kandreil autism trio headcanons
andrew has the most canonical basis for being autistic, whereas kevin (arguable) and neil could be explained by severe trauma and limited socialization. but it’s my story now and i say they are all autistic.
special interest - history and exy!
his obsession with exy was encouraged and evermore didn’t really care beyond PR training
still very aware of his actions in public but easily unmasks in private
diagnosed as a child before his mother passed
kayleigh was also autistic. exy is a hereditary special interest now
needs strict routine and safe people
struggles greatly with going new places and going anywhere alone/without someone safe
uses alcohol to cope with the significant change of leaving evermore and to feel “normal” without his lifelong routine of the nest to rely on
eventually learns better ways cope and makes a new routine at palmetto
relapses when he graduates and has to move to a new team
struggles with his alcohol use on and off until andrew graduates and moves in with him (neil follows)
flapping, pacing, verbal stimming via infodumping
really enjoys the repetition of exy drills and likes the noise that the ball makes when it hits the plexiglass. will literally spend hours doing raven drills just to regulate himself
no compression/anything tight
he will freak the fuck out if any of his clothes are Touching Him Too much. chronic wearer of oversized sweats in private, loose flowy pants and button downs in public
pretty much the only part of exy he dislikes is the compression of the gear they have to wear
it takes andrew ages to convince him that he’s allowed to skip even just night practice on days where his sensory issues are particularly bad and the possibility of a meltdown outweighs the benefits of participating in exy
major tactile sensory issues
everyone thinks he’s being a snobby rich kid about fabrics and thread counts until he has a meltdown when their new jerseys are a different brand with a slightly lower quality material
big fan of linen and silk/high quality satin
stays clean shaven because facial hair Feels Wrong.
sometimes waxes his body hair too for the same reason but it’s hard to keep up with consistently
likes andrew’s body hair though... it’s softer than his and fun to stim with
neil’s forgetful stubble is the bane of his existence. no kisses until he's shaved
hyperverbal when unmasked
this man is saying anything and everything, with not a care in the world if anyone is listening
takes great care with what he says in public. nearly everything is scripted
gender and sexuality are weird and he doesn’t really care about either of them
he loves his partners but can’t really tell the difference between romantic and platonic feelings. it doesn’t really matter in the end
does Not like making out. slimy. kisses are acceptable
he’s a man in the sense that he was raised as one and never thought to look beyond that. he’s not a man in the way that it literally does not matter to him
sort of classic meltdowns in which he might hurt himself ie: hitting, scratching, hair pulling
classical music and catchy chorus pop songs
i don’t think he could feasibly live independently. accommodating for needs is not enabling! even for someone like kevin who has a strong background for codependency and a large trauma component in regards to being alone. he has support needs! he struggles a lot with daily tasks and needs someone to help him out.
special interest - human behavior!
medication made it impossible for him to have/engage in special interests
this contributed to his continued dysregulation and extreme sensory seeking/self destructive behavior
low empathy and flat affect
he does not understand why people feel and do the things they do, hence the special interest in trying to understand it
extremely good at reading body language and uses it to compensate for the fact that he cannot read tone at all
always says what he means and keeps his promises
not his fault people don’t believe him or keep trying to read between the lines
speaks minimally because he finds no need for any filler
already knew but was formally diagnosed by bee
regularly got in trouble for rolling his eyes and not “watching his tone” while in foster care
insane pattern recognition
people tend to find it disturbing/uncanny the way he can predict things
he stopped telling people what would happen because no one ever listened to him until it was too late. sometimes he wishes he could stop noticing
very grateful that his partners always believe him and don’t ask him to explain how he knows
jealous of people who live “normally”
it’s less that he doesn’t like the way he is and more that it just seems so much easier
ignorance is bliss and intelligence is a curse sometimes
can manifest as anger and resentment towards others
less routine and more consistency/resistance to change
isn’t nearly as rigid in routine as kevin, but still doesn’t like new things
tries to maintain a middle ground between neil’s impulsiveness and kevin’s routine
some of his repetitive behaviors are more rituals than stims
