The Kissing Booth - Chasing Noah

Chapter 11

A/N: This is the edited version of Chapter 26 and 27.

...

"Living room. Now."

So my mom was angry. It couldn't have been about my episode because she had already torn into me about that on Sunday. My dad was sitting in the loveseat reading a magazine when I walked in. He was looking pretty good considering he had started chemo. It felt like his treatment was going so fast, but I guess it just seemed that way because I was the last one to find out he was sick.

"Sit. Now," she ordered. I collapsed on the couch, across from my dad, hugging a pillow to my chest. He didn't even look up when I had walked into the room. "Did you know what was going on with Noah and Elle?" My eyes shot up and I met my mother's threatening gaze.

I shrugged, "I had no idea. Elle just told me." I knew my mom was going to try to meddle in their business somehow. When Noah had asked Elle out, she practically jumped to the moon. He was her favorite son after all. Him getting a girlfriend, and that girl being Elle, was the highlight of her year. Maybe even the highlight of our entire lives.

"Well the two of you need to get your heads out of your asses before you guys chase away every girl who's ever given a shit about you!" she yelled. My eyes nearly bulged out of my head. I don't think, in my entire life, had I ever heard my mother swear. And yes, her saying the word 'ass' was considered a swear. I don't think she had ever even raised her voice. I mean besides the time Noah beat me up for sitting on his motorcycle. I will forever say 'beat me up' and not 'gave me a wedgie'.

"Sweetheart..." my dad said soothingly from where he was sitting. He still wouldn't look me in the eye. Was he ashamed of me for the way I acted when I found out about his cancer?

My mom took a deep breath and continued, "You're right. I'm sorry. I didn't mean to yell. Have you talked to Rachel at all?" Good god lady. We couldn't have something personal going on without her putting her nose in the middle of it.

"Yes, I went to talk to her. Everything's fine," I groaned. I didn't want it to sound like I only talked to Rachel just to make my mom happy, but I would say anything right now to get her to drop it.

"And what about Noah? Have you heard from him?" she questioned. I felt like I was in an interrogation. But I knew that if I didn't answer all of her questions, she would never let me go. I guess this really was an interrogation.

I shook my head. "He's been dodging me all week. He said that he has exams over spring break and he has to study." That must have been why he came home a couple of weeks ago. Because he wouldn't be able to over spring break. Or he was totally lying to me and just doesn't want to talk about Elle.

"Well then you need to go to Boston and talk to him in person," she demanded. My jaw dropped to the floor. Now she was recruiting me to be her meddler? No way. I was not wasting my spring break playing matchmaker for my brother.

"Mom, I'm not going to Boston," I objected.

That's when my dad decided to pipe in. "We wanted you to look at Brown anyways. Harvard isn't that far. You can fly into Boston and talk to Noah and then drive out to Providence." Even when he was talking to me, he wouldn't look at me. My mom didn't seem to notice. She was looking at me with her hands clasped together, basically praying that I would do this for her.

I rolled my eyes and let out a huge huff. "If I am going to waste my spring break - the week after I got back together with Rachel - I am not paying for it. I do not have the cash to pay for a flight to Boston." Okay, I guess it was kind of shallow to be asking my parents for money, but it was true. I barely had enough cash to pay for gas let alone a flight across the country.