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So, I was thinking about how Andrew was in the car with Tilda when he wrecked it and how he could have gotten hurt and I just– Can you imagine if Andrew went deaf in one ear or something?
Like, he for sure wouldn't say anything about it. Aaron hates his guts, and he barely knows Nicky. Why would he bother telling either of them? He probably figures it could be temporary at first, but when he starts to think it might be permanent, he still says nothing about it. It's not like they would care, right?
So he would say nothing. People just think he's this asshole that ignores people (and, sure, sometimes he is ignoring them because people be fucking annoying) but half the time he just legitimately doesn't hear them. None of the Foxes notice. The staff don't either, since Andrew always keeps his hearing ear towards them. It causes issues, sure, but it's not like anyone would be able to fix it, so Andrew still stays quiet. But Neil figures it out.
It takes him a while, but he eventually notices that Andrew always sits on a certain side or has to turn to face Neil when he hasn't quite managed to pick up what he said. He starts watching and realises that he does it with the others too, and he's much more likely to completely ignore someone speaking to his left.
One day, when the monsters are hanging out, Neil finally decides to ask:
Neil decided to speak up during a lull in a conversation that Andrew was totally zoned out of. "Drew?"
"Hmm?" It's subtle, but Andrew definitely turned his right side slightly more towards Neil.
"Can you not hear out of your left ear?" Neil asked, and Andrew just blinked at him for a moment.
"Neil, what are you talking about?" Kevin shot him a confused look.
"I'm deaf in my left ear." Andrew said to answer them both.
"What??" Nicky looked startled. "Since when?"
Andrew considered that for a moment. "Since about a week before we met."
"Hold up," Aaron held up a hand. "Are you telling us you have been deaf in one ear since the crash?"
"Yes."
"And you didn't think to maybe say something about it?!"
Andrew shrugged. "I didn't think you would care." It wasn't a jab, it was just the truth.
"Andrew–" Nicky splittered a little. "Of course we care!"
"Telling you doesn't really make a difference." Andrew said, glossing over his own surprise at how much his family seemed to genuinely care about him. "The hearing loss doesn't just go away because you know about it."
"No," Neil agreed. "But there are things we can do to help."
And they do. They all make small adjustments, simple things that make Andrew's life easier. He and Neil even learn ASL together. It increases the amount Andrew calls them all annoying ten-fold, but he secretly appreciates it.