The Kissing Booth (3 page)

It seemed like everybody had heard about the kissing booth.

And when they asked me if Flynn would be doing it, I told them I’d ask, because that seemed like the easiest option.

It was about eleven o’clock. I’d just joined some boys, mostly seniors, and Lee, Jason and Dixon in the game room. They were doing shots, all lined up on the pool table.

‘Can I join in?’ I asked, bouncing into the room with a grin.

‘Sure,’ Dixon said, and poured another shot for me.

‘Uh, haven’t you had enough to drink, Elle?’ Lee asked me warily.

‘Who cares?’ I chirped. ‘Three, two . . .’

Everyone took their shot and slammed the glasses down again. Dixon poured the vodka out again and again. After the second, I lost track of which round we were on. I didn’t even like vodka – it was gross. It burned my throat the whole way down. But I didn’t notice.

Everything was bright and out of focus and loud. I giggled helplessly, doubling over in hysterics.

‘Elle, you are so wasted,’ laughed Chris, walking over and straightening me up.

I giggled again. ‘Let’s dance. I want to dance. Somebody dance with me. Chris, dance with me?’

‘There’s no music in here.’

‘Oh well. Let’s do it anyway.’ But then I decided to climb onto the pool table to dance. I giggled a little when I felt the pounding bass from the lounge through the pool table.

I started swishing my hips from side to side in time with the music, my hands in the air, my hair swinging with me. I tried to drag Lee up to dance too, but he wouldn’t.

‘Why not?’ I whined at him.

‘I’m not dancing,’ he said. ‘C’mon, Elle, just get down.’

I stuck my tongue out at him. He tried to grab hold of me and pull me down, but I wriggled away and carried on dancing. He was such a party pooper!

‘I’ll be right back.’

‘Where are you going?’ I asked him. He couldn’t leave – the party wasn’t over yet!

‘I’m going to get a drink. Dixon, you want anything?’

‘Got all I need right here man,’ he replied, and winked at me with a laugh. I blew him a kiss.

It was so hot in the game room, I thought. Had somebody turned up the heating? I was really starting to sweat. Maybe a dip in the pool would cool me down . . .

And suddenly I had the perfect solution. ‘Someone come skinny dipping!’ I cried enthusiastically, and reached for my zip as I stumbled to the edge of the table, teetering in my wedges.

Suddenly, my feet left the ground and the whole world turned upside down. My legs were in the air and my head was hanging down looking at someone’s back.

‘Hey!’ I cried. ‘Put me down! Put me down!’

They didn’t put me down though. I watched the stairs stretch out below me as they carried me upstairs. My palm turned clammy. This couldn’t be Lee. He hadn’t been wearing green – had he? Maybe he had?

No, I was sure he hadn’t. Lee was wearing red. I didn’t know who was in a green shirt.

But whoever it was was pretty damn strong, given that I was wriggling around like a wild thing.

Eventually I was dropped onto something soft. A mattress! That’s what it was.

I sat up straight, folding my legs underneath me as best I could. ‘Noah Flynn,’ I complained when I saw him giving me a reprimanding look. ‘You’re such a party pooper! I was having fun!’

‘You were about to strip off,’ he argued. ‘Just take a break for twenty minutes.’

‘No!’ I cried, pouting. ‘Don’t be such a downer. I wanted to go skinny dipping!’

He shook his head at me, smirking. ‘Tempting as that is, I think you’re better off staying here for a little bit – at least till you’re more sober.’

I sighed, sinking back down on the pillows. Then I sat up again. ‘Are you going to leave me all on my own?’

‘No. I don’t trust you to stay in the room.’

‘You don’t trust me? Why not? I’m Lee’s best friend. You’ve known me since
forever
! You should trust me more.’

Noah was shaking his head at me while he went over to push the door shut and turn the key in the lock.

I raised an eyebrow as he wandered back over and straddled a chair facing me.

But, even in my state of mind, I knew the thought was ridiculous.

‘Aren’t you drunk?’ I asked him.

‘Not really.’

‘Aw, why? It’s your party. Go crazy!’

‘I think you were being crazy enough for the both of us.’

‘I’m sorry,’ I said, pouting a little. ‘I didn’t mean to spoil your fun.’

Noah laughed at me.

I clambered to the edge of the bed and swung my legs back and forth, sitting on my hands. ‘Noah . . .’

‘Yes.’

‘Will you
please
do the kissing booth for us?’

‘No.’

