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“Who wants to play darts?” Matt shouted, scrambling out of his seat. “Whoever gets the closest to the bullseye wins?”
They were at a bar that wasn’t Edens, tonight, and Andrew was more tense than he usually was. Though he would never admit it, he missed the familiarity of the other club. He didn’t trust the bouncer’s here for a second. Nor did he know the bartender, or the best spots to pick tables. Only Neil’s gentle fingers soothing up and down his inner thigh kept Andrew from completely snapping and hauling his family out of there.
“Yes, darts!” Dan yelled, following her boyfriend. “I haven’t played in soooo loooong.” She stumbled forward slightly and allowed Matt to catch her.
The rest of the Foxes rose, some more reluctantly than others. Their group pushed their way through the crowd to a quieter place in the bar, where the nine of them were relatively secluded. Andrew only faintly heard the thumping music.
Matt went first, missing so spectacularly some of his darts didn’t even end up on the board. Dan and Allison went next, both of whom were rather precise despite their obvious state of drunkenness. Nicky missed every single dart while Aaron managed to hit the board five times, but they were too scattered to be considered well-aimed. Both Andrew and Renee refused, but Nicky and Matt wheedled Neil until he finally hopped off his stool.
Matt handed Neil a set of five darts, and the upperclassmen tensed in anticipation. Everyone except for Neil himself was swaying in varying states of inebriation. Kevin was lying passed out on the table.
Neil studied the board for less than a second before firing the darts in rapid succession. Everyone’s jaws dropped as they saw that Neil had made a perfect circle around the dead center of the board, all within the designated bullseye.
Dan burst into a fit of giggles. Allison and Matt whooped so loudly they managed to wake Kevin, who blearily said, “What time’sit?” Nicky looked like he was about to fall off his seat. “What the- how did you DO that?” he gasped.
“You don’t know how to play literally any damn board game, but you're telling me you can play darts? Seriously, Josten?” Aaron hissed, his voice incredulous. Andrew knew his twin was just angry at the amount of money he had lost.
Neil shrugged. “It’s an easy way to win quick cash,” he said. “It’s not hard, either. Just like throwing knives.”
Dan, Matt, and Allison started laughing, but Andrew knew he wasn’t joking. He saw Renee regard Neil as well. When Neil made his way back to Andrew, Renee stepped up to him. “Are you any good?” Renee asked, her tone interested.
Neil gave her a sharp, bitter sort of smile and said, “Of course.”
She nodded in acquiescence and asked, “Can you teach me, sometime?”
“Yes.”
Satisfied, Renee made her way back over to the rest of the upperclassmen, who were getting progressively louder with every shot they took. Andrew really wasn’t sure if he liked this new bar, yet.
When Andrew rolled up to the front of Fox tower, Kevin, Nicky, and Aaron immediately stumbled out of the Maserati, in the midst of drunkenly arguing about something stupid. Neil slipped out of the passenger seat, too, grabbing his duffel bag from underneath the seat and making his way into the building. Andrew turned the car motor off and followed.
They were quiet in the elevator going to their dorm. Neil reached over and laced their fingers together, lightly brushing his lips across the knuckles. Andrew squeezed Neil’s hand before Neil let go.
When the elevator opened and they made their way down the hallway, Neil handed Andrew his duffel bag at the dorm’s door and simply said, “Roof,” before making his way to the busted door and the abandoned stairwell.
Andrew slipped into the dorm room long enough to tuck Neil’s duffel bag underneath his bed, to use the bathroom and grab his lighter and cigarettes, and to check on the three imbeciles he (mournfully) considered family before making his way up to join Neil.
Neil was sitting at the edge of the roof, as he always was, his legs swinging back and forth off the side of the building. Andrew ignored the familiar swoop in his stomach as he settled next to his junkie. He lit a cigarette, passed it to Neil, and then lit another one for himself. Andrew let out a breath and stared up at the sky, his eyes tracing over the blurry outline of moonlight covered by wispy clouds.
“Are they dead yet?” Neil asked, reaching out to twine his fingers with Andrew’s.
“Unfortunately, no,” Andrew grumbled, pulling their joined hands into his lap. “Nicky is having some sort of wet dream about Erik, Aaron is passed out on our couch, and Kevin is snoring so loud I could see the pictures on the wall shake.”
“The bastards,” Neil said mournfully, though his shoulders shook with silent laughter. “Our family. Oh no, whatever shall we do?”
Andrew glared at his partner but said nothing. After a moment, Neil started giggling. It sounded so wild, so carefree, so childish , Andrew couldn’t help the warm feeling spreading through his chest.
“What?” he asked.
“No one ever believes me when I tell them you pout, Drew,” Neil said between fits of his laughter. “Why can no one believe the adorableness that is Andrew Minyard?”
“Adorableness is not a word, idiot,” Andrew snapped, fighting to keep his ears from turning red. Neil only continued laughing.
They sat up there for what felt like hours, though in reality it was probably no more than twenty minutes. There was a sort of peaceful stillness in the air, the kind you can only find in the dead of night.
