#andreilweek2019 | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

strikerkudo · 6 years ago

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Title: wandering, wondering (Available on AO3)

Fandom: All For The Game

Relationships: Andreil, Neil & Kevin & Dan

Word Count: 4712

Summary: Aaron and Andrew Minyard are known for turning every summer day into something special. And although, traveling into another dimension qualifies as ‘something special’ the twins are not amused. Between finding out his pets are secret agents, their alternate selves being useless and being chased by a freak with a robot army, Andrew has entirely too little time to enjoy a fashionably dressed Neil Josten. And really, that’s the biggest crime here.

Andrew, still passively pissed with the entire situation they've found themselves in, scoffed at their alternate selves. There wasn’t much he expected. Maybe he briefly thought this dimension might’ve been less of a bitch to them. Saving them from the drama and trauma. Living under a Moriyama dictatorship didn’t sound all that fun though. In conclusion, this entire universe is a bust. Andrew, in any case, did not appreciate his alternate self being such a wimp. No knives anywhere on his person. He’d probably sooner push his brother in front of a train than have to face any kind of retribution.

Good to know that there’s no good universes out there. Just equally terrible ones.

Aaron and his counterpart, meanwhile, were discussing similarities and differences. Alternate Aaron was quite animated. Andrew’s Aaron wasn’t as enthusiastic, rather he looked angrier and angrier the more the other Aaron talked. Good to know that not even Aaron struggles with riling himself up.

Andrew finally had enough dealing with their useless alternate selves and turns to beckon his brother.

“We’re leaving. Now.”

Aaron spared his counterpart one more sour look and followed his twin out the front door. They paid no attention to the frantic calls of their other twins.

“Why are you outside?”

Immediately a robot appeared before them as they stepped unto the street. In a swift move Andrew slid a knife from his armband, stepping in front of his brother.

Before either of them could react, the robot was incapacitated. It fell to the floor without much fanfare, revealing the figure of a man standing on the fallen metal. A quick look was all it took for Aaron to groan. Andrew could relate to the sentiment, seeing as it was none other than the alternate version of Seth Gordon standing there. Andrew was already dreading being forced to remember being unwillingly saved by Seth Gordon for the rest of his life. His eidetic memory turned out to be much more of a hassle than Andrew anticipated.

“What are you two midgets doing out in the street? You’re the Minyard kids aren’t you?”

Aaron was involuntarily twitching. Trust Seth Gordon to get on a Minyard’s nerves in four seconds flat.

“What do you care, dumbfuck?” Aaron was not in the mood to be teased today. As always.

Seth growled. Andrew decided it’d be counterproductive to kill Gordon so long he didn’t touch either of them. Instead, he decided to make coming back home his main goal.

“Where’s Kevin, Gordon?” If Seth was surprised that he knew his name without having introduced himself, then he didn’t show it. Gordon bared his teeth holding back any retorts.

“Kevin? You mean Kevin Day? What do you want with him?”

Andrew had no more patience for idiots. He stepped forward and grabbed Seth by the neck. With his other hand he pushed the sharp end of a knife against his abdomen.

“If you don’t want me to kill you, I’d suggest you talk. Fast.”

Seth tried to break free, but Aaron was now behind him, holding his arms hostage. Seeing that struggling was pointless, he deflated. He told the twins that Kevin was in the resistance’s underground headquarters that can be accessed from inside the Wymack’s house. Skeptical of the whole ‘Kevin being part of a resistance’ thing, Andrew gestured to his brother to turn Seth around. Aaron led him toward the house, Andrew’s knife still a dangerous weight at his back.

They stepped unto the stone path leading up to the front door, when the ground beneath them opened up to swallow them.

The fall was short, landing them in a pitch black room. Seth involuntarily cushioned the twins. Andrew dived away rapidly to avoid any more contact. There was no time for collecting themselves.

“Girls!“

The call was followed by multiple people jumping out from the shadows, quickly entangling the twins and the alternate Seth in thick rope. Andrew had a knife to the rope before they finished securing him. Anger flashed through him. He sprung to his feet and charged at the closest person with his knife..

The boy he ran at jabbed his wrist when he was close enough causing him to drop the knife. Andrew's eyes narrowed at auburn hair, before he was thrown to the floor. Surprisingly his captor kept physical contact to a minimum. He tried to wiggle his now bound hands free to no avail.

“Whatcha doin'?“

Finally Andrew raised his head. Standing before him was Neil Josten. Alternate Neil Josten in a dark tank top under a black bomber jacket. His pants looked to be stretchy tugged into black ankle boots. The look was completed by an orange bandana holding back his red locks.

Those icy blue eyes focused on him. Andrew thought this may be a good time to shut up.

“Figures that it'd take another apocalyptic dimension for Josten to develop an ounce of fashion sense.“

Sadly, Andrew has never been one for norms.

Alternate Neil stared at him in confusion. “Wait,“ his tense stance softens, “what do I wear in your dimension?“

Andrew's answer was cut off by another figure entering the scene. Everyone's attention immediately flew to them. Even Alternate Neil stood straighter, saluting.

“Captain.“

Out of the corner of his eyes Andrew recognizes the familiar head of Dan Wilds.