‘Please?’ I begged, bouncing up and down on the springy mattress. Wow. It was like a trampoline or something! Like Lee’s bed. ‘Please, please, pretty please with a cherry on top?’

‘No.’

‘Why not?’ I whined. ‘You’re so mean!’

‘I don’t want to do a kissing booth, simple as.’

‘But
why
?’

‘I don’t want to.’

‘Please? It’s – I think it’s for cancer. Or maybe it’s for the dolphins. That’s a funny word isn’t it, dolphins? Dolphins . . . Dol . . . phins . . . Like dolly-fins.’

‘I’m not going to do the kissing booth, no matter who or what it’s for.’

I got up and moved over to crouch right in front of him, so close that our noses were almost touching. ‘Not even for me?’

He shook his head. Then – ‘Man, your breath stinks. How much vodka did you have, Elle?’

‘I don’t know. Dixon poured it.’

He sighed. ‘Those guys . . . I swear . . .’

‘What?’

‘Nothing.’

‘Fine, don’t tell me then.’ I shot back up straight and staggered back, the whole room pitching around me and turning gray and fuzzy around the edges.

‘I think I’m gonna be sick.’

Noah was already shoving me into the bathroom, and pushed me over the toilet bowl in time for me to puke my guts up.

Once that was over and I was done dry-heaving, I flopped down on the cold tile floor, my head lolling against the edge of the bathtub. A glass of cold water was pushed against my lips, and he made me drink it up.

‘I’m really, really sorry, Noah,’ I whimpered. I felt all gross now after throwing up. ‘I’m really sorry. I didn’t mean to ruin your party.’

‘You didn’t ruin my party, Elle,’ he told me.

I nodded fiercely, but stopped when it made me feel sick again. ‘Yes I did. I’m really sorry!’

‘It’s okay,’ he laughed. ‘Calm down.’

I scowled, and punched him on the chest.
Wow. That is one solid chest. I bet he has a six-pack too. Maybe even an eight-pack, knowing Noah. Or a ten-pack! Is there even such a thing? Possibly . . 
. If there was, Noah would have one.

Halting my internal babble, I said, ‘Don’t laugh at me.’

He laughed harder, and pulled me to my feet. I half fell, so he wrapped an arm around my waist to support me. After helping me stagger back over to the bed, he let me drop on top of the covers.

‘I’ll be back in ten minutes to ch—’

I was already asleep.

Chapter 3

SUNLIGHT WAS TRYING
to filter through the drapes, but it was weak early morning sunshine, and the glow turned the room a dark blue. I closed my eyes again, trying to snuggle my head down into the soft squishy pillow under my head. I curled into a tighter ball under a thick comforter.

I was so cozy and warm. And everything smelled . . . it was something between citrus and woodsy. Whatever it was, it was a really great smell. And I was sure I’d smelled it somewhere before on someone . . .

I gasped suddenly, sitting bolt upright.

My bedroom didn’t smell like that. And my bed was not this comfortable. Neither did my room have blue drapes.

So . . . where the hell was I?

I looked around. Everything was sort of familiar . . . But I definitely hadn’t been here before. I threw the covers off and saw I was wearing a boy’s shirt that was too big on me, just a plain gray shirt. It smelled just like the pillows.

I still had all my underwear on though – that was a good sign.

I climbed out of the bed carefully. What the hell had happened last night? I strained my memory, but came up short. I vaguely recalled dancing on the pool table. Had I really had that much to drink?

There was a disgusting taste in my mouth to match my pounding headache.

I must have thrown up. I remembered someone holding my hair back for me. It must’ve been Lee; he would’ve taken care of me.

But where was I?

I tiptoed over to the door of the bedroom and poked my head out. I practically cried in relief to see I was in Lee and Noah’s house. It must be Noah’s room I crashed in – in all these years I’d never been in his room.

So . . .
why
was I in Noah’s room? Why not one of the guest rooms? Or Lee’s?

I went back to the bed, my head pounding so hard I didn’t think I could stay on my feet much longer, and looked at the alarm clock. It was only half eight in the morning. In the hopes of sleeping off my hangover, I snuggled back under the covers, breathing in Noah’s smell.

Just as I was about to drift into unconsciousness again, the door opened slowly, making the hinges creak.

My eyes flashed back open immediately, and my eyes met Noah’s. He was standing in the doorway wearing nothing but a towel around his hips, hung right down low, and his chest and abs were still streaked with droplets of water, his black hair dripping.

My eyebrows shot up. Six-pack. Who’d have thought it?

I couldn’t help but blush at how he made my heart was race just by looking at me.

