Total pages in book: 99
Estimated words: 109903 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 550(@200wpm)___ 440(@250wpm)___ 366(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 109903 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 550(@200wpm)___ 440(@250wpm)___ 366(@300wpm)
"He's done it once before," Matt said.
"Yeah, last October." Nicky didn't look up from where he was stuffing things into his duffel, but he was grinning as he told his story. "We found out the ERC was going to cut us from the Class I ranks if we didn't stop losing. Coach asked Andrew for a miracle, and Andrew gave us one. He made Coach come up with a number between one and five, and that's how many points he let the other team get before he shut them out. It was probably the most badass thing I've ever seen."
If his words were supposed to make Kevin feel better about Andrew's chances tonight, they achieved the exact opposite. Kevin's face was a thundercloud.
"So you'll try," Kevin said through gritted teeth, "because Coach asked you to."
Andrew folded his arms across his knees, tilted his head back, and smiled up at Kevin. "Careful, Kevin. Your jealous streak is showing."
"For eight months you've told me no. In eight seconds you told him yes. Why?"
"Oh, that's easy." Andrew stuffed the last of his gear into his bag and zipped it shut. He slung the bag over his shoulders and got to his feet, standing up so close to Kevin he almost knocked Kevin back a step. "It's just more fun to tell you no. That's what you wanted, right? You wanted me to have fun. I am. Aren't you?"
For someone so small, Andrew made a lot of noise when shoved into the lockers. Andrew was laughing as he crashed into the orange metal. Neil didn't know what amused Andrew more: Kevin's violence or the splash of blood that now stained the front of Kevin's shirt. Neil hadn't even seen Andrew take a knife out, but it was in his hand in the air between them. Kevin retreated from Andrew with a sharp curse.
"Jesus, Andrew!" Matt said. "Kevin, are you all right?"
"I'm fine." Kevin put a hand to his chest as if checking the truth of his words.
Neil was at the far end of the lockers from them, so he couldn't see very well, but the relative lack of blood made him think the cut was shallow. It was long, but it wasn't serious. It was going to sting when Kevin put heavy armor overtop it tonight, though.
Andrew stepped away from the lockers and got in Kevin's space again. He put the edge of the blade against Kevin's chest over his heart and peered up into Kevin's face. Kevin looked more angry than intimidated as he stared back. Matt started toward them, maybe thinking he had to break up round two of their fight. Kevin didn't look away from Andrew when he motioned at Matt to back off. Matt didn't stop until he was within lunging distance. There he waited, still and tense, for one of them to make the wrong move.
After he'd gone still, Andrew spoke again. "Kevin, Kevin. So predictable. So pathetic. How about a tip? A reward for all your hard work, or something. Ready? You'll start having more success when you ask for things you can actually have."
"I can have this," Kevin said, voice thick with frustration. "You're just being stupid."
"I guess we'll see, but don't say I didn't warn you!"
Andrew stepped around him and wiped his knife off on his arm. Whatever else Andrew wore, there was one accessory he never took off: a pair of black armbands that stretched from his elbows to his wrists. They were mostly a joke, a way for strangers to tell the twins apart, but Andrew had another purpose for them. Neil found out in June Andrew was hiding sheaths under the thin cotton. As soon as Andrew knew his blade was clean the knife disappeared from sight. Andrew was out the door a couple seconds later.
"Are you serious?" Nicky sounded exasperated as he picked his bag up. "I thought you gave up this fight months ago. You're never going to win."
Kevin stormed over to his locker without answering and began packing his bag. Nicky shook his head and started for the door. Aaron hadn't slowed long enough to watch the short fight, so he was right behind Nicky. Neil watched Kevin for another outburst, but Kevin was venting the rest of his anger silently. He shoved his gear into his bag like he wanted to break it.
The only thing that mattered to Kevin was Exy. He'd been raised on this sport and the only thing he wanted was to outperform every other striker he faced on the court. He pushed his teammates mercilessly and demanded twice as much of himself. Kevin couldn't stand incompetence and he wouldn't tolerate anything less than his teammate's best efforts.
What Kevin hated most of all was Andrew's bone-deep apathy. Andrew had some of the best 'keeper statistics in the southeast and that was without putting forth a real effort. Kevin had spent the better part of a year trying to get through to Andrew. He wanted Exy to mean something; he wanted Andrew's best performance like a dying man wanted one last breath of air. Andrew knew it, and he refused to play along.
Neil understood Kevin's anger. He'd been equally baffled this summer when he first saw Andrew play. It was impossible—should be impossible—for someone so talented to care so little. Unfortunately Andrew's drugs wrecked his attention span and kept him buzzing too high to honestly care about the game's outcome. Playing through withdrawal might actually be the better option, except Neil had tried talking to a semi-sober Andrew about Exy this summer. Andrew said Exy was too boring to be worth his while.
It was one thing if Andrew's psychological issues and medicine made him incapable of trying, but he'd just sold his game to Wymack without a real argument. Neil didn't know what that meant, and he didn't know how to feel about it.
Matt waited until Kevin stalked out a minute later before looking at Neil. "Well, tonight is going to be awesome."
"I think you meant to say 'awful'," Neil said, zipping his bag shut.