Lick Me Up If You Can Novel (Completed) - Chapter 124

For a moment, he couldn’t say anything. It was only a few seconds of silence, but it gave Koi certainty.

“N-no, that’s not it. It’s a misunderstanding!”

Ashley shouted frantically at Koi’s face, which immediately crumpled as if he was about to cry. He stammered in embarrassment and quickly added.

“You saw it. I release pheromones with an injection.”

“You can’t get injections like that every time.”

Koi pointed out. He still didn’t seem to fully trust Ashley, but Ashley had already been living like this for almost a year.

“No, I can.”

Ashley spoke.

“It’s possible to release them with injections too. It’s just that sex is more convenient, so people release them that way, and I only release them with an injection because I have you.”

He spoke the truth. He didn’t mention the side effects of the injection, but he wasn’t lying. Just not telling everything.

“Really, Koi. Don’t you trust me?”

Ashley smiled bitterly. At his face, which looked somewhat pathetic, Koi was silent for a moment, then slowly opened his mouth.

“I do.”

Phew, Ashley unconsciously let out a sigh of relief. Koi spoke again.

“I trust you, because you’re my boyfriend.”

“Good.”

This time, Ashley smiled genuinely. At his familiar, refreshing smile, however, Koi’s heart felt heavy.

“Why do you use injections?”

“What?”

At the repeated question, Ashley glanced at him. Koi continued in a gloomy voice.

“You said to yourself that it’s easier to release them with sex. So why do you use injections?”

“That’s…”

Ashley had to choose his words carefully to avoid hurting him. But Koi already knew the answer. His eyes quickly welled up.

“Because I’m a Beta, I can’t?”

For a moment, he almost swerved the steering wheel in panic. Ashley gripped the wheel tighter and quickly looked at Koi, then back to the front. Koi continued to ask.

“Is that it? I can’t release your pheromones?”

“…That is.”

Ashley opened his mouth, then closed it again. He had tried so hard not to hurt Koi, but it had come to this anyway.

Of course.

Ashley thought. Koi wasn’t stupid, just a bit slow to catch on. He would have found out eventually. He had just hoped that moment would be delayed as much as possible, but it had been exposed immediately like this.

Ashley almost let out a groan but managed to bite his lip to suppress it. After a short breath, he finally managed to speak.

“That, that won’t work.”

He felt Koi’s gaze on him, holding his breath. Ashley continued to avoid his gaze and spoke quickly.

“It will hurt you.”

He hadn’t known then. What a True Alpha was like, even though it was his own body.

The sight of them engaging in an orgy came back to him. How they had taken turns, with several people, all night long. He was no different. If he was intoxicated by pheromones, he would become like that. But it was okay for them because their partners were Omegas. What if it was a Beta?

They would surely die.

His heart turned cold at the thought of holding a corpse when he regained consciousness after a rut. What if that corpse had Koi’s face?

He would probably go crazy and commit suicide.

It was better for his brain to melt from pheromones. It didn’t matter if his arms rotted away. It was okay if he could never embrace Koi in his life. As long as they could just be together.

…That’s all I want.

“Ash.”

Suddenly, Koi’s voice was heard. To the startled Ashley, Koi spoke in a lower voice than usual.

“I know you’re trying to protect me because you love me. But I don’t want to be protected that way.”

His voice was somewhat emotional, but there was no sign of wavering or hesitation. Instead, Koi declared to Ash in a resolute tone.

“If you’re suffering, I get sad too. Just like you got angry seeing me getting hit by my father, I get angry when you overwork your body.”

Ashley was somewhat surprised by Koi, who was conveying his feelings with clear pronunciation, not stammering as usual.

He had never imagined Koi, who was always timid and observant, had such a side. Ashley glanced at him, and perhaps his expression was different than usual, as Koi quickly blushed and mumbled softly.

“I-I’m your boyfriend too. I want to be a source of strength for you.”

…Ah.

