Lick Me Up If You Can Novel (Completed) - Chapter 56

Bill’s voice continued.

“Ash just wanted to do it that way, so we’re just hanging around together, but, well. One more Koi won’t make a difference.”

Koi hastily clapped his hands over his mouth. If he didn’t, he felt like he’d scream. He held his breath, unable to move, hiding there, when another voice followed.

“Right, he hardly talks, like he’s there and not there.”

“Honestly, us hanging out with someone like Koi is unimaginable.”

The words that followed seemed to pierce Koi’s heart one by one. But unaware, they didn’t stop.

“But isn’t Ash surprising too? To hang out with him just because he’s pitiful.”

“Well, he’s a good guy, so he must have felt sympathy.”

“Ash is a good guy, but he clearly draws the line.”

“Koi must have been that pitiful, enough to cross the line. And it’s true.”

Sympathy. Because he was pitiful.

Enough to cross the line.

It was when Koi’s mind went completely blank. Suddenly, another voice cut in.

“What?”

Ash.

Koi flinched in surprise, his shoulders hunching. The atmosphere among the gathered boys also changed, as if they were flustered. Koi cautiously peeked his head out, trembling with anxiety, and swallowed dryly, confirming Ashley standing a little distance away from them. Koi waited for the next words, a mix of unease and a slight hope swirling within him.

Maybe those guys misunderstood.

Koi thought. Maybe it was just something they said, or maybe it was a completely different story and I misunderstood. Yes, that must be it. I often misunderstand things too. Everyone makes mistakes like that. Yes.

Koi looked at Ashley with desperate eyes.

Please, Ash.

Then Ashley asked,

“Tell me, what are you guys talking about, gathered like this?”

Ashley looked at the gathered group, his face furrowed, and asked. The boys’ hesitant reactions were unusual.

These bastards, I clearly heard them say Koi’s name.

Among the hesitating group, Bill bravely stepped forward.

“We were just talking about why you’ve been sticking around Koi so much lately.”

Ashley frowned, and another guy quickly stepped up.

“Why are you so curious? Ash said it before. To be nice to him because he’s pitiful.”

“Right, that’s why we included Koi too, isn’t it?”

These bastards.

Bill glared at the quick tattletales in disbelief, then turned his face back to Ashley. Seeing his wronged expression, Ashley opened his mouth.

“……It’s true that I said that.”

……What?

Koi doubted his ears. He couldn’t believe it. He had still held a little hope that maybe his friends had misunderstood.

Was it really true?

Koi’s eyes shook wildly.

Ashley.

Admitted it.

That he really said that.

Ashley’s voice continued to ring in Koi’s ears as he stood frozen, pale.

“It’s true that I said we should be nice to Koi because he’s pitiful, but……”

Ashley’s voice continued, but Koi couldn’t stay there. This was enough. If he were to learn any more of the truth, especially if it came from Ashley’s mouth, he wouldn’t be able to bear it.

Koi hastily left the spot. The words the group had been chattering about wouldn’t leave his mind, circling endlessly.

Because he’s pitiful. Out of sympathy.

Tears overflowed.

Ashley added, with a reluctant expression,

“That was old news, I don’t think that way now.”

“Huh? Really?”

“What do you mean?”

At their surprised reactions, Ashley explained again.

“So, Koi’s a good kid. That’s why we became friends. Talking to him is fun too.”

His friends looked at each other. Hesitantly, as if doubting Ashley’s sincerity, they awkwardly opened their mouths.

“Oh… really?”

“I didn’t know you’d click with someone like Koi…”

At their less-than-pleased reactions, Ashley straightened his face and urged them.

“It’s true. So you guys, don’t talk about that anymore.”

Even at his last words, everyone hesitated and didn’t answer readily. Just as Ashley frowned, Bill suddenly asked.

“Is that all? Just because Koi’s a good kid?”

“What other reason would there be?”

Ashley asked back, then added,

“It makes me happy to see him smile every time he looks at me.”

As he said that, a faint smile played on his lips, surprising everyone. Ashley didn’t notice it at all and continued speaking.

“When he smiles and moves his ears, his face always turns red. Do you know Koi’s head only comes up to here? Koi has a lot of hair, so from above, he looks just like a Gloster Canary. And it’s always sticking out somewhere. Today, it was sticking out on this side, I wanted to tell him, but I thought he’d get discouraged, so I just left it. Haven’t you seen it? Really? Not once?”

As he spoke, Ashley was now smiling brightly. They had known him for a long time, but it was the first time they had seen him smile so radiantly, and everyone looked at Ashley in a daze. Amidst their bewildered reactions, Bill was the first to speak.

