what ap exams are you taking! i’m skipping most of mine and just taking physics 2 and apes (-ttyl blog <33)
um well i’ve already done 2 and then i have apcs a and apush next week i’m very much regretting not skipping them
imagine if andrew minyard was a flannel gay. the sheer power of that man i-
reporter: ...right, but what do you do with the racquet?
andrew: hit
reporter: how do you keep the ball out of the goal during games it’s incredible
andrew: racquet
pls this is so soft i cant 😭(also a lot longer than i anticipated but that's FINE 👀)
part 2, part 3, part 4, part 5, part 6, part 7, part 8
gang we got this ADORABLE art from @super-yellow-paris go give them aaaalll the love
so andrew and neil aren't too big on PDA, but after Baltimore, leaving the other is always followed by a lingering fear
neil notices how andrew always tenses a bit when neil leaves him, even if neil told him he was going somewhere beforehand
it could him going be to the mall, a restaurant, even just lectures
neil really doesn't like seeing andrew so tense but he can't figure out what's wrong
so one night on the roof, neil straight up asks "why do you always look so stressed whenever I go anywhere?"
andrew doesn't answer for a few moments, and neil assumes he's not going to get an answer but then—
"last time you left, you barely made it back. do you really expect me to trust you now?"
oh, neil realizes. oh, he's afraid i won't come back
andrew looks like he wants to drop the subject, so neil doesn't bring it up again, choosing to rant about his Intro to Stats teacher instead
but he doesn't forget. and he starts noticing how other couples leave one another
matt and dan kiss or hug, nicky and erik say "i love you," aaron and katelyn squeeze each other's hands and look into each other's eyes
it's all very... comforting. reassuring. and neil realizes that that's exactly what he needs to do. he needs to make sure that andrew doesn't forget that neil would never leave him again, not on purpose
so he thinks and thinks and thinks
(he quickly learns that paying attention in his Sports Medicine class is a lot less interesting than thinking about andrew)
neil knows that andrew wouldn't want showy affection with lingering kisses and they haven't really gotten to the "i love you" stage yet, so he needs to figure out a compromise
and then on a cloudy monday morning, the perfect solution hits him
he and matt study together almost every thursday, so 3 days later, they have a plan to head over the library to do some homework
so matt comes up to the monsters' room where neil and andrew are to tell neil that it's time to go
neil hops up from his place curled under andrew's arm on the sofa and goes around collecting his stuff — as usual
and andrew's shoulders begin coiling up with near-unnoticeable tension — as usual
this time though, instead of walking out the door directly, neil pauses in front of andrew and sets down his books on the coffee table near the sofa
and before andrew or matt can react, neil does it
he reaches over, gently cups andrew's face in his hands, and kisses him on the nose
it's feather-light and short, but andrew freezes, his face more expressive than he usually shows, eyes wide
neil gives him a small smile shit shit shit andrew's heart is beating so fast, come on andrew get a hold of yourself say something do something and then he picks up the books delicately and leaves with a gobsmacked matt
andrew doesn't really know what to do with himself and just sits there until kevin arrives 5 minutes later and asks why andrew is so red, if he's okay, does he has a fever, can he still play exy?
andrew shakes out of his stupor, stomps over to his room, and flops helplessly on his bed to be very gay
(this is how neil finds him 1.5 hours later. he tries (and fails) not to laugh. andrew gives him a bruising kiss to shut him up)
it becomes habit though. neil treating andrew like he's something precious, holding his face so reverently, kissing his nose softly
and andrew doesn't know what to do with himself. every single time
but it's okay, he thinks. because while goodbyes might sound permanent, kisses are a promise that the other will come back
Sometimes I literally just come on here to scroll and be an emotional gushy mess. Comfort aftg page <3
the way this is the sweetest thing ever 😭 y'all really be out here making me cry at 1 am
part 1, part 2, part 3 ~ this is your daily reminder to go drink some water ~ part 5, part 6, part 7, part 8
renee tends to be perceptive about any changes with any of her foxes
but she's especially known for having the insider information on andrew (and by extent, his relationship with neil)
she doesn't do anything too special though. she just treats andrew with kindness and recognizes that they are both hurt people trying to heal, even if that healing looks different on both of them
but one of the best methods they can agree on is sparring
renee knows she's strategically a better fighter than andrew, considering her training and specific past
andrew is more... emotions-based — he acts with his heart rather than his head (although she's sure everyone would laugh in disbelief if she told them that)
andrew's aggression and ferocity is largely dependent on his current state of mind, which makes him a rather formidable opponent
he has a lot of pent-up anger. renee knows this. so imagine her surprise when after getting off his drugs, andrew starts throwing slightly weaker punches, moving just a hair slower than usual
(she thought it was the apathy. of course, it later came out that this was the work of one neil josten and his many kisses)
renee is certainly getting used to this newer, calmer andrew
and she's immensely happy that her friend is becoming more comfortable in his skin
but it still takes her by surprise to see how much he lets his guard down around neil, how much softer he is
andrew's certainly no romantic chick-flick lead, but renee sees how his eyes constantly flick over to neil, how andrew seems to lean into him, how it's not "andrew" and "neil" but rather "andrew and neil"
(or as nicky calls them, "andreil." renee would never tell andrew, but she thinks the ship name is extremely cute)
no matter what, though, renee can count on andrew not stopping their sparring sessions
it's less of an outlet for him now, but she likes to think that he enjoys her company, even if he would never admit it
so. it's a Wednesday evening, when andrew and renee usually spar
she's at the door of the gym, texting allison on her phone as she waits for andrew
(no allison, i don't think the twins would appreciate Prada sunglasses for their birthdays. and do you really want to spend hundreds of dollars on a gag gift?)
