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He gazed in the mirror, tilting his head this way and that to judge clearly just how obvious the marks on his necks were. Andrew and Neil had spent undisturbed time sitting on the beanbags in the living room, and things had taken them a little far.
He could still remember the feel of Andrew’s body pressing down on him, and as he brushed a finger over the marks on his neck, he shivered at the memory of every bite and lick on his neck. Usually, high collared tops and shirts hid the marks easily enough, but this time they were too high up to cover all of them.
He could just imagine all the questions and comments the foxes would make, and he didn’t have the energy to deal with that right now. Things were good with Andrew, he didn’t need the others intervening.
It would look too odd and noticeable if he were to wear a scarf, or if he was to pull his collars up, so he couldn’t think of how else to cover them. He remembered then the way in which Allison had covered the bruises colouring his face from his time at the nest.
He was already scheming by the time he made his way out of the bathroom. The girls had morning lessons, so their room would be empty, it would be easy enough to sneak in and take what he needed.
He took his lock-picks from his duffel bag and hiked his hoodie up just a little bit higher on his neck, before leaving the apartment. He moved towards their room and knocked just once, listening out for any movement or sounds, but there was nothing. Neil smiled in relief before fiddling with the lock; he was still skilled enough for the door to unlock in a matter of seconds.
He shut the door behind him and wondered exactly where to look. This was the hard part of his plan; he had no idea where Alison left the make up, or more importantly, where she left the make up she used on him after winter break.
He rummaged around in their bedroom, noticing cases of make up on a dressing table, but they all looked as though they were being used frequently, so he turned away from that. Instead he bent down in to one of the drawers and located a large pink case, and with anticipation thrumming through his veins, he pulled it out. It was then that he paused, noticing countless bottles of foundation in the drawer and remembering how Alison had practically bought every shade that was anywhere near his skin colour. He picked up every bottle, looking for any tell tale signs of use, before finally finding one that had a slight smudge of liquid along the side as though it had begun to dribble down the side and someone had swiped it in an effort to get rid of it. The bottle looked like it had less in it than the others, so he assumed this was definitely the one.
He pocketed it quickly and returned everything the way it was, before leaving the bedroom. He felt the giddy relief beginning to course through him as he started walking towards the front door of the apartment. It was as he was reaching for it, that the door slammed open and he froze.
“What the fuck, Neil?” Allison narrowed her eyes at his frozen body, her hands on her hips, as she stepped further in to the apartment.
She looked around, as though expecting to see other people lingering around.
He immediately recovered and easily spun a lie.
“I was looking for Renee to ask her something, I assumed she was in because the apartment door was unlocked, but I guess not.” He shrugged, hands still in his pockets, before making for the door.
She latched on to his arm with sharp nails.
“We locked the door, so now the truth.” She demanded.
He turned his head to look her way, catching the widening of her eyes as her eyes clung on to a spot below his face. It was then that he realised that her holding on to his arm had pulled his sweatshirt down, revealing the angry marks along his throat and collarbones. If she tugged further, she’d end up seeing similar marks on his shoulder.
He quickly yanked his arm away and righted his sweatshirt with a sharp tug, but it was already too late.
“What the hell is that?” She was looking at him now.
Clearly his hickeys were more important than the fact that he had been caught breaking in to her apartment.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” He spoke casually.
She was faster and fiercer than he gave her credit for, because she yanked his sweatshirt down again.
“Oh really?” She challenged him, eyeing the marks visible to her. “Guess he really is a monster.”
Her tone was mocking and light, but he pulled himself from her grasp again, thinking that maybe he could make a run for it.
“You broke in to my apartment and fed me two lies, I deserve the truth now.”
She was glaring at him, so he sighed in resignation.
“I needed this.” He took the foundation bottle out of his pocket.
He didn’t miss the way amusement pinched the edges of her lips upwards.
“Oh, this is gold.” She finally laughed, clearly having joined the missing dots together and realising why he needed the foundation.
She was reaching for her phone, so this time he was the one reaching for her wrist.
“Don’t tell anyone.” He sounded like he was pleading. Andrew hated that tone of voice.
“Oh, but this would clear up a few bets in my favour.” She winked at him, despite the hold he had on her wrist.
“I’ll answer any question you have for me with no holding back if you don’t tell anyone about this.” He promised her.
She quirked an eyebrow at that.
“Make it three and we have a deal.” She wrenched her wrist from his grasp and folded her arms, finger tapping against the back of her phone case.
“Only if you help me with this.” He wiggled the foundation bottle at her.
She smiled at that, but it was a cunning smile and he wondered exactly what he got himself in to. “Deal.”
She pocketed her phone and led him to the couch, before stepping around him and going back to the door to lock it.
“Don’t want anyone walking in on us.” She shrugged when she returned to him. “Now take your sweatshirt off so I can see the damage.”
“You only need to cover these.” He told her, pointing at the ones along his neck. “Any of the others are easier to hide.”
She smirked knowingly at that.
“Do I even want to know just how many marks like these you’ve got everywhere?” She murmured, forcing his head to tilt back with a single finger, as she began applying the cold liquid on his neck.
His lips quirked upwards at that. “Is that one of your questions?”
“No.” She scoffed.
She worked in silence for a few seconds, leaving to get something that resembled a sponge in the shape of an egg, before seating herself opposite him again.
“I don’t need to ask the obvious question.” She waved a hand at his neck, and he assumed she meant who had given these to him. “But I want to know, how long have you and Andrew been together?”
“We’re not together.” He answered automatically.
Her fingers froze against his neck.
