It was Wednesday night and the Foxes had just finished another day of practice. Temperatures were in the nineties that day, nearly breaking into the triple digits, when Kevin and Wymack collectively decided that the Foxes would benefit from some exy conditioning drills. Complaints from Nicky landed him with a bruised stomach and the team outside running laps around the arena.
Neil and Aaron seemed to be the only ones affected more so by the heat than the laps themselves. Ever since Aaron found himself joining Neil for morning jogs at Katelyn’s insistence a month ago, his dexterity on the court has lasted longer. He absolutely detested that she and Neil seemed to be getting along famously and damnit he was not going to let Neil - a pipsqueak whose only talent seemed to be running away from problems - and Katelyn - his girlfriend - jog by themselves at the ass-crack of dawn three days a week.
The rest of the team, however, wasn’t looking too good. Nicky practically died during their second lap, with Matt and Dan lasting only a couple hundred feet longer before they too began to whine. Renee and Allison kept an easy pace, falling far behind the clump of Foxes yet keeping their stamina up with running and walking intervals.
Kevin - needing to prove that everyone was just acting overly dramatic about the run and therefore stationed himself in the front - was feeling the burn far sooner than he expected, being too stubborn to show it (Aaron could tell, that dirty liar). Andrew, in keeping up with Neil (who would later swear he was setting an easy pace for him), found himself quickly out of breath and patience.
The rest of their day didn’t get any better: suicide laps done on the soccer fields, races meant to help with teamwork, high kicks, squats, and (finally) drills designed to increase their precision and aim when throwing the ball. With all of their pent up aggression stemming from the heat, Wymack ended the day on a game of Tug-O-War before sending the Foxes back to their dorms with the promise of pool-centered exercises for tomorrow.
“This is it. This is how I die.” Nicky bemoaned from his bed, “I’m going to melt in this heat from all of those stupid drills. Aaron, pour me into the ocean. That is my dying wish.”
“You’re disgusting,” Aaron tossed a water bottle to the backliner, refusing to acknowledge his pained cry when it hit him on the shoulder he fell on during squats, “Be useful and get us something to eat.”
“Why can’t you?”
“Busy,” he glared as he speed-dialed Katelyn and left the room. He could hear Nicky’s groan just as the door closed behind him. He rolled his eyes as the call connected.
“Aaron!”
“Katelyn, Hi.” he greeted, his tone melting to a much softer timbre.
“I got your texts. Did your coach seriously make you run? In this weather? ” Aaron stopped right outside his and Matt’s shared dorm. Ever since he and Neil switched, he appreciated the privacy that came with living away from his family, especially for moments like these. Matt tended to be with the girls in their room more often than not, which suited him just fine.
“Yes. You can thank Nicky for his idiocy.”
“Oh no, what did he say to piss off your coach? ”
“It wasn’t Wymack’s idea, actually,” He corrected, pulling his keys out of his pocket and scanning for the right one, “He only had the idea to do some conditioning drills. It was Kevin who felt the need to have us ‘sweat our incompetency out.’ Asshole.”
“Couldn’t you get a stroke from that? It can’t be good for you guys. ” He warmed at the concern in her tone, successfully locating the key he was looking for and sticking it into the lock.
“Well, the thing about strokes is-” his trail of thought was interrupted when he heard a commotion coming from the stairs. He stopped and frowned, looking towards the stairwell as the noises got louder. He watched, ignoring Katelyn’s questions, as three football players who were coming down from the 4th floor were shoved to the side by a group of men- 6 in total- as they bolted up the stairs.
“The fuck’s their problem?” one of the burly players - Sam, if Aaron remembered correctly from their only encounter at the soda machines on move-in day - snapped. The ginger (Adam?) shrugged, while the dark-skinned brunette he had a class with last year, Najmul, stared after the group for a moment, their footsteps echoing loudly down the hall.
“Guys,” he started, eyebrows furrowed at he looked to Sam and Adam(?) with concern. The sound of a door slamming open ended the footsteps.
“I’ll call you back.”
“ What? Aaron- ” The blonde snapped his phone shut, mentally cringing at the abruptness of how he ended their conversation. He’d apologize. Later. Right now, he wanted to confirm if he and the linebacker had the same suspicions.
“I’ve never seen those guys before.” Naj said, anxiously glancing back up at the direction the group was headed in as Aaron pocketed his phone and keys.
“They’re probably some loser’s friends on the 4th floor.” Adam(?) snarled with irritation, glancing at Aaron’s approaching figure with a slight furrow in his brows. “Maybe they’re new players on another team. Hey! Are those your new teammates?”
Aaron didn’t bother to grace him with an answer as Naj spoke up, “We’re the only ones on the 4th floor. The rest of the team isn’t here yet.”
