermore."
"This isn't Evermore. I know the season is important to you, but I won't let you risk your safety and health any further. You need to take it easy for a while. For a week," she said, raising her voice when Neil started to protest. "Next Tuesday I'll decide whether or not I want to let you play. If you do anything strenuous between now and then I will bench you for another week. Understand? Use this week to rest. And when you can, leave the bandages off. These need to air."
"A week," Neil echoed. "That isn't fair."
"No," Abby said, and cupped his face in her hands. "This isn't fair. None of this is."
The pain in her voice killed Neil's argument in his throat. Abby looked him over, tracing his vicious scars and new wounds with a desolate gaze.
"Sometimes I think this job is going to kill me," Abby said. "Seeing what people have done, what people continue to do, to my Foxes. I wish I could protect you, but I'm always too late. All I can do is patch you up afterward and hope for the best. I'm sorry, Neil. We should have been there for you."
"I wouldn't have let you be," Neil said.
Abby folded her arms around him and pulled him into a hug. She tried to be careful, but it hurt regardless.

They were angry to see all the new marks and scars Neil had gotten and their feelings grew more and more by the seconds it was bad but regardless how mad they were for now it was overcame by the sadness from hearing Abby’s words.
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Andrew had brought a small knife out and was turning it over and over between his fingers. It wasn't one of the ones he kept in his arm bands, but Neil wasn't surprised he didn't recognize it. He almost never saw the same knife twice.
"It is not that fascinating," Andrew said.
"No," Neil agreed.
He didn't know how to explain the complicated emotions a sharp
blade stirred up. His father was called the Butcher for a reason. His favorite weapon was a cleaver sharp and hefty enough to take limbs off in a single hack.

They tensed up hearing something like that all except Renee and Andrew both knew violence they grew up around it even if it was a different kind. No one wants to know what would happen it Neil’s father or his men cough up with him.
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Before the cleaver Nathan Wesninski used an axe. He still kept that axe around for when he really wanted someone to suffer. The blade was dull enough now it required a bit of extra weight and effort to cut through bone. Neil only saw him use it once, the day he met Riko and Kevin at Evermore Stadium.
"It's just..." Neil grasped for words, too-aware that the conversation across the room had quieted down a little. The upperclassmen were trying to listen in without being obvious.

They remember that moment it was almost funny to see themselves act like that but right now with what they were listening to it would be impossible for anyone to even smile at it.
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Neil settled for the vaguest explanation he could and hoped his teammates would mistake the pronoun for Riko. "I've never understood why he likes knives."
Such simple words should not have gotten the reaction they did. Andrew went still and looked up, but he didn't look at Neil. He looked at Renee, so Neil did, too. She'd stopped mid-sentence to stare at Neil, but the Renee studying him wasn't the Foxes' redeemed optimist. Her sweet smile was gone and the too-blank look on her face reminded Neil of Andrew. Neil instinctively tensed for flight-or-fight. Before his body figured out what to do Renee shifted her inscrutable gaze to Andrew.
They stared each other down, soundless and still, oblivious to the bewildered looks their teammates sent between them. Andrew didn't say anything, but Renee lifted her chin. Andrew hummed in response and put the knife away.
"He will lose his taste when he has one in his gut," he said.

Now since they had the whole picture to look at they understood even more because it was the truth the had believed he meant Riko but knowing that his worries were not about him but his father made everyone uneasy and they hoped it would not come down to something like that.

Chapter Text

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"Won't you talk to me?" Betsy finally prompted. "What do you want me to say?" Neil said. "Anything," Betsy said. "This is your time." "Anything?" Neil said. When she gave an encouraging nod, Neil proceeded to tell her about the UT games he'd been watching. It was completely impersonal and definitely not at all what she'd been hoping for, but she didn't interrupt and didn't have the good grace to look bored. She drank her cocoa and listened like it was the most important story she'd heard all day. Somehow it made Neil like her even less, but he didn't stop.

“Wow out of anything to choose from he went with that” said Alison as she facepalmed “I am feeling bad for her” said Nicky as he faked wiping a tear away.
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"So those knives he brings everywhere are yours?"
"Were mine," Renee said. "He was right; I don't need them anymore. If you need them, he will give them to you, and I will teach you how to use them."
She wasn't smiling anymore. Neil studied her calm expression and knew she meant it. She'd put her faith in mankind and her Christian piety on hold and show him how to cut a man open throat to groin if he asked her to.

“Of course” that all that Renee said with a little smile, Neil was their friend so yes of course she would.
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Neil was starting to understand why Andrew liked her. She was crazy enough to be interesting.
"Thank you," Neil said, "but no. I don't want to be like—him."
He didn't say he'd used knives before; one couldn't grow up a Wesninski without having a blade pushed into his hand.

Whatever feelings were present before they were swollen up by dread, they were frowning nothing that they learned from Neil’s past and family got any less of a strong reaction.
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Nathan didn't have the time or patience to teach his son but he'd put two of his people to the task.

Of course there was something like that that had yet to be revealed, it was raising many questions and obviously they turned to the person that could know something about this new information. “do you know who they are” said Dan as everyone was now looking at Kevin, he looked confused but still answered “no, I mean yes he had his people but nothing was said that day, much less names because it would have been a big risk. But there really is not much else to remember of that day except what was show to us” said Kevin and on the end of his sentence he was visibly shaken up and it was obvious he was saying the truth.
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Luckily Neil left home before he progressed past cutting up hunks of dead animals.

It was sick, they knew that Neil ran away with his mother when he was 10 and that meant that a 10 year old and probably younger Neil was cut animals apart because his sick father wanted him to.
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"Tell your pet psycho to knock it off before he cripples someone." "I don't think he'll listen to me," Neil said.
"You and I both know he will. Now get."
Wymack pounded on the wall, calling a pause to the scrimmage, as
Neil headed for the door. Neil let himself onto the court and headed for the goal. Andrew slung his racquet across his shoulders at Neil's approach. Neil knew better than to call Andrew out with an audience, so he stopped as close to Andrew as he could and kept his voice down.
"Coach wants to know what you have against the offense line."
Andrew slid a look past Neil to the court wall. "He can ask me himself."
"Or you can answer me since I'm already here," Neil said. "There are only nine of us left. If we lose anyone else we're out of spring championships. You know that."
Neil waited a beat, but of course that wasn't enough to get a reaction. Andrew looked bored of this conversation already. Neil put a hand up in front of Andrew's face, neatly blocking his view of Wymack, and waited until Andrew looked at him again. "I want us to get to finals. I want us to be the ones who finally bring the Ravens down. After everything Riko's done to us, don't you want that, too?"
"You say 'want' so freely," Andrew said, "when I have told you a thousand times before I want nothing."
"Probably because you're spending all your energy on not wanting anything," Neil shot back. "But if you can't grasp that simple concept, I'll put this in terms you do understand: this is a game we can't afford to lose. This is how we get to Riko. This is the only thing we can take from him that will actually hurt. Let's rip his rank out of his fingers and show him he had a reason to fear us all along."
"Do your teammates still think you're the quiet one?" Andrew asked.
"Our teammates," Neil said, with emphasis, "want this as much as I do. Stop cutting them off at the knees before they have the chance to try."
"I don't believe in giving people chances."
"I didn't until I came here," Neil said. "I took a chance on you when I decided to stay. You took a chance on me when you trusted me with Kevin. Is it really that hard to support them when they've been with you every step of the way?"
"What will you give me in exchange for my cooperation?" Andrew asked.
"Because revenge isn't good enough?" Neil asked. "What would it take?"
Andrew didn't have to think about it. "Show me your scars."
It was not what Neil was expecting, which was probably why Andrew asked for it. Neil opened his mouth to protest, but the words died in his throat. Wymack and Abby had already seen them, and the Foxes knew they were there. He'd put Andrew's hand to his ruined skin back in November to earn Andrew's trust. Neil had promised Andrew the missing parts of his truth if they survived the year. He hadn't thought Andrew would settle for a visual.
"When?" he said at last.
"We are going to Columbia tomorrow," Andrew said. "Now walk away and tell Coach to mind his pay grade. I will not let him get away with this a second time."
Neil didn't understand, but he nodded and left. The Foxes waited until the door was shut and locked before resuming play. The next time Kevin managed a shot on goal, Andrew cleared it all the way down the court. Neil had the feeling the Foxes would regret his intervention soon enough. This was definitely safer, but now Dan and Kevin had to chase the ball every time Andrew deflected it.
Neil went back to Wymack's side and relayed Andrew's message. He expected Wymack to brush off Andrew's threat without batting an eye. He wasn't expecting Wymack's amused huff and dry, "Just promise me this isn't going to be a problem."
"What?" Neil asked.
"I can't tell if you're being obtuse to fuck with me or if you're really that dumb," Wymack said. When Neil just stared blankly at him, Wymack rubbed his temples as if warding off a headache. "I would pity you, but Andrew's right. I don't get paid enough to get involved in this. Figure it out yourself—on your own time. You're supposed to be studying UT right now."
Wymack plucked up his clipboard and started scribbling notes. Neil looked from him to the court.
"Goodbye," Wymack said. Neil swallowed his questions and headed back to the locker room.

Look we’re exchanged around most likely watching how a bet would close and it was funny to see how clueless Neil is to what is going on right in front of them, what they thought was kind of unfair was that Wymack seemed to know about it before anyone else but never said anything.
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On Neil's right shoulder was a burn scar, courtesy of getting smacked by a hot iron. Andrew put his left hand to it, fingertips lining up perfectly with the raised bumps the iron's holes had left behind. His right thumb found the puckered flesh from a bullet. Neil had slept in his bulletproof vest for almost a month after that close call, too scared to take it off. His mother had to bully him into shedding it long enough to wash up.

They felt bad, it must have been very scary for a kid and together with that came the anger of knowing that people were willing to actually hunt someone that young.
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"Someone shot you," Andrew said.
"I told you someone was after me," Neil said.
"This," Andrew dug his fingers harder into the iron mark, "is not
from a life on the run."
"My father gave me that. People came by asking questions about his
work. I didn't say anything, but I didn't sit still enough, either. He hit me as soon as the door closed behind them. That's why I gave you 'Abram',"
Neil said. "I don't want to give you my father's name because I don't want anyone to call me it ever again. I hated him."

Somehow hate was a word to little for him, they haven’t even seen him but still, hate sure was a world that couldn’t describe what they felt towards him.
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Neil folded his arms on the bar counter and watched Roland mix the next batch.
"So Andrew finally gave in, huh?" Roland said. "That looks pretty bad."
Neil almost reached for his face, but Roland was looking at his wrists. Neil's new shirt was long-sleeved, but it was made of a thin material meant to breathe easy in a packed club. The ends had slid up his forearms a bit when he folded his arms. He tugged the hems back down, knowing it was too late to hide the half-healed lacerations. As he did so he realized that rumble in Roland's words was all checked laughter.
Roland gave an apologetic grin when Neil frowned up at him. "I'd wondered if being clean would cure that hands-off rule of his. Makes sense it wouldn't, now that we know about..." Roland shook his head and visibly forced his anger back. "I don't know whether to say 'thanks' for easing my curiosity or 'sorry' that sobriety has obviously exacerbated the problem. Just so you know, they make padded cuffs. You should look into them."

For a moment it was quiet but then all noise came together everyone had different reactions with Aaron’s groan being the loudest and Nicky’s squealing second.
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"The problem," Neil echoed, lost. "What hands-off rule?"
Roland looked startled, then confused. "You don't know? But then..."
"I got these in a fight," Neil said. "Why would Andrew do this to me?"

“Oh my god he is clueless” said Alison with a sigh.
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Neil sat sideways in his chair, facing Andrew, and said,
"Why does Roland think you're tying me down?"
Andrew hesitated with his glass halfway to his mouth. He glanced down at Neil's hands where they were clenched on the edge of the seat between his knees. Neil didn't look to see if the angry lines were showing again. He couldn't take his eyes off Andrew's face. At length Andrew put his full shot back on the tray. He didn't let go of it completely but tapped his fingers on the rim in an uneven beat. It seemed an eternity before he finally dragged his stare up from Neil's hands to his face.
"Presumably he thinks you're as bad at following directions as he is," Andrew said. "Roland knows I don't like being touched."
"That doesn't answer my question."
"It is the answer," Andrew said. "Rephrase the question if you don't like it."
"I want to play another round," Neil said. "What's outside Coach's pay grade?"
Andrew shifted in his seat to face Neil and propped his elbow on the back of his chair. He cradled his face in his hand and considered Neil. He didn't look at all bothered by the sudden interrogation but that calm did nothing to ease the gnawing in Neil's stomach.
"When Coach signed us, he promised to stay out of our personal problems. He said the board paid him to be our coach, nothing more and nothing less."
That answer wasn't much better. Neil wasn't sure he should keep pushing, but if he didn't get the truth now he knew he never would. "I didn't think I was a personal problem. You hate me, remember?"
"Every inch of you," Andrew said. "That doesn't mean I wouldn't blow you."
The world tilted a little bit sideways. Neil dug his shoes harder into the floor so he wouldn't fall over. "You like me."
"I hate you," Andrew corrected him, but Neil barely heard him.

Shock came first only because of how it was said but then hell broke lose with everyone having different reactions from laughter to, to stunned to speak to, to noises of clear distaste and to sighs.Andrew on the other hand looked unbothered from all of this.

Chapter Text

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"I'm not a striker by choice, either," he said. "I was a backliner in little leagues. Riko remembers because I scrimmaged with him and Kevin. He made me play defense with his Ravens over Christmas."
That finally got Andrew to lower his arm. "Little leagues, he says. I distinctly remember you telling people you learned to play in Millport."
"Partial truth," Neil said. "I knew how to play Exy. I just didn't know how to play offense. I didn't want to be a striker, but Coach Hernandez didn't have any room on his defense line. It was striker or nothing, and I wanted to play too badly to walk away. Now I can't imagine playing anything else."
Andrew said nothing for a while, then, "You're more a raccoon than a fox."
Neil stared. "What?"
"A raccoon," Andrew said, and mimed holding a ball in front of his face. "Exy is the shiny object of your sad little world. You know you're being hunted and you know the hounds are closing in, but you won't let go to save yourself. You once told me you don't understand why a person would actively try to die, but here you are. I guess that was another lie."

The were some quite laughter, it was funny to hear Andrew describing how Neil was like a raccoon
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"I'm not trying to die," Neil said. "This is how I stay alive. When I'm playing, I feel like I have control over something. I feel like I have the power to change things. I feel more real out there than I do anywhere else. The court doesn't care what my name is or where I'm from or where I'll be tomorrow. It lets me exist as I am."
"It is a court," Andrew said. "It does not 'let' you do anything." "You know what I mean."
"I don't."
"Because you don't have anything, do you?" Neil said in quiet
challenge. "Nothing gets to you like that. Nothing gets under your skin." "He catches on at last," Andrew mused. "It only took him a year." "What are you afraid of?"
"Heights."

If they hadn’t seen it themselves they wouldn’t believe that Andrew had said that weird confession of his but what caught their attention even more was Andrew admitting he was scared of Heights, they were not sure if it was meant as a joke or it was real but it would make no sense for him to joke about it.

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He motioned at Neil to get his attention but didn't speak until the door was closed behind him.
"Just passed Allison," Matt said.
"Soaked?" Neil guessed.
"Understatement of the year," Matt said. "I think her umbrella broke.
She's a hot mess. Told her I was going to take a picture of her for the yearbook and she threatened to cut my balls off with her fingernails. Five bucks says Dan'll have to push her out the door when it's time to leave again."

As the others laughed Alison looked furious as she smacked him on the arm with got her a cry of pain from Matt.
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It took Neil only a moment to realize Andrew hadn't budged. Neil looked back at him, but Andrew was staring out the far window. Neil followed his gaze and watched a plane rocket down the runway.
The others weren't close enough anymore to overhear, so Neil said, "When you said you were afraid of heights, you were joking, right?" He gave Andrew a moment to answer, then tried again. "Andrew, you can't be. What were you doing on the roof?" Andrew didn't answer immediately, but the tilt of his head to one side said he was thinking about it. Neil didn't know if he was searching for words or just figuring out which ones he wanted to give Neil in explanation. Finally Andrew lifted a hand to his own throat and felt for his pulse. He tapped his finger along when he found it. It was going faster than it should. Neil blamed it on Andrew's surroundings.
"Feeling," Andrew said at last.
"Trying to remember fear, or trying to remember how to feel anything at all?" Neil asked, but Andrew didn't answer.
Neil tried a different tactic. "If it makes you feel better, fewer than twenty planes crash every year and it's not always due to the weather. Sometimes pilots are just unreliable. I'm sure it's a quick death either way."

“Wow what comforting words almost better than coach’s before game talks” said Nicky with a laugh “damm who would have thought that the monster is actually afraid of heights” said Alison with a huff as she got comfortable on her chair.
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"Kevin, just let him go," Neil said. "It's not worth fighting over." "When our defense is sluggish we all suffer," Kevin said.
"You aren't serious," Nicky said. "We've got how many hours until
serve? This will all be out of my system by then. You can watch me take a shit if you don't believe me. I didn't think you were into that kind of thing but—ha," he crowed when Kevin stomped off. He flashed Neil a triumphant grin, oblivious to the way the store clerks were staring at them. "I am a master at persuasion."
"Or self-delusion," Neil said.
Nicky's eyebrows shot up. "Oh my god, did you try to make a joke? Did it hurt a little? No, really," he said when Neil turned as if to leave him.

All except Nicky who had been there had the same reaction as in-screen him “yea I know shocking, I even marked the day on my calendar” said Nicky with what seemed like his proudest voice.
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Neil looked at Kevin, then Wymack, wondering why no one had told him Andrew had an eidetic memory, wondering if they'd even known.

This had them shocked again, no one knew till now “what how?” asked Aaron but Andrew didn’t answer and looked back with a unimpressed look and one of his eyebrows raised “no wait I mean why didn’t you say anything?” he asked again but Andrew shrugged it off saying that “no one asked” but whatever was going to be said next was stopped by the screen continuing.

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"Good," Neil said at length. Tugging a sleeping dragon's tail sounded like a good way to die a painful death, but Neil would be dead before Andrew's protection wore off. "I want to see you lose control."
Andrew went still with his hand halfway to the vodka. "Last year you wanted to live. Now you seem hell-bent on getting killed. If I felt like playing another round with you right now, I would ask why you've had a change of heart. As it stands, I've had enough of your stupidity to last me a week. Go back inside and bother the others now."
Neil feigned confusion as he got to his feet. "Am I bothering you?" "Beyond the telling."
"Interesting," Neil said. "Last week you said nothing gets under your
skin."
Andrew didn't waste his breath responding, but Neil counted it as a
victory. He tossed his cigarette into the wind and went back inside alone. He took the stairs to the third floor but didn't make it more than a couple steps down the hall before the elevator opened.

“Ugh they are so cute” squealed Nicky witch had Aaron groaning in annoyance and Andrew with a glare that could very well start wildfires.
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"Andrew doesn't believe in regret; he says regret is grounded in shame and guilt, neither of which serves any real purpose. That being said, I tried taking you off his hands at one point." When Neil looked at
her in surprise, Renee affected an innocent look that for once was not entirely convincing. "Andrew refused on the grounds he wouldn't wish you on anyone except a mortician."
"Drama queen," Neil muttered.
Renee gave a quiet laugh and traded him a hand towel for the glass. Neil dried his hands and passed it back. Renee hung the towel off its hook on the front of the fridge and stepped out of the kitchen to survey the living room.

“He is right” said Wymack at what Andrew had said and others nodded.
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Neil watched until the last of the Foxes disappeared inside, then scanned the parking lot with a slow look. The school had done a good job of putting the place back to order; the only sign that anything bad had happened was that there were fewer cars than usual. The presence of a few trucks and SUVs said some athletes had already started getting their vehicles back, but at least half the cars were unfamiliar.
"Have you heard back from the shop?" Neil asked, dragging his attention back to Andrew. "Matt got a call this morning saying his truck would be ready for pickup tomorrow. Allison should have hers back Saturday morning. Can they fix yours?"
Andrew flipped his phone open, pressed a couple buttons, and handed it over. Neil waited, mystified, until Andrew's voicemail started playing on speaker. A mechanical voice announced Tuesday's date, and a sobering message followed. The damage was even more extensive than it'd appeared; the garbage in back had hidden whatever the Raven fans did to the backseat cushions, and none of them had looked in the trunk before the car was towed. The shop wanted Andrew to call them back to talk about his options and discuss what it would take to restore the car to its former glory.
Andrew hoisted himself onto the rental car's trunk and dug a pack of cigarettes out of his pocket. He lit two and traded Neil one for his phone. Neil cupped a hand around his to shield it from the breeze. He studied Andrew's face as Andrew put his phone and cigarettes away, but Andrew gave no sign he was bothered by the bad news.
"You're going to have to replace it," Neil guessed. "If the insurance company won't cover a replacement for your car, take the difference from me. You know I have enough for it."
Andrew slid him a cool look. "I'm uninterested in your charity."
"It isn't charity," Neil said. "It's revenge. It wasn't my money in the first place, remember? I told you my father skimmed it from the Moriyamas. If you take some for your car, you're making Riko replace what his fans destroyed."
"Revenge is a motivator only for the weak-willed," Andrew said. "If you believed that you wouldn't be planning how to kill Proust." The doctor's name still tasted like acid, burning Neil's tongue and
throat, but it wasn't enough to put a dent in Andrew's calm expression. Andrew gazed at him in silence for what felt like an eternity, then propped his cigarette between his lips and motioned Neil closer. Neil was sure he was stepping forward into a knife for bringing Proust up again, but he obediently closed the short space between them. Andrew caught the back of Neil's neck in a bruising grip to keep him from retreating. He pulled Neil's head toward him and blew smoke in Neil's face.
"This is not revenge," Andrew said. "I warned him what I would do to him if he touched me. This is me keeping my word."
He waited a beat to make sure Neil understood, then let go. The next time he raised his cigarette to his mouth Neil took it from him. Neil broke it between his fingers and let it fall to the asphalt by their feet. Andrew watched the halves roll away from each other and turned an unimpressed look on Neil.
"Ninety-one percent," Andrew said.
"Just take the money," Neil said. "You bought the last car with someone's death. You can buy this one with someone's life—my life. That money was going to buy my next name when I ran away from here. Thanks to you I don't need it anymore."
"Your life has a price tag you are already paying," Andrew reminded him. "You cannot barter away the same thing twice."
"You've lost the right to call me difficult," Neil said. Andrew shrugged that off, so Neil said, "Make a new deal with me."
Andrew tipped his head to one side, considering that. "What would you take for it?"
"What would you give me?" Neil asked.
"Don't ask questions you already know the answer to."
Neil frowned at him, lost, but Andrew didn't waste his breath
explaining. He held his hand up between them and turned it palm-up. When Neil just looked at it, Andrew motioned to Neil's hand. Mystified, Neil mimicked the gesture. Andrew took the cigarette from his unresisting fingers and stuck it between his lips. It had nearly burnt out with no breath to keep it alive, but Andrew coaxed the flame back to life with a long drag.
"That was mine," Neil said.
"Oh," Andrew said, unconcerned.
Neil didn't care enough to take it back, so he watched Andrew smoke. Andrew held his gaze and said nothing. He was waiting, Neil guessed, for Neil to come up with a suitable trade. Neil had no idea what he was supposed to ask for, but he knew there were a hundred ways to mess this deal up. Common sense said push for a reconciliation with Aaron, but if Andrew got backed into that truce neither brother would enjoy it. Neil should ask for something that would strengthen the Foxes, like permission to restart the group dinners and movies they'd had in Andrew's absence. He hesitated because it felt like a waste of a chance. Halloween had been surprisingly easy to talk Andrew into. Not surprisingly, Neil realized, because hadn't Kevin said it last fall? "When you know what a person wants, it's easy to manipulate them," he'd said. Neil just hadn't known until this year what—who—Andrew wanted.
Neil shook that off as counterproductive. His mind went from Halloween to Eden's Twilight to Sweetie's, and Neil finally figured it out. "I want you to stop taking cracker dust."
"And he says it isn't a righteous streak," Andrew mused, more to himself than to Neil.
"If it was righteousness I'd ask you to give up drinking and smoking, too," Neil said. "I'm only asking for this one thing. It doesn't have any effect on you anyway and it's an unnecessary risk. You don't need a third addiction."
"I don't need anything," Andrew reminded him, right on cue.
"If you don't need it, it'll be easy to give it up," Neil said. "Right?" Andrew thought it over a minute, then flicked his cigarette at Neil.

The monsters were shocked, they knew Andrew stopped but never the reason why. Who would have thought it was Neil. Renee on the other hand had a smile, she was the one that knew most of all this.
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It singed the material where it bounced off his shirt. Neil ground it out under his shoe when it hit the asphalt. The cool look he flicked Andrew was wasted; Andrew's gaze had already drifted past him in search of something more interesting.
"I'm going to take your temper tantrum as a yes," Neil said. "I'll bring the money by your room tonight."

“Wait does that mean that Neil is going to by a car for Andrew” asked Matt shocked and he looked at Andrew but Andrew was not looking at anyone more less answer the questions they all had.

Chapter Text

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For once Neil woke up before Matt's alarm sounded. He lay still for a minute, then rolled over and switched his own alarm off. He flipped his phone open to stare at the date. It was Friday, January 19th. "Neil Josten" was supposed to turn twenty on March 31st. Today Nathaniel Wesninski turned nineteen years old. Neil had never made a habit of celebrating his birthday, but each one he was alive for deserved a moment of silence. He rubbed his thumb over the date on his small screen and made a wish that they'd win against Belmonte.

They didn’t know how this was possible they had went to bed the night before and had woken up here the next morning but somehow they are now watching something that has yet to happen, it was so shocking they almost bypassed what day Neil said it was but they didn’t say anything.
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By the time they left for the stadium an hour out from serve he was going crazy.
The locker room smelled faintly of bleach and window cleaner. Neil had never understood the point of cleaning the locker room before a game, but a small crew came by every day. The smell was usually gone by the time the Foxes showed up for practices, but Neil assumed game day campus traffic had slowed them down. It explained why Wymack was sitting on the entertainment center instead of holed up in his office, though. Wymack claimed he was allergic to cleaning materials. Abby thought it an uncreative excuse for the unkempt state of his apartment, but Wymack stubbornly maintained his story.

Wymack protested against the laughter that was happened and against Abby’s sigh “is it that hard to believe” said Wymack ignoring whatever answer came next.
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He twisted his combination into the lock on his gear locker and pulled the door open. There was a split second of unexpected resistance, then a sharp pop of something breaking.

This was weird from what they know there really is nothing in their lockers that could cause something like that and somehow it gave them a awful feeling about what was goin to happen.
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And then—blood.
It exploded in his locker, triggered by the door opening, and Neil recoiled as it cascaded over everything inside. The smell of it was so thick it clogged his throat and choked him.

