Neil, Doing Everything Wrong: Like That?

love your hcs!!!! do you think you write one about the legacy neil left at palmetto and with the foxes. like he goes back when wymack retires. and next to where he carved his and andrews initials into the bed post just before andrew left, there’s other foxes initials and he sort of unknowingly created a tradition. or like eventually he gets his old exy racquet back from the cops and it sits at the court and before a game he slapped it so so did the rest of the team and has become a team ritual

hi anon - thank you so much! sorry for the delay, this week has really been something skhdskgjhd but i hope you enjoy <3 i had lots of fun with this :) 

years down the line, wymack is retiring (dan will be taking over for him)

neil and andrew are still playing pro together, but there’s a lull in their training and it’s nearing the end of the collegiate exy season, so they drive to palmetto together

andrew says he’s only going because he doesn’t want to have to deal with the cats alone

“you were alone with them for two weeks last year”

andrew pretends he doesn’t hear him

and then neil and andrew are standing outside wymack’s apartment, unannounced, and he grumbles that “at least you didn’t break in this time” but there’s fondness in his tone and he ushers them in

they have a night of comfortable chatter and silences, and andrew grabs the alcohol from the same cabinet it’s always been in. it’s familiar, and neil falls asleep on wymack’s couch with a smile on his face and andrew curled up on top of next to him 

and the next day, neil and andrew go to fox tower, and they walk the stairs that they know as well as they know each other

they get to the third floor, and a small group of foxes is leaving their dorm room, the one that used to belong to neil and andrew, when they see the two and just. freeze. 

it’s nothing new to be recognized by fans, but it’s weird for it to happen somewhere that feels like home. they tolerate it and ask if they could go into their old dorm room

the young foxes scramble to let them in and frantically pick up clothes and throw away trash to give the room some semblance of tidiness. neil and andrew don’t care

the bean bag chairs are gone, but there are still faint ash stains on the windowsill, and the crystal-clear memories of long since faded moments wash over neil

they drift over to the bedroom, and the young foxes leave them be as they silently make their way to the bunk. neil gingerly sits down onto his old mattress, andrew right beside him

andrew catches neil’s attention by tracing the carvings of their initials on the bed post, then trailing his finger down an array of other scrawled letters below. other initials, carved by foxes who came after them, and a smile ghosts over neil’s face because,,, he stopped running and he left solid evidence behind and people actually continued it after he was gone ?? and it’s such a weird thought but he loves it 

he asks the young foxes if there’s anything else that continued after he left

they show him the roof, fitted with new locks that have also since been sabotaged. it looks like their secret spot was less secret than they thought, but at least someone’s still enjoying it

they proudly demonstrate how they’ve all memorized neil’s riko roast which baffles him because that was never even televised ?? where did they hear it ????

andrew ofc will never tell him that he transcribed it when nicky asked him to. he doesn’t even really know why he listened, so there’s no way he’s ever going to try to explain it to neil

all of them have orange bandanas, which is a tradition that started neil’s second year and has apparently continued ever since

they don’t know that that’s where it started so they don’t mention it, but neil noticed from games 

they take neil and andrew to the court and show them the two lucky racquets (the drake one they got back from evidence when the case was closed and the one andrew used to shatter riko’s arm) and they all absent-mindedly tap them on their way in

it used to be a thing the foxes would only do before games, but slowly spread to. every single time they go to the court

apparently it’s also become custom for them to link arms on to way back to the bus after games, after neil’s kidnapping from binghampton

it took a while for them to get the order of the line right bc if they’re not careful, their attempt at keeping each other safe becomes a fist fight

bonus (not one of neil’s legacies): dan’s photo wall continues! they don’t ever take down pictures of the older foxes, just keep squeezing more pictures in. it expands beyond only one wall to every wall of the foyer, and they’re still having trouble finding room. sometimes they have to pile photos on top of each other

they also mention that movie nights are still a thing! they’re bi-weekly, and they always try to find a classic movie that at least one of the foxes has never seen bc of a shitty childhood

night practices are also still happening. not everyone goes every night, but a couple of the keeners do

“junkies”

neil is,,, stunned, honestly. he didn’t ever imagine he could have this concrete of an impact, didn’t think he could keep existing in a place even after he left it

before, he’d never wanted to be remembered. the idea slowly became more bearable over the years, but this is,,, he never expected anything like this

it’s overwhelming and it’s wonderful and he loves it

and later that night, neil and andrew go up to their rooftop (there are two young foxes up there that scurry away as soon as they realize who stepped onto the roof) 

and as they look out over the city, hands linked, neil’s heart feels so light and he can’t get rid of - doesn’t want to get rid of - the smile that seems to be glued to his face, even through the pang of nostalgia - another new feeling

and neil and andrew sit under the comforting blanket of the night and talk into the darkness

just like old times

and it’s comfortable and familiar and once upon a time, neil wished that it would never end

but now? now, neil knows that while he may leave,,, this will never end. not really

as he sits under the stars next to the man with whom he will spend the rest of his life, neil knows the memories and whispers of the past live on through love and legacies

