Tfc - Blog Posts

andreil and goodbye kisses (pt. 6) ft. aaron

parts 1, 2, 3, 4, aaaand 5 you wonderful human beings || part 7, 8

so aaron isn't the biggest fan of neil's relationship with his brother

he has made that very clear. to everyone

is he glad that andrew is a bit less murderous now? yes, of course

is he upset that andrew's dating the guy who brought a mob war upon the foxes? just a smidge

despite all his... reservations, aaron can tell that whatever andrew and neil have, it isn't just "hate sex"

(granted, aaron doesn't want to spend much time considering his brother's sex life in the first place, but that's beside the point)

but no matter how annoying josten may be, he does want to have a decent relationship with his brother by the end of college

and unfortunately, that includes moderately tolerating his brother's loudmouth boyfriend

the very boyfriend who forced andrew and aaron to have joint therapy sessions

and look, aaron isn't as stubborn as he acts, he can acknowledge that the therapy sessions are helping

he would just... never admit it to josten's face. the man has enough of an ego as it is

anyways, dobson had told him weeks ago that in order to start understanding the whole of his brother, he had to be willing to accept all the different parts of andrew

and that entails spending time with the people andrew is close with

aaron likes renee enough. she's a bit too happy for his taste, but she's not too bad

aaron wants to kick kevin in the balls whenever he lays his eyes on him, which he is forced to do far too often in his humble opinion

and then there's neil, who aaron should probably start making amends with

dobson (unfortunately) agrees with that idea

so aaron starts spending more time with neil —walking to classes, studying, teaching neil how to play video games (for someone with such solid reflexes on court, neil is shockingly bad at figuring out game controllers)

(he's also 90% sure andrew told josten why aaron was hanging out with him all of a sudden, considering the slightly limited snark neil speaks to him with now)

and much to his chagrin, aaron actually kinda... enjoys hanging out with neil

he's sarcastic. annoying. moderately threatening. neil would be the ideal bro if he wasn't literally dating aaron's brother

(oh, and the mob war thing. can't forget about the mob war thing)

but maybe aaron is being the slightest bit presumptuous

because that week, dobson has to push back their appointment to thursday evening instead of wednesday afternoon

neil offers to drive aaron and andrew over to Reddin, saying that he was going over to the nearby cafe to work on some project anyways

so neil and andrew have their weird eye-contact conversation thing at every stoplight. aaron sticks to just texting katelyn.

he's so engrossed in his phone he barely realizes when they've stopped, and then wonders why andrew hadn't told him to get out yet

he glances up, ready to scramble out of the car, when he witnesses the single craziest moment of his life

neil and andrew, oblivious to aaron, are staring at each other. very intensely. it's a bit disconcerting how long they can keep their eyes open for

(maybe aaron should go into optometry, for his brother's sake)

anyway.

so aaron slowly holds onto the door handle, about to leave the car, when neil goddamn josten kisses his brother. ON THE NOSE

and his brother is blushing. BLUSHING

aaron's mind comes to a halt. what. is. happening.

he practically leaps out of the car, trying to pull his jaw back up from where it dropped as andrew emerges from the car and walks towards dobson's office, ears pink

(oh god. does aaron look like that when katelyn is around? that's embarrassing as hell)

shit. aaron had betted against andrew and neil on the kiss bet. nicky must have known something he didn't, considering how excited he looked that day...

bastard, he texts nicky with no explanation, hoping it leaves his cousin floundering in confusion

and fine. maybe josten isn't that bad for his brother

but he's also the reason why aaron is going to be in crippling debt soon

but. if he and neil become closer, surely he'd have the insider information on his brother's relationship

hmm. if he plays his cards right, this new, tolerable almost-friendship with josten might actually help him to win some money in the future...

ok because AP tests are upon us and this is my only way of releasing all my stress, here's a short list of andreil study time hcs for your viewing pleasure

our boy andrew doesn't really have to study

neil on the other hand... actually needs to work to keep up his GPA

he's never really cared enough to study but now he has the foxes and exy and a future to lose so he might as well put in the effort to keep them

neil needs caffeine like he needs oxygen. the man cannot focus for shit without it

he'll down like three mugs of black coffee in the morning and be set for the day

andrew hates it but doesn't complain much as long as neil makes him some actually decent coffee too

(once, neil accidentally gave him the wrong mug and andrew didn't talk to him for the rest of the day)

when andrew does study or does homework, he hates studying in the library

he told nicky that it was because he's "allergic to books"

really, he just knows he'd get distracted and start reading william faulkner or jane austen instead of his textbooks

neil, however, loves the library

he can't study at all in the dorms; he needs to keep moving to new environments so he doesn't get bored by his surroundings

so neil and andrew don't study together half the time

which works out well considering the few times that they do, they tend to get more than a little... distracted

but if the library is closed or neil just doesn't have the energy to leave the dorm, he bullies andrew into helping him study instead of playing video games or reading

