L*ck Me If You Can-Chapter 147

Saying the next words took even more courage than anything so far. Koi clenched his fists tightly, took a deep breath, and slowly exhaled before speaking.

“Did... me coming to see you cause a lot of trouble?”

“It did.”

Ashley replied without a moment’s hesitation. Koi froze again, and Ashley turned his head to stare straight ahead, murmuring as if to himself.

“You came too early.”

“Too early?”

That line couldn’t just be ignored. Was Ashley planning to see him after all? If he had stayed in the West, would Ashley have suddenly shown up one day?

“Were you... going to come see me at some point?”

Koi asked hesitantly, and again, Ashley answered without pause.

“Yeah.”

Koi didn’t know what emotion he should feel. Relief and joy rushed in—but also a pang of guilt. Maybe he should’ve just waited in the West. If Ashley had a plan, then it made sense he’d be thrown off by Koi’s sudden appearance. After a moment of hesitation, Koi carefully opened his mouth.

“So... me coming here was a mistake?”

Ashley let out a deflated, almost bitter laugh. It sounded both exhausted and irritated.

“Yeah, you messed up everything I had planned. Completely.”

Koi’s heart sank. Anxiety and self-loathing washed over him. I’ve made another huge mistake with Ashley.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t know.”

All he could do was apologize. As he repeated the words over and over, another thought surfaced. It had taken him over ten years to get here. When had Ashley planned to come find him?

“Dunno.”

Ashley mumbled in response to Koi’s question.

“Maybe ten years from now?”

“So we might not have seen each other for over twenty years?”

Koi slumped, suddenly overwhelmed. He felt bad for Ashley, but at the same time, he was deeply glad he’d come with everything he had. Whatever reason Ashley had for planning something twenty years down the line—by then, Koi might have wasted away, dried up from waiting.

“Twenty years is too long.”

Koi said it like a sigh, but Ashley didn’t respond—he just kept staring straight ahead. Koi, waiting for a reply, couldn’t bear the silence anymore and finally spoke first.

“Why would you wait twenty years to see me?”

If he’d wanted to forget entirely, he wouldn’t have planned to see him at all. Knowing Ashley had even considered it brought Koi a bit of peace—but the timeline gnawed at him. When Koi asked, Ashley didn’t answer right away. Koi was just about to wonder if he was being ignored when Ashley finally spoke.

“It’s not like I was deliberately trying to wait twenty years.”

“Then?”

Koi asked again, hearing the drained tone in his voice. Ashley still didn’t look at him as he answered.

“I just figured by then, everything would go according to plan.”

Once again, Koi had to ask.

“...What plan?”

Silence fell again. Koi braced himself to wait for an answer, but when Ashley finally spoke, it wasn’t the response he’d been hoping for.

“So your goal really was just to see me?”

“Yeah... it was.”

Koi hesitated before continuing.

“I also wanted to apologize.”

“For what?”

“Back then, I...”

He forced his dry mouth to swallow, gathering enough moisture to get the words out.

“...For not choosing you.”

Ashley didn’t respond. The silence weighed heavier than ever, but Koi pressed on with his halting confession.

“For hurting you. I just... kept regretting the way I spoke to you when I chose my father. The things I said back then... I kept thinking about them. About how ◈ Nоvеlіgһт ◈ (Continue reading) I said you had so much more than me.”

Koi’s breath shook, and he rushed the next part.

“But even then, I thought... you were better than me...”

“Koi.”

Ashley suddenly cut him off. Koi snapped his head up at the sound of his name, startled, and Ashley asked in a cynical voice,

“Does it matter who was more miserable?”

Koi couldn’t answer. He was right. What good was all of this now?

“...I’m sorry.”

This apology was for something else—but it felt just as pointless.

“That’s enough now.”

Ashley’s tone turned cold again as he added,

“It’s all in the past.”

This translation is the intellectual property of Novelight.

He was right. Koi knew that. He also knew he was just struggling against the inevitable.

Back to the West...

The thought had barely formed when Ashley suddenly spoke again.

“Goodbye, Connor Niles.”

The finality in his voice snapped Koi to attention. He couldn’t just leave like this. Whatever Ashley’s plan had been, they’d already met—things had gone this far. It wasn’t the reunion he’d imagined, but it couldn’t end like this. Koi wanted one more chance.

“Uh, give me your number.”

He blurted it out, and finally, Ashley turned to face him. Koi saw the faint grimace on his face and quickly summoned the courage to keep going.

“You said I could treat you to another meal sometime. I’ll need your number to set it up.”

“Haa...”

Ashley let out an audible sigh. Maybe he was annoyed. But Koi didn’t back down. Seeing his determination, Ashley reluctantly reached into the inside pocket of his suit jacket and pulled out his wallet. Koi tensed up, expecting a business card—but instead, Ashley flipped a card over, set it on the steering wheel, and wrote something on the back.

“Here.”

Koi took the card with both hands and looked at the back. Ashley said,

“That’s my personal number. Call me there.”

“Uh... o-okay.”

As Koi looked at the hastily scribbled digits, a smile slowly spread across his face. It was time to say goodbye and get out of the car—but he didn’t move. Instead, he pulled out his phone and quickly entered the number. Ashley raised a brow as the phone rang. He frowned slightly, glancing at the unfamiliar number on his screen before looking back at Koi.

Koi, having ended the call, smiled brightly.

“That’s my number. Save it.”

Then, a little sheepishly, he added,

“You might think it’s spam and not answer.”

He clearly didn’t think Ashley would ignore it on purpose. Ashley stared at him in silence for a moment, then reluctantly saved the number.

“Well, thanks again for today.”

Just before getting out of the car, Koi forced a smile.

“Don’t worry—I’ll be going back to the West soon.”

Ashley hesitated, but Koi didn’t notice and kept going.

“I just wanted to treat you to a nice meal one last time. As a thank-you... that’s really all.”

I won’t bother you again.

Koi added silently as he hurried to leave the car.

“Koi.”

Ashley suddenly stopped him. Koi froze with the door open and turned back as Ashley asked,

“When’s the date?”

Caught off guard by the question, Koi quickly answered,

“Huh? Oh, it’s Sunday—so, tomorrow. We’re meeting at four to see a movie and eat.”

He suddenly remembered what Ashley had said earlier and scratched his head, embarrassed.

“It’s only our second time meeting, so it’s probably not a date. Just something casual between friends...”

“You have something to wear?”

“Huh?”

Another unexpected question made Koi pause. Ashley added in the same indifferent tone,

“Even if you’re not thinking of it that way, you should still dress appropriately. Don’t tell me you’re planning to go out looking like that?”

Instinctively, Koi looked down at himself. After spending over half the day in the holding cell, his already grimy work clothes were a complete mess. Embarrassed, he blushed and answered,

“Of course I’m not wearing these. I do have a few nice outfits.”

Ashley let out a soft chuckle.

“They’re not ones I bought you, are they?”

It had to be a joke, but Koi couldn’t bring himself to laugh. Seeing his face turn red with fluster, Ashley’s expression hardened.

“...You’re kidding.”

Ashley’s voice came low and sharp, almost like a growl. Koi shrank in his seat, flustered.