L*ck Me If You Can

Chapter 211

Ice Hockey Top Star, Turns Out to Be Gay?

“No, I’m not!”

As soon as Bill saw the newspaper delivered to his room that morning, his eyes widened. It was like being struck by lightning out of a clear sky. Flustered, he opened the online news, and there was his face plastered all over the place. Most of the photos were of him in a hotel room with Koi.

And that wasn’t all. The articles, every single one of them, drove Bill crazy.

Bill Gulliver, who disappeared under the excuse of an injury, actually with his lover?

Caught by paparazzi enjoying a secret rendezvous in a hotel room.

“No, you sons of bitches!”

Bill screamed, clutching his head. But there was no doubt that the people in the photos were Koi and himself. The paparazzi who had been tailing him had finally done it. But the building where the photos seemed to have been taken from was absurdly far away. Even though he had seen ❀ Nоvеlігht ❀ (Don’t copy, read here) that building every day from the hotel, he never imagined that someone would be taking pictures from there.

Was that paparazzi’s camera a Hubble telescope or what? How the hell could they take pictures from that distance?

Bill immediately contacted his manager to try to correct the false reports. He conveyed the statement, “Bill came to the East to court a ‘woman’ he likes, and the person in the photo is a friend who knows both Bill and the woman, just giving him some advice.” But the next article that came out was even more outrageous.

The counterpart revealed to be a high school classmate.

Rumors say their relationship started back in high school?

Even lied about courting a non-existent woman to protect his lover...

“Aaaargh!”

Bill felt like he would go bald, but he couldn’t pull his hands away from his head. Why, why the hell was this happening?

The only comfort was the phone call with Koi. Koi learned about the incident through Bill’s call, but apparently, Ashley had called Koi after seeing the article. At the time, Koi, who knew nothing, had told him everything honestly, and Ashley had said he understood. Ashley even comforted Bill before hanging up, so at least Bill felt relieved about that side. However, it didn’t change the fact that he had to deal with this mess.

While Bill spent the entire day frantically trying to do damage control without stepping a foot outside the room, a call came around dusk. It was from the hotel front desk. Reluctantly picking up, Bill received unexpected news.

You have a visitor. His name is Ashley Miller.

Bill, frozen in shock, heard the clerk add,

He said he has something to talk about. Should I send him up?

Bill couldn’t understand the meaning of the words coming from the other side. His mind was spinning with only one name: Ashley Miller. Standing there blankly, he was brought back to his senses by the voice over the phone calling him again.

“A-Ashley Miller? The lawyer?”

Yes, he said he’s a high school classmate. Should I send him up?

Hearing the patient repetition, Bill quickly slapped his own cheeks. Barely regaining his senses, he rubbed his sore cheeks and started thinking fast. According to Koi, Ashley knew what was going on. Maybe he was coming to give legal advice.

Clutching at cautious hope, suddenly the voice on the other end changed.

Bill?

“A-Ash?”

Bill stuttered unconsciously at the sudden voice. It had been a long time since he last heard that voice, but he recognized it instantly. Ashley continued speaking.

We have something to talk about, don’t we? Can I come up?

His voice was extremely calm and cold. There was no trace of emotion, and Bill felt a sense of distance, but at the same time, he also felt relieved. Remembering the call with Koi, an unfounded confidence took root in him.

Yeah, we were inseparable friends.

Memories from childhood filled him with hope. Clearing his throat hastily, Bill handed the call back to the clerk and readily accepted the visit.

“Yes, that’s fine. And, uh, could you bring up a bottle of champagne too? Anything will do.”

After hanging up, Bill exhaled deeply, rubbed his palms together, and looked around. Now wasn’t the time to be idle. He hurriedly tidied up the mess in the room, preparing to meet an old friend. Yeah, friends were the best at times like this. They could have a drink and talk about the old days.

He should apologize about the incident with Koi, too.

If it had been him in that situation, he would have wanted to beat the other guy to death. But Bill trusted Ashley. More precisely, he had strong faith in the friendship they had shared.

〈Ash didn’t seem to say much though?〉

Recalling Koi’s cheerful voice, Bill regained his peace of mind. By the time the doorbell finally rang, he had already played out a touching reunion with his old friend in his mind. Rushing over, Bill opened the door wide with a beaming smile.

“Ash, long time no see—urk!”

His energetic greeting didn’t even make it to the end before it turned into a scream. With a loud thud, a flash burst before his eyes, and he staggered back, clutching his nose.

“W-What the...”

Bill, barely coming to his senses, stared wide-eyed. The man who had stormed into the room was undoubtedly Ashley. Wearing a long coat over a perfectly tailored suit and slicked-back hair, his appearance was that of a sophisticated man—but Bill could still see the youthful face from high school overlapping it for one reason only. Just like back then, Ashley was holding an ice hockey stick.

“W-Wait, Ash, calm down, what are you doing?!”

Bill, turning pale, thrust his hand out to stop him.

“What’s with that thing? You said we’d talk!”

“Yeah.”

Ashley adjusted his grip on the stick and replied. His voice was still chillingly calm.

“Now, have your conversation. With my stick.”

Without hesitation, Ashley swung the stick, and Bill screamed, covering his head.

“You crazy bastard!”

*

“Koi!”

Ariel burst through the door, her face pale, and Koi, startled, rushed to meet her.

“What’s wrong? Did something happen?”

Thinking perhaps she had been chased by an attacker, Koi quickly looked around, but Ariel pressed urgently,

“The one with a problem is you! Are you okay? Nothing happened?”

Scanning around quickly, Ariel fixed her gaze back on Koi’s face. Koi, bewildered, answered, “No,” shaking his head. Ariel carefully studied his expression, then let out a long sigh of relief and clutched her chest. Collapsing onto the sofa, Ariel accepted the herbal tea Koi brewed and finally began to relax.

“You seriously didn’t know anything about the chaos today?”

After taking a sip of tea, Ariel asked. Embarrassed, Koi scratched his head and answered,

“Bill called me. I didn’t check the internet or anything, so I didn’t know at all... Bill seemed pretty screwed though.”

Ariel didn’t bother mentioning that she had become the “nonexistent woman.” There was a more urgent matter right now.

“The situation’s worse than you think. Reporters might storm in here looking for you.”

“Really?”

Koi cried out, alarmed. But that wasn’t the biggest problem.

“What about Ash? Have you contacted him? What did he say?”

“Huh? No.”

Koi shook his head.

“Ash called first. He didn’t say much, just asked a few things about Bill, but he understood everything and hung up. You don’t have to worry about Ash.”

Koi said that and even smiled reassuringly, but Ariel’s face turned increasingly pale.

“When was that?”

Pressed by the urgent tone, Koi blinked.

“Uh, just after lunch...?”

“Give me your phone. No, call him. Call Ash, right now.”

Though puzzled, Koi obeyed and dialed. Soon, he shook his head.

“He’s not answering.”

“Same with Bill.”

Ariel, setting down her phone immediately, stood up abruptly.

“We can’t just sit here. Let’s go.”

“Go where?”

Koi, bewildered by the sudden tug on his arm, asked as he was dragged toward the door. Ariel, looking back hurriedly, answered,

“To Bill. If we leave him like that, he might die.”

“Bill? Why?!”

Shouting in shock, Koi received a chilling reply.

“Because Ash won’t let it go.”

“What? No, wait a second!”

Koi protested in confusion.

“That can’t be. Ash said he understood. He said it was all a misunderstanding!”

“It’d be great if you were right.”

Ariel looked at him seriously.

“But if my guess is correct, you’re the only one who can stop Ash.”