Dan doesn't spare either of them a single glance. Instead she nods at the girls, which Andrew now identified as the alternate versions of Renee, Allison and Katelyn. No wonder Aaron's face looked constipated.

Dan sighed at the sight of Seth. “Seth,“ she starts exhausted, “what are you doing here? I thought you resisted the resistance.“

“I am. I just had to help these dumbfuck twins across the street. They were-- uhh, looking for Josten.“

Andrew raised an eyebrow. Well, that was a lie. Meanwhile Dan’s eyes turned to steel at that information. She waved her hand. Apparently that was the sign for untying them.

Or only Seth. Head turning once to Allison who averted her gaze before running away, growling. What a coward.

“So.“

Dan turned her eyes on Andrew. She stepped in front of him, pushing Neil out of sight behind her at the same time. Andrew felt like strangling her for thinking he was a danger to Neil. He was a danger to many people, but not Neil. Never Neil.

“Why were you looking for Neil?“ It sounded like a question. It wasn't. So that’s why Gordon said ‘Josten’. It was a threat. A promise. The ‘one wrong word and you're dead’ kind of promise.

Andrew dealt in promises.

His intonation didn’t change as he briefly summarized the twins’ circumstances. Dan’s face scrunched up. She wasn’t completely convinced, but she didn’t consider them an immediate threat. Which was a stupid assumption, but it played in Andrew’s favor so he shut his mouth.

After another minute of her coldly glaring between Aaron and Andrew, she sighed.

“Untie them and bring them to Kevin. He probably knows something about different dimensions.”

Neil went to untie Andrew, again, with unnecessary care to dodge his skin. This pissed Andrew off. How fucking dare Neil to be like this in every universe.

Andrew shook his wrist, getting up on his feet. Neil followed suit. He opened his mouth. Dan put a hand on Neil’s shoulder and swiftly steered him away, cutting off whatever he was about to say.

When Aaron walked up behind him, rubbing his own wrists, they followed the two of them. The girls flanking them.

They stood in front of a tall monitor covering a big chunk of the wall. The screen showed blueprints and a lot of undefinable data. In front of it sat Kevin Day on a chair with one leg thrown over the other. He looked like the Kevin from their dimension. The only difference was the tattoo. In place of the queen chess piece stood the small image of a raised fist. How clichee.

“So,” Kevin leaned forward, “you’re from another dimension?”

Andrew refused to respond, so Aaron nodded curtly. Kevin returned the gesture and then promptly shot up from his seat.

In an overly showy fashion, Kevin pulled out a remote and pushed a button. The big screen was now displaying an animation of a flowing circle. Kevin plucked a stick from his desk to slap it against the screen.

“Let’s just assume that all dimensions are aligned in a circle.” He taps the stick along the screen. His demeanor was as cocky as ever.

“You traveled clockwise to our universe, which is the one next to yours.” Kevin glanced at Andrew with a raised brow, making sure he was following along. Andrew suppressed a snort.

Kevin continued on. “In conclusion, in order for you to return to your own universe you’d have to either continue on clockwise through a ton of different dimensions, or─,” he paused for dramatic effect, “go counter clockwise.”

The room was quiet. “O─kay,” Dan started, “what’s the problem then?”

“The problem,” Kevin resumed, “is that going counter clockwise would require eight million gigawatts of energy. That amount of energy is extremely difficult to attain. Not to mention it would probably overload the local power grid.”

So, Andrew thinks, this might be an issue. They would need to go clockwise, but they have no idea how many dimensions they would need to cross.

Kevin put down the stick and instead picked up an accordion. “I have prepared a little song to help illustrate my point.”

The dread throughout the room was palpable. If Andrew was on his medication he would’ve laughed merrily. Then again, if he was on his medication he’d be laughing at everything.

“If you travel through dimensions going clockwise makes it easy,” Kevin took a breath, “going counter clockwise would take eight million gigawatts of energy overloading the local power grid.”

He paused. “I know, it needs a chorus.”

It needs a lot of things, Andrew thinks.

Dan sighed, crossing her arms. “Can you get that much energy together?”

Kevin returned the accordion to its place beside his desk. “It’d be hard, but if I pull energy from neighboring houses…” He trailed off.

Dan nodded. “Do it.”

“Neil.” The boy in question walked to his brother. The two of them fumbled with a device, that was apparently going to open a portal for them, while the rest of the group watched. Andrew only had eyes for Neil. It was weird to think that Neil and Kevin and Dan, are so eerily similar to Andrew’s version of them, while his and Aaron’s own counterparts were nothing like them at all. Either way, Neil looked the same. The same auburn hair and blue eyes, scarred skin and unreadable expressions. It might not be Neil, but Andrew could still enjoy the view. Humming, he makes a mental note to buy his Neil a matching jacket.

“Okay,” Neil’s voice snapped his attention back to the task at hand. Andrew stepped forwards to the portal device, making sure that Aaron was standing beside him. Kevin grabbed another remote and started the machine up.

Lights flashed as the portal slowly conjured itself. It ripped a hole through the air creating a floating green form. Slowly the form displayed purple trees, blue grass and a weird creature staring straight through the portal.

“Not that one,” Kevin quickly pulled a switch and the image changed. “Not this one either.”

Kevin continued skipping dimensions four more times. “Aha! This should be it, right?”

