By Zephyria Surprised, Koi frantically shook his head and denied it.
“N-no, it’s not like that. Really, it’s not.”
– Then what is it? Why did the conversation suddenly turn that way? Tell me everything that happened yesterday, every single detail!
Overwhelmed by Ariel’s fierce energy, Koi began to speak haltingly. Whenever Koi tried to gloss over something, Ariel immediately pressed him, threatening him to tell the truth. In the end, Koi ended up revealing every trivial detail, even what they had each eaten for dinner.
But when he got to the part about how they ended up sleeping together, he couldn’t bring himself to say it. His face flushed, his heart pounded, and his hands and feet tingled, making it impossible to think straight. Noticing Koi’s state, Ariel took the initiative and said.
– So, that bastard forced himself on you?
“N-no.”
Koi was startled and quickly continued.
“It just… the situation just turned out that way. I mean, the atmosphere was like that…”
When he asked in a barely audible voice, “You know what I mean?” Ariel retorted mercilessly from the other end.
– You’re the one who got swept away by the atmosphere. There’s no way that guy would be that careless.
“No, Ash was too. We both were, okay? You know, Ash thinks of me as a friend.”
Koi tried hard to deny Ariel’s words, but she didn’t take him seriously. The important thing was what to do from now on. To walk right into Ashley’s den like that, she never thought that bastard would go that far. And to think Koi would get devoured as soon as he entered his house.
I let my guard down.
Ariel gnashed her teeth as she pondered. People never change after all. She had thought that since he only kissed her during their entire relationship, he wouldn’t do anything more, but he had managed to make progress on everything in just one day.
The only fortunate thing was that Koi firmly believed their relationship was just a friendship. At least he kept his promise to Ariel. There was still a chance. They had only had sex.
What was strange was how Koi, a Beta, had managed to do it. And with an ‘Extreme Alpha’ at that.
Ariel was curious, but asking him to describe the sex was too much and perverted. She had no intention of causing Koi such shame, nor was it necessary to go that far. Anyway, judging from Koi’s voice, which sounded no different from usual, it seemed that Ashley had kept things within reasonable limits. If it was just within reasonable limits, it wasn’t impossible to have sex with an Alpha.
The important thing is what to do from now on.
Ariel tried to think as calmly as possible. Should she just wait and see how things go? Koi firmly believed that their relationship was just a friendship, so there was no immediate rush. She needed to find out what Ash was thinking first.
– Koi, let me make one thing clear: friends don’t have sex.
Unlike other times, Koi hesitated. Noticing the unusual silence, Ariel asked in a sharp voice.
– Why aren’t you answering?
“Uh, well, but…”
Koi hesitated before cautiously opening his mouth.
“You and Bill did, though…”
This little…
If Koi had been in front of her, she would have grabbed his neck and shaken him senseless. Are we the same as you guys? Are we?!
But she couldn’t point out the difference here. They had also ended up that way due to the atmosphere, but there had been subtle feelings between them beforehand, and sex had confirmed their relationship. They hadn’t pretended to be just friends.
But if she brought that up now, she might inadvertently open up unintended possibilities. Just because two people have sex doesn’t necessarily mean they’ll become a couple. Ariel clenched her fist, took a deep breath, and opened her mouth.
– Did you do everything I told you to do before?
“Yeah. Ash thinks I’ve dated a lot of people in the past. He even believed me when I said I’d slept with Alphas.”
He’d believe that, alright.
Koi said confidently, but Ariel had to take another breath to suppress her bursting anger. Since they had already slept together, that plan was scrapped. Ariel switched to Plan B.
– Koi, how long are you planning to stay there? Has Ash said anything about that?
Koi made his own guess.
“Uh… probably until I get paid, I guess?”
– Tell him to do it as soon as possible. He knows you don’t have any money, so be honest and tell him you don’t even have enough to pay your rent.
“Okay.”
Having no face or pride left to save, Koi readily agreed. Ariel continued.
– And when you get paid, treat me and Ash to a meal. It’ll cost you twice as much if you treat us separately, so we can all meet up together.
“Oh, ah, sure. Of course, I was already thinking about it.”
Since it was money he was getting thanks to them, he naturally had to show his appreciation. But there was something bothering him.
“Um, are you really okay with that? Meeting up with Ash, I mean.”
– It’s fine, we can just reminisce about the old days.
Koi was relieved by the cheerful reply and deeply grateful to her. He couldn’t help but be touched by her friendship, which considered his friend’s financial situation and put aside any negative feelings towards the other person.
“Thank you, Al. I’m always grateful.”
– I know that, so just be careful. I don’t want you ending up in the emergency room from too much sex.
At the last piece of advice, Koi’s face flushed red, and he was dumbfounded. He hesitated and muttered softly.
“I thought you were going to tell me not to sleep with Ash anymore…”
At Koi’s words, Ariel scoffed.
– Do you think you wouldn’t sleep with him just because I told you not to? You’re going to sleep with him anyway.
Koi couldn’t answer. Just as she thought, Ariel mused. Koi still liked that guy, so of course, this was an opportunity. She didn’t know what Ashley was thinking, but even in the worst-case scenario, if they became lovers, Koi had to take the lead. She absolutely couldn’t stand to see that arrogant bastard in a superior position.
The problem was that Koi couldn’t do push-and-pull to save his life. It was impossible for Koi, who couldn’t even tell a simple lie properly and revealed his true feelings, to manipulate someone and have a successful relationship. Ariel knew Koi well, so she used a different method.
– What happened to the promise you broke with Sarah last time? Do you have any plans to meet her in the future?
“Oh, of course, I want to meet her again. After I get paid, then…”
As Koi hurriedly answered, Ariel put on a gentle tone and continued.
– At least contact her, or she’ll misunderstand if you don’t say anything. Just say you were busy and couldn’t contact her, and ask when she’s free.
Ariel added to Koi, who was about to say that it would be difficult to meet her right now.
– You don’t necessarily need money to go on a date, right? Ask Ash, he’s a native of the East Coast, so he knows a lot of things. He must have gone on a lot of dates before he met you again.
Ariel casually let it slip. Did Koi know that Ashley was about to get married?
“Uh… yeah, I guess so. Right.”
Koi answered hesitantly.
“He must have had someone he was dating, of course.”
At the vague muttering, Ariel guessed that he didn’t know yet. She decided to use this card later and changed the subject.
– Then don’t forget to message Sarah. I introduced you, and Garrett too, so please do it for our sake.
“Of course. I’m sorry, every time…”
– It’s okay. Then let’s talk again tomorrow.
Koi hurriedly nodded.
“Oh, okay. I will.”
Just then, a message notification sounded. After hanging up and checking, there were three missed calls. All from Ashley. Before calling him, Koi checked another message first and his eyes widened. It was a message from the boss.
With a trembling heart, he took a deep breath and checked the message, and Koi’s face brightened, then hardened with bewilderment. He read the message several times, then pondered for a moment with a serious expression.
What should I do?
Lost in thought, he unconsciously furrowed his brow. He rubbed his forehead with his fingers, deep in thought. There was no other way. He just had to do it.
As he made up his mind, the phone suddenly rang. Startled, Koi quickly checked the screen and exclaimed in dismay, “Ah.” It was a call from Ashley.
※ The copyright of this work belongs to the copyright holder. Copying, reproducing, modifying, or distributing the work may result in criminal punishment and civil liability.
(174)============================================================