The Kissing Booth: New Love

Chapter 15

Elle

The morning after our fight, I wake up early, already planning on what I'll say to smooth things over with Noah once he picks me up for school. I didn't wait for Noah's usual text to let me know he's at my house, instead running outside as soon as I heard the car in the driveway. Except, when I got out there, it was Lee's Mustang sitting in my driveway instead of Noah's car. On the way to Rachel's, Lee explained that Noah told him this morning that he couldn't drive me today and Lee needed to pick me up. Lee said Noah had been in a mood, so he didn't ask him any questions. He was surprised Noah was grumpy, he thought he would have been happy to stop chauffeuring me around. Lee joked that he must not have gotten enough beauty sleep, since he had been fine when he talked to him the night before. 

I realize then that Lee is talking about the conversation between the two of them I had overheard last night. Lee does seem to be acting kind of funny around me, I wonder if it had to do with what he asked Noah about last night. I honestly can't even think about that right now because I'm too worried about my fight with Noah. Now that he didn't pick me up, I'm worried that he's even more upset than I realized last night. I hope that Lee doesn't try to talk to me about anything he was asking Noah about last night because at this point, I don't think I can handle it.  Luckily, one of my favorite songs comes on the radio, so I turn it up and start singing along, avoiding any chance of a serious conversation with Lee.  By the time it's over, we're at Rachel's. Once she's in the car, I move to the backseat with my own thoughts.

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"Damn it!"  I yelled, trying to catch my backpack from falling off the locker room bench but missing as half the contents fall out of my bag. 

"Are you okay, Elle?" Allie asked as I bent to pick my stuff off the floor. Allie plays goalie on the varsity soccer team with me. Allie had always been a great teammate and we were friends, we just never really spend any time together outside of soccer. I had always gotten along with my teammates but since I spend so much time with Lee I wasn't as close to them as I could have been.

"I'm fine. Just had a shit practice. Shitty practice, shitty day."

"Yeah, you definitely seemed off in practice today."

"Thanks,"  I responded glumly. Allie shrugged her shoulders as if to say it wasn't her fault I sucked, which is totally true.  "Hey, do you think I could catch a ride home with you today?"  I hate to ask Lee to come back to school to pick me up. I was so out of it this morning, worrying about what was going on with Noah that I didn't even think about asking Lee about a ride home after school. Noah would normally drive me home when we are both done with our practices, but after he didn't pick me up for school in the morning, I'm scared of what his response would be if I asked him for a ride. 

I had tried to look for Noah during school today but hadn't been able to catch a glimpse of him.  He was even missing at lunch, which is the one time during the school day I usually always see him.  I had started text after text to him, before deleting what I had written.  Finally, at the end of lunch, I sent a short text.  "I'm sorry about our fight, can we talk?" When he hadn't responded by the time soccer practice started, I knew he must really be mad. I couldn't keep my mind on the drills I was supposed to be doing and I played horribly.

Allie answered with a smile, "Yep, I can drive you, no problem."

As Allie started driving towards my house, she questioned "So, what's going on with you today, Elle?"

"Nothing much, I'm fine."

"Bullshit. I've been playing soccer with you since Freshman year and I've never seen you at a practice like today. You acted like you were in another world, your head wasn't in it at all."