Noah didn’t see Lukas as often as he wanted to, anymore. Their class schedules were different and barely overlapped, which meant that most of the time when Noah was in the room, Lukas wasn’t, and vice versa. Sure, they saw each other at practice and in the evenings, but he missed his roommate, missed the guy who had become another best friend to him. Even though they were vastly different people, they worked well together - Lukas brought out the wilder side Noah never really had before meeting the other Vixen, and Noah kept Lukas at least a little more calm than he might have been without him in the room. Or at least he kept Lukas from being lonely when there wasn’t anyone else to share his bed with. Still counts.
So, one might have seen it as Noah acting out for attention if they didn’t realize just how distracted the Vixen had been when he got up to go to his closet, leaving his bed and the food on it for Pretzel’s enjoyment. He only noticed his roommate once he had Pretzel in his hands, his arms outstretched and part of his lunch scattered on his bed. “Shit, okay, so, on a scale of 1 to 10, how mad would you be if Pretzel kind-a sort-a sampled some french fries?”
Lukas had been busier than usual lately. He very rarely pushed himself past what he personally felt was needed of him, and nine times out of ten, he was correct in his estimate. But when it came to Jordan, he wanted to do more than the bare minimum. He’d spent their years of friendship being quick to remind her that she deserved the best and nothing less than that, and by some actual fucking miracle, she’d decided he was up to the task. So he was determined to live up to that. That being said, he was visiting more often than before, sacrificing more weekends than usual. He normally kept his weekends for the free time he craved away from the court, but he had a favorite person to spend his free time with, and unfortunately, they weren’t the closest commute wise at the moment. Still, he had let homework build up, and so he was looking forward to a weekend where he could just hang out in his room with Noah, who miraculously had time for him as well.
He wasn’t all that surprised to walk in to find his cat helping herself to some of Noah’s food. Sometimes Lukas was pretty sure Pretzel was actually a dog. But he just laughed, taking his cat from his roommate’s arms and flopping down on his bed, holding a squirming cat tight to his chest. “Mad? I’m just glad she’s doing it to someone who’s not me for once.”
Louis stared mournfully at the decorations littered over the floor and the rest of them already hanging around the room. He loved Halloween and he loved any excuse to turn the den into something from another planet for a few days. He’d been looking forward to this, he’d had plans. “I told you I’d be late back from classes.”
Louis had had a date. An actual real one with an actual real boy. He hadn’t done that before and it was scarier than anything he’d ever done or seen on Halloween. I mean, he wasn’t gonna call it a date because it wasn’t really, it was two guys hanging out…and making out a little. “How much have you done?” He asked, a pout visible on his face.
“I wouldn’t call this starting,” Lukas said with a snort, staring a little warily at the pile of decorations, most of them tangled together. He’d been absolutely planning to truly wait for Louis before starting, but once seeing what a mess they were in, he got started ahead of time. “All I got up are the cobwebs.”
He climbed down from the little stepstool, kicking a little string of colorful eyeball lights with a hint of annoyance, but he was still pleased someone was actually up for decorating the house. It was something all the Vixens seemed down to do, but it’d been hard to find someone available to help. “Not much, relax. How was class?”
“Not North Carolina,” Brayden deadpanned, knowing it wasn’t a helpful answer. Lukas posed the question like he could choose anywhere in the world. He didn’t know exactly where he would go, but he knew nothing was worth while in North Carolina…or South Carolina even, but at least his bed was there. “I hear Six Flags is cool or Universal Studios. I’d even consider crossing the ocean.” What the fuck was he even saying? There was a reason he didn’t talk to many people, and it was because he didn’t know what to say. It was always hard to function post-game too.
“Hotel bar works too. Requires less gas money,” He mumbled as he began to lead the way to the elevator. He could use a few drinks. He was legal and they won, there wasn’t any reason for him not to. “You would think, but all the games so far haven’t been easy wins or whatever. They’d rather sulk than do anything else.” It was hypocritical of him to say, considering he was one of the few that did the same exact thing after the first game. It didn’t feel like much of a win when you didn’t do anything to contribute to it.
“Specific, thanks,” Lukas said brightly, not at all phased. He wasn’t actually sure what his own answer would be really. Well, he did. Given the choice, pretty much all his time would be spent wherever Jordan was, but he couldn’t always have his way. Palmetto was a close second. It was home now, after all. “Shit, yeah, I’ve been to both for cheer trips. I’m a big fan of roller coasters even though sometimes my height makes lap bars super uncomfortable.” How they got on this topic was beyond him, but he wasn’t going to complain. It was nice that someone had actually seemed to be down for small talk or actually just not being mopey for no reason. Brayden was fitting the bill more than he expected.
“Then there you go, problem solved.” He fell into step beside the Fox, a little extra pep in his step now that he actually had a plan. He was such a social person that just wandering around the hotel without any sort of aims tended to just make him feel listless, his own buzz shrinking. This was better. “Doesn’t a difficult win make it better? What’s the point of just steamrolling everyone? I mean, I never really cared about Exy before but I still understand the sport, and I can tell you all are already playing better this season. If you all keep trying to be perfect or whatever, everyone’s constantly going to be disappointed.” His little rant surprised him, but Lukas didn’t try to retract any of it, realizing he genuinely meant everything he said. “I think it’s been a great season.”
