By Zephyria Bill’s voice continued.
“Ash told us to do that, so we’re just hanging out together, but whatever. It’s not like we notice Koi being there anyway.”
Koi hurriedly covered his mouth with both hands. He felt like he would scream if he didn’t. He suppressed his breath and hid in place, unable to move, when another voice followed.
“Yeah, he doesn’t really talk much, and it’s like he’s not even there.”
“Honestly, we can’t even imagine hanging out with someone like Koi.”
Each of the following words seemed to dig into Koi’s heart. But unaware, they didn’t stop.
“But isn’t Ash surprising? Hanging out with him because he feels sorry for him.”
“Well, he’s a good guy, so he must have felt sympathy.”
“Ash is a good guy, but he draws a clear line.”
“Koi must have been that pitiful, enough to cross the line. Which is true.”
Sympathy. Because he feels sorry for him.
Enough to cross the line.
Koi’s mind went blank. Suddenly, another voice cut in.
“What?”
Ash.
Koi flinched in surprise. The guys who had been gathered also seemed flustered, and the atmosphere changed. Anxiously, Koi cautiously peeked out and swallowed hard when he saw Ashley standing a little distance away from them. Koi waited for the next words with a mixture of anxiety and a little expectation.
Maybe those guys are misunderstanding.
Koi thought. Maybe it was just something they said, or maybe it was something completely different and he misunderstood. Yeah, that must be it. I often misunderstand things, too. Everyone makes mistakes like that. Yeah.
Koi looked at Ashley with a desperate heart.
Please, Ash.
Then Ashley asked.
“Tell me, what are you guys talking about?”
Ashley looked at the gathered group and asked with a frown. The hesitant reactions of the guys were ominous.
These bastards, I definitely heard them say Koi’s name.
Bill, hesitating among the group, plucked up his courage and stepped forward.
“We were talking about why you’ve been hanging out with Koi so much lately.”
Ashley frowned, and another guy quickly stepped forward.
“Why are you so curious? Ash told us before. To be nice to him because we feel sorry for him.”
“Yeah, that’s why we included Koi, right? Isn’t that right?”
These bastards.
Bill, who glanced at the guys who were quick to tattle with a dumbfounded expression, turned his face back to Ashley. Seeing him make a wronged expression, Ashley opened his mouth.
“…It’s true that I said that.”
…What?
Koi couldn’t believe his ears. He couldn’t believe it. Still, he had been hoping that maybe his friends had misunderstood.
It was true?
Koi’s pupils shook wildly.
Ashley.
He admitted it.
That he did say that.
Ashley’s voice continued to ring in Koi’s ears, who had turned pale and stiffened.
“It’s true that I said to be nice to Koi because I felt sorry for him…”
Ashley’s voice continued, but Koi couldn’t stay there. This was enough. If he were to learn any more of the truth, especially from Ashley’s mouth, he wouldn’t be able to bear it.
Koi hurriedly left the scene. The words the group had been chattering about kept swirling in his head.
Because he feels sorry for him. Because of sympathy.
Tears overflowed.
*
Ashley added with a reluctant look.
“That’s what I used to think, I don’t think that way now.”
“Huh? Really?”
“What are you talking about?”
At the surprised reactions, Ashley explained again.
“I mean, Koi is a good kid. That’s why we became friends. It’s fun to talk to him.”
His friends looked at each other. As if doubting Ashley’s sincerity, they hesitated and awkwardly opened their mouths.
“Oh… really?”
“I didn’t know you’d get along with someone like Koi…”
At the unwelcome reaction, Ashley became serious and urged them.
“It’s true. So don’t talk about that anymore.”
Even at those last words, everyone hesitated and didn’t readily answer. Just as Ashley frowned, Bill suddenly asked.
“Is that all? Just because Koi is a good kid?”
“What other reason would there be?”
Ashley, who had asked back, added.
“It does make me feel good when he always smiles whenever he sees me.”
As he said those words and slightly raised the corners of his mouth, everyone was startled. Ashley, completely unaware of it, continued to speak.
“He always turns red when he moves his ears while smiling. Do you know that Koi’s head only comes up to here? Koi has so much hair that it looks like a Gloster Canary from above. And it’s always sticking out somewhere. It was sticking out on this side today, but I didn’t say anything because he looked like he’d be discouraged. Have you guys ever seen it? Really? Not even once?”
While he was talking, Ashley was already smiling brightly. It had been a long time since they had known him, but it was the first time they had seen him smile so brightly, so everyone stared at Ashley with a dazed feeling. Amid the bewildered reactions, Bill was the first to open his mouth.
“Ah, I get it. You liked him because he’s cute.”
Ashley suddenly frowned.