(neil gets a kiss for every question he gets right. andrew gets to look at a pretty guy for a few hours. it's a win-win situation)

mr. Neil draws-fox-paws-instead-of-doing-his-work Josten struggles with focusing on literally anything but exy and andrew

so he always ropes in one of the foxes as a "study-buddy" to hold him accountable while he's working

andrew and neil both like having noise-cancelling headphones on while they work, but this also means that people hold full-on conversations with them without realizing that they can't be heard

(also, because they're assholes, even when they can hear the other person, they just... don't respond.)

andrew is a pastel highlights guy. also he's weirdly possessive about his pens

neil just grabs the first mechanical pencil he sees (99% of the stationary he has isn't even his, he just found them laying around campus)

neil is also super disorganized. loose papers everywhere, he can never find anything. no matter how clean a place starts, it turns into a mess within 5 minutes of neil studying there

he also has food wrappers and crumbs everywhere because he constantly snacks while studying

andrew is surprisingly clean - he organizes everything by class and then color-codes everything (granted his memory helps so he doesn't have too many notes in the first place)

anyways, they both have their own methods of studying and it works for them

(aka andrew just vibes and neil frantically finishes all his work 3 hours before it's due)

ok yeah that's all i got right now, my brain is fried and i actually have to study now, pray for me 😔

andreil and goodbye kisses (pt. 5) ft. dan

part 1, 2, 3, 4 besties || part 6, 7, 8

dan has never claimed to understand andrew. or neil. especially not andrew and neil together

but she likes to have an eye on any changing behaviors on her team

because she's captain. not at all because she likes the gossip. dan's better than that

(she's really not)

so when matt starts acting jumpy around andrew and neil, she makes it a point to ask him if something's wrong

"i mean... i want to talk to neil about something i saw but there's like a 50/50 chance of murder"

"matt—"

needless to say, dan doesn't want to let neil or andrew out of her sight for a while

but she's dealing with a lot of stress: her last year of college, captaining the Foxes, dealing with rookie freshman, training neil on how to be captain, being a good girlfriend, all while job scouting and looking for housing for next year

so she has to trust that neil and andrew like matt enough to let him live

one fall night, dan is up late figuring out some plays, but there's something about the offensive line that just isn't working out

she quietly steps out of her dorm, noticing that the light is still on in kevin's room, and she heads over there to see if he has any ideas

binders in her hands, dan kicks at the door until kevin yanks it open with a grumble

she walks in and blinks when she realizes that kevin is dressed to go outside, and she realizes he must have been getting ready to go for a night practice

dan asks kevin for a confirmation, to which he lets out a loud groan and collapses on the couch

"we were supposed to go an HOUR ago but someone — ahem NEIL” he shoots a pointed glare to the bedrooms “keeps making out with his boyfriend. what do they even do for that long?! i guess when he's finally done, we'll go”

dan blinks. of course the one thing that could distract neil from exy was andrew

kevin quiets for a moment, and as dan strains her ears, she hears neil’s giggles — giggles! — coming through the door

(dan decides to ignore the more... explicit sounds)

she gives a consoling pat to the top of kevin’s head and drops her binders next to him

kevin rolls over reluctantly and starts flipping through dan's notes, and the two of them immerse themselves in plays and stats

about 30 minutes later, dan gets up for a stretch break and notices that she can't hear any noises coming from the bedroom anymore

she takes a few cautious steps in that direction, but when she's a few feet away, the door slams open and neil stumbles out, dragging andrew forward with a very wet laughing kiss

truly, they look like two lovestruck teenagers. it's very cute. also a little gross

dan coughs

the two of them leap apart (well, neil leaps. andrew steps back calmly, fixing his hair, but dan doesn't miss the glare he sends her)

"uh, neil. kevin's been waiting for you for night practice"

"oh shit. how long's it been?"

"i've been here for 30 minutes. kevin says he'd been waiting for an hour before i showed up"

"... oops"

dan steps back and opens her mouth to call for kevin when neil leans in towards andrew again

she lets out an exasperated sigh. "neil— "

neil cups andrew's face in his palms and presses a peck to his nose, giving him a fleeting, but bright, smile before noisily pushing past dan and yelling at kevin to hurry up, he's so behind schedule, what's been keeping him up for so long?

dan decides to ignore the crash and screech behind her as kevin shoves neil out the dorm

instead, she focuses on andrew

he gives her a cool, impassive glance, completely at odds with the bright red tips his ears were sporting and his blown-out pupils

"hey"

"..."

"so uh. you're not going to night practice with them?"

"paper"

"ah i see, i see"

they were silent for a moment

"why are you still here?"

"yep good point, going right now"

"wilds." dan turns around to see andrew's glare. "if you mention this to anyone i'll kill you"

ah. so this was the murder that matt was talking about

nevertheless, dan rolls her eyes at that. "andrew. i just saw neil kiss you on the nose. your threats are no longer effective on me"

"... fucking josten"

"yes, i imagine that's what you were doing— "

"wilds."

