Lick Me Up If You Can Novel (Completed) - Chapter 9

“No, stop it!”

Koi cried out urgently. His head was spinning. He had to stop them and make them leave somehow, but the other gang members kept holding him, preventing him from moving even a single step.

“I said stop it, everyone get out! Put everything down and leave!”

“This bastard.”

Just as the guy holding Koi grabbed him by the collar,

“Wait, let go of that bastard.”

At Nelson’s sudden interjection, the guy who had grabbed Koi’s collar reluctantly backed off. Koi, who had stumbled badly from being violently shaken off, stopped awkwardly as Nelson approached him.

“Hey, what did you say?”

With each step, Nelson’s body seemed even larger than usual. Koi unconsciously backed away. He had to tell the grinning guys around him, the one arbitrarily tearing open and eating snacks from the display, and the one arbitrarily pulling slush from the machine, that they couldn’t do that, but at this moment, the only person in Koi’s sight was Nelson.

“What did you say? Huh?”

Nelson asked mockingly. He walked casually towards Koi, who couldn’t open his mouth. Nelson chuckled at Koi, who was only wide-eyed and trembling, then pushed Koi’s shoulders hard with both hands.

“Hey.”

“Ah!”

Nelson pushed Koi again, who staggered back.

“What? Stop it? Get out?”

Nelson pushed Koi again, then grabbed his staggering collar with one hand. Nelson pulled Koi closer, putting his face close to Koi’s, and gnashed his teeth with a vicious expression.

“How dare you order me around? You pathetic loser, you don’t know your place.”

“Ugh, ugh.”

Koi choked, tears welling up, and struggled to escape from his grip. But his breathing only became more constricted, and Nelson didn’t budge. Koi gasped for breath, his tear-filled eyes fixed on Nelson. Nelson jutted out his chin and glared at him menacingly, as if to say, What are you going to do about it? Meeting his gaze, Koi suddenly felt a surge of indignation.

“Stop it! You, you didn’t pay, and you, you messed up the store, you’re a thief. All of you, thieves, robbers!”

“What?!”

Nelson’s voice rose. A vein pulsed on his forehead, and his large hand rose. Koi squeezed his eyes shut, bracing himself for the imminent slap to his cheek.

In just a few seconds, countless thoughts flashed through his mind. If I get hit and pass out, what about the store? When will I finish cleaning? How many items did these guys take? Will my weekly pay cover it? I’d rather get hit and never open my eyes again…!

It was then. Suddenly, the bell jingled loudly. Someone had arrived.

A customer? Koi vaguely thought, but even then, it would only delay the pain for a moment. There wouldn’t be anyone to help in this situation. Seeing this mess, they’d surely be surprised and leave…

“What are you all doing?”

Huh?

At the sudden clear voice, Koi flinched. The surroundings instantly fell silent. Even as he cautiously opened his tightly shut eyes, Koi was skeptical. He thought there was probably only one person in the world who could produce such a refreshing voice, yet it felt completely unreal.

No way, it can’t be. No way.

Could Ashley Miller be here…?

His finally opened eyes gradually widened. Koi couldn’t believe the sight before him.

He’s here.

Only that thought came to his empty mind.

Ashley Miller is here.

That was it. His mind stopped working. Koi wasn’t the only one staring blankly at him. Nelson, who had been causing a ruckus, and all his gang members stood frozen in place, looking at him in confusion. Only Ashley Miller walked casually into the store.

The bell attached to the automatically closing glass door jingled. Even though everyone’s gaze was fixed on him, Ashley showed no sign of discomfort. In fact, seeing him walk in so nonchalantly, as if it were natural, Koi thought, Well, of course.

This must be his daily life, so there’s nothing new about it.

Just as he felt a bitter feeling that was out of place with the situation, Ashley, who had stopped a few steps away from Nelson, glanced at Koi, then returned his gaze to Nelson.

“What are you doing? You’re not going to hit him, are you?”

Nelson froze, still holding Koi by the collar. Anger belatedly surged through him for revealing his fear, and he shouted even louder,

“What, what’s it to you?!”

We’re screwed.

All the gang members watching, even Nelson himself, thought the same thing. It was important to gain the upper hand, but no matter how loudly he shouted, he had stammered, so everything was ruined.