“Does this look like the face of a guy who’s moping?” Logan pulled a face, a little too contrived and sickly sweet, but all in the name of getting his point across. Time and time again, the Foxes held themselves to such impossibly high standards that it hardly came as a surprise to him anymore that their games ended on such sour notes. For their few minutes in the locker room, the striker could’ve sworn his was the only smiling face there… and he wasn’t even that ecstatic for the win so much as he was proud of himself for getting through another one of them without incident. What surprised him was that he had been one of those people who accepted nothing short of perfection, pushed himself to the limit without leeways for mistakes, and now that he was nearing the end of this chapter of his Exy career, it just… didn’t matter. As long as they were the triumphant ones at the finish, why brood so much about the way there?
“I would start moping if you’re fucking expecting me to feed you, Baxter,” he tampered himself down, fell back into his usual lackadaisical mood with the barest of smirks on his lips - he’d been working on annoying people less with his mere presence - and raised his eyebrows at the other. Lukas was… interesting. The beginning of their friendship aside, there was something all too easy and effortless about the other that made him not be so on edge and defensive. “Much less if you think I’m going to be your entertainment for the night… unless it’s something effortless, like just clicking on the tv and sitting back on the bed.”
Lukas snorted, the cheeriness coming from Logan completely out of character, at least in his opinion. Even when they’d fooled around, Logan had still come across as prickly at best, surly at worst. Still, it was nice to bump into someone who seemed to at least not be miserable about the win, which seemed to be the overall vibe of everyone else. Which, naturally, completely confused him. To Lukas, sports were easy. If you lose, you’re sad, if you win, you’re happy. Maybe he just didn’t get it because he didn’t have his whole life riding on cheerleading, and maybe in Exy individual performance was more important than he fully understood, but playing as a team seemed like a good skill to have. And as far as he was concerned, the Foxes had done just that tonight, succeeding as a team when things almost went south. “Your face always looks like you’re moping or judging everyone so take that as you will.”
Lukas laughed again. “I have my own money, thanks.” He grinned a little suggestively, though he was only teasing, of course. “Your entertainment, huh? Sorry, Trask, I’m a taken man now.” It was a foreign sentiment coming out of his mouth but he found that he liked the way the words felt on his tongue. He had zero practice with monogamy, and honestly, at first he’d worried that he’d be tempted back into his usual ways. But talking to Logan, who was someone he not only found attractive but who he’d already been with, it was pretty obvious now that he was so far gone for Jordan that he didn’t need to worry. “I could be down for some TV though, as long as you’re not one of the weird Foxes who like, only watches old Exy footage.”
Of course the night that Brayden didn’t want to be in his room, every one else was. Not that he was looking to hang around a group of people, but he didn’t know what else to do. It wasn’t like North Carolina was any more thrilling than South Carolina. He wasn’t tired, and he wasn’t mentally beating himself up post game, in fact, he felt relatively good about it. Fucking Arlo saved their asses. Clad in a hoodie and sweats, he wondered the hotel, planning on just sitting outside, since it was better than forcing himself to try and sleep. He rounded the corner the same time Lukas did, bumping into him slightly.
“Uh…no,” He mumbled with a half-hearted shrug. He wasn’t moping, but he wasn’t the type to outwardly be buzzing either. “I could eat. Or just leave. It’s dead out here,” He explained. He wouldn’t mind finding a bar to sit in–just anything than wandering around like an idiot.
Lethargy was the overall vibe Lukas was getting from Brayden and he could work with that. He tended to have enough energy and spunk, as his mother used to say, to go around. He didn’t mind being the one who was in an overly good mood, he just didn’t always have it in him to be the one to pull everyone out of their funks. “Great! Though, if you chose the leave option, where exactly would you be going?” Dead seemed like a pretty accurate way to describe the atmosphere of the hotel hallway at this hour, the personal anger and frustration from Foxes who were less than happy seeping out from under the doors and making the air heavy. He hated it, and wanted nothing more to get away. So Brayden being apathetic was an opportunity he was going to pounce on.
“I could go for a drink, what about you? The hotel bar seemed pretty empty when we went past and bar snacks are kind of my favorite food group.” Lukas couldn’t say he’d ever spent an extended amount of time with Brayden, but he didn’t really have any sort of preconceived notion about the Fox. He didn’t exactly come across as the most friendly guy in the room, but usually Lukas was playing that role anyway. “I mean, you guys won. You should celebrate, right?”
Well. That was a blunt way to say hello to someone. Akira couldn’t fault him for it. At this stage in the evening it was better to just be up front than guess and pray you’d gotten it right. The answer, however, was easy enough. Between the win and pulling off one of the best moves he’d ever seen Akira was in a fine mood. Not all victories were easy after all. It was a good reminder to stay on their toes and not get complacent. He shot a smile at the guy and shook his head. “You’re lucky I’m in a good mood. Pretty sure there’s a handful of Foxes who’d have just left you hanging after a comment like that.”