For a moment they thought it was a joke and there was no blood maybe a hallucination from staying there watching the screen for so long it happened to quickly but then it started to come together, horror and shock was everywhere there even was more than just a hint of surprise on Andrew’s face.
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Neil's shock only lasted for a white-hot second before panic took over. He dove at his locker, grabbing for his uniform and gear. It was too late and he knew it, but he had to try. His jersey squelched in his hands like a swollen sponge, spurting blood all over his fingers. He dropped it and scrabbled for his helmet. His fingertips grazed hard plastic but couldn't latch on before Matt grabbed him.

The scene before them made them sick in their stomach and breathing felt hard, question was who and for what?
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"No," Neil said, but Matt hauled him away from his locker. "Wait!"
He dug his feet in, but the tread of his shoes were soaked and slid across the ground. The blood had hit the bottom of his locker and was now spilling onto the floor in a swiftly-spreading puddle. Hanging from the top of his locker was an empty plastic bag, rigged to tear open when the door pulled too wide. It looked big enough to hold at least two gallons; it was more than big enough to destroy every single piece of gear Neil owned.
"Nicky," Andrew said, "get Coach."
Nicky bolted. Neil elbowed Matt as hard as he could. Matt cursed as he lost his grip on Neil. Neil ran back to his locker, skidding a little as he got closer. He had to catch himself on the neighboring locker to keep from falling. As soon as he had his balance he frantically unloaded everything piece by piece. He couldn't tell his Home and Away jerseys apart anymore. Even the padding on his armor was wrecked. Neil picked his helmet up and turned it to watch blood slide off the hard plastic face guard.
"Neil?" Matt asked. Neil dropped the helmet to the pile at his feet and punched the back of his locker. His fist hit plastic instead of metal, and Neil wrenched the broken bag off its hook. When he turned to throw it Andrew caught his wrist. Neil hadn't even heard Andrew cross the room toward him. Neil stared at him and through him, heart pounding in his temples.
"It's ruined," Neil said, voice ragged with an awful rage. "It's all ruined."

It broke them to see Neil like that and to see all of his things destroyed, they knew that whoever it was that did this they wanted him to pay for it.
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Wymack burst into the room with Nicky on his heels. The sight of so much blood stopped him short for a moment before he strode for Neil. "Is that yours?"
"Coach, my gear," Neil said. "It's—"
"It's not his." Andrew let go of Neil and went back to his own locker. "He's fine."
"Peroxide," Neil said. "Does Abby have any in her office?" When Wymack just looked at him, Neil started for the door to find some himself. Wymack put an arm in his way to stop him. "I need to clean my clothes before the blood sets or I won't have anything to wear tonight."
"And I need you to derail that one-track fucking mind of yours for two seconds and focus on the fact that you are covered in someone or something's blood. Are you okay?"
"Andrew already said I'm fine," Neil bit out.
"I'm not asking Andrew," Wymack said. "I'm asking you."

Somehow even after knowing Neil for so long and knowing that this was his default reaction to everything serious it frustrated them how he didn’t just say the truth at asked for help.
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"Here, I've got an extra towel," Matt said, and dug one out of his
open locker. He hurried to the bathroom to soak it in the sink but jerked to a stop as he was turning back to them. His startled voice echoed off the bathroom walls. "What the hell?"

They were even more worried know they didn’t know what Matt had seen but they all had a feeling that it had something to do with what happened in the locker room they just hopped it was not the body of whatever’s blood it was.
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Neil knew better than to look, but he went anyway. Wymack and Andrew were right behind him. Neil followed Matt's gaze to the far wall and felt his stomach bottom out. Written in blood across the tile was a bold message: "Happy 19th Birthday, Jr.".
Neil's head filled with static and screams. The strident mumble in the background was out of place and it took Neil an eternity to realize that sound was coming from his teammates.

It was better than what they thought but they saw that whoever has done this knew how to hurt Neil and did that exactly, their anger grew more and more by the second.
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The world came back into focus in jagged pieces, just in time for Neil to hear Wymack mutter something about calling the police. Neil grabbed his elbow before Wymack turned away and squeezed so hard he felt bones creak.
"Coach," he said, as calmly as he could. "You're going to have to leave them out of this one. Okay? Let's just get through the game. I'll clean this up afterward. No one else has to know."
"Give me one good reason not to cancel the game and pull security in here," Wymack said.
"I can't give you that yet," Neil said, slanting a look at him. "I told you to wait until May."
He willed Wymack to remember the promise he'd made on New Year's Eve when Wymack challenged his lies and scars. He hadn't told Wymack he was on the run, but he'd cut it close enough Wymack should have put the pieces together. Neil needed him to remember that now and figure out the obvious: Riko's men wouldn't have left evidence behind, but Neil had prints all over the place. Wymack said nothing but studied Neil with a disquieting intensity.

“There is no way that he suggesting to just push all that under the rug and not call the police” said Alison with white anger in her voice and she had the right to be, it was absurd how Neil just wanted to let it pass “if you paid attention that is what he said” said Andrew with a bored tone, he was doing it to just mess with her and it worked as she send him a glare.

Chapter Text

“There is no way that he suggesting to just push all that under the rug and not call the police” said Alison with white anger in her voice and she had the right to be, it was absurd how Neil just wanted to let it pass “if you paid attention that is what he said” said Andrew with a bored tone, he was doing it to just mess with her and it worked as she send him a glare.
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Neil let go of Wymack and took the wet towel from an unresisting Matt. His lungs felt like they were pulling tight as he crossed the room to his birthday message. He breathed shallowly so as not to set off his gag reflex and scrubbed the letters off the wall. There were enough clean patches on the towel afterward for Neil to wipe his hands off. He came back to the others and dropped the towel in the sink to worry about later.
"Neil," Matt said.
Neil didn't want to hear it. "Change out, Matt."

They couldn’t say anything it was sick to see him wipe it off on his own and they knew that if he was in front of them they would berate him but for now they just wanted to see who was bold enough to do something like that.
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Neil looked around at them and focused on the one most likely to help him salvage this. "Kevin," he said, and continued in French. "Get them moving. We've only got forty minutes until serve."
"Can you play?" Kevin asked.
"I'm pissed off, not injured," Neil snapped. "I'm not going to let this keep us from winning tonight. Are you?"
Kevin considered him for a moment, then turned a caustic look on their teammates. "Get moving. We have a game to win."
"You're joking," Matt said, coming up behind Andrew and looking between the strikers. "You're really going to ignore the fact that this," he stabbed a finger in the direction of Neil's locker, "just happened? Neil, you look like a Carrie stunt double. You don't even want to get security up here while the scene's still fresh?"
"No," Neil said. "I don't."
"You're joking," Matt said again.
Neil looked at him. "Riko is an egotist and an asshole. He wants us
to react to this. If we do, he wins. Don't give him that satisfaction. Pretend this never happened and focus on the Terrapins."
It took Wymack only a few more moments to pick his side. "No one's changing in here. Get your gear and get out. You can have the girls' room when they're done with it. I will give you one chance tonight," he said when Neil looked at him. "If I think your head isn't in the game, I will pull you so fast you'll get whiplash and Dan will take your place. Do you understand me?"
"Yes, Coach," Neil said.

They could have guessed that it was Riko behind it all but why pull something like that, the reason being that he just wants a reaction out of them is very little they feel like there is something more that he wants to achieve with this bloody message but after thinking about it nothing came up, it couldn’t be that he wanted them to be distracted and lose because after what Neil had said on the interview he would look stupid but there was not really anything else they could come up with. “He is getting out of hand there really needs something to be done with because if he could do all that for shits and giggles there really is nothing he couldn’t do if he wanted to” said Dan and they all knew it they have seen how dangerous Riko can be, but if they acted against him no one really knew what would happen next because it would well mean that the Moriyama family would do something.
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"No problem," Matt said. "Need anything else?"
"A clear shot at Riko and no witnesses," Neil said.
Matt grinned like he thought Neil was joking and left.

They all shared Neil’s passion on that comment and they somehow felt sorry for Matt for thinking it was a joke and Dan patted him on the arm.
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Neil stood under the spray and checked under his fingernails for blood. He found none, but for a minute he swore he smelled burning flesh.
Neil was the last one dressed, as usual, and he found his teammates waiting for him in the lounge. Wymack was standing in front of the entertainment center with his arms crossed over his chest. Abby was hovering in the doorway. Neil was tempted to continue past her outside and skip this conversation entirely. He doubted anyone would let him get away with it, so he sat beside Andrew on the couch.
Wymack waited until he'd gone still before starting. "First off: the massacred elephant in the room. Massacred birds, rather. I called in a favor with the faculty and got Abby access to the microscopes in the science labs. We needed to make sure that wasn't human blood."
"That's morbid," Nicky said.
"But necessary considering who we're dealing with." Wymack shook his head. "The last thing I want is to put you all at risk. The court is supposed to be a safe place for you, but I've failed to protect you. I have half a mind to install cameras in here in the public areas, but I won't do that unless everyone agrees. If we do rig something up, the only ones who will see those tapes are the people in this room right now. I want people in our business as much as you do.
"Which leads me to my second point: Neil asked us to leave the authorities out of this," Wymack said, looking each of his Foxes in the face. "I respect him enough to allow that, but it's not up to just me. Are you going to be okay with that?"
"You're really just going to let Riko get away with this?" Dan asked.
"He wouldn't have done this if he thought he would get caught," Neil said.
"Maybe we can't get him, but we could get his middlemen," Matt said. "No one's perfect. Everyone leaves a trail."

“Yea screen me is right we could catch at least one of the people that did this” said Matt but others didn’t say anything else expect Aaron he looked ready to say something but was cut off by the Aaron inside the screen.
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Aaron spoke up then, and his callous accusation made Neil's blood go cold: "You'd know all about that, wouldn't you, Junior?"
Neil flicked a quick look at Aaron's dark expression and braced for the worst. When it came, though, it was worse than he expected.
"They'll never find proof that Riko was involved in this," Aaron said, "but they might find you, right? That's what this is all about, isn't it?" Aaron gestured at his own face, indicating Neil's abrupt change in appearance. "Your looks, your languages, your lies—you're running from something or someone."
That biting demand was a sucker punch, knocking the breath from Neil's lungs and crushing his stomach to his spine. The silence that followed felt infinite. Neil was sure his teammates could hear his heartbeat; it was pounding so loud he felt it on every inch of his skin. Their stares were piercing enough to peel up every disguise he'd ever worn.
Finding his voice was an act of desperation. Keeping it calm took every ounce of energy he had left.

They were shocked, their reactions were different than these on screen since they knew the truth about everything, Aaron’s question was meant to hurt Neil, they couldn’t help but look at him in disbelief even if they knew the Aaron in the room with them was not the one that said all that”
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"You know, I expected low blows and backstabbing from the Ravens. I thought Foxes were better than that. No," Neil said when Aaron opened his mouth again. "Don't you dare take your issues with Andrew out on me. I know you're mad at me for getting Katelyn involved, but you're going to have to get over that."
"You dragged her into my business. I'm dragging them into yours. Not as much fun when someone does it to you, is it?" Aaron asked.
"You're so stupid," Neil said. "I invited myself to your fight because I wanted to help you two. You're doing this because you think it's going to hurt me. There's a pretty critical difference there. On the bright side, you being an asshole at heart means I was right about your chances."
Neil tipped his head to one side and eyed Aaron. "You do understand by now that your cowardice is what's keeping you and Andrew apart, right?"
"I am not a coward."
"You're a spineless asshole," Neil said. "You let the world happen to you and don't bother to fight back. You let other people dictate how you can live your life and who you can spend your time with. Remind me why you put up with your mother's abuse for so long. Did you actually love her despite her madness, or were you just too afraid to walk away?"

They knew that Neil’s defense mechanism was to hurt back and that Aaron deserved it but somehow this was going downhill real quick, some looked at Aaron to see his reaction and it was the same as the one he had in the screen he looked angry and was glaring at Neil, other looked at Andrew he had a calm expression with his eyebrows slightly narrowed probably waiting to see what happens next so they continued.
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"Neil," Dan said, shocked. "That's not—"
"Fuck you," Aaron said. "I'm still waiting for an answer to my question."
"And I'm still waiting for a thank you," Neil said. He slanted a look at Andrew. "From both of you, to each other. You're even now, aren't you? So why can't you just wipe the slate clean and start over? Why do you have to drag it out another three years when you can fix it right now?"
"You don't know anything," Aaron said, low and acidic.
"You don't want me to be right," Neil guessed, "because if I am it's your fault she's dead."
Andrew finally joined the argument. "No. It is always going to be her fault."
"She didn't kill herself, Andrew," Aaron said, savage with grief.
Andrew flicked him a cool look. "I told her what would happen if she raised her hand again. She had no right to look so surprised."
"Oh, Jesus," Matt said. "Did you just—?"
Wymack pinched the bridge of his nose and exhaled noisily. "Could you at least let us leave the room before you confess?"
Aaron glanced from Wymack to the upperclassmen, then turned back on Andrew. Neil half-expected him to take Wymack's warning as an order to silence. Instead Aaron switched to German and said, "That's not why you did it. Don't lie to me."
"She was nothing and no-one to me," Andrew said. "Why else would I have killed her?"
It took Aaron a minute to find his voice again. He still sounded angry, but there was a muted edge to his, "You wouldn't even look at me. You wouldn't say a word to me unless I said something first. I'm not psychic. How was I supposed to know?"
"Because I made you a promise," Andrew said. "I did not forget it just because you chose not to believe me. I did what I said I would do, and fuck you for expecting anything else."

They hadn’t thought of the possibility of getting a confession out of Andrew everyone was now looking at both the twins, Aaron who still even after all that time hadn’t believed Neil looked mad and didn’t want to believe it and Andrew looked bored maybe annoyed about not being believed but not much could be seen on the outside.
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"Is that it, Coach?" Neil asked.
"No," Allison said. "As enlightening as this little diversion was, it doesn't answer the original question. What does Riko have on you?"
Lying at this point wouldn't work, considering Aaron's bold accusations. Neil opted for honesty in its simplest, most unhelpful form: "He knows who I am."
It took them a moment to realize that was it, and Matt prompted Neil with, "Uh?"
"Neil's family has a reputation," Kevin said, unexpectedly coming to Neil's defense. Neil looked at him, willing him to silence even as he tried to keep his expression as neutral as possible. Kevin didn't return his stare, but all he said was, "Riko is trying to use it against Neil."
"Is it going to be a problem?" Dan asked.
"No," Neil said.
Allison arched a brow at him and gestured over her shoulder,
presumably toward the wrecked changing room. "Are you sure about that?"
"Yes," Neil said, but no one looked convinced. Neil weighed his words carefully, looking for the right balance between truth and lies that would get them off his back. "Riko knows who I am because our families operate in similar circles, but he is a Moriyama in name only. He doesn't have the resources to do more than threaten me."
"Damn, Neil," Matt said. "Your parents must be something else if even Riko's got to follow the rules. Aaron was right, then? This is what you're supposed to look like?"
"Yes," Neil said.
"But why lie about your age?" Matt asked. "I don't get it."
"I don't want anyone tracking me back to my family," Neil said. "The harder it is for people to put two and two together, the better. Being eighteen in Millport meant my teachers and coach didn't have to consult my parents for anything. Telling you the truth meant having to explain why I lied in the first place, and I'm not used to trusting people. I don't want you to judge me for my parents' crimes."
"As if we have room to judge anyone," Dan said, and Neil shrugged a silent apology.

Seeing what he told them and what they knew it checked, they understood why he didn’t say the truth because of the risk that he would be taking. They didn’t what him to think that they would judge him for all that like literally not long ago they saw Andrew confess about killing Aaron’s mother so yea judging him for what his father is sounds dumb.
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The soft buzz of his phone distracted him, and Neil tugged it out of his pocket. There was a new message in his inbox. He didn't recognize the number or the area code. He understood the message even less: "49". Neil gave it a minute, but nothing else was forthcoming. He deleted the text and put his phone away.

Now this was confusing, what did 49 mean what was that? Was it even send correctly, 49 what? It hurt to think about what and why so they let it go for now but it was not forgotten they just hoped nothing bad happens.

Chapter Text

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"Anything else?" Neil asked.
"Free to go," Wymack said. "You need a ride?" "I'm fine," Neil said.
"Uh-huh," Wymack said without looking up. Neil let it go and gathered their breakfast trash. He was almost to the garbage can before Wymack spoke up. "By the way, I'm making you vice-captain next year."
Neil's heart lodged in his throat. He twisted to stare at Wymack, but it took two tries to find his voice. "You're what?"

There was surprise but on different levels some were not even surprised at all but in the end it made sense, Neil from the moment he came he put the team together so after the original surprise there was more, a smile full of fondness from Dan and Matt, Renee was smiling proud to see that he had made so much progress towards himself and the team, Wymack was nodding like he was agreeing with himself and Abby was smiling the other found it a good choice with the only exception being Aaron who was grumbling under his breath.
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"I can't captain them," Neil said. "I won't."
"This isn't a democracy," Wymack said. "You don't get to vote on what you do or don't want to do. I make the rules and you get to deal. And you are going to deal with it. You need this as much as they need you. Give me one good reason why you'd try to turn this down."
"I—" Neil said, but he couldn't say "I'm dying". He couldn't tell Wymack he wouldn't live long enough to take the position. "I have to go."
He was afraid Wymack would argue, but all Wymack said was, "See you Monday." Neil thought he'd breathe easier once he got out of the stadium, but his chest was still too tight when he stumbled out onto the sidewalk. He stared at the empty parking lot, heart pounding in his temples. The thought of going back to Fox Tower and facing his teammates right now made his stomach hurt, but there was nowhere else to go. He should run it off, burn himself down to fumes until he couldn't think or feel anymore, but Neil's feet stayed planted on the sidewalk. Maybe they knew he wouldn't stop if he ran now.

This made them feel bad, they had no idea what Neil was thinking and went through, now seeing the panic something like this send him they couldn’t help but think that maybe it could have been approached differently but that was something that the future Wymack had done so there really was not much they could now.
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He sank to the curb to buy himself time, but his thoughts kept twisting in anxious circles. Neil felt a half-second from losing his mind, but then Andrew said his name and Neil's thoughts ground to a startled halt. He was belatedly aware of his hand at his ear and his fingers clenched tight around his phone. He didn't remember pulling it from his pocket or making the decision to dial out. He lowered it and tapped a button, thinking maybe he'd imagined things, but Andrew's name was on his display and the timer put the call at almost a minute already.
Neil put the phone back to his ear, but he couldn't find the words for the wretched feeling that was tearing away at him. In three months championships would be over. In four months he'd be dead. In five months the Foxes would be right back here for summer practices with six new faces. Neil could count his life on one hand now. On the other hand was the future he couldn't have: vice-captain, captain, Court. Neil had no right to mourn these missed chances. He'd gotten more than he deserved this year; it was selfish to ask for more.

Five months these words were too much to stomach, five months felt and were too little what added to the pressure they felt was how Neil talked about himself, he said that he god more than what he deserved but that was a lie Neil deserved more, for him to ask for a longer life was not selfish. Something else that the others might have seen past it but Andrew hadn’t Neil had called him, wenn he thought of running away he stood his ground and called, Andrew might not want to admit it but he couldn’t ignore the feeling he got out of it, he was feeling and he hated that he hated Neil Josten.
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A couple minutes later they pulled into a dealership. Kevin got out as soon as Andrew parked. Andrew killed the engine and tossed his keys in the now-empty passenger seat.
"Get out or stay here," Andrew said. "Those are your only choices."
Running wasn't an option, he meant. Andrew knew why Neil had called him. "I'll stay."
Andrew got out and slammed the door behind him. Neil watched him disappear through the front doors in search of a sales rep, then closed his eyes and fell asleep again. When he woke there was a metallic black beast parked alongside the rental car. Neil wasn't any smarter about cars now than he'd been at the start of the year, but every curve of this one screamed expensive. Neil assumed Andrew did with this purchase what he'd done with the last: simply looked for whichever car would burn through his budget the fastest. It was a perplexing quirk for a man who claimed to have no attachments to his material possessions.
Andrew opened the back door and looked across the backseat at Neil.

They were all surprised except Wymack and Abby who didn’t care what car Andrew bought but the other were openly staring with mouths open and the first to talk was Matt “no way that’s a fucking Maserati, oh my god” that’s all he could say before he went on a rant about the car “Damm Neil sure knows how take good care of his man” said Alison with a smirk and got a glare from Andrew, Nicky was making some weird happy noises about how cool the new car was and Aaron still looked surprised with his mouth open, Andrew on the other hand might have looked cool on the inside but Damm was he happy about his car choice.
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Andrew managed only one drag before he crushed his second cigarette beside the first. He lit a third anyway, but Neil reached out and took it from him. It was a good sign, maybe, that Andrew didn't react to the theft. Neil set the stick beside his own dropped cigarette and looked back at Andrew. Andrew chucked his pack off to one side and tucked his knee to his chest.
Neil should let it go, but he needed to understand. "Why not?" "Because you're too stupid to tell me no," Andrew said.
"And you don't want me to tell you yes?" "This isn't yes. This is a nervous breakdown. I know the difference even if you don't." Andrew dug his thumb into his lower lip like he could erase the weight of Neil's mouth and fixed his stare on the horizon. "I won't be like them. I won't let you let me be."
Neil opened his mouth, closed it, and tried again. "The next time one of them says you're soulless I might have to fight them."
"Ninety-two percent," Andrew said, "going on ninety-three."
It wasn't funny—none of this was—but that response was so obnoxious and so typically Andrew that Neil couldn't help but smile. He forced it off his face before Andrew noticed and looked out at the campus again.

Seeing something like that felt a bit too much of a privacy breach, on one side seeing moments like these between these two was funny and nice but things that they said to each other like right now what Andrew had said to Neil, it was different they couldn’t say anything, everyone knew very well what he meant with that sentence and it made it difficult to say something but it refreshing to see some of the other moments between the two.
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He didn't remember falling asleep, and he didn't know how long he was out before his phone hummed at him. The new message in his inbox was from an unfamiliar number, and all it said was "48". Neil deleted it and would have passed out again if not for the muffled sound of a TV in the next room. Neil searched for the strength to face the upperclassmen and found it closer than it'd been this morning. With a quiet sigh he kicked his blankets off, shut his alarm off, and climbed down from the loft.

Whatever feeling was present before flashed away the moment the new notification made its way to Neil’s phone, it was now clear that who ever that was was sending him a countdown of some sorts, it was weird but it send a uneasy feeling to everyone present, the question was what was it that said person wanted to accomplish? “you know it’s weird that the countdown started right after the bloody birthday message” said Nicky, he was thinking something and everyone caught on with no problem “do you think that Riko is behind this too?” said Abby with narrowed eyes “he is right, it could very well be Riko since he could pull something like that, there is no way he couldn’t do something like this” said Renee, it was making sense but it raised other questions, what comes after the countdown is done? What has Riko planned this time?
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He might have forgotten about the text that woke him up if he didn't get a "47" message from a new number the following evening. Neil looked down at his phone in consternation as he realized someone was sending him a countdown. He pushed his schoolwork aside in favor of the calendar hanging from the kitchen fridge. He counted days with his fingers, flipping pages until he found March. For a moment he thought he'd get to Neil Josten's birthday, but he landed on Friday, March 9th. It was an odd day to end on. It was the last day before Palmetto State University's spring break. There was a game that night, but it wasn't one of championships' two death matches.
Neil checked his phone again, debating whether or not to respond. In the end he deleted the text and went back to conjugating Spanish verbs.

It was an odd day indeed, it somehow made everything worse. They couldn’t explain the why but not knowing why Riko would choose a day like that put them everyone on edge.
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The perfect distraction from himself came on Wednesday, when Kengo Moriyama collapsed at a board meeting and was raced to the hospital in an ambulance.

That really was a big distraction, it was enough that they forgot the countdown even if it was for a little while before it came back. Hearing news like these made Kevin look like he was living on of a hundred vodka shots, the others were surprised but not as bad as he was.

Chapter Text

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After a minute's serious study, Nicky complained, "There's nothing to watch. I'm going to scour Matt's collection."
He said it definitively, but he waited a beat in case Andrew shot that idea down. Neil looked from him to Andrew, who was rolling his pint between his hands to soften it. When Andrew said nothing, Nicky vanished. Neil locked the door behind him and carried his ice cream to Andrew. He knelt on the floor near Andrew's beanbag chair and listened. He didn't hear the sound of a game coming from the bedroom, but Kevin's headphones weren't on his desk anymore. Neil set his ice cream and spoon to one side and turned a searching look on Andrew.
"Question," Neil said, but it took him a few moments to figure out the right words. "When you said you don't like being touched, is it because you don't like it at all or because you don't trust anyone else enough to let them touch you?"
Andrew glanced at him. "It doesn't matter."
"If it didn't, I wouldn't ask," Neil said.
"It doesn't matter to a man who doesn't swing," Andrew clarified. Neil shrugged. "I don't because I've never been allowed to. The only
thing I could think about growing up was surviving." Maybe that was
why this was in that gray area of what was acceptable.
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"Letting someone in meant trusting them to not stab me in the back when terrible people came looking for me. I was too afraid to risk it, so it was easier to be alone and not think about it. But I trust you."
"You shouldn't."
"Says the man who stopped." Neil gave Andrew a few moments to respond before saying, "I don't understand it, and I don't know what I'm doing, but I don't want to ignore it just because it's new. So are you completely off-limits or are there any safe zones?"
"What are you hoping for, coordinates?"
"I'm hoping to know where the lines are before I cross them," Neil said, "but I'm open to drawing a map on you if you want to loan me a marker. That's not a bad idea."

This was different but it showed how good they fit together, it was nice how even after Andrew told Neil about his feelings he still asked were the lines where. Andrew from an outside perspective looked like he was unaffected by all this but watching something like that from the future made it all look like pipe dream was maybe something more then just a dream but if anyone asked about how he was feeling about what he saw right now he would ignore it like he never saw it.
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Andrew did push, but he followed Neil down.

Renee was smiling and everyone could hear Nicky when he went to say something of the lines “go get em ti-“ but was cut of by Andrew and his knife witch made some of the others laugh.
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Neil pushed himself up with unsteady hands and retreated to Kevin's desk with his ice cream. Getting the plastic safety seal off was the hardest thing he'd done all year, but at least it gave him an excuse to not look at Nicky.

They laughed at that, someone that had endured two weeks in hell that they still couldn’t get over from talked about how a plastic safety seal was the hardest thing he’s done.
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Andrew did, and like always, he fired the rebound where Neil could get it. Neil tore off up the court like his father was on his heels, and there was nothing his striker could do to stop him.

