Page 100 of Going the Distance
Chapter 24
The crowds at the mall were worse than ever as people poured into stores for the sales and to start their Christmas shopping, now that Thanksgiving was officially over. It was almost three in the afternoon before Lee and I had managed to grab a seat for lunch.
I still hadn’t talked to Lee about what had happened with Levi, but I’d told him all about my chat with Amanda.
“Well,” he’d said, “to be fair to Noah, we all just assumed…”
“Yeah. Well, he could’ve mentioned it. Like, to me.”
“Hedidtell you there was nothing going on between them.”
I shot a glare at him for that. “Which is exactly what he would’ve said if something had been going on. And then he brought her home for Thanksgiving. What was Isupposedto think?”
“I know, I know. I’m not blaming you. I thought they were together, too. I’m sure my mom and dad were convinced, too, even though Noah said they were just friends.”
After we’d given the waitress our orders, Lee looked serious. “What actually happened after you ran out on Thanksgiving?”
“Did you tell Noah where I’d gone?”
“He asked. He heard your car leave. I said you were going to the park because you were sick of his attitude—”
“Oh my God, tell me you didn’t actually say that.”
“—and he went after you. He didn’t say anything. When he got back, he looked really pissed. I figured you guys had had another fight, especially after you didn’t come back. I tried asking him, and he just told me to leave it. So? Did you have a fight?”
“I never spoke to him.”
“Then what happened? Did he pick a fight with Levi or something?”
“No.” Oh, man. I didn’t want to lie to Lee or to hide things from him, but…I squirmed in my seat. “Okay, you have to promise not to laugh or anything.”
“Why?”
“Promise me.”
“I promise.”
“So I met Levi at the park. I wanted to let off some steam about Noah and Amanda, and we ended up…making out.”
Lee stared at me a moment before his mouth pinched and contorted side to side, and the muscles in his jaw and cheeks twitched as he tried really hard not to laugh. I glared at him.
“You promised not to laugh.”
I watched him draw a deep breath through his nose and let it out before he said, “Sorry, but you kissedLevi? Like, Levi Monroe? The same Levi you’ve been hanging out with all semester and swearing you don’tlikelike?”
I groaned, burying my head in my hands. “I know. It was a shitty thing to do. Especially if Ididwant to date him. I’d have totally ruined anything now.”
“I cannot believe you made out with Levi Monroe.”
“Will you stop saying his full name? It’s weird.”
“Was it good?”
“What kind of question is that?”
“Okay, was it weird?”
“Not as much as it could’ve been. But it just…wasn’t…” I sighed. “He wasn’t Noah.”
