Execution (Off Balance 2)

A string of high-pitched, fiery profanity carried through the air. I stopped walking and crouched behind the nearest pillar. Peeking through an abundance of plants, I caught a flash of blond hair that dashed behind the leafy palms.

Avery?

A door opened and then slammed shut. Multiple footsteps pounded on the pavers. I stood up to get a better view and spotted Xavier.

"Get back here," he growled, storming after her. He was shirtless and in a pair of jeans that sat low on his waist. I was close enough I could hear what they were saying and luckily small enough to hide behind a stone column to watch.

I hadn't seen my brother in months, but there was a noticeable difference in his appearance. He had to be hitting the gym. He was much more muscular and way leaner than I remembered. He filled out and was in the best shape I'd ever seen him in.

"Avery!" Xavier roared. He had a black eye and a dried up cut on his lip. "I'm calling your name. I know you can hear me!"

"The dead can hear you," she snapped over her shoulder. "Go fuck yourself, you conceited bastard."

His eyes flared to life. Xavier reached out and yanked Avery by her elbow. He spun her around and she fell into him with a huff. He had her pinned against his bare chest, one hand on the back of her neck, the other on the small of her back. Xavier took after both my parents and got the tall genes of the family. He towered over Avery, she had to crane her neck to look up at him.

What the fuck?

Avery sagged against him, her shoulders loosened. I frowned, confused beyond hell to see them so cozy. My stomach revolted, mainly because she was my best friend, and because this was uncomfortable to watch. Chicks before dicks.

Their voices dropped and I had no idea what they were saying. With their bodies pressed together intimately, faces separated by mere inches, I strained to listen, but all I was granted with were whispers through clenched teeth. Avery moved to slap him, but Xavier grabbed her wrist before she could finish. He glared at her as she resisted his hold. She shoved and pushed against him, but judging by the smirk on Xavier's face, he knew he had control over her.

I couldn't take it. I was at the point of suffocating from covering my mouth so hard. A million and one questions floated through my head so fast I couldn't process them. I also couldn't be a sitting duck any longer.

"Avery?" I called out, walking toward them.

"Adrianna?"

Surprise laced her tone. She and Xavier jumped apart.

"Oh my God. Is that you?" she squealed, then ran toward me with a huge smile on her face. We threw our arms around each other in a tight hug, rocking from side to side with happiness. I was curious to see if she was going to bring up that little scene I just witnessed.

"I've missed you!" I said.

"I can't believe you’re home!"

I pulled back when Xavier walked over. "Hey, sis." He smiled and pulled me into a hug. He reeked of weed and I could smell the faint scent of day old booze on his breath. "It's good to see you."

"I wish I could say the same for you. You smell like shit," I said.

He chuckled, unashamed.

"I wasn't expecting you until closer to Christmas."

"I finished my final exams a couple of days ago, so I came home early." Xavier's eyes lifted toward Avery for a split second before returning to mine.

I glanced at Avery. She had her bottom lip rolled between her teeth.

"I called you while I was on the road a million times to tell you I was coming home early, but you never answered. What are you doing here? Where've you been?"

Avery let out a loud and annoying huff. She reached into her back pocket and pulled out her cell phone. She held it up to my face. My brows shot up.

"This is why I didn't get your calls. My phone won't turn on. My dumb, fucking brothers thought it would be hilarious to paint my iPhone Miami colors while I was sleeping last night. My brand new iPhone, Aid. Not only that, with the help of your brother"—she shot him a murderous glare—"they doused my car in cake flour and eggs. I swear to God, I'm gonna murder them."

She handed me her phone and I looked down. I tried to scratch and flick at the hideous streaks of orange and green paint, but it wouldn't scrape off. Both sides were completely painted. At sixteen, Avery was a massive Gators fan. She may hate the Seminoles, but she detested the Hurricanes. No one liked Miami.

I glanced up at my brother, puzzled why he and her brothers would do this. "Really, Xavier? What are you? Ten?" A vein throbbed in the center of his forehead. He tried to stifle his laughter, but he was bursting at the seams like a one-year-old smashing blueberries in his hand as if it was the funniest thing in the world.

"It rained early this morning, Aid," she stated, her feet shifting from one to the other. "Flour was stuck to my car."