They gaped at that because did Neil just say that, they didn’t know if they were allowed to laugh or were supposed to cry but it was funny and that was better than hearing about other depressing things.

Chapter Text

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Neil tried for something neutral, but the interviewer took a good-natured jab at his newfound discretion.
"The last time I said something no one wanted to hear, my school got vandalized," Neil said. "I was trying to prevent collateral damage this time. But you know what? You're right. I can't afford to be quiet. Silence means I condone their behavior, and that's a dangerous illusion. I'm not going to forgive or tolerate them just because they're talented and popular. Let me answer that question again, okay?
"Yes," Neil said. "I am a thousand percent sure we are going to face the Ravens in finals this spring, and I know for a fact we are going to win this time. And when the nation's best loses to a nine-man 'know- nothing' team—when they lose to a team their own coach likened to feral dogs—Edgar Allan is going to have to change things up. Personally I think they should start by demanding Coach Moriyama's resignation."
The noise Kevin made wasn't human.

It was quiet but it didn’t last long Kevin made the same sound that came from the screen and looked worse then ever before but the others on the other hand were smiling and laughing even Andrew had a tiny smirk on.
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Andrew stole a beer from the fridge and worked the tab back and
forth. Neil watched him for a moment before looking across the room at his desk. He was annoyed with Kevin for canceling practice, but he knew a free evening was a lucky break. He had a math test next week and a paper due tomorrow that he hadn't started yet. Midterms weren't far away and Neil's grades were straddling their usual shaky line. This was the perfect night to play catch-up.
A metal tab bounced off his cheek.

Andrew was ignoring and sending threats at the same time at everyone that was sending him amused faces because there is no way in hell Andrew was going to say anything about what his future self was doing, it was not even him ok? even if he knows that he would most definitely do it again but no one has to know about it and fuck Neil for not understanding anything and needing everything spelled out for him!
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Andrew wasn't looking, but maybe he felt the weight of Neil's stare, because after a couple minutes he said, "Problem?"
"No," Neil said, but even he heard the lie in it. "Andrew? Last summer you made me a promise. I'm asking you to break it."
"No," Andrew said without hesitation.
"You said you'd stick with me if I kept Kevin south, but Kevin doesn't need me anymore. He chose us over the Ravens because as a whole we're finally worth his time. There's nothing else I can give you in exchange for your protection."
"I will think of something."
"I don't want you to," Neil said. "I need you to let me go."
"Give me one good reason," Andrew said.
"If I'm hiding behind you I'm still running," Neil said. "I don't want
to end the year like this. I want to stand on my own two feet. Let me do that. None of this means anything if I don't."
Andrew stared at him in silence. Neil didn't know if he was weighing the truth of Neil's words or silently rejecting them. He wanted to push Andrew for a solid answer but knew it'd backfire. Andrew took his promises and his word too seriously. Convincing him to renege was going to take more than one attempt and if Neil pushed too hard Andrew would know something was wrong. Neil closed his eyes and scrunched deeper in the beanbag chair. He hoped Andrew would read it as his willingness to wait for a decision.

They understood what he meant by him not wanting to be stuck behind his back but they didn’t understand what he meant by Andrew knowing something was wrong it was confusing and Andrew looked annoyed most likely because Neil was asking to break a promise and was hiding something at the same time.
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"I couldn't live there again. I couldn't retrace my steps to any of those places."
"How many is 'any'?"
"Twenty-two cities," Neil said, but didn't say he'd spread them across sixteen countries. Andrew still thought Neil had hit the road alone all those years ago. A child couldn't go back and forth across the world without help. "Longest stay was that year in Millport. Shortest was one week with my uncle."
"Am I supposed to believe he's real?" Andrew asked. "You told Nicky you would see him over Christmas. You lied."
"Uncle Stuart is real," Neil said. "He was the first person I went to when I ran away, but he's a gangster, too. I didn't feel any safer with him than I did at home so I left again. I still have his number, but I've never been desperate enough to call him. I don't know what his help would cost me."

This triggered some of their interest, Neil never talked badly about his uncle except the often reminder that he was a gangster and was from London, he never said anything else and it made them curious.
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"So California and South Carolina. You've really never been anywhere else except when traveling for a game?" Andrew only shrugged in dismissal. Neil thought it over for a bit, then said, "Spring break's coming up. We could go someplace."
"Go someplace," Andrew echoed, like it was a foreign concept. "Where and why?"
"Anywhere," Neil said, and amended, "Anywhere at least three hours from campus. There's no point in going someplace closer than that. It won't feel like a vacation. The only trick is figuring out how to pry Kevin away from the court."
"I have knives," Andrew reminded him. "That doesn't answer the 'why'."
Neil couldn't explain where the idea had come from, so he said, "Why not? I've never traveled just for the sake of it, either. I want to know what it's like."
"You have a problem," Andrew said, "wherein you only invest your time and energy into worthless pursuits."

This had peak Andrew’s interest and all of the others’s too “well it’s decided on spring break we are going on a vacation” said Alison it was no question just a statement, Andrew’s sigh was not heard from all the agreements from the others and the annoyed sound of Aaron all expect Renee who just smiled an innocent smile towards him who glared back at her.
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"This," Neil flicked his finger to indicate the two of them, "isn't worthless."
"There is no 'this'. This is nothing."
"And I am nothing," Neil prompted. When Andrew gestured confirmation, Neil said, "And as you've always said, you want nothing."
Andrew stared stone-faced back at him. Neil would have assumed it a silent rejection of Neil's veiled accusation if Andrew's hand hadn't frozen midair between them. Neil took the bottle from Andrew's other hand and set it off to one side where they couldn't knock it over.
"That's a first," Neil said. "Do I get a prize for shutting you up?"
"A quick death," Andrew said. "I've already decided where to hide your body."
"Six feet under?" Neil guessed.
"Stop talking," Andrew said, and kissed him.

Even with the clear death threat everyone could say that it was one of the sweetest things they have seen except Andrew who would say that that was the dumbest thing he has ever heard.
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Kevin started to say something Neil knew would be negative and dismissing. Neil reached behind Andrew and popped Kevin in the back of the head to shut him up. Matt choked on a laugh and tried unsuccessfully to pass it off as a cough. Kevin froze for a startled second, then sent Neil a scathing look.
"No one wants to hear that right now," Neil said.
"If you hit me again," Kevin started.
Andrew cut in with a casual, "You'll what?"
Kevin shut up but didn't look happy about it.

Like Matt they were laughing “damm Kevin your bodyguard has chosen favourites” said Alison with a laugh witch Kevin didn’t look happy about and Andrew just shrugged, he was more interested in where this was all going then to point out the obvious.

Chapter Text

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Neil waited until they started speaking before pulling his phone out of his pocket.Every night since his real birthday he'd gotten a number texted to him. Today's sobering "0" had arrived during lunch. Neil didn't know what to make of it or what to expect next. It was as anticlimactic as it was nerve-wracking. He wanted to erase the message as he had every single one before it, but when his phone prompted him for confirmation he snapped the phone closed instead. He put his phone away again, turned backward in the seat, and pushed up onto his knees to look down at Andrew.

They were relieved to see that the countdown had stopped but something didn’t feel right because why would Riko go through all that but not do anything when it’s over, it was weird but jinxing it right now was not any good.
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"Is it exhausting seeing
everything as a fight?"
"Not as exhausting as running from everything must be."
"Maybe," Neil allowed. "I told you I'm working on that."
"Work harder."
"I can't unless you let me go," Neil said, quiet but firm. "Stand with
me, but don't fight for me. Let me learn to fight for myself."
"You never explained that change of heart."
"Maybe I got tired of seeing Kevin bend. Or maybe it was the
zombies." When Andrew just stared at him, Neil shrugged and said, "A few weeks back you and Renee argued contingency plans for a zombie apocalypse. She said she'd focus on survivors. You said you'd go back for some of us. Five of us," Neil said, splaying his fingers at Andrew. "You weren't counting Abby or Coach. Since you trust Renee to handle the rest of the team, I'm guessing the last spot is for Dobson."
He knew Andrew wouldn't answer that, so he dropped his hand and said, "I didn't say anything then because I knew I'd look out for only me when the world went to hell. I don't want to be that person anymore. I want to go back for you."
"You wouldn't," Andrew said. "You're a different kind of suicidal. Didn't you figure that out in December? You're bait. You're the martyr no one asked for or wanted."
Neil knew he wasn't that good of a person, but all he said was, "Only one way to be sure, right?"
"You'll regret it."
"Maybe, maybe not."
Andrew looked away. "Don't come crying to me when someone breaks your face."
"Thank you."
Neil tipped his head to one side to rest his cheek on his arm and looked out the window.

With that they saw Andrew break his promise but was that the only reason why Neil wanted to break it it somehow looked like he knew something was going to happen or not they didn’t know but it came with a uneasy feeling.
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By the time he was done and getting dressed again, the locker room was empty. Neil packed his bag and slung it over his shoulder.
He was halfway to the door when his phone hummed. His first thought was it was a text, but his phone kept buzzing. He stopped to pull it out of his pocket and flipped it open. The screen lit up with the incoming number and Neil's stomach bottomed out. He didn't recognize the phone number, but he didn't have to. He knew that 443 area code.
Baltimore was calling.

They too felt fear maybe not even close to what Neil could be feeling but it was very close they could only hope that it was not who they thought it was, on Andrews case he didn’t show any fear and if anyone asked he would deny it but where no one could see it was present, deep in one corner on his mind it was there but he hid it behind anger it was safer that way. For now all they could do was watch and hope.
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"Don't run."
The sound of his voice startled him. He hadn't meant to speak. His
muscles screamed with barely restrained tension; he was braced to bolt but somehow he held his ground. Neil fought to relax, but his blood was pounding in his temples.
He knew this wasn't his father calling. It couldn't be; it wouldn't be. It was Riko or one of Riko's lackeys playing a sick joke. Riko would know by now that the Foxes had made it to the fourth round. His attempt to rattle Neil with that countdown had failed. Neil knew that was the logical explanation, but it still took him until the fourth ring before he could answer.

“Yea I mean come on there is no way that that is actually his father calling” said Nicky and he sounded anxious just how the others were feeling.
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"Hello?"
"Hello, Junior. Do you remember me?"
Neil's heart lurched to a sick halt. It wasn't his father or Riko, but he
would know this voice anywhere. It was Lola Malcolm, one of his father's closest people and one of the two who'd tried teaching Neil how to wield a knife so many years ago. She'd been in and out of their house so many times Neil had thought for a while she lived there with them. She posed as Nathan's personal assistant, but her job was to get rid of the bodies Nathan's circle created. She was worth her weight in gold. Not a single one had ever turned up again.

It was like everyone had their breath knocked out of them, why was she calling? but at least it was not his father right? nothing too bad would happen right? They were gripping at the armrests hoping that the phone call was there only as a scare and nothing more but they knew that that was not the case.
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"I didn't give you this number, Lola."
"So you do remember me," she said. "Now you see, that's bad, because if you remember me, you remember who you are and where your place is."
"I made my own place."
"You don't have that right." She gave him a beat to respond, but Neil had nothing. "Are you listening? It is time to go. If you make this difficult for us, you will regret it for the rest of your very short life. Do you understand?"
Neil wanted to be sick. Lola trashed bodies; she didn't often make them. That was what the rest of Nathan's people were for. Neil remembered faces better than he remembered names, but he could guess who Lola had brought with her. Lola's business partner of choice was her brother Romero, and where Romero went Jackson was never far behind. The three were Nathan's inner circle. They answered only to Nathan's right-hand man DiMaccio and Nathan himself.

This was bad, this was not supposed to happen. They were afraid for what was to come next, this was bad very bad. “He has time to get away right, he could got to the police or FBI right?” said Matt worry dripping off of his voice and it felt like a punch to the gut that they just had to sit back and watch.
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Neil could have tried outrunning one of them. He wouldn't make it past three. For a moment he was so scared he couldn't breathe, but fast on the heels of fright was an irrational and wild anger. He was halfway to winning Andrew's trust, a weekend from his first vacation, and one month from semifinals. There were only four matches left in championships. Neil was so close to everything he wanted and Lola was here to steal it away.
"Put a hand on me and you'll regret it," Neil said.
"Oh, what's this?" Lola said, entertained. "Has the baby finally inherited a spine? Your father will be glad to hear it."
"My—" Neil choked on it. "He is in Seattle. You'll never get me that far."
"He is in Baltimore," she corrected him. "His parole hearing was on your birthday. They had to notify his family when his case came up. You must have missed the memo, being dead and all, so I'll fill you in. They made a final decision last week, and the feds swung it so he'd get released back to Maryland this morning. They're hoping being back in familiar territory will make him careless." Neil could hear the savage smile in her words. "Don't worry, kid. They'll never know you stopped by. I'll make sure of it."
Neil blinked and saw that zero on his eyelids. He was out of time.

“No no no no, she is joking I don’t believe it.” said Dan everyone was shocked even Aaron who would openly say that he hates Neil with every inch of his being, Kevin looked like he was dying most likely remembering the man that Neil’s father had killed in front of them.
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"You don't honestly think you can take me away from here," Neil said. "My team will know I'm missing and they won't get back on the road without me."
"They don't have a choice. We can't kill them," Lola said, "but we can hurt them. You'll see."
"No," Neil said, but Lola hung up. Neil called her back, but it went straight to voicemail. She'd cut her phone off already. Neil swore and snapped his phone shut with unsteady fingers. He gave his hands a vicious shake like he could knock the trembling out of them, but those quivers were bone-deep. His mind raced a thousand miles an hour, grabbing at every exit strategy and dismissing every single one that ended with him running.
He'd promised Andrew he'd hold his ground here, but he couldn't do that if it meant catching his teammates in the crossfire. The only way to save his team was to do the last thing Nathan's people expected of him. He'd run and lied and hid all his life. Telling the truth to save himself, to save his team, was completely out of character. Neil had wanted to do it when the season was over, but he couldn't afford to wait any longer.

Neil just said that he was going to run but was it really that easy it felt like the others were close would he be successful?
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The Foxes could sit tight here until the feds showed up to take them all into protective custody.
Neil hurried out of the changing room and down the hall. A security officer stood at the end of the hall, looking in on the Foxes where they were celebrating in the lounge. Neil made it halfway there before the man realized someone else was coming. Neil froze when the officer looked his way and Neil got a good look at his face. Jackson Plank was in the locker room with his team. A second later Romero Malcolm stepped into view in a similar getup. Retreating from them was instinctive, but Neil grabbed at the wall to stop himself before he got far.

Chapter Text

He couldn’t get away, they were inside with them. They were near Andrew’s family and he was tense watching that. This was dangerous, how was this going to go? What would happen to them and Neil what was he going to do now?
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Romero let his hand rest casually on the gun hooked to his belt. Neil flinched and gave a fierce shake of his head. Romero turned away from him to face the Foxes. Neil had no problems interpreting that warning and he put his hands out in a desperate plea to stand down. Jackson flicked Neil only a cursory glance before returning his attention to the oblivious team.
"If we're all accounted for, we should head out," Jackson said.
"We're still waiting for Neil," Nicky said, and Jackson gestured down the hall in Neil's direction. Neil swallowed against the stone in his throat and tried to school his expression into something calm. He continued down the hall on feet that wanted to carry him anywhere but here. Nicky jumped to his feet when Neil stepped into the den, grinning ear to ear. "Hey, Neil! We were starting to think you'd drowned in there."
"I'm sorry," Neil said.
Nicky waved it off, thinking Neil was apologizing for the wait, and went to grab his bag.

“Jesus” said Wymack a sign of how bad this was, Nicky looked like he was going to cry any minute now and the other looked at what was going on horrified with tense shoulders, he was going to say something right? Neil was going to tell them something anything at this point but what made this a thousand times worse was that deep down they all had a feeling that he wasn’t.
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Only Andrew saw the strain in Neil's mask. He crossed the room to stand in front of Neil, a silent demand in his stare. Neil wanted to answer that, but he didn't know how. German was the obvious answer because it would afford them a little bit of privacy, but Romero and Jackson didn't understand German. They wouldn't know what he was saying and they would have to react like he was spilling every dark secret. Neil couldn't allow that. He didn't want to leave Andrew with nothing, but what could he possibly say?
"Thank you," he finally said. He couldn't say he meant thanks for all of it: the keys, the trust, the honesty, and the kisses. Hopefully Andrew would figure it out eventually. "You were amazing."

At this point Nicky was crying at the others were close too, they wish this was just a nightmare that this was not actually going to happen, they couldn’t do anything and it was eating them alive.
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Romero caught Neil's wrist in an iron grip. Neil dug his phone out of his jeans pocket with his free hand and stuffed it into the netted end pocket of his duffel. He just made it when the crowd's tension hit a breaking point. Students and fans went at each other's throats with the Foxes caught in the middle. Bodies crashed into Neil hard enough to take him off his feet, but Romero hauled him up and away as fast as he could. Neil dropped his racquet and let his bag get ripped from his shoulder. Andrew and Kevin knew he'd never let go of these things willingly. It wouldn't tell them where he'd gone, but they'd know he hadn't left them by choice.
Somewhere between the riot and the parking lot Romero lost his reflective vest. As soon as Neil's shoes hit asphalt Neil started struggling, but Jackson was right behind them. He yanked Neil's arm up behind him so sharply he almost dislocated Neil's shoulder. Neil gasped at the white bolt of pain that shot through his back.

They were horrified for their teammate and anger was starting to make itself present, it might sound wrong and horrible but it satisfying to see that he at least still trying to get away they would actually kill him if he gave up.
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"Speaking of which, it's tradition for me to tell a man what I plan on doing with his pieces," Lola said, and she proceeded to tell him in great detail how she was going to take his corpse apart.
Neil tried not to listen, but he couldn't tune out her cruel words. He put every ounce of strength he had left into keeping his fear from showing on his face. He couldn't keep his hands still, but he could at least hide them in his pockets. He didn't want her to know she was getting to him. It wasn't like a brave front would save him, but they'd been waiting for this moment for nine years. The least Neil could do was rob them of as much satisfaction as possible.

“Oh my got” said Alison a horrified and somewhat disgusted expression and the others too the only one that didn’t wear these emotions was Andrew but deep down he was the same.
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It was only a couple miles to I-81, and the car they'd acquired for this job let them hit the interstate at ninety miles an hour. Jackson cut the police lights on and off depending on whether or not cars were in his way. Even at such speeds it was almost three hours from Binghamton University to Baltimore.
Two miles into Maryland they pulled off to the shoulder behind an abandoned car. Jackson stayed with the patrol car, but Romero and Lola walked Neil to the Cadillac. Neil was pushed into the passenger seat.
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Romero put his gun in Neil's face before Neil could even think of making a break for it.

They tensed because this was not just knifes now this was a gun and it sure hurt more then a stab wound.
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He was pretty sure he was supposed to be delivered to Nathan alive, but Neil's mother had taught Neil how many places one could shoot a man without killing him. Neil watched Lola cuff his ankles to the seat's rails and barely refrained from kneeing her in the face.
Lola climbed into the backseat behind him and pulled Neil's arms around back of his chair. She cuffed his hands together and clicked them as tight as she could. As soon as she closed her door Romero got them on the road again. Neil kicked his legs a bit, testing his range of movement, but was quickly distracted by the press of sharp, cold metal against his fingertips.
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Neil reflexively tried to clench his hands into fists. Lola laughed and dug a thumb into the pressure point of his wrist. When his fingers loosened she slid her blade between his fingers and palm. The scrape of the edge against his fingers was encouragement to open his hand again. Lola tapped the tip to the webbing between her fingers, hard enough to be a threat but not quite hard enough to break the skin. She got bored of the teasing before long and cut a shallow line along the base of his fingers.
Neil tugged hard at the cuffs, trying to yank his hands out of her reach, but there was no give in the metal. For a blinding moment it reminded him of Christmas break at Evermore, and Neil's wavering control cracked a little further. "Stop it."
"Stop me," Lola returned, and cut a stinging line down from the base of his finger to the thick flesh of his thumb.

They were angry, angry that they were not able to stop this, angry that they had not see past the facade he had put on in front of them in the locker when he saw who was there with them. But no one was giving up on him because that would be worse then anything else, they know that he was going to survive or at least they hoped he survived.

Chapter Text

They were angry, angry that they were not able to stop this, angry that they had not see past the facade he had put on in front of them in the locker when he saw who was there with them. But no one was giving up on him because that would be worse then anything else, they know that he was going to survive or at least they hoped he survived.
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She covered his hand with burning lacerations before moving on to the next one. When she was done she slid over and leaned between the front seats. She traced Neil's tattoo with the tip of her blade. "We read all about your feud with Riko. What a convincing act! In another life you could have been an actor. Tell me, did you really think his collar would protect you from us?"
"It doesn't matter."
"It does. I can't take you before your father with such a stain on your face. Rome?"
Romero reached for the dashboard. Something clicked as he pressed it, and Neil scanned the array of buttons for a hint of what he'd done. It wasn't the radio, and none of the lights were on to indicate he'd clicked on the heater. That left only one possible solution, but Neil refused to believe it. Denial didn't change facts: soon enough the dashboard cigarette lighter popped free of its lock with a metallic cling. Romero pulled it out and held it up.
Neil leaned away from it with a heated, "You're sick."

They had the same reaction as Neil, it take a genius to know but they didn’t want to believe it.
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Lola wound her arm around the back of his chair so she could hold her knife to the right side of his face. The blade cut a paper-thin line from his mouth to the corner of his eye. Neil went still at that warning and watched as Lola took the lighter from her brother. She gave it an experimental twirl and tipped it where she and Neil could see the red-hot coils inside. Lola nodded approval and favored Neil with one of her wide smiles.
"What do you think?"
Neil thought he was two seconds away from losing his cool. "I think fuck you."
"Don't flinch," she said, and pressed the lighter to his cheek.
She said not to move, but there was no way Neil could obey. Agony exploded in his face, knifing down his jaw to his throat and eating its way through his eye. The smell of charred skin only made the blinding pain worse and Neil couldn't hold his ground in front of it.

They were horrified. Some didn’t want to believe it but it didn’t work, Kevin’s hand shot up to his own tattoo without thinking a sick feeling making its way to his stomach, Aaron was looking away not wanting to see it, Nicky was crying a hand was in front of his mouth, Alison was the same but with no tears, Renee had a blank stare but you could see the anger escaping from tiny cracks on her facade, Dan and Matt were horrified and angry, Wymack looked more angry then anything but Abby was the opposite she looked horrified and scared for Neil, Andrew on the other hand didn’t show anything else then anger his eyebrows were frowned and eyes narrowed a look that could freeze hell over.
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Heat ate a fierce line through his other cheek as he retreated right into Lola's waiting knife. He felt it like a distant memory, an insignificant tickle against the inferno. Lola followed him when he retreated, keeping the lighter in place, but pulled back after a second to inspect her handiwork. Neil knew she put the lighter away because he saw her do it, but he still felt its metal and fire on his skin. Every passing second just made it worse until Neil's stomach was roiling inside of him.
"Better," Lola said, and dug her fingernails into his raw skin just to make him cry out again. "Don't you think?"

Seeing all this made their anger grow by the second.
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"I know your father's going to ask, but I have to know now," Lola said. "You listening, Junior? Hey." She thumped his back with the hilt of her knife. "Where's the bird, hm? We've had some time to dig around since we figured out where you were, but there's no sign of her anywhere. Tetsuji says you told them she's dead. He was sure you were telling the truth. Me, I'm not so trusting."
"She's dead," Neil choked out.
Lola grabbed a fistful of hair to yank him upright. She'd put her knife aside so she could hold him with both hands, and her free hand clenched around his throat so tight he could barely breathe. She pulled him back against his chair, pinning his head to the headrest. Romero plucked the lighter out again, and Neil put up a desperate fight.
"She's dead," he said, almost wheezing through Lola's brutal grip. "She died two years ago after he beat her in Seattle. Do you think she'd have let me go to Palmetto if she was still alive? I signed up because I had nothing left."
"Do we believe him?" Lola asked Romero.
"Might as well be sure," Romero said.
"Right that," Lola said, and held fast to Neil so Romero could crush
the lighter to his face once more. Lola's strangling grip on his throat meant the best Neil could manage was a pained whine. He thrashed mindlessly against his restraints. Lola was speaking again, but he couldn't understand her over the roar in his ears. His world narrowed down to the fire in his face.
Romero put the lighter away, but he pushed it in all the way so it'd reheat. Lola loosened her grip enough that Neil could breathe but didn't let go completely.
"Try again, Junior," Lola said. "Answer me and make me believe you. Where is Mary?"
"She's dead," Neil said, voice raw with pain. "She's dead, she's dead, she's dead."
Lola looked to her brother. "You believe him now?"
Romero lifted his shoulder in a noncommittal shrug. Lola considered Neil again, then smacked his burned face as hard as she could.

This was the first time they had had seem Neil like that it was sick “if I didn’t see them dead I will be doing it my self” said Matt voicing what most were thinking.
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She leaned further forward between the seats to get the lighter when it was ready and retreated back to her original cushion with it. Having the lighter behind him out of sight was worse than the pain they'd already put him through and Neil fought to yank his hands free.
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He tore his wrists open on unyielding metal but he couldn't stop.
"Don't," he begged. "Lola, don't."
"I've got questions," Lola said, voice oddly muffled. Neil guessed she was holding the lighter handle between her lips, because she used both hands to roll his sleeves up. She ran her hands down his bared forearms, fingernails scratching faintly at his skin. She withdrew a moment later, and her voice sounded normal when she spoke next. "Let's start with your teammates again. Tell me everything you told them."
Time stopped as Lola burned and cut a path up Neil's arms. Neil clung to a version of the truth that would protect the Foxes but no matter how many times he said it she wouldn't stop. Eventually he stopped answering altogether, afraid he'd slip up in his pain and panic, and saved his energy for breathing. Every grimace and silent cry pulled the burns on his face, and salty tears were acid on his ruined cheeks.

Couldn’t continue, they saw what she had done to his arms they just hoped that this was going to end soon.
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He didn't want to think about this, didn't want to feel this, so he thought about the Foxes instead.
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The memories made him weak with grief and loss, but they made him stronger, too. He'd come to the Foxhole Court every inch a lie, but his friends made him into someone real.
He'd hit the end of his rope before he wanted to and he hadn't accomplished everything he'd hoped to this year, but he'd done more with his life than he'd ever thought possible. That had to be enough. He traced the outline of a key into his bloody, burnt palm with a shaky finger, closed his eyes, and wished Neil Josten goodbye.

