“Mmmmm, what time is it? I moaned” Toni rolled over onto her back and then sat up on her knees.
“9:30, breakfast is ready.” And then she picked up a throw pillow that was in the corner of the bed against the wall and gently hit Xavier on the shoulder. “Get up ugly.”
He lifted his head, opened one eye and peered at Toni. “You woke up looking like that and you’re calling me ugly?” He said and then closed his eye again.
“This is pure perfection she said. You on the other hand. Well let’s just say you can stand to improve a little.”
She crawled to the end of the bed and then stood there for a minute so Xavier reached over me and grabbed the pillow that Toni had hit him with and flung it at her but she caught it and threw it back hitting in right in the head.
“Watch your back.” He mumbled voice heavy from having just woke up. You’ll never see me coming.”
“Whatever man.” She said shot a bird at Xavier and left the room, closing the door behind her.
He rolled over onto his back and folded one of his arms above his head, dug his fingers in to his hair to scratch his head. “I thought you locked the door last night.”
“Nope, I thought you did.”
I pulled the covers off of me and then climbed over him to get off the bed but was regretting my decision because it was freezing in our room especially since I was only wearing yoga shorts and tank top. I picked up Xavier’s joggers off the chair sitting in the corner, stepped into them and pulled the draw string as tight as I could but they still fell lose around my hips because they were so big so I rolled the waist to stop them from falling completely off. I walked over to the dresser and surveyed my image turning my head from side to side before I picked up my oversized brush and pulled the loosely fitting elastic band from the top of my head and then began raking the brush through my half straightened, half curled hair. I had spent an hour with my flatiron before the party only to be left with this half curled mess. One of the things I hated most about being natural but luckily I had a good curl pattern so my hair just usually curled up into large spirals whenever it go wet or I sweated it out.
I could see Xavier in the mirror scrolling through his phone and then sending what I assumed was a text before he stood up and stretched. His oversized basketball shorts hanging low on his waist like they always did showing off his well manicured abs. He definitely had a body worth looking at over and over and over again. And again.
“What are you smiling about?” He asked when he caught me looking at him.
“Nothing.” I focused on my own image again.
“You just can’t admit that you’re checking me out can you?” He had a smirk on his face. “It’s okay I know all this is a little much at times.” He said jokingly and then placed his hand over his abs.
“Cocky much?” I said and then rolled my eyes at him while watching him through the mirror.
He walked up behind me and placed his hands on my hips and then slide them down the front of my thighs which I couldn't stop because I was in the process of pulling my hair into a ponytail so my arms were bent above my head with my hands half entangled in my hair tie and my pony tail.
“I’m confident not cocky just the way you like it.” He kissed me on the neck before he walked back to the bed and started pulling clothes out of his bag.
“Did you ever open my Christmas present?” He asked out of the blue.
Oh crap. I never did but I had it with me because I intended to give it back to him and would have if things hadn’t turned out the way they did.
“No, but I have it with me.”
“So you were beyond pissed with me I see.” He said and then laughed.
“Do you blame me?” I frowned. I’m glad you can laugh about it!
“No I don’t but that just lets me know how deep it really was.”
I walked over to my bag and unzipped the front pocket and pulled out the tiny silver package. I sat on the bed beside Xavier and pulled the ends of the bow to untie it and then carefully began lifting the tapped areas.
“Ky really?” He said growing impatient with my slow unwrapping process.
“Chill and let me do this.” I said not moved by his impatience.
When I had finally removed the wrapping paper I placed it on the bed next to me and lifted the lid of the pale blue box and smiled so hard that I probably pulled a jaw muscle. Inside was a sliver box chain holding a dime sized turtle charm with diamond chips for the eyes. I leaned toward him and placed my head on his shoulder.
“I love it.” I said softly.
“You and your turtles.” He said and then took the box out of my hands. He picked up the chain and unhooked it. I turned my back slightly towards him and he lowered it over my head, hooked the clasp and then kissed my shoulder. “I don’t know much about this kind of stuff but the lady at the store tried to explain it to me. Pretty much after about thirty minutes the only thing I remember is that turtles represent the ability to be steady and consistent and that’s what you’ve been for me. I know you don’t always know where my head is at but I hope that if nothing else you know that I love you and that will never change. I do a lot of dumb stuff but I'm here and I'm trying.”
I turned and threw my arms around him. “I love you more.”
Xavier never really got emotional about much of anything and in fact the only time I had ever really seen him express anything other than anger was when his mother died and even then it was like he was shut off from the rest of us so this gift meant more to me than anyone could ever imagine. Something as simple as a turtle charm was more priceless to me than all the money in the world.
“And for the record the lady at the store was totally trying to kick it to me.” He said and laughed.
“Wow.”
“Just saying, so just in case you don't wanna act right.”
“She can have you then.”
“You wouldn't know what to do without me.” He said.
“I've got a few ideas and they don't have any cougars after them sooooo….”
“Keep playing.”
