By Zephyria “Is there a special reason you live in this house?”
Ashley parked the car and answered Koi’s question.
“Because there’s a gate, so the security is pretty good.”
Koi had asked about the size, but he got a strange answer. He was too embarrassed to ask more, so Koi stopped talking, saying, “I see.”
Ashley, who had parked the car smoothly, got out of the driver’s seat first. Koi also unbuckled his seatbelt and got out of the car, but suddenly stopped and turned his head.
“Oh.”
Ashley, who was walking ahead, turned around. Seeing his questioning gaze, Koi pointed to the back seat.
“There, dolls.”
Ashley followed his gaze without thinking and soon understood. Koi’s face lit up brightly when he saw the ugly dolls sitting in a row in the back seat, buckled up.
“They’re all going for a drive.”
“They’re wearing their seatbelts properly, too.”
“That’s right.”
Koi laughed out loud. He couldn’t stop laughing at the thought that the gifts he had given were always with Ashley like this. Ashley stared intently at his ears before opening his mouth.
“…Yesterday.”
Koi raised his head at the quiet voice. A gust of wind blew behind Ashley, ruffling his bright blond hair. Ashley stood at a distance, staring at Koi, and said,
“Why didn’t you leave?”
It took Koi a moment to understand the meaning of the question. Ashley continued, looking at Koi, who was just blinking and staring.
“I was out of it yesterday because of the fever, so I grabbed your hand, but you could have just stayed until I fell asleep, right? I wouldn’t have known if you had just left, so why didn’t you?”
Ashley added in a serious tone.
“It was the day before your test.”
There would be other opportunities, of course, but missing one opportunity was regrettable for anyone. Many people can’t sleep because they’re nervous before a test. Nevertheless, Koi had wasted the important time he should have spent finishing and checking all his preparations, just because Ashley had grabbed him.
Ashley was curious about the reason. Koi opened his mouth to answer him, his face gradually brightening and filled with a smile.
“I promised, Ash. That I’d be by your side.”
Ash stared blankly at Koi’s smiling face. A cool breeze blew from behind, sweeping over his entire body. But he didn’t feel cold at all. For some reason, his face was getting hotter and hotter, and his heart started beating wildly.
Just then, the setting sun began to tint Koi’s face orange, making his brown eyes, which were looking up at him, shine like gold.
Ah.
Ashley reflexively covered his mouth with one hand. If he didn’t, it felt like his violently racing heart would jump out of his mouth.
I don’t believe in promises.
Ashley thought. I’ll never believe words like “I’ll be there for you.” Because it’s all a lie.
But.
Koi’s smiling face filled Ashley’s eyes.
But why do your words make my heart flutter so much?
*
The mansion was as empty as ever. Koi suddenly wondered at the silence of the mansion, where no sign of life could be felt.
“When do the people who work here come?”
Ashley answered Koi’s question simply.
“They’re on vacation.”
“I see… Then when will they be back?”
“Well, next week?”
Ashley said casually, then added.
“They made enough food for a few days, so if we run out, we can order delivery or buy something outside.”
“I see.”
Koi said that, but inwardly he thought, “Isn’t eating the only important thing?” It wasn’t hard to imagine Ashley heating up food alone and sitting in that huge mansion for dinner.
“…Me too, though.”
“Huh?”
Koi, who had muttered quietly, quickly shook his head.
“No, nothing.”
Of course, Ashley and he were completely different. Corner Niles, who only had Ashley as a friend, was chased around by school and part-time jobs, had to fight with the flickering lights in his old, run-down motorhome while doing homework, and had to pretend to be asleep on a flat mattress to avoid his drunk Father, how could he be the same as Ashley?
But soon it didn’t matter anymore. Because he was happy at this moment. He decided to forget about the ruined test, at least for today.
“Then when do they come when they’re not on vacation?”
Ashley answered when he asked again.
“When I’m not here.”
“Why?”
Ashley easily told Koi what he was curious about.
“Because the condition of the contract is that they don’t run into me if possible.”
“Huh? Why is that?”
Koi was surprised by the unexpected reason and asked again. Ashley said again, as if it were nothing.
“My Father values his privacy very much.”
Koi still didn’t understand, but he didn’t ask anymore. There were many people in the world, and there were just as many ways of life. Moreover, Koi couldn’t understand the lives of rich people like Ashley’s family, no matter how much they told him.
“Then do they just prepare the meals and leave?”
Koi asked, following Ashley, who was heading to the kitchen. Ashley opened the refrigerator door and looked inside, answering.
“Mostly. If there’s something I particularly want, I can leave a note or have it delivered through Father’s secretary.”
“I see…”
Koi muttered quietly. Ashley’s life at school probably wasn’t much different from the other students, but outside of school, there was such a big difference. It was his second time here, but Koi still felt overwhelmed by the size of the mansion, which he still wasn’t used to, and followed Ashley.
“Let’s eat dinner first.”
“Okay.”
Koi readily nodded to Ashley, who turned around and spoke, and followed him into the kitchen.
Unlike the kitchen on the second floor, the main kitchen for dining was as large as the huge mansion, and there were even four refrigerators. Judging by the different designs, they were clearly for different purposes, but Koi couldn’t imagine having so many refrigerators in a mansion like this, where Ashley was practically living alone.
But to fill such a large kitchen, four refrigerators might be perfectly natural. The oven attached to the wall, as well as the cooking counter, were also enormous. The neatly arranged cooking utensils and the countless knives stuck in place were so diverse, as if he were looking at the kitchen of a famous restaurant, and even Koi, who didn’t know much, could tell that they were incredibly expensive.
Wow, Koi exclaimed, looking around the neatly organized kitchen, and then noticed Ashley opening the refrigerator door and checking inside, and quickly approached him.
“I’ll help you.”
Ashley didn’t even turn his head at Koi’s words, but took out a plate and handed it to him. A large piece of chicken that had been marinated in advance was on the plate, which was wrapped in plastic wrap.
“Put it in the oven at 250 degrees for 30 minutes.”
Ashley said as he read the note on the Post-it attached to the plastic wrap.
“Put it in the oven, we’ll cook it all at once.”
“Okay.”
Koi nodded in relief, relieved that he didn’t know how to use the oven he was seeing for the first time.
After that, Ashley took out a few more dishes. He skillfully pressed the buttons to operate the oven, and while waiting for it to preheat, he checked the food in the refrigerator again.
“What kind of salad do you want? Shrimp and avocado? Salmon and lettuce? Or chicken?”
“Um…”
Koi hesitated, not knowing what he wanted, but Ashley took out all three and put them on the cart. Koi craned his neck this way and that as he moved, sometimes raising and lowering his arms, and sometimes following him closely, but there was no room for him to do anything.
When he tiptoed to take out the tableware, Ashley quickly grabbed it and put it down, and when he looked around to find a fork and knife, Ashley strode over and opened one of the many drawers, taking out the right number. Then, seeing Ashley taking out five bottles of salad dressing, Koi was sure that he would be able to help this time.
“Oh.”
Koi, who was preparing to receive the bottles, was stunned to see Ashley holding three bottles in one hand and two in the other, turning around.
You just had to grab the necks of the salad dressing bottles.
Koi sighed softly as he watched Ashley casually put the bottles, each with a finger inserted between the necks, on the cart. Just then, a ‘ding’ sound signaled that the preheating was complete. But even that was Ashley’s job.
I’m really not helping Ash at all…