Neil was right.

Much like Nicky, Seth was an exuberant drunk. He took Allison to the dancefloor and twirled and twisted with her for about an hour before he came back for more alcohol. Even Nicky was amazed by this new person who seemed to cheerfully thread through them. Like this, Seth resembled Matt in a lot of ways.

It was during some of the longer dance sessions that Neil noticed that Andrew had stolen Seth's phone. He didn't comment on it, allowing Andrew to read into the other striker's life as he watched them on the dancefloor over the railing beside their table

When Andrew finally put the phone down, Neil asked the question burning on his tongue. "So, what do we know about Seth?"

"Big family. What looks like 6 siblings in total, but the only two who's talked to him recently are a Jeremy and a Max. Max is in high school. Looks like his mom works two jobs, just got fired from a third one. He seems to care for Max but gets into fights with Jeremy, I'm guessing he's older and lives in Virginia, the texts are all harsh and angry. He sends money home every month for his mom, likely his dad's no longer in the picture. He's got a suicide hotline on speed dial next to the number of a dealer, but it's a different area code, last time he called that number was two years ago. He's got Bee's number on here too, looks like he talks to her often there are calls spanning 2 or 3 hours. He probably has a history of depression as well as the drugs. I'm surprised he hasn't killed himself before now." Andrew made his report in flawless Russian.

"Do we know why he came to Palmetto in the first place?"

"He wants to go pro." Andrew snorted. "Palmetto was the only school willing to put him up. He started playing in 5th grade. He has a job in a floral shop, it looks like it's an after-hour cleaning job."

"That's probably why he keeps odd hours."

"That and some of the calls to Bee are late at night."

"So, what's the plan?"

Andrew paused, thoughtful and silent, so Neil turned his attention down to the dance floor and tensed.

Below, near the edge of the dance floor, Seth was in Nicky's face. They were yelling at each other while Allison and Aaron were trying to pry the other two apart, when Neil looked for him, he found Kevin coming up the stairs and straight for them.

"'Drew!" Neil called, before he took off.

He made it just as Seth was reeling an arm back to punch Nicky.

"Fuck!" Neil yelled as he threw himself bodily at Seth.

His momentum and the fact that Seth was not expecting him gave Neil the leverage he needed to not only get the other man under him but to get him in a choke-hold.

"What the fuck!" Seth raged, hands coming up to try to pull Neil off him, but Neil tucked his head into the back of Seth's and held on, ignoring the hands in his hair.

"What the fuck were you planning to do, you asshole? What the fuck gives you the right?" Neil whispered, menace in his voice for the first time in a long time.

"Fucking hell!" Seth choked, quickly losing the fight against the lack of blood flowing to his brain.

"You think you're tough shit? You think the fact that life dealt you a fucked-up hand means that you get to act like a dick to everyone around you?" Neil squeezed harshly making Seth gag before he relaxed his hold just enough to keep the asshole conscious. He didn't pay attention to the commotion around him, didn't year the yelling and the shouting, his focus was on Seth. "Answer me, asshole!"

"F-fuck you!"

Neil growled, the noise vibrating in his chest as he squeezed again. "That all you got?" Neil moved enough to get one hand into Seth hair before letting go and slamming the older man's face into the ground. The cry of pain was sharp but lost in the commotion of the crowd. There should have been bouncers pulling him off Seth right about now, but for some reason there weren't. He knew it was because Andrew was holding them off. He was likely holding off Allison too, because she would have torn into him if she could have.

"You think you can beat up anyone weaker than you? Smaller than you? You think because you're older than me that it gives you that right? Is that what your older brothers did to you? Is that what you do to Max?"

Shock stilled Seth's attempts to fight back, his body going momentarily lax.

"H-how the fuck do you-"

"Or is that what Jeremy did to you?" Seth jerked under him, but Neil's knee dug into his spine and he cried out. His hands went under him to push himself up, but Neil aimed an elbow at his shoulder blade, jarring the nerve in his left arm and likely making it go numb.

"Fuck! What the fuck you lunatic!" Seth yelled.

"Shut up!" Neil snarled, feeling vicious and wild for a moment.

While he'd learned to fight, he'd never had to actually use the skill. He spared with Andrew, trained with Andrew, sometimes they would go so far as to fight until one of them couldn't, but this is the first time he'd acted out of honest anger. Andrew had made Nicky a promise, and Neil wasn't going to let that promise be broken. It had propelled him into action before he even noticed he was moving and now, it was still fueling him.

