“What is wrong?” Dai Li suddenly stood up, wanting to check on Xu Changxing.
Unexpectedly, Xu Changxing extended a hand to press against Dai Li’s shoulder. “Cough, do not come over.”
Dai Li managed to stop in his tracks, pulling back the hand he had reached out toward Xu Changxing.
“Xingxing, what is wrong with you?” Lin Guo quickly set down his chopsticks and helped Xu Changxing up, making sure to carefully avoid touching Xu Changxing’s skin.
“Thank you, I am fine.” Xu Changxing quickly pulled himself together, straightened up, and looked at Dai Li in disbelief, while the person in front of him wore a completely blank and bewildered expression.
Gu Nansong was also full of question marks. He did not remember Dai Li having the habit of wearing perfume, so could it be that…
To verify his own guess, Gu Nansong leaned in toward the back of Dai Li’s neck. There was nothing, absolutely nothing.
“What are you doing?!” Startled by Gu Nansong’s sudden move, Dai Li bulged his veins, took a few steps back, and looked at Gu Nansong with a defensive gaze.
“No malicious intent, just wanted to confirm something. You understand.” Gu Nansong looked at Dai Li with serious earnestness, finally helping Dai Li’s thoughts spin back online.
Dai Li shrugged his shoulders, sniffing left and right, but caught no scent at all except for the earlier teppanyaki tofu.
“Well?” Dai Li asked.
“Nothing,” Gu Nansong spread his hands.
Dai Li visibly looked a bit disappointed, but quickly recovered his usual demeanor.
“Xingxing, let us go back to the dormitory.” Seeing that Xu Changxing still looked somewhat uncomfortable, Lin Guo picked up his unfinished takoyaki from the table and waved goodbye toward them. “We are leaving first