"leaving leaving, BYE ANDREW!"

i had an idea i would love to see from your perspective (you're so good at andreil oh my god) if you wanted to write some stuff about it? i always wondered how andrew reacted when he first found neil missing after the binghampton game (starts pg 235 in the king's men). thoughts? (-- the ttyl blog <3)

omg i literally finished re-reading that scene before seeing your ask skjflsj ~ i hope you like this ! (i'm just realizing that i barely followed ur request and just rambled a lot but that's FINE 😬)

read it on ao3 here :)

«««———»»»

Andrew walked in line to the bus with the rest of the Foxes, mind going a million miles an hour behind his impassive expression. 

"Thank you," Neil had said, eyes truer than Andrew had ever seen them. "You were amazing."

Andrew wasn't such a fool for Neil Josten that he couldn't figure out there was something more happening under the surface, something bigger than just an Exy shutout, that he wasn't telling anyone. Something forcing truth out of him.

Neil looked scared.

Apparently, no one else received the memo, because behind him, Matt Boyd kept kicking at Andrew's heels and Andrew could nearly see the nosy smile on Reynold's face. Boyd's voice was drowned out by the cacophony of both jeers and shouts of approval coming from all around them, but he had no doubts that Boyd was fishing for information surrounding his and Neil's "not this" to settle a bet of some sort.

Andrew didn't really care. He was more focused on leaving Binghamton, getting some answers out of Neil, and then kissing him senseless.

Of course, Andrew had no plans to tell Neil of that last item on the list, but he was sure he (and everyone else, apparently) knew anyway.

Maybe not Nicky, though. For all his cousin boasted about having an "incredible gaydar," he tended to be a bit clueless about Andrew.

Andrew's eyes were unfocused, gazing at the bounce of Neil's red curls while his thoughts wandered around nothing at all.

Nothing? his mind mused unhelpfully. Or Neil? Or is that one in the same now?

Shut up, he huffed internally. I hate him.

Lost in his head, it was only until he heard a pained curse from Aaron that he jerked straight and saw the world burning around him.

«««———»»»

Andrew's vision went red. 

He nearly would have broken out of line and straight into the tidal wave of rioters had he not noticed the police trying to push back the crowd. He had never trusted the pigs, but Andrew supposed he could let them handle the mess until he'd gotten a chance to check on Aaron at the bus.

He had nearly fooled himself with that thought when an ice cooler sailed through the air and missed Danielle's face by an inch. An enraged shout came from Andrew's right, and he could feel the familiar heat of adrenaline in his stomach that always came when he and Renee sparred.

There was going to be a fight.

No sooner than he had that thought, the crowd around him exploded into madness, nearly running the Foxes over. Andrew may have been ready to throw some punches, but he was not at all prepared for the onslaught of unfamiliar bodies piling on him. Moving around him. Touching him. 

Andrew couldn't breathe.

He lost sight of Neil's head in the mess, hoping one of the security guards would bring Neil to safety while Andrew tried to ground himself. What had Bee taught him? 

What is your name? Andrew Minyard.

How old are you? 20 years old.

What is upsetting you? Hands. Everywhere.

Can you do something about it? Yes. I can move now.

He felt the glancing blow of someone's elbow on his face, nearly hitting his eye. It was sure to bruise later, but for now, the sharp pain mixed with Bee's words were enough to shake Andrew out of his stupor.

He ducked to the left, neatly missing a thrown shoe and was grateful to his limited stature for once. He kept an eye out for a flash of red, the glint of blue eyes, but seeing that Neil was nearly as short as Andrew himself, the effort was futile.

He'll be fine, Andrew thought. Find Nicky, Aaron, and Kevin, and get to the bus.

To his surprise (or maybe not), Andrew found Reynolds trading fierce blows with someone twice her size, Renee at her back. He caught Renee's glance and she gave him a firm nod of reassurance.

He nodded back, already swiveling to find the rest of his group. 

After a few minutes, he spotted Nicky and Kevin huddled together, slowly moving to the edge of the crowd. He caught up and grabbed Nicky's wrist, who jerked away and reared his hand back for a punch before realizing it was Andrew.

Despite it all, Andrew felt a thrum of satisfaction. A few years ago, Nicky had let people beat him down over and over again. At least now he was learning to fight back.

"Oh thank god," Nicky cried, catching Kevin's attention, before his eyes widened. He reached out, remembering himself at the last second. "Andrew... your face, what happened?"

Andrew shrugged. He'd been through worse. 

Nicky looked like he wanted to say something, but Kevin cursed loudly and began pushing out of the sea of bodies with renowned vigor.

"It's getting more violent and more people are joining," Kevin said, voice strained. "We need to get out and regroup at the bus."

"Aaron?" Andrew asked. Nicky glanced around a few moments before pointing to his right.

"There!" he exclaimed, and motioned to Kevin to go in that direction. Kevin nodded and they made their way over to Aaron, who was ducking under beer bottles and was nearly smacked in the face by a PSU banner.

"Aaron!" Kevin called, and Aaron's shoulders dropped with relief as he swerved a growing fight and made his way over to them.

