He'd forgotten about Andrew's plans for him. When Neil left the shower after Friday's practice he expected everyone else to be gone. Neil rode to practices with the team, sharing the bed of Matt's truck with Allison, Seth, and Renee, but he always ran back to the dorm alone afterwards. The others caught on within a couple days that Neil liked leaving after them, and none of them had asked him why. They didn't try to change his mind and stopped waiting on him after the second day. Maybe it was a Fox thing, knowing when there were boundaries they really shouldn't cross and questions they'd never get answers to. Neil wasn't sure, but he appreciated it.

Friday was different, though. Neil lugged his dirty uniform into the locker room and saw Nicky waiting on one of the benches with a black gift bag.

"You survived your first week," Nicky said. "Did you have fun?"

"Is it going to be like this all summer?"

"Pretty much," Nicky said. "At least it's never boring, right?"

Neil dropped his uniform in one of the laundry baskets, checked his locker to make sure it was secure, and turned to find Nicky standing right at his back. Neil put a hand up to shove Nicky out of his space. Nicky was expecting it and pushed the black bag into Neil's open palm.

"This is for you," Nicky said. "Andrew said you don't have anything appropriate for where we're going. He told me what size to get you, and I picked it out. Trust me, it's awesome."

Neil stared at him, thrown. "What?"

"You didn't forget about our party, did you? Here." Nicky hooked the twine handle over Neil's fingers. Neil watched him do it, trying to remember the last time someone gave him a gift and coming up blank. That his first one should be from Andrew was unsettling.

Nicky misinterpreted his discomfort as suspicion and laughed. "No catch. It's more for us than you, honestly. We can't be seen with you in public if you look like a raggedy hobo. No offense." He waited a beat before finally realizing something wasn't right. "Neil?"

"Thank you," Neil said, but even he heard the uncertainty in it.

Nicky studied him. Neil stared back, refusing to give anything else away. Finally Nicky tweaked Neil's hair. "We'll pick you up at nine, all right? I suggest napping until then. We'll be out all night. We've got all the right contacts to keep the party going until dawn." Nicky grinned and gave Neil's hair another tug. "Speaking of, ditch them tonight. Your contacts, I mean."

Neil's stomach roiled. "Shut up."

Nicky gave an exaggerated look around as if checking for eavesdroppers. "Look, it's not like they're a secret. Anyone who's looking can see the ring in your eyes that means you're wearing lenses. I saw 'em day one. I just didn't think they were fashion lenses until Andrew said so. And seriously? Brown? How boring can you be?"