He laughed. “Can’t say I’m all that hungry and more but if you’re looking for company I won’t say no. I couldn’t sleep right now even if I tried. I’m too hyped up from the game. I can sleep on the bus in the morning when we head back. Just have to find someone who doesn’t mind me using them as a pillow. Or I steal a hotel pillow. Which might be the safer option of the two.” Another laugh. “You got anywhere in mind?”
Seeing someone like Akira on a daily basis, while something he was more used to, was still mildly surreal to Lukas. He’d watched his shows with his teammates in high school, listened to them freak out over how hot he was (which, yeah, obviously), and now he was just... there. Going to the same college as him. But it wasn’t surreal in the sense that he got flustered or he felt uncomfortable, but rather it was strange to connect a real person with someone on his screen. “I would have felt zero disappointment. Negative disappointment, actually. You guys are sort of a cult, which is fine and all, but cults should keep their negative energy to themselves, especially when you should be celebrating a win. I mean, hello? Why am I not drunk?”
He wasn’t hungry enough that he would be miserable if he didn’t eat, so he figured he could skip the food part for a bit if Akira was actually offering company. He was bored after all, and he could call Jordan but at some point he had to act like a self sufficient human being and making more friends seemed like a good start. “Well at least someone is hyped. It was a great game, I personally prefer them when they’re close and intense, but you know, I’m just a cheerleader.” He echoed Akira’s laugh with a smile, heading down the hallway. “Nah, we can skip the food. I could go for a cigarette though. Roof?”
Sebastian doesn’t get annoyed easily, he’s generally pretty accepting of–well whatever life throws at him. Things happen, that’s fine. But tonight he’s thoroughly annoyed, and he doesn’t know what to do with it. The problems tonight were not on his offense, he took them into halftime with a lead and he still feels like he’s going to get raked over the coals when the Monday coaches meetings come around. Tonight he’s not going to think about any of it, he’s going to find Noah and he’s going to think about his life outside of this stupid game that he’s signed his soul away to, this thing that feels like it takes and takes more than it gives lately.
He heads towards the hotel room his boyfriend is staying in, an old red USC hoodie pulled up as his own kind of rebellion-not-rebellion, a weak attempt, but something considering he doesn’t want to make a habit of it. He’s typing out a text message–halfway through coming over, please distract me from when a voice that he recognizes draws his attention from the screen of his phone. He’s kind of glad to see Lukas, if not just for the fact that he can point him in the direction of the person that he really wants to see–because he probably has a viable distraction of his own tucked in his back pocket.
“Hey,” He says in acknowledgement and tucks his phone in his pocket, shrugs his shoulders at the question poised by the Vixen. “I mean, I’m annoyed as hell, but I don’t want to be. I was gonna find Noah, but there’s a hot chance he’s checking up on Casey or Cam or something. So, food?”
Sebastian is someone Lukas really only knows through his roommate. And that’s kind of a shame because he seems like someone the Vixen could actually befriend if he tried. Still, he’s set a limit in his head that he’s not going to hang out with people who just want to whine about the night not going as planned, even if it seems maybe Sebastian doesn’t want to do that. So he’s a little wary when he answers. “Depends. Is the annoyance going to like... bring down my room? Because I could easily just go facetime Jordan and ignore everyone.” He doesn’t say it harshly though, he genuinely wants to know. He’s never been one to tolerate the doom and gloom because he’s not equipped to handle it.
Still. He’s hungry. So he locks his phone and puts it in the pocket of his sweatpants before craning his head in the direction of the elevators. Lukas is starting to realize that he kind acts the way he jokes about the Foxes, sticking to Vixens instead of actual Foxes, but Sebastian feels a little different as a staff member and as his roommate’s boyfriend. In fact, he actually thinks it’s a little more fair for Sebastian to be annoyed than anyone when the team probably didn’t execute the way he taught them to. “So, I’ll indulge. The annoyance. Why? I mean, a win is good right? I know I’m just a cheerleader, but I still tend to put a victory in the good things column.”
Reaching the elevator, Lukas presses the call button, leaning against the wall comfortably. “I barely see Noah anymore, so I’m guessing things are good.”
The mood was, once again, off for a victory, but for once Lukas decided he didn’t care. If the Foxes wanted to pout about a victory again, then so be it. Sure, he knew it hadn’t been the game they wanted to play, but to him, they’d gotten the outcome they wanted, and that was enough for him. He, personally, was in a fantastic mood. He’d been texting Piper every now and then since her surprise visit, just attempting to guide her through whatever was happening with her parents, and he’d finally managed to make the coolest girl in the world his girlfriend. Now the Foxes had won, they were in a hotel with no supervision, and nobody wanted to do anything? He found that very hard to believe, and was sure he could find someone willing to get into some trouble with him. Or even just hang out; he was so over the gloom and doom he’d settle for zero trouble for once.
It didn’t take him long to bump into someone but he wasn’t the best at reading people’s moods. He flashed them a grin. “Hey! Quick question, are you moping right now? Because if you’re not I’m bored and hungry. If you are, well...” he trailed off for a moment, smirking. “You’re on your own with that one.”
Piper’s been asleep for at least half an hour but somehow Lukas still hasn’t worked up the courage to just press the call button, his thumb hovering over his mother’s contact information.
