#andrewiel

In honor of Fanfic Writers Appreciation Day, here are a few fantastic works in our favorite fandom.

Signing on the Line by andrewiel @jostenminyard | When Neil Josten is offered a position as a starting striker for a professional Exy team, he feels like all of his dreams are coming true. He signs the contract, not caring about the strict morality clause that controls who he can and can't date in the public eye. Then he meets Andrew Minyard, the top-ranked goalie of a rival team, and then Neil thinks he might just have to care after all.

This fic is ah-mazing. I read it 3 times before I could let go enough to read something else. 10/10

Something in Return by reaching_my_summit @reaching-my-summit | Andrew’s final year at Palmetto State comes to a close. His future is upon him and there are plans to be made. Years ago, Neil asked Andrew to stop smoking in exchange for something. Andrew finally knows what he wants in return.

Post canon andreil happily exploring Disney World.

light fires at night (to push back the void) by inthesea | The first time Andrew realizes he wants to hear the words, Neil isn’t even doing anything. He’s just sitting there, staring at the horizon with that stupidly dramatic faraway expression of his, and letting the cigarette burn down between his fingers all the way to the filter — an outrageous waste of good nicotine, if you asked Andrew. (Or: 20+ times Andrew and Neil say I love you, and one time they say it out loud.)

Remember that fic you read that one time when Andrew counted syllables and consonants and everything about it was just. so. good? I think everyone loves this fic. This was one I read before I read the books based on kudos, then went back and read it again.

dangerous magics by SashaSea (SHCombatalade) @anneuhken | For centuries, there was a war. Then there were the Bindings (Reposted and restricted to registered AO3 users only)

If you’ve seen many fic rec lists, you may have heard of this fic. I searched high and low...and finally it’s back! If you enjoy fantasy, this one’s for you.

Ultraviolence by lscar123 @lscar123 | Neil Josten is of the most successful songwriters in the industry but years of blocking out his own personal pain and writing mind numbing radio hits have started to wear him down so he decides to take a break from it all and return to The Fox Hole, the bar he stumbled onto years ago and helped set up an open mic night at. It's there he meets Andrew Minyard, a bartender who makes an immediate impression on him. Something about Andrew tells him to run but it's either his own stubbornness or his pension for self destruction that makes him stay. Nothing in his life will ever be the same after the first night he spends back in the place he used to call home.

I. Love. Neil. In. This. Fic.

Ohana Means Family by SensationalSunburst @sensationalsunburst | He honestly thought they were going to make it.David understood that adrenaline could make time feel like it was crawling by; make seconds turn to minutes turn to lifetimes. He’d experienced it before. But when a man to his left, up next to Andrew's lot, raised a bottle high, red flushed face contorted in a sneer, he felt time slow to molasses around him.

Part of the Return of Dad!Mack series, in this one, Wymack takes a hit meant for Andrew.

Where You Lead by gluupor @gluupor | When Neil promised Kayleigh that he'd look out for Kevin if anything ever happened to her he'd never expected to be a single teenage father hiding out in a small town. Luckily the town's residents seem keen to adopt them. A Gilmore Girls AU where Kevin's a kid, Neil's his caffeine-addict father, and Andrew's a grumpy diner owner who loves them both.

Part of a just-the-right amount of sweet series set in a small town.

Skilled by wildfrancium @lexatargaryen | Neil has a talent for deactivating sensors that tell doctors when a patient takes their medication. Andrew, a famous Exy player, has a sensor that needs deactivating.

Very cool sci fi.

Kintsugi by SensationalSunburst @sensationalsunburst | “He saw our scars and thought they'd been fixed with gold, like the pottery in the book.” Neil blinked, stunned. “Kids this age are honest.” Andrew said, “They haven't learned to lie.”

This whole series (Small Angry Gardeners) is fantastic, featuring post canon andreil playing pro exy and living in the suburbs. This piece shows Kevin’s son reacting to their scars...it’s beautiful.

Crossfire by RoseGold_En @foxhole-pipe-dream | The year is 2073. Andrew and Aaron Minyard are twins born into a world with a strict one-child policy due to overpopulation. They take on a singular identity as "Adam Minyard", with only one of them allowed outside at a time. Siblings who are discovered are separated from their families and put into an eternal cryosleep. One day, Andrew disappears. Aaron and Nicky have to find him while maintaining the twins' cover. It's up to Aaron to find out who sold them out and why a bureau agent named "Neil" knows his brother's real name.

An excellent distopian au

A Mewment Like This Series by fuzzballsheltiepants @fuzzballsheltiepants | “...will the owner of the cat with the stupid name come back here? Your cat is trying to kill the vet.” And Neil and Andrew both stand up.

A continuing series of vignettes featuring pre-relationship andreil (so far), their cats Sir and King, and various aftg characters. Andrew cooks, and Neil is grateful.

Two Bros Five Feet Apart by Leahelisabeth (fortheloveofcamelot) @leahlisabeth | Jeremy's girlfriend dumps him on the eve of a romantic vacation. Jean fills in.

“You’re making it almost impossible for me to keep my promise,” Andrew says into Kevin’s ear: that manic grin on his face once again. Sobriety never lasts long with Andrew.

Kevin shrugs, and tries not the shiver at the feeling of Andrews breath down his neck, on his skin. He tries to resist the urge to press himself even closer to Andrew just to see his reaction, despite the still sober part of his mind telling him it’ll probably end up with a knife to his gut.

He wonders if tonight he’ll get drunk enough for that not to matter.

“How so?” Kevin asks, once Andrew catches that bartenders eye that he knows (the one that makes something odd sit in the pit of Kevin’s stomach) and orders the next round.

“I said I’d protect you,” Andrew says, his breath hot. “That includes from yourself.”