“Neil watched the airport disappear, watched signs blur outside the window, and let his eyes close. When he opened them again, he was flat on his back on Wymack’s couch.” (ch.16, trk)

wymack carried neil up to his apartment. wymack carried neil up to his apartment. WYMACK CARRIED NEIL UP TO HIS APARTMENT. 

i will forever be crying about this. it’s such a father-son thing to do?? he must’ve been so small in wymack’s arms. and neil is so familiar w wymack’s place that he didn’t even panic when he woke up on his couch, despite having just gotten back from evermore. 

also, and this is very important:

“Clad in jean shorts and a faded tee, Wymack looked more like a garage band rocker than a university coach.” (ch.1, tfc)

WYMACK. WEARS. JORTS. we make fun of neil for it all the time but PLS CAN WE STOP OVERLOOKING THIS OMFG. wymack wears a wife-beater when he first sees neil and jorts the second time. iconic. what a man. 

same energy as “i can walk” “proud of you, didn’t ask”

I thought of this interaction whilst shopping today & laughed out loud in the dairy aisle.

tags via @karmiky​

andrew definitely sets alarms for like 6:13 and 8:19 and it makes kevin So Mad

the hemmicks ask andrew to lead the prayer one (1) time at a “family dinner” and he goes “rub a dub dub, thanks for the grub, yay god”. they never ask him to say grace again

neil violently disliked his mother for half his life, but she was still his entire world. and like... no wonder he didn’t know how to navigate friendship and kindness when he showed up at the foxhole court. the foxes showed neil how to thrive where mary taught him to survive. and even though they’re a fractured mess most of the time, they’re exactly what neil needed to become whole. to become a real person for once. to finally be able to stand his ground and have something worth fighting for

so you're telling me that nicky, a bad gay driver, was driven around by andrew, a bad gay driver, and he still... didn't realize that andrew was gay af?? nicky c'mon

hola me amiga, back again to ask: tilda minyard and her relationship to both of the twins. thoughts?

hello again! 

(cw: abusive parent-child relationship, tilda, twinyards’ pasts)

oh boy. tilda. she is one character that i just. hate. i don’t hate her for putting the twinyards into foster care. i don’t even hate her for only taking aaron back, bc while it’s heartbreaking all around... she couldn’t handle two kids, which is devastating but fair. not telling aaron about andrew was pretty shitty, but again, she couldn’t handle two and aaron would’ve wanted to reunite, so keeping him a secret was maybe what she thought was the least painful.

but god. i hate her so much. 

she was neglectful of aaron his whole childhood and made him feel like a burden. he still loved her, bc kids want to love their parents so desperately. and in return he was met with snarls and insults and silent hatred. the kind where a person can channel their hate as they’re washing dishes roughly or clenching they’re jaw while watching tv. the kind that festers around you and makes the entire environment stifling and toxic. 

and then andrew. i don’t think andrew had it in him any more to care that he was abandoned. the fact that tilda abandoned him and kept aaron may have stung slightly, but ultimately, he would’ve shoved that down as just another shitty thing in his shitty life and moved on. 

however. 

tilda started to become violent when higgins told them about andrew. she’d been abusive the whole time, but now it was physical as well. and there’s no way aaron didn’t associate that negativity with andrew, even only subconsciously, before he even met him. 

and then andrew was reunited, which tilda had tried to avoid all along. and andrew saw how abusive she was and told aaron he could take care of it, and he did. and aaron despised him for it. because he still loved his mom. because he was still so desperate for the love that came out in fractured fractions from time to time. 

tilda is, ultimately, why the twinyards have such a shitty relationship. she’s the reason aaron had such a shitty childhood. (i don’t think it’s 100% fair to blame all of andrew’s on her, because while she is why he’s there, she wasn’t the actual abuser for him. she doesn’t haunt his nightmares). 

tilda shattered the twinyards and did nothing to put them back together. and i will never forgive her for it. 

okay bestie please elaborate on:

SAFE HAVEN AU (yes i’ve already heard about it and watched the movie with you but just more pls), vet fic, and andreil night drives!!