Finally, he does it, and it barely gets through one ring before she picks up, her voice sharp in his hear, “I can’t believe you pulled something like this, Lukas.”
Lukas has his headphones in so that even if Piper overhears his end of the conversation from his spot in the balcony, she won’t hear their mother. Maybe his little sister’s delusions about them haven’t been shattered yet, but he’s not keen to be the one to cause the breaking.
Taking a moment to light a cigarette, Lukas finally answers. “Not even a hello? Just immediately blaming me?”
“I don’t know what lies you’ve been feeding her, but clearly they’ve been enough to make her hop a bus to come see you in... where even are you again?”
He rolls his eyes though she can’t see him and lazily flicks ash off the end of his cigarette. “Google is free and Palmetto’s game schedule is readily accessible. If you actually cared about where I was, you could figure it out for yourself, so guess you’ll just find out when you pick her up in Palmetto.”
“Do not start-”
“Don’t start what, calling you out on your bullshit? I haven’t said a damn thing to Piper, not since I saw her a couple summers ago. She came here of her own will, thanks. The accusation was nice, though.”
“I don’t believe you.”
Lukas scoffs. “What reason do I have to reach out to her, exactly? All the happy times we shared together? I was a fucking dick to her-”
“Watch your language-”
“I was a fucking dick to her,” he says a little louder. “I don’t hate her anymore, but I also don’t have a reason to reach out to her. You all aren’t my family. I have my own that I made for myself, full of people who don’t give up on you if you fuck up. And that’s without them being responsible for my wellbeing.”
There’s a long silence, achingly long, that he only knows isn’t a dropped call because his mother can be heard breathing on the other end.
“You were a danger to Piper,” she finally says and her voice is pathetic, childish and whiny.
“Boo-fucking-hoo. If you weren’t ready to square up and be a damn parent, you shouldn’t have had kids. And while I’m the last person to stand up for her, that includes to Piper. She deserves better parents than you. We both do.”
“I’m still your mother, watch the way you talk to me.”
“You’re not though.” His voice is calm now, as it finally washes over him that it’s really okay to feel this way, that he has a right to be angry. Regardless of whatever mistake he made, he’d shown remorse even then, expressed his regret, but it hadn’t mattered to anyone. He’d been tossed aside anyway. “You sent me away because I was a fourteen year old boy who was confused as to why his parents suddenly seemed to love him less. What I did was shitty, but you sent me to an aunt and uncle who didn’t even know my birthday. Did you know I had my first birthday wish when I got to Palmetto? I got tired of nobody caring enough to remember, so I didn’t tell anyone until I got here.”
The silence is deafening and it only fuels the way words are falling past his lips in a way they haven’t since the night he told Jordan about all of this, only this time it hurts, it aches, and he wants to claw out that part of him with his bare hands, toss it at his mother’s feet and make her deal with it for once.
“Everything I have, I have because I earned it on my own. You don’t know how to be a parent, Mom. Neither of you do. You throw gifts at your favorite kid and when that doesn’t pacify their emotions, you chuck them away. Maybe Piper decided she needed to get out before you could do the same to her.”
It’s then that Lukas realizes he can sense someone standing behind him. In his anger, he hadn’t heard the sliding glass door open, and for a moment, seeing her standing there looking stoic and scared all at once, Lukas feels his first rush of affection for his baby sister.
“I have to go. We’ll be back at Palmetto by noon tomorrow. Bye.”
His mother starts to protest but he hangs up anyway, shutting his phone off and tossing it onto the plastic table. He gestures to the other chair with the hand holding his cigarette and Piper takes it. Neither of them say anything for several minutes and it’s nice, but it’s all wrong. Maybe in a different timeline there’s a version of them that’s close, that acts like siblings.
“They’ve been fighting,” Piper finally says. “About me, mostly.”
Lukas nods, lighting another cigarette because apparently he’s a chainsmoker now (because Jordan is 98% of his impulse control) and glancing at her. “As much as they like to think a kid can magically fix their marital problems, unfortunately for you, you’re not an adorable little toddler anymore. You’re having emotions. They suck at those.”
He trusts Piper won’t be offended, she’s so smart, and she’s not, only nodding in agreement. “I’m just scared, I guess. Of what’s going to happen to me when it ends. So I wanted to come see you, because you’re okay, right?”
Her little voice is a plea and it hurts his heart because honestly, he isn’t. Not all the time. So he tells her that. “Most days, yeah. But okay isn’t really a constant state. You have to feel shitty sometimes to feel okay. But if you mean I’m surviving, and making my own way, and keeping my head above water, then yeah. I’m good.”
Piper nods and they lapse into silence again, and this time Lukas breaks it first.
“Look, I’m sorry about what I did all those years ago. I won’t pretend that I have any sort of brotherly... love or whatever for you, because you’re a stranger, but if you ever need to get away, or talk, you have my number now. You know where to find me.” He smiles softly. “Just... warn me next time, yeah?”
Piper gives him a small smile. “Deal. Thanks, Lukas.”
He studies her for a long moment, trying to see any bit of the baby he hated so much in this girl, but he can’t. He was never angry at Piper. He always was, and still is, angry at his parents.