Tears were everywhere most still to be shed but present and Andrew looked somehow even angrier as he said “I will kill him” they knew he meant Neil as some where nodding along because how dare he give up.
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Lola finally stopped and left him limp in his restraints. She said something, but he couldn't understand her through the buzzing in his ears and he didn't care, anyway. His natural choice in fight-or-flight mode had hit a brick wall hard enough to break every bone in his body. That left only one option, so Nathaniel Wesninski let the last few miles fly by unnoticed. He catalogued every throbbing point on his body and mentally ordered them by severity. The worst injuries were the ones on his face, but the mess Lola made of his hands was the most inconvenient. It'd be hard to fight back when even the slightest twitch of his fingers made his hands ache.

Somehow between all this mess it was refreshing that Neil (because they refused to call him anything else) was still trying.
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Nathaniel flicked a cool look at the cops, who were studying him with blatant interest and zero remorse. "How much do my father's people pay you to break your oaths?"
"More than the state does," the older officer said. "Don't take it personally."
"I have to," Nathaniel said, voice hoarse with pain and hatred. "It's my life."

“In what logic did he think that after he said to not take it personally he was not going to take it personal” said Nicky with fierce anger “I mean come on is he stupid” he continued, to think that Neil’s father had brought out policemen it made them furious.
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The only thing in the trunk was a small toolbox, so there was plenty of room for him. He couldn't climb into the trunk himself when he was bound like this, but the cops helped Romero hoist him in. Lola took Romero's offered gun and climbed in after him. She wound herself around his battered body, holding him close, and cocked the gun in warning. Nathaniel answered her smile with a blank stare.
"We're good," Lola said, and Romero closed the trunk. Nathaniel closed his eyes against the pitch black that threatened to swallow him whole. Lola smiled against his cheek and bit at his burns. She slung a leg across his and hooked the heel of her shoe between his ankles. "You could almost be my type if you weren't so young, hmm? You look just like your father."
The inviting rock of her hips against his made his skin crawl.

They tensed the sick feeling growing even Andrew had a big reaction or what could be classified as a big reaction from him, his shoulders were tense and eyes narrowed with his hands gripping on the armrest of his chair.
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"And you look like a strung-out whore."
"Feisty still." She sounded appreciative, not insulted, and scratched hard lines down his injured arms. "Not for much longer."
Doors slammed as the cops got back in. The world rocked beneath them as they pulled out of the parking lot. He counted eight stops before the cops started talking. He couldn't understand their voices through the
thick cushion of the backseat, but a few moments later the sirens cut on and the cops picked up pace.
"Oops," Lola murmured against his ear. "Seems there's been an incident at your father's house. Perhaps some vandalism from lowlifes unwilling to have him back in their neighborhood, fools who buy into the conspiracy theory that he killed his beloved wife and child."
"People you paid to create a disturbance tonight," Nathaniel guessed, "so police could stop by unquestioned."
"Ten points to Junior," Lola said.

All this to what kill Neil, they paid of so many people to kill one just because? It was sick to see but what else could be done and they had to know what happens next.
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Tension made the driveway feel endless, but finally the car rolled to a stop. Doors slammed behind the two cops as they went to investigate. Nathaniel waited for Lola to make a move, but she was seemingly content to lie still a while longer.
At last Lola's phone chirped. She reached over Nathaniel to mess with something.
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The toolbox, he guessed when he heard metal click open. Plastic crinkled and Lola propped herself up on her elbow in front of him.
"If you fight me, I will cut you off at the knees."
Sarcasm would only illicit the worst response, so Nathaniel gritted out, "Just do it."
The sickly sweet smell that filled the car made his stomach churn, and everything in him ordered him to struggle. He held still and let her clamp a drenched cloth over his nose and mouth. Numbness started in his fingertips and swiftly overtook the rest of his body. He heard a car door open, and he thought someone was putting the backseat down, but he couldn't hold onto consciousness long enough to be sure.
"Go," Lola said, voice nasal as she pinched her nose shut, and everything fell away.

They had arrived at Neil’s house and they were going to meet Neil’s father for the first time.

Chapter Text

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"Going somewhere?" Lola asked.
Nathaniel brandished his hands at her. "These are going to get infected if I don't clean them soon."
"I wouldn't worry about it if I were you."
"You're not me," Nathaniel said, and got to his feet.
An industrial sink was built into the far wall. It didn't have a mirror.
He was glad he couldn't see his face, but it would have made this easier. He washed his hands first, hissing through clenched teeth. It hurt so bad he wanted to stop, but he made himself rub soapy water into his burns. By the time he rubbed wet hands over his face his fingers were trembling and his stomach was quaking with pain-induced nausea. He had nothing to dry off on afterward, since his clothes were dirty with sweat and streaks of blood. He held his arms out to air dry instead.

It was not really the first think to worry about but this was Neil so of course he was like that but Abby was nodding along happy that he at least cared about his injuries even if it was the wrong time.
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Two years behind bars hadn't aged his father a bit. Aside from a couple lost pounds Nathan Wesninski looked the same now as he always had. The house was a garish demonstration of his wealth, but Nathan didn't waste his time dressing up. He saw no need for fancy clothes when he liked getting dirty at work. He came down the stairs barefoot, wearing dark gray jeans and a black button-up shirt.

Fist thought that past thro their head was that Neil and his father really looked familiar but no one commented on that “it’s disgusting” said Nicky referring to the fact the Neil’s father was barefoot walking around on the room he kills people at.
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"On your feet," Nathan said. The sound of his voice was enough to turn Nathaniel's stomach to jelly. "You know better than to sit in my presence."
Nathaniel told himself to stay put, but he was already getting up. Lola laughed at that easy obedience and made a circle of the room so she could stand behind Nathaniel.
"Hello, Junior," Nathan said.
Nathaniel's jaw worked. He didn't dare speak; he didn't know what he would say. Nathan padded across the room toward him. It took everything Nathaniel had left to hold his ground. Nathan stopped in front of him, so close Nathaniel could smell his cologne. Nathaniel stared at the top button of his shirt like it could somehow save him from all of this.
Nathan's hand settled on his shoulder it what could have been but wasn't a reassuring gesture. Nathaniel braced himself for the inevitable blow, but his knees still buckled when Nathan punched the burns on his cheek. Nathan caught him by his throat as he fell. Nathaniel choked and scrabbled to find his feet again. He knew better than to grab his father for balance. He knew what his father would do if Nathaniel touched him.
"I said hello," Nathan said when Nathaniel was upright again.
Nathaniel's lips moved, but no sound came out. It took two more tries before he managed a quiet, "Hello."
"Look at me when I'm talking to you."
A scream felt like it was going to tear his throat open where he was keeping it bottled inside, but Nathaniel forced his stare up to Nathan's face.

“Jesus…” said Wymack just as horrified as the others about what they were watching, they were gaping at the scene in front of them the weight of not being able to do anything about it settling heavy on their shoulders.
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"You made a liar of me to people who are not to be lied to. Do you know what I'm going to do to you?
"I'm not entirely sure just yet, myself," Nathan said when Nathaniel could only stare numbly up at him. "I've had a couple years to think it over but now that the time has come I'm indecisive. I might skin you alive. I might take you apart one inch at a time and cauterize the wounds. I think no matter what I choose we are going to start by slicing the tendons in your legs. You're not going to run away this time, Nathaniel. I'm not going to let you."
"Fuck you," Nathaniel spat at him, voice sharp with horror.
Nathan pushed Nathaniel away from him and held his hand out. DiMaccio crossed the room toward him. In one hand he held Nathan's ancient, dull axe. In the other was Nathan's cleaver. Nathan turned at DiMaccio's approach and considered the weapons with interest.

It was terrible worse then that, has heard about two times the ways that he might die from. Seeing all this showed them how sick in the head he was.
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Nathaniel took advantage of his distraction and tried to bolt, but Lola was expecting it. She jumped on Nathaniel from behind and wound her arms around him. She couldn't hold him forever but she didn't have to. She slowed him long enough that DiMaccio could hand off a weapon and thunder past Nathan.
He scooped Nathaniel off the ground with a fistful of shirt, unmoved by the fists that rained down on him. Lola let go and neatly stepped back, and DiMaccio heaved Nathaniel at the closest wall. Impact smashed the breath of Nathaniel and he fell awkwardly to the floor. He caught himself with his hands, which was an awful mistake, but he didn't have the breath to cry out. He was so dizzy he felt ill, but movement in the corner of his eye got him moving. Metal flashed a scarce inch from his face as Nathan took a swing. Terror got Nathaniel on his feet faster than his body wanted to move and he retreated from his father's cleaver.
Nathan didn't chase him. He gave his cleaver an experimental wave, as if reacquainting himself with its weight, and tested its blade against his thumb. He must have just sharpened it, because blood welled up almost immediately.
Nathaniel's last nerve broke.

It happened quickly and it didn’t give much time to react except tense and hope for the best, the were just as scared for him after they saw how close the cleaver had come.
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He couldn't get past Nathan and DiMaccio, which meant taking his chance with Lola's knife and gun. He spun and ran for her. The wild smile on her face said she'd expected this resistance. She braced herself for the inevitable collision, knife out and ready to do some terrible damage. She slashed at him as he got closer. Nathaniel twisted away from the blade, nearly spraining his ankle in his hurry. Lola's gun was in his face a second later and knowing she couldn't pull the trigger didn't stop him from ducking.
She came at him, knife hand up for another swipe, and Nathaniel punched her in the throat. He barely heard the terrible choking sound she made through the crackling pain in his ears.

They cheered even for something little like that, if he could get past her then he had a chance to make it out of there.
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Every cut and burn on his hand was screaming in protest. He clenched his fingers tighter and took another swing. Lola dodged, but barely, and left a hot stripe up his chest with the tip of her blade. Nathaniel was now between her and the door, and he threw the bar up to unlock it. Lola grabbed his hair before he could open the door but Nathaniel didn't care how much hair he lost. He surged forward anyway, refusing to let go of the knob.
"Move," Nathan said right behind them.
He was talking to Lola, but Nathaniel threw himself to one side too. Nathan's cleaver came down right where he'd been standing. Metal screamed as he scratched a line down the door, and Nathan turned a hot look on his fallen son. Nathaniel scrambled backwards, hope dying a vicious death in his chest.

Their hope hadn’t lost long either but even as they saw what was happening in front of them and they could see that there really is nothing that could turn the table at Neil’s but a miracle they could at least hope and wish for it.

Chapter Text

Their hope hadn’t lost long either but even as they saw what was happening in front of them and they could see that there really is nothing that could turn the table at Neil’s but a miracle they could at least hope and wish for it.
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Nathan stomped toward him, done playing cat and mouse. Nathaniel tried getting to his feet, but a boot in his ribcage sent him sprawling. A fist to the face killed his next attempt and then Nathan was sitting on top of him with his cleaver to Nathaniel's throat.
DiMaccio came up behind them and offered Nathan's axe. Nathan put it to Nathaniel's neck next so he could carve shallow lines in Nathaniel's burned face with his cleaver. "Maybe we'll do both," he said, casual like he was debating the next day's weather. "Skin you an inch or two at a time and carve the flesh out from underneath. If we do it right, you might last all night. Patrick, have them toss us down the blowtorch. It should still be in the drawer by the oven."
"No," Nathaniel said, but DiMaccio went to the base of the stairs to call up.
"Lola," Nathan said, and Lola came immediately to his side. She wasn't smiling anymore. The look she turned on Nathaniel was venomous and she pressed careful fingers to her bruising neck.
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Nathaniel wanted to take some satisfaction in having wounded her, but all he felt was fear. Nathan didn't look up from his son's face but said, "Would you like the pleasure of crippling him?"
"No," Nathaniel said again, but Lola crouched out of sight. Nathaniel kicked his legs out to the other side away from her. The axe wasn't sharp enough to cut his throat open without serious effort, so he ignored the way the weight of it made him gag and struggled as best he could. Nathan tolerated it until Nathaniel actually grabbed him, and then he lay his cleaver across the bridge of Nathaniel's nose.
"If you do not sit the fuck still I will gouge your eyes out."
Nathaniel froze, but he was trembling so hard it was a wonder he didn't shake his father off. "Please," he whispered, unable to stop himself. "Please don't."
"Can I?" Lola asked, excited all over again.
"We'll slit your ankles, then your knees," Nathan told Nathaniel. "And if you try to crawl away I will take your arms from you too. Do you understand?"
DiMaccio was back. He set the blowtorch down at Nathan's side. Nathaniel wanted to scream, but if he screamed now he'd really lose it and he wouldn't be able to stop. His eyes burned, maybe from the blood, maybe from panic held at bay by desperation. He clung to what remained of his self-control with bloody fingertips, knowing it wouldn't do him any good but unable to let go.
"Please," he begged again. "Just let me go, just let me go, I'm not—"

They couldn’t watch, this was too much, there were too many feelings mixed and they were terrified, tears were present and hearing Neil beg put the the room in a darker air, “pls tell me that everything goes well” said Nicky with a sniffle as he put his hands together in kind of a praying way as others thought the same.
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"Lola," Nathan said, but he didn't get to finish. The cellar door opened from the outside, and a swarm of strangers
came in shooting. Silencers helped muffle the sound somewhat, but in such a closed space Nathaniel still felt every pop like a bite against his skin. Lola was the closest to the door, and her body jerked as bullets tore countless holes through her. Nathan disappeared, hauled to questionable safety by DiMaccio.
Nathaniel tried to lie still, not wanting to draw attention to himself, but he looked to his father as more people poured into the room.
His father was completely shielded by DiMaccio's larger body, and he was yelling to his men for help. His guards rushed down the concrete stairs, but the unending burst of gunfire drowned out their footsteps.

It was surprising and shocking at the same time, the confusion didn’t last long as Nicky shouted “yes, my prayers worked” and then cheers came from everyone, the sad tears from moments ago turned to happy in a blink of an eye, it distracted them long enough so that they forgot to question who actually saved Neil. They were cheering loudly till the screen continued.
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Someone grabbed Nathaniel and pulled him across the floor away from his father. Nathaniel lashed out instinctively, but his attacker didn't fight back. Nathaniel was dumped in a corner and subsequently abandoned.
Staying put seemed a good idea with so many bullets flying. Nathaniel curled his battered body up as tight as he could and shielded his head with his throbbing arms. It was an eternity before the house went still and silent. Nathaniel slowly lowered his arms and looked around.
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Nathan was kneeling in the middle of the room with four guns aimed at his head. He started to get to his feet, but someone knocked him back down with the butt of a rifle. Nathan responded with an unintelligible snarl. One of the men guarding the door whistled a signal down the tunnel, and footsteps echoed faintly in the corridor.
A man stepped into the room, and Nathaniel stopped breathing. He would know that face anywhere. Nine years had taken a severe toll on Stuart Hatford, but Nathaniel still saw his mother in Stuart's lined face.

“The uncle!!” shouted Matt startling most of the as the were focused on the screen and were paying no mind, “how did he know?” asked Alison after they calmed down, it was a good question that no one really had a answer to so they continued waiting to see if they would be getting a answer soon.
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Stuart answered Nathan's scowl with a glacier stare. He had his gun out halfway to Nathan, but a woman intercepted him and jerked her chin in Nathaniel's direction.
Stuart followed her gaze, and surprise took the edge off his white fury. "Bloody hell. Nathaniel?" Nathaniel was too stunned to speak, but he managed a small nod.
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Stuart pointed the gun in Nathan's direction but kept his stare on his nephew. "Where is Mary?" Nathaniel couldn't find his voice, so he shook his head. Stuart's expression shuttered; his glimmer of hope disappeared as quickly as it'd come. "Don't look. This will be over in a moment."

“Is he going to-“ Aaron was almost finished asking but was interrupted by the scene that was still going.
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"How dare you," Nathan said savagely. "You defy Moriyama by coming here and killing my men. You are a dead man walking. You don't have the power to—"
Stuart didn't let him finish. Nathan's body jerked as two bullets punched holes into his chest. Nathaniel watched, wide-eyed and disbelieving, as blood splattered his father's throat and rushed down his shirt to stain his jeans. Nathan's body fell backward from the force of impact and hit the floor with a wet smack.

Again the cheers that were sounded in the room were the loudest they had been till now, after watching all the they themselves wanted to pay that fucker back but it was satisfying to watch him die and none of the to get into trouble for it.
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He didn't fight when two of Stuart's men hoisted him to his feet.
Stuart crossed the room to stand in front of him.
Nathaniel stared past him at his father's corpse. Stuart's hand on his chin forced his attention to his uncle's face. Stuart gave Nathaniel an intent once-over, checking his wounds with a furious gaze.
"He can ride with me," one of the women said.
"He is our only ticket out of here," Stuart said. "We will leave him behind. For now," he added before Nathaniel could react. He clenched his fingers tighter on Nathaniel's face and gave him a small shake. "You will listen to me and do exactly as I say. They only let us come here unchallenged because we promised we would take him alive."

“So they didn’t know that Neil was there they just showed up to take Neil’s father” said Aaron but the question was who would want that.
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Nathaniel finally found his voice. "The Moriyamas?"
"No," Stuart said, so harsh Nathaniel leaned away from him. "Do not speak that name tonight. You cannot pull them into this. They were not expecting their Butcher to die and we only have a small window in which to win their favor. We are giving you to the FBI as a distraction.
You need medical attention, and we cannot yet take you where we need to go. This is the only way you survive. Do you understand?"

That answers the question of who was behind it but who thought that gangsters were now making deals with the feds not that they were complaining but it still was weird to know.
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His father was dead. Nathaniel would agree to anything right then. "I won't tell them."
Stuart nodded. "Then we are leaving."
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They helped him down the tunnel to the garage. The stairs up were dangerously steep and narrow, and the opening at the top was barely big enough for a man's body. Stuart's people vanished out the open garage door as fast as they could go, but Stuart stayed behind a moment with Nathaniel. Nathaniel stared out at the darkness, looking for the feds who had to be watching all of this from a safe distance. For now the street was calm and empty, but there was no way the neighbors had missed that shootout. In another minute, maybe two, the neighborhood would be crawling with police and the press all over again.
Stuart guided him to his knees and put his hands behind his head. "We will come back for you when we can. I promise."

“Somehow the vibes that this dude gives are not what I thought they would be like, you know with the way he talked about him hinted to him being a gangster asshole” said Alison and Nicky was agreeing with her “yea you are right” and it was the truth the uncle they were watching now was not how they thought him to be.
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Then he was gone, disappearing into the night after his team. Nathaniel stayed on his knees and bowed his head to wait. It didn't take long. Feds melted out of the shadows like ghosts, guns out and dressed head-to-toe in tactical gear. Nathaniel was too small to be his father, but the cover of darkness helped the illusion. They didn't realize anything was wrong until they yanked him to his feet with rough hands and strident voices. Nathaniel finally tipped his head up to look at them, and the agent closest to him trailed off mid-sentence.
"You're too late," Nathaniel said, even as someone radioed EMS to rush on-scene. "My father is dead."
"Your father," the agent said stupidly. Six men tore off down the hole so fast they almost fell, and Nathaniel heard their boots echoing off the tunnel wall as they ran to check the house. He didn't realize he'd looked down at the opening until the agent snapped gloved fingers in his face. Nathaniel met his searching look with a cool stare, and the man repeated, "Your father?"
"My name is Nathaniel Wesninski," he said, "and my father is dead."
It wasn't at all funny, but a second later he was laughing. It sounded hysterical but he couldn't stop. Hands caught his shoulders and pushed his head down. A gruff voice ordered him to breathe but Nathaniel couldn't. He grabbed at his knees for balance. Pain lanced up his arms from his abused hands but he couldn't let go. The adrenaline of an unexpected firefight and the relief of being alive were breaking him apart, and Nathaniel finally lost the battle with his unsteady stomach.
Someone held onto him while he retched onto the concrete floor. Nathaniel spat in a vain attempt to get the sour taste out of his mouth.
The hand on his shoulder tightened. "I'd rather not cuff you in the state you're in, but I will if I have to. Are you going to be a problem for us?"
Nathaniel struggled to look up and focus on the man's face. "I've been a problem for nineteen years. I'm too tired to be one tonight. Just get me out of here."
An ambulance pulled up to the curb. It'd gotten here fast enough Nathaniel guessed it'd been waiting down the street out of sight. Despite his reassurance, he had a three-agent escort down to the paramedics. They had the stretcher out and on the street by the time he made it there, and Nathaniel lay down on it without a fuss. They strapped him in for the ride and lifted him into the back. An agent rode with them; Nathaniel assumed more would follow. He didn't care anymore. He closed his eyes and let the paramedic get to work.

They sighed with relief as they saw him finally being driven to a hospital and taken care of.
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When Nathaniel opened his eyes again, he was on his back in a hospital bed and soft sunlight was filtering through the curtained window. Ropes of plastic tubing streaked out from underneath his blanket and the drugs made his head feel like cotton. He was awake, but pleasantly detached from the pain.
He had two guests he didn't recognize, but he knew in a glance they were feds. They had that air of smug authority men often carried when they thought themselves more powerful than they were. One sat on a stool to his left. The other had claimed the better of two chairs near the foot of the bed and was going through paperwork. The door was closed to give them privacy but Nathaniel assumed someone was standing guard outside.
A handcuff locked one of Nathaniel's bandaged wrists to the bed frame. Nathaniel rattled it and said, "Really?"
"We're not taking any chances," the closer man said. "As soon as the doctors clear you we're moving you to our field office. But don't think you have to wait for an official setting to talk to us. We're ready to hear everything you have to say. Special Agent Browning," the agent said belatedly, and gestured to his partner. "This is Special Agent Towns. We're going to be your handlers."
"My handlers," Nathaniel repeated. "I am not your property." "But you are in our custody."
"Are you arresting me?"
"Right now we're acting in good faith and assuming we will have your full cooperation. If we need to take a more aggressive approach, we will do so. We've got a string of offenses we could charge you with, starting with the fake IDs in your wallet and escalating to your mother's current whereabouts. Just let us know if we've got to play hardball."
Nathaniel made a rude noise. "You couldn't at least use an Exy idiom? I hate baseball."

They sighed again but this time it was not from relief but from how childish Neil was acting and if Andrew sigh was louder then any other followed by a quiet junky no one said anything.
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"Right now what you do or do not hate is of little concern to us," Towns said. "We only care about the truth."
"I'll trade you truth for truth," Nathaniel said. "My teammates were caught in a riot last night. The Palmetto State Foxes," he elaborated, though he was sure the agents had pieced at least that much together since picking him up at his father's house. "Were they hurt?"
"Eighty-six people ended up in the hospital, including three of your teammates," Browning said. "They were treated and summarily released. Minor injuries. They were lucky. A couple people ended up in the ICU."
"We made contact with Coach Wymack shortly after you were admitted here and asked him to bring his people for questioning," Towns added. He checked his watch and said, "They should be wrapping things up soon. When we're done with them they are free to return to South Carolina."
He didn't say "without you", but Nathaniel heard it in his tone.

“What? Don’t tell me they are not letting him come with us” said Matt he had tensed like some others in the room, other narrowed their eyes wanting to see how this would continue knowing that there would be no way that they were leaving without him.
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"It's your turn," Browning said. "Where is your mother?" Nathaniel told them about running into his father in Seattle and the
vicious attack they weren't fast enough to escape. He told them about fire and sand and burying her on the coast. It was brutally unfair that she hadn't lived long enough to see Nathan die, but Nathaniel kept that bitter misery to himself.
"All this time you were hiding out in Seattle?" Browning said, sounding annoyed by their oversight.
"No," Nathaniel said. "That was just the last real stop before Arizona."
"What came before Seattle?"
"I want to see my teammates."
"What came before Seattle?" Browning repeated.
Nathaniel pressed his mouth into a hard line and stared at the
ceiling. Browning tolerated the silent treatment for a few minutes, then started talking. He laid out everything they were willing to offer Nathaniel if his cooperation was worth their while: immunity from all charges, a fresh start in the Witness Protection Program, and the chance
to tear apart his father's circle. When Nathaniel remained unmoved by such generous offers, Browning turned to threats instead. What they had on Nathaniel so far was enough cause to lock him up, and they'd eventually dig up the dirt they needed to throw away the key.
"I want to see my teammates," Nathaniel said when Browning finally took a breath.
"Be reasonable," Towns said. "Don't make this harder for yourself than you need to."
"You think this is hard? Look what I've been through. Surviving you is easy." Nathaniel tipped his head to one side and fixed Towns with a cool look. "But can you survive me?"

“What is he doing?” said Abby kind of terrified, the others were watching with interest and Andrew with amusement “what he does best, piss people off” said Matt his voice proud.
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"Are you threatening a federal agent?"
Nathaniel smiled so hard his burns ached. "I wouldn't dare. What I should have said was: can you survive my family? My parents are dead, but my uncle remembers me. More importantly, he remembers that you gave him permission to take on my father last night. Since when do suits cut deals with gangsters?"
"I don't know what you're talking about," Browning said, with a cool neutrality Nathaniel didn't believe for a second.
"Whatever," Nathaniel said. "I'm going to nap."
They didn't argue, so he closed his eyes and drifted off.
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He woke some indeterminable time later when a nurse came in to check his injuries. All the painkillers in his system meant nothing as she cleaned the burns on his hands and arms. Nathaniel clenched his teeth so hard he thought he'd break them and fought the urge to kick her away from him. She gave his stitches an approving nod and promised to have the doctor stop by later. She closed the door on her way out.
It was impossible to sleep again when his nerves were screaming alarms in his ears. Nathaniel flexed his fingers instead, checking his range of motion. Lola had burnt him to hurt him, not maim him. Maybe she'd feared too much melting skin would wreck the coils and kill her fun. He knew from the nurse's reactions his face hadn't gotten off so lightly, but he didn't want to see a mirror yet. Nathaniel was as furious as he was nauseous just thinking about it.
Before the latter could win out Nathaniel looked up and said, "I want to see my teammates."
"And I want coffee," Browning said. "You two good here?"
Towns nodded. Browning checked his pockets for his wallet and left. Nathaniel gave his handcuff a couple experimental tugs just to see how Towns responded. Towns was unimpressed by that faint attempt at rebellion and went back to his files. They ignored each other until Browning came back. Browning sat quietly until his coffee was gone, then perused one of Towns' discarded stacks. After an hour of this, he made another attempt at getting through to Nathaniel.
"Feel like cooperating yet?"
"I still don't see my teammates, so no," Nathaniel said. Browning made a dismissive gesture. Nathaniel yanked at his cuffed hand again. "Look: these are the people I chose to stay with even knowing I couldn't stay for long. I picked them over my own safety. So give them back to me and I'll answer anything you ask."
"You only think you want to see them," Towns said. "Remember that they just found out who and what you are. If they still want anything to do with you, I'll eat my hat."

“Well then he better be getting ready to eat that ugly hat of his.” said Nicky as the others agreed.
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"In fact," Towns continued, "they're probably already on the road south. It wouldn't have taken long to get their statements, and there's nothing else we need from them yet."
"You're wrong," Nathaniel said. "They can't leave without Andrew, and Andrew won't go anywhere until he talks to me."
"You don't know that."
"Yes, I do." Even if it was just to tear Nathaniel apart for hiding this from him, Andrew would wait as long as it took. He wasn't the sort to leave things unfinished. Nathaniel knew that, believed that, with every fiber of his being. It was enough to soothe the sting of Towns' callous warning. "You can take me to him, or you can let me rot silently in a cell somewhere. Those are your only options."