“Yeah, it sounds like they went to the roof anyway. If they’re not athletes, then what are they doing here-” Aaron broke out into a sprint and shoved past the football players. He bolted up the stairs, taking two at a time and using the banister to drag himself up further and faster.
He vaguely heard footsteps following, but he couldn’t process what that could mean because Andrew’s on the roof Neil and Andrew are always on the roof-
He shoved against the door with all of his strength, gritting his teeth as the pain jolted down his back and throughout his arm. The person who had attempted to keep the door closed was easily thrown off, not expecting anyone to come and disturb the group. He fell back and skidded a few feet, dazed from the sudden push. Aaron kept his momentum going and ran forward, straight for the man, and kicked him hard in the knee. The man cried out, clutching at the limb and rolling onto his side. Aaron finished him off with a hit to his temple before turning to survey the situation in front of him.
There were five others, two on Neil and three on Andrew. Neil was thrashing around, lips curled back into a snarl and bearing teeth as the two men tried to get a grip on him. One had succeeded in hooking his arms around his shoulders, immobilizing him from the elbows up. Neil was red-faced and furious, spewing profanities as he kicked away all attempts the other man made in trying to grab his legs.
Andrew had his knives out, his knuckles bleeding and the side of his face a bright red that was sure to blossom into a nasty bruise within a couple of hours. The other three were sliced up, one of them sitting a ways back with his hand grabbing at a particularly deep cut on his stomach, the ground in front of him red and slippery with blood. The other two were cautiously surrounding Andrew, equipped with weapons of their own: a pipe and a knife.
“What the fuck!?” one of the football players shouted behind him. There was a flash of red in the corner of his eye: Adam sprinted forward, picking up a bat that the look out Aaron had on his back must have dropped on his way to help Neil out. He swung down between him and Neil, corralling him away from the striker and leaving Neil to deal with the man on his back.
“Go get someone! Call the cops!” Sam shouted at Naj before running into the fray himself. The brunette took off down the stairs, phone in hand as Sam was tackled from the side by the man with the stomach wound. Aaron withdrew his keys and pulled the lanyard they were attached to taut as he ran behind the man with the knife. He jumped onto his back, wrapping the fabric around his neck and pulling hard, rearing him back and away from Andrew.
“Damnit, Aaron! Get the fuck out of here!” Andrew snarled at him, running up to shove aside the man with the pipe while he was distracted by his sudden appearance. Aaron refused to respond, tightening the lanyard around the man’s neck as he stumbled back, flailing his knife around wildly in an attempt to hit him. Andrew utilized his brief reprieve from the other attacker to kick Aaron’s opponent down below. He cried out and dropped to his knees, his breathing slowing and thrashing weakening the longer Aaron held the lanyard around his neck.
Aaron released him and roundhouse kicked him in the head, his foot catching on his jaw and neck. The man fell to the side unconscious. He turned to help Andrew and was elbowed in the face by another man, the one Adam had gone after. He felt blood run out of his nose, and the man turned to face Aaron, only to have Adam swing at his kneecap and shatter the joint. He screamed and crumpled onto the ground, incapacitated. Adam ran off to help his friend with his own fight, leaving Aaron behind.
The blond looked to his left where Andrew was and saw the man Andrew was fighting with earlier on the ground. He was covered in lacerations, his arms bent at odd angles with the pipe lying carelessly to the side. It didn’t take a genius to figure out what happened there. He, too, was out cold.
But where was Andrew?
When Aaron looked towards the edge, his blood ran cold. The man who originally held Neil was unconscious, littered with non-lethal stab wounds and half of his face beaten in. He saw Andrew on his stomach with an arm and leg plastered to the rooftop floor, the other hanging over the edge. He ran over, fully prepared to roll him over and check for wounds when he saw why Andrew was there.
He was holding Neil’s wrist, knuckles white, as the boy dangled above the 40 ft drop to the parking lot. Neil held on just as tightly, both hands wrapped around Andrew’s wrist and forearm as he stared wide eyed at him, glancing briefly over to Aaron for a split second.
“Andrew-”
“Don’t you fucking dare!” He interrupted with a hiss, his whole body straining to prevent Neil from dropping any lower, “If you let go, Josten, I fucking swear- ”
“Andrew, just look at me,” Neil said, voice trembling as he tried to keep the terror from taking over, “Look at me, and nowhere else.”
Aaron dropped to his knees beside him, firmly grabbing at his rib and hip to help keep his twin stationary. Andrew jumped and tensed to move when Neil shouted “AT ME, Andrew, look at me!”