At those words, Ashley seemed to realize something. Until now, he had thought Koi was too small and fragile, and that he alone had to protect him. But Koi was also a proper young man. Ashley wasn’t the only one who wanted to protect the person he loved.

He, too, was giving his all for Ashley. Realizing this made him feel ashamed of himself for always thinking he had to endure alone, and at the same time, it warmed his heart.

“…Right.”

A relaxed smile appeared on Ashley’s lips.

“You’re right.”

“See?”

Only then did Koi’s voice return to normal, as if he was relieved. As Ashley nodded to confirm again, Koi’s eyes brightened with joy.

“Then.”

“Not right now.”

Ashley cut off his hasty suggestion. It hadn’t been long since the injection, and his pheromone state wasn’t bad now. There was no reason to rush.

Koi, who had listened to Ashley’s explanation, quickly looked dejected, lowered his head, and closed his mouth again. Ashley smiled bitterly and reached out to stroke his head a couple of times. As if giving a reward to a good child. But Koi wasn’t a child. He subtly removed Ashley’s hand from his head and said.

“Condoms have an expiration date.”

“I know.”

“Really?”

I just found that out…

After a momentary dejection at the unhesitating reply, Koi gathered his strength again and suggested.

“Let’s use them all.”

His resolve was firm. Koi added, with no intention of backing down.

“Before they expire.”

Ashley laughed again. With a face full of comfortable laughter, he replied.

“Okay.”

“You have to use them only on me.”

Koi reaffirmed.

“Okay.”

Ashley also nodded emphatically.

“Of course.”

He lowered his hand and took Koi’s hand. When Koi deliberately intertwined their fingers, Ashley gripped his hand firmly. The empty, dark road stretched endlessly.

It wasn’t even two hours later when a police car, sirens wailing, pulled them over to the side of the road.

The police pulled Ashley, who was sitting in the driver’s seat, roughly onto the hood and handcuffed him behind his back. Koi screamed in fear and tried to stop them, but of course, it was no use at all.

Ashley’s charges were assault and kidnapping.

The school was in an uproar. Ashley Miller, who was like an idol in the school, had committed a heinous crime and been arrested. Naturally, the entire student body was buzzing. And it was all because of Connor Niles, which shocked everyone even more. He was just an ordinary, insignificant outcast who had no presence in the school.

As Koi, who appeared after a few days riding the bicycle Ariel had given him, was seen, whispers spread everywhere.

He had expected this whole situation, but he had no choice but to come to school. This was the only way he could meet Ashley.

“Koi!”

He instinctively turned at the call and felt both relief and disappointment when he saw Bill running towards him. Bill quickly approached Koi, who stood silently waiting, and stopped.

“Are you okay? Um, nothing happened, right?”

After a moment of hesitation, he added the question, and Koi nodded, then managed a difficult smile.

“That’s what I should be asking. …Are you okay?”

“Uh, yeah.”

Bill scratched his head and said.

“Actually, I don’t remember much. I saw you and Ash together, and then when I woke up, I was in the hospital. They said I temporarily lost consciousness because of Ash’s pheromones?”

He deliberately spoke in a lighter tone than usual, trying to make light of it.

“I’ve never smelled pheromones before, so I didn’t know it was that… like that. Wow, it was amazing.”

He continued his words with only pronouns, unable to find the right words to express himself, and tilted his head, asking.

“You seemed fine, though? I was the only one in the hospital.”

“Uh, yeah. …I was fine.”

When he vaguely brushed it off, Bill said, “Oh, okay,” and dismissed it casually. Soon, noticing the surrounding gazes, he put his arm around Koi’s shoulder as usual and said loudly.

“Wow, preparing for college entrance exams is really crazy, isn’t it? When is this going to end, huh?”

Bill, who even laughed as if to make sure others heard, lowered his voice and whispered.

“I have something to tell you.”

Koi flinched but then nodded. And Bill led him to a secluded area behind the school and spoke.

“There’s talk that Ash is leaving for the East. Did you know about it too?”