It kind of hit them hard to see that Neil was not trusting them but Andrew on the other hand was in the middle he was angry with the way Neil was thinking and proud that he had made it clear that Neil was going nowhere before speaking with him.
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Finally Browning got up and went into the hall. Nathaniel heard his strident tone through the wood, but he couldn't understand Browning's words. Towns watched his partner closely when Browning returned, and Browning answered by scribbling a note on Towns' clipboard. Nathaniel resisted the temptation to throw his thin pillow at them and eased onto his back again instead.
They didn't say anything else to him, so Nathaniel let his thoughts drift. The hours to his discharge stretched endless and miserable. When the doctor stopped by to give him advice about how to treat his injuries, Nathaniel cut her off with a rude, "I don't need your help."

Abby’s happiness of seeing Neil willingly getting treated didn’t last long as it faded away at the rude comment Neil gave and she send glares at anyone that laughed.
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Browning called ahead as they reached the ground floor and got an all-clear. Nathaniel didn't look up to see if there were reporters lurking around for photographs. He kept his head tilted as far down as he could and hoped the hood was bulky enough to shield his face.
An SUV idled at the curb. The back door opened at their approach and Nathaniel climbed in. Towns got in the far back, so Browning took the seat at Nathaniel's side. Browning slammed the door and made a short call from his phone just to say, "We're on the way. Get it out of sight before we get there."
The woman in the passenger seat flicked Nathaniel a curious look over her shoulder. He slid his gaze away and stared out the tinted windows. He recognized streets and buildings as they drove. In a terrible, impossible way, this somehow felt like home. Nathaniel wanted to claw that feeling out of himself and burn it. The Foxhole Court was the only home he needed; the Foxes were his family. He didn't want any of this to have a hold on him anymore. How sad, how strange, how stupid, that he could run so far and still end up back here in the end. He couldn't stand the sight of the city, so he tipped his head back and closed his eyes.
He couldn't sleep, but at least he could daydream his father's death over and over again. That was almost enough to make him smile, and eventually it thawed the chill from his veins.

“They better be bringing him to us” said Dan with determination shared by the others in the room. They knew that if he was going to be taken away they were going to fight to take him back, it didn’t meter that he had lied to them, he had his reasons they know now and all they could do was wait and watch.

Chapter Text

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Nathaniel expected to be carted straight to their office for questioning, but the SUV turned into a hotel parking lot. The place was crawling with feds. Men stood on the sidewalk, smoking and attempting to look casual, but Nathaniel's skin crawled at the sight of them. The ladies sunning by the pool were equally offensive despite their attempt to be inconspicuous. The woman by the vending machine was a toss-up, but Nathaniel was inclined to think badly of everyone in his sights.
As soon as the car stopped Nathaniel turned an expectant look on Browning. Browning put a finger in his face. "You have twenty minutes or until they throw you out of their lives, whichever comes first. Then you are coming with us and you are going to tell us everything we want to know. Do I make myself clear?"
"They," Nathaniel said. "They're here? I don't see the bus."
"I don't want the press seeing it here and putting it all together yet, so I had your coach move it. I said, are we clear?"
"Clear," Nathaniel said, and pulled the hood down over his face again. "Get out."

“20 minutes?! Are they serious? What are we suppose to talk about in only 20 minutes” said Dan with her captain voice full of anger, the other where the same , everyone coming up with reasons on why this was just dumm even Wymack and Abby said something all except Andrew who was silently fuming with anger.
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There was a hollow look on Kevin's face and dark bruises on his throat.

They were surprised at that, they couldn’t help but wonder who was able to get past Andrew and get his hands on Kevin, somehow Andrew had a feeling that he knew exactly who it was and Renne looked like it too Kevin on the other hand looked sick.
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Abby's mouth moved, but Nathaniel didn't hear a word she said. Browning said the Foxes only suffered minor injuries and that none of them had ended up in the ICU, but only seven of them were here. Wymack was out moving the bus, but that left one person unaccounted for.
Nathaniel's blood went cold, and he couldn't keep the alarm from his voice when he started to ask, "Where's And—"
There was a crash behind Nathaniel, the unmistakable sound of a body slamming into wood. He turned as Andrew forced his way into the room with Wymack right on his heels. Kurt grabbed at Andrew but lost his grip when Wymack shouldered past him.

“Wait are these-“ “handcuffs” stared Matt but was interrupted by Alison who after she said it she laughed as Andrew and Wymack send her a look, Andrew’s was a dare to continue and Wymack’s a promise of a marathon.
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He sounded so angry Nathaniel knew Wymack wasn't talking to him or Andrew. He guessed Browning or Kurt was moving to haul Andrew out of the way before he hurt Nathaniel further. Either the feds trusted his judgment or they couldn't get around Wymack to get to Andrew, but Andrew knelt in front of Nathaniel unchallenged.
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"I'm sorry," Nathaniel said.
Andrew's fist went back, but he didn't take the swing. Nathaniel knew it wasn't because that was the hand cuffed to Wymack; Andrew's arm actually shook with the effort it took to not knock Nathaniel's head off his neck. Nathaniel said nothing to tip the balance either way. At length Andrew uncurled his fingers and let his hand hang limp from the cuff.
"Say it again and I will kill you," he said.
"This is the last time I'm going to say it to you," Kurt said, coming up beside Wymack with a dark look on his face. "If you can't stow that attitude and behave—"
Nathaniel shot a warning look at him and cut in with, "You'll what, asshole?"
"The same goes for you, Nathaniel," Browning said. "That's your second strike. A third misstep and this," he twirled his finger to indicate the Foxes, "is over. Remember you are only here because we are allowing it."
Andrew shifted as if to get up and Nathaniel knew he was going to shut Browning up for good. Nathaniel knew better than to touch Andrew yet but he got as close as he could and framed Andrew's face between his bandaged hands. Andrew could have easily pushed him aside, but after a short pause he got settled again. Nathaniel flicked him a quick look, grateful for that compliance, before leveling another icy stare at Browning.
"Don't lie to a liar," Nathaniel said. "We both know I'm here because you have nothing without me. A pile of dead bodies can't close cases or play the money trail with you. I told you what those answers would cost you and you agreed to pay it. So take this handcuff off of Andrew, get your man out of our way, and stop using up my twenty minutes with your useless posturing."
The silence that followed was brittle. Browning was weighing his options, or at least acting like he was. Nathaniel knew this could only end one way. If the FBI had let the Hatfords into the country uncontested they had to be desperate for some resolution. No one could prove—yet— that Nathan had killed Mary Hatford, but the Hatfords' hatred for Nathan wasn't a secret and they'd reacted to his parole by booking tickets across the Atlantic. It didn't take the FBI's brightest to know their visit wouldn't be friendly.
Finally Browning gestured. Kurt's face was a thundercloud as he dug keys out of his pocket. Wymack turned to make it easier for him. Andrew didn't watch as the cuff came off, but he flexed his fingers a few times to test his freedom and dropped his hand to his thigh. Browning took Kurt with him to wait just inside the door. They radiated displeasure and distrust and the look Browning sent his watch was pointed, but Nathaniel didn't care. Satisfied they were out of the way at last, he turned his full attention on Andrew again.

“Well done Neil” said Renee with a smile and the others were happy too and amazed as they saw Neil argue against a fed and win.
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In quiet German he said, "Did they tell you who I am?"
"They didn't have to. I choked the answers out of Kevin on the way here."

They were shocked all gaping at what in screen Andrew said, they turned to look at him to see how he felt at that but they saw nothing Andrew was calm like he understood why he had done it so they continued.
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He and Andrew went down the stairs behind Browning and got into the backseat of the SUV. Browning sat ahead of them and slammed the door. Nathaniel watched until the hotel disappeared out the window, then looked to Andrew and asked in German, "Can I really be Neil again?"
"I told Neil to stay," Andrew said. "Leave Nathaniel buried in Baltimore with his father."
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"Neil Abram Josten," Neil murmured, and it felt like waking up from a bad dream.

They felt some kind of relief wenn they saw that Neil was referring to himself as Neil and not Nathaniel.

Chapter Text

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Andrew accepted that in silence and settled down to wait. Neil held a bandaged hand out for the tape and bags, but Andrew gazed into space and ignored him. Matt finished up in the kitchen and went past them. When the bathroom door was closed behind him and the shower cut on, Andrew motioned to Neil's hoodie. Neil tried not to wince as he popped the buttons undone. He got the shirt as far as his elbows before he had to take a breather and rest his aching hands. Andrew gave him only a second before peeling the sleeves off his arms one at a time. Andrew pulled a garbage bag over each arm, tore the excess edges off, and taped the jagged ends to Neil's biceps. He tugged at both bags to check for any give and added another layer of tape to be sure. When Neil's arms were good, Andrew started on his face. He picked up one of the plastic ends he'd torn off, folded it over and over in on itself, and taped it over one of Neil's cheeks like a shiny black bandage. Neil was pretty sure Andrew put more tape than plastic on Neil's face, but Neil wasn't going to complain. Andrew finished his other cheek and inspected his handiwork. Neil guessed he was satisfied with the end result because Andrew tossed the scissors and roll of tape off to one side.
Andrew tugged the blanket out from under them and draped it over Neil's shoulders like a cape. Neil tried pulling the ends together over his chest but couldn't get a good grip with bags over his fingers. Andrew watched him try twice, then pushed his hands aside and did it for him.

This was like a treat to everything they had seen so far, almost everyone wanted to comment on it but no one wanted a knife on the gut with the exception of Aaron who was making sick sounds and Nicky who hadn’t learned his lesson jet and had tried to say something but was quickly shut down by a fierce glare.
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The only awkward moment was when the waitress, trying to make small talk, asked Neil about his bandages.
"Skateboarding," Matt said the same time Dan said, "Fell into a tank of piranhas."
Allison waved a hand in bored dismissal when the waitress sent a nonplussed look between the two and said, rather conspiratorially, "Bad breakup."
"Rough weekend," the waitress deduced, and moved on.

The others (Matt, Dan, Alison, Nicky) looked proud of the excuses that they had come up with, others (Aaron, Andrew, Abby) dumbfounded and done with them, Renee had a soft smile used to all that and Wymack laughed with the scene and everyone’s reaction.
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"Where did you want to go?" Renee asked.
"I don't know," Neil admitted. "I haven't looked around yet." Allison tapped manicured fingernails against her lips thoughtfully,
then beckoned to Matt. "Resort?"
"Doesn't seem like his kind of thing," Matt said, "and it's too early
for the beach. Cabin?"
Allison looked poised to argue but thought better of it. "Blue Ridge?"
"Haven't been yet," Matt said, "but I've heard they're awesome." "Neil?" Allison asked.
"What?" Neil asked, lost.
"Yes or no?" Allison said, like she couldn't believe he wasn't
following along. "We're going to the mountains for the week." "We," Kevin echoed. When Matt looped his finger to indicate
everyone, Kevin made a cutting gesture in dismissal. "No. Regardless of what happened this weekend, we are still in the middle of spring championships. We need—"
Kevin cut off abruptly and looked down. Neil couldn't see what he was looking at, but he could guess. One of Andrew's hands was out of sight beneath the table and his knife was missing from beside his plate. Andrew's chin was cradled in his other hand as he gazed across the room at nothing in particular. Kevin stared hard at the top of Andrew's head like he was considering calling Andrew's bluff. In the end he scowled and let it drop. Neil didn't know what convinced him: the dark bruises still lining his throat or the desperate gestures Nicky was making on Neil's other side.

“Nice Minyard” said Alison with a teasing tone as she wiggled her and Nicky was doing the same as he looked at her and Andrew ignored them both with a huff and Aaron did some ungodly noises.
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Andrew stayed to clean the blenders out, then took two rocks glasses from the cabinet. He filled both to the brim with scotch and held one out to Neil. Neil looked from it to Andrew.
"I don't drink," Neil reminded him.
"You don't drink because you are afraid of losing control," Andrew said. "What do you have to hide now?"
That easy accusation brought Neil up short. He looked at the drink again. Andrew moved it closer, and Neil took the glass. Andrew lifted his a little in either challenge or invitation, and they knocked their drinks back together. The whisky burned its way down Neil's throat. Neil thought about too many nights on the road and too many bruises. He thought about Wymack putting him back together in his apartment this past December and letting Neil keep his secrets. He wavered between extremes, unsure if the heat pooling in his gut was nausea or relief.
Andrew pulled a pack of cigarettes out of his back pocket and traded Neil for his empty glass.

Nicky screamed at what he saw startling some when he said “oh my god it’s happening” referring to Nei actually drinking with them all and the others huffed at his reaction before going back.
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Their plans got more elaborate the more they drank until Neil was sure none of them would remember this debate in the morning.
Neil got up for another glass of water when the conversation slid toward more normal topics. When he cut the sink off and turned around he found Aaron waiting for him in the middle of the kitchen. Aaron jerked his chin in a silent order to follow and stepped out the back door onto the balcony. Neil set his drink aside and followed. He closed the door as quietly as he could and went to lean against the railing. Aaron made no move to close the gap between him.

This was most definitely weird, for Aaron to want to talk with Neil so there was something happening there.
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"Nicky's kind of stupid," Aaron said. "He made the mistake of saying something to Andrew instead of waiting until he could get you alone. Andrew almost cut him open when he didn't take the hint fast enough." He glanced over his shoulder at the back door, maybe making sure the kitchen was still empty, before turning back on Neil. "That leaves you with me, since Andrew didn't see fit to warn me off you."

Andrew looked at Aaron like he could see what he was going to say, it seemed that Andrew was going to regret not warning his brother but he didn’t believe in regret so if anything happened Aaron was the one to regret it and he made sure of letting Aaron know as he send him a look.
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"So now you're going to talk to me," Aaron said, "and I'm going to give you exactly one chance to tell me the truth. Are you really fucking my brother?" He waited a beat, but when Neil just gazed back in silence, asked, "Do you take your cues from dead men?"
"What?" Neil asked.

Andrew and the other didn’t like were this was going but it didn’t look good.
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"Just wondering how you went from your whole I-don't-date high horse to Andrew's bed," Aaron said. "Either you were lying to us to hide the fact you're a flamer, or you saw Drake rape Andrew and realized he's easy prey."

They were horrified, it got a reaction out of everyone even Wymack who would rather let them fight it out had a disapproving and shocked expression, Andrew was looking at the screen eyebrows ever so slightly raised and body frozen, “this is a low even for you” said Matt, he looked mad just like the other, half because they all had seen how Neil and Andrew were with each other and half because saying something like that was just a low shit move to do. They were mad at what Aaron said and they knew that Neil was the same or maybe even more so and they knew how Neil was going to react to that and it somehow made them angrier because they felt like Aaron knew and was doing on purpose.
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Neil punched him—a terrible mistake in retrospect, as he ended up half-crumpled over his screaming hand.

They winced at that, seeing him so in pain because he was defending someone but not being able to do it right.

Chapter Text

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Andrew stayed behind to keep an eye on Kevin, so Neil went alone to the bedroom and made himself comfortable on his side of the bed. He woke up when Andrew came in, but drifted off again as soon as Andrew settled down.
Fingernails tapping on the door woke them both up some indeterminable time later. Neil reached for a gun and hit Andrew's arm instead. Andrew glanced back at him before rolling off the bed. The cabin was practically pitch black this late at night, but it was a straight shot from Andrew's side of the bed to the door. Neil couldn't see who was standing outside, but Renee's calm voice was unmistakable.

“Sorry” said Renee with a shy smile she felt sorry for how mach she had startled Neil but Andrew didn’t say anything back and just continue and Renee knew better then to take it to heart.
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"Renee?" Neil asked, because it was obvious Andrew wasn't going to make her explain.
Renee's words were a cold shock to his system: "Kengo is dead."
Neil stared blankly at her, but it didn't take long to figure the rest out. "Jean?"
"Riko hurt him," Renee said. "I am going to get him."

They didn’t know much about Jean but they felt bad for him, they could only guess how badly he was hurt. Kevin on the other hand looked sick and felt even worse.
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Monday meant classes, though Neil would have happily stayed in bed at the dorm. His injuries drew more lingering stares than he could stomach and a couple classmates were bold enough to press him for gossip. There was no point lying about it, but no one said Neil had to tell the truth either. He warded off all of their questions with an insistent, "I don't want to talk about it," that got louder every time someone ignored that warning.
When the bell sounded at the end of his last class, the relief Neil felt was almost crippling. He all but bolted from the classroom and followed the crush of rowdy students out of the building and down the stairs. He made it ten steps away from the building before someone stopped in his path. Neil was used to dodging bodies on campus, so he neatly sidestepped and kept going. The man spoke on Neil's way by.
"You will stop."

“Oh come on who is that now?” said Dan, it was concerning after all that has happened.
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Neil didn't really think he was being addressed, but looking back was instinctive. He regretted it immediately and rocked to a startled stop. The man who'd spoken was Japanese, older than the oblivious students that flowed past them but dressed casually so as not to stand out. He considered Neil like Neil was the bane of his existence and gestured, not an invitation but an order.
"We are leaving."
Neil almost asked where they were going but thought better of it at the last second. He followed the stranger to the library parking lot. A car idled at the curb and Neil got in the backseat when someone inside opened the door for him. His escort slammed the door behind him and got in the passenger seat.

“Someone really needs to teach him to not get inside any weird people’s cars.” said Nicky with a groan but everyone looked at Andrew when he spoke “he is from the Moriyamas” they looked at then back at the screen worried to see what comes next.
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There was only one other car parked out back. The driver pulled up alongside it and killed the engine, but no one moved. Neil got the hint after a minute of tense silence and got out. The door opposite him was unlocked. He opened it but hesitated halfway into the car when he saw who was waiting for him.
At first glance, Ichirou Moriyama didn't look like much.

( me: Deja vu, Neil had said the same about Andrew)

His black silk suit spoke of excessive wealth, but his youthful features undermined that pretentiousness. He only had a couple years on Neil to start with and genetics made him look even younger. He was just another hopeful businessman, maybe, another rich kid CEO living life in the vertical fast lane. Neil was fooled for all of one second: the moment it took him to meet Ichirou's eyes across the backseat.
This man was not like Neil's father, with his temper and thugs and ugly reputation. He was not like Riko, with his selfish cruelty and childish tantrums. This was a man who could hold both of them in check with a glance, a man who'd been raised to rule. He was the Moriyamas' power in living, breathing form, and with his father's death he sat alone and untouchable on its throne.
Neil considered turning around and walking away but suspected that was a good way to get shot in the back. He didn't know why he was here, since not even Riko had ever met his brother face-to-face, but he knew one misstep meant his uncle's hopeful truce was void.

They hoped whatever deal Stuart had wanted with the Moriyamas had gone well.
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Neil pawed desperately at his memory, searching for any advice on how to handle this encounter. Neil couldn't face Ichirou as Neil Josten; he had to face Ichirou as a Wesninski would. That meant every word had to be the truth and this had to be the biggest lie Neil had ever told.
He bit down on his doubts and the first flicker of panic and said, very carefully, "May I come in?"
Ichirou flicked two fingers in silent command, and Neil climbed into the car. He closed the door behind himself, firmly but not loudly, and fixed his stare on Ichirou's shoulder.
"Do you know who I am?" Ichirou asked.
"Yes," Neil said, and faltered for a half-second as he grasped at a proper title. "Sir" didn't have the necessary respect, but Kevin had referred to Kengo more than once as "lord". It was an outdated and clumsy term but it was all Neil had right now. "You are Lord Moriyama."
"Yes," Ichirou said, with a measured calm Neil didn't trust for a second. "You are aware my father is dead? I have not yet heard your condolences."
"Offering them seems presumptuous," Neil said. "It assumes you value my words, but I am just a no-one."
"You are not no one," Ichirou said. "That is why I am here. You understand."
It wasn't a question, but Neil lowered his head and said, "My father is dead at my uncle's hands and the FBI is investigating what is left of his ring. I am a loose end that must be dealt with one way or another."
"I could stop it," Ichirou said, and Neil believed him. It didn't matter that the FBI already had boxes full of Neil's stories and names. If Ichirou wanted the story killed and rumors quieted, he could do it with a couple phone calls and enough money. "Instead I am here. I like to know the value of things before I throw them away so I know how to compensate for their loss."
"I have no value now," Neil said, "but if given the time and chance to do so I would repay your family for the inconveniences I've caused. The average professional Exy player makes three million dollars a year. I don't need that kind of money for myself. Let me donate it to your family instead. I can route it through whichever holdings and charities you've inherited."
"An unsubtle attempt to buy your safety."
"My lord," Neil said, "I am attempting to right a wrong and fulfill a broken promise. I was supposed to belong to your uncle. I should have been raised at Evermore to be a Raven and play for Court. My potential revenue has always belonged to you. I returned to Exy as soon as my mother died because I know my purpose."
"And yet you did not return to my uncle," Ichirou said.
It felt like a test where failure meant death. Neil knew what the safe answer probably was, but a dangerous thought burned his tongue. His father had served Kengo, but to hold so much territory and power Kengo would have had to trust him. Nathan would have had the right to bring threats and potential complications to Kengo's attention. Neil didn't have that authority, but he had to try.

That worried them, they didn’t know what he wanted to say this time but they knew that it could potentially get him killed and the alone kept them on edge.
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"I know you have no reason to trust my word," Neil said, very carefully, "and I know I have not earned your ear or consideration. But I am a Wesninski. My family is your family. Please believe me when I say I would never risk the safety of your empire. Playing for Edgar Allan would betray everything my family is supposed to stand for."
He hesitated as if afraid of continuing and crossing a fragile line. Ichirou waited for him to make up his mind. Neil wished he could read something, anything, on Ichirou's face, but his expression was serene and his tone hadn't changed since this awful conversation started. Neil didn't know if he was fooling Ichirou, and he didn't know if it would make a difference even if he could.
Neil finally took a steadying breath and said, "Your brother is going to destroy everything of yours unless someone collars him."

“Oh god” said Kevin horrified most likely wishing that Neil would swallow his tongue by accident, “haha” started Nicky awkwardly “is he really tattling on Riko to his brother?” he continue as he pressed his hands on his face screaming internally as some groaned back as an answer.
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It was enough to earn a thin smile from Ichirou. It was all Neil could do to not flinch when Ichirou said, "That is very bold."
"Yes," Neil said, "but it is the truth."
Ichirou said nothing for so long Neil wondered if he was supposed to get out of the car and walk away. Finally Ichirou gestured for him to continue.
"Riko has spent his entire life aiming to be the best player on the court," Neil said. "When he feels his superiority is threatened he lashes
out without concern for collateral damage. This past year alone is proof of his increasing instability.
"Kevin Day was your uncle's second largest investment, but Riko destroyed him over injured pride. At the start of his sophomore year Kevin had a seven-digit net worth between his professional contract, his spot on the national team, and his endorsements. He could have earned your family fifteen, twenty million a year after graduation. Now Kevin is starting over from scratch.
"Riko killed one of my teammates in August and admitted to it in a public location," Neil said. "In November he interfered with the Oakland justice system and left a money trail from California to South Carolina all for the sake of hurting another teammate, and in December he bought out a psychiatrist at Easthaven in Columbia to continue that torture. Over Christmas break he gave me back my natural looks so my father's people could find and kill me. He laid the groundwork for the confrontation in Maryland that ended with my father's death and this entire federal investigation.
"Last week he reacted to your father's death by beating one of his teammates within an inch of his life. He is lucky it was Jean Moreau; Jean knows who your family is and would never speak out against Riko. But Jean is in our custody now while he heals and Edgar Allan University has launched a quiet investigation into the Ravens. They will find out about the hazing and abuse your uncle condones and someone will have to answer for it. What happens if they stumble across evidence of Riko's manipulations during their search?
"I am not saying your brother is out of line," Neil lied, "but he is not being careful. He is escalating because he feels threatened, but there are too many people watching us now. They will catch him soon enough, and I am afraid of what will fall back on you. I won't ally myself with such a risk, so I cannot play for your uncle at Edgar Allan. I'm sorry."
Another endless silence followed.

They were tense waiting too, wanting to see what comes next hoping that it’s nothing bad.
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A day or week or year passed before Ichirou said, "Look me in the eye and listen very carefully." Neil dragged his stare up to Ichirou's face. Ichirou's smile was long gone and his coal eyes seemed to bore right through Neil. "Where I come from, a man's word is only as good as his name and his name earns weight from the blood he has spilled for my family. You are untested and untrue. You are not worth the air you breathe. I would balance the red in my ledger with your death and consider it a fair repayment.
"However," Ichirou said, "you are your father's son, and your father was someone to me. He is the reason I came down here myself when I
could have sent anyone to speak to you. Do you know what I will do to you if I think you are wasting my time? Do you know what I will do to anyone you have ever met or spoken to? I will kill everyone who has ever stood by you and I will make each death last a lifetime."
It didn't sound like a threat; it sounded like a promise.
"What can I do to convince you I'm telling the truth?" Neil said. "Nothing," Ichirou said, and said a few words in Japanese to the two
men seated up front.
The front passenger pulled a cell phone out of his pocket. Neil
couldn't understand a word the man said, but he understood that angry tone just fine. For a wild moment he thought the man was arranging messy deaths for all of the Foxes. He clenched his teeth against a spike of panic and stared at the empty cushion between him and Ichirou. The passenger went back and forth for several minutes, then hung up and put his phone away. His tone was deferential when he said something to Ichirou.
Whatever the news was, Ichirou's expression didn't change. Ichirou tapped his thumb idly on his ankle as he thought. Neil didn't know how long they sat there in silence, ten minutes or ten lifetimes, but he was sure he'd die before Ichirou finally made up his mind.
"Perhaps your life has a price tag after all," Ichirou said. "Eighty percent of your earnings for the entirety of your career will be sufficient. I expect similar tithes from Day and Moreau; it is only reasonable considering my family funded their training. Someone will be in touch with you to make arrangements. If you fail to make the cut after graduation, the deal is forfeit and you will be executed. Do you understand?"
Disbelief knocked the air from his lungs; relief was so intense Neil thought for a moment he'd be violently ill. Somehow he kept his tone even when he said, "I understand. I'll talk to Kevin and Jean immediately. We will not fail you."
Ichirou slanted a hooded look at him. "Then for now you are dismissed."
It was so abrupt Neil almost forgot to say, "Thank you."
He tried to get out of the car without looking like he was making a mad dash for it and wasn't entirely sure he succeeded. He closed the door behind him and both drivers cut the engines on. Neil stood stock still as the cars pulled away and watched numbly as they rolled out of sight. Knowing they were gone did nothing to make him feel safer and Neil
sank to his knees on the asphalt. He dug his fingers into the taut denim over his knees and fought to get his racing heart under control.