“Shut up,” he seethed through his teeth, remaining still once more. Aaron looked down at the distance between himself and Neil. There was no way he’d be able to grab him and help Andrew pull him up without the risk of dropping him or dislocating a shoulder. He didn’t have long enough arms or a strong enough build to help. It was thanks to Andrew’s own bulk that he hadn’t fallen yet. The best he could do was prevent Andrew from sliding off the roof himself.
“Don’t look down, Andrew, look. At. Me.” Neil reiterated once again, more firmly this time.
“I can feel your hand, Neil. I know what the fuck you want to do. What ever happened to dragging me with you, huh?” Aaron caught sight of Sam running towards them, leaving Adam to watch the remaining attackers with his bat. “You’re such a fucking liar, always have been. Always will be.”
“Just keep looking at me. Nowhere else, just at me.” Aaron could see Neil was struggling not to look down himself, instead keeping his eyes locked on his brother. It was subtle, but Aaron knew better.
“You!” Sam snapped as soon as he reached them. “The fu-SHIT! Okay, you!” he pointed at Aaron, “Let him go and grab onto me. You’re gonna make sure I don’t fall as I haul his ass up, got it?”
Aaron resisted the urge to snap at him and slowly let go. Andrew slid forward a few inches, but otherwise remained in place. Sam moved beside them and kneeled, only to be corrected by Aaron.
“No, you’re gonna sit with your back to the ledge and lie down so that you’ll be dangling from the knees up. I’m not strong enough to hold you so I’ll have to sit on your shins to make sure you don’t fall. You,” he pointed at Neil, getting a quick glance from him as a sign of acknowledgement before looking back at Andrew, “You’re gonna lift your legs so that he can grab them and lift you up. Once you’re not on the edge of fucking glory, you’re both gonna help me haul him back up. Now, lie down.”
Sam did as he was told, albeit hesitantly, and held onto the lanyard in Aaron’s outstretched hand. Aaron did as he said he would and straddled his shins, helping Sam to the edge and easing him slowly down with the help of the lanyard until his back was against the building’s wall. Sam released the keys and grabbed Neil’s foot and leg, allowing him to push Neil up the wall. Andrew rolled back dragging Neil with him until the striker was high enough to grab onto the roof’s edge. Once he grabbed on, a second pair of hands- courtesy of a recently returned Naj- grabbed Neil’s arm and helped haul him the rest of the way up. As soon as he was up, Naj went to help Aaron pull Sam back up, all the while cursing their situation in Hindi.
After Sam was brought back, Aaron did a quick scan of the rooftop to see what the current situation was: Adam was still wielding the bat, now having a taser-equipped R.A. and a campus security cop with a gun to help him watch their attackers. Of the men in the group, 4 were unconscious and two badly beaten- all zip tied with their hands behind their backs. The men didn’t look like they were affiliated with the Moriyamas. Butcher’s men, perhaps?
“Who’re the idiots?” he asked, looking over at his brother and being caught off guard by the display he saw.
Andrew was sitting up, legs spread to accommodate Neil’s form between them. Neil was slumped against Andrew, back to chest, with the blond's arms wrapped around his waist and their hands interlocked against his stomach. Andrew looked exhausted and tense, their forms facing away from the edge and towards the stair entrance. Neil’s head rested in the junction of Andrew’s neck, his face turned into Andrew’s chest in Aaron’s direction. They made eye contact, Aaron’s face schooled into an apathetic stare. He realized then that Neil’s lip and ear were bleeding.
“They’re not Moriyama’s,” He answered, Andrew shifting just slightly to tighten his grip on Neil, eyes never leaving the group of attackers, “They’re not a faction of my father’s either. They’re just pissed off Raven fans. I’m assuming someone called the cops-”
“Oh my god!” Aaron and Neil’s attention snapped towards the door, where Nicky and Renee came running out. The rest of the Foxes followed quickly behind, the upperclassmen hesitating by the attackers and the scene in front of them while his cousin and Renee ran to them. Aaron heard sirens approaching.
“What the hell happened here?! Everyone’s bleeding and there’s a puddle of blood-oh, Neil! Oh no, not again, not again -”
“It’s not my blood,” Neil interrupted him. The dark skinned boy heaved a sigh of relief and fell to his knees, looking like he was about to hug the striker before Andrew’s glare stopped him. Renee stood quietly beside him, appearing to have a silent conversation with Aaron’s brother through eye contact. Fucking creepy.
“Who did this? How-”
“Pissed off Raven fans. They wanted to shatter Andrew’s arm and break my legs.”
“ Jesus Christ! ” Nicky howled, covering his mouth with his hands as tears sprung to his eyes. The upperclassmen had reached them in time to hear Neil, all of them cursing and glaring at the attackers.