The image showed a normal tree in a normal backyard. The twins’ tree in the twins’ backyard. Andrew nodded at Kevin, and moved to mock a salute at Neil, when they heard a faint sound.

“That…,” the sound got louder until it could be identified. “That’s a yell?”

Out of nowhere Nicky came tumbling at Kevin, taking him and the portal device down with a yelp. At the same time the portal rippled into nothingness and the power shut off. Andrew backed a step away from everyone else. He could hear Dan yelling at one of the girls to turn on the emergency power.

Kevin shoved Nicky off as soon as the lights flickered back on, running to the busted machine. His face was heartbroken before it transformed into anger. He turned to Nicky.

“You!” Kevin pointed at him. “The portal was fragile! A single irritation would’ve broken it down! And you─ you jumped right through it with a head start?!”

Nicky, who was being helped up by Aaron, shrugged. “It’s not like I knew what it was!”

Kevin looked ready to burst a vein. “If you didn’t know what it was,” Kevin took a deep breath, “then why did you jump into it?”

Nicky, now upright, shrugged again. “Saw the twins and you know, jumped in.”

At this point Kevin was sitting on his big chair, holding his face in his hands. Neil awkwardly patted his shoulder.

Aaron glared at Nicky. “What the fuck do you think you’re doing?”

Nicky looked offended. “The two of you were missing! I was looking for you all over─ I built a shrine!”

“You─” Aaron paused. “You built a what?”

Dan rubbed her temple and interrupted. “So, going counter clockwise is a no go and now we have another one of yours here.”

“Seems like it,” Andrew replied, just as eager to have Nicky’s mouth shut.

Aaron spoke up. “We have our own portal device. Well, . That Moriyama guy took it from us. And I guess he has our cats, too.”

Neil perked up at the mention of Moriyama. “Riko? What did you do?”

“We came here.”

With a shake of his head, Neil looked to his sister. Dan was tapping her arm in thought. Her movement halted and she stood taller, crossing her arms. “We can get you into the Moriyama tower. No further than that. You’ll get a copy of the blueprint, but you’ll have to get to Riko’s main office and get your device back on your own.”

Dan turned around, motioning to the doorway behind her. She stood there, waiting for the three of them and Renee to make their way inside. The cousins passed quickly.

“No, not you.”

Dan’s voice caught Andrew’s attention. He peered over his brother’s head to where Dan was using her arm like a barrier. In front of her stood Neil with Kevin towering over him from behind.

“But we’re the two best soldiers you have!” Kevin argued. Neil nodded his head frantically. “Yeah, we can help!”

“No,” Dan repeated, “and that is final. You two are my brothers.”

“But─”

“No. I do all of this to protect you. I won’t compromise your safety to get these three into the lion’s den.”

The two looked ready to protest further, but Dan waved them off. She signalled to Allison and Katelyn. The two girls grabbed the boys’ shoulders, keeping them still. If Andrew didn’t know better, he’d say that the two of them were pouting.

Dan, not shaken by the argument simply proceeds to the tunnel entrance. “There’s an underground mine. The carts still work. One of the tunnels leads to the lowest level of the Moriyama tower.”

They arrived in a tunnel. Multiple connected carts stood on the rails. Andrew let his brother and cousin climb into a cart near the front before he joined them. Renee boarded the cart in the very back where the motor was located. Andrew watched as Kevin and Neil snuck into a cart behind them, hiding themselves under a sheet. His eyes slid to the side. While Andrew could support the notion of having Neil, any Neil, out of danger, he had little interest in revealing their location. They weren’t all that subtle anyway. This might get interesting after all.

Thoughts circle back to Neil. Neil. The Neil who’s probably wandering into their backyard with Kevin, wondering where they are. It’s been a few hours since the twins, and now Nicky, have landed themselves into this mess. All because of King and Sir. The two dumbest cats who, as it turns out, aren’t entirely dumb. Then again, being cat secret agents doesn’t necessarily make them smart. Either way they have caused nothing but trouble for the Minyards. But Neil just had to collect two stray cats. And he just had to bring them to Andrew. Not to mention the stupid face he made as he begged Andrew to let them stay.

Dan joined Renee in the first cart, standing instead of sitting down in the seats. With a flashy twist of her staff she pushed the cart off the edge. Renee started the motor and then they were driving through the tunnel.

Andrew ached for a cigarette. Nicky, who has been talking non-stop since he tumbled through the portal, has now moved on from bothering Aaron to bothering the girls behind them. Asking a million questions at once. Dan didn’t indulge him much. Most information was classified. Aaron used the distraction to direct his attention to Andrew.

“So,” he leaned back against the seat. “How are we going to find our remote? It’s safe to say that Riko keeps it close by, but that’s all we know.”

Andrew keeps quiet as Aaron runs a hand through his hair. “The place will be swarming with robots and I doubt you can fight off an army of them.”

Andrew doesn’t confirm nor deny. “Stealth is out because of Nicky.”

His twin buried his face in his hands with a groan. Andrew’s lips quirked upwards. Seems like his dear brother forgot the fact that their cousin was with them. The cousin who was still bantering with Dan over his shoulder. While Aaron brainstormed possible strategies out loud with Andrew throwing in comments every once in a while, Nicky continued on.

“So, what do you do? I mean, outside of the whole resistance thing you’ve got going on?”