"You have a chance to make pro, and instead of shutting the fuck up and fighting for it, you bitch and moan and fight with just about everything else. You hate Kevin because of his fame, don't you? I've heard you rant, I've heard you say that I don't belong here, but have you thought about the fact that maybe because I'm here, this team will get more attention? Have you thought about the scouts that are going to come just to see Kevin play? Have you even contemplated what you could show them if you only focused on getting better?!"

Seth stilled under Neil. Falling silent and still at his words. It seemed that he'd finally gotten the jackass' attention.

"Yeah, that's right, you idiot. You have one of the best right here next to you, training with you every day and instead of using that to your advantage, you're fucking screaming into the air about how unfair the world is. Is it the depression?"

Seth gasped.

"No. No I don't think it is. You fight it every day, don't you? You know what it is to fight to stay alive, so why can't you fight for what you want right alongside it?"

There was no answer, but Neil loosened his hold. When he sighed, it felt like all of his anger left his body with that breath of air. He slowly stood. Looking around, he noticed that everyone was staring at him. There was a circle of people around them, three of Eden's bodyguards looking on with weary expressions as Andrew stood in front of him, holding Allison on her knees one hand on the back of her neck and the other holding her arm up at an awkward angle. His attention though was laser focused on Neil. He shook his head at the silent question and watched as Andrew finally released Allison.

Instantly she surged forward, face angry and streaked with tears. She went for Seth who still lay there on the floor breathing harshly, but Neil got in her way, grabbing her wrists and making her look at him.

"Listen to me."

"Fuck you! Fuck you! Fuck you!" She screamed into his face, but he shook her a bit, getting her to look him in the eye. He knew what she'd see. Compassion. Like he thought she would, she gasped a little and seemed to go boneless in his grip. He sank with her to the floor.

"It's okay. I promise, it's going to be okay. You're going to be okay." He soothed, but she wasn't looking at him anymore, her gaze on Seth who still hadn't moved.

"He saved me. He took me home, took me to the Tower. They were going to rape me, he didn't let them."

Neil stiffened. His eyes going up to see if Andrew had heard that too and from the ridged posture he knew that Andrew had.

Well…doesn't that just answer their question.

"They were taking me to the room, I didn't…I was so drunk." She looked back into Neil's eyes with a plea on her face. A plea for him to understand.

"It's okay." He tried again, before he turned his head to speak to Seth. "Pick yourself up, Seth."

The man still didn't move.

"Pick yourself up, Seth. If you don't pick yourself up now, you might as well die down there." He said, harsher, pitiless.

They all watched as Seth got his arms under him and pushed himself up to his knees. His head was down, he didn't look at anyone but he swayed a bit like the room was spinning.

Neil let Allison go and she went to Seth, kneeling in front of him, her hands on his face, gentler than he'd ever seen her.

When Seth looked up at her, there was something profound there. Guild mixed with adoration but tempered by a bone deep fear. He loved her, but it scared him. Hell, just like with Exy, he probably wanted it but thought he wasn't good enough so he raged. Was that the reason for their volatile relationship?

He didn't care to examine it anymore. They had the answer to the question they'd asked tonight. Allison's words having sealed it for both him and Andrew.

He saved me. They were going to rape me, he didn't let them.

Neil didn't need to ask Andrew if he thought Seth was worth saving.

Without glancing backwards at the two upperclassmen still kneeling on the floor of Eden's, Neil stood and made his way to Andrew.

"Thank you." He said, though he directed it at the three bouncers. He recognized two of them as the men who'd helped him when the homophobes had attacked Nicky.

"Don't mention it." One of them said, still eyeing Seth and Allison.

"Come on." Andrew directed, and started walking back. The crowd seemed to part for them, everyone watching like it was some kind of theater performance. Neither Neil nor Andrew paid them any mind.

"Where are the others?" Neil asked, his hand coming up on its own to hook itself onto the hem of Andrew's shirt. The blond didn't react, though Neil knew he'd felt the added weight.

"I told Kevin to get them back to the car. We're leaving."

"Thank god."

~!~!

In the end they left with a message for Roland to let Allison and Seth sober up before letting them drive or to put them up on the Employee room if they couldn't drive.

They all got to the house completely exhausted, and everybody scattered to their respective rooms without even a word to each other. Not even Nicky, who looked more than a little guilty. Likely it had been his fault that Seth had snapped like that. If Neil had to take a guess, he'd say that Nicky hit on Seth or touched him in some way and Seth didn't take it well.

Neil sighed as he stripped out of his club shirt, leaving the jeans Andrew had liked on as he gathered sleep clothes for after their shower.