The girl—Piper, apparently—skips off down the hall, leaving Brandon bemused, and with way more questions than he even started out with. It feels a little bit like a tiny tornado just roamed through—Brandon used to deal with kids younger than him when he was in foster care, dealing with them more often than his peers because even if he was quiet and sullen he was still quiet, capable enough at making sure they didn’t do anything stupid and hurt themselves. But it’s been a long time since then. He’s older. And the only “kids” he deals with regularly now are eighteen year old Fox freshmen. They only half-count.
But an explanation doesn’t really get him any closer to what to do about it. The Vixens might not exactly be Wymack’s problem, but he—and Abby—are the most authoritative people on the road. For the Vixens, it’s just Vivian. And, if Wymack’s asleep or just not around, then Brandon’s the closest thing to his deputy that the team has. He can’t help but feel responsible. Though they’re separate, they’re still kind of a unit. Anything that reflects badly on the Vixens reflects badly on the Foxes. And a runaway preteen seems like the kind of trouble that would be easy for someone to—twist, somehow. Any news, with this team, is usually bad news.
He can appreciate that it’s a little awkward, someone Lukas doesn’t know all up in his business—it’s a little awkward for Brandon, too. “Your sister is—something,” he offers, that something a little bit admiring. He doesn’t think that he would’ve gotten up the nerve to take a greyhound by himself at that age, and he was far from a model kid. But maybe that’s at least partially because there was nowhere outside of DC for him to go. “Have you called your parents yet?”
It’s like a game: what would concerned parents do? Sure, he’s mostly working in the dark here, but he’s pretty sure the answer is: call the police.
With a pang, Lukas realizes that for anyone else, Brandon’s sort of compliment would probably make them feel fond, proud to be big brother to such a spunky girl. But to him it’s just... frustrating. Not at Brandon, of course. It’s just that the more he learns about Piper, how she’s quickwitted and intelligent, and apparently brave as anyone else he knows, the more he thinks she’s a little sister he might actually enjoy spending time with. That, of course, also makes him wish he’d actually attempted to get to know her when they were actually living under the same roof. Then it all circles back around to being angry at his parents again and really, it’s exhausting. Instead of being drunk and celebrating a win, he’s feeling emotions. Gross.
“I texted them,” he says lethargically, keeping an eye on Piper as she scans the vending machine choices as if it’s life or death which basically confirms she really is his sister. They look alike now that she’s gotten older, the resemblance uncanny, though her smile is a little warmer than his, less of a smirk. “I’ll call them later when she’s asleep.”
It’s honestly a miracle to him that his parents didn’t call the cops, though according to Piper she left a note that confirmed her confirmation for her ticket because of course it did, so at least they’d known where she was going. Still, he wouldn’t put it past his parents to call the cops just because she was with him, in case he endangered her life again or whatever it was he was supposed to have done last time.
“So... we don’t have to get anyone else involved, right? I’d really rather... do literally anything besides repeat this interaction with anyone else tonight.”
McKenna couldn’t help the surprised expression on her face as Lukas admitted that he hadn’t seen his sister, since he was fourteen. That was an abnormal amount of time to not see a family member, but then again, she hadn’t seen her mother, since she was seventeen or so. “Okay,” She murmured in response, because it felt wrong to pry, especially with said little sister in the room with them. Piper provided a welcome distraction by preparing the hotel room’s TV to watch the Parent Trap. Maybe, it was weird for her to be there, but she had to admit she was excited to watch one of her old favorite movies though.
When Lukas excused himself, it was clear McKenna was meant to follow, so she gave Piper a small smile before stepping outside. The smell of the cigarette smoke reminded her of her mother, practically able to picture her tapping the ash outside of the car window. “Surprise,” McKenna echoed with a quiet laugh, leaning against the railing as she looked at him curiously. “You haven’t seen her since you were fourteen? That’s like six years ago. And she just showed up? Has she said why yet?” She was probably being too nosy, but she hoped that they were somewhat close enough now that he could open up to her.
Lukas took his time tapping a cigarette out of the pack, lighting one, and taking a long drag. The longer he kept his past from the Vixens, the stranger he thought it was that he was doing so. He’d messed up, yes, but he was fairly certain that anyone who cared about him would find the fault to fall largely on his parents. It wasn’t as if Lukas had ever put his hands on Piper, ever actively wanted to harm her. He just wanted her to leave him alone, wanted his parents to notice him again. “Well, I technically saw her the summer before my freshman year here but I stayed out of the house as much as possible.” It was candid coming from him, but he felt like McKenna had earned honesty at this point. He’d been aching for a friend, an actual honest friend to be open with since Jordan had graduated, and she’d proven herself to be someone he could trust simply by continuing to hang around him. His standards were admittedly a little low, but abandonment cut him deep.
