L*ck Me If You Can-Chapter 76

At school, Ashley no longer clung to Koi or made careless jokes like before. He spoke to him while sitting with other groups and even shared meals with him, but Koi felt a distance that wasn’t there before.

"Hey, um..."

At lunch, while Ashley was laughing and talking with others, Koi mustered up the courage to speak. Ashley looked at him with a smile, as if asking what was wrong. The only time Koi could talk to him and spend time with him was during lunch. They never met on the way to or from school, and during classes, Ashley no longer walked with him as he used to.

Seizing the opportunity, Koi nervously started a topic he'd been thinking about all day.

"Our cheerleading uniforms... we’re getting new ones for the team... I measured for the size yesterday."

"Oh, right. They'll look good on you."

Ashley replied with that, then seamlessly joined in the conversation with the others. Koi stared at his side profile for a moment before slowly taking a bite of his sandwich.

You didn’t even look at me...

Ashley, still pretending to laugh and joke around, glanced at Koi’s expression. The way he was listlessly nibbling on his sandwich, looking like a wet puppy, made Ashley's heart flutter with a mix of emotions.

Koi looks down because of me.

Though Ashley felt guilty about it, there was a strange thrill she couldn't suppress. She never imagined she’d have this side of her, but seeing Koi like this, looking so down and pathetic, made her heart race.

His pitiful, loveable look was too much, but she tried her best to ignore it. There would be more days ahead for him. After the match, she planned to pour all the emotions she'd held back into him, and she was ready for it.

It’s okay, I’ll make Koi happy.

From that day on, Koi’s ears never moved. He longed to see Ashley smile at him again like he used to, moving his ears with joy, but now, it was time to make a decision.

With that thought, he looked at Ashley, laughing along with Bill’s meaningless jokes, with a wounded expression on his face.

I’m nothing to Ash now...

Of course. He’d probably get back together with Ariel, and Koi’s relationship with him would just fade into a past he wanted to forget.

I knew this would happen, so I rejected him. Don’t feel regret, you fool.

As he felt his nose sting and sniffed, trying to hold back tears, Bill suddenly spoke to him.

"Are you okay, Koi? Do you have a cold?"

"Uh? Uh..."

Surprised by the sudden question, Koi looked up, glancing at Bill sitting beside him. Bill’s genuine concern made Koi feel comforted. The guys from the ice hockey team were nicknamed "gorillas" because of their large size, but they were gentle, kind-hearted gorillas.

The others, who had been laughing and joking around, now looked at Koi with wide eyes.

"Are you sick? Where does it hurt?"

"Hey, your face is red."

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"I have some fever medicine. Want some?"

"Are you running a fever?"

The attention from all sides made Koi hurriedly shake his head.

"No, no, really, I’m fine. It’s nothing."

He couldn’t bear to look at Ashley and lowered his head.

"I think it’s just some nasal congestion... I’m fine, thanks for worrying."

"Oh... if that’s the case, that’s a relief."

As everyone started to lose interest, one of them added.

"If you need anything, just ask. I’ll give you some medicine."

"Hey, shouldn’t you just go to the nurse’s office?"

Another one chimed in. The rest nodded in agreement.

"Yeah, that’s true."

"Right, I think it’s in the A building."

"No, isn’t it in B building?"

"I think it’s in C building, I’m sure."

"It’s in D building, I saw it."

"It’s C building, I’m telling you."

"It’s B building."

Their attention quickly shifted to debating the location of the nurse’s office. As expected of them, the "gorillas" were kind but simple-minded, and, unfortunately, they were all wrong.

It’s in the F building...

This translation is the intellectual property of Novelight.

Koi thought about correcting them but decided against it. They probably wouldn’t even go there anyway.

Before long, lunch was over, and everyone got up to head back to their classrooms. The location of the nurse’s office was never settled.

After everyone dispersed, Koi walked a few steps behind Ashley, keeping a distance. Ashley used to walk alongside him, or even bump into him playfully, but now, he no longer did any of that. Koi would have preferred if Ashley just carried him on his back again. Koi felt a deep emptiness in his chest and lowered his head as he walked.

I have to get used to this.

Koi silently reassured himself.

This life will continue like this. I’ll just think of everything that happened as a dream. It’s okay, I’ve always lived like this. It’s just going back to how it was before.

...It’s okay.

Before entering the classroom, Ashley glanced back. Koi, with his head lowered, was following behind. Ashley didn’t understand why he was so stubborn. If he just admitted that he liked her, why couldn’t he do it?

Well, it doesn’t matter.