Thank you for the ask! Even though I have made you watch it with me I will still offer you some Safe Haven content (honestly if I've made you watch Safe Haven with me there's no going back we're best friends from then on).

Spoilers for the movie Safe Haven?? Idk if I need to do that but this is your warning if you haven't seen it there is an actual twist so like don't read this if you genuinely want to watch it.

Safe Haven Au

One of my favorite WIPs! Idk why I love this movie so much but honestly it's probably cause I watched it a lot as a child and can now project Andreil onto it. Anyways, into the plot. I'm just assuming y'all have seen it because otherwise we'd be here for ages. Oh and some relationships are changed and I feel like you can guess where as I explain who is who. So Neil is Katie and Andrew is Alex which I feel is pretty obvious. Nicky is Lexi, and Aaron will be Josh which again.. if you've seen it you know the vibes. Wymack will be Roger which I think will be ridiculously funny for the lead up to canoeing scene. Bee will be Jo because the potential™. And of course Nathan is Kevin. Also Kevin is Rhett. And Abby will be the Ivan's owner.

The plot stays pretty much the same with some minor changes like the kids being replaced with Nicky and Aaron, Bee being Jo and Nathan being Kevin. But even then their roles are staying the same it's just the relationships that are changing? This au works to well is what I'm saying. The biggest change will of course be with Bee being Jo. I think she'll end up being a co-owner of the shop with Wymack and will have adopted Andrew and Aaron at some point, and Nicky will either also be adopted or just like live there with his cousins because he can (maybe post-Bee?? I'll have to think on this more apparently). So Andrew will take over her spot as co-owner and the story stays the same from there. It's really more backstory that will be a kinda off-hand mention (e.g. beach scene) than a true plot point because if you've seen it you know that her character up until the end reveal doesn't involve any of this.

I don't actually have anything written for this it just all exists in perfect vivid clarity in my head. But maybe I'll have a piece soon and can post it separate if anyone is interested?

Vet Fic

This fic kinda has it all for some of my favorite fluff tropes. It's a meet-ugly (meet-angsty??) strangers to neighbors to friends to lovers. Basically, Neil works as the night receptionist for a 24/7 emergency vet when Andrew runs in one night with a fast-fading King (or Sir, undecided) after she's attacked by an animal. They manage to save King because I'm not horrible and Andrew is taking care of her at home when he notices someone moving into the long-vacant apartment next to his. That someone being Neil who very quickly becomes invested in King's recovery because why wouldn't he be, he worries about emergency patients all the time and finally has the chance to see how one is doing. Of course, King immediately falls in love with Neil when he comes over to check in and Andrew slowly begins to as well. Queue inevitable angst because yeah and then a soft sappy ending like always. Here's a piece from it:

-

Andrew was walking into his apartment building when he spotted a moving truck parked at the curb. Hopefully whoever was moving in was nowhere near his apartment, or at least knew how to take a hint when met with his blank glare. Fate seemed to hate him however, because when he stepped out of the elevator the door to his neighboring apartment was propped open and surrounded with boxes. Great. He tried to unlock his door quickly to avoid meeting them but again, fate hated him. Just as he was about to push his door open he hear a startles gasp then, “King Fluffkins!”

Odd. That was definitely not his name. He turned to his new neighbor prepared to ask what the hell was wrong with them and how they knew his cat’s name.

He found the nurse from the vet—Neil, his memory supplied—looking at him with wide eyes. Now that his mind wasn’t clouded with worry he notices that he is very attractive. Dammit. Fate was so fucking with him. To late he realized how long he had been staring and forced a response from his lips.

“My name is not King Fluffkins.” Andrew deadpans. -

Andreil Night Drives

This is an idea I've had almost since I read the book, it's just a short little fic based off of the song You Won't Be Here Again by Rainstorm Society. It's my favorite song to drive to at night/early in the morning and I think it works really well for their night drives after nightmares or when they can't sleep. There isn't really a plot it's just them together with the vibes of the song.

canon kevin:

no capacity for love

self centered

unappreciative

god/superiority complex beyond belief

it only matters if he's succeeding in life

ruthless when it comes to reaching his goals

only wants people for their benefits in getting him further

expects everything from everyone and never pays it back

assumes everyone knows who he is and will literally lay on wet cement to protect his shoes

fanon kevin:

gay?? bi?? who cares as long as it excuses those times he spoke against andrew and neil, or nicky

caring

appreciative

helpful to his team

wants them to improve

humble and modest

willing to help children???

doesn't get frustrated or tell people they're failures when they make a mistake

makes people around him feel better

is eager to make and participate in a family-like community

isn't it funny how this looks like two different characters? oh yeah because you have to change him that much just to make him likeable