Andrew didn't say a word as he followed behind Neil.

Their shower was quick and they didn't touch. Both of them too affected by Allison's words to even try for anything intimate that night. Instead they dressed and burrowed under the covers like they were hiding from the entire rest of the world.

They slept face-to-face, heads close but nothing touching the other.

Neil woke them both with a nightmare in the middle of the night. Bright lights, the room tilting. Bodies crowding him in and Nicky's voice in his ear telling him that this is how the game is played, to just give in. Harsh unwanted kisses forcing bitter drugs into his mouth, and it was a few long minutes of breathing and calming and staring before they both attempted sleep again. This time, they slept till the sun rose. Neil had a moment to wonder what Andrew would do if he ever told him what Nicky had done before. He was almost sure that if it had been the old Nicky, Andrew would have killed him, yet this Nicky hadn't done him any harm. Neil didn't think that fact would be enough to save him though. If that Nicky had been capable of something like that, then so was this Nicky and Andrew would justify it as a preemptive strike.

He fell asleep before he decided whether or not to tell Andrew about it.

When they stumbled out of their room, Kevin was in the kitchen making a bowl of his stale fiber plus cereal. He looked up when they came in and nodded at them before going back to his breakfast.

Neil took a moment to grab and apple before he was out the door and running down the block, taking his normal route but going back sooner than usual.

By the time he got back, everyone was awake and milling around the living room and kitchen, each one having found their own breakfast, except for Aaron who never ate in the mornings.

Neil slipped in by Andrew and grabbed two more apples and a water bottle out of the fridge before going back and sitting on the stool next to him.

"Do you think anything I said got through to him?" Neil asked in Russian.

"Not likely."

"Are we going to try again?"

"Not likely."

"Are we going to save him?"

"We're going to try. From what we know, he would have likely killed himself if Riko hadn't gotten to him first. He doesn't see a future past graduation. He doesn't see himself getting any older, so chances are, he'll finally make it happen."

Neil nodded. Deciding not to really comment on the fact that Andrew hadn't really seen much of a future for himself past graduation either.

Originally, he hadn't cared one way or the other, but the more he learned about the older boy, the more he wanted to do something. To pull him up in some way. To push him into fighting for something instead of fighting everything around him. He wanted it for Allison, and maybe a little for Seth too. He still didn't like the guy, still thought he was for shit, but he'd always felt guilty about his death. He'd pushed Riko into a show of bravado, and Seth had paid as collateral damage.

But he couldn't save someone who didn't want to be saved. You couldn't help people who didn't want to help themselves. Like Andrew with Kevin. Andrew couldn't free Kevin from Riko, unless Kevin let go first.

"Are we going back to Palmetto today?" He switched to English.

"Yes." Andrew answered in the same language. "At least you aren't hitchhiking back this time."

No one commented, though they'd all heard.

~!~!

Days passed with a bit of normalcy after the weekend trip to Colombia with Seth and Allison. Though the two avoided all of them avidly, both of them sticking close to Dan and Matt. Kevin also finally allowed Neil to join them for night practices and started with Raven drills for the first time all summer. Kevin was floored as Neil worked through all 8 precision drills in one night.

"It's like you've been doing them for as long as I have." Kevin marveled with not a little anger in there as well.

Andrew snorted from the goal, but Neil just shrugged. "I've been playing on my own for a long time. You know who my dad is, you know what I'm supposed to be for the Moriyamas."

Kevin frowned. "Well, yeah, but you're supposed to be a backliner."

"And backliners don't need precision?" He raised an eyebrow.

Kevin pressed his lips together, his anger bleeding through. "Everyone on the court needs precision."

"Then shut up and run the drills until you can do them like me." Neil mocked, before turning away and facing off with Andrew.

Kevin scowled, but he didn't say anything. This was Exy and when Exy was involved, Kevin could see things much more clearly and he knew that Neil was right. His accuracy was shot because of his hand and he needed to get himself back to what he used to be. To where Neil already was.

Neil knew that competition made Kevin better. He'd lived in Riko's shadow so long that he was used to being on the court with someone who's 'supposedly' better. For Kevin, it's like following an old script except with much less pain, fear, and guilt. All of which were only felt because he knew he was actually better than Riko.

"You trying to become the new Riko?" Andrew probed from the goal post, not bothering to move as Neil made precision shots at all four corners before working on curving his shots.

"Don't insult me like that. I might never get an erection again."

"Don't worry, I'll help you with that."

Heat flooded Neil's body. Days of pent up want making him burn from his core.