“Cute?”
At the sudden reaction, Bill paused and replied.
“Uh… isn’t he cute? You know, those really small animals. He looks just like one of those. What is it, a hamster or a chipmunk or something.”
“That’s right, you said it too, that he looks like a Gloster Canary.”
Another guy quickly agreed. Then, as if they had been waiting for it, words poured out.
“Honestly, we would never hang out with him if Koi wasn’t a good kid.”
Another guy nodded.
“That’s right, even if Ash told us to, we would have treated Koi appropriately and ignored him if he wasn’t good.”
“Actually, the reason we got this close is because Koi is kind.”
“And cute, too.”
“Yeah, yeah,” the big guys nodded repeatedly.
“Isn’t it amazing how he moves his ears? I’ve only seen it on TV, but it’s the first time I’ve seen it in real life.”
“Yeah. And maybe it’s because he’s small, but he’s cute.”
They never thought that their bodies were excessively large. Maybe they were just a little more developed than their peers. Then another guy opened his mouth.
“There are a lot of small guys, but Koi is different, right?”
“I don’t know what it is, but my sister isn’t cute at all, but Koi is cute, so it must be different.”
“Your sister is as big as you. Of course Koi is much cuter.”
“Cute.”
“Yeah, cute.”
As they watched the guys exchanging words in a much more relaxed atmosphere, Ashley’s mood became increasingly uncomfortable.
What are those bastards talking about right now?
Ashley frowned and crossed his arms.
Of course Koi is cute. There’s no one as cute as him. Even if you gathered all the cute things in the world, they wouldn’t be as cute as Koi.
It was a natural thing to say, but the reason Ashley’s mood was sour was somewhere else.
But why are you guys talking about how cute Koi is?
“Hey, hey.”
Bill, who was the first to notice the atmosphere, subtly warned the other guys. The guys, who had been excitedly chattering about Koi until then, belatedly read the ominous air and shut their mouths. The ominous atmosphere was felt from behind. The big guys shrugged their shoulders and cautiously turned around, only to be horrified.
Ashley was standing with his arms crossed, glaring at them with a scary look.
What did we do wrong?
No one knew, but they couldn’t stay like this. They hurriedly changed the subject and started talking.
“Hey, aren’t you hungry?”
“Yeah, of course. Should we go to Green Bell?”
“Yeah, let’s eat first. I feel like I’m going to die. Ash, what about you?”
Ashley, who had been deliberately asked, finally unfolded his arms and returned his expression to normal, saying.
“I have plans.”
“Ah, I see. At this hour… you don’t even have a girlfriend, but you have plans.”
Bill, who elbowed the friend who had added unnecessary words, hurriedly smiled.
“Okay, Ash. Then see you tomorrow. You must be tired, go and rest. Let’s go quickly, wow, I’m really so hungry I feel like I’m going to die. Right?”
Turning around and deliberately making a fuss, the other guys also nodded quickly and waved to Ashley.
“See you tomorrow.”
“Bye, Ash.”
“See you tomorrow.”
Ashley also waved his hand, then turned around and headed to where he had parked his car. The remaining group only put their heads together again and started buzzing after he had completely disappeared from sight.
“What, what was that all about?”
“I don’t know, I’ve never seen him get so angry.”“Yeah, that level of anger is the first I’ve seen since that time during the game when the other guy fouled and the ref gave Ash a warning.”
“Does Ash hate Koi?”
Someone said, and another guy immediately denied it.
“No, Ash just said so himself. That he and Koi have gotten close.”
“He didn’t invite him to the party, though.”
“No, Ash wasn’t at the party either. Maybe they went somewhere together?”
“Seriously? No way, really?”
“I don’t know about that, but look, Ash was definitely defending Koi earlier. He doesn’t hate him, definitely not.”
“Then what the heck is it?”
Amidst the flurry of opinions, Bill organized the questions.
“He told us he’s gotten close to Koi, and he kept saying all these good things about Koi, but when we did the same, he didn’t like it. Why the heck would he do that?”
They looked at each other with serious faces, and then one guy suddenly stepped forward.
“I know what that is.”
“What?”
“What is it?”
At the urgent questions, he answered with a solemn face.
“My dad does that to my mom.”
“What?”
“What kind of bullshit is that?”
Jeers and criticisms poured out from everywhere. But he was serious as could be.
“I’m serious. He talks about how pretty, kind, and wise my mom is until he’s blue in the face, but if we say a few words of praise along those lines, he immediately changes. Asking how we would know. I mean, we’re his kids.”
At the end, as he vented his frustration, another guy asked him.
“Why does he do that? Does your dad not know you’re his kids?”
“Hey, you son of a bitch.”