Sure enough, Ashley smiled broadly and said,

“It is my business. You guys, is that alcohol you’re drinking right now?”

“What, what?”

One of the gang members belatedly hid the beer he was holding behind his back, and Nelson hastily threw the remaining beer can to the floor. Ashley looked at the beer can rolling away, spilling white foam, then turned his gaze back to Nelson.

“That’s troublesome. Alcohol to minors… Aren’t we all too young to be drinking alcohol?”

“S-So what?”

Nelson stubbornly blurted out, and Ashley replied nonchalantly,

“Just, I’m going to call the police.”

He ostentatiously pulled out his phone, and the gang members widened their eyes in panic, looking at each other. Nelson also widened his eyes, not knowing what to do, then angrily snapped,

“What are you, are you really trying to pick a fight with me?!”

“What? I’m just trying to follow the law.”

Seeing Nelson press a button on his phone, speaking nonchalantly, Nelson threw Koi aside and lunged at Ashley.

“You bastard…!”

Koi, who had hastily composed himself at the sight of Nelson wildly swinging his clenched fist, gasped in surprise. Oh no, this is going to be a huge disaster! His mind went blank, and he clutched his head.

Don’t mess up the store any more than this!

“You son of a bitch!”

Nelson yelled and swung his fist. The gang members watched in surprise, and Koi covered his head with both hands.

No!

Just as he let out a silent scream, Ashley subtly took a step back.

“Oh, oh.”

Nelson, who had thrown a big punch, flailed his entire body from the missed swing.

“Nelson!”

“Hey!”

The gang members shouted in panic, but Nelson ended up clumsily cornered. Seeing this, the guys snickered here and there, but they couldn’t bring themselves to laugh loudly and began to tremble, pressing their lips together.

Nelson, who finally managed to get up and saw the scene, turned beet red and clenched his fist again, ready to lunge at Ashley. Ashley looked down at Nelson with disdain and opened his mouth.

“Are you really going to fight? Against me?”

Think carefully.

Koi felt as if he had heard the unspoken words. Koi wasn’t the only one who felt as if Ashley was kindly giving advice. Nelson, who had been savagely gnashing his teeth as if about to lunge, also hesitated and lost his momentum. Sensing the unusual atmosphere, the gang members began to look around nervously.

“Um, um, we were just about to leave. Right?”

One person bravely stepped forward, and the other guys nodded in agreement.

“Oh, right, of course. There’s nothing fun here anyway.”

“Hey, let’s go, huh? Nelson.”

“Nelson, let’s just go.”

With the continuous urging, the strength in Nelson’s fist gradually loosened. As if reluctantly leaving due to the gang’s urging, he straightened his body and looked up at Ashley.

“Consider yourself lucky today.”

The situation ended absurdly. After uttering one last boastful remark, Nelson hurriedly left the store, following the rest of his gang. Watching Nelson’s retreating figure, Koi felt as if he was seeing the final scene of a villain from a childhood cartoon.

In an instant, the store fell silent. Koi, belatedly realizing the quiet, hesitated and looked up at Ashley. Ashley, who had been watching the retreating figures of the guys until then, finally turned his head towards Koi only after they had completely disappeared.

The moment their eyes met, Koi flinched. Unlike Koi, who was unconsciously tense, Ashley opened his mouth with the bright smile he had seen several times before.

“Are you okay?”

“Huh? Uh…”

Koi, who had nodded in a daze, hesitated and then cautiously asked,

“Um, what are you… doing here?”

Did he come looking for me?

He thought to himself, but he was wrong again. Ashley replied nonchalantly,

“I was passing by and needed to buy something, so I came in.”

Of course.

Koi casually held out one hand, extending his arm, as if telling him to look around himself. Ashley, who followed his hand and looked around the store, said,

“Even a locker room after a game wouldn’t be this messy.”

“If you know that, hurry up and buy something and leave. I need to clean.”

His own voice sounded completely devoid of energy. It was true. Thinking of the messed-up store, and the items Nelson’s gang had ruined, eaten, drunk, and taken, his head ached, and he wanted to run away somewhere. Of course, he had no such courage.