Page 76 of Going the Distance
But it was easier to say, “Yeah.”
Levi gave me a sympathetic smile. “You’ll get over him, you know. I’m not saying you’ll forget you ever loved him, but it’ll get easier to not love him anymore.”
“You sound like you write forCosmoor something.”
Levi just laughed, and Becca drew our attention by squealing loudly, “Oh my God! Look at this! It’s HUGE!”
As we made our way around the aquarium, I relaxed enough to manage to enjoy myself. Becca, it turned out, had a lot of random trivia about jellyfish to tell me. (Like: “Did you know jellyfish can clone themselves? Like, you can cut one in half and then you just get two jellyfish. I read it online.” And: “Jellyfish don’t have brains. Just like Levi!”)
She kept reading the information cards nailed next to the tanks out loud to us, excited about each new type of fish.
Levi hung back a little as Becca grabbed my hand to haul me after her to the next tank, after giving up on trying to find the hermit crabs in the one we’d just spent ten minutes at. I glanced over my shoulder at him as Becca pressed her nose to the glass, peering in with wide eyes.
“What’s that smile for?” I asked him. It was a weird sort of smile, not exactly his usual. Small and thoughtful. A kind of smile that made me feel warm and blush and tuck some hair behind my ear as I smiled back.
It seemed to change quickly, once I’d pointed it out, back to the easy smile I was used to seeing. “It’s just nice for Becca, to have a girl to hang out with.”
“What about you? You’re not enjoying my company, too?” I teased, and he rolled his eyes. I probably shouldn’t think about that smile, or what it might mean.
“I always enjoy your company, Elle. Now get over yourself.”
I laughed, and then Becca said, “Hey, Levi, come look at this!” and broke whatever moment was going on.
• • •
Later, when we were standing at the shark tank, watching the sharks swim overhead and around us, with Becca occasionally making a soft “oooh” of awe, I felt Levi looking at me. He was close enough that his arm was pressed against mine, a fact I suddenly became hyperaware of.
I had to make an effort not to stare right back at him. Glancing quickly out of the corner of my eye, I noticed he had that same weird smile on his face as he’d had earlier.
And it made my stomach feel different. I didn’t have butterflies, exactly, but…it was something similar.
Because it was the kind of look I always saw Lee giving Rachel when he didn’t think anyone was looking. And it was the kind of look I used to catch Noah giving me sometimes, when he didn’t think I’d seen him.
Becca stood a couple of yards away. I knew that if I turned and looked at Levi now, there would besomething.Enough of a something that he might kiss me.
I swallowed, my mouth suddenly dry.
I realized that Iwantedhim to kiss me….
And then my cell phone rang.
The noise was loud, violent almost, in the quiet of the aquarium tunnel. I flinched, and the people around us looked over at me as I fumbled in my purse for my cell, finally finding it and pulling it out.
It was Lee.
“Hey,” he said before I could say anything. “Where are you? I just went to your house and your dad said you’d gone out for the day with Levi.”
“We’re at the aquarium.”
“The aquarium?” The shock in Lee’s voice was palpable. “What, like…like…just…the two of you? Like a date?”
I stole another glance at Levi. Who I’d just been very much thinking about kissing. Who I’d sort of almost kissed. And I told Lee, “We’re with Becca. You know, Levi’s little sister. He promised to bring her to the aquarium and wanted some company.”
“Oh,” Lee said, and I was sure it was relief I could hear in his voice. “Okay, well…” He trailed off, clearing his throat, and I got a nervous feeling in the pit of my stomach. Whatever he’d called me about, it was serious.
“Lee? Is everything okay?”
“I can just tell you later, when you get home. It’s okay.”