"Shut up. Don't talk shit if you aren't going to go through with it." Neil snarled, actually a little angry about it. More the situation than Andrew himself.

A pale brow rose in a silent question and Neil sighed, because he knew he'd answer it honestly. He switched to German in case Kevin could hear them.

"I miss your touch." Neil answered, eyes meeting Andrew's and not pulling away. "I itch to feel your skin against mine, even just fleetingly. When I look at you, when you're so close that I can smell your scent, I crave you. I want you to come closer, to crowd me until we're pressed so close together that we're breathing the same air. I want you to kiss me dizzy until I have to hold onto you to keep from falling. I want to feel your hand around my cock, your fingers pushing inside me, waking me up in a way no one else can. I miss all of it. Usually isn't not so hard, especially if we don't see each other for a while, but to be so close, to see you every day, to smell you on my clothes and not be able to ask for what I really want… So yeah, Andrew, don't talk if all you're going to do is talk."

Neil's eyes were a blazing blue fire, heated with both want and challenge and by the answering fire in Andrew's eyes, his feelings weren't one-sided. Andrew had been craving too.

"Practice is over." Andrew said, too quietly for Kevin to hear.

Neil didn't argue.

"Kevin! Practice is over. It's been two hours and we need to sleep." He called behind him, not staying to listen to Kevin complain or argue, instead he followed Andrew back to the locker room.

They showered fast and separately, and by the time Kevin was coming in from picking up the cones, Neil was tugging a shirt from his bag and standing only in long grey sweats.

Kevin let out an audible gasp when he caught sight of the red-head.

Neil's head snapped up in alarm, but when he caught sight of Kevin's face and the direction of his stare, he already knew what the problem was.

The scars. Kevin had never seen the scars, Neil still changed out in the stalls so that he won't scare his teammates. Well, shit.

"N-Neil?" Kevin almost choked, looking like he felt the pain of every scar on his own body. Neil rolled his eyes.

"They're just scars, Kevin. Get over it."

Bright green eyes snapped from his chest to his face and Kevin looked shocked with the dismissal. "But…are those from-"

"Most are from my father." Neil said, fingers brushing over the half hot iron burn on his shoulder. "Some are from running for so long." He moved his hand to the long gash from his sternum to his navel, and then the bullet wound on his shoulder.

Kevin looked on for just a moment longer before looking down at his hand. White scarring marked the back like a mockery of pain. Kevin was beginning to see that Neil had survived far worse than something that had completely broken Kevin.

With a firm nod, Kevin moved past him and went to take his own shower.

Andrew stood nearby, already clothed as he watched the drama play out.

Once Kevin was in the shower, the blond walked up to Neil, hazel eyes bright with vibrant gold, lit from the inside with lust.

"Everyone always looks at these with horror." He said, almost to himself as he ran his hand over Neil's chest. He didn't ask, he didn't need to. Permission had been given out in the court not minutes ago. "They may be the most attractive thing about you."

"Just because you're turned on by a lack of survival instinct, doesn't mean everyone else is." Neil said, jokingly but a little tightly. His want yelling inside his head. He needed Andrew to touch more, to get closer, his body wanted to pull Andrew inside it. It was rare that his libido sparked so high, but it had been a little under three weeks now that they hadn't done anything more than kiss.

"What you call 'lack of survival instinct' I call 'will to survive'."

"Now which one of us is delusional."

Andrew didn't get the chance to retort as Kevin came out of the showers. Neither Andrew nor Neil looked at him, used to Kevin dressing in the locker room instead of the showers like they both did. They didn't exchange anymore words until they got Kevin to the dorms. When the striker had tried to ask why they weren't coming in with him, Neil snapped at Kevin and told him to 'just go inside'. Kevin left in a foul mood, but that didn't matter. As soon as Kevin was gone, Andrew and Neil were back on the road.

They headed to a spot they'd used often in the past. It was empty, out of the way, and pretty much abandoned.

Neil pulled his shirt off as soon as Andrew parked the car.

"This feels sort of weird. It's not the Maserati." He said as he crawled into the back seat.

"I told you, with the cash you have we could go buy it right now."

"Oh for the love of- shut up and get back here. Or I'm going to get myself off and walk back to the Tower."

"If you cum before I let you, I'll make you walk back to the Tower."

Andrew followed Neil into the back and pressed the taller man back against the seats.

Pulling down the grey sweats didn't take much work. Andrew tore them completely off Neil's legs, knowing that Neil already toed off his sneakers before moving to the back like he'd done himself. He slipped his own jeans down but kept them on.