Andrew scanned his brother quickly and, after seeing no visible injuries, motioned to start back towards the parking lot. They made their way over to the bus and found Boyd and Danielle standing, the former looking like he'd just lost a fight with a mountain lion.

Danielle was gripping his arm as Abby tended to his wounds, but Andrew heard her say he might need to go to the hospital for the more serious injuries. Boyd looked pained at the thought, but when he glanced up and caught Andrew's eye, he smiled and waved them over.

"Andrew, here," Abby said, noticing his injury. He took an ice pack from her and glanced around.

"Where's Neil?" he asked, choosing to ignore the suggestive look between Boyd and Danielle. Abby shrugged and opened her mouth before her eyes caught on something behind Andrew and she waved.

Andrew turned around to find Renee and Reynolds walking proudly towards them. Reynolds had a mosaic of bruises all over her, and Renee was holding her wrist precariously.

Abby sighed and began treating them as Wymack rounded the front of the bus and finally found his team.

Not the whole team, a ringing voice said in Andrew's head. Neil isn't here yet.

Which was odd, no? He had a security guard in front of him, surely he would have made it here first? Perhaps Wymack had seen him and taken him somewhere. Maybe he was already safe in the bus and Abby hadn’t noticed him.

Andrew pushed past Danielle and boarded the bus, walking the length of it but not finding a loudmouthed striker in its shadows. His stomach became knotted with a curious feeling he slowly identified as dread.

Andrew was at the door of the bus again. He looked at Wymack.

"Where. Is. Neil." he demanded. He saw Wymack's confused expression and before he even said anything, Andrew felt his heart stop.

"I don't know. I thought he was with you."

Reynold's knowing smirk gave way to uncertainty as the rest of the Foxes quieted. There was silence for a moment. Two.

Then Andrew threw his ice pack on the floor and raced back into the heart of the riot.

«««———»»»

He ignored the shouts coming from behind him, his mind an endless loop of Neil, Neil, Neil, is he safe, has he been hurt, he was supposed to be nothing, NEIL

After a few minutes of searching and more than a few near punches, the police finally regained some control over the situation and Andrew was able to scour the grounds for any hint of where Neil might be.

He saw the racquet first. The duffle bag was a few meters away from it.

Numbly, Andrew picked up both items, grabbing Neil's phone as it fell from the netted side pocket.

0, it said. 

Andrew felt a piercing emptiness when he saw Neil's things without their rightful owner beside them.

He slowly walked back to the Foxes' bus, head pounding but unable to really register the dwindling fight behind him. And when the Foxes finally came in view, he saw the confusion on their faces when they saw no Neil walking with him.

Andrew mentally ran through everything that he knew. Neil was scared. He was running from someone, someone Kevin knew about? A zero on his phone from an unnamed number — a countdown, perhaps. He would never leave his things unattended, so maybe he wanted to tell Andrew he had been taken unwillingly, knowing that Andrew would never leave without him.

There was something he was missing, some vital piece of information that Neil hadn't told him that was causing this mess.

The guilty look on Kevin's face told Andrew everything he needed to know. He knew something.

He dumped Neil's things on the ground by Wymack's feet, mentally assessing himself. His cheek throbbed, each breath he took was sticky with sweat, his heart was pounding.

Neil was gone.

Andrew felt such a blind hot rage at that, the likes of which he hadn't felt in so long, the type where he felt like laughing at how cruel the world could be.

And before he could tell his body to stop, Andrew's hands were around Kevin's throat.

«««———»»»

"Shit Andrew! You're hurting— " "Andrew, stop— " "Get off of— "

«««———»»»

Andrew couldn't remember what happened after that, not immediately at least. It was a bit disorienting, going from a perfect recollection to being so overrun by anger that his mind went blank. Was this how everyone else felt all the time? He felt like someone just took out a Jenga piece from his mind, like it was close to collapsing.

Distantly, he recalled being yanked off of Kevin as he gasped some explanation about a mob boss, Kengo's right hand man, Nathaniel Wesninski. But none of it mattered. Andrew had broken his promise. He had hurt the person he had vowed to protect, just like so many had done to him.

And he still didn't have Neil.

«««———»»»

Neil used to make the emptiness a bit fuller, a bit easier to manage, Andrew thought. It felt so impossible to navigate himself now without Neil by Andrew's side.

«««———»»»

There was a hospital. A hotel. There were FBI agents. The news turned on. Off. On. There was another hotel. Handcuffs. Taken away.

«««———»»»

There was Nathaniel Neil. Standing in front of him. Blue eyes, wild hair, bandages unable to hide how irresistible he was, unable to stop the jolt in Andrew's heart.