He shook his head, pulling one of the cheap plastic chairs to him and flopping down in it, propping his long legs up on the balcony railing. “Ah, sort of. She wanted to see me and our parents wouldn’t let her, so she took matters into her own hands.” It was honestly a little flattering that Piper had apparently wanted to see him so badly, and, admittedly, comforting. She didn’t harbor any resentment from what had happened. “Look, the SparkNotes version is that I was an only child and my parents were on the brink of divorce. Suddenly Piper arrived and their marriage was magically repaired. In my ten year old mind, it was her fault. So I just... ignored her. Or bullied her. And it was shitty, especially when I was fourteen and left her at a park so she’d leave me alone for a bit.” He took another drag from his cigarette, surprised to feel that he could still be angry about this, that it still hurt. “I thought maybe my parents would ground me, but instead they sent me away to live with an aunt and uncle who hate me, and they lived out their perfect fairytale life with Piper. Though I suppose something isn’t so perfect if she came to see me when they give her everything she wants.”
McKenna let out a surprised laugh when the girl politely held out her hand to greet her, not expecting such a formality from someone so young. She didn’t hesitate to shake her hand though, peering over her shoulder to give Lukas an amused look. “It’s nice to meet you, Piper,” She grinned. He seemed just as surprised by the turn of events as she was, clearly not in on the plan to watch a movie. McKenna wasn’t sure what was going on, and should probably leave them to it, but it all became a little more clear when Lukas explained that she was his sister. That seemed like even more of a reason to go, because she didn’t want to get in the way of their family time, but then Lukas invited her just as he was about to head inside. “I don’t want to intrude,” She shook her head.
She found herself stepping through the doorway despite her words though, quickly stopping as Lukas’s hand met her elbow. “Parent trap,” She suggested immediately. McKenna never had the luxury of watching a lot of movies as a kid. Her mom never took her to the movies, and they didn’t have a collection at home, because they never had much of a home, but she did manage to see Parent Trap, and it was instantly her favorite. It made her wish she had a long lost twin. Probably because being an only child was lonely. “If they have it, I mean. Maybe Frozen?”
Seeing Piper introduce herself to McKenna was surreal, not because of how mature his little sister seemed to be, but rather because seeing Piper in the world he had built for himself after his parents had denied him further access to theirs was like looking at his own life through a layer of glass. It all didn’t come together very well. Lukas shook his head a little, lowering his voice as Piper made herself at home. “You’re not intruding. I haven’t been alone with Piper since I was fourteen, and I haven’t seen her since the summer before my freshman year. You’re a very welcome presence right now.” That was at least partially true. While he’d prefer to be alone in this weird moment, now that he had a buffer, she didn’t hate it.
“If I have to watch Frozen again, I’m running away for real. Parent Trap sounds good,” Piper said matter-of-factly, already figuring out the movies on the hotel TV on her own. Lukas had a hard time associating this girl with the one he’d hated from the moment she was born, though of course he didn’t feel that way anymore. Still, she was a stranger. She was quick, serious, and had run away from his parents to see him which was far beyond his comprehension. “Okay, cool. Charge all you want, I’ll just make the parents pay me back anyway. If I go out on the balcony for a cigarette, are you gonna stay in the state?” This time Piper cracked a smile, promising to stay put, and Lukas headed out for the balcony, waiting until McKenna had followed him before shutting the door and fishing out his cigarettes. “Sorry about… this. I don’t know why she’s here, or why she chose an away game to surprise me, but… anyway. I have a little sister. Surprise.”
As a player, traveling for away games, staying in hotels, had felt kind of glamorous—it’s not the kind of thing Brandon had ever gotten to do, before. Now, though, after probably around six months of living on Wymack’s couch? He thinks he might like it even better—just another sign that it’s probably time to move out, move on. Find somewhere to live where he has a bed that doesn’t spend half of its time being a couch. Where he doesn’t have to worry that he’s in the way, or wearing out his welcome—though, he can admit, those feelings are more his own than anything Wymack’s made him to feel.
But Brandon’s also frustrated: some of that is familiar, the ongoing struggle to redefine his relationship to the game; and some of that is new—he’d think the Foxes should be ecstatic, and they’re not, and it bothers him. He remembers what it was like to lose and lose and lose, and to still love the game anyway. Remembers, less frequently, what it was like to win, to live so fully in that moment, because they couldn’t know when it would happen again. One year after a strong season, have the Foxes gotten so used to winning that they can’t appreciate a six goal night? It’s maddening. It almost makes him wish for the quiet of Wymack’s apartment, pull-out couch and all.
He probably wishes that a little more when he sees Lukas. Or, more accurately, the kid that he’s got with him.
His reaction is pretty immediate—I need an adult. A more adult adult. Wymack, preferably. But Brandon’s been on enough away games with Wymack to know that Wymack probably wouldn’t want to be bothered—and a Vixen wouldn’t be his problem, anyway. Not Brandon’s problem, either, really. But if there’s a theme of the night it’s that he can’t quite bring himself to leave well enough alone. So—why the fuck not. Being the adult he imagines in his hour of need—(Wymack, it’s really just Wymack)—starts now: “Explain.”
Lukas doesn’t really think he owes a Fox staff member an explanation about anything, but before he can say as much out loud, Piper is interrupting him to dish out her life story, a-fucking-pprently. “I’m Piper. Lukas is my big brother and my parents don’t like him much but I don’t see why because I liked him a few summers ago. So I saved up my allowance to come see him myself since they won’t take me and this game was the cheapest ticket Greyhound had. The end.” She stops there, turning to Lukas. “Can I go to the vending machine?” In a weird sort of daze, he nods, and she skips off as if she didn’t just unload all that on someone Lukas has talked to like, maybe once.
