The Kissing Booth - The First Year

Senior Year - Elle

The next day I had a million things to do: get my new uniform, went after the books, pick up Brad's list of supplies, take my car to install the new sound, and finally went shopping with Lee and Rachel. One thing I need to say, I always loved shopping, going to the mall, running the stores ... Lee always hated it, to go shopping was to enter the mall , go to the store, which obviously he had already seen online what would be, buy and run away, well, maybe a quick stop at the food court, but nothing to curl up, so now he was really in trouble, because if I was a crazy, Rachel was more than compulsive. She would stay a whole day at the mall if she could.

I met them at Westfield Century City about one o'clock in the afternoon, Lee was already grumpy, but not so much that Rachel would notice ... I actually knew because I knew him much better than anyone and that expression was my old lifemate.

"So, did you started running the shops or did you arrived here now?" I asked, smiling.

"We just came in, we were at The Grove ..." Rachel said excitedly and for a moment I realized why Lee was already a little sulky.

We went into the mall and I just had to go to two stores: one for backpacks and one for shoes. Lee had nothing else to buy, his mother had given him a new backpack and he was not a fan of new sneakers, he loved to use the older ones. "They're always more comfortable," he would say... June complained, but he really did not care and in that he and Noah were extremely similar.

We started talking back about our options for college and they were trying to convince me to go to University of California for the dance course. I was not even close to making a decision about it now. I really wanted to go home and talk to Noah.

The problem is that my day was so full that when I came home, almost at nine-thirty in the evening, my only desire was to take a shower and go straight to bed. I took a picture in the shower and sent it to Noah, he replied the same minute, "I'd love to be rubbing your back and kissing you now." I laughed and blushed, even though I knew he was not looking at me.

I got out of the bath, got my pajamas and lay down on the bed ... my father had changed my bed a little time, I loved that spring mattress, my cuddly pillows and my duvet ... I looked at Noah's jacket in my coat rack, I remembered the first time I saw him with her, my eyes were closing ... I forgot about Skype and I fell asleep automatically. I had the weirdest dream ... I was at school, everyone looking at me and laughing, I looked down and guess what? The most common and horrible dream of all: I was completely naked and suddenly someone came from behind and started punching the guys for looking at me ... Noah and his way to end these situations. I started to yell at him, but he never looked at me, he kept punching them all, and the worst of it was that none of them would retaliate, as if they were already waiting for his reaction and they were used to it... I woke up shouting "Noah!!" and then I realized it was just a dream.

I picked up my phone to see the time and saw that he had called me. I sent a message back saying that I fell asleep, but of course, I did not get an answer ... it was 3 AM in Los Angeles, 6 at Harvard, and his classes or football training had not started yet, so he was probably sleeping. At least that's what I wanted to think, so little time for him to start getting to know people and going to parties ... *Rochelle Evans this is enough, go back to sleep* I decided to obey my inner voice and fell asleep again.

I had the impression that I had just closed my eyes and it seemed like only a few minutes had passed when my alarm clock rang. Wow, the first day of the senior year was just beginning. I went straight to the shower, looked at my uniform, looked at Noah's jacket ... *ok, focusing on Elle*, I got on my uniform and Lee was already honking at my house front gate.

Dad and Brad were having breakfast and again, I was late and just grabbed a toast on the way out. I went through the garage, I saw the motorcycle (yes I always looked at her a lot in the entrance and exit ways), I laughed and got into the car. Lee was wearing sunglasses and feeling the king of the world.

"So what's up? Are you feeling excited today? And those glasses ... Fancy!" I had to make fun on him, for me it was his way of showing that he would now be running the school, and since he was Noah's brother, he wanted to show that Flynn's were still the biggest "Bad Boys ".

"Elle, I have to keep the family's reputation, we are known for our beauty and for running the school ... do you think Rachel will like it?" And classic Lee appeared, his eyes now showing their most common expression: a child looking for approval.

"I think so, these sunglasses are amazing, shame you're not even so handsome and they'd look better on me." I laughed and took off his glasses, putting them on my face. I got a good morning message from Noah, with a photo and a big sleepy smile, I sent one back with the "Welcome Seniors" banner in front of our room. He said, "Hey Miss Senior, I'll be back to take you to prom this year. I love you, have a nice first day." I blushed and had to listen to Lee making fun of my *in love* face.

The same faces in the room: Warren, Tuppen, Olivia, Mia, Dixon, Stacey, Debby, Cameron... me and Lee, Rachel and a few other random students, and the Cheetos girl that Noah was making out at the fateful party that I thought the whole drink was mine ... She looked me up and down ... *is she in love with me?* I sat in the back of the room, with Lee on my right side and Rachel in front of him. The bell rang and there we were, starting the first class of our senior year at Country Day LA.

I had soccer practice in the afternoon, so as soon as we left the class I had to go to the gym. I told Lee that I would see him later and went to find team girls, of course I was the last one to arrive ... I was really good at it. It was fantastic to run in the field, I had missed the practice during the summer, since there was never enough time ... all my moments were filled by Noah, and there, running again, making goals I realized: my dream was to work with sports, especially soccer, so at that very moment I decided, I would enroll for physical education at all colleges and leave journalism as a second option.

After practice I rushed home, Lee could not give me a ride because he was stuck with June. She decided to redecorate and Lee was helping with the measurements ... he was good at these kinds of things ... maybe that was the main reason he was thinking about studying engineering in college, and of course I would convince him to leave journalism as second choice, just like me. Even though we were growing up, so fast, I could not think of not having Lee with me during college. We have been inseparable from the day we were born practically ... so much that we often hear that we would still end up together, but this was never taken seriously by us, we were very twins, we truly loved each other as brothers. Everything has always been for us, and for us and of course: us.

I came home hungry, Daddy had made lasagna ... I took a quick shower and went downstairs to help him clean the table for dinner. Brad was still playing in the yard, and he still had to take a shower, and how difficult it was to make that boy bathe ... that's why I always called him Mr. Stinky... fondly, but he always hated it.

Dinner was very good, Dad was happy to hear that I had finally decided what to do in college and Brad was already sleeping on his plate ... the Evans' classic dinner. I washed the dishes and started thinking about my mother ... I wish she was here too, to see how much I grew up and how much I started to look like her, not only physically, but also taking care of my boys. And like all of them: Dad, Mr. Stinky, Lee and Noah.