There was Neil. And everything felt right again.

andreil and goodbye kisses (pt. 4) ft. renee

part 1, part 2, part 3 ~ this is your daily reminder to go drink some water ~ part 5, part 6, part 7, part 8

renee tends to be perceptive about any changes with any of her foxes

but she's especially known for having the insider information on andrew (and by extent, his relationship with neil)

she doesn't do anything too special though. she just treats andrew with kindness and recognizes that they are both hurt people trying to heal, even if that healing looks different on both of them

but one of the best methods they can agree on is sparring

renee knows she's strategically a better fighter than andrew, considering her training and specific past

andrew is more... emotions-based — he acts with his heart rather than his head (although she's sure everyone would laugh in disbelief if she told them that)

andrew's aggression and ferocity is largely dependent on his current state of mind, which makes him a rather formidable opponent

he has a lot of pent-up anger. renee knows this. so imagine her surprise when after getting off his drugs, andrew starts throwing slightly weaker punches, moving just a hair slower than usual

(she thought it was the apathy. of course, it later came out that this was the work of one neil josten and his many kisses)

renee is certainly getting used to this newer, calmer andrew

and she's immensely happy that her friend is becoming more comfortable in his skin

but it still takes her by surprise to see how much he lets his guard down around neil, how much softer he is

andrew's certainly no romantic chick-flick lead, but renee sees how his eyes constantly flick over to neil, how andrew seems to lean into him, how it's not "andrew" and "neil" but rather "andrew and neil"

(or as nicky calls them, "andreil." renee would never tell andrew, but she thinks the ship name is extremely cute)

no matter what, though, renee can count on andrew not stopping their sparring sessions

it's less of an outlet for him now, but she likes to think that he enjoys her company, even if he would never admit it

so. it's a Wednesday evening, when andrew and renee usually spar

she's at the door of the gym, texting allison on her phone as she waits for andrew

(no allison, i don't think the twins would appreciate Prada sunglasses for their birthdays. and do you really want to spend hundreds of dollars on a gag gift?)

a few minutes later, the maserati pulls up, with neil in the driver's seat

andrew gets out of the car, walking around the hood to reach renee

but as he passes the driver's seat, renee sees the door open and neil gets out, grabbing andrew's fingers lightly as he pulls him around so andrew's back is touching the car

renee knows she should look away. really, she does

but what kind of a fox would she be if she didn't have something to tease her friend about?

(and besides, she justifies, it happened so quick she didn't even get a chance to look away)

neil and andrew have their eyes on each other and neil gently brings up his hands to caress andrew's check

he leans down and kisses him on the nose, and renee doesn't miss the way andrew's shoulders relax

nor does she miss the faint blush on andrew's cheek that he seems to be desperately keeping at bay

a few moments later, neil gets in the car and drives off as andrew walks to renee, a fake nonchalance in his step

she just smiles at him

andrew scowls

later that evening, nicky unexpectedly opens a new bet, stating that he thinks andreil are "totally the type to give each other cute kisses"

surprisingly, matt and kevin join in on that bet

after a moment of consideration, renee quietly adds that she's betting on nicky's side

there's a moment of surprised silence, before allison scoffs

"when have you turned into such an optimist? i won't ever believe that those two are anything but two tiny assholes"

renee wants to believe there's some affection lacing her words

"okay," nicky claps. "if they do a cute kiss in front of 3 or more of us in the next 2 months, we win the bet"

allison narrows her eyes. "deal"

they shake on it. renee can't wait to win some money

andreil and goodbye kisses (pt 3) ft. nicky

part 1, part 2 <3 ||| part 4, part 5, part 6, part 7, part 8

contrary to popular belief, nicky is actually a relatively observant guy, especially when it comes to his cousins

andrew is a bit more closed off than aaron, but even before nicky found out about andrew and neil, he noticed that andrew was a bit... lighter. happier, almost

so it comes as no surprise that he would be the next one to catch neil and andrew

the cousins, kevin, and neil all head over to Columbia one weekend after a stressful few weeks at school

and it's nice. relaxing. minimal chaos occurs

(ok sure, nicky realized that he forgot about a Marketing project and maybe kevin kept muttering about a "PDA draft" of some sort and yes, aaron nearly flushed his anatomy flashcards down the toilet but that's beside the point)

the five of them had originally planned to come back to PSU on sunday morning so everyone could catch up on their work

but kevin and aaron had gotten weirdly competitive over dance dance revolution the previous night

so everyone was severely lacking in the sleep department

(there was a collective decision to forget about school and instead stay in bed until 1 pm)

nicky ends up waking up around noon though, feeling more rested than usual

and of course, being the oldest person there, nicky decides to check in on everyone, make sure all his "children" were doing okay

he peeps into aaron's room. he finds aaron half off the bed and goes in to quietly fix his cousin's blanket

he peeps into kevin's room. he finds kevin sleeping perfectly straight and wrinkles his nose at the sheer strangeness of sleeping like a literal rod

he peeps into andreil's room. he find them... not there?

