Do you ever think about how much taking care of Kevin probably meant to Andrew?
Okay, that makes their relationship sound way softer than it actually is, but here me out for a second. Because the thing about Andrew is, he cares about people. It might actually be the only thing he cares about, because almost every decision he makes seems to be grounded in his relationships to others.
Sadly Andrew has never experienced what it looks like to be cared for in a healthy way, has no way of knowing what to do with all the care he feels. Add a bunch of horrific trauma to that, and you get a way of handling relationship that's... unconventional, at least.
And Andrew is smart. Andrew knows that he's messed up in some way. Hell, his own brother resents him for something that Andrew did purely to help Aaron, and even Nicky, despite trying so hard to make them a family, can't fully hide that he is afraid of Andrew. It's only logical to conclude that Andrew is the problem, that he simply can't form relationships with people where all of him is wanted or accepted.
But then comes Kevin fucking Day.
The thing about Kevin is, he doesn't just need somebody like Andrew - Aaron needed Andrew, being needed isn't enough to save a relationship. But Kevin wants someone like Andrew.
Kevin hasn't been raised to be his own person. He's always been part of a pair, abusive as that situation was, and he's probably aware that if he wants even a chance of staying away from Riko long-term he needs someone to fill that void. Ideally someone willing to knock Kevin out if it stops him from running back to Riko in a weak moment. And who fits that description better than the man who locked his own brother in a bathroom for a week so he'd get clean?
I can only assume that whatever Kevin told Andrew during their famous walk must have been enough for Andrew to realize that Kevin was fully prepared to take on all of Andrew - every mean, violent, possessive, controlling part - if it just meant Kevin could continue to keep playing Exy and not be forced back to Riko.
That thing about Kevin giving Andrew something to live for after he gets clean? Sure. That thing being Exy? No. Andrew gets a chance to live out all of his violent, cruel, caring urges without being rejected for it, and if in the end Kevin somehow manages to be okay, then maybe there's hope for Andrew as well.