Dan raised a brow. “What else is there to do?”

He gasped. “What else?” Nicky shook his head and fully turned around. “What else? How about boyfriends? Shopping? Annoying your little brothers?”

“Annoying them?” Dan asked incredulously. “I spend every day of my life trying to protect my little brothers. I had to grow up pretty quick around here to make sure they didn’t have to.”

“Damn. You make growing up sound like a bad thing.”

“It is what it is. I’ll do whatever it takes to protect the ones I love.”

With a whoosh the sheet covering Neil and Kevin was thrown backwards. Neil laid his arms on the front of the cart and rested his head there, while Kevin simply held onto the railing.

“Aw, thanks, sis.” Neil grinned.

“What are you two doing here?” Dan frowned at them.

Kevin spoke up. “We’re here to help.”

Dan was about to object when Renee interrupted her. “Sir, we’re nearing the target.”

The resistance leader opened her mouth a few times before letting out a frustrated growl. She pointed at her brothers. “Don’t move.”

Quickly, she climbed over the carts to the front.

Dan forced the carts to a stop, stemming her staff between the cart’s wheels. It loudly screeches to a halt. With a single tug, she freed her staff and stepped on the platform.

“This is your stop.” She holds a hand out to help them up. Nicky is the only one to take it. Dan rolls her eyes and leads them to a metal shutter. “Okay, people, change of plans. This is as far as we go.”

Handing Aaron a map, she presses her elbow on a button and the shutter opens up.

“We’re not gonna help them?” Kevin asked.

“No, we’re getting you two home. Where it’s safe.”

“But we were─”

“Look,” she snapped. This is not our fight, it’s their fight. And you two shouldn’t have gotten involved.

“Here goes,” Nicky said as he walks under the shutters. Renee led the three of them further into the room. It was pitch black. Andrew couldn’t see a thing and that fact did not sit right with him.

Nicky couldn’t keep himself from speaking up. “Uhh, is it supposed to be this dark?”

“Dark?” Dan perked up. She stopped pushing the cart, instead taking her staff and stepping in front of her brothers.

Within seconds the cousins were surrounded by Moriyama-brand robots. Andrew glared at them as he reached for his knife. From the noise he heard behind him, he figured the others weren’t much better off.

“That’s because it’s a trap!” A big screen lowered itself from the ceiling, showing Riko Moriyama. Under the screen, Jean Moreau stepped into the light. In his hands he held two chain leashes. King and Sir were trapped and looked at the twins. Andrew interpreted their regretful faces as guilt. Not that it matters. Andrew has to take the cats back with him anyway.

So far, the whole rescuing thing hasn’t worked out very well.

Nicky stared at the cats’ little hats wide-eyed. Oh yeah, Andrew thought, he missed the whole ‘our cats are secret agents’ thing.

“Yeah, we could have thought this out more,” Aaron said.

Riko laughed like he practiced his evil laugh for hours beforehand. He points at the cats. “I got you and I got your little friends, too! Game over. You lose, I win.”

Riko’s face looked so self-satisfied that Andrew had to bite back the urge of punching the screen, knowing it’d wouldn’t actually hit him.

“Mark this the hour of you doom, Sir and King the Cats. Three─,” Riko looked down at his watch, then groaned. “Ugh, I got one of these watches with just little hash marks. It doesn’t even the numbers on it. Wait, let’s just say it’s between 3:30 and 4:00 EST.”

Sir’s eyes widened comically. Swiftly, he pushed a button on his own watch and a hologram appeared. The hologram was of Wymack in the shower. Now, that was a sight no one ever needed to see, but it did the trick. When Wymack noticed, he tried to cover himself as much as possible. Riko averted his eyes. So did Jean, who dropped the chain leashes in the process.

Sir and King quickly ran by the robots which were mimicking their master. King grabbed Aaron’s hand and the group was running back to the cart.

“I told you,” snapped Wymack. “Not between 3:30 and 4:00.”

He was ignored. Riko finally dared to look. “They’re getting away!” He yelled.

The group passed the shutter and jumped into the carts. Andrew made sure his brother and cousin were there, before turning back to the robots following them. Dan was a step ahead, as she shut the shutter behind them.

“I knew this was a bad idea,” Dan murmured. She chanted ‘Go’ under her breath, as she pushed the cart. “Renee, start the motor!”

Renee did as she was told. With the momentum from Dan’s push, the cart started. Dan hopped a few times on the rail before jumping on the cart. Neil and Kevin helped her up and inside.

Meanwhile, the robots have melted through the shutter. They caught up rapidly. Dan cursed. She forced her brothers to climb a few carts ahead.

“You two keep your heads down. And remember your training.”

“We never had any training,” Neil shot back.

“Well, keep your heads down. Consider yourselves trained.” Dan had no time for bickering.

She equipped her staff, twisting it into the right position. “This is gonna be close.” Dan perched herself up on the last cart and started to effectively incapacitate a multitude of enemies. The others simply stared as she kicked and beheaded the robots. Nicky was openly impressed. The rest didn’t say a word, but even Andrew couldn’t deny that that wasn’t half bad.

“If we can get to the north tunnel before they get to us, I can trip the security door,” Dan said.

