By Zephyria Ashley frowned and said nothing. Koi was chattering from below.
“You’re an Alpha, so it’s natural for you to have sex with Omegas. You’ve always done that… you were probably just saying it out of habit, I don’t mind. It’s okay.”
Koi kept saying something. But Ashley was thinking something completely different. He had no idea what Koi was talking about. At least, it wasn’t what Ashley had expected or hoped to hear.
“Koi.”
“Y-yes.”
Koi, who had been desperately stringing words together, quickly shut his mouth. Ashley continued in a quiet voice.
“I don’t really understand what you’re saying, but do you really know what we did yesterday?”
Koi swallowed hard at the guarded tone, then forced a bright voice and replied.
“Of course, I know. I know what our relationship is. Don’t worry, I’ll go back to the West when you find someone good.”
He had always thought that his strength was knowing his place. Now was even more the time for that.
Don’t get carried away and cross the line.
Koi warned himself. They were friends. Ashley had already made their relationship clear.
He was just a friend who also had sex with Ashley because Ashley needed a sex partner, until a specific someone came along. When that person appeared, Koi would return to being a normal friend without a word. He was even prepared to disappear to the West so as not to be seen. So, until then.
Until then, can I stay by your side?
Koi quickly suppressed his breath, feeling like he was about to cry. His heart pounded anxiously as he waited for Ashley’s answer. How would Ashley react?
“…Is that so?”
Ashley asked after a long pause. Koi was startled by the calm, quiet voice and quickly nodded. The strange silence before his answer bothered him. Maybe he was suspicious. Koi quickly added to reassure him.
“Yes, it’s really okay. I’m not hurt at all. I told you, I’ve slept with Alphas before…”
This was true. He was numb and weak, making it difficult to support his body properly, but strangely, he didn’t feel like his insides were messed up or torn apart, as Ashley had warned.
I’m probably not built that way.
Koi arbitrarily concluded. Ashley was just worried about him and gave him exaggerated warnings.
Kind Ash, you’re really nice.
With gratitude and emotion for him, Koi’s anxious heart calmed down a little. How fortunate that he could be of help to Ashley. He was even feeling proud of himself when it happened.
“…Ah!”
Ashley, who had been holding Koi’s waist and stroking his stomach, put strength into his hand. The pressure on his stomach caused Koi to gasp and let out a short scream. But Ashley didn’t let up, instead pressing down even harder.
Koi struggled without realizing it, but Ashley didn’t care and pressed hard in various places. The moment his hand pressed hard on one side of Koi’s stomach, Koi froze in shock. His vision blurred, and he couldn’t breathe from the pain. He faintly heard Ashley’s low voice.
“You know, here.”
He couldn’t understand what he was saying. Ashley, who had been silently looking down at Koi, who was completely limp and panting, suddenly picked him up. Koi, half out of his mind, rested his head on Ashley’s shoulder and just breathed heavily.
Ashley walked past the messy bed and headed to another room. After laying Koi down on a clean bed that showed no signs of use, Ashley quietly looked down at him, kissed his forehead, and then got up again.
Ashley left the room, quickly took a shower, and prepared to go to work. He was putting on a white shirt and tying his tie when his cell phone rang. It was his secretary.
– Mr. Miller, are you alright? You haven’t come to work yet, and it’s past the time.
Ashley, familiar with the voice, answered with his cell phone between his ear and shoulder.
“It’s nothing, I was in heat.”
– Excuse me? It’s not your time.
The secretary made a rare surprised sound before quickly returning to her professional tone. Ashley said, choosing cufflinks.
“Yes, the period was short, and the time I lost consciousness after the heat was very short. But it was heat.”
Could he mistake that feeling? He had been experiencing it for over 10 years.
What was strange was that it was such a sudden, unexpected anomaly. Moreover, the period was short, and there were almost no aftereffects. This was the first time.
– Should I make an appointment at the clinic?
The secretary asked. Ashley prevented her from wasting her time, as she was probably flipping through her schedule to check.
“Leave it, it’s nothing.”
It was really a minor matter. What was important to him now was not an unexpected heat.
