“I want to do my best.”
When Koi spoke with a serious expression, Ashley changed tactics and bluntly asked,
“Don’t you have any physical activities or sothing?”
“I do.”
He didn’t bother to ntion the marathon. They trained together at the track almost every day, yet Ashley had no idea. Saying it out loud felt like a blow to his already minuscule pride. Even so, he didn’t bother hiding his displeasure as he glared at Ashley, but the other didn’t seem to care at all. After letting out a deep sigh, Ashley finally gave up and spoke.
“Alright, so what do you suggest?”
He raised both hands as if surrendering and looked at Koi expectantly. Koi took a deep breath and began explaining his plan—starting with research, how they should proceed with the project, and most importantly, setting a ti to et.
“I have training every day this week.”
Ashley folded his arms and looked down at Koi, waiting to see how he would respond. But Koi was ready.
“It ends at six, right? If you shower, seven should be ❀ Nоvеlігht ❀ (Don’t copy, read here) plenty of ti.”
For a mont, Ashley made a face as if he was completely fed up. Koi wondered if his persistence was really that unbearable, but then Ashley asked suspiciously,
“You’re not my stalker, are you?”
“What...? Absolutely not!”
Koi recoiled in shock, but Ashley just laughed it off like it was nothing.
“I’m kidding.”
Narcissist!
Koi’s irritation flared up, and he glared at Ashley.
“I’m serious! I only know because I also have physical activities.”
This was exactly why he hated people like him. Huffing, Koi muttered with a sulky expression,
“If you think everyone in the world likes you, you’re delusional.”
“Yeah, thank god for that, huh?”
Ashley let out a dramatic sigh of relief, patting his chest as if truly grateful. Koi was completely exasperated. Staring at Ashley’s irritatingly perfect face, he quickly added,
“I’m free at seven today too, so let’s start then. The sooner we finish, the better for both of us, right?”
“Fine.”
Ashley accepted reality and agreed without argunt. Just as Koi was about to suggest eting at the cafeteria—
“Then let’s et at Green Bell at seven.”
“What?”
Koi’s brain short-circuited. Green Bell? That expensive place? No way!
“Wait, Ashley—no, Ash, hold on!”
Ashley had already turned away, but Koi grabbed him again. Ashley looked down at him, visibly annoyed, but Koi didn’t care.
“Do we really have to go all the way to a restaurant? Can’t we just talk at the school cafeteria—”
“At seven in the evening?”
Ashley asked in disbelief. Koi, who had instinctively stopped him, suddenly snapped back to reality. Right. The cafeteria closed at five.
As he stood there speechless, Ashley’s friend called out to him. Ashley naturally pried Koi’s hand off and confird,
“Green Bell at seven. Got it?”
There was no other option. The places Koi could go at that hour were either closed or too far away.
His shoulders slumped in defeat, and Ashley walked off to join his friends. Left alone, Koi let out a deep sigh and clutched his head.
*
Ashley arrived at Green Bell exactly at 7 PM. Since the marathon club usually finished an hour earlier than the ice hockey team, Koi had arrived at the eting spot before him—though the difference was only about ten minutes.
Of course. I ca by bike, and that guy must have driven here in his fancy Cayenne.
Koi pursed his lips in annoyance just as Ashley stepped inside, scanning the restaurant. Their eyes t. Without hesitation, Ashley walked straight toward him, sat down across the table, and let out a sigh.
“You’re early.”
Noticing that there was nothing in front of Koi, Ashley tilted his head, prompting Koi to answer.
“I haven’t ordered yet.”
“Yeah?”
As Ashley turned his head, a waiter who happened to be looking in their direction quickly approached. Koi picked up the nu book in front of him and had to swallow hard. He barely managed to stop himself from gasping.
Closing the nu with quiet resignation, he glanced at Ashley, who was flipping through the pages while humming. Koi fiddled with his phone awkwardly, killing ti as he waited for Ashley to decide.