A little while later we were both dressed and had packed our bags before we joined the rest of the crew for breakfast. Ethan’s mother was standing in the hallway talking to a tall thin blond woman who was wearing an apron that had the words Fine Dining on The Go printed on it in yellow and green letters. She paused and focused on Xavier and I when she saw us.
“Good morning you two. I hope you slept well last night.” She said and smiled softly at us.
“Yes ma’am thanks again for everything.” I said.
“We did, thanks.” Xavier added.
“It was my pleasure. I’m just glad everyone had a good time. The buffet is set up in the dining room. Help yourselves.”
“Thank you.“ Xavier and I said in unison.
“I guess they have real relaxed rules around here.” I whispered to Xavier. “There is no way my parents would have let us stay together overnight.”
“That’s because your parents hate me. My aunt let you stay with me overnight.” Xavier said.
“They don’t hate you, they’re just old school but they definitely aren’t your biggest fans.” I said jokingly.
“Like I said they hate me.”
When we reached the dining room there were only a few people left. Almost everyone else had gotten up early that morning and made the drive home or back to campus. Toni and Ethan were sitting at the table with Davis and his girlfriend Lindsey. Trey was next to them.
“What up Zay?” Trey said. “Ethan is not going back until later today, can I catch a ride with you back to campus?”
Xavier looked at me, “You heading home?”
“Yeah I’m not going back to school until Tuesday.” I said.
“Yeah, you can ride with me.” Xavier said.
“Preciate it. I’ve done enough damage here. I need to go have a conversation with the porcelain god.”
“TMI Trey.” Toni said and then frowned at
him.
“Hey we’re all family here, right? Sharing is caring.” He said and winked at Toni before he lifted his empty plate, stood up and then dropped it in the trashcan that was sitting at the end of the buffet table.
The rest of us ate and then thanked Ethan’s parents again for having us before we said our goodbyes and went our separate ways. New Year’s Eve had been a success and Xavier and I were right back where we needed to be. I prayed that we could hold on to it.
Xavier Lee
I was starting to believe I had insomnia because no matter how hard I tried I couldn't shut my mind off long enough to actually go to sleep. The only time I actually every got any real rest was when I was with Ky. If she was lying next to me I could focus on her which allowed me to shut down and be at peace. Well sometimes anyway. As usual I was going to be late for class, thank goodness I had Professor Taylor because he wouldn’t give me a hard time.
This was the first time I had a class before ten since freshman year and to add to it coach changed our conditioning to 7:00 in the morning. I was struggling to get to class on time but I refused to take a class at night so my only option was 9:00. I had to take Sports Medicine this semester to stay on track for graduation and that was definitely a priority.
I gave up on going back to the dorms after conditioning to get ready for class so now I just showered and dressed in the locker room which left me roughly thirty minutes to grab something from the café and get to class. On the days I actually did make it to class on time I was usually so darn tired that I would fall asleep and miss most of it. Professor Taylor had already warned me that if I didn’t get my shit together I was on track to fail his class. This was going to be a long semester because doing this three days a week was killing me.
I was praying that coach changed our conditioning back to late afternoon and then on top of that I was barely getting to see Kya. She always had early classes so she was usually done by two but by then I either had to work at the rec center, practice, study or a game which meant that for the past few weeks we had barely been together. We still had two more months left in the season and for the first time I was actually ready for a break. All of the upperclassman on the team kept telling us that shit got real sophomore year and now I was starting to see why. I barely had time for anything but class and basketball and it was starting to get old real fast.
When I reached the building where my Sports Medicine class was and saw most of the people that had class with me standing outside I did a small prayer as I walked towards the group hoping that class had been canceled. That would be the only reason why they were not currently in the lecture room.
“What’s up, please tell me class in canceled.” I asked Brian a tall frail red headed kid that sat near me most days. He pushed his glasses up on his nose and then answered. “Yeah there was a note on the door. Test this week but class is canceled. We’re going to the library to do a group session if you want to go.”
“Thank god.” I mumbled. “I’m going back to my dorm and going to sleep before my 11 o’clock class. I’ll catch up with you guys next time.” I lied. I hated study groups and I usually did better when I studied alone. For the most part I was pretty smart just a major procrastinator.
It was cold outside and a layer of fresh snow was on the ground but it didn’t affect my driving because the campus crew was really good about keeping the streets clear. I backed out of the spot I was parked in and slowly made my way towards the dorms but when saw who I thought was Chelle walking I pulled up next to her to see if she wanted a ride. It was cold and I would have felt bad leaving her out there like that.
“What’s up, Chelle? Where you heading?”
“Jefferson, my car won’t start so I’m going to meet Shauine.”
I unlocked the doors. “Come on I’ll take you.”
She climbed in, dropped her book bag on the floor and pulled the seatbelt to buckle it. “Thanks Zay, I knew you cared.” She said jokingly and smiled.
“I do what I can.”