The stairwell door was kicked open just then. 5 police officers stepped out onto the roof, hands on their guns as they approached campus security and the football player.
“We heard a commotion and followed the noise,” Renee started, looking over at the group with cold eyes, “I’ll call Wymack and let him know-”
“He’s already here,” Matt cut her off, walking closer to the ledge and staring at the parking lot. “Coach! Up here!” he shouted, waving his arms to get his attention.
“What in God’s name has happened now?!” Aaron glanced over his shoulder and saw Wymack and Kevin had parked behind the cop cars. Even from this distance he could tell Kevin was starting to mentally shut down.
“Some batshit crazy fans-”
“Just come up here!” Dan interrupted Matt, giving him a raised eyebrow that seemed to convey why he shouldn’t be having conversations from the roof of Fox Tower before turning to Neil, “So, you and Andrew were here?”
“And Aaron.” He corrected. Dan gave Aaron a quick onceover before sighing and rubbing her eyes.
“Ok. I’ll let the cops know. Your injuries don’t look too bad, but it looks like they have a paramedic on standby in the parking lot. Just stay put.”
“Aaron,” the blonde, caught off guard by Andrew’s sudden remark, successfully kept his face blank as he looked at his brother, “If you pull that crap again, I will gut you.”
He cursed and stood, shoving through the Foxes and heading towards the stairwell. He stopped briefly by the three football players, who were now speaking with one of the cops, and considered them silently for a moment. Sam was the first to notice him and nudged Adam. Naj continued to speak with the officer while the other two waited for Aaron to talk.
“Adam?” he eventually asked, attention focused on the red head.
“Yeah?” Aaron nodded to himself in confirmation and turned to leave, walking back down the stairs and heading to his room. He took the stairs two at a time, his nose throbbing and the echoes of Nicky screaming “ HE ALMOST FELL OFF THE ROOF?! ” chasing him down.
He had his phone out and ringing by the time he made it to his door, keys in hand as he inspected a speckle of blood on the lanyard.
“Aaron! Hey, is everything okay? ” Katelyn gasped as soon as the call connected, “ You left so suddenly! Are you alright?”
“I’m fine. Just a couple of asshole fans.” He opened his door and stepped inside, tossing the keys towards the kitchen before dropping onto the loveseat, “I’d really like to see you.”
“Of course! I’m grabbing my keys now, I’ll be right over .”
“Let’s go get something to eat.”
“Okay, but only if you pay and tell me what happened. ” He allowed himself a small smile and exhaled, closing his eyes for a moment.
“Yes. I promise.”
“Good. I’ll call when I’m outside. ”
“I don’t mind staying on the phone with you.”
There was a moment of silence, broken by the Vixen’s soft laughter, “Yeah, sure. I’ll be driving, though so I won’t be able to talk.”
“That’s fine.”
“ I’ll see you in 20. ” He listened as she walked down the stairs of her own dorm complex, heard her car doors open and slam shut, heard the sound of her engine revving to life.
It was when she was fiddling with the radio that a knock came from his door. An older officer stood there, pen and paper in hand as she gave Aaron a stoney look.
“Hello, I’m Officer Katherine Burton. You were a witness to the event upstairs, correct?”
“I was a participant.” Aaron responded unimpressed, pointedly gesturing to his disheveled appearance and bleeding nose. He’d have to clean that before Katelyn arrived.
“I have a few questions I’d like to ask you-”
“Let’s be quick about this, I'm meeting someone in 15 minutes.” He huffed, stepping aside to let the officer in as he headed to the kitchen to get a glass of water. He kept his phone against his ear the whole time, anchored by the sound of Katelyn’s humming as he answered the officer’s questions.
As the officer scribbled down the last of her notes, a knock came from the door.
“I'll get in contact with your coach if we have any follow up questions.” He didn't respond, watching with disinterest as she put her pad and pen away and headed for the door, “ we do have a medic on standby-”
“Not necessary.” He interrupted her. She nodded and opened the door, stepping past Neil with a polite smile and nod before walking down the hallway. Aaron stood quietly in the kitchen, listening to Katelyn changing the radio station for the 3rd time. Her loud complaint about traffic told him he had more time to clean himself up.
“Aaron,” Neil began, and Aaron could see how much he hated standing there, “listen, I just wanted to-”
“I have better things to do with my time than acknowledge your apology,” he cut him off, “or gratitude. Whichever.”
“Told you.” Andrew said from the side, suddenly appearing next to Neil and grabbing his hand. He glanced at Andrew, signaling 'we'll talk later' before dragging the striker to their own room.
That was just fine with Aaron. He had to clean the blood off of his face, anyway.