“I thought this deal required honesty.”
“We’re not together.” He stressed again.
“You know what I mean then.”
He did, so he chewed his bottom lip in thought before answering.
“Can I text Andrew before I give a reply?” He asked her.
She pulled away from him then and gave him a look that was not at all amused.
“Guess he’s got you on a leash.”
He almost smirked at the memory of a conversation so long ago on the rooftop of fox tower, where Andrew accused him of trying to put a leash on him.
“Not exactly.” He spoke, even though it wasn’t a question, texting as he did.
To Andrew, 11:46:
Got myself in a spot of trouble with Allison, I have to answer 3 questions, how much is she allowed to know about us?
“I assume he won’t care either way what I say, but I’d rather ask him than assume.” Neil shrugged and looked up to find Allison smiling at him.
It wasn’t cunning or mischievous, it was something softer, and he realised that perhaps he had revealed more to her in that statement than any answered question.
His phone buzzed with a reply from Andrew.
It simply read: I don’t care, do what you want.
He was quick to type up a reply. Okay, I’ll explain later.
He pocketed his phone then, and tilted his neck back again, pushing her to go back to applying foundation on his neck.
“He kissed me on January 20th.” He answered her question finally. He only knew she was listening in the way her dabbing seemed to slow down. “But he didn’t accept that I wanted it, until I made it clear to him a few weeks later and we started doing it more.”
He wondered if he was blushing talking about what him and Andrew had, but he didn’t care because Allison wasn’t making any obscene comments.
“A day after your birthday.” She merely murmured, clearly understanding the importance of the date and probably remembering the blood splattered over the changing room floor, dripping from his locker.
He didn’t reply to that, it wasn’t something that required a response.
She didn’t ask him any more questions, and before long she was done and gazing at her handiwork.
“You can barely see a mark.” She grinned. “But maybe tell him to ease off, the animal.”
There was no chance of Neil ever telling Andrew to do that, not when he needed it just as desperately.
“You still have two more questions.” He reminded her instead.
Her smile was evil then.
“Don’t worry, I haven’t forgotten. I’ll ask you them when I think of them.”
**
Her next question came the next day during practice, she made her way over to where he was privately throwing shots at an empty goal whilst he waited for Kevin and Dan to finish talking.
“What do you like about him?” She asked.
It must have been a question she had wondered, since her and Andrew had been snarling at each other throughout practice.
He grinned, eyes flashing over to where Andrew stood, leaning against his exy stick and eyes trained on them. He clearly knew what was going on. Neil moved his eyes back to Allison.
“He’s stable.” He shrugged.
She was about to prod for more detail, but Kevin began yelling at him to stop slacking.
He sighed and shot her a small smile, before leaving her with more questions than answers.
Later that day, she found him in the library doing maths homework and began to prod him for more answers.
“Explain.” She demanded.
He rolled his eyes.
“Hello to you too.”
“Cut the sass and explain.” She rolled her eyes back at him. “Andrew and stability isn’t a thing.”
“It is. He’s someone to lean against.” Neil shrugged, having never admitted this out loud to someone who wasn’t Andrew. “I can trust him to not shy away from any of my secrets and hold me up as I face any of them.”
That was only half of what he wanted to say, but he couldn’t even begin to articulate the rest of it. Besides, she looked like she was beginning to understand.
“Plus, he’s an amazing kisser.” Neil added in as an afterthought, before going back to doing work, laughing as she blanched and pretended to puke in disgust.
“Is that all?” She asked then, flipping her blonde hair behind her shoulder.
“There’s more, but you’d be here all day if I went on.” He smirked slightly, knowing the look Andrew would be giving him if he heard Neil talk about him like this.
“Hm.” She looked like she was going to push him for more, before changing her mind and saying. “Seeing Andrew in any romantic light at all will make me sick, so I guess that’s enough of an answer for me.”
With that, her perfumed and perfectly manicured self was gone.
Her next question came in the evening through text.
How many people have you kissed before Andrew?
He replied after a moment, remembering the touch sensitive locks on her phone and the way she protected it like it held important secrets. He could trust her with a written reply like this.
5, I think.
She replied merely a second later.
Men or women?
He shook his head, clearly she was trying to work out the many hidden depths of his sexuality.
You’ve used up all the questions you’re allowed to ask.
There was pure satisfaction in his reply, imagining the expression she’d have on her face when she read it.
You’re the worst.
He grinned and didn’t reply back, expecting that to be the end of the questions.
**
It was only a few days later that Allison approached him in the library again. She settled herself down comfortably on the seat next to him, picking up one of the pens he left lying around on the table, and began tapping it softly on the table. He blinked at her a few times, before she seemed to steel herself and spoke in a hushed tone.
“Andy Carlton.” She spoke his name as though it meant something, but he didn’t recognise it at all. “The first person I slept with after Seth. I went back to my room and cried after.”
He realised what she was doing. She was continuing the game, giving up a secret of her own so that he would answer another question.
He spoke after a few moments, watched the way Allison stared back at him with stony eyes and he wondered if she had admitted that to anyone else before him.
“They were women, but I felt nothing for them.” He admitted, and she opened her mouth, so he quickly added in. “That doesn’t mean I’m gay; I don’t look at men any differently to how I look at women. I just look at Andrew differently.”
Her eyebrow quirked up at him.
“There’s probably a name for that.” She told him, referring to his sexuality. “Look it up.”
They continued the game after that, every so often revealing things that not many knew about the other. Every secret was kept safe, so he was okay with it and soon they were closer than before this deal was ever made.