Still, it at least answers some questions for him. He and Piper had come to the hotel separately from the other Vixens, and he certainly hadn’t wanted to talk in the Uber on the way over because this was the part of his life that he didn’t share with people, stranger or best friend. Telling Jordan about it had been enough to handle, and he’s not sure he has the emotional capabilities to deal with this more than once. But now he knows that Piper is here because she’s decided that despite what he did (and he knows their parents told her) she still wants to be his sister. That’s beyond foreign to him, because his parents hadn’t wanted to be his parents anymore after his mistake.
That just further drives home the conclusion he’s come to over the years that his parents just aren’t really cut out for being caretakers in any capacity. They’ve denied Piper what she wants, which is apparently to see him more, and now she’s run away because of it. She literally got on a Greyhound and left town. Perfect, spoiled Piper. She’s the same age he was when he started acting out, and he can’t help but wonder if maybe his parents are just as bad as handling it with her as they were with him.
Clearing his throat a little awkwardly, all Lukas can offer Brandon is a shrug. “That’s the gist, yeah. I wasn’t planning for this at all, but you don’t have to worry about it. I’ll get her back to the Den safely, and then my parents can come collect her and we can pretend this never happened.”
The mood in the hotel was strange, considering the Foxes won. It wasn’t remotely like how Lukas described after the last game. She expected parties and hotel “shenanigans,” but everyone was mostly keeping to themselves. McKenna couldn’t help but be disappointed that her first away game turned out to be so somber. She wasn’t feeling much like celebrating either, considering they had such a poor audience for the half-time show, the home audience were too bummed with the score to cheer them on. Still, she didn’t want to sit in her room and do nothing. She remembered Lukas’ numerous offer to come to his room whenever she wanted, so decided she would actually take him up on it–pretzel or no pretzel.
McKenna showered and changed into pajamas first, figuring if he was up for hanging out that they wouldn’t really do much, so she might as well be comfortable. Remembering his room assignment, she headed in that direction, pausing when she spotted him in the hallway with a young girl. A laugh bubbled from her lips. Kidnapping wasn’t the first thought that crossed her mind. “I didn’t think so,” She shook her head as she approached them, waving at the girl. “Hi, I’m McKenna. I was just stopping by to see if Lukas wanted to do something.”
Before Lukas could even say anything, Piper was stepping forward, extending her hand for a handshake like she’d stepped straight out of a movie about a kid genius. She probably was a kid genius. “I’m Piper. We were just about to watch a movie.” Lukas raised his eyebrows in surprise, pausing in getting the key card into the hotel room door. He hadn’t said anything about watching the movie with her. He was fully prepared to get her set up, go call his worried parents, and then hopefully find someone who would want to actually acknowledge that so far this season they were on a winning streak. He’d actually intended on finding McKenna, actually, figuring he owed her some hotel shenanigans after how much he’d talked them up, but the Foxes had decided to be mopey and his baby sister had shown up like she spent her life travelling. Things had definitely not gone as planned. “Ah... right. McKenna, this is my little sister, Piper. We’re apparently going to watch a movie so...” he trailed off, leaving the insinuation that McKenna should leave hanging, before changing his mind. “You can join us, if you want.”
The existence of Piper was one nobody knew about, with the exception of Jordan, but considering she wasn’t here anymore, nobody on the squad knew about what had happened in his youth, what had brought him to Palmetto. He didn’t like to talk about, didn’t want people to know. Most people seemed to like him, and he didn’t really want to change that. With a sigh, Lukas finally got the hotel room door open, holding it open for both Piper and McKenna, grabbing McKenna’s elbow lightly as she passed him, speaking lowly to her. “If you have any movie suggestions appropriate for an eleven year old girl, I’m all ears.”
At this point in his life, Lukas had nothing against Piper. Of course when he’d been a ten year old with a new baby sister, a fourteen year old with a kid around that his parents obviously preferred, the only logical thing was to blame it all on Piper. She was the one who had shown up uninvited, who’d disrupted his easy life where both his parents adored him. It’d taken distance and a lot of late night thinking to realize that none of it had ever been Piper’s fault. A lot of it had been his, sure. He’d reacted poorly, though the addition of a new kid being able to fix seemingly every problem his parents had been having had stung in a way that he still felt every now and then if he let himself think about it enough. But his parents had never been parents, not in the way he needed them to be. All they knew how to do was dote. They’d doted on him, and then they’d doted on Piper. But when being spoiled hadn’t been enough for him anymore, they’d been completely lost. They didn’t know how to discipline, didn’t know how to get to the bottom of his feelings, and as a preteen and teen, he hadn’t known either.
It’d taken a lot to accept that his parents weren’t really cut out to be parents, but if he hadn’t reached that conclusion before, his eleven year old sister showing up with a fucking Frozen backpack and a Greyhound ticket in her hand would’ve been enough to confirm it. She must have been feeling things lately too, with incompetent parents to help her navigate it.