Once again, the tunnel behind them filled with more robots. Dan winced, asking Renee if the cart could go any faster.

“It’s already all in, Sir.”

“Alright, this is gonna get hairy.” She jumped to Renee in the front car. Sir and King replaced her place at the back, swinging their chains to use them as weapons. Andrew stepped up behind them with his knives out. Aaron grabbed a wrench that was lying around and Nicky looked around a bit, before realizing there was nothing else he could use as a weapon.

“Can we make those turns at this speed?” Renee asked Dan.

“Well, we’re about to find out,” Dan responded as she tripped a turn sign. The carts screeched on the rails, being forced through several sharp turns.

The robots approached again. This time, King threw his chain around a robot’s arm. The other end he tossed on a nearby sign. With a clang, the robot fell apart. One of his laser arms landed on a middle cart. Landing there tripped the laser and it burned into the ground of the cart and starting a fire to erupt. Nicky screamed and crawled into closer to the twins.

“There it is. We should be okay if we can hold off these─”

Andrew and Sir were shooting at the robots with the laser arm. Quickly, destroying them one by one. Aaron held two wires in his hand in order to trigger the shots. Andrew supported the metal gun with his shoulder, while Sir aimed.

Dan looked at them. Mildly approving. Until Neil spoke up. “Can we do that?”

“No. Keep your heads down.”

Out of Nowhere, the cyborg version of King and Sir appeared. Cyborg King shot the wheels of the cart precisely. The cart wobbly lowered on one side, causing Andrew to lose grip of the metal arm. Their weapon fell into the abyss below, while Nicky yelled a string of ‘No’s’.

Robots were advancing and the cart screeching on the rails slowed them down. Not to mention the fire in the middle, that was slowly spreading.

“We’re slowing down. There’s too much stress. I don’t think we’re gonna make it,” Renee said.

Dan growled. “Everyone to the front. Now. We’re gonna have to cut these carts off.”

Nicky tried to step forward, but the flames got into his face. He fell back and the rest couldn’t press through the fire either. Andrew clenched his fists and teeth.

“The motor’s overheating,” Renee called out.

Dan looked between the cousins and their cats and the security door. She bit her lips. Then her eyes fell on her brothers that were still keeping their heads low.

“Sorry guys, you’re on your own.”

In a swift move, she pressed her staff between two carts, effectively separating them from the cousins. Andrew could understand the sentiment, but that didn’t stop him from resenting Dan in that particular moment. Their cart quickly came to a stop.

The resistance’s wagon kept driving into the tunnel and then disappeared behind the security door fallen shut.

Andrew stared into the air, as they were taken captive. The robots flew them back to the Moriyama tower. At least, Andrew thought, they still arrived at their destination. Now, he just had to think of a way to overwhelm the guards, break out of, presumably, a jail cell and then get back their remote control to return to their own universe.

Neil better appreciate Andrew saving the stupid cats for him and he better reward him greatly.

***

“What are you doing?” Neil yelled out. Dan hit a sign, closing the door behind them.

“My job,” she replied. “Protecting you two.”

Kevin jumped up. “We gotta go back and help them!”

“That’s not our fight.”

“But you just abandoned them! We could’ve made it. We could’ve all made it.”

“Or we could all have been captured and I wasn’t gonna take that chance. These are the tough choices, people. Somebody’s gotta be the adult here.”

Neil was ready to object again when Dan interrupted him. “You two are safe and that’s what’s important.”

“But─”

“End of discussion.”

The cart fell hauntingly silent. Renee spared Neil and Kevin a regretful smile. Then she turned her focus forwards. Kevin looked at Neil. The two sat back down.

Neil hoped the cousins were alright. For some reason, he couldn’t help but root for Andrew.

#AndreilWeek2019 #aftg #tfc #andreil #andrew minyard #my fic #my writing #fic #one-shot #day 1: alternate meeting #turned out longer than i planned #anyway #pnf au

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queerastronauts · 6 years ago

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Muddled Waters

can also be read on ao3 and ff.net

part two of Under Clear Waters, ao3, ff.net

this is for @andreilweek 2019, day 2 - fluorescent lights

this story also counts for alt meeting, honestly, but that happened in the first part, and this is almost established relationship. also, tilda’s murder happens in this fic, but it isn’t described so like. just generally be aware.

[1]

He couldn’t sleep. This wasn’t new, but it was true nonetheless. Maybe even moreso than usual.

The words echoed in his mind – when didn’t they? – but most of all, it was his face that stuck with him. The expression on his face when he said he would follow him. All the way to Colombia.

Coast to coast.

He stared up at the ceiling of his new room. More of a broom closet, really. In the next room – a proper room, room-sized – was Aaron, breathing steady; in the room next to that, was Tilda, probably awake – probably high.

He wanted a cigarette, but he didn’t want to get up.

Andrew Minyard – until recently, Andrew Doe – was not a man who wanted. He was not a man to give in to want.

But he wanted Neil Josten, and that kept him up at night, because he didn’t know how to want anything but destruction.

Oh, this would be a problem.

Besides, sometimes, when he went to sleep, he wasn’t sure he was going to wake up.

He opened the window to let the air in and the smoke out.

He had no way of contacting Neil. Neil Josten didn’t have a phone. The number he called the night he’d stayed over was disconnected. It might have been a real number once, but it certainly wasn’t any longer.