It was Andrew who broke the silence.
He weighed his words carefully, not wanting to push Neil into haunting memories or a convoluted explanation. He was simply… curious. “How can you throw knives like that?” he asked finally, knowing it was pointless to beat around the bush.
Neil turned his head to look at Andrew and studied his face. Andrew allowed a soft, “Staring,” to pass from his lips, to which Neil only hummed.
“I was raised by a butcher,” Neil said slowly. “Knowing how to use knives was the most important lesson Lola ever taught me. I knew how to wield them before I even understood what pain was.” He looked down at his hands and whispered, “I’m not a defenseless child, Andrew. I rejected your offer of learning how to use Renee’s knives because I already know how to use them better than almost anyone else.”
Andrew nodded. He would never understand the true depths of what Nathaniel had endured in the Butcher’s home. The same way he would never understand the true depths of Abram. But he did understand, probably better than anyone, just how dangerous Neil Josten was.
Andrew heard heavy footsteps on the stairs leading down to the basement, but was too focused on avoiding Renee’s savage fists to look at the door. He ducked and rolled underneath her legs and resisted the urge to yank her ponytail. Whoever had come down to talk to them did not come any closer, content simply waiting for them to finish. Andrew deducted that it had to be the obnoxious, loud-mouthed exy junkie he lived with, then.
“You’re leaving your left side open, Drew,” Neil’s voice called out from the doorway. “She’ll take you down in a second that way.”
Andrew barely had time to process the words before Renee’s fist slammed into his left side and he doubled over in pain. “Thanks for the tip, Neil,” Renee said brightly, her voice affecting laughter as she backed away to grab her water.
He heard Neil walk closer, chuckling slightly. Andrew sent him a vicious glare, trying to stop wheezing. “You should not be laughing at your dying boyfriend,” he managed to get out as he finally straightened.
“Oh? We’re boyfriends now, huh?” Neil said, his eyebrows raising. “We weren’t boyfriends last night when Kevin forced me to watch that history documentary with him. Or when Nicky made me bake the other weekend.” He faux shuddered. “I had to draw a dick on a cake, Andrew. Who even does that?” Andrew failed to hide his twitching lips at the reminder.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Andrew said primly. “Do we not cherish each other, oh love of my life? Do you not adore me the way I adore you?” Neil rolled his eyes.
“My only love, sprung from my only hate!” Andrew quoted, his voice deadpan. “Oh Romeo, Romeo, wherefore art thou Romeo?” Andrew then proceeded to do the more sarcastic jazz hands he could manage, keeping his face from twitching a muscle.
Neil flipped him off and turned away. “Fine, Drew. Fine. When you wake up tomorrow morning at six for the game that Wymack sent me to let you know was cancelled, don’t come crying to me. I’m not responsible for you, drama queen.” Andrew snorted.
Andrew turned to Renee in defense, only to find her staring at Neil in a calculating sort of way. As if she were sizing him up. Her head was cocked to the side, her eyebrows furrowed slightly, her lips a thin line.
“Would you like to join us?” she eventually asked, gesturing to the mat.
Neil simply smiled slightly and said, “Maybe next time.”
Andrew heard Renee’s distinct text tone on his phone and went into the bathroom to change into workout clothing. He then grabbed a small backpack and stuffed a towel, a water bottle, and a fresh pair of armbands into it before heading into the common area.
As he walked past the couch, he saw Neil on his laptop, probably watching some sort of exy reruns. He seemed completely bored out of his mind, which told Andrew that Kevin had been the one to put the video in front of him.
“I’m going to spar with Renee,” Andrew said, planting himself in front of his junkie. Neil looked up slowly and raised an eyebrow, as if to say, “And?”
Andrew rolled his eyes and waved a hand toward the bedroom. “Get changed. Come with us.” He noticed Neil looked a bit apprehensive. “You don’t need to do anything. Just sit there for all I care.” Neil weighed Andrew’s words for a moment before nodding and heading to the bedroom. He changed in less than thirty seconds (those damn runaway instincts) and went into the kitchen to fill his water. Andrew was already halfway down the hall by the time Neil caught up to him.
As they entered the basement, they saw that Renee was already set up. She had dusted off the practice mats, set up water on the side, and was now methodically checking over her knives.
Renee looked over and smiled warmly at both of them, though she did seem surprised to see Neil. “Will you be joining us, Neil?”
Neil didn’t take his eyes off the blades as he shrugged. “Maybe later.” He walked over to the far wall and settled himself next to the mat, unscrewing his water and taking a sip. Renee glanced at Andrew and asked, “Ready to begin?”
Andrew nodded. He put his bag next to Neil and pulled his own knives from his armbands. Though he knew Renee knew about his scars, he was not comfortable enough to display them to her just yet.
“No knives,” he said. Renee nodded and moved them back into her bag before moving back into the center of the mat and dropping into a fighting stance. Andrew did the same.