‘Sorry,’ he said quietly. ‘I didn’t mean to wake you.’

‘It’s okay,’ I said, my voice a little croaky. I cleared my throat, but even that noise hurt my head. ‘I just woke up anyway.’

‘Right. Hungover, much?’

I grimaced in response, making Noah chuckle. ‘You have no idea. I didn’t know I’d drunk so much.’

‘You had a load of vodka, I know that,’ he said, sitting on the end of the bed. My heart went wild. Couldn’t he have grabbed a shirt or some jeans before stopping to talk to me?

‘What do you mean? You know that? When did
you
see me?’

‘When you were about to strip off on the pool table in front of a bunch of the guys and then go skinny dipping,’ he said casually, looking sideways at me with those bright blue eyes.

I wondered if he could hear my heart racing. Probably. I hoped I wasn’t blushing anymore, at least. That would just be peachy.

My jaw dropped when his words sank in. ‘Oh, God. Tell me I didn’t.’

‘No, you didn’t. I had to carry you out.’

I gaped, my cheeks flaming, and covered my face with my hands, looking through my fingers at him. ‘I can’t believe I did that.’

‘Yeah, well . . .’

‘Thanks though. For stopping me. That would’ve been embarrassing this morning.’

‘You don’t say,’ he said sarcastically, but he smiled. ‘You threw up, too. Just FYI.’

‘What, in front of people?’

Oh, God, this just gets worse!
I thought, mortified.

‘No,’ he said, shaking his head and flicking water over me. ‘In my bathroom. I was trying to make sure you didn’t make an idiot of yourself or get hurt.’

I groaned, humiliated. ‘Sorry about that. I’m really sorry, Noah, I didn’t mean for you to miss the party or anything . . .’

He shrugged. ‘It’s okay. I didn’t mind.’

I scoffed. ‘Sure. Whatever. I think we both know it wasn’t exactly the highlight of your night having to take care of me.’

‘It wasn’t all that bad,’ he said after a moment, and smiled again. It wasn’t a smirk. It was a real, genuine smile that showed the dimple in his left cheek and made his eyes crease a little at the corners. It was infectious; I had to smile back at him.

‘Well, thanks, Noah.’ I couldn’t help but put a taunting emphasis on his name.

‘Anytime, Shelly.’

He reached over to ruffle my hair, and when I went to push him away I somehow ended up tumbling off the bed and pulling him down with me.

Noah was really heavy. He didn’t have a spare half-pound of fat on him, but he was a hell of a lot of muscle. And he was crushing me.

But I was caught by his bright eyes. He didn’t budge, either – just looked back at me.

Before it turned into too much of a staring match, I found my voice again. ‘Noah . . .’ I breathed.

‘Yeah?’ he said in just as hushed a voice.

‘You’re crushing me.’

He blinked a couple of times, like he was jerking himself back to reality. Then he said, ‘Oh, right. Shit. Sorry.’

He got to his feet, holding the towel around him – I don’t know what I would’ve done if he’d dropped the towel.

No, Elle! Don’t even go down that road! Shut up! Stop thinking!

He offered me a hand and I got to my feet too. The shirt I was wearing reached barely past my butt, so I felt extremely self-conscious.

‘Um, when did I change?’ I asked, plucking at the shirt and looking around. I saw my dress draped over a chair.

‘Oh, I came back up to check on you and you woke up, and then you started to take off your dress because you didn’t want to crease it, you said, so I found you a shirt to wear.’ He shrugged, and scratched the back of his neck briefly.

I blinked, my brain trying sluggishly to catch up. ‘So . . . you saw me . . . in my underwear . . .’
Please say no, please say no, please—

His mouth twitched; he was trying so hard not to smirk. ‘Uh . . .’

‘Oh my God.’ I buried my face in my hands.

‘I averted my eyes, I swear.’

I laughed it off, saying, ‘Don’t worry about it,’ when truthfully, my pulse was roaring in my ears. Mr. Player averting his eyes? Likely story.

‘Lee’s downstairs cooking breakfast if you want any,’ he told me. His words tumbled out, as though he were trying to change the topic.

My stomach decided to growl in answer to him, making us both laugh. ‘Awesome.’

I headed downstairs, closing his bedroom door behind me. I let out a breath I didn’t know I’d been holding, and sagged against the door.

‘Oh my God,’ I breathed, talking to myself. I thought I was totally over Noah. But after those five minutes – with him in a towel and me in his shirt, and him falling on top of me . . . My heart just wouldn’t calm down!