L*ck Me If You Can-Chapter 73

Huh? What’s going on?

Koi looked around in confusion as he slowly crawled out from under the table. He wasn’t the only one puzzled—everyone had stopped their noisy chatter and turned to look at Ashley. Even Ariel, wide-eyed and baffled, looked up at him and asked,

“What’s wrong?”

The other kids all wore the same expression, their faces full of question marks, waiting for Ashley to answer. But right now, there was only one thought running through Ashley’s mind:

I need to get Koi out of here.

“Ah, well, uh—” Ashley, who rarely stammered, hurriedly added,

“I just remembered I have an assignment. I missed a few classes recently, and I’m making it up with extra work.”

“...So?” Bill spread his hands and glanced around. Everyone else looked equally unconvinced. Ashley gave an awkward smile and continued,

“So I really shouldn’t be sitting around here like this. I need to get the assignment done to keep my GPA up. Grades matter for college apps, right?”

“Uh... yeah, I guess...”

“So, let’s go, Koi.”

Ashley ignored Bill completely, turned, and started moving. Now everyone’s eyes turned to Koi. Still not understanding what was happening, Koi blinked and pointed to himself. Ashley didn’t say another word—he just strode over in a few long steps and grabbed Koi by the arm.

“Ah!”

Without even pausing, Ashley pulled Koi out of his seat and headed toward the exit. Ariel stood up in alarm and shouted after them.

“What are you doing?! We still have the meeting!”

“You guys can decide the uniforms on your own and let us know the results later, right Koi?”

Ashley yelled over his shoulder as he pushed open the door. Looking up at him in a daze, Koi hesitated. If he said he wanted to stay now, Ashley might end up embarrassed...

“Ah, yeah. That works.”

Unusually for him, Koi managed to catch on and play along.

“I-I missed classes too, so... «N.o.v.e.l.i.g.h.t» I need to work on assignments. Sorry, Elle. Whatever design you pick, I’ll go with it. Sorry...”

Before he could finish, Ashley had already pulled him out the door. The rest of the group was left staring at the closed door in stunned silence. But that wasn’t the end of it. A moment later, Ashley returned, waving several hundred-dollar bills and dropping them onto the cashier’s counter at the entrance before turning and walking out again.

The table was silent. No one could make sense of what just happened. They exchanged looks until one of the hockey players finally broke the silence with a relieved sigh.

“...Thank god. I thought they were going to dine and dash.”

The others nodded in agreement.

“Same.”

“Yeah, I ordered everything I’ve ever wanted to try.”

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“Whew, that was close.”

“Ash is the real deal.”

“A true man, that guy.”

And with that, they happily went back to eating. Ariel and the other girls all scowled in disbelief, but of course, it didn’t affect the guys at all.

“This is exactly why people call you guys gorillas, you know that?” Ariel muttered with disgust.

Bill, having just finished his burger, grinned.

“Make that happy gorillas.”

The rest of the team burst into laughter, looking completely carefree. Seeing no point in continuing the conversation, Ariel simply shook her head and turned to her well-mannered teammates.

“Let’s start talking about the new uniforms. Everyone okay with that?”

She looked around, then furrowed her brow and commanded,

“Gorillas excluded. Only people at this table.”

*

Ashley, having tossed some bills and stormed out of the diner, immediately locked the car doors the moment he got in. Sitting in the passenger seat, Koi flinched and looked at him nervously.

He locked the door again...

Earlier, after shoving Koi into the car, Ashley had locked the doors before going back inside. Koi had tugged at the handle a few times, only to find it wouldn’t budge—he’d given up quickly and waited.

Now, as soon as Ashley sat behind the wheel, he started the engine without a word. Koi had no idea what was going on and could only glance at him, completely at a loss.

Ashley finally spoke after they’d driven for a while.

“That girl earlier—what’s her deal?”

“Who...?”

Koi asked cautiously. Ashley was silent for a moment before suddenly grinding his teeth. The harsh noise made Koi flinch and instinctively press himself against the car door. Ashley glanced at him, then checked that the door was locked before speaking again.

“The girl sitting next to you. You looked real cozy.”

This translation is the intellectual property of Novelight.

“Uh...”

Koi blinked, trying to remember. Which one was he talking about—the one on his left or right?

“Right side.”

Ashley snapped. Koi immediately realized.

“Oh, Whitney? She’s in cheer with me.”

That’s weird. Doesn’t Ash know Whitney?

Koi thought the cheer and hockey teams were all pretty tight. Was Ashley the exception?

Before Koi could ask, Ashley cut in again.

“You haven’t been in cheer that long. Already that close with the other girls?”

“Huh? Oh... well...”

Koi blinked and answered honestly.

“I’m pretty slow... but they’ve all been really patient and kind. They’re great people...”

As he spoke, a smile naturally formed. He pictured their encouraging faces, always telling him he could do it. Even Ariel, yelling “You lack muscle!” with a stern face, came to mind.

Remembering that, he couldn’t help but chuckle softly. That, of course, only irritated Ashley more.

“Just thinking about her makes you that happy?”

“Huh? Oh...”

Koi answered without thinking.

“It’s just... I’ve never really been close to girls before... But since we’re practicing together, I get to see them up close. I never knew girls were like that. I mean—uh, I just mean, I didn’t know anything about them.”

The more he spoke, the more his voice brightened. No stammering, no hesitation. His words flowed freely.

“They’re kind, cute, really tight-knit. Isn’t that amazing? I bet you already knew. I’m just glad I found out now...”

Beaming, he turned to look at Ashley—who suddenly jerked the steering wheel. Koi let out a scream and couldn’t even finish his sentence. Though he had his seatbelt on, his body whipped to the side. Ashley pulled over onto the shoulder and turned on the hazard lights.

Haa... haa...

Everything happened so fast that Koi couldn’t even process it. Still catching his breath, he clutched his chest when Ashley unbuckled his seatbelt and turned toward him.

“So that’s why you kissed her? Right in front of me?”

The furious voice startled Koi so much he instinctively shouted.

“Kissed?! Me? Why? With who? When?!”

He couldn’t believe it. I lost my first kiss and didn’t even know it?! Who? When did it happen? Koi turned pale, and Ashley glanced at him before facing forward again and growling:

“The girl next to you. She kissed your cheek.”

“Who? Next to me?”

“Whitney!”

Ashley finally yelled. Koi flinched, then swallowed hard.

“That wasn’t a kiss! She just bumped into me!”

“I saw it.”

“No, you didn’t! You saw it wrong!”

Ashley stared at him, clearly unconvinced. Koi, unable to bear the injustice, protested.

“I’m serious! She dropped something and leaned down to get it, and I leaned over to help. Our faces brushed, that’s all! It wasn’t a kiss!”

Koi flat-out denied it, but Ashley’s face didn’t soften one bit. He still had reasons to be mad.

“And you both went under the table together?”

“Huh?”

Koi paused, then opened and closed his mouth, completely dumbfounded.

“I told you! She dropped something! I was just helping! Why are you even mad about this?!”

His frustration welled up, making his nose sting. Ashley still didn’t look convinced, glaring at him.

“So you really didn’t think anything? Just went under the table to help?”

“Yes!”

Koi shouted, and then—suddenly overcome—he exploded.

“You were all smiles with Elle! Why are you only mad at me?!”

For the first time, Ashley flinched.