Ashley sat down at an empty seat and put her bag down. There were only a few days left. She silently scolded herself.

Soon, Koi will be mine.

Finally, the day before the homecoming game came.

*

"Buffalo!"

At Ariel’s cheer, everyone shouted together. After going through the routine one more time, practice ended. Since it was the day before the match, the ice hockey team had a brief physical training session, while the cheerleading team used the empty ice rink. They had been rushing to make time for everything, but today they could finally focus on training without distractions.

After finishing the last move, Koi, exhausted, turned around when Ariel called him from behind.

"Koi."

"Uh?"

Turning absentmindedly, he saw Ariel skillfully skating toward him, stopping right in front of him.

"Stay here. I need to check if your uniform fits."

"Uniform? Oh."

Realizing what she meant, Koi’s face turned pale. But Ariel just casually passed by him and gestured for him to follow.

"Oh, if you give me the clothes, I’ll try them on at home."

As Koi rushed out of the rink, Ariel, who had been walking down the hall, frowned and shook her hand.

"What do you mean? We need to check it now. If there’s something wrong, we can either fix it or exchange it. The game’s just around the corner."

"Well, yeah, but—"

Before Koi could say more, Ariel cut him off.

"Just wait for 10 minutes. We’ll change and come out. You can change in our changing room. Once you’re done, call us, and we’ll check it for you."

"The... the girls' changing room?"

Koi blurted out, shocked, and Ariel responded nonchalantly.

"The guys’ room is too far. It’s already getting late. Just change quickly and check it over. You know we’re supposed to wait in the repair room, but we can’t take too long."

Having said that, Ariel knocked on the door. Then, turning toward Koi, she pointed to the floor.

"Stay here, don’t move."

Ariel stressed it with a gesture before entering the room. Koi, only now realizing he had followed her into the girls' changing room, sighed deeply.

Sigh.

He leaned against the wall helplessly. Ariel was right. The game was coming up fast. Today was the only chance to check the uniform. He sighed again when suddenly, he heard footsteps.

Turning his head, Koi froze in place. From down the hall, the one person he had been longing to see was walking toward him.

Ashley Dominique Miller.

Koi held his breath, staring at the approaching figure. He hadn’t expected this situation. He had been desperately wanting to speak to him, but now, unexpectedly, the chance had arrived.

What should I do?

Koi tried to calm his racing heart, watching Ashley, the ice hockey team captain, approach.

Before the final practice of the game, with padding on his body, Ashley walked with exaggerated movements, as if trying to show off his large frame. Of course, Ashley didn’t normally walk like that. In fact, despite his size, he usually moved with surprising agility, but when he was dressed in his uniform, his large body looked even bigger.

Koi pressed himself against the wall, watching him with only his eyes moving. He couldn’t help but wonder: if he stayed hidden, would Ashley not even notice he was there?

Ashley’s presence had always been more insignificant than the tiniest speck of dust in the corner. Given how Ashley had been acting lately, maybe that was expected.

And yet, it happened.

Walking with his phone in hand, Ashley suddenly looked up. Their eyes met, and at that moment, Koi’s presence was reduced to that of a clueless classmate, stuck to the wall like a fool.

"Hey."

Ashley tilted his head with a light smile. It was second nature for him to smile when his eyes met someone’s. There was no special meaning behind it, but Koi’s heart skipped a beat, and his face flushed red. Despite how awkward Koi felt, Ashley smiled and walked toward him, still speaking.

"What are you doing here?"

"Uh..."

Koi barely managed to move his dry lips to respond.

"Just... waiting."

He realized his response didn’t even make sense, and as he blinked in confusion, Ashley laughed playfully.

"Who?"

"Uh..."

Unable to continue, Ashley suddenly leaned toward him. Before Koi could back away, he whispered in his ear.

"Is it me?"

Koi’s heart sank. It had been so long since he felt Ashley’s breath so close to him. For the past few days, Ashley had treated him as though he didn’t exist. No, he had treated him the same as everyone else, but to Koi, it felt like something else. And now, suddenly, this... standing alone with him in the hallway, behaving this way.

Koi couldn’t breathe, his heart pounding in his chest.

I like him.

That was the only thought in his head.

I ✧ NоvеIight ✧ (Original source) like you, Ash.

"I..."

As if hypnotized, Koi opened his mouth, but before he could speak, the door to the girls' changing room swung open, and Ariel appeared. Both Koi and Ashley turned their attention to her, and Ariel stopped in her tracks, furrowing her brow.

"What are you two doing?"