Finally, Ashley raised his head as if he had made up his mind, lifted a hand, and signaled the waiter. The mont the waitress pulled out her notepad and pen, Ashley began ordering.
“A tuna salad sandwich, a double-patty burger—no onions, two slices of cheese on each. Pancakes with bananas on the side. Bacon extra crispy. Two boiled eggs. Maple syrup and—oh, make that two double-patty burgers. And also...”
“W-Wait, wait, hold on.”
This translation is the intellectual property of Novelight.
Koi panicked and quickly interrupted as Ashley was about to continue his order. Ashley glanced at him in confusion as Koi stamred,
“Isn’t that... way too much? Even if it’s for two people—”
“For two?”
Ashley blinked. Koi hesitated. Wait... was that not the case? As he struggled to process, Ashley casually clarified,
“I’m eating by myself.”
“...What?”
Koi’s eyes went wide as Ashley continued placing his order, even adding the restaurant’s signature giant steak. He finally wrapped up with a sparkling water before shutting the nu book.
“Your turn.”
Koi had been montarily stunned by Ashley’s cheerful expression. Snapping back to reality, he hastily flipped open his nu, but there was only one thing he could afford.
“...A Coke. No ice.”
“That’s it?”
Ashley asked before the waitress could. He sounded genuinely baffled. Koi clutched his aching stomach and forced himself to reply as naturally as possible.
“I already ate dinner.”
“Oh, okay.”
Thankfully, Ashley didn’t push the topic any further. Koi didn’t need to explain that a single Coke was all he could afford.
Once the waitress left, Koi brought up what he had prepared.
“About this project—I thought about it a bit.”
Taking a deep breath, he pulled out his notebook and opened it.
“We have to choose a Latin Arican country and research its culture. Is there one you’re particularly interested in?”
“No.”
His imdiate and indifferent response drained Koi’s energy. He had expected this, but Ashley truly had no motivation whatsoever. Seeing his disappointnt, Ashley awkwardly added,
“I can’t think about anything when I’m hungry.”
Huh?
It was hard to tell whether he was making an excuse or asking for understanding. Just then, Ashley let out a big yawn and muttered in a tired voice,
“Anyway, keep going. I’m listening.”
He must be exhausted.
Feeling a little guilty, Koi hesitated before continuing.
“I picked out a few options. Do you want to look through them, or should I just choose one?”
“You can pick.”
“Alright.”
Koi nodded without hesitation. Ashley’s lack of interest ant this project didn’t matter to him, and Koi had already braced himself to do most of the work. Without wasting ti, he continued,
“Let’s go with Argentina. Food is the easiest topic, so how about coffee and sandwiches? We can cover their history, preparation, stuff like that...”
“Sounds good.”
Ashley’s response was once again simple, and since Koi had anticipated it, he moved on smoothly.
“Now we need to do so research and decide how to divide the chapters.”
“Instead of chapters, wouldn’t it be better to split it like—‘you do coffee, I do sandwiches’? If we co across any overlapping parts, we can compare notes later.”
“Oh, yeah, that works.”
Koi nodded enthusiastically at Ashley’s suggestion. For once, he was actually participating. Maybe this project wouldn’t be so bad.
From there, their conversation finally began to flow. Ashley mostly listened, but he occasionally chid in with an idea or a counterpoint, and Koi actively engaged with his input.
To his surprise, Ashley was easy to talk to. Or maybe Koi was just getting carried away. One thing was certain—Ashley’s popularity wasn’t just because of his looks. After only thirty minutes of conversation, Koi was already drawn in.
There was sothing about the way Ashley spoke, how he could hold soone’s attention with just a few words. It was srizing. Koi almost couldn’t believe they were the sa age.
Especially when those silver-blue eyes locked onto him with a soft smile—it made Koi’s heart skip a beat, montarily forgetting they were both guys.
No wonder people are obsessed with him.
He understood now.
Shaking off the thought, Koi focused on taking notes. He skimd so articles on his phone, organizing their discussion, when at last, the food arrived.
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