Neil had done it, he actually managed to make a deal with Ichirou and even after seeing it on their own they could believe it and Kevin the most out of them all as he ran his hand through his hair tugging the slightest bit, this meant that if everything went well Neil, Kevin and Jean were free.

Chapter Text

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He might have asked what they were doing, but Andrew spoke first. He was only four steps up the staircase to the second floor when he rounded on Neil.
"Take these or I'll use them," he said, holding out his hands.
Neil stared at his empty palms, mystified, then reached under the hems of Andrew's long sleeves and caught the edges of Andrew's bands. He knew there were sheathes in Andrew's bands and had handled them before, but the weight still caught him off-guard. He tucked the bands and their hidden weapons into his backpack. Andrew watched until
Neil's bag was zipped closed and slung over his shoulder again before turning away.
There was only one reason Andrew would give up his knives in here, but Neil couldn't believe it. He didn't have long to wonder. The right wall was lined with computers, and alongside the computer stations were oversized tables for studying. Halfway toward the back Katelyn sat with three unfamiliar students. The boy at her right was gesturing expansively at his open textbook as he spoke. Katelyn twirled a pen through her hair as she listened. Andrew was only two tables away before she noticed him, and she jumped so hard she dropped her pen. Andrew flicked her a cool look and kept going. Neil paused to make sure she understood that summons.
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Katelyn made the mistake of stopping too close to him. She barely had time to cry out before Andrew caught her shoulder and threw her at the wall. Neil winced at the sound she made as she slammed into it. She stumbled but didn't fall and turned to stare wide-eyed at him.
"Please," she said. "Please, I—"

Aaron snapped at seeing that “I swear to got if you do something to her” he said with anger but was shut down immediately by Andrew ina bored tone “you what?” it was like he was daring him to continue and after everyone saw what Aaron had said to Neil no one wanted to break it up but that changed when Aaron was about to make his way towards Andrew “come just sit down, you aren’t a saint either” said Alison with a raised eyebrow, there still was a lot of a commotion but after a while they returned back to their places.
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"That reminds me, is now a bad time to take my bonus turn?" Neil interpreted Andrew's silence how he wanted and said, "Who said 'please' that made you hate the word so much?"
Andrew gazed at him in silence for a minute. "I did."
Neil didn't know what answer he'd been expecting but this wasn't it. He felt it like a pop to his chest, sharp and startling.

They had the same reaction as Neil, the meaning of these words cut deep down and it effected everyone even Aaron who had tried to school his reaction because of what had happened but hearing something like that would make you feel even if you didn’t want to.
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"After everything they did to you, how can you stand me?" Neil asked. He was unwilling to put the details into words with so many people around. He doubted anyone was paying attention to them, but he wasn't going to risk it. He gestured between them, knowing Andrew would understand. "How is this okay?"
"It isn't a 'this'," Andrew said.
"That's not what I'm asking. You know it isn't. Andrew, wait," he insisted, because Andrew was turning away like he couldn't hear Neil anymore. Neil reached for him, unwilling to let him leave without a real answer.
"No," Andrew said, and Neil's hand froze a breath from Andrew's arm. Andrew went still as well, and they stood for a minute in awful silence. Finally Andrew looked back at him, but for a moment Neil didn't know who he was looking at. In the space of one breath Andrew's expression went so dark and distant Neil almost retreated. Then Andrew was back, as calm and uncaring as always, and he caught Neil's wrist to
push his hand to his side. He dug his fingers in before letting go, not quite hard enough to hurt, and said, "That's why."
Neil stopped when Andrew told him to. It wasn't much, but it was more than enough. Neil managed a nod, too numb to speak, and watched Andrew walk away from him.

They understood, after they learned about Andrew’s past they understood how important someone like Neil was to him even if he would never admit it. It made the words Aaron had said hit harder and maybe Aaron had enough shame to at least regret them.
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"You're up against Edgar Allan again, too, in the biggest rematch of the year. Thoughts?"
"I don't want to talk about the Ravens anymore," Kevin said. "Ever since my mother died it's been Ravens this and Ravens that. I am not a Raven anymore. I never will be again. To be honest, I never should have been one in the first place. I should have gone to Coach Wymack the day I found out he was my father and asked to start my freshman year at Palmetto State."

Oh wow that took the all by surprise, Kevin had finally inherited the guts to actually stand up for himself they were ecstatic about it but the same couldn’t be said about Kevin himself, at this point it looked like he was begging to some got for whatever but it was not their business.
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"The day—" She floundered, then said, "Did you say Coach Wymack is your father?"
"Yes, I did. I found out when I was in high school," Kevin said, "but I didn't tell him because I thought I wanted to stay at Edgar Allan. Back then I thought the only way to be a champion was to be a Raven. I bought into their lies that they would make me the best player on the court. I shouldn't have believed it; I've been wearing this number long enough to know that wasn't what they wanted for me.
"Everyone knows the Ravens are all about being the best. Best pair, best line-up, best team. They drill it into you day after day, make you believe it, make you forget that in the end 'best' means 'one'. They let you forget until other people buy into it, be it fans swaying too far the wrong way or the ERC calling them out on their schemes. Then they don't want to play that game anymore, and they skip straight to the elimination round. Did you know I've never been skiing? I'd like to try it one day, though."

The shock was shocking.( :) ) Expect Andrew who was amused it was after some time that anyone else actually managed to say something about and wenn they did it was all together with too much force that nothing was understood except the look of horror on Kevin’s, he was muttering something about him dying to witch Alison might had laughed at but hid it when looked at “calm down, like Neil said Riko is a bitch and nothing is going to happen” said Nicky somewhat proud of what he said “well he didn’t say it like this but it was implied?” he continued when Kevin looked at him like he had grown to heads, when Kevin continued looking at him like that Nicky scratched his head in awkward movements as everyone turned back to keep watching.
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Neil ignored that dismissal because Andrew was already pulling him
down again. They kissed until Neil felt dizzy, until he wasn't sure he could hold himself up anymore, and then Andrew pulled Neil's hand off the beanbag chair. He held it up away from them for an eternity, then slowly pressed it flat against his chest and let go. Andrew tensed up underneath Neil's hand but relaxed before Neil could pull away.
Neil wasn't fooled. Andrew had made it very clear the first time he kissed Neil how important an actual "yes" was. This casual surrender
wasn't genuine consent. Andrew was doing this because of what they'd said on Wednesday, but Neil wasn't sure which one of them Andrew was trying to convince. It'd only been three months since Proust's abuse and four months since Drake's attack. Neil didn't know when Andrew would be okay with this but he knew it wasn't today. Neil left his hand on Andrew but refused to move it from that spot.
"I won't be like them," Neil said. "I won't let you let me be."
"One hundred and one," Andrew said, "going on one hundred and two."
"You're a terrible liar," Neil said, and Andrew kissed him into silence.

They smiled at that (except Aaron and Kevin who was still freaking out) it hit them a bit hard but seeing how Neil could see past Andrew’s facade was refreshing, they really were a good match for each other (Nicky was wiping happy tears away and Andrew was on his way to gut him alive)

Chapter Text

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"This isn't pity," Jeremy said. "We're doing this for us, not you. Your success this year has us rethinking everything about how we play. Are we second because we're talented or because we have twenty-eight people on our line-up? Are we good enough as individuals to stand against you? We have to know."
Kevin snatched the paper from Dan's hands and looked at it. Matt leaned over his shoulder to see and said, "You're joking. You're joking.
You're not?" he asked with an incredulous look at Jeremy. Allison yanked hard on his sleeve, wanting an explanation, so Matt said, "There are only nine names on it."
"Two goalies, three backliners, two dealers, two strikers," Jeremy said. "You've made it this far with those numbers. It's time to see how we'd fare in that situation. I'm excited," he said, with another toothy smile. "None of us have ever played a full game before. Hell, most of us don't even play full halves anymore. We don't have to because the numbers are always in our favor."
"And you called me a crazy fool," Kevin said. "You'll lose tonight if you play like this."
"Maybe," Jeremy agreed, unconcerned. "Maybe not. Should be fun either way, right? I don't remember the last time I was this psyched for a game. Look at this." He held his hands out to them and laughed. "Bring it, Foxes, and we'll bring it too."
He left them staring after him, his head high and his smile honest.

They were shocked because there is no way in hell that that just happened “I am not hallucinating I am?” asked Dan “Damm” added Matt, they couldn’t believe it Jeremy and his Team were suicidal but with this they really might have a chance to go up again the Ravens. Kevin looked ready to build a shrine the only thing that was missing was for fin to go down on his knees and that earned him weird looks but he wasn’t paying attention.
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At twenty-five minutes, the Foxes finally closed the gap. Laila was a nightmare in goal, but Kevin and Neil had an advantage few teams who faced the Trojans had: they had a nightmare in their own goal who they had to practice against daily. They'd spent all year trying to outsmart the best goalkeeper in the south. They didn't have that much time to figure Laila out, but they didn't need it. Laila's defense was quickly falling apart in front of her and she couldn't hold her goal alone. Kevin and Neil combined Fox and Raven footwork to break past the stumbling backliners and slammed goals home one after the other.

Loud cheers were everywhere as they saw themselves actually do it, Dan and Matt were hugging each other, Alison was bragging to Renee, Nicky was annoying Aaron with his comments witch he totally deserved, Andrew was tuning all that out and for last Wymack and Abby were looking at this all like proud parents.
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The final bell sounded on a thirteen-nine win, Foxes' favor. Neil stumbled to a stop and pried his helmet off, needing to see the scoreboard without his visor in the way. No matter how many times he blinked the score remained the same.
"Is it over?" Neil's backliner mark gasped out. "Oh, thank god."
Neil looked over at Alvarez and was floored to see her smiling. She thrust a gloved hand his way even as her legs wobbled and gave out. Neil caught her somehow and helped haul her back to her feet. She propped herself against him and scrabbled ineffectually at the straps on her helmet. It took her a few tries before she realized her fingers were too numb to manage it. She gave up and tapped her helmet against his instead.
"Is this what dying feels like?" she asked, and called over her shoulder, "Babe, I think I'm dying. Do I still have legs? I can't look down. I don't think I have legs. I don't think I'll ever walk again."
"Uh-huh," Laila said, trotting over to them. "You'd better figure something out, because you're definitely too heavy for me to carry off this court."
"Rude."

“Wow they are done for i don’t think any one of the ones that played are going to be ok for a while” said Nicky, this showed how much the foxes have grown it would be a lie to say that it didn’t amaze anyone because it did except Kevin because he is never satisfied with them and someone really needs to wack him on the head with something.

Chapter Text

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Jean was the most sought-after athlete in NCAA news these days, but he refused to announce his current whereabouts or speak to the press. His silence did the Ravens no favors so soon after Kevin's bold interview, and the speculations and rumors were starting to get a little wild.

“It’s so satisfying watching them getting destroyed” said Alison with a grin, others were agreeing too (except Kevin for obvious reasons).
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Aaron and Andrew canceled their Wednesday session with Dobson to come to practice on time, but Kevin skipped Thursday night's practice. He had no real explanation aside from, "I need to take care of something," and he left Neil in charge.

“No way Kevin skipped night practice” said Nicky with too much shock it was half sarcastic but it was actually shocking too and he was not the only one caught by surprise the others in the room were the same.
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He only made it a few feet from his desk before the suite door opened and let Kevin in.
Kevin reeked so strongly of alcohol Neil could smell him halfway across the room, but Neil forgot the stench the second he saw the bandage on Kevin's face. It was too much to hope for and too impossible to believe in, but Neil froze in his tracks and stared. Kevin pushed the door closed and stumbled backward into it. He almost fell, braced himself in the nick of time, and stared blearily at Neil. That was about all Kevin could manage, it seemed, so Neil went to him. Kevin made a limp gesture near his side. Neil worked a corner of the tape up and pulled the gauze off Kevin's face.
It felt a bit like falling and a bit like flying; Neil's stomach bottomed out a second before adrenaline flooded his veins. Kevin had worn a "2" since his first days in the Moriyamas' cruel care. Riko and Kevin used markers for years, writing over their numbers any time they threatened to fade. As soon as they were old enough they'd switched to a more permanent ink. Now that number was gone, covered up by the jet-black image of a chess piece. Neil's knowledge of chess was hazy at best, but he knew for sure that wasn't a king.
"You did it," Neil said, too stunned to manage anything else.
"Let Riko be King," Kevin said, with the exaggerated enunciation of the thoroughly sloshed. "Most coveted, most protected. He'll sacrifice every piece he has to protect his throne. Whatever. Me?" Kevin gestured again, meaning to indicate himself but too drunk to get his hand higher than his waist. "I'm going to be the deadliest piece on the board."
"Queen," Andrew said somewhere behind Neil. Neil hadn't heard him get out of bed, but of course the bang of the door would have woken him. A sober Andrew was as light a sleeper as Neil was, maybe moreso because Andrew was used to unfriendly people sneaking into his room. Neil looked back at him, but Andrew was studying Kevin. Andrew crossed the room to stand at Neil's side and caught Kevin's chin in his hand. He turned Kevin's head to inspect the new ink. "He is going to be furious."
"Fuck him," Kevin said, sliding a little further down the door. "Fuck all of them. Waste of time to be angry. They should be afraid."
"Hell hath no fury," Andrew said.
Kevin gestured feebly to Neil, so Neil pressed the bandage back into place over swollen, reddened skin. Neil dropped his hand back to his side and clenched his fingers into a fist to hide the excited tremor. He doubted either Kevin or Andrew noticed; they were too busy staring each other down. At length Andrew smiled, slow and cold. It was the first time he'd smiled since coming off his drugs, and Neil couldn't help but stare.
"Now it's getting fun," Andrew said.
"Finally," Kevin said, equal parts exhaustion and exasperation.

They were shocked, surprised. They were not sure if they had really seen it but no one wanted to doubt it, it was weird seeing Kevin act like that but it was thrilling even if present Kevin was freaking out they ignored him in favour of watching the screen and finally seeing Kevin grow that damm spine everyone had been waiting for and after the realisation hit everyone and that there was no come back from that they cheered, they wanted to see how Riko was going to react to that and it shot everyone with a quick feeling of adrenaline.
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Neil left them to each other and went to join his teammates. Erik's handshake was firm and his smile wide. Neil mixed the sisters up almost immediately after their cheery introductions. Stephanie's patient smile was as unnerving as Renee's peaceful demeanor had once been, and Neil was sure Randy popped a couple vital organs with how hard she hugged him. Matt's father skipped a simple "hello" to tell Neil about a plastic surgeon he knew, if Neil wanted someone to clean up his face a bit.
"Dad," Matt said, horrified. "The fuck?"

“Ugh I can’t believe it” muttered Matt embarrassed and horrified for his father’s words as Dan patted his shoulder with a bit of sympathy.
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"Neil Josten," a security guard said, "a Stuart Hatford is here to see you."
Neil followed the guard halfway down the inner ring.

They tensed ones they heard that Name, they knew that something like that was coming but they couldn’t help it. Stuart was meant to make a deal with the Moriyams so him comingmeant that they were going to see how that went.
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A wall separated the inner ring from the stands, and Stuart waited on the other side of it with his arms folded along the top. He dismissed the guard with a simple nod and turned a considering look on his long-lost nephew.
"I'd have thought you'd be back in England by now," Neil said.
"I've been going back and forth," Stuart said. "I would have come for you sooner, but he told us not to interfere until he made a decision." Neil didn't have to ask who Stuart meant by "he". Stuart waited for Neil's nod before continuing. "Your father's death left a void that's not easy to fill. Little boss is cleaning house and cutting losses everywhere he can, taking out people from California to South Carolina. Cops, doctors, moles—doesn't matter. If there's even a chance they're a liability to his new rule they're gone. Interesting stuff, the reshaping of an empire. Bloody, too."
"There were people in South Carolina?" Neil asked. As soon as he said it his heart skipped a beat. "Wait, doctors? Medical doctors or shrinks? Do you have names?"

They had a feeling they knew what Neil meant and they couldn’t help and hope for the same as him, even Andrew who doesn’t care about revenge let his eyes narrow as he watched.
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"I stay out of the specifics unless they pertain to me," Stuart said. "Someone in particular you're looking for?"
"A psychiatrist in Columbia, Proust. Worked at Easthaven, let himself be bought out and used by the wrong brother. I told—the little boss," Neil said after a moment's hesitation, "about him."
"I'll look into it," Stuart said. He sent a casual look around and said, "You know they're still watching you, right? They're waiting for you to slip up, waiting to see if someone's stupid enough to take a bite. Bait and a mole in one. Be smart, would you? You bought into this, which means I can't protect you if things go sideways again."
"I'll be careful," Neil said. "Thank you."
"Chin up," Stuart said, straightening. "Eyes forward. Little boss is here tonight. Don't make him regret investing in you."
Neil wasn't stupid enough to look at the eastern tower. He just nodded and watched Stuart disappear into the crowd. He jogged back to Wymack and decided it best not to tell Kevin who was in attendance tonight.

They glanced at Kevin already panicking after knowing who was watching and the deal and silently agreed with Neil.
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Kevin stood calm and quiet until a referee opened the door for them. Before he stepped on Kevin tapped the butt of his racquet against the floor and passed his stick to his other hand. He strode to half-court head high and left-handed, and the crowd went wild.
Neil wasn't the only one who'd forgotten what Kevin was like at his peak. The Ravens had written Kevin off when he broke his hand then learned his right-handed style when they realized they'd be facing him again. Even if they'd known this was coming they wouldn't be ready, because Kevin was no longer afraid of showing Riko up. He exploited his former teammates' weaknesses every chance he got and, without Jean around to overhear, used French to call warnings across the court to Neil. Kevin scored just three minutes into second half, and five minutes later he did it again.

The energy in the room changed to one of fondness and proudness. They were proud of themselves that they managed to actually make it there and they knew that no meter what they were winning the game, they could see it and it was the best adrenaline rush.
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"They're not fast enough," Andrew said.
He had to mean their defense line, so Neil said, "I know."
"Are you tired?" Andrew asked.
It wasn't concern, Neil knew, but that didn't make it a less confusing
question. He hadn't gotten the ball often enough tonight to be tired, but he couldn't say that with Matt standing two feet away from him. "Not yet."
"Then I'm taking my turn. Matt," Andrew said, and Matt turned toward them immediately. Andrew lifted a finger from his racquet to point at Neil. "We're subbing Dan for Neil and Neil for you."
Matt stared. "We're what?"
"You're limping," Andrew returned. Neil hadn't even noticed, too focused on the ball and the Ravens. He shot a startled look down at Matt's feet like he could somehow see the source of Matt's pain. "You're no use to me right now. Get Abby to put a brace on that. Neil can hold them in the meantime."
They'd said all night that speed was the fatal weakness on their defense line. Neil was the fastest player in Class I Exy, but how Andrew thought this was a feasible solution Neil didn't know. Neil wanted to point out every reason this was a bad idea, but he didn't have the right to turn Andrew down.
"I started this game as a backliner, remember?" Neil said to Matt. "The Ravens put me up against Riko when I stayed with them in December. I know how he moves."
"Two weeks of practice don't make you ready to face the best striker in the game."
"Kevin's the best striker," Neil corrected him, "and I don't have to be the best backliner to counter Riko. I just have to be faster than he is. We both know I am. Trust me. I can keep him away from Andrew while you rest."
"Coach will never go for it," Matt said.
"Tell him he has to," Andrew said, like it was that simple.

“Damm are we going to see backliner Neil against Riko” said Nicky full of excitement eyes almost sparkling, the others were curious too since they had learned that Neil was supposed to be a backliner but they never saw him actually play as one so they were curious.
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Maybe he had a right to feel smug. It didn't matter that Neil had started this game as a backliner. He'd been away from the court for half his life and had spent the last two years honing his skills as a striker. Riko had seen for himself over Christmas break how out of practice and miserable Neil was at defense.
What Riko forgot was that Neil hadn't stepped onto the Raven court until after Tetsuji beat him unconscious. Neil's health had gotten steadily
worse from there thanks to Riko's constant abuse. Tonight Neil was in perfect form, and he was mad as hell at the Ravens for hurting his Foxes.
Andrew slammed the ball up-court, and the fight to the last bell began. Neil dogged Riko every step of the way, using his stick and body to ruin Riko's shots and force him away from Andrew. They fought each other back and forth across the court, ducking and darting, sidestepping and lunging, nearly tripping each other up at every turn. Riko used every trick he had to get around Neil, but he couldn't outrun Neil for long. Minutes stretched by without a clear shot on goal. Riko snarled something hateful at Neil as Andrew batted away his latest shot. Neil laughed at him, knowing it'd only infuriate him further. Riko's impatience and rage were fuel, lending Neil speed and making him forget the growing burn in his thighs and calves.

They watched, they saw how close and how big of a chance they had to actually win and it was amazing, they would occasionally winch at the force that Riko and Neil were coming at each other, they could only guess how sore Neil and everyone else would be after the game.
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Something in his shoulder popped and went a little numb as he and Riko hit the ground for the nth time. Since it didn't hurt, Neil didn't stop to worry about it. He was up and after the ball before Riko was, and he passed it up to Allison. Allison gave it to Kevin, Kevin to Dan, Dan to Kevin, and Kevin scored. Just like that they were tied eight-eight.

They took the time to cuss out Neil for not at least worrying about his shoulder and when they were done with that they cheered for the score.
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Neil didn't know they'd reached the last minute of the game until the buzzer blared overhead. His body knew what that sound meant and finally gave out on him. He fell to his knees and barely managed to catch himself with his hands. His stomach twisted inside him, but he didn't have the strength to throw up. Oxygen-starved muscles felt like they were disintegrating but it hurt too much to breathe. Neil's mouth worked on short gasps that did nothing for him.
The buzzer went off again, and Neil's heart stopped.
The ringing in his ears wasn't all him. His teammates were screaming, wordless war cries of disbelief and victory. Neil's fingers shook so badly it was almost impossible to get the straps of his helmet undone, but finally he managed to throw his helmet off to one side. He blinked sweat out of his eyes and looked up at the scoreboard.
Ten-nine, Foxes' favor—Kevin had scored in the last two seconds of the game.

The loudness in the room could rival the one in the screen, people got up from their sits and were hugging each other Abby and Wymack watcher everyone with proud smiles happy for their Foxes and their win. Kevin himself stood there in disbelief as he watched the score that was blinking brightly in front of them, he couldn’t believe it but again it was playing in front of them, they saw it happen, the win the just witness gave courage to everyone and it might even have been a good push for present Kevin to start growing his ego.
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Neil wished he could smile, but it took all his strength just to look at Riko. The Raven captain and Exy King was staring at the scoreboard like he expected it to change. The Foxes were running for each other, still screaming their fool heads off, but the Ravens stood still as stone. It was the first loss in Edgar Allan's history, and they'd fallen to the unlikeliest of opponents.
Neil sucked in a deep breath that ripped him open on its way down.

“Why do I get the feeling that he is going to do something very very stupid?” said Matt with a anxious tone as everyone watched hoping Neil would bite his tongue before he said anything.
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"I'd ask you how it feels, but I guess you've always known what it's like to be second, you worthless piece of shit."
Riko finally dragged his gaze away from the board. He stared at Neil, blank-faced and stunned, and then revulsion twisted his expression into something terrible.

“Oh my god” said Abby she was scared for what Riko was going to do and she was not the only one “can he not just keep it shut” said a frustrated Alison as she ran a hand through he hair.
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His racquet went up over his head but it took Neil a moment to realize Riko really intended to take a swing at him. Dan screamed his name from halfway across the court, but there was nothing Neil could do except watch Riko's racquet start down. He barely had the strength to breathe. Dodging was out of the question.

They were horrified, one second they were happy that they had won and now they were watching Riko actually going to hit Neil with his racquet, they knew that if Neil got hit by it just a bruise or concussion would be out of the question it would be more then that even death, they screamed just like in the screen even if they couldn’t do anything they had to.
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Riko's racquet got close enough that Neil heard wind whistling through the strings, and then a second racquet came out of nowhere, big and bright and orange. Andrew put everything he had left behind his swing and caught Riko across his forearm. Bones gave a sickening crunch as they shattered. Riko's racquet clattered harmlessly off to one side, and then Riko was the only one screaming. He stumbled a few steps away from them before falling to his knees and holding his arm to his gut.

Neil wasn’t hit, it took a moment for everyone to come to the realisation of what had happened but relief passed through everyone as they did, they watched how Riko screamed but they couldn’t feel anything towards it Riko deserved it (Kevin looked king of sick since his hand got broken that way too) even Abby who had winched at the sight of a broken arm didn’t mangel much about it, this was a long awaited revenge on Riko and it was satisfying watching him scream.
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Andrew put his racquet down in front of Neil like a shield and watched Riko's breakdown with a bored stare.
Neil lost sight of Riko when the Foxes swarmed him. Gloved fingers patted his head and shoulders, looking for any sign that he'd been hurt. Neil tuned out their frantic demands, more interested in listening to Riko's endless, agonized screaming.

“Sheesh he really enjoyed that” said Nicky rubbing his neck as the other chuckled.
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Then Dan caught his face in her hands and gave him a shake.
"Neil," she said, so desperate and afraid Neil had to look at her.
"Hey," Neil said, hoarse with exhaustion and heady triumph. "We won."
Dan threw her arms around him and buried a choked laugh against his padded shoulder. "Yeah, Neil. We won!"

They had won, they actually won, it had passed their minds for a bit after they saw what Riko was about to to but now they were back to cheering and screaming.

Chapter Text

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The Foxes were quiet when they were finally allowed to shower and change. The long hours since the last bell had temporarily worn away their well-deserved excitement. They were sore all over and drained to the point that moving was a terrible chore. Neil leaned against the shower wall because he knew better than to sit down. He fell asleep without meaning to but woke up again when the water ran cold. He yawned as he dressed and went in search of his teammates.
A security guard was waiting outside the changing room door to intercept him. "Neil Josten, they have a few last questions for you."
Neil turned soundlessly after him and followed him back to the inner ring. The stadium was completely empty and the police were long gone. Neil was too tired to ask what was going on so plodded along behind the guard in silence. A third of the way down was a gate the security guards used for moving between the inner ring and the stands. The guard unlocked it and motioned Neil through.

“So he just follows? No questions asked?” said a weirded out Aaron as everyone sighed clearly aggravated about it like come on dude be a little suspicious.
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EAST was written above an elevator in bold red letters, and Neil forgot about the banners. The guard had to swipe his badge and key in a six-digit code to get access. There were only two buttons inside, "Floor" and "Tower". Neil closed his eyes for the ride to the top.
The guard stayed behind when Neil stepped out, so Neil went on alone. A short hall opened up into a spacious room Neil recognized. Nine years ago he'd been here with Riko and Kevin while his father carved a man into a hundred pieces.

