Total pages in book: 131
Estimated words: 145402 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 727(@200wpm)___ 582(@250wpm)___ 485(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 145402 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 727(@200wpm)___ 582(@250wpm)___ 485(@300wpm)
That wasn't reason enough to accept this, but Neil wasn't willing to reject it, either. Time wasn't something he had a lot of, but it was going to take more than these frazzled moments to figure it out. Neil knew he wasn't in the right state of mind to decide one way or another. He stuffed his keys under his pillow and rolled onto his other side like that would change what had just happened. He told himself not to think about it right now, but his mouth still remembered the weight of Andrew's lips and that made his hair stand on end.
He distracted himself the only way he knew how, counting as high as he could in every language he knew. He didn't remember falling asleep, and he didn't know how long he was out before his phone hummed at him. The new message in his inbox was from an unfamiliar number, and all it said was "48". Neil deleted it and would have passed out again if not for the muffled sound of a TV in the next room. Neil searched for the strength to face the upperclassmen and found it closer than it'd been this morning. With a quiet sigh he kicked his blankets off, shut his alarm off, and climbed down from the loft.
Dan sat tucked against Matt's side on the couch. She snatched up the remote and cut the TV off as soon as she spotted Neil in the doorway. "We wake you?" she asked, and even though Neil shook his head said, "Sorry."
"I shouldn't sleep this late in the day anyway," Neil said.
He went to get a glass of water from the kitchen. He expected them to go back to whatever he'd interrupted, but when he returned to the living room the TV was still dark. There was a silent conversation in the looks Matt and Dan sent each other. Neil didn't know which one of them won, but Matt shook his head and looked across the room at Neil.
"We wanted to throw you a birthday party," Matt said. "It doesn't seem right having a birthday and doing nothing for it. Renee thought it was a bad idea, though, to the point that she called Andrew for backup. He took her side."
Neil remembered a phone call waking him up as they turned into Alpharetta. Andrew had only listened for a moment before saying "Don't". Neil quietly took back every suspicious thought he'd had about Renee. Her serene veneer would probably always have him second-guessing her, but she understood the little things when it mattered most.
"Thank you, but they're right," Neil said. "I'd rather pretend it didn't happen."
"What if we skipped the party and just bought presents?" Dan asked, and sighed when Neil shook his head. "Fine, but if we let this go we're going to do something crazy on March 31st. Deal?"
"Define crazy," Neil said.
Dan smiled like he hadn't spoken. "Deal?"
"Deal," Neil said.
"Good," Dan said. "Now come on."
Neil joined them on the couch, and they turned their show back on. He might have forgotten about the text that woke him up if he didn't get a "47" message from a new number the following evening. Neil looked down at his phone in consternation as he realized someone was sending him a countdown. He pushed his schoolwork aside in favor of the calendar hanging from the kitchen fridge. He counted days with his fingers, flipping pages until he found March. For a moment he thought he'd get to Neil Josten's birthday, but he landed on Friday, March 9th. It was an odd day to end on. It was the last day before Palmetto State University's spring break. There was a game that night, but it wasn't one of championships' two death matches.
Neil checked his phone again, debating whether or not to respond. In the end he deleted the text and went back to conjugating Spanish verbs.
-
The rest of the Foxes didn't find out until Monday morning that Andrew had replaced his wrecked car. Nicky trailed Neil across the parking lot, yammering away about a project he should have finished by today but was only halfway done with. When Andrew stopped walking, Nicky did too, but since Nicky didn't see the rental car he kept talking. He stopped when Andrew opened the driver's door. Nicky looked, did a double-take, and nearly fell down when he jumped back.
"No way!"
His yelp got the others' attention, and Matt was predictably the next to react. He bolted past Neil to stare at the car. "What are you doing with a Maserati?"
"Driving it," Andrew said, like it should be obvious, and got in the driver's seat.
Matt reached for the hood with both hands but didn't touch it, like he thought his fingerprints might ruin the perfect exterior. The blatant awe on his face had Neil looking to Andrew. Andrew met his gaze through the windshield but didn't hold it for long. He reached for the door to close it, but Matt darted around and put his hand in the way. He leaned over to look inside, owl-eyed and rapturous. Nicky had fewer reservations about putting his hands all over the new ride and he made a slack-jawed lap of the car.
"But when—?" Matt asked. "And how—?"
Allison was less tactful. "Did he steal it?"
Dan hissed at her to keep her voice down, but Allison shrugged her off.
Matt beckoned to Andrew. "Start it up! Let me hear it."
Andrew twisted the key in the ignition, and the car came to life with a quiet roar. Matt threw his hands up and spun away like he was orchestrating a symphony. Andrew closed his door, so Matt wheeled back to Dan, sputtering facts and statistics that went way over Neil's head. Neil glanced at Aaron to gauge his reaction. Aaron looked torn, as if he wanted to be awed by the prestigious ride but couldn't let go of his resentment enough to be excited.
Kevin was rarely impressed by wealth thanks to his upbringing, and he'd been there when Andrew bought the car. He didn't have the patience to put up with his teammates' antics and he swept them all with an annoyed look.