Neil moaned as rough hands moved him into whatever position Andrew wanted.

In the end, he found himself on the middle seat, his back pressed hard against the seatback, each one of his legs thrown over Andrew's thighs, spread open and bare.

Andrew was braced against the two front seats, his knees on the back seats to either side of Neil's ass and Neil's legs over his. Like this their cocks aligned perfectly. Especially when Andrew pulled Neil a little higher up onto his lap.

When Andrew's hand wrapped around them both at once, Neil threw his head back and groaned loud and long.

"Is this what you missed? My hand?" Andrew asked, voice steady but brows furrowed in pleasure. Neil nodded.

"Yes. You hand, your mouth, your body." Neil muttered, eyes half-lidded and heavy. "Where can I touch you?"

"From the waist up."

As soon as the answer was given, Neil's hands moved. Hot callused hands cupped the sides of Andrew's neck, pulled him down into a scorching kiss as Andrew's strong hand kept working at them both.

The familiar buzz of sex with Andrew overtook Neil's mind and he drowned on Andrew's tongue, moaning brokenly into the other man's mouth and trying in vain to cant his hips up into the firm grip and even firmer cock pressed against his, he spread his legs a little wider to get a little closer, remembering for a moment the yoga lessons Allison used to drag him to before and wondering if he could pick that up again this time. Their combined pre-cum wasn't enough for a smooth glide and it was all the better for the roughness. The friction and the edge of pain as Andrew's dry hand gripped them both, pushed them both to reach for what they wanted.

When Andrew's thumb dug into the slit of his cock, Neil whined.

"Oh, fuck, 'Drew! I need to cum, god 'Drew let me cum!"

"Don't you dare." Andrew's growl was sexy, a gritted sound that betrayed just how on edge he was. "Together." It was an order, just like every other request Andrew ever made.

"Fuck! Andrew!" Neil moaned, pumping his hips up in little jerky movements despite the fact that he was actively pushing down his own orgasm. "I'm not-I can't. 'Drew I can't!" His voice was a wreck and he almost wanted to apologize because he wasn't going to last.

"Cum then." Andrew allowed.

As soon as the words were out, Neil screamed, gripping at Andrew's shirt collar as his body convulsed in pleasure. He almost didn't notice when Andrew went ridged and came with him.

Heavy breaths rocked their bodies in sync as they both tried to cool down.

"Ow, fuck, I miss the Maserati." Neil drawled tiredly as Andrew moved away, allowing Neil's legs to fall from his thighs as he took a seat next to the sprawled red-head, his right hand held gingerly on his thigh, coated in both of their cum.

"Yes or no?" Neil asked suddenly.

Andrew side-eyed him before deciding that it didn't matter "Yes."

Neil grabbed his hand, bringing it up to his mouth and licking over the cum-covered skin. He didn't miss Andrew's shiver.

"Gross." The blond said blandly, but he didn't take his hand back, so Neil continued.

"Hey, while you enjoy sweets, I like salty. I don't even mind bitter." Neil smiled before bringing two of Andrew's thin fingers into his mouth, sucking on them gently.

Heavy lids fell over hazel eyes and Andrew allowed his head to lull back at the feel of Neil's wet mouth around his digits.

Neil licked and sucked until Andrew's hand was clean of cum, but damp with Neil's saliva. When his hand was clean, Andrew reached into the passenger's seat and grabbed Neil's earlier discarded shirt. He deliberately looked at Neil as he wiped his spit-covered hand on Neil's shirt.

Neil laughed quietly, accepting the shirt when he was held out to him and still putting it back on despite that little display of pettiness.

"Come on, let's go back. I'm sleepy."

Andrew grunted, doing up his pants and crawling back over the center console and into the driver's seat. Neil followed after he's slipped his sweatpants back on.

"Thank you." Neil said softly when they were finally on the road.

"If you follow that up with 'you were amazing' I will punch you."

Neil chuckled into his hand but decided to remain silent, watching the city pass by tiredly as they made their way back to the Tower.

It had taken both of them years to figure out that it was okay to ask for those types of things. It was okay to crave and to want as long as that want was returned. The dirty talk had actually not taken as long to figure out and it was a good thing too, because Neil knew that Andrew liked it. The verbal reassurance that Neil liked and wanted everything they did together lightened something in Andrew. He never took, he always waited for it to be given and Neil had no problem giving back.

"If you fall asleep, I'm leaving you to sleep in the car."

"No, you wouldn't." Neil insisted.

Andrew didn't bother contradicting him.