Everyone tensed as Neil walked in the room and Kevin flinched but they wanted to wait and see what happens next.
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Stuart Hatford and a man Neil didn't recognize stood in the far corners. Tetsuji and Riko sat on one of the couches, Tetsuji straight- backed and stone-faced, Riko shuttered and hollow. Neil saw the white plaster of a cast poking out of the sling the doctors put Riko's arm in. Neil could have stared at it forever, but Ichirou was standing by the windows overlooking the court and Neil knew better than to ignore him. Neil stood halfway between the brothers and fixed his eyes on Ichirou's collar.
It was so quiet Neil heard someone's watch ticking. Neil counted a minute, then two, and still no one said a word.

They took satisfaction in watching Riko crumbled up like that he deserved it more than anyone but they really didn’t want to miss what would come next so they let it slide for now as they waited to see why Neil was brought up there hoping that Ichirou is not like his brother and actually keeps his promises.
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At last Ichirou drew a gloved hand from his pocket and gestured. The stranger brought him a handgun. Neil waited, silent and breathless, for Ichirou to turn that gun on him. He could ask for a second chance, but there was no point in trying. His words wouldn't change what happened tonight, and not even Neil could lie well enough to convince Ichirou he was sorry.

“No no no, we didn’t make it all this way for this to happen” said Nicky panicked a hand running through his hair tugging it in frustration as everyone was shocked and horrified, there was no way that this was how it was ending, Andrew had the strongest reaction out of them all, if it was anything else Andrew would have maybe tried to not show as much emotion but as he was watching what was happening in screen he didn’t try to hide the anger he was feeling and he clearly didn’t stop from voicing it too as he let a chain of colourful swear words but not loud enough for anyone to clearly hear them.
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Ichirou started forward, but he didn't go to Neil. He stood before his uncle and spoke in quiet Japanese. Tetsuji listened to it all in silence, expression unchanging. When Ichirou went quiet, Tetsuji bowed low over his knees. He didn't sit up again, even when Ichirou turned his heavy stare on Riko. Riko finally stirred enough to look up, and the brothers faced each other for the first time. Ichirou crouched in front of him, wordless and slow.
"Ichirou," Riko said, so choked with emotion Neil almost couldn't understand him. He could have been cursing Ichirou's name for waiting so long to come into his life. He could have been begging for justice or revenge. Riko opened his mouth to say something else but closed it again when Ichirou cradled Riko's cheek in his free hand.
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It wasn't comfort, but Neil didn't figure that out until it was too late. Ichirou put the gun to Riko's temple and pulled the trigger without hesitation. The gunshot was so unexpected, so loud, that Neil jumped. Riko's body jerked under the force of impact. Blood splattered across Tetsuji's back and the leather couch they shared. Ichirou withdrew his hands and let Riko fall.

What? WHAT? Did they really just witness that? No way no no no how what was happening? They did not just watch Ichouro shout his brother, it was shocking that it shut everyone up and it left everyone with clear shock on their faces so much that even Andrew couldn’t keep it away from his expression. Kevin gaged and it somehow worked as a wake up call to everyone else as they snapped out of it and some looked ready to throw up and they groaned when they heard a breath that was considered as laugh coming from Andrew, Kevin became even more miserable as he hunched forward putting his head on his hands murmuring something that no one could hear, and some of the other that weren’t used to things like that didn’t keep much of a eye contact with the screen till it continued.
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As Ichirou straightened the stranger stepped forward. Ichirou passed the gun back, and the stranger knelt to press it into Riko's lifeless hand. Neil watched him curl Riko's fingers around the grip. In a distant corner
of his mind Neil knew what was going on, but right now Neil was too shocked to make full sense of it.

They understood it too “ha funny, exy king commits suicide after he gets defeated by bottom laser exy team” said Andrew with a quick smirk and Alison nodded, she was angry and it was a nice revenge seeing Seth’s killer dead or more like the one behind it but it was the same.
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Ichirou stopped in front of Neil. "You have cost the Ravens their coach and their captain. Are you satisfied?"
It made no sense at first, because Tetsuji was still alive. When Neil caught on he stopped breathing. Tetsuji Moriyama was stepping down— not necessarily because Neil had asked for it, but because Ichirou had been here firsthand to see what the Ravens had become under Tetsuji's guidance.

“Damm talk about two birds with one stone” said Matt letting a breath he didn’t know was holding escape.
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A year ago Neil had been a scared nobody, hating himself for
signing the Foxes' contract and counting down days until he moved in with Wymack. Tonight he was the starting striker for the first-ranked team in the NCAA. In two years he'd be captain, and in four he'd graduate from Palmetto State. Neil would find a professional team first and then fight tooth and nail to make the cut for Court. Neil could already imagine the weight of an Olympics medal around his neck. He didn't even care what color it was so long as it was his.
Better than that bright future was what he already had: a court that would always be home, a family who'd never give up on him, and Andrew, who for once hadn't wasted their time denying that this thing between them might actually mean something to both of them. Neil hadn't even noticed the silence at first, too distracted by his dizzying thoughts. Now he couldn't help but smile and pull Andrew in.
This was everything he wanted, everything he needed, and Neil was never letting go.

“Ugh I can’t he is so cute” said Nicky with a motion of wiping away tears, it was not like he didn’t have any it moved almost everyone to tears that were not close to falling as they just made their eyes glassy, it was moving watching and hearing how Neil’s life has changed in to a better one and they were a part of it, it was nice knowing that them themselves had played a part to changing someone’s life for the better but they could see how much Neil has changed them too, with Neil the team had united and it was somehow rewarding to see. “Fuck Riko we won guys, come on we have to party” screamed Nicky snapping everyone out of their thoughts with a scare witch earned him a punch from Aaron “geez don’t do that out of nowhere” he said “got it” said a wheezing Nicky holding a thumps up but even if he said that he understood everyone knew that he was going to continue like that and they laughed as Aaron denied that Nicky had actually understood. They might have just witnessed someone’s death but they would say that it was no one important (damm Neil’s nonexistent sympathy for things like these might have rubbed of on them) as they past it and talked about the other things they saw.

Chapter Text

Guess who’s back,
Back again,
Aftg react is back,
Tell a friend<3

I am very thankful to all of my readers 🙇‍♀️.
Thank you all for sticking with the story and all your beautiful comments.
I am here to tell you all that I have finished reading the sunshine court.
Which of course means that I will be posting the next chapters very soon.
Although I can not provide a exact date, it will happen.

And for anyone that doesn’t know what I have planned:
The foxes are reacting to the tsc book BUT only mentions of Neil.
This react fic is them reacting to Neil.

And again thank you to annoyed that has not given up hope to me posting.
So make sure you have your eyes open for whatever new chapter is about to drop.

Ps.: there really wasn’t much so it will be about 5 to 6/7 if I drag it out.

Ps.: forgot to mention one thing.
I might have not answered to all the comments but let me tell you all that I have read them more times then necessary (me personally I don’t think there is a limit) and I wanted to tell you all that I have not ignored them. I love all your comments and it is always brightening my day to find any new one, thank you to all your love for this fanfic. And I hope you guys are satisfied with my work.!!!

Till I see you again!!!<3

Chapter Text

The foxes thought that it was over with, but they where still here. When the screen stared they watched everything from Jeans perspective, it was weird since they didn’t know much about the French man, Kevin on the other hand was looking paler.
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“You are a Moreau,” Kevin agreed at last. Jean had one second to think Kevin had come around and remembered himself, and then Kevin said, “He is—was—a Wesninski. He still walked away. He told us he refused to sign the transfer paperwork.”
It was Jean’s turn to look away.

It was weird, fixed emotions everywhere. They pitied Jean when they saw how badly he was beaten, they watched Kevin and Jean interacting, some perking up when Neil was brought up.
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He honestly had not expected Nathaniel to survive the consequences of that ferocious defiance. If not for Jean’s own weakness, maybe Riko really would have killed him that night.

They stood up straighter, they listened with alarmed expressions. What did Jean mean by that? “I don’t like this” said Dan, the others where agreeing because who were they kidding this was Neil, he has the worst luck. They hadn’t seen much of what he went through in the nest but they had seen Neil after, it was horrible and they weren’t ready.
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Holding Nathaniel down while Riko slowly waterboarded him meant he couldn’t cover his ears against the noises Nathaniel made, and Jean had nearly bit through his own shoulder to keep from screaming. Once Jean started spiraling too badly to hold on, Riko had had to back off. Riko had not forgiven him for being so fainthearted, never mind his part in creating such trauma in the first place.

Someone chocked on a curse, it was loud but at the same time the quietest place. They were furious, they looked at the screen with tension “I swear to god if Riko hadn’t died I would do it my self” said Matt from where he was sat, the room was quiet with silent agreement. No one dared to look at Andrew, not risking having whatever anger he had thrown at them. But they knew him long enough to now that seeing someone from his family getting hurt was a dead sentence to whom ever hurt them.
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Victory was short-lived, because Kevin was back the next day.

“Who can’t relate with that” said Aaron with a sigh, Kevin glared at him and the others laughed at the two of them.
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This time he brought Nathaniel and his pet goalkeeper with him. Nathaniel took up a perch on the edge of the mattress near Jean’s knee to survey Jean’s injuries with a serious look. Kevin went to the other side of the bed, arms folded so tight across his middle he looked like he was trying to squeeze himself out of existence. Jean knew how every shade of fear looked on Kevin’s face, or so he’d thought. This ghastly pallor was new, and Jean was pretty sure he did not want to know what put it there.
Looking at Kevin was still easier than facing Nathaniel, because there were burns where Nathaniel’s number should have been. After everything that fucking tattoo had cost Jean—he felt numb all over, then cold, and his stomach twisted so hard he was sure it ripped to pieces inside him. The urge to tear Nathaniel’s face open was so fierce he could barely breathe.
“Hello, Jean,” Nathaniel said.
“Go away,” Jean said, in a voice he barely recognized. “I have nothing to say to you.”
“But you’ll listen, because I just told Ichirou where you are.”He’d misheard. He had to have misheard. In no universe would Ichirou Moriyama deign to speak to one of them. But Kevin was sagging down to sit on the mattress near his hip, and Nathaniel’s expression was grim but determined as he glanced back at Andrew’s impassive expression. Satisfied they were all paying attention, he turned back on Jean.

“Wow could he not at least eased it at him, he dropped it like a bomb” said Alison, the others let out little laughs still not over they new information they learned.
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“My father got out of jail only to immediately get murdered,” Nathaniel said. “I spent an entire weekend locked up with the FBI trying to piece together his crimes and contacts for them. Ichirou respects my family name enough to come to me for answers in the aftermath. He said he was calculating the value of our existence, so I paid him in the only truths worth our lives.
“I told him Riko was a risk to the stability of his new empire and how his reckless violence against everyone in this room left too many trails. An athlete should not have that kind of push and pull, and if anyone started connecting the dots between our tragedies there’d be too many dangerous questions asked. It puts the Moriyama family in jeopardy, and a Wesninski of course cannot ally with such a person. I asked Ichirou to take me back into his fold.”
Kevin’s jaw dropped, but Nathaniel bulled on without waiting for him to argue. “I told him we are well aware we are Moriyama investments and that we are content to exist as such.” Nathaniel smiled with so much ice Jean thought the room dropped a few degrees. The adrenaline rush of what he’d survived, of the trick he’d managed to play on a too-powerful man, was going to his head. It was the same arrogance that made him defy Riko over and over again despite knowing it was going to come back on him and his team.

“I mean this is Neil for you” said Nick with an awkward smile scratching the back of his head, leave it to Neil to make a deal with the Japanese Mafia.
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“We talked numbers: what Kevin was worth before and after his injury, what kind of money endorsements bring in, what professional athletes make on average...” Nathaniel gave a casual wave of his hand to indicate the whole deal. “Because we fell under Coach Moriyama’s thumb, the money was originally going to him to feed his pet projects. I suggested we pay it back to Ichirou instead.
“He needs it,” he insisted when Kevin looked like he was going to get off the bed and flee the room. “Not even I understand my father’s full reach, but everything he had is falling apart now that the FBI is picking through the wreckage. Even if Ichirou allies with my uncle for more access to Europe, he’s losing money hand over fist. Money that we are happy to give back to him if he’ll wait for us.”
“He agreed,” Nathaniel said. “It’s eighty percent of our earnings from the time we make pro until... retirement? I didn’t ask,” he admitted. “I’d pushed my luck enough I didn’t want to imply there’d be an end to the arrangement. What matters is that the deal is for all three of us. I agreed I
would hash it out with you and that there’d be no problem. There isn’t one, right?“It’s not a pardon and it’s not really freedom, but it’s protection,” Nathaniel said. “We’re assets for the main family now. The King’s lost all his men and there’s nothing he can do about it without crossing his brother. We’re safe—for good.”

It made sense with the way they saw Ichirou kill Riko no hesitation to protect his future investments and ready to kill said investments if a problem arises.
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He said it so easily, like he genuinely believed it. Jean buried his face in his hands and dug his fingernails into his temples. This was a nightmare; it had to be a nightmare. In no reality would Ichirou Moriyama have met with an insignificant brat like Nathaniel Wesninski or been swayed by the self- importance that Riko tried so hard to beat out of him. It went beyond reason to think this was real and that Ichirou fully intended to steal his brother’s toys. Jean refused to believe it, because if he even stopped to consider what it meant—The door closing sounded very final, but the weight by his side remained.
Kevin touched Jeans’ elbow and said, “Look at me.”
“No,” Jean said. “I am a Moreau. I am a Raven. I know my place. I won’t agree to this.”
“It’s done,” Kevin said. “You do not have a say in it.”
“You did this to us,” Jean accused him as Kevin finally pried his hands away from his face. “You should have beat this wildness out of him once you learned his name.”
“I couldn’t,” was the weary response. “Everyone who has tried to tame him has failed.”

“I a way this is so funny, a midget terrorising a tall French man and Kevin” Alison said, it got her some disapproving looked from Wymack, Abby and Kevin, Renee had a soft smile on, Andrew was smirking but hid it before anyone saw and the others laughed.

(First chapter is done)

Chapter Text

They quieted down and continued watching.
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Nathaniel stopped in the doorway to wait on him, and Jean sighed as he ended his last lap in front of the shorter man. “Of course it’d be you, you tedious malcontent.”

They bust out laughing (-Andrew), till now whatever insults where thrown at Neil where so much different than this.
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Jean thought maybe they’d make it to campus without a word, but of course Nathaniel had to open his mouth as soon as they were on the road: “I never thanked you for watching out for me at Evermore.”
“I did no such thing,” Jean said.
“Kevin knew you would. I just didn’t see his message in time.”

“It’s so weird looking at them together like this, their friendship is so weird” said Nicky and it was the truth, they looked like friends but at the same time they had mixed feelings for one another.
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“You are only here now because you are an abominable cockroach,” Jean said,

“I really can’t what the hell is up with these ‘cuss words’” said Matt who was laughing, Aaron almost looked satisfied watching Neil getting called a cockroach maybe he thought of it as revenge for all the times he was called short by Neil. Andrew’s eyebrow twitched with amusement but he didn’t say anything else. Wymack looked like he agreed, Neil indeed was like a cockroach.
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because he couldn’t, wouldn’t dwell on that. He closed his eyes against the memory of Nathaniel’s skin peeling off, thin as gauze beneath
Riko’s knives.

Aaaand that brought the mood down again. It was a rollercoaster with these two. Andrew’s armchair creaked with the force his grip had on it, anger rolling off of him in waves. They took the information and filled it away with all the other things Riko has done, happy that they knew Riko’s end was coming.
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They took a quick break to calm down.
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It took three tries to find the silverware drawer, and Jean stared down in disbelief. Half of the drawer was full of mini candy bars. He threw them all into the trash before grabbing a fork and slamming the drawer shut.

They watched in disbelief. They had calmed down and they kept on watching, now they watched Jean throw away the mini candy bars (which they new where most likely Andrew’s but they wanted to leave some more so no one said anything, even though Andrew looked pissed by the French man’s actions. I mean come on you let a tall French fry in your dorm room and he throws away your candy?!), it was strange watching him looking around and messing with stuff.
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In response, Andrew sent Boyd off the court. Jean saw the limp in the tall backliner’s step as he made his way to the door, but his replacement didn’t take his spot. The Foxes’ captain instead went across the court to wait alongside Kevin. Nathaniel, in turn, moved to guard Riko.
“This is madness,” Jean said. “Even you aren’t that idiotic.”

“I have to agree, it was idiotic but we won so I can’t say anything” said Wymack reminding everyone of their win, they almost started celebrating again when they where drawn back to the screen.
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They were doomed to a shootout. Jean couldn’t see the Foxes’ faces through their helmets, but there was a disconcerting jerk to the way they all moved that said they were barely conscious anymore between exhaustion
and the compounding aches of a violent game. They’d buckle in a shootout, but that they’d forced it to this point was impressive.
With ten seconds left on the clock, Jean thought maybe he’d apologize to Nathaniel for calling the Foxes worthless trash bags. At five seconds, Jean thought he’d even admit the team had performed better than he’d thought possible.

“Wow hearing it from him really puts me on a high horse” said Nicky patting hi shoulder looking smug, but he wasn’t the only one everyone was smug and happy.
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At two seconds, Kevin scored.
The goal went red, the sportscasters came out of their seats hollering, and the final buzzer rang on a Fox win.
Nathaniel had pushed himself to the point of breaking to hold the line, and he fell like a stone to his hands and knees. Andrew stayed behind in his goal, but the rest of the Foxes ran screaming across the court toward Kevin.
The Ravens were statues, all heads turned up toward the scoreboard and the unbelievable numbers there.
Jean tuned all of them out. None of them mattered save the dumbfounded King standing over Nathaniel’s fallen body. The heat that ripped through Jean was so violent and hungry his vision went black for a moment.
Nathaniel pried his helmet off with obvious effort and followed Riko’s gaze. The movement was enough to get Riko’s attention, and Riko dragged his stare down to the Fox striker. Nathaniel’s mouth was moving, because of course he’d have to run his mouth despite being worn down to the bone.

“Tell me about it” sighed Dan, they knew what was coming but it still put them on edge, “I am for shutting his mouth up with glue” said Aaron which earned him a smack to the back of his head from Matt “hey! What the fuck” Aaron protest and looked at Andrew, Andrew looked away uninterested and watched the screen, others laughed while Abby and Wymack shook their heads.
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Jean knew none of the players were wearing a mic, but he wanted to shush the sportscasters who were practically yelling their incredulity at the camera. He needed to know what Nathaniel was saying in this historic moment.

“I know what he said, he said and I quote ‘I'd ask you how it feels, but I guess you've always known what it's like to be second, you worthless piece of shit.’ End quote” Matt said looking like the happiest person alive “did you really memorise that line” asked Dan who was looking at him flabbergasted “yes of course something this iconic coming from Neil, I had to” said Matt, Dan was laughing “calm down Matt your man crush is showing” said Alison and she smirked before she too started laughing, Renee besides her was smiling too.
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He changed his mind a heartbeat later, because the look that crossed Riko’s face was ugly. Riko raised his racquet with lethal intent, and Jean reached for the screen like he could somehow pull Nathaniel away. There was a sharp, alarmed noise from the sportscasters as they realized too late that Nathaniel was going to get murdered on live TV.

“This is so different… watching it from this perspective is so, so different” said Renee with dread, they knew what would continue but the tension was still there. Andrew was tense watching this again knowing that if he was at least seconds late this would have ended very differently.
They were holding their breath, even though logically they knew, but it the panic was still there, this was their friend nothing could stop their feelings.
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The Foxes were all the way at the Ravens’ goal, and no Raven would dare stay Riko’s hand. The only one who had any chance was Andrew, who threw himself out of his goal like all of hell was at his heels.

“That’s one way to phrase it” said Aaron I a attempt to ease the tension.
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Run, Jean thought. He didn’t know if he was thinking it at Andrew or Nathaniel. Run.
Riko’s racquet came down, and Andrew’s came up. The force of his oversized goalkeeper racquet crashing into Riko’s arm threw Riko’s stick
one way and Riko the other.
Jean was across the room in a heartbeat to slam the TV into the wall behind it. For a perfect moment the stadium and the sportscasters were dead silent, and the only sound being broadcast was Riko’s scream. It was distorted through the court walls but still loud enough to be horrifying.
Everyone was talking again. Jean heard the horror and panic in their voices as they babbled over each other, but he couldn’t make out their words through the roaring in his ears. He stared at Riko where he’d fallen over, watching until the Ravens’ coaches and nurses swarmed him to hide him from view. The Foxes found enough strength to do the same for Nathaniel, forming a frantic barrier around their fallen teammate.
The cameras bounced between the sidelines, first to where a referee was barely keeping Wymack and Abby from charging the court on the Away side and then to where the master stood frozen with his Ravens on the Home.
It was inevitable that it would descend to violence, but with most of the referees and Raven staff on the court, intercepting the howling Ravens was easy work. The Foxes were quick to take a hint, and they hauled each other up so they could stumble off the court together. Jean didn’t watch them go.
He couldn’t look away from Riko where he sat defeated and broken beside Josiah. The camera cut away to the sportscasters at their table a heartbeat later, and some of their words finally made it through:
“—advised us not to show a replay,” said the pale woman on the left. She was talking to the camera, but she and her partner were both watching something off-screen. Jean knew they were watching what they’d been forbidden to air, judging by the way she suddenly clapped a hand over her mouth and her partner flinched. She audibly choked as she tried to find her words again. “If you’re just tuning in—”
Jean threw the TV off its stand, heedless of the white-hot pain that lanced through his chest at such a violent move. He closed his eyes and watched in his mind’s eye again and again what they refused to give him. He only wished he could slow the memory down to better see it: the unnatural way Riko’s forearm popped into a V, the way shattered bone tore holes in his arm under force of impact, the way he screamed.

“Ugh I am getting sick” said Nicky, he wasn’t feeling bad but the first time they had seen it it wasn’t described like this, Andrew on the other hand was smirking a hidden one, his satisfaction was radiating from around him, Kevin on the other hand was pale mostly remembering his hand. But even though all this no one would dare to say that Riko didn’t deserve it.
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He hadn’t
been able to send it far, and its cord was long enough that it was miraculously still plugged in. Riko was being led off the court between Josiah and Miriam, and although the Ravens’ coaches tried to body the cameramen out of the way someone got a shot of the shuttered look on Riko’s face and the agonized tears still streaking down his cheeks.
Jean laughed so hard he felt faint.

“That really isn’t a flattering picture for him” laughed Alison, the others sighed and some even nodded along.
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The Ravens were finally called out for their brutal playing style, two hours too late to help anyone, and Nathaniel’s risky move to the defense line was lauded as genius.

“Oh the sweet sound of revenge” said Dan, she might have gotten a look from Abby and Wymack but they didn’t say anything, they were there and they had seen how badly their foxes have been tried by the wannabe first, so they didn’t comment, they let their foxes have this victory.
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“We’ve had pretty limited access to the Foxes since the final bell, on account of...” Joe waved his hand to indicate the obvious but didn’t let himself get distracted by speaking on it again, “but what we’ve heard from Coach Wymack is that the idea came from Andrew. Not what any of us would have guessed, I think it’s safe to say?”
He looked to his team for their emphatic nods. “For the last few years, he’s made it clear that he doesn’t have a horse in the race, but he’s stepped it up this spring in an astounding way. That he could see exactly what his team needed in such an important match and that he trusted them to pull it off says worlds for both how far he’s come and how much respect his teammates have for him. I for one am beyond excited to see how he continues to grow from here.”
“He’ll be Court,” Jean told them, but they yammered away oblivious.

It was weird seeing one of them getting compliments, for them it was always being looked down upon, but watching them going from looked down at to taking compliments. They looked at the man of the hour Andrew but they didn’t see anything, if Andrew felt something he didn’t show it.
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He left the TV on in the background just in case and closed the USC game in favor of rewatching tonight’s game from the top. Five minutes in, Jean’s phone dinged with a text from Renee:
“Now do you believe in miracles?”
“That wasn’t a miracle,” Jean typed out. “That was the Foxes.”
“That you admitted it is miracle enough for me,” was her cheeky response.

“This is us motherfuckers!” shouted Dan making some jump from surprised.
That caused a cain reaction and everyone was celebrating again. Wymack and Abby where shaking their heads but they both had fond smiles on their faces.

Chapter Text

The screen started up again.
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“No,” Jean said, sharp and panicked. “The master would never leave. The ERC cannot make him.”
“It wasn’t the ERC,” Nathaniel said in quiet French. Jean finally turned to try and see him. Nathaniel was the only other person in the room, standing guard in the far corner. He looked far too calm for all of this. “Ichirou was at the game, and he saw for himself what chaos Tetsuji was breeding in Evermore. When Riko took his swing at me, Ichirou picked his side.”
“No,” Jean said. “I won’t believe it.”
“After the police left, I was invited to East Tower to watch,” Nathaniel said.
“A show of respect, maybe, because everything I warned him came true.
First, he banished Tetsuji from Exy: no more Edgar Allan, no more professional teams, no more ERC. Then he handled Riko.”
“I don’t believe you,” Jean insisted. “Riko is King. He is the future of Exy. He is a Moriyama. They would never kill him.”
“He was,” Nathaniel said, with a bit of emphasis, “King. Now he’s a martyr.”

They all looked at how things played from Jeans prospective, it was different, Neil was like someone else. They had seen how Neil reacted after what Ichirou did and how he was almost smiling when he went to them, but this was Neil being cold and spitting facts.
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Even here, even now, denying it was instinctive: “He didn’t take anything from me.” He tried to pull out of her grip, but she didn’t let him go. “Did you see his body?”
“No,” Renee admitted.
“I did,” Nathaniel said as he crossed the room. He lowered himself to a crouch in front of Jean and studied him with calm blue eyes. He waited until Jean turned a haunted stare on him before cocking his fingers like a gun and pressing them to his own temple. “Pop, and he was gone. It’s impressive, isn’t it? How easily these monsters die in the end.” For a moment he looked far away from here. Jean didn’t have to ask where he’d gone; the mess the Wesninskis had made of his face was hard to ignore.
“He’s dead, Jean.”
“Promise me,” Jean said, with a desperation that should have killed him. Nathaniel didn’t hesitate. “I promise.”

“Wow I can see the whole ‘was raised by a serial killer’” said Nicky, they understood what Nicky was saying, Neil looked a lot like Nathaniel there, their reactions were mixed, they knew that Neil didn’t really react to death because of his past but this felt different. Neil was spitting facts, it really was a unfair death for him to die so quickly but it was still satisfying.
Andrew was amused looking at Neil on screen, Renee had a little smile watching herself on screen.
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“I need to get back to the others,” Nathaniel said.
“I have him,” Renee promised. “I’ll see him back to Abby’s when he’s ready.”
Jean heard cloth rustle as Nathaniel stood, but as soon as Nathaniel stepped away Jean blindly reached out for him. He barely recognized his own voice when he said, “Neil,” but it was enough the other man stopped. Jean’s fingertips finally found denim, but he didn’t try to get a good grip on the other man. “It was a good game.”
“Yes,” Neil Josten said, with a smile in his voice. “It was, wasn’t it?”