Her showing up, luckily, wasn’t really ruining his night, since despite the win, the Foxes all inexplicably seemed to be in sour moods. No parties for him. “Alright. I’m putting you in my room, you can pick a movie to watch that’s like... PG-13, and then I’m calling Mom and Dad to inevitably be blamed for this.” He was hoping he could get Piper to his room without seeing anyone, but he should’ve known better, and just as he reached the door, someone spotted him and started down the hall. “Uh... hey. I promise I did not kidnap this small child.”
She’s known to prick and please. Little words served with just enough snipe and sweetness to keep people on their toes. Had she imagined the weight held in Lukas’ voice at her comment ? “Of course.” She repeats before rolling her eyes. “Don’t get too ahead of yourself.” Peering into his catalogue, Vivian wondered what her future held as well. She didn’t believe in dreams. Like her mother’s dream to make her into a star and her father’s to make her into a scholar. No, Vivian believed in goals. Become the most popular girl in high school. Homecoming Queen. Prom Queen. Get into college. Become a Vixen. Become the Captain of the Vixens. All goals she achieved unlike dreams that weren’t specific ; so what next did Vivian have to do ? Win a cheer championship ? What after ? Where would the real world put Vivian Brooks ? She wouldn’t and couldn’t go back to the acting nor the modelling world. Vivian stubbornly refuse.
“You could stay and be my assistant ?” It’s said teasingly with a smirk accompanied. Laughing at his joke. “Depends like cease to exist and everyone forgets you or cease to exist and everyone just thinks you went missing. Very crucial details here Baxter.” Vivian raises her hand to take the book. “What about me ? Since the whole Queen role has already been sadly taken.”
“Too late. I’m already reexamining every single time you’ve seen me around the Den in just a towel, probably having all sorts of naughty thoughts,” he says in a deadpan, before flashing her a grin. “But really, me lot get ahead of myself? It’s like you don’t even know me.” What made the joking funny to him was that he really didn’t get ahead of himself, not in all aspects of life. He thought there was a huge difference between being vain and thinking highly of himself, and he certainly fell under the vain category. Knowing he was good at flirting, at winning people over, at smooth talking his way out of situations didn’t exactly help him with prospects of the future. So strokes to his ego, which was far more fragile than he thought anyone had ever realized, were something he immediately took to heart and accepted as fact. If he armed himself with thoughts of all the times he’d made pretty people laugh and all the times people sought him out for company, the real world couldn’t get to him as much.
“I would be the worst assistant and you know it.” It was true. He wasn’t cut out for leadership, though he’d always done pretty well at tagging along with people who actually were leaders, like Jordan, and now Vivian. “Well, nobody could ever forget me, and if I went missing-” he stopped at that, trying to imagine a world where his parents would go out of their way to find him if he went missing, but the image didn’t come. “Neither of these are an option, so clearly I have to get my shit together.” He gave her an appraising sort of look, actually thinking it over for a moment. “My answer depends on how much of a role you want cheerleading to play in your life down the road.”
McKenna didn’t know whether to laugh over his fragile ego or blush at the fact that that he hinted that he thought she was pretty. The result ended up being a combination of the two as she let out a mix between a cough and a laugh, her cheeks flushing red. As much as she tried to act normal around people, boys in particular, she still couldn’t help but get flustered when she was complimented. She just wasn’t used to it. The wink didn’t help either. McKenna was just glad that Lukas was so friendly so far, she didn’t need to get caught up in all the other stuff. She liked having him around. “Or maybe you got a cat to get pretty girls to come to your room,” She suggested with a playful grin, taking a slow sip as she willed her cheeks to return to their regular color, though the alcohol wouldn’t help.
Hotel shenanigans. That could mean so many things when there was about thirty young adults staying under one roof. McKenna wanted to know more. “Okay, first of all, what are hotel shenanigans like and second, what are the other four things on that list?” She asked, the alcohol starting to help her loosen up a bit. Somehow, Mckenna still managed to avoid ever being properly drunk, always leaving before the party got too crazy. It was probably for the best, but she still couldn’t help but be curious what it was all about.
Lukas raised his eyebrows at her reaction but he didn’t question it, not wanting to embarrass her further, if that was what was going on. It was always a little startling to him when he gave out a compliment and someone reacted humbly like she was, because of how easily he accepted compliments aimed in his own direction. Still, he had a hard time accepting that she might not be aware that she was pretty. He had a hard time accepting any girl around here didn’t know that they were pretty. “I’m hurt that you think it takes a cat for girls to come to my room. Or boys. I’d like to think I’m appealing on my own.” Lukas didn’t mean to sound like he was bragging or like a different person came to his room every night. She’d have noticed by now if he kept himself that busy.
Grinning, Lukas downed his drink, refilling from the nearby keg before answering. “I’ve broken into the hotel pool after hours. More than once. Uh, we pretty much all have found a way to get on the roof even if it’s restricted before. I learned how to trick a vending machine when I was twelve so I do that at hotels a lot too.” He had to think about that one, pretending to stroke his chin in thought as he leaned back against the wall they were standing near. Counting on his fingers, he started listing them off. “Banquet shenanigans because I always sneak in alcohol, sex because that counts, road trip shenanigans, and-” he stopped, gesturing around the room. “Parties, of course.”