“I haven’t seen much of you lately. That girl must have you on lockdown.” She said I’m sure referring to Kya.
“Nah, classes this semester got me on lockdown.” I said not wanting to get into a debate with her about my relationship with Kya because I knew that she was just fishing for information.
“What’s your major?” She asked.
“Sports Medicine with a minor in Physical Education.”
“So you wanna coach?”
“Yep ever since the first time I hit the court. I knew that’s what I wanted, my own team on day.”
“So you're not one of those I'm going straight to the NBA ballers?”
“Nah, I'm a little more realistic than that.”
“You’re good enough, don’t count it out.” She smiled.
“But there are hundreds of others just as good or better.”
“So, Coach Adams, huh? I can see that but you’ll still have to teach something though, right?”
“Yeah my focus is Math.”
“Math eeewww.” She said and frowned “I suck at math.”
“It’s not that bad. Just logic and formulas.”
“Exactly. Too much for me.” She said and laughed.
“So what’s your major then?”
“Nursing.” She said confidently.
“You do realize Nursing requires a lot of Science which is full of Math formulas and logic.” I said teasing her.
“Yes smart one, I do but it’s not as bad as majoring in math so I think I can handle it.”
“Well good luck with that.” I laughed.
“Plus now that I know you’re a math guru, I’ll just come to you when I need help.” She said and then placed her hand on my leg.
“I can barely find time to keep up as it is, I don’t know about that.” I said making sure she didn’t find an offer in anything I said.
“We’ll just have to see about that. She said “You might be able to fit me in.”
I pulled up in front of Jefferson and put my Jeep in park.
“She unhooked her seatbelt and picked up her book bag. “Thanks Zay, I appreciate it. My knight in a Wrangler Jeep.” She looked at me and winked.
“No problem.” Was all I said. I refused to entertain her flirting and plus this was cutting into my nap time so I was trying to get her out as fast as I could.
A few minutes later I was at my dorm in my bed. I set my alarm for 10:45 and closed my eyes but the minute I felt myself drifting my phone vibrated. I tried to ignore it but it vibrated again so I picked up my phone to make sure it wasn’t Kya. I had a voicemail and it wasn’t a number that I recognized but it was a number from home so I decided to listen to the message.
“Xavier, this is Gracen Mitchell calling on behalf of Donnell Nixon. Please give our offices a call soon as you can in regards to the trust fund set up for account holder Leigh Alexandria Adams. Our office has put a hold on the account and we need to speak with you as soon as possible. You can reach Mr. Nixon in the office until 2:00PM today.”
Donnell was the lawyer assigned to the trust funds that my mother had set up for me and my sister with her life insurance policies before she died. She made sure none of it went to Johnny and instead split it between me and Leigh. My aunt had been in charge of the accounts immediately after my mother passed but when I turned eighteen she signed them both over to me. Aside from buying my Jeep I hardly ever touched mine but I occasionally used the money in Leigh’s account whenever my aunt needed extra help taking care of her. The money didn’t matter to me and I would give it up in a heartbeat if I could have my mother back.
So much for me going to sleep I thought and redialed the number that had just called me.
“Davis and Associates,” a women said when she answered the phone.
“Hello, may I please speak with Donnell Nixon?”
“Hold just a minute sir and let me see if he’s available. May I ask who is calling?”
“Xavier Adams.”
/> “Just a minute, Mr. Adams.” She said politely and then put me on hold.
“Xavier, how are you son?” Donnell asked in his usual professional tone. He always sounded like he was in the middle of a debate.
“I’m good sir, how are you?”
“I’m doing well. How’s your season going so far?” He asked like he did every time we talked.
“Pretty good. We’re about fifty fifty on the season so far.”
“Well you still have time to pull ahead.” He said, “the reason I called is because we have a little issue with your sister’s account. Nothing serious but something we need to deal with.”
“Okay.” What now I thought.
“Looks like there was a complaint filed citing misappropriation of funds for this account and since she’s a minor and the account is a trust my offices have to investigate.”
“What does that mean?” I asked not sure what he was saying.
“Looks like Johnny filed a petition to become the executer for your sister’s account under the guise that you are misappropriating the funds in her account. He requested it for both accounts but since you’re twenty there was nothing he could do about yours, however with your sister only being thirteen he has the right to request a review.” Maybe legally but other than that he really doesn’t.
“Are you fucking kidding me?” The words flew out of my mouth without any thought behind them. I immediately felt enraged but caught myself because I realized that I was still on the phone and didn’t want to be disrespectful “I apologize, please excuse my language.”
“It’s quit alright son, I completely understand. We have frozen the account and you will not have access to it until we officially review the transactions for this account. I have already done a preliminary review and everything looks fine. You’re doing a great job managing the money and I don’t see there being an issue so we should have this cleared up in a week or so. Honestly this whole thing is pointless but we are legally obligated to follow procedure and investigate.”
Kya & Xavier: It's Always Been You (Life As We Know It Book 1) Page 15