now, for all of nicky's good qualities, it cannot be said that he's always the most rational person

so he races over to aaron's room, ready to break down the door screaming that his favorite couple has gone missing

just as he's about to fling open the bedroom door, he hears a quiet laugh coming from downstairs

he freezes

"right. there's another half to the house. i remembered that"

nicky quietly drops his hand and moves away from aaron's room, tiptoeing down the stairs

he moves around the house, unable to find the source of the laugh until he finally reaches the kitchen

there, he finds andrew sitting atop the counter, his legs wrapped around neil, their noses nearly touching

nicky can't see neil's face, but he does notice neil playing with his and andrew's hands, occasionally bringing them up to press a kiss to andrew's knuckles in the middle of conversation

andrew says something quietly to neil, causing him to laugh again and lean up to kiss andrew

(it does not escape nicky's notice that this is the first time andrew has been taller than neil, but really, the adorableness of his two stabby children takes greater precedence over that)

nicky wants to keep looking, wants the reassurance that his cousin is safe and happy and loved

but he also knows that andrew is a private person and nicky should respect his wishes

nicky trusts his cousin. really, he does. it's just— andrew has been through so much, and getting like 5 more seconds of confirmation that andrew's doing okay wouldn't hurt anyone, right?

the beeping of the coffee pot jerks nicky out from his thoughts

he decides to leave, that andreil will be going fine and strong even without his intervention

but in the few seconds it takes to make his decision, something so adorable happens that nicky's poor heart stops functioning for a moment

andrew pouts — pouts! — and tightens his grip on neil, not uncrossing his legs

neil rolls his eyes and brings his hands up to andrew’s face, caressing his cheeks

neil kisses andrew on the nose

andrew hums and begrudgingly lets go of neil

nicky is internally hyperventilating

he’s frozen to the spot as neil pours the coffee into mugs and brings them back to the counter

andrew takes his mug and promptly wraps his legs around neil’s waist again, burying a hand in neil’s hair

he runs a hand through it slowly, bringing it down until his hand is resting on the back of neil’s neck, their foreheads nearly touching

nicky suddenly turns away, feeling raw and surprised by the amount of intimacy he just saw

he lets out a breath. they’ll be okay. andrew’s going to be okay.

he goes back up to his room and lies in his bed, mind running a million miles an hour

after a few seconds of staring up at the ceiling, he turns over, burying his face in his pillow, and screams a muffled proclamation that andreil is the cutest ship to have ever sailed

(a few hours later when they’re on the road back to PSU, aaron turns and asks nicky why he heard screaming coming from his room. nicky shrugs.

“i was just really hoping that the titanic situation doesn’t occur again. wouldn’t want my favorite ship to sink, you know?”)

andreil and goodbye kisses (pt 2) ft. kevin

you can find part 1 here :) you probs need to read that to understand this one!

part 3, part 4, part 5, part 6, part 7, part 8

neil tries to kiss andrew out of sight of the other foxes, but it's not always easy

matt knows already, of course, about neil's newfound way of saying goodbye

but keeping the others away proves to be slightly... impossible

kevin catches them first

the three of them are at night practice, but andrew was refusing to participate

"this is homophobia, you can't force me to play, kevin"

"what the fu-"

anyway. so neil and kevin are practicing. they do their thing

(andrew is most definitely not staring at neil's shorts, of course not surely he has more self-control than that)

(spoiler alert: he does not, it turns out, have that much self-control)

about an hour in, kevin and neil go on a short water break because hydration

neil jogs up to the bleachers where andrew is sitting and quietly speaks to him, out of kevin's sight

kevin leans against the wall of the court, drinking water and scrolling through his East Asian Studies group chat (no Jackson, the Chinese were not "blazing it" during the Opium Crisis)

he gets so caught up in his rant that he realizes the time is now 10 minutes after their break was supposed to end

and that's certainly unusual isn't it? because neil is just as obsessed with exy as kevin is, and it's really weird that he hasn't come to tell kevin to start practice again, oh god what if something's wrong, what if kevin wasn't paying enough attention and something bad happened shit shit SHIT

so kevin runs over to the bleachers where he remembers andrew and neil usually sit and finds... them in a very heated make-out session

and yes, kevin can admit that he feels some relief that everything's okay. it's mostly just annoyance though. what did he ever do to be cursed to see this much PDA from his roommates?

"ahem. neil. josten. get off of andrew's lap right now, we're supposed to be practicing"

neil quickly twists around at kevin's voice, nearly toppling off of andrew. he regards kevin with a sheepish look

"ah right yes i just got a bit, um, distracted"

"evidently"

so kevin thinks neil will go about disentangling himself and starts to turn away

but of course, neil lives to surprise him

instead of getting off of andrew immediately he leans in once more

kevin is resigning himself to have to physically break the two apart at this point

but instead of going in for another long kiss, neil brushes his lips on andrew's nose and gives him a softer smile than kevin is used to seeing on the striker's face

kevin cannot believe his eyes

but the pink on andrew's cheeks is certainly real. so he couldn't have imagined that

quite frankly, kevin doesn't think he has the brain capacity to come with something like that in the first place

but he doesn't say anything. yet. he and neil practice as usual, and after some cool-down stretches and a quick shower, andrew drives the three of them back to the tower

andrew shoves neil into the their room and emerges again outside to where kevin is waiting

"spit it out day, why are you acting weird?"

