Page 9 of The Kissing Booth
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 sinceforever! 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.