a few minutes later, the maserati pulls up, with neil in the driver's seat
andrew gets out of the car, walking around the hood to reach renee
but as he passes the driver's seat, renee sees the door open and neil gets out, grabbing andrew's fingers lightly as he pulls him around so andrew's back is touching the car
renee knows she should look away. really, she does
but what kind of a fox would she be if she didn't have something to tease her friend about?
(and besides, she justifies, it happened so quick she didn't even get a chance to look away)
neil and andrew have their eyes on each other and neil gently brings up his hands to caress andrew's check
he leans down and kisses him on the nose, and renee doesn't miss the way andrew's shoulders relax
nor does she miss the faint blush on andrew's cheek that he seems to be desperately keeping at bay
a few moments later, neil gets in the car and drives off as andrew walks to renee, a fake nonchalance in his step
she just smiles at him
andrew scowls
later that evening, nicky unexpectedly opens a new bet, stating that he thinks andreil are "totally the type to give each other cute kisses"
surprisingly, matt and kevin join in on that bet
after a moment of consideration, renee quietly adds that she's betting on nicky's side
there's a moment of surprised silence, before allison scoffs
"when have you turned into such an optimist? i won't ever believe that those two are anything but two tiny assholes"
renee wants to believe there's some affection lacing her words
"okay," nicky claps. "if they do a cute kiss in front of 3 or more of us in the next 2 months, we win the bet"
allison narrows her eyes. "deal"
they shake on it. renee can't wait to win some money
i am CACKLING imagining this
can i just say that neil, having been on the run, would be so good at hiding from the paparazzi.
like, this is why no one finds out that he and andrew are together for so long; he just parkours away from reporters and photographers and leaves andrew to deal with them (aka stare them down)
so i'm going to be taking my last! ever! ap! test! in like 2 hours and i figured we might as well do part two of these studying hcs from last year. for tradition
andrew refuses to sit straight.