"nothing really. you're just... a lot softer these days. with neil at least"

"what, do you want me to start kissing you too? i thought it was easier to remain heterosexual"

kevin rolls his eyes at this

"shut up. ugh. i guess i'm just glad he's making you a bit happier"

andrew gives him an appraising look (it's not as intense as he thinks it is considering the height different but kevin decides not to bring that up)

"and if i told you i'm never happy? that i may never be happy?"

kevin shrugs. "then i'll be glad that he's helping you feel safe enough to tell me that"

andrew is quiet for a moment. then—

"don't go around giving josten all the credit for that. he already has a big enough ego"

andrew turns on his heel and walks into the bedroom, leaving kevin to realize what andrew just implied

kevin lets himself smile for a moment. no matter what he says, he really is happy for his friends. even if what he saw today was horribly sappy

he goes to bed with the knowledge that andrew and neil are in good hands with each other

(but really, he's already drafting plans on banning PDA in the court because he desperately does not want to walk in on neil and andrew again)

andreil and goodbye kisses (pt 1)

pls this is so soft i cant 😭(also a lot longer than i anticipated but that's FINE 👀)

part 2, part 3, part 4, part 5, part 6, part 7, part 8

gang we got this ADORABLE art from @super-yellow-paris go give them aaaalll the love

so andrew and neil aren't too big on PDA, but after Baltimore, leaving the other is always followed by a lingering fear

neil notices how andrew always tenses a bit when neil leaves him, even if neil told him he was going somewhere beforehand

it could him going be to the mall, a restaurant, even just lectures

neil really doesn't like seeing andrew so tense but he can't figure out what's wrong

so one night on the roof, neil straight up asks "why do you always look so stressed whenever I go anywhere?"

andrew doesn't answer for a few moments, and neil assumes he's not going to get an answer but then—

"last time you left, you barely made it back. do you really expect me to trust you now?"

oh, neil realizes. oh, he's afraid i won't come back

andrew looks like he wants to drop the subject, so neil doesn't bring it up again, choosing to rant about his Intro to Stats teacher instead

but he doesn't forget. and he starts noticing how other couples leave one another

matt and dan kiss or hug, nicky and erik say "i love you," aaron and katelyn squeeze each other's hands and look into each other's eyes

it's all very... comforting. reassuring. and neil realizes that that's exactly what he needs to do. he needs to make sure that andrew doesn't forget that neil would never leave him again, not on purpose

so he thinks and thinks and thinks

(he quickly learns that paying attention in his Sports Medicine class is a lot less interesting than thinking about andrew)

neil knows that andrew wouldn't want showy affection with lingering kisses and they haven't really gotten to the "i love you" stage yet, so he needs to figure out a compromise

and then on a cloudy monday morning, the perfect solution hits him

he and matt study together almost every thursday, so 3 days later, they have a plan to head over the library to do some homework

so matt comes up to the monsters' room where neil and andrew are to tell neil that it's time to go

neil hops up from his place curled under andrew's arm on the sofa and goes around collecting his stuff — as usual

and andrew's shoulders begin coiling up with near-unnoticeable tension — as usual

this time though, instead of walking out the door directly, neil pauses in front of andrew and sets down his books on the coffee table near the sofa

and before andrew or matt can react, neil does it

he reaches over, gently cups andrew's face in his hands, and kisses him on the nose

it's feather-light and short, but andrew freezes, his face more expressive than he usually shows, eyes wide

neil gives him a small smile shit shit shit andrew's heart is beating so fast, come on andrew get a hold of yourself say something do something and then he picks up the books delicately and leaves with a gobsmacked matt

andrew doesn't really know what to do with himself and just sits there until kevin arrives 5 minutes later and asks why andrew is so red, if he's okay, does he has a fever, can he still play exy?

andrew shakes out of his stupor, stomps over to his room, and flops helplessly on his bed to be very gay

(this is how neil finds him 1.5 hours later. he tries (and fails) not to laugh. andrew gives him a bruising kiss to shut him up)

it becomes habit though. neil treating andrew like he's something precious, holding his face so reverently, kissing his nose softly

and andrew doesn't know what to do with himself. every single time

but it's okay, he thinks. because while goodbyes might sound permanent, kisses are a promise that the other will come back

i would give money to learn how andrew and kevin would react to finding out that neil's first thought upon being told that andrew was gay was that those two were dating. i just-

andrew: what a preposterous idea. i would never date someone who enjoys eating celery

kevin: and i would never date someone that tiny

andrew: day i swear to god-

me: spends all my time immersing myself in the foxes' found family so i don't have to deal with my own dysfunctional family

also me: wonders why i don't have a good relationship with anyone in my house

imagine if andrew minyard was a flannel gay. the sheer power of that man i-

neil: hoards bananas, oranges, apples, blueberries — basically every fruit imaginable

nicky: see?? i told you he was a bit fruity

andrew in tkm after neil respects his boundaries, treats him like an actual person, and still shows interest in him: i used to be in love with neil as a joke. but bro... i don't think it's a joke anymore 👀

This has me kicking my feet in joy lol

The foxhole court, chapter fourteen

" A group of people shouldered their way up to the bar counter at Neil's back, pushing him into Andrew. Andrew didn't budge beneath his weight. He was something solid to lean against, something violent and fierce and unmoving. Neil couldn't remember what it felt like to have someone hold him up. It was terrifying and liberating all at once. His life was out of his control now; he was giving it to Andrew and hoping Andrew would keep it safe. "

A classic. A must. Hope it doesn't disappoint the expectations. Planning on doing more little doodles like that until the animatic is finished.