“It really was, we are going to ignore everything else and focus on the game, it really was a good game, let’s keep going like this” said Wymack to his foxes in an engorging way, they all cheered.
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Jean noticed how Andrew and Neil moved like they were caught in each other’s gravity, in each other’s space more than they were out of it, cigarette smoke and matching armbands and lingering looks when one fell out of orbit for too long. He’d always assumed it was Neil’s arrogance that brought him to Evermore over Christmas. Now he thought it was something else, but it wasn’t his place to comment on it.

They didn’t comment on Jeans prospective of Neil and Andrew, or Nicky almost tried but was stopped by Andrew.
But it was nice watching their teammates finding each other (even if Aaron is ignoring whatever it involves Neil and Andrew).
It was refreshing and in a very tiny way cute.
Andrew’s ears might have looked redder but if anyone saw they didn’t risk pointing it out in fear of any stray knifes that might come their way.

(The other two or maybe three chapters are going to need a bit more time so idk when I will be posting them)

Chapter Text

There was no way he would expose himself like this to her. Just thinking of putting it into words made him dizzy. He moved to throw his phone out of reach when it hummed in his hand, and in his
surprise he almost dropped it.
The area code was familiar, but the number was not.

“Wow the déjà vu that I got right now” said Alison, watching Jean panic about talking to Betsy and him getting a message from a familiar area code but not knowing the number. But seeing the number, they realised who it was but then came the question why was Neil texting Jean?
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Jean only had a dozen-
odd contacts saved in his phone, and half shared the same South Carolina
prefix. Jean’s first angry thought was Rhemann had called Dobson, not
trusting Jean to follow through on his promise to get help, but Jean had her
information saved and this message came up with no name attached. Jean
drummed his fingernails on the keys for a few agitated seconds before
opening the text.
The message was in French: “Where are you?”
Not Kevin’s number, which left only one suspect. Jean still sent back a
“Who” to be sure.
“Neil,” was the quick response, and then, “I am in Los Angeles. We have to
talk.”

“Huh? WHAT? Why is he there?” Shouted Nicky, others winced and Aaron did everyone a favour and hit him on the back of his head “can’t you be more quiet?” he said annoyed, Nicky rolled his eyes “but I am right, everyone here wants to know why he is there” , Nicky was right, why? Did he find out what happened to Jean? But how it would have been impossible Neil would already have been on the plane when it happened so the question still remained, Andrew narrowed his eyes, was he with Neil?
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Jean looked at the clock on his phone, and dread was a heavy weight
settling in Jean’s bones. He knew the Foxes had already started summer
practices, and he knew how long the flight here from South Carolina was. If
Neil had skipped out on practice to make this trip, he was not coming with
good news.

“Yea no way Neil would willingly leave practice” said Alison and others laughed.

(One more chapter till tsc finishes 😭😢🫶)

Chapter Text

The screen started again, and they waited to see what would happen and to get answers to their questions.
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That wasn’t a conversation he
wanted to have anytime soon, especially not on the tail end of Grayson’s
unexpected visit. Jean swallowed hard against his roiling stomach. “Zane
shattered when left to his own devices this summer, so Grayson assumes he
is next in line by default. I am the only one left who can vouch for him, but
I won’t do it. I refuse.”
“He sounds unhinged,” Neil said. “What kind of person bites people in a
fight?”
“Drake was not a biter, then.”

They flinched, although they knew it still got to them wenn it was said so bluntly. They were of course angry, even if they didn’t know Jean that’s something that no one should live through. Kevin looked sick hearing it, the nest was never a good place for anyone, he lived through it maybe not a strongly as others but he knew, he had seen things, he had seen how Neil had came back to them, he was fighting back a gag and clasped his hand together and put his head on his hands. Andrew scratched his wrist, the scenarios similar, although Jean got away with only a beating and thankfully nothing more, they both had someone bring their abuser to them just because, Andrew had a itch to punch someone but he grasped the armchair in a death grip for now.
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Jean heard the creak of the
steering wheel beneath Neil’s fingers. For a moment it sounded like
bedsprings. He thought about a door left unlocked on purpose and Zane
turning his back on them as Grayson shoved Jean down on his own bed. He
dug his fingernails into his lower lip and prayed for the courage to just rip
his mouth off before he could misspeak further.

“Jean” whispered Renee she got a few glances, they had seen her and Jean talking, how they felt for each other and how they parted, Alison wrapped a hand on Renee’s shoulder and gave a light squeeze.
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“Out of everyone and anyone you could have compared him to,” Neil said,
quieter than Jean had ever heard him, “you chose Drake.”
Jean pressed his injured arm to his stomach, as much to hide the bruised
marks as to try and squeeze away that hollow ache in his gut. “It doesn’t
matter. He will be out of the city this weekend and back at Edgar Allan.”
“You wouldn’t be barricading your door if he wasn’t still a problem.”
“He believes I live on campus. That’s just—precaution,” Jean finished, even
as his mind supplied fear, panic, horror. He swallowed hard against a rush
of nausea. If he stayed on this line of thinking he would lose his mind, so he
willed Neil to have an ounce of humanity and said, “Stay out of my
business and tell me why you came.”
Neil drummed a restless beat on the steering wheel for a few moments, then
allowed the change in topic without argument. He gestured to the side of his
head as he said, “Word is someone at the FBI finally asked why and when I
did this to my appearance if I did not want to be found, and they tracked it
back to my stay at Evermore. People are starting to ask questions, and we’re
supposed to get ahead of it to clear things up.”

Neil always attracted trouble, now the FBI was asking questions, but it didn’t make sense why was he with Jean?
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“We cannot,” Jean said as Neil turned into a parking garage.
Neil didn’t answer until he’d gotten a ticket from the turnstile. Only when
his window was closed again did he say, “We cannot name him. ”
He left it at that, waiting for Jean to piece it together. Jean stared at him as
Neil sought a parking spot, ticking through every possible connotation.
When it clicked into place, he felt his stomach bottom out. If they couldn’t
point the finger at Riko, and Neil’s entire defense hinged on his fear of
getting caught, there was only one person left who could take the fall.
“They’re burning my family,” he said.

Huh that was something, putting the blame on Jean. They watched wanting to see how Jean would react, this meant trouble for his family the same people that sold him to the Moriyamas.
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It wasn’t a question, but Neil said, “Yes.” He found a space and killed the
engine, but instead of getting out he said “Jean,” with an urgency that forced Jean to look at him. “I’m sorry.”
I am Jean Moreau. I belong to the Moriyamas.
“I am a Moreau,” Jean said. “I know my place. I will play my role.”
Neil looked like he wanted to say more, but he got out of the car without
comment. Jean fell in alongside him as they left the garage and started
down the sidewalk. Neil started for a corner store before spotting an ATM,
and he withdrew cash that he promptly stuffed in his back pocket.

“Damm i can’t get over the whole Neil having actual money, with how he looked when he came to palmetto it looked like had nothing” said Matt in aw, they all saw the difference from Neil when he joined them and now, it was something that made them proud for him.
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Jean didn’t ask, but Neil explained, “My uncle and I flew into the city on
our own passports. Because of my father’s open case, that should have set
off a few alerts with the local FBI office. Now we just need to create a trail
so we can force a confrontation.”

“This feels illegal to see” said Dan, they always found it fascinating how Neil was with the FBI people, especially with the ones that had been assigned to his case when he was found at his father’s basement.
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It didn’t need a response from him, so Jean only made a half-hearted
gesture and followed Neil to a Thai restaurant on a rundown corner. Neil
waved aside the hostess in favor of looking around. The place was packed,
but Neil only needed a few moments to find the rest of their party. When he
set off, Jean followed him. The man they approached looked nothing like
Neil, but Neil slid into the corner booth opposite him and motioned for Jean
to join him.

“There he is again Neil’s sexy uncle, I’m in love” said Nicky which again earned him a hit from Aaron “don’t lust over Neil’s uncle that’s disturbing” he said with disgust.
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Neil passed him a menu as soon as he was seated, but Jean pushed it back
his way. “No.”
“You might as well eat something,” the man across from him said. “You
have a very long evening ahead of you, and I doubt your next hosts will be
good enough to feed you.” Stuart Hatford leaned back against the back of
his booth to consider Jean. There was no kindness in him, and barely any
interest, but he managed to sound vaguely polite as he said, “Jean-Yves
Moreau. A pleasure, I’m sure.”
That got Neil’s attention, and he looked from his uncle to Jean even as Jean
said, “Do not call me that.“
The waitress came over before Stuart could respond. Jean tried to send her
away, but Neil ordered two portions of something Jean didn’t recognize. As
soon as she was gone, Neil asked, “Jean-Yves?”
“Don’t. I am not allowed to use that name,” Jean warned him.
“Says who?” Stuart asked. “The dead kid? Your legal name is more
important now than ever before, so get used to hearing it.”

Stuart was blunt and it made them laugh at how he addressed Riko even Andrew flashed a quick grin before hiding it again, Kevin on the other hand looked constipated.
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He didn’t wait
for Jean to respond but looked at Neil and wagged a hand at his own face.
“You drag him here kicking and screaming, or is this an unrelated
problem?”
Neil shrugged. “Do you have anyone who can take on local work?”

That came out of nowhere, why was Neil asking and for what reason? And what does he mean local work? Every time Neil was involved in something it always raised questions but for now they let it slide they knew that they would be getting an answer.
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“Depends on what you can afford. Timing’s bad enough to drive the price
up.”
“The timing can’t be helped, so I don’t care what the price is. He didn’t
confiscate anything from me,” Neil reminded him. “I didn’t bring it with
me, but you know I’m good for it. Just find me a way to get it to you.”

“Sheesh how much hotter can Neil get” said Alison, it earned her a look from Andrew and she grinned at him but his attention was taken from her to his cousin “I know right, can’t get over it” said Nicky, Aaron groaned again face palming.
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The waitress came around again with orange-hued drinks for Neil and Jean, and
Neil offered her a disarming smile that would never sit quite right on his
face. “Do you have a pen I could borrow? Thank you, I’ll give it back to
you as soon as I can.”

“No way Neil being kind to a random girl?!” said Alison and she continued “poor Melissa should never witness this” the rest laughed remembering how rudely and oblivious Neil was with the cheerleader.
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Neil scribbled on the back of a napkin for a bit and pushed the mess his
uncle’s way. Stuart considered it for a few minutes before passing it over
his shoulder to a woman in the neighboring booth. She got up and left
without comment.

“I don’t care what he does but even I am curious about what that is about” said Aaron, it kind of took the others by surprise since it was him say it but that was something everyone was thinking about.
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Luckily—or not—there were bigger things to worry about, because once
they’d effectively freed their waitress from checking on them, they had
privacy to speak. Stuart leaned back in his seat and said to Jean,
“The entire operation is getting wiped. Tell me now if you are going to
resist.”
Jean didn’t have the right to refuse when these orders came from the top,
but he’d survived far too much to hold his tongue now. Nothing Stuart
could do to him for his impertinence would be worse than not even trying to
save her.
“If that is what is needed of me, I will not fight it,” Jean said, “but what
does this plan mean for my sister?”
Stuart considered him in silence for what felt like an eternity. Jean counted
the seconds to keep himself from thinking too deeply, but he was at thirty-
six before Stuart finally asked, “Did you think you were special?”
Jean braced for the inevitable violent retribution, but what Stuart said next
was worse than anything Riko had ever done to him: “She was sold off only
two years after you were. One of your mother’s contacts, if I remember
correctly, an arms dealer down in Algiers.” He glanced over his shoulder for confirmation and got a nod from one of the men sitting there. “I have the
name around here somewhere, but I expect it means more to me than you.”

“Jesus” muttered Wymack at the same time Abby and others gasped. This was horrible, “what kind o messed up do you have to be to sell your own children” said Abby her face draw to a glare and her eyes filled with sadness. No one said anything, they were foxes after all, they all had their share of experiences, but that still didn’t stop them from cussing at Jean’s supposed family.
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Jean didn’t want to say it, but he had to know. The words crawled out of
him, tearing his throat on their way: “She’s dead, isn’t she?”
“A mild term for it.”
He was so far from this moment and his body, but the urge to throw up was
visceral enough he felt all his hair standing on end. He stared down at the
table and through it while his heart knocked holes in his ribcage.
He needed to answer, but where had his voice gone? There weren’t any words left inhim; that growing ache in his chest was the start of a ragged and violent
scream.
The sudden weight of another foot pressing against his startled him back to
his senses, and Neil’s quiet, “Jean,” gave him a line to follow home.

“Oh my god” whispered Abby, she had tears welling up in her eyes, a little girl had died because her parents wanted money and favours, it was terrible but they knew there was no way to chase the bad away from this world, shit like this will always keep happening. And no one wanted to accept that. They watched how it effected Jean but they were glad Neil was there even if they both didn’t get along that well.
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Jean swallowed hard against everything he knew better than to say and managed
a quiet,
“I will burn the house down.”
“I had no doubt,” Stuart said. “Here’s what we’re starting from.”

At this moment revenge sounded perfect, even to someone like Andrew who viewers revenge as dumb this one sounded like honey.
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He rattled off the bare bones of a story for them to make their own. Neil had
apparently resisted giving up any European contacts to the FBI when they’d last brought him in for an interrogation. He’d meant to protect his uncle’s interests, but now they could reframe it as an attempt to protect Jean.

It was weird being a part of this conversation, the only time they had seen this before was in movies with spies and gangsters, now watching an actual gangster and his nephew do the whole planing thing in real life was wooing.
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The setup was simple: the Butcher and his young son had come to France
on a few trips, looking for more European alliances than what Mary could offer, and the boys had bonded over their shared love of a growing sport.
Neil filled in the finer details with an ease that would have been impressive
to listen to any other day, and Stuart quizzed them both to make sure their
answers were complementary without being suspiciously identical.
Jean focused everything he had on the exercise, grasping desperately for
anything that would hold him together for a little longer, but then there was
nothing more to be said. Stuart got up and left, trusting the FBI to let him
leave the city uncontested in favor of the more vulnerable marks he was
leaving behind. The two booths to either side of theirs cleared out as well,
with Stuart’s crew falling in line behind him.

“How many people where with him actually” said Aaron disturbed as they watched the booths emptying out.
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“Elodie,” Jean said, and just hearing her name aloud almost snapped him in
half. He clenched his hand into a fist so he wouldn’t tear his own face off
and bit his knuckles until they bled. It wasn’t enough to stop his words.
Each one was one of Riko’s matches, burning him anew: “She was only ten
when I left home. Ten! Why didn’t they love her enough to keep her safe?
Why didn’t they—” love me?
Jean lurched out of the booth. Neil caught hold of his wrist and stared up at
him with an unreadable look on his face.
“Jean,” Neil said, quiet but firm. “We have to deal with this today, but we
might not have to deal with it right now. What do you need?”
A hundred things he couldn’t have, a thousand things he’d long since lost.
The only thing left to ask for was something he barely understood: “I want
to go home.”
“Okay. Okay. Let’s—” Neil was distracted by something in the distance and
swore viciously in a language Jean didn’t recognize. Jean followed his stare to see two men in suits at the entrance.

“Always these pigs coming on the wrong timing, always what suits them best” said Andrew with a scoff, his voice monoton without revealing any emotions and everyone had to agree with him.
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They had their badges out as they
talked to the hostess. Neil let go of Jean and gave his hip a light push. “I can
see the kitchen. There should be a door out to where the dumpsters are. We
can make it back to the garage from there.”

They laughed at Neil’s fist though to run out of there, it was so Neil that it took some of the tension with it. Andrew sighed as sigh that almost sounded pained, of course Neil would attempt to run from two FBI agents.
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“No,” Jean said, pressing the heels of his palms to his eyes.

“At least one of them has a few brain cells” said Wymack with a sigh.
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Neil moved to let Jean back in the booth, and they waited for the
government’s dogs to catch up to them. It didn’t take long, and the two agents turned cool stares on Neil as they helped themselves to Stuart’s vacated bench.
“Neil Josten,” one said as they both presented their badges. “We’d like a
word with you.”
“Tedious,” Neil said. “I’m trying to eat.”
The agent chucked a couple to-go boxes across the table, nearly knocking
Neil’s drink over as he did so. “I wasn’t asking. Let’s go.”
Neil sighed but started packing up his meal.

“Neil” said Abby with a sigh but everyone could see the smile she had, she wasn’t the only one all the others were laughing. Neil and his ability to fuck with everyone is refreshing and at the same time they couldn’t wait for him to shut it.
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When Jean made no move to
do the same, the man closer to him made an imperious gesture and said,
“That goes for you too. We’ve got some questions.”
“He has nothing to do with this,” Neil said.
“You sure about that?” the agent said.
Jean would’ve been fine throwing his meal in the trash, but scraping it into
a Styrofoam box let him stall here a little longer. Neil waited until he was
done before deciding he wanted to finish his drink.

They all laughed at that (someone cough cough Andrew cough cough hid his grin)
“Only Neil could do this” said Matt between laughs.
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Neither agent was impressed with their absolute lack of urgency, but finally the two ran out of excuses to stay. They were escorted out of the restaurant with one agent in front and the other at the rear.
A black SUV with tinted windows and government plates was parked at the
curb out front. Neil, being the person he was, pointed at the fire hydrant
adjacent to its front bumper and said, “That’s illegal, just so you know.”
“Shut up and get in the car.”

“Best way to describe Neil” said Alison with a laugh, others laughed at her comment “he is not wrong, they should have known better” said Renee with a smile, Andrew new better and could see the mischievous side to it.
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When they finally made it to the elevators, Neil asked in French, “Chances
of them understanding French?”
“None. They’re American,” Jean said.
“Hey,” Neil protested.
“You barely count. Don’t waste your time feigning offense.”
“Knock it off,” the agent nearer Neil said. “English only or we’ll separate
you until we can get some interpreters onsite.”

It was would have been a insult but they couldn’t deny that it was funny, only Neil would start talking in a foreign language in front of FBI agents. This was a serious moment, they had to prove to the FBI that there was nothing to suspicious but it looked like Neil would like to piss off anyone that dared to waste his time.
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They were brought to a conference room. Boxes were stacked on one end of
the table, a few closed files rested in the middle, and a video camera was
already set up on a tripod to record today’s discussion. A rolling stand
beside the camera had a monitor on it, and they were being broadcast a
video of another suited figure hunched over his desk. At the sound of the
door closing and chairs scraping across the floor, the man looked up and
scowled.
Neil greeted him with no warmth whatsoever: “Agent Browning. Kind of
thought I’d never have to see you again.”
“Don’t start with me,” Browning said.

“What a warm welcome, but hey a good thing to see a familiar face” said Dan, they laughed at Browning’s face and at the same time smirked at him, that’s what you get for annoy Neil, they had seen it to many times to know that Neil could never hold back his tongue.
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“Where did you get this?”
By the gesture he made, he meant the scratches on Jean’s face, but Jean
said, “I take after my mother.”
“Jean’s French,” Neil said. “He brings out violence in people every time he
opens his mouth. Even the Trojans are human enough to have a breaking
point.”
“You’re one to accuse others of intolerable attitudes,” Browning said, and Neil only shrugged indifference.

„The man has spoken the truth“ said Dan with a smirk as she laughed, sometimes everyone has wished for an attitude change but this was their Neil.
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Eventually Neil let them circle back to Stuart’s visit in the city, and he
pressed a shoe against the side of Jean’s foot as he offered the best—worst—excuse he could. Neil had supposedly asked Stuart months ago to locate Jean’s sister. Stuart finally found where her trail ended, and he’d brought
them both to the city so he could deliver the bad news in person. Here Neil
injected a bit of venom into his story, that the agents had further ruined an
already horrible day by forcing them into this interrogation, and one of
them had the good grace to look guilty.

“Poor Jean” muttered Abby and others had to agree, to lose a loved one is devastating and for Jean to learn about her death like that must have been even worse.
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After four exhausting hours of arguing, including some long breaks to
check in with Interpol, the agents finally decided Jean was the luckiest
break they’d had in weeks. Jean himself was deemed a nonthreat thanks to
his ignorance and clean history. Now they could set to work dismantling
Hervé’s ring and drive another nail in Nathan’s coffin.
Ten minutes later, they were kicked out in front of the restaurant they’d
been abducted from. Jean watched the SUV disappear into evening traffic,
but Neil tipped his head back to stare at the sky. Jean couldn’t remember
where the garage was from here, so he waited in silence for Neil to come
back to him.
“I’m sorry,” Neil said at last. “It shouldn’t have fallen on you.”
“I am a Moreau,” Jean said. “My family exists to serve.”
“Shit existence,” Neil said, as if he was somehow better off. He set off
down the sidewalk, knowing Jean would fall in alongside him.

Jean may have been someone that they didn’t know well but it still got on their nerves wenn they saw how brainwashed he was from the Nest, they felt sorry but it wasn’t their job to do anything they can just wish for his well being.
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Jean was half-sure he was getting them lost, because none of this looked familiar, but then he spotted the ATM Neil had used a few hours ago. “Are you going to keep it as-is, then? Jean Moreau?“
“This is all I am, you ignorant child.”
“We’re the same age,” Neil pointed out, and Jean waved that aside as
irrelevant. “I just mean… I changed my name because I didn’t want to be
associated with my family, but they stole yours from you. If you don’t want
to change it back, that’s your choice, but don’t choose based on what Riko
wanted for you.”
“I do not need advice from you,” Jean warned him.
“He’s dead,” Neil reminded him as he turned into the parking garage. “The
rules have changed. As long as you deliver what was promised, why would
Ichirou care what you call yourself? Exercise a little freedom once in a
while. You might like how it feels.”
“You’ll lose that boldness when he finds out about your goalkeeper.”
“I’m sure he knows. Andrew was with me when I came clean with the FBI
in Baltimore, and it’s obvious to me that at least one person in that office is
on the wrong payroll. If someone thought to make a note of him as a person of interest, then of course it would’ve made it up the chain. I’m not
worried,” Neil added with a slight shrug. “The more people I hold onto, the
less of a threat I am, because I won’t want to endanger them by acting out.”
“I would believe that from anyone but you,” Jean said as they got in the car.
“Who is the safer investment?” Neil challenged him. “A man with a dozen
reasons not to slip the leash or a man holding on simply because he was told
he couldn’t let go?”
Jean ignored him, and Neil let it drop.

It felt different how these two interacted with each other, rude but there was something else too it was hidden behind everything else but maybe it was respect or maybe something they couldn’t begin to take apart and understand.
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The drive back to Laila’s house passed in tense silence. There was room at the curb for Neil to park in front of Jeremy’s car, but he stopped in the middle of the street and put his hazards on.
Jean reached for his buckle but went still when Neil caught hold of his sleeve. It took a minute before Neil looked at him. Jean didn’t think it was the night that made him look so far away, but Neil’s voice was calm when he said,“Lock your door tonight if it will help, but Grayson will never bother you again.”
There were too many thoughts rattling around Jean’s exhausted brain for
that to make sense at first, and then the memory of Neil’s “Do you have
anyone who can take on local work?” rang out crystal clear. That he’d
boldly taken a hit out on Grayson with Jean sitting right next to him was
impossible; that Jean had been too shaken by the impending destruction of
his family to realize it was happening was unforgivable.

“W-what?!” said Nicky in disbelieve but it was quickly over shadowed from all the other sounds of disbelief and shock. Andrew and Renee understood Neil on that moment if it means protecting someone then anything, it just happened that Neil used his uncle’s resources to get it done. They didn’t say it but everyone was deep done fine with Grayson dying, he deserved it and they enjoyed seeing revenge being served, still the shock was there, they hadn’t thought of that being a possibility when they had seen Neil ask his uncle for local work. “What the fuck” muttered Aaron, “like you have anything to say” said Alison, it earned her a glare from Aaron but it didn’t go anywhere when Matt interrupted “I am with Neil on this one a 100%” he continued “I mean come on the dude had it coming, everyone knows it, if I was anywhere as powerful as Neil’s uncle I’d to the same” it was quiet for seconds “I don’t think anyone is complaining, pretty sure we are all thinking the same babe” said Dan to Matt with a hand on his side, Wymack sighed loudly “can no one admit to wanting to kill anyone” he said “heh coach don’t blame us, the shit that Neil pulled has to be the coolest shit we have seen” said Alison, it was true something like this being done so nonchalantly was badass, some who having a gangster family member didn’t sound so bad.
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“A Wesninski in truth, if not in name,” Jean said. “Eager to ingratiate
yourself with your new master by protecting his assets?”
“Fuck Ichirou,” Neil said, and Jean was not going to sit here and listen to
anything that followed that bold remark. He shoved the door open, but Neil
grabbed his injured wrist before Jean could get out of the car. Jean gritted
his teeth against the pain and glowered at him.
Neil was unmoved by his anger. “Grayson should have just walked away
from Riko’s tainted legacy and started over. He strung the noose himself
when he came all the way here to put his hands on you, and I am not afraid
to kick the stool out from under him.”

“I can’t Neil is so fine right there” said Nicky with a dreamy sigh, there was a loud groan from Aaron again but tha served as a fuel for the rest to laugh, Andrew might have not declined the fact if he asked about what he thought about what Neil was doing but who was he to blame, watching Neil like this did something to him but he would rather be caught dead then admitting that, Renne threw him a knowing look but looked away quickly so she didn’t see the answering middle finger Andrew send her “Nicky is right” said Alison and Matt was nodding along that made Dan laugh as she watched he Boyfriend.
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Jean tried to tug free, but Neil’s grip was bruising. “Do not pretend this is
about me, you miserable wretch.”
“Why wouldn’t it be?” Neil asked.
“I am just a Moreau,” Jean said, flat and fierce. “I am not—““So was Elodie,” Neil reminded him, and Jean stopped breathing.
“Remember that the next time you think you aren’t worth saving.”
Neil let go, and Jean threw himself out of the car.

“Wow way to punch a man on the gut Neil” said Dan, Andrew thought of saying what would be the point of saying something else, this was the truth maybe Jean was not ready to hear it but there was nothing else Neil could say, Jean had to understand and grow a spine.

(The tsc is done guys 😭😭🫶🫶🫶. Thank you to everyone that supports this fic.
I am going to be reading the tgr next to see if there is anything else they can react to. If not I will be posting an official last chapter. I am not promising when but please be patient with me❤️.)

See ya soon everyone🫶🫶🫶
And again a big ass thank you to everyone and your love for this fic.