Neil Josten, too, had probably been real once. But now, Andrew was rendered unable to sleep because of a daydream.

Andrew had given him the new address, but in the week since Andrew had gotten on a plane and feared his way into a new state, a new house, a new family, Neil had not come.

Maybe Neil Josten didn’t have money for a plane. Maybe he had last minute arrangements to make. Maybe he actually had parents who really had to move across state lines.

Maybe he had changed his mind.

It didn’t matter, he supposed. Neil Josten had always been temporary.

[2]

It didn’t occur to him to check the swimming pools until two weeks had passed without a sign of Neil Josten. All the while, he had tried to tell himself he wasn’t waiting, and impatiently at that. But the day he took the keys from Tilda’s room and started driving from pool to pool, he could no longer lie to himself: he wasn’t waiting, he was searching.

He came home empty handed every day. In the meantime, he made a promise to Aaron. By the time a month had passed, he knew he was going to deliver.

It took time, planning a murder well enough to make it look like an accident.

“Oh.”

That was the first word Neil said to him. He was sitting on the steps leading up to the Minyards’ home. He looked – infuriating. Every inch of him made him want to hurt something. And his face –

“I told you months ago to stop looking at me like that,” Andrew reminded him. He was holding a cigarette, already lit, almost gone now. He offered it to Neil’s general direction.

Neil stood and approached him slowly, as if drawing near a dangerous animal. He supposed he might be one. Neil stopped, too near to Andrew’s liking, and far too far away for what Andrew wanted – when he felt enough to want. Neil took the cigarette, held it like he always did, like it was more important than breathing, like it was breathing.

“Figured that would be the first thing you’d say to me,” Neil said. “Aren’t you tired of repeating yourself?”

“Aren’t you?” Andrew countered. He lit another cigarette. “How are you finding Colombia?”

“I wouldn’t know,” Neil said. “I came straight here.” He gestured towards a duffel bag, lying next to the spot he’d been sitting.

Andrew blew smoke in Neil’s face, and he blinked. Didn’t even flinch.

“Where are you staying?” Andrew said.

“Are you going to show me around?” Neil responded. Andrew supposed that was better than an outright lie.

“Wait here,” Andrew said, and he went inside to grab the car keys and to catch a breath.

“This is a swimming pool,” Neil pointed out, “and that’s an Exy court. Why are we here?”

Andrew parked, and gestured to Neil to get out of the car as he turned off the engine. “You’re an addict. I decided to let you know the most convenient place to get your fix. Two in one.”

“I – “ Neil started, but then he caught himself. “I suppose that’s fair.”

Neil looked at Andrew; Andrew looked away. He was already bored, but most everything bored him. “There’s a high school here,” Andrew said. “It uses the Exy court, which gives you keys to the entire complex.”

“Is this the school you go to?” Neil asked.

Andrew only nodded.

“I can probably get the paperwork sorted this week,” Neil continued. “What classes are you taking?”

Andrew listed them quickly. They didn’t interest him any more than anything else did.

“It’s a nice evening,” Neil said nonchalantly. “You could continue to show me around. Where do you see films?”

“Don’t,” Andrew said. He didn’t feel like explaining, so he didn’t.

Neil stepped closer. Andrew met his eyes, and they were burning. “Hey,” he said. He was unbearable.

“Yes or no?” Andrew asked.

“Yes,” Neil breathed, and Andrew kissed him.

“What is it like? Living here?” Neil asked on the car ride back to Tilda’s.

Andrew debated how much to tell him. “Are you ready to answer my question yet?”

Back in California, he’d asked Neil who he was. The day Andrew left, he’d told Andrew he might tell him in Colombia. But Andrew had waited almost two months for Neil. He thought – he hoped – that was the man who was in the car with him.

Neil leveled a steady gaze on him; Andrew didn’t look for more than a second, but after, he could still feel it. He didn’t reply either.

They were so good at this game. Asking questions they knew the other couldn’t answer. Asking questions that mattered.

“I signed on for Exy,” Andrew said instead. “Don’t look at me like that.” He didn’t need to look at him to know the expression on Neil’s face, so he kept his eyes on the road.

“I didn’t think you’d continue,” Neil said, his tone so earnest it made Andrew hate him even more. “I’m glad you did.”

Andrew had nothing to say to that, so he said nothing at all. When he parked next to Tilda’s house, he asked: “Are you staying the night?”

“Would you like me to?” Neil countered.

“Don’t ask stupid questions,” Andrew said. “Do you need to call your parents?”

Neil most likely did not miss the mocking tone, but he didn’t miss a beat. “No. Are you sure?”

“I told you not to ask stupid questions,” Andrew reminded him.

The house was not primed for guests, but Andrew didn’t think Neil needed to be warned. He knew he was unexpected, and Andrew supposed he’d probably seen worse. It was a mess, but only in the sense that two out of three inhabitants of the house spent too much time high to really care about hygiene. Andrew kept his closet clean; until Tilda was out of the picture, it wasn’t possible to do the same with Aaron.

Neil, wisely, stayed silent until they stepped into Andrew’s tiny room. It wasn’t quite as small as a broom closet, but it was rather small, and his bed was small. Neil would have to sleep on the floor or sleep touching Andrew, and Andrew hadn’t decided which option he was going to offer Neil yet. He closed the door behind them.

