• Leighton Meester explained that viral footage of her at the Critics Choice Awards with Ariana Grande.
  • Leighton was filmed saying "wah wah wah" to Ari, which people found "mocking."
  • The Gossip Girl alum thought Ari was making a joke about her crying.

Please cast your mind back several awards shows ago allllll the way to the CCAs in early January. Genuinely feel like I've lived several lives since then, but one moment that was memorable? Leighton Meester and Ariana Grande's interaction on the red carpet, which was deemed "awkward" due to Leighton misunderstanding Ariana.

Watch below, but basically Ariana spots Leighton, says "I love you so much! Wow, wow, wow," and Leighton responds "Wah, wah, wah," which some people found "mocking." But in reality, Leighton thought Ariana had said "wah, wah, wah" and was simply repeating it back to get in on the joke.

Leighton explained this on Podcrushed, saying she heard Ari say "Hi, I love you. Wah, wah, wah," and thought it was a reference to her crying during Adam Brody's win last year.

"I couldn’t hear her," she said. "She was, like, walking away. And I was like, 'Oh, she’s kind of a comedy queen. She’s just being funny.' Like, 'I love you. Wah, wah, wah.' Like, I thought that would be something she would do. And so I was like, 'Oh, my God, that’s cute and funny.' Turns out she didn’t say that."

Leighton added that she saw Ariana the next week, explained the "embarrassing" mistake, "And she’s like, 'You thought I said wah, wah, wah? That’s so funny.' And I was like, 'No, it’s an old person not being able to hear.' Like, that is so embarrassing."

Happens to the best of us.