#aaron? asking why one twin and not the other was on the perfect court? mmmhmm u kno it :)

[whatmack]

hi im so invested in liam. how was his life with stuart? what's his favourite colour? does he enjoy watching films? which kind? how languages does he speak? does he listen to musicals? is he lgbt? what's his favourite subject? does he celebrate his birthday (if so it's be the same as nathaniels- would neil and liam have different birthdays despite being twins???? dhdksjfh) i LOVE HIM???? DOES HE KNOW I LOVE HIM

I’M SO FLATTERED TF AHHHHHHHyou: i love himme: writes this

Liam is a backliner.He’s better than Allison was expecting, honestly. Sure, he’s out of practice,and he doesn’t have Neil’s instinctive genius—nobody does—but with a littlepunch-pulling the Foxes can play with him fine. Kevin looks torn betweenpointing out Liam’s obvious mistakes and bursting with pride that he’s notcompletely hopeless. It’s kind of like having another Nicky on the team, backwhen Nicky was a freshman.Allison considers saying this out loud and manages to catch Renee’s eye. Reneeshakes her head. How she knows what Allison’s about to say, Allison doesn’tknow, but she rolls her eyes and keeps the comment to a mutter for nobody’sears but her own.“How does this work?” Aaron says.

Liam and Neil, who have been taking a break bythe side, chugging water, turn towards him as one. “What?”

Aaron clucks his tongue impatiently. It makes him sound like a disapprovinggrandmother. “I mean, Neil was one of that bastard’s fucked-up Perfect Court,right? So how come you weren’t?”

The whole team freezes. Kevin goes pale. Andrew looks murderous, but that’snothing new.

Liam takes his sweet time answering, swirling water around his mouth and wipinghis lips on the back of his wrist after he swallows. “You know Neil was a backliner,first?”

Even though it’s common knowledge—well, among Foxes—Neil flinches at the revealof personal information. Liam touches his arm comfortingly, and Neil relaxes,but this—this is something Allison has been thinking about. She rocks herweight even over her two feet and crosses her arms.

“Yeah,” says Aaron, impatient.

“Well, there was only one open spot in that perfect lineup, but the Moriyamas—”Liam’s eyes flick to Kevin, who looks ready to vomit “—they like insurance. Twinswere an opportunity. Two backliners, two chances for success.”

Neil is looking at the floor. Andrew comes up behind him and cups a hand on theback of his neck, the way Allison has seen him do when Neil is freaking out. It’ssweet, for a monster.

“The audition,” Kevin says, every word like the dropping of a heavy stone.

Liam smiles, blade-thin. “Even if we both did well, there were never going tobe two little boys kissing our mother hello the next morning. Only one spot,like I said. And it turned out Nathaniel….did better than Nathan.” He sweeps hishand first towards Neil, and then himself. Dan’s intake of breath is so sharp Allison feels dizzy.

“That’s fucked up,” Matt says, mouth slack.

Liam shrugs and drinks more water. Andrew has pulled Neil around to face him,their foreheads pressed together. Liam shoots them unsubtle glances, andAllison has had enough.

She holds out until the end of practice. The moment Andrew drags Neil outside, fingershooked through his collar, Allison seizes Liam by the arm and slams him againstthe painted concrete wall. Liam doesn’t make a sound, though Allison knows fromexperience that that hurt.

“What’s your game?” she hisses.

“Here? From the look of things, Exy,” Liam says, which proves more than hiscurls and cheekbones that he’s Neil’s brother. Allison shakes him, unamused.

“I see what you’re doing,” she says, letting her voice growl low. “I’ve done itmyself. I’m an expert. All this tragic backstory, open book, handing out informationleft and right like some kind of movie orphan. You’re trying to get us all tofeel sorry for you so we like you. “Well listen up, dickhead. I don’t believe afucking word you say, and I never will. And if you think you can come in herejust because of some passing resemblance to our Neil—” she strokes Liam’s cheek,smooth and unscarred, and the blaze of satisfaction is hot under her breastbonewhen he visibly holds back a flinch “—then you can fuck right off. You’renothing like Neil, and you don’t deserve to be. He’s ours. You’re nothing but atrespasser. Get out.”

Liam’s eyelids dip low. “You’re not what I expected.”

Allison twists savagely at his shoulder. Liam’s mouth opens in a grunt of pain.“Whatever you’re planning, I will find you out. Don’t think you can hide. Notfrom me.”

“You’d be a useful asset to my uncle,” says Liam, with none of his previous woe-is-metremor. This is cold, calculating. He drags an assessing eye up what he can seeof Allison with her pinning him this way, and Allison’s skin crawls. She stompson his foot for it. Liam winces.

“Start talking or I’ll do worse.”

“Bossy, bossy,” Liam murmurs. He deliberately relaxes in Allison’s hold. Itmakes Allison hate him more. “Can it at least wait until we’re somewhere elsethan a poorly-lit hallway at the back of a sporting facility?”

Allison considers. “There’s a café at the edge of campus with a private gardenout back. An hour, and if you’re late it had better be because you’re gone.”

“Done,” says Liam. Allison steps back. Liam rolls his shoulders, exaggerating,shooting Allison a glance that invites her to boost her own ego by noticing howwell she hurt him. Allison doesn’t fall for it. Her own stare is icy.

Another smile touches Liam’s mouth. “For what it’s worth—and I suspect it’snothing–I’m glad my brother has a teammate like you.”He’s wrong; it’s worth less than nothing. “Your name wasn’t really Nathan.”“Find out in a hour,” Liam says, and slinks down the hallway, leaving Allison to grind her teeth (a habit five dentists and six therapists couldn’t cure her of) in the buzz of the fluorescent emptiness.