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)
This wasn't a practice anymore; it was a fight. Andrew was trying to cut Kevin off at the pass, and Kevin was daring Andrew to keep up somehow. Exy had been a raw point between them since they'd met. It was the critical part of their friendship Andrew refused to acknowledge and Kevin couldn't fix, a dream Andrew wouldn't believe in and Kevin couldn't give up on. This was a shootout years in the making, and Neil could barely breathe as he watched them struggle. Neil could see their tempers starting to flare in the little things, a jerk of Kevin's racquet here and there and the increasing viciousness of Andrew's deflections.
It was inevitable that Kevin would win. Even left-handed, Kevin put too much of himself into his practices to lose to Andrew here. Andrew had all the raw talent to be a champion but none of the finesse; he couldn't beat Kevin with sheer force alone. When Kevin landed five shots in a row, he dropped his racquet and stomped toward the goal. Andrew put his racquet to his shoulder and watched him come.
Neil expected Kevin to start yelling. Instead Kevin caught the grill of Andrew's helmet and slammed him back against the goal wall. Neil flinched and started for the door, knowing he'd be too late to stop Andrew from gutting Kevin but needing to try. Halfway there he stopped, because Andrew hadn't moved. His fist was at his side in an aborted punch and he hadn't even thrown Kevin off of him. He simply stood there and listened to whatever Kevin was snarling in his face. At length Kevin let go and turned away. Andrew shoved him in the back with the butt of his racquet hard enough Kevin stumbled and stepped up to the goal line again.
A few seconds later they were back at it as if nothing had ever happened, and they kept going until Kevin finally had to sit down. Neil collected balls from the court while they showered and wisely didn't say anything to either of them. The ride back to Fox Tower was silent and Kevin went straight to bed. Andrew collected his cigarette butt from the window, lit up, and stared out at the dark campus. Neil watched him a few minutes before going back to his own room.
Kevin was his usual self the next day, domineering and caustic as always. He was back to his right hand as well and said nothing about last night's practice. Neil thought maybe he'd strained his hand by pushing so hard against Andrew, but he was back to his left hand as soon as he was alone at the court that night. Andrew followed him on again without hesitation and the two battled it out like they'd already forgotten yesterday's results. Neil was relegated to the sidelines still, but tonight he didn't mind as much. He saw his future in every shot fired and deflected, every point stolen and thwarted, and he could barely breathe through his excitement.
-
Wednesday afternoon the press came by for interviews and footage. Neil remembered Allison's advice to be honest and attempted to answer as much as he could stomach. He avoided some of the more awful questions by reminding them there was still an ongoing investigation into his father's businesses. He didn't expect them to back down, but they got the hint after a couple tries and moved on to other things. Unsurprisingly they asked about the extent of his injuries. Neil confirmed he'd be out of Friday's game but would be back on the court for semifinals. His unflagging confidence in the Foxes' ability to proceed earned him a grin here and a nod there and established that, Nathaniel or Neil or whoever, the Foxes' mouthy rookie was the same person he'd always been. When they were done with him they went down the rest of the Fox line, even cornering Abby and Wymack. Finally they left and let the Foxes focus on their scrimmage.
On Thursday Neil found Andrew outside his classroom door. Andrew set off without a word, knowing Neil would follow. Neil was content to tag along until he realized they were going to the library. Nicky said last fall Andrew avoided the library at all costs. Neil had only seen Andrew in it once, when Andrew collected him for practice this past January. He might have asked what they were doing, but Andrew spoke first. He was only four steps up the staircase to the second floor when he rounded on Neil.
"Take these or I'll use them," he said, holding out his hands.
Neil stared at his empty palms, mystified, then reached under the hems of Andrew's long sleeves and caught the edges of Andrew's bands. He knew there were sheathes in Andrew's bands and had handled them before, but the weight still caught him off-guard. He tucked the bands and their hidden weapons into his backpack. Andrew watched until Neil's bag was zipped closed and slung over his shoulder again before turning away.
There was only one reason Andrew would give up his knives in here, but Neil couldn't believe it. He didn't have long to wonder. The right wall was lined with computers, and alongside the computer stations were oversized tables for studying. Halfway toward the back Katelyn sat with three unfamiliar students. The boy at her right was gesturing expansively at his open textbook as he spoke. Katelyn twirled a pen through her hair as she listened. Andrew was only two tables away before she noticed him, and she jumped so hard she dropped her pen. Andrew flicked her a cool look and kept going. Neil paused to make sure she understood that summons.
Her classmates sent her odd looks, startled to silence by her violent reaction. Katelyn turned in her chair to watch Andrew leave, then sent a nervous look Neil's way. Neil only shook his head and motioned after Andrew.
Katelyn got to her feet. "I'll be right back."
Andrew must have checked the library layout before coming, because he cut through rows of aging reference volumes to a section so obscure there were no browsing students. Neil noticed the isolation immediately and was glad Andrew had turned over his knives. Andrew turned at the end of the row, sized up the empty corner just a couple steps away, and waited for Neil and Katelyn to catch up.