Though Renee was much better than he was, Andrew managed to hold his own for longer than he usually did. He stayed relatively steady on the offensive, only allowing Renee to attack him once before he lunged back at her. He hit her square in the jaw before she slammed her shoulder into him and took them both down. Andrew tried to roll away, but was caught in Renee’s elbow as she wrapped it around his throat. He tapped out immediately, not wanting to trigger any memories.
Renee released him and stood up. “Again?” she asked, scanning his face for injuries. Even with a bruising face, she refused to drop the good, Christian-girl facade.
“Again,” Andrew agreed, allowing her to pull him up.
They went three more rounds before Andrew was too exhausted to continue.
Andrew took a few moments to catch his breath while Renee looked infuriatingly unaffected. Neil handed him his water bottle, which he took a few large gulps from and turned to study Neil’s face.
“You against Renee, junkie,” Andrew finally said. “Let’s see what you can do.”
Neil smiled at that. That terrifying smile his father had, the smile that Kevin was so afraid of. The smile that managed to send chills up even Andrew’s spine. Andrew turned to check that Renee was up for it, and saw that her eyes were on Neil, studying his eyes. She nodded slightly at whatever she saw there.
“Fists or knives?” Renee asked, her voice still annoyingly gentle.
Andrew froze at the words. He had seen what the rainbow-haired girl was capable of when she wielded a knife. He had more than a few scars from her along his body to prove it. Imagining Neil, the person Andrew wanted to protect the most, at the end of Renee’s ruthlessness made an emotion painstakingly closer to utter terror shudder through him.
He opened his mouth to protest, but his infuriating junkie beat him to it. “Knives,” was all Neil said as he rose calmly from the floor and pulled his Palmetto hoodie off. Andrew was surprised to note that with the tank top he was wearing, Neil’s arms were completely bare and a significant portion of his scarred torso was visible too. Andrew glanced at Renee to find her passive gaze respectfully resting on the redhead’s face, though it was clear she had noticed the scarring. Neil took a swig of water, rolled his shoulders, and stepped onto the mat.
Renee pulled out four dull blades from where they were hidden in her own hoodie and tossed Neil two of them. He caught them gingerly before running his thumb over the sharper edge in consideration.
As if in sync, both of them dropped down into fighting stances and tensed their muscles. “I apologize in advance if I end up killing you,” Nathaniel said, his voice dangerously quiet.
Natalie threw her head back and released a sharp peal of laughter, more malicious than anything Andrew had ever heard from her. “Don’t get cocky, Butcher-boy,” she taunted, her eyes glittering with vicious glee.
The Butcher’s smile reappeared on his partner’s face.
Both of them stood frozen for a moment, sizing each other up. And then Natalie lunged at Nathaniel, aiming for his right set of ribs. Nathaniel twirled easily out of reach, and swiped down at Natalie’s arm, leaving a bright red stream of blood in his wake.
The two of them spent the better part of half an hour like that, stabbing and snarling, moving with a remorselessness Andrew knew he would not be able to keep up with. It only took a few more minutes for Andrew to see how obviously outmatched Natalie was. Where she was already tiring, it looked as if Nathaniel was just getting warmed up. His hits kept getting more brutal, more precise, his speed remaining as consistent as it was at the start.
Andrew’s heart stuttered slightly as he watched Nathaniel sweep Natalie’s feet out from under her. She landed on the mat with a painful-sounding thump, and Nathaniel was immediately on top of her, his two blades on either side of her neck. Though Andrew knew they were dull, he had no doubt they were still capable of slitting her throat.
They stared at each other for a moment, both of them seemingly lost in bloody memories, before Renee whispered, “I yield,” and Neil immediately rolled off of her. He carefully placed his blades to the side and rose to his feet. He offered Renee a hand, which she gratefully took.
Neil grabbed his water from beside the mat and chugged it rather quickly, while Renee began stretching her muscles in a cool-down. Andrew caught Neil’s eye and dipped his chin, asking a silent question, which Neil acknowledged with an annoyingly sweet smile.
“I’m alright, Drew,” he said. “Renee needs some practice, though.”
Renee chuckled lightly and shot Neil a halfhearted glare. “Not all of us were raised by mob bosses, I’m afraid.”
Andrew’s eyes shot to Neil’s, waiting for a catch in his breath or a terror-filled gaze at the mention of his father, but he only rolled his eyes playfully and muttered a, “Shut up,” before walking over to Andrew’s towel and wringing out his sweaty hair.
“You’re disgusting, junkie,” Andrew growled, snatching his towel from him. “You should have brought your own.” Neil just responded with a saccharine smile and two middle fingers.
The three of them packed up their remaining things and began the trek upstairs. As they got to their floor and split off to their respective dorms, Neil turned back to Renee. “Next week, knife throwing?”
Renee immediately nodded. “I would like that very much, Neil. Thank you.” She made her way into her dorm after giving them a small wave in farwell. Neil and Andrew made their way back to their own couch, where they curled up together to watch a movie.
And if Andrew saw Renee spending more time with Neil than usual, he said nothing, simply smiling to himself. He liked the idea of his best friend and his partner having a relationship of their own.