"This is stupid," Aaron said for the fourth or fifth time since they'd left campus. "We just fixed the line-up. Now you're going to screw us over again."

Kevin ignored him. He'd argued the first time Aaron protested, and he wouldn't waste his breath repeating himself. Neil was more tolerant of Aaron's frustration thanks to his own nerves, but he knew there was no changing Kevin's mind. He'd given Kevin control of his game and trusted Kevin to make the most of his potential. If Kevin thought he could handle this, Neil wouldn't let him down. It might mean working twice as hard as he had up until now, but he'd meet Kevin's expectations somehow.

"This is the best week for me to switch," Neil said as he followed Andrew out of the car. "We're up against JD on Friday. You guys can take them without any help from me."

As the Foxes rose in the rankings, JD Campbell University fell. The JD Tornadoes had always sat near the bottom in the southeastern district but now they held the unenviable role of last-place players. They'd won barely half their games so far this season. Kevin could outscore them with one hand behind his back. The only question was whether or not Andrew would find them interesting enough to guard his goal against. Chances were he'd be so bored by their performance he wouldn't even try.

JD was their last match in November, since next weekend they were off for Thanksgiving. There was one more game the first of December, and with that the Foxes' fall season was over. They had a week off to study for their finals, a week of exams none of them were looking forward to, and an Exy Christmas banquet December 16th. Thinking about it soured a little of Neil's good mood. It felt like he'd just met Wymack yesterday. Now the season was a blink from being over. The Foxes were guaranteed a spot in spring championships, so there'd be more games in January, but Neil couldn't bear thinking he was almost done.

He still didn't know where he was going to spend his two-week Christmas break. He was betting the cousins weren't going anywhere, since Kevin would be intolerable if they took him too far from the Foxhole Court. Hopefully Neil could stick around and get some practices in. He'd just have to figure out what excuse to give the team for not going home.

They passed a register on their way through the front door into Exites, and the cashier on duty spit out his coffee when he saw Kevin. Neil shied away from Kevin's too-recognizable face and began looking around the store. The first floor was mostly clothes, with fan material taking up the front half and workout clothes in the back. Posters and displays showed local athletes modeling uniforms the store produced.