LMI 48

Huh?

Surprised by the unexpected voice, Koi sniffed and looked up. Suddenly, another person’s shadow appeared in the empty schoolyard. He blinked rapidly to focus, and saw someone running towards him from over there.

“Ash?”

Koi shouted without realizing it, surprised. Ashley didn’t seem to be running that fast, but he reached Koi in just a few steps. Ashley smiled at Koi, who was looking up at him with wide eyes.

“Thank goodness. You were still here.”

What am I even seeing right now? Still feeling unreal, he just stared, when suddenly Ashley frowned.

“What’s wrong? Were you crying?”

“H-huh? N-no. Just, something got in my eye.”

Koi rubbed his eyes roughly with his arm as if to prove it, then looked up at him again.

“Why are you here? What’s wrong?”

“What’s wrong, you ask.”

Ashley repeated Koi’s words, then laughed playfully.

“We’re supposed to practice skating, did you forget?”

“H-huh?”

Seeing Koi stutter again in surprise, Ashley let out a cheerful laugh. Ashley playfully poked Koi’s nose with his finger, then said with a smile full of joy.

“I thought you were waiting for me all this time, was I wrong? Was it another friend?”

“N-no, it’s you. It’s you, but.”

Koi was still just bewildered.

“Hey, what about your friends?”

“Ah, I told them I forgot something and just came back.”

At those words, Koi thought his sad imagination had come true.

Ashley really didn’t want to tell them he was with me…

“I wanted to be alone with you, but if those guys knew, they’d try to join us.”

“Huh?”

Koi made another dumb sound at the unexpected words. Most people would have understood if he said it so directly, but unfortunately, Koi wasn’t one of them. Ashley already knew that, so he didn’t expect anything in the first place. He took the bicycle from Koi, who was just rolling his eyes without understanding what he had just heard, and slung it over his shoulder as always.

Koi was startled and reached out his hand. He was about to say he could carry it himself, but suddenly Ashley grabbed his hand.

This time, he couldn’t even make a dumb sound, he just gasped. Ashley held Koi’s hand, interlaced his fingers, and walked along, swinging their hands back and forth like a swing.

As he walked side by side with him, holding hands without realizing it, Koi’s head was filled with all sorts of questions. What did Ash just say to me? Did I hear it right? Could there be something wrong with my ears? Maybe there’s something wrong with my head. Is this all just a delusion? What should I do, I don’t even have insurance. Wait, Ash is walking with me right now. And he’s holding my hand. Then what happened earlier couldn’t have been a dream. Then did Ash really say that to me? That he wanted to be alone with me? Why? Why on earth?

“Koi.”

Ashley’s voice squeezed into Koi’s head, which was in the middle of a war. Looking down at his eyes, which had become hollow from being swept away by the flood of thoughts, Ashley asked.

“What time does your part-time job end tomorrow? 6 o’clock, right?”

“Huh? Yeah.”

Ashley smiled at Koi, who nodded without realizing it.

“Then I can go at 6:10. That’s enough time, right?”

“Huh? For what?”

Koi looked up at him, bewildered, not knowing what he was talking about all of a sudden. Ashley continued to speak with a smile still on his face.

“After your part-time job ends tomorrow, let’s go somewhere together.”

“Huh?”

Koi couldn’t help but react the same way this time. He couldn’t understand what he was saying at all.

“You said you’re having a party tomorrow…”

Just as he remembered that he hadn’t been invited and felt a pang in his heart, Ashley said as if it was nothing.

“That’s just for the kids to hang out. We can hang out by ourselves.”

What does this mean?

Koi’s eyes widened at the unexpected words. Amused by the reaction, Ashley narrowed his eyes and asked with feigned suspicion.

“Or, do you want to go to the party? More than hanging out with me alone?”

“N-no! That’s not it at all! Absolutely not!”

Koi shook his head urgently, denying it. Then he muttered with a flushed face.

