The Kissing Booth: Adult Edition

Then There Was Noah

Noah's P.O.V.- (Three Years Ago)

I'm such an idiot.

When did I realize that? I think it started when I was in masters at Harvard. I'd been at Harvard for over five years now; it took me a long time to graduate from undergrad. All the partying, womanizing, and just basically being a mess didn't help. I didn't know what was wrong with me- for the longest time, I told myself it was my inherent temper. I never had any relationships that lasted too long. Nothing ever lasted too long in my life, except for school.....

"Hey, Noah!" "Hi," I replied back to this girl in my department; she'd been extra friendly to me lately. It would have been easy for me to ask her out.... but for some reason, I didn't feel like it. I was going home back to my parents' place that weekend; they were looking to sell soon and wanted me to clean out my old room. Fine, whatever; I didn't have that much in there anyway.

Mom gave me a ton of boxes to fill, which seemed kind of pointless. I wanted to move to New York after graduation and couldn't take much with me. Still, I guess she wanted me to have the option. My room wasn't uber messy or cluttered; it was easy enough to get through in one day.

I pulled out a box from the top shelf in my closet; just old mementos I'd collected throughout the years. Could throw all these out too. Most the contents were pictures and old football trophies and garbage. Picking up an old high school yearbook, my eyes widened as a photo fell to the floor. I picked it up and my heart froze in my chest.

It was of Elle back in high school. She was sitting against one of the rail things they have along streets. I must have taken the picture, since she was looking in the way of the camera and smiling. That was the kind of smile I hadn't seen in a long time. I remember.... My eyes slowly began to grow. She used to smile at me like that all the time; she was always so radiant around me. Like my own personal sun..... I'd forgotten how good it felt to warm myself in her rays.

I honestly hadn't thought about Elle in years. At some point, I successfully- or so I thought- pushed her out of my mind. It never occurred to me that she might still be there; I didn't push her out but down.... down to somewhere deep inside the dark recesses of my heart. I didn't want her to be buried in there, but it looks like I might have been fooling myself all this time. I don't know how long I stared at Elle's picture for on my knees in front of my childhood closet like that. I'm sure it was for much longer than it felt to me, but it was like a flashing lighting in my memory.

God, was she always so.... stunning? What a beautiful creature! I never realized what a work of art she truly was. When we were dating, I didn't think of her that way. But after seeing her picture after all these years.... How could I have been so blind? She's not hot or sexy like a model; no, she's striking in the most picturesque way. She's the kind of woman great artists take inspiration from. She's a painting, a sculpture, a walking, talking masterpiece.

My eyes grew as I suddenly realized..... I'd never thought about anyone like that before; even Elle when we were together. Maybe I didn't have the mental maturity to put into words.... Elle truly was one of a kind; she's so much rarer than one in a million. And the type of person she was..... She's in the novels of "War and Peace" and "Pride and Prejudice". She's the melody of Beethoven's sixth symphony and Vivaldi's "Four Seasons". She's the Mona Lisa's smile, and the roses that bloom in the Versailles gardens. She's the embodiment that makes everything in this world so.... magical.

"Got anything you want to throw out?" My eyes blinked as I was steamrolled back to reality by my mother's voice. She came in with a box labelled "garbage", set it down on my bed, placed her hands on her hips and looked at me. My head turned in her direction; my hand still not letting go of Elle's photo. She took note of this, of course. "What's that?" She stepped over to glance over my shoulder. The picture came into view, making her eyes light up.