He switched to speakerphone and finished preparing for work while giving instructions. Ashley, who had pulled out an espresso and was holding it in his hand, crossed the living room and headed to the private elevator.
“Tell them I won’t be attending the party tonight. Donate $1 million.”
– Understood.
As the secretary answered, Ashley pressed the button, and the elevator doors soon opened. Ashley got into the elevator, drank his coffee, and stared at the numbers on the changing number plate.
Sex friend.
He was so angry that he let out a hollow laugh. Where did he learn such nasty words?
The high-speed elevator quickly reached the ground floor. As soon as the doors opened, Ashley strode across the lobby of the apartment and thought.
I’ll turn you back into my cute Koi.
“Have a good day.”
Ashley threw the empty cup away without looking back at the doorman, who was bowing politely. The cup that had contained the espresso landed perfectly in the trash can.
* * *
“Ugh…”
His consciousness slowly returned with the groan that flowed out on its own. Koi was momentarily bewildered, knowing that it was his own voice. When he barely opened his eyes, it was another unfamiliar scene. It was smaller than the room he had been in earlier, but it was still large and spacious, and there was expensive-looking furniture everywhere that was admirable.
After confirming that the bed he was lying on was fluffy and well-dried, Koi paused for a moment. No matter how much he thought about it, there was no one else who would do this for him except Ashley. Soon, the last memory came back to him, and he unconsciously brought his hand to his stomach. The pain from earlier was gone, as if it had been a lie.
Why did he suddenly do that?
He couldn’t understand Ashley’s actions at all. He was trying so hard to stay within the lines of friendship that Ashley had drawn, so why was he angry?
Koi became sullen, feeling unfairly sad, then straightened his slumped shoulders and quickly shook his head. There must have been something I did to upset him. If I ask, Ashley will answer. Koi trusted him.
He got up, feeling better than he had in the morning, and barely made it to the hallway, where he unconsciously held his breath at the unbelievable silence. He listened carefully, but there was no sign of anyone. The bright light coming through the front window told him that it was the middle of the workday. At other times, he would have been absorbed in his work. This idleness felt somehow surreal.
Koi cautiously moved his feet and went downstairs. The continued silence made it clear that Koi was alone. He gathered his clothes and put them away, then belatedly checked his cell phone. There was one message, but it was the most powerful.
[How did it go? Tell me the result.]
Koi hesitated for a moment after seeing Ariel’s text, then sent a message.
[When are you free? I’ll call you.]
The answer came back immediately.
[Call me right now.]
He wanted to run away for a moment, but he couldn’t disobey Ariel. Koi took a trembling breath and exhaled, then made a call. Ariel answered in less than 3 seconds.
– How did it go? Did you meet that bastard?
Koi was flustered by the sudden question and stammered.
“Bastard… don’t call Ash that.”
He scolded softly, but all he got in return was a snort.
– He’s a bastard if you understand right away.
Koi had nothing to say, so he just mumbled softly, “Still…” Ariel left Koi alone and continued.
– You met him, right? How did it go? Of course, he said he would take it.
“What, what did you say? Ash called me himself.”
Unable to contain his curiosity, he asked, and Ariel answered confidently.
– I told him to cooperate if he sincerely wanted Koi to be happy.
Ah, Koi sighed softly. What Ashley had said to him was really sincere. Then the offer to be friends must have been sincere as well.
He was grateful, but his heart felt empty. He was really glad that he had at least suggested being sex friends.
It feels like I’m taking advantage of Ash’s kindness…
“I can’t even afford the retainer… Ash is expensive.”
– It’s okay, he has so much money that he can spend it extravagantly for the rest of his life, so what’s the big deal? He should do some good as a lawyer once in a while. So how did it go? Tell me the conclusion quickly, hurry.Koi, flustered by the urgent prompting, squeezed his eyes shut and confessed.
“I… I slept with Ash.”
A chilling silence emanated from the other end of the line. After a few seconds of emptiness, Ariel spoke.
– What did you just say? You slept with him? You and Ashley Miller?
“U-uh-huh.”
As he answered in a trembling voice, Ariel, who had been silent for a moment, suddenly screamed.
– Did that son of a bitch make you pay his fees with your body?
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