By Zephyria His heart pounded with fear. It was the first time Father had ever woken up and called for him at this hour.
Usually, Father was either passed out drunk or, if not, he’d ignore Koi, pretend to be asleep, or leave for work.
So why, all of a sudden?
Unable to say anything, he just stared as Father, now sitting up in bed, looked back at him. Koi couldn’t imagine what he was about to say. Seeing his son so tense, Father closed his mouth again. He clearly had something to say, but he didn’t say it. Koi couldn’t bear the tension.
“I, I’m, I’m late… I’ll be going!”
He blurted out the words and fled. Father watched silently as his son scrambled out of the Motorhome with a crash.
Huff, huff.
He ran until he was a good distance from the Motorhome, then stopped and looked back. The area was quiet, and Father was nowhere to be seen.
He hadn’t followed him. Whew, Koi finally let out a shaky breath.
What had Father been about to say?
The question popped into his head, but if someone told him to go back and stand there until he spoke, Koi would absolutely refuse.
After watching the silent Motorhome for a while, Koi turned and started walking towards school. Suddenly, his phone rang. Wondering who it could be so early, his face lit up as he checked the caller ID.
*
Ashley was waiting for him at the roadside where they’d parted the day before. Leaning against his car, humming softly, he spotted Koi running towards him and smiled.
“Ash!”
Koi shouted, his face beaming. Overjoyed, his cheeks flushed, Ashley grinned back and spread his arms wide. Koi hesitated for a moment. His legs, which had been running full speed, seemed to slow down, but then they started moving quickly again, and Ashley waited steadily for him to run into his arms.
“Ash…!”
Calling his name happily, Koi leaped into Ashley’s embrace. Ashley held him tight, burying his nose in his neck and immediately catching a faint scent of skin. Ashley inhaled deeply, savoring Koi’s fragrance. Koi, also holding him tightly, gasped for breath and closed his eyes.
“I missed you,” Ashley whispered. Koi felt a shiver run down his spine at the warmth of his breath on his neck and opened his mouth to speak.
“I dreamed about you.”
“Really?”
Ashley’s voice was full of laughter. What could be more pleasing than knowing your boyfriend dreamed about you? A contented smile naturally formed on Ashley’s face, but then Koi said, “Yeah, but it wasn’t a very good dream.”
Ashley didn’t react immediately. After a moment, he lifted his head and looked down at Koi.
“…Why?”
Koi hesitated, seeing the frown on his face, then lowered his head and whispered, “Seeing you in person is so much better.”
Ashley’s expression gradually softened, and a bright smile spread across his face. Unable to resist, he tilted his head, and the earnest student hesitantly looked up.
Their lips met softly, and Ashley gently sucked on his lower lip before pressing back and intertwining their tongues. Koi diligently followed along with the deep kiss he’d learned the day before. Ashley couldn’t help but feel affectionate at the clumsy way he rubbed his tongue, and he hugged him tighter.
“…Ugh.”
Koi let out a small groan between kisses. It definitely wasn’t a groan of pleasure. He was going to break Koi’s bones if he wasn’t careful.
Ashley thought about Koi’s build, which was less than half his size, and reluctantly loosened his grip.
Lovely Koi, I love you.
As he kissed him again, Ashley refrained from squeezing him tightly with both arms, instead lowering one hand to grip his butt. Koi flinched, but remained silent and focused on the kiss.
Koi was wearing jeans today. The rough texture of the fabric wasn’t very pleasant, and Ashley barely managed to stop himself from slipping his hand inside Koi’s pants to caress his bare skin.
If he went that far, they wouldn’t make it to school.
Even after releasing so much the day before, blood was already rushing to his lower body again. The lifespans of extreme Alphas were supposed to be longer than average, but at this rate, he might become the first to die young, becoming a new subject of research. Ashley struggled to restrain himself and barely managed to break the kiss. His hand still lingered on Koi’s butt, but even that was a significant act of restraint.
Take it easy, Ashley Miller. Don’t rush things.
Imagining their future as an old Father couple raising dogs and cats in a country house, he barely suppressed his urges. He absolutely couldn’t die young if he wanted to live out his dream.
“Shall we go, Koi?” Ashley asked, and Koi nodded before answering, “Yeah.”
His gaze was still hazy as he looked at him. Koi really loved kissing Ashley. Knowing that so clearly, Ashley gave him another quick kiss on the lips.
All the way to school, Ashley held the steering wheel with one hand and held Koi’s hand tightly in the other.
Every now and then, when they stopped at a light or slowed down, he would squeeze their intertwined fingers, fidget with them, and play with his hand.
Koi felt like the hand held in his big, strong palm was his whole world, and he struggled to keep his breathing steady each time.
But the sweet time passed too quickly. Ashley pulled over to the side of the road not far from school, sighed softly, and spoke.
“No one will see us here.”
“Yeah.”
Koi nodded and prepared to get out. He didn’t want to part ways, but it couldn’t be helped. Koi was the one who had suggested keeping it a secret in the first place.
Thinking about what had happened that morning, it was definitely the right thing to do. He didn’t know what Father had been about to say, but it definitely wouldn’t be good if this got out.
It was for Ash’s sake.
He didn’t care if he got hurt, but the thought of Ashley getting hurt by Father was unbearable. Ashley didn’t deserve that kind of treatment. He was putting Ashley in unnecessary danger because he was dating Koi.
Koi felt guilty and tried to gently pull his hand away. But suddenly, Ashley grabbed his hand tightly and pulled him towards him. Ashley kissed the back of Koi’s hand, still holding his fingers intertwined, and looked at Koi. Once again, Koi’s heart began to race wildly.
“It’s okay to acknowledge me at school, right?”
“Y-yeah.”
It would be strange to suddenly act distant. That much should be okay, right? Koi decided to give himself a small reward. It would be too painful if he couldn’t even do that.
Seeing Koi’s expression, Ashley smiled gently.
“Don’t worry, I remember what you said, so nothing bad will happen.”
“Yeah.”
If Ashley said so, it must be true. Koi could believe anything. Ashley reached out with his other hand and pulled Koi closer by the back of his head. Koi closed his eyes first and waited for his kiss. This kiss lasted a little longer.
After his tongue gently stroked and licked the inside of his mouth, Koi opened his eyes with a feeling of regret. Ashley was smiling as he wiped the saliva from Koi’s lips.
“Then, I’ll see you soon.”
“Yeah.”
Koi nodded again and reluctantly opened the passenger door. They didn’t let go of each other’s hands until the very end. He leaned out as much as possible, holding onto his hand for as long as he could, and as Koi straightened up, their fingers finally came apart. Forced to close the passenger door, he looked inside the car and saw Ashley looking at him with a wry smile. Koi said, “See you soon,” one more time and closed the door.
Ashley, who had dropped Koi off on a remote road about a 10-minute walk from school, drove off first.
Probably to deal with the attention that would be pouring down on them before Koi had to. Koi felt infinite gratitude and guilt for his consideration as he slowly headed towards school.
*
Ashley Miller had been rejected ‘again.’
The rumor spread like wildfire. Even faster than the rumor that Ashley Miller had confessed to and kissed some guy after the ice hockey game the day before.