“Ah, I get it. You liked him because he’s cute.”

Suddenly, Ashley frowned.

“Cute?”

At his abrupt reaction, Bill paused and replied.

“Uh… isn’t he cute? You know, those really small animals. He looks just like them. What are they, hamsters or chipmunks?”

“Right, you said it too, he looks like a Gloster Canary.”

Another guy quickly chimed in. Then, as if on cue, words poured out.

“Honestly, if Koi wasn’t a good kid, we would never hang out with him.”

Another guy nodded.

“Right, even if Ash said that, if Koi was no good, we would have just treated him appropriately and ignored him.”

“Actually, the reason we got this close is because Koi is kind.”

“And cute.”

“Right, right,” the big guys nodded repeatedly.

“His ear wiggling is amazing, isn’t it? I’d only seen it on TV, but it’s my first time seeing it in real life.”

“Right. That too, and maybe because he’s small, he’s even cuter.”

They never thought their own bodies were excessively large. Maybe a little better developed than their peers, but nothing more. Then another guy opened his mouth.

“There are a lot of small guys, but Koi is different, isn’t he?”

“I don’t know why, but my little brother isn’t cute at all, but Koi is cute, so I guess he is different.”

“Your brother is as big as you. Of course Koi is much cuter.”

“Cute.”

“Right, cute.”

Watching the guys exchange words in a more relaxed atmosphere, Ashley’s mood grew increasingly uncomfortable.

What are these bastards talking about right now?

Ashley furrowed his brows and crossed his arms.

Of course Koi is cute. There’s no one as cute as him. Even if you gathered all the cute things in the world, they wouldn’t be as cute as Koi.

It was an obvious truth, but the reason Ashley was upset lay elsewhere.

But why are you guys chattering about how cute Koi is?

“Hey, hey.”

Bill, who first noticed the atmosphere, subtly warned the other guys. The guys, who had been excitedly chattering about Koi until then, belatedly sensed the ominous air and fell silent. An unusual atmosphere was felt from behind them. The large-bodied guys hunched their shoulders, subtly looked back, and then gasped in fright.

Ashley stood with his arms crossed, glaring at them with terrifying eyes.

What did we do wrong?

No one knew, but they couldn’t stay like this. They hastily changed the subject and spoke.

“Hey, aren’t you hungry?”

“Of course. Shall we go to Green Bell?”

“Yeah, let’s eat first. I feel like I’m going to die. Ash, how about you?”

At the intentionally asked question, Ashley finally uncrossed his arms, returned his expression to normal, and said,

“I have an appointment.”

“Oh, right. At this time… you don’t have a girlfriend, but you have an appointment.”

Bill, who had elbowed his friend for adding a useless remark, quickly forced a laugh.

“Okay, Ash. See you tomorrow then. You must be tired, go rest. Let’s go quickly too, wow, I’m really starving to death. Aren’t you?”

Turning back and deliberately overreacting, the other guys also quickly nodded knowingly and waved at Ashley.

“See you tomorrow.”

“Bye, Ash.”

“See you tomorrow.”

Ashley also waved, then turned around and headed towards where he had parked his car. The remaining group finally put their heads together and began to murmur again only after he had completely disappeared from sight.

“What was that, what on earth was that?”

“I don’t know, I’ve never seen him that angry before.”

“Right, the last time he was that angry was when the opponent fouled in the game and the referee gave Ash a warning.”

“Does Ash hate Koi?”

Someone said, and another guy immediately denied it.

“No, Ash just said it. He said he became friends with Koi.”

“He didn’t invite him to the party either.”

“No, Ash wasn’t at the party either. Maybe they went somewhere together?”

“No way, really?”

“I don’t know about that, but look, Ash clearly defended Koi just now. He doesn’t hate him, absolutely not.”

“Then what on earth is it?”

Amidst the diverse opinions, Bill summarized the question.

“He told us he got close to Koi and talked about all sorts of good things about him, but then he got angry when we repeated it. Why on earth would he do that?”

They looked at each other with serious faces, when one guy suddenly stepped forward.

“I know what that is.”

“What?”

“What is it?”

At the urgent questions, he replied with a solemn face.

“My dad does that to my mom.”

“What?”

“What kind of bullshit is that?”

Jeers and criticisms poured out from all sides. But he was utterly serious.

“It’s true. He’ll talk endlessly about how pretty and kind and wise my mom is, and then if we say a few words of praise to match, he’ll immediately change. Like, ‘How would you guys know?’ No, we’re his kids.”

At the end, another guy asked him, who was bursting with indignation,

“Why does he do that? Does your dad not know you’re his kids?”

“Hey, you son of a bitch.”