“Are you going to ask me?” Neil said finally, once he had finished inspecting every item in the sparse room. He was standing, leaning awkwardly against the door.

“Ask what,” Andrew said.

“Don’t ask stupid questions,” Neil replied. “That’s unbecoming of you. I’m the stupid one, remember?” He picked up a book from the single shelf hanging above the bed. “Is this any good?”

“No,” Andrew said, without bothering even to look at the book Neil had picked up.

Neil hummed doubtfully. “Can I borrow it?”

Andrew nodded once, and waited.

Neil finally sat down. There was a chair in this room which filled up most of the spare space; if Neil was going to sleep on the floor, they’d have to push the chair out into the hallway. It took him a long time to start. “I didn’t mean to take so long,” he began. “But…”

Andrew said nothing. He took out a cigarette and opened the window as he lit it. He offered a cigarette to Neil, who shook his head. Shrugging, he stuffed the box back into his jeans.

“I told you who I was running from, yes?” Neil asked. Andrew nodded once, so Neil continued. “He caught up to me. I ran.”

“Of course you did,” Andrew said. “You seem to think that the only options you have are to run or to drown.”

Neil did not strike him as amused, but Neil was never as easy to read as other people were. That said, every inch of Neil Josten was a lie, so that was to be expected.

“I can’t answer your question, not in the way you intended,” he said. “But I can give you a name.”

Andrew inhaled. Andrew exhaled. Andrew inhaled. Andrew exhaled. Inhale. “You asked me who are you,” Neil said. Exhale. “I’m Abram.”

Abram. “Abram.” Andrew tasted it, the feel of it on his tongue, the way it sat in his mouth. It was round; it took space; it felt real. Not every inch a lie, then. Some of Neil Josten – a part he chose to give to Andrew – some of it was true.

[3]

Bone weary. That was the term he'd been searching for. His entire body ached for some sleep, a sleep to last a lifetime.

But he lay there, staring up at the ceiling, the shadows cast from the tree through the window moving with the breeze. The florescent streetlight painted the wall opposite the window a faded orange. He could hear Neil breathing next to him, otherwise motionless. He turned his head just enough to see that his back was still turned to him; the faint light made Neil's hair same a lighter, redder shade. It suited him.

Andrew pushed that thought outside and concentrated on the even sound of Neil's breathing. Maybe if he breathed in time with Neil, he would be able to sleep, too.

Syncing his breath with Neil's was surprisingly easy. It didn't make him calm down, though; it made his heart race. He wanted so badly to be able to sleep.

Andrew Minyard felt heavy, burdened, and so, so desperately tired. He was bone weary, but it seemed he would stay that way for the time being.

There was no one to share the load with.

[4]

A murder took time to plan, but his time was filled nowadays with an incredibly undesirable distraction.

It was dangerous, to let someone in; it was even worse, because Neil was a runaway, and that was the worst kind of person to let in. There was no guarantee he wouldn't be gone in the morning, every morning; but every morning, there he was, right there beside him. He would sneak in after Aaron had fallen asleep, Tilda gone or locked away in her own room, and then he'd leave, just before dawn. In the hours in between, they slept, sometimes. Other times, they spent time exploring each other's bodies, learning where the boundaries were, pushing a little bit farther every time.

Neil refused to take his shirt off. Andrew's boundaries were much stricter, so he let it be.

In the hours after Neil snuck out, before Andrew left for school, Andrew would plan.

Andrew woke when Neil woke; he always did. But there was something strange about this morning, a disquiet in the air, in the way Neil was breathing. Neil’s back was turned to him – it always was - and it looked as if he was heaving. The low light indicated that this was earlier than Neil usually woke.

“Neil.”

It wasn’t a question; it was a demand that Neil come back from whatever other place he was in. Neil twisted around to face Andrew, and in his eyes he saw the kind of lack that he felt in his heart. Alike. They were alike in a way that Andrew didn’t want to face, not in that moment, not ever.

“Andrew,” Neil responded, his voice rough, ragged, raw. He reached for Andrew, but hesitated, as always before touching. His expression was unreadable.

Then, out of nowhere, he removed his shirt. Andrew couldn’t see the full extent of the ruin that was his skin in the low blue light of the hours before dawn, so he reached out and felt it himself. The terrible feel of it matched the terrible things he felt in response to this level of trust.

“Yes or – “

“Yes,” Neil said, no hesitation at all in his voice. He was looking at Andrew in that way that made his so furious he couldn’t breathe.

Andrew surged forward and met Neil’s lips with his own.

Neil’s breath hitched as the urgency of their kisses increased quickly, a push and pull unlike anything they’d ever done before. They paused only for a moment, for Andrew to show Neil where he was allowed to touch, and then they were back at it.

“Andrew,” Neil whispered, after.

Andrew didn’t respond. He shuffled through his jacket, lying on the floor beside the bed, and took out a lighter and a pack of cigarettes. He offered it to Neil, who shook his head, seemingly content to watch Andrew smoke in silence.

Andrew was not sure how much time had passed when Neil finally left, leaving Andrew alone, feeling strangely lighter and heavier at the same time.

The pieces fell together, and Andrew knew how he was going to murder Tilda Minyard.