he'll be falling halfway off the couch with his book practically pressed to his nose or lying on their kitchen counter listening to a podcast or fully starfished on the floor reciting facts outloud — basically anything he can do to stay out of a chair
neil however knows he won't do shit if he's not in a chair and forced to study
buuuut he also is super hyperactive and sitting around and staring at a book is ineffective for him too
the solution? he bought himself a spinny chair, and whenever he wants to move around or feels himself getting distracted he justs... spins around in the chair for a few minutes
(the first time kevin walked in on him doing this, he was so confused he just backed out of the room)
andrew uses post-it notes religously
it's not even to remember or note stuff, he just likes adding commentary (he especially enjoys making crude remarks towards aaron's anatomy diagrams)
neil hoards notebooks like you wouldn't believe. he never uses them and yet every semester, he's forced to buy more. where do they go? nobody knows
both of them love using whiteboards. in the lounge area on their floor, every board is constantly filled with calculus theorems and obscure laws
they also write each other notes on the boards ("andrew i like your arms" "shut up josten") but they're always hidden within their work on the whiteboard so no one ever notices them
andrew doesn't give a shit what the weather is — if he's studying he will always have one specific blanket over him
he might be sweating, he might be freezing, but that blanket never moves or changes. the one time kevin tried to take it off to clean up their dorm, andrew fully kicked him at him until he walked away
whenever they both need a brain break but still want to be productive, they like making puzzles together. during finals and midterms, the two of them are always found at odd hours with textbooks next to them while they work on a 1,000 piece puzzle
(neil tried convincing andrew to get an exy puzzle. it didn't work)
for the aesthetic (and irony) andrew always has cans of Monster energy drinks at his desk. they just keep multiplying, until at the end of each semester, he builds a pyramid of the monster cans and topples it over by chucking his textbooks at it
he claims it's stress relief. neil just likes throwing textbooks
they decide to take one elective class together and instantly regret it
neither of them were able to pay attention in class with the other right there and then they never did their work because they (stupidly) "studied" for that class together and then they were constantly late because they walked to it together and consequently got slightly distracted every time
so overall, it was not a success. but neil still considers it his favorite class from all of college, just because of how fun the memories associated with it were
(andrew secretly thinks its his favorite too, but that's because of how happy neil looked every class to see andrew sitting next to him)
ok because AP tests are upon us and this is my only way of releasing all my stress, here's a short list of andreil study time hcs for your viewing pleasure
our boy andrew doesn't really have to study
neil on the other hand... actually needs to work to keep up his GPA
he's never really cared enough to study but now he has the foxes and exy and a future to lose so he might as well put in the effort to keep them
neil needs caffeine like he needs oxygen. the man cannot focus for shit without it
he'll down like three mugs of black coffee in the morning and be set for the day
andrew hates it but doesn't complain much as long as neil makes him some actually decent coffee too
(once, neil accidentally gave him the wrong mug and andrew didn't talk to him for the rest of the day)
when andrew does study or does homework, he hates studying in the library
he told nicky that it was because he's "allergic to books"
really, he just knows he'd get distracted and start reading william faulkner or jane austen instead of his textbooks
neil, however, loves the library
he can't study at all in the dorms; he needs to keep moving to new environments so he doesn't get bored by his surroundings
so neil and andrew don't study together half the time
which works out well considering the few times that they do, they tend to get more than a little... distracted
but if the library is closed or neil just doesn't have the energy to leave the dorm, he bullies andrew into helping him study instead of playing video games or reading
(neil gets a kiss for every question he gets right. andrew gets to look at a pretty guy for a few hours. it's a win-win situation)
mr. Neil draws-fox-paws-instead-of-doing-his-work Josten struggles with focusing on literally anything but exy and andrew
so he always ropes in one of the foxes as a "study-buddy" to hold him accountable while he's working
andrew and neil both like having noise-cancelling headphones on while they work, but this also means that people hold full-on conversations with them without realizing that they can't be heard
(also, because they're assholes, even when they can hear the other person, they just... don't respond.)
andrew is a pastel highlights guy. also he's weirdly possessive about his pens
neil just grabs the first mechanical pencil he sees (99% of the stationary he has isn't even his, he just found them laying around campus)
neil is also super disorganized. loose papers everywhere, he can never find anything. no matter how clean a place starts, it turns into a mess within 5 minutes of neil studying there
he also has food wrappers and crumbs everywhere because he constantly snacks while studying
andrew is surprisingly clean - he organizes everything by class and then color-codes everything (granted his memory helps so he doesn't have too many notes in the first place)
anyways, they both have their own methods of studying and it works for them
(aka andrew just vibes and neil frantically finishes all his work 3 hours before it's due)
ok yeah that's all i got right now, my brain is fried and i actually have to study now, pray for me 😔
an incomplete list of northern-californian andrew minyard shenanigans
he gets pissed if anyone asks him if he can surf
the beaches are cold and rocky and gross, no one wants to learn surfing up here
he's totally used to weird weather (a 90° day can have a 50° night) but he absolutely cannot stand extreme temperatures
anything above 100° is reason to riot, and anything below a 40-50° is a good excuse to stay under blankets the whole day
hot days are more common in the bay area than hail, and there's never any snow, so moving to south carolina was a slap in the face
"nicky, do i need more warm clothes or more summer clothes?"
"both, andrew. both."
"why do you not have normal weather systems? just pick one"
andrew literally always carries a jacket with him out of habit
in the south, weather can fluctuate every few days, whereas in california, the weather literally changes every hour and there's almost always a breeze in the bay area
it takes him a long time to realize that hot days in the south just... stay hot. no need for a jacket.