“I like hanging out with Ash alone…”

“Okay.”

Ashley smiled broadly as he watched Koi’s ears, which had been quiet until then, begin to flutter busily.

“Then that’s settled. 6:10, is that okay? Can I pick you up then?”

“Yeah, that’s enough time.”

Koi nodded hastily, then tilted his head belatedly.

“But where are we going tomorrow?”

“I told you to ask that before you agree, didn’t I?”

Ashley warned with a playful expression.

“If you answer so readily, you might get kidnapped by a bad person.”

Only then did Koi laugh. As always, he blushed at Ashley and said with a big smile.

“I only do this with Ash.”

He didn’t seem to imagine that Ashley was the bad person. Ashley resisted the urge to completely shatter his infinite trust and instead gave him a gentle smile. Koi, unaware, smiled along, his ears twitching incessantly.

Ashley was grateful at this moment that he had joined a sports team and endured quite harsh training. Otherwise, his patience might have run out completely by now.

He deliberately pretended to be nonchalant, let go of Koi’s hand, took out his keys from his pocket, and opened the trunk of the car.

“Go sit down.”

As always, Ashley moved Koi’s bicycle by himself and loaded it into the trunk. Meanwhile, Koi, feeling grateful and sorry, hurried to the passenger seat so as not to be a burden. Ashley, who was in the driver’s seat, checked that Koi was sitting quietly in his seat with his seatbelt on, then started the engine.

“It’s a secret where we’re going. I’ll tell you when we meet tomorrow.”

Ashley added with a smile.

“You’ll be surprised.”

“Really? Really?”

What could it be? Koi asked with a pounding heart. He felt his ears moving and hurriedly grabbed them, but he had already shown everything to Ashley. Oblivious to Koi, who was flustered with embarrassment, Ashley drove the car out of the school.

“U-um, Ash.”

After the car entered the road, Koi called him carefully. Koi asked cautiously to Ashley, who glanced at him.

“Um… by any chance, the reason you didn’t invite only me to the party… is it because of that?”

Because you wanted to go play with me alone?

Just imagining it made his heart flutter and his fingertips tingle. He was so sad earlier, but now it was the complete opposite. He never imagined that Ashley would leave his other friends behind and leave the party to spend time alone with him. Seeing Koi’s expectant face, Ashley said mischievously.

“No, I’m going to kidnap you.”

“Haha.”

Koi burst into laughter right away. Seeing his red cheeks and fluttering ears, Ashley also smiled.

Poor Koi. To burst into tears over something like that.

In fact, Ashley noticed that Koi had been crying as soon as he saw him earlier. No, anyone with eyes would have known. But he didn’t bother to acknowledge it and moved on because he expected that Koi might be hurt.

He didn’t expect him to actually cry.

To cry just because he was told not to come to the party, Ashley was inwardly flustered, but it was okay. Right now, Koi had completely forgotten about it and was completely immersed in joy. His ears, which had been twitching since earlier, were proof of that.

In fact, when he saw Koi with Bill and his friends, Ashley felt an unpleasantness he had never felt before and his mood was ruined. Until now, Koi had been getting along well with their group. He talked to them and laughed with them.

But that was only when Ashley was there too. Seeing Koi talking affectionately with the other guys in a place where he wasn’t, he was furious. So he just played a little trick.

Remembering Koi’s red-rimmed eyes made him feel something else. But he had no intention of apologizing. Instead, he changed the subject.

“Koi, should we eat dinner when we get there?”

“Yeah.”

Ashley asked Koi, who answered immediately.

“What do you want to eat? You can order anything, so tell me, anything.”

“Anything is fine.”

Koi answered without hesitation this time as well.

“Anything is fine as long as it’s with Ash.”

Koi’s ears fluttered incessantly as he smiled brightly again. Party or whatever, screw it.

Ashley thought so and smiled at Koi.

Because this cute and lovely Koi only needs to be known by Ashley Miller.