struggles a lot with rumination but only betsy is privy to the specifics
internal shutdowns more than meltdowns
can present as depressive episodes and result in self injurious behaviors
sensory seeking despite his general avoidance of people, places, and things
enjoys the lights and music of eden’s! loves giving himself hearing damage via loud music
went to raves and underground parties when he was younger but tolerates the crowds less and less as he ages
finds it very difficult to meet his sensory needs due to being rather low energy
pain stimming, compression, fidget toys, humming
doesn’t use physical/body stims nearly as much as neil or kevin
does like adrenaline things like roller coasters and driving way too fast with music far too loud
uses sparring as a healthier outlet for pain stimming
also uses sex as a way to meet sensory seeking needs
fine line between compression (good) and weight (bad)
selective mutism since childhood
frequently nonspeaking and does learn sign language, but it’s more for when neil is nonspeaking than himself
prefers to write but sometimes that is too much as well
communication cards and could probably benefit from an AAC but doesn’t have that much radical self acceptance
he is the only one who has any sort of general life skills because he’s the only one out of all of them who has ever had to be completely independent (and from a young age!). additionally, he’s the most therapized out of all of them and has the best coping skills. he enjoys being alone and could live independently if he wanted. instead, he keeps a separate bedroom for himself in their apartment.
special interest - exy and maths!
finds solving equations very soothing
there is only one correct answer and a set way to get to that answer
actually isn’t very good at basic maths and uses a calculator for most addition/subtraction
enjoys languages as well but more because they remind him of his mom than actual interest in them
does not like the lack of strict rules in language
never bothered learning the social norms/context of the cultures resulting in a very textbook understanding
not necessarily low empathy but lacks knowledge or interest in social niceties
extremely blunt and socially unaware. does not care
consistently dysregulated and unable to identify his needs due to a lifetime of ignoring them
it takes So Long for him to start unmasking and even longer for him to start trying to accommodate for himself
just starts taking andrew and kevin’s suggestions and trying to model what works for them until he develops a better understanding of his own needs
comfort from familiar things
doesn’t let himself develop a real attachment to routine because he always expects he’ll need to leave it behind
but he does like Things. specific brands of clothing and food. favorite silverware
starts to carry around comfort items
his keys of course. also a little fox plushie he keeps in his evil jorts cargo pocket
never gets a formal diagnosis unlike andrew and kevin
they were already pulling teeth with the PTSD diagnosis. best not to push things too much
obsessive with small details and the correct order of things
part of it is the PTSD hypervigilance but a lot of it is the Need For Things To Be Correct
can get very tripped up on small, semantic details and is unable to move past them
will correct people even if he knows it doesn’t matter or it’s irrelevant to the main point
deep pressure, verbal stimming/echolalia, rocking, spinning, running
huge oral fixation
loves loves loves chewing on things (and people)
he will bite his partners. he uses it as a form of communication depending on how hard he bites and where
loves being squished by his partners
will bang his head on the desk, bedboard, wall, etc
not necessarily a meltdown thing, just a harmful stim
much more verbal than andrew but does have times where he can’t or doesn’t want to speak
can use sign language
very rarely is fully nonspeaking. even in verbal shutdown, he uses a lot of echolalia and more animalistic noises like growling or humming
mostly motor tics but it can be hard to tell his verbal tics and verbal stimming apart because most of it is just noises
mix of meltdowns and shutdowns, though he tries to suppress both
mostly results in dissociative episodes and/or eloping
he is the kid on a leash. he’s happy stimming? he’s running away. he’s having a meltdown? he’s running away. overwhelming environment? underwhelming environment? he’s already gone
independence looks different for everyone! with all of his issues combined, i think independent living would be very difficult and potentially unsafe once he started actually unmasking and acknowledging needs. but that is not something easily accepted when you’ve spent your entire life fighting for freedom so there would be a lot of compromise. he would definitely need a very involved support system at minimum. similar to kevin, i think he would struggle for a while after graduating before eventually moving in with andrew and kevin.
in conclusion: autism to autism to autism communication.
edited 9/30 for readability on desktop
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