(he still usually has one on hand though. never hurts to be prepared)
san francisco is so. goddamn. boring.
he might not have been there very often as a foster kid, but living like 20 minutes away from it in oakland makes the city really lose its novelty
(also the sfo and oakland rivalry can get very passionate at times. he was just always destined to dislike san francisco)
unironically uses the word "hella." he didn't realize it was a californian thing until it accidentally slipped out in front of the foxes and he got some very confused (and gleeful) stares
andrew calls the two main parts of california "norcal" and "socal" (for northern california and southern california). he cannot for the life of him understand why everyone else is so confused
he has a sort of inherent dislike for socal. he may have literally never been there but... the vibes. he just can't stand them
(andrew refers to socal as "fake california" in his head, as many norcal people do)
honestly, he's a pretty environmental person (aside from the smoking). you really can't live in the bay area without being overly conscious about recycling and sustainability
(he'll constantly bully kevin into separating trash, recyclables, and compostables. kevin never had to do that in the nest but andrew? he's very particular about this.
"kevin. how can you say you're healthy when you're making the planet unhealthy?"
"it's really not that big of a deal—" "it is. shut up and recycle.")
andrew absolutely detests the "sunny, warm, beach" stereotype of california, seeing how inaccurate it is for most of the state
neil likes to joke that jeremy and andrew represent the two extremes of california — sunny and bright vs cold and cloudy
andrew does not find this funny
(okay, maybe a little)
the biggest shock he ever faced was that safeway (a grocery store) wasn't a nationwide chain
apparently it's just a california thing (update: maybe a pacific coast thing?? idek)
"aaron, if tilda's not going to buy groceries, we will just go to safeway ourselves"
"andrew. there are no safeways here."
"... what"
"i was shocked too"
(it ends up being the first thing the twins bond over when they officially meet)
wait so carry on is like... published drarry fanfic right
hii i literally love your headcannons... can you please write Laila and Alvarez hcs? they're so underrated!!
ok yes as it is now pride and these two are my fav lesbians i MUST
so they met their freshman year at USC, when laila tripped over her foot after seeing a hot girl (alvarez) and spilled a coffee all over said hot girl's new white shirt
alvarez proceeded to hate her. even if she was nice to look out. she definitely did not notice that
and because laila does not like to be bested, she decided that alvarez's pretty face would not distract from her annoying personality
their rivalry was the only major point of contention within the trojans — they would constantly bicker in and out of practice
(jeremy, bless his heart, could never figure out when laila and alvarez were flirting or fighting though)
but despite this, they worked wonders on the court
laila was a powerhouse in the goal and alvarez was a relentless backliner
everyone was extremely confused about the nature of their relationship
this on-and-off behavior continued well into their second year
that is, until they got their spring semester classes and laila and alvarez were in the same calculus class
now they actually had to deal with each other, even off the court
they managed to stay out of each other's hair mostly, but one day, alvarez was absolutely stuck on a concept and jeremy was shit at math and office hours were closed and this really wasn't good—
she did the first thing she could and texted laila for help
so laila came over and after some initial awkwardness, they actually started working
and it turns out, laila is really good at explaining math
it turns into a bit of a norm. every wednesday afternoon, they would meet in a café and study together
(and maybe, just maybe, if each week, they began sitting closer and closer to one another, that's really no one's business)
this just slowly happens over the next few months, and one day, it hits the two of them that hey, maybe i actually like her more than a friend?
naturally, laila and alvarez both freak the fuck out at this
so they go to jeremy separately, who is now dealing with two flustered, emotionally-constipated lesbians
laila: jeremy i think i like alvarez. "like" as in i want to date her
jeremy: hmm. maybe you should just tell her?
laila: fucking shit knox are you dumb—
alvarez: jeremy HELP i think i have a crush on laila
jeremy: well, maybe she feels the same way! just tell her that :)
alvarez: you're so goddamn stupid why would i do that—
needless to say, jeremy is extremely overwhelmed.
eventually, he wrangles the two of them together on new year's day at a party
it's minutes to midnight and nearly everyone has a partner, romantic or platonic
laila and alvarez end up pushed up next to each other, surrounded by a bunch of loud, sweaty college kids
but none of that mattered. because with three seconds on the clock, laila and alvarez both felt a surge of courage from jeremy's words
they rushed towards each other just as midnight struck and promptly smashed their noses together
neither of them really expected their first date to be at the ER with swollen, bleeding noses
but hey! there's nothing more romantic than matching ice packs and nose splits, right?
she/her, perpetually sleepy, coffee lover ~ currently an andrew minyard stan account ~
56 posts