Hey everyone!

I just wanted to share this little Kendrail one shot that I wrote!

https://archiveofourown.org/works/24714121

Neil and Andrew after an away game :)

Nathaniel Wesninski everyone

i need aftg as a mockumentary more than anything. imagine the confessionals after neil says or does anything. the amount times andrew would just look directly at the camera.

pray for aaron minyard he's not dead but finding out your seemingly feelingless stone cold hearted brother is dating the bitch you hate the most must be soo devastating like out of everyone?? you chose HIM?

nora saying that if aaron and katelyn have time off from work they'll probably go visit andrew and neil for christmas is my roman empire i think about it all the time

i'm not sure what the technicalities were before kayleigh day's death, but the idea that she might have trusted tetsuji, the man she cofounded exy with, her legacy, with her son, and he betrayed that trust in the most horrendous of ways, the idea that they might've been been friends at some point. it's just so devastating

deleting all the dating apps so i can find love the old fashioned way (i join a sports team made out of misfits with the purpose of giving them a second and third and fifth chance and the goalie and the striker are kind of intense but i end up promising the goalie to keep the striker here if he protects me from the literal mafia and i join their group that's referred to as the monsters by the rest of the team and the goalie gives me keys and truths and cigarettes and he says the thing between us is nothing and that he hates me but i know that the simple fact that he even bothers to express these things means something because he's usually so apathetic but sometimes he shows feelings to me and he trusts me and i trust him and the thing between us is not nothing even if he claims he wants to kill me most of the time)

kevneil is everything to me. neil trusting kevin with the truth, neil trusting kevin with his binder over winter break, kevin believing in neil's potential, kevin being so convinced about it that he says it publicly, knowing he takes what he says to the public very seriously. kevin telling neil he should run away, he should survive. neil staying and giving his game to kevin, neil arguing with riko on national television for kevin, kevin teaching neil raven drills, kevin telling neil he will stay sober on thanksgiving so neil could drink if he wanted to, neil promising andrew to take care of kevin while he's away... neil and kevin man

despite all of their traumatic connections to exy, kevin and neil just love and enjoy it so much. when they had nothing, they had exy or the memory of exy. when everything crumbled down around them, exy saved them. in the form of a coach taking them in, in the form of a team having their backs, in the form of a boy promising to protect them and telling them to stay... fell to my knees in walmart crying over these jocks

thinking about wymack just looking at his foxes one day and realizing that they are doing okay, they are doing so much better than they were the moment he took them in. they're learning to heal, they're learning to accept love and care and affection and to give it back. they are fighting for each other instead of against each other. they're good people and they deserve good lives, and if he had even the smallest role in that, he's happy. he did good by them.

let's talk about how kevin and andrew's love languages are gift giving. kevin, going on his trips outside of the nest and buying little souvenirs for jean, taking neil to get his first heavy racquet, andrew buying little figurines for betsy, giving neil his keys, buying neil his outfits, buying neil his armbands...

neil was on the run from his father, doing his best to anger the son of a mafia boss publicly, getting texted an ominous countdown every day and he was doing little side quests like fix twins relationship. are andrew and renee fucking? must find out. nope, andrew's gay thank god. what to do about renee tho? give her jean moreau's number! oh no andrew's car is completely unfixable. now what to do about that?

the way any combination between neil, andrew, jean and kevin works is so funny you can pair any of them or all of them it just works

i think at least once a day about what andrew and aaron's relationship could've been if nothing bad ever happened to them. if they hadn't been failed by everyone in their lives. if they had each other if no one else

im so normal about kevin day i swear to god. imagine your mom invents a sport, imagine you grow up with this sport being your entire life, you get abused and punished and shoved into the spotlight from a young age, all for this sport. you don't know anything else. it's all you've ever done and all you've ever been. you have to be the best at it. and one day you get punished for that too, and this sport you've poured everything into gets ripped right out of your hands by the boy you've grown up forced to consider your brother. you have to learn it from zero with your non dominant hand. you have, in an incredibly short span of time, to get as good at it as you were before the injury. of course you're fucking obsessed with it to the point of being unsympathetic sometimes, of course there's no other choice. the pressure is unimaginable. you cannot afford to be anything but the best. you cannot afford to relax and let go of it even for a second. you left the cave but the shadows are all you've ever known