At school, Neil and Andrew were distant. Now that Aaron was in the picture, there was an unspoken need for discretion. They interacted during practice – how Neil managed to get onto the team so late in the season was still a mystery to Andrew – but they shared no classes, and, while Neil presumably still spent his lunch hours in the library, Andrew now spent his lunches with Aaron.

Aaron, who hid his bruises so well you might even think they didn’t exist. But Andrew knew better.

Andrew asked Aaron to sit in on one of his exams.

Andrew went on a car ride with Tilda.

Tilda did not return from the car ride.

[5]

“Aaron! Andrew!” Nicky waved at them as he stepped out into the greeting area of the airport. It was incredibly early; the sun had only just risen. They waited for him to reach them, standing silently beside each other. “I’m so sorry – “ he stopped. “I’m sorry about what happened to Aunt Tilda.”

“The car is this way,” Andrew said, walking away, not waiting to see if Nicky or Aaron were following.

They reached the car Tilda had paid for – even if she hadn’t meant to. Andrew unlocked the trunk and stepped into the driver’s seat.

They drove off. Nicky was going to buy them a house with some of the money he had saved up while working in Germany, but for now, until he got a job to supplement those savings, they were staying at Tilda’s apartment. At first, Nicky tried to fill the silent with idle chatter; Aaron responded every once in a while, but by the time they approaching their neighborhood, he had grown silent. Andrew dropped both of them off, and drove off without saying a word.

If Andrew was any judge of Neil’s character, at this early hour he would either be running, or swimming in the school’s pool. He had no way of knowing where Neil’s route took him, so he drove to the pool. It turned out to be a safe bet; Neil was swimming in the lane farthest from the entrance in a full bodysuit. The pool was completely empty. Andrew sat in one of the poolside chairs, content to wait for now.

It didn’t take long for Neil to notice him. He raised two fingers at him, indicating that he was going to do two more laps; shortly, Neil got out of the pool and walked over, totally damp. “Hey,” he said, grinning at Andrew. “I’m just going to shower, but I’ll be with you in a few minutes. You can wait for me at the exit, if you like.”

Andrew gave him a curt nod and watched Neil walk away.

“So what are you doing here?” Neil asked. “I didn’t really expect to see you today.”

“Nicky showed up today,” Andrew said, but didn’t elaborate.

“Yeah, I know, that’s why I didn’t stay over last night,” Neil reminded him. “So what, is he insufferable, or are you just staying out of his way?”

Andrew waved him off. “We’re going out for ice cream.”

“Alright,” Neil said. It was still strange to him, the fact that Neil accepted his unwillingness to share anything – the emptiness in him that meant a lack of anything to share – without question, unblinkingly.

It was a long drive to a little café they’d found a couple of weeks after Neil arrived in Colombia. It wasn’t outstanding, but it was out of the way, with relatively little risk of anyone spotting them. The dessert menu was unusually detailed, and although Neil rarely ate anything unhealthy, he obliged Andrew’s sweet tooth. They sat in a booth in the back; Andrew ordered a sundae, and Neil ordered one black coffee, ignoring Andrew’s gaze. He looked him over, head to toe, noting the frayed edges of his tee, the black circles under his eyes. The question hung on the edge of his tongue – did you sleep at all last night? – but he didn’t ask.

“So do I get to meet him?” Neil asked. “Nicky?”

Andrew raised a brow.

“You didn’t introduce me to Aaron, I know, I know, but he’s in two of my classes, so I’ve met him. But if we’re going to keep this going, I should meet him, just in case.“

“There is no this,” Andrew said. “If you need to sleep at your parents’ place, then sleep there.”

“I think I should meet him,” Neil said stubbornly, ignoring the sarcasm. “I didn’t care about Tilda, but I think Nicky’s going to be more involved, based off the little you’ve told me and I overheard Aaron say to – ah, it doesn’t matter. My point is, I think it would be easier if he knew about me.”

Easier? Would it be easier? Neil was homeless in the truest sense, in the sense of being unable to ever build a home. He would never stay. Nicky would not understand this. Neil himself might not understand this. But Andrew did. What they’d been doing, it had no permanence. When Neil ran, all he would leave behind was the scent of his drugstore shampoo on Andrew’s sheets. The feel of scarred flesh beneath Andrew’s hands. The little sounds he made –

“Plea – “ Neil cut himself off. Andrew’s stomach clenched.

“What will you give me in return?” Andrew asked, aware that he was giving more ground than he wanted to, but seemingly unable to stop. He knew that Neil was temporary, but easier meant letting him meet Nicky, for better or worse – most likely, worse.

He did seem to always let Neil have his way.

“Don’t ask stupid questions,” Neil said. “I’m the stupid one, remember?”

“Tomorrow,” Andrew said, and pulled Neil in for a kiss.

[6]

Nicky bought a house with three bedrooms in it. Andrew claimed the biggest room, and neither Nicky nor Aaron argued. The day after they moved in, Neil showed up with a duffel bag and a promise.

He wasn’t going to run away.

He was going to stay.

#andreilweek2019 #andreil #andreil fic #tfc #tfc fic #aftg #tfc au #high school au #andrew minyard #neil josten #the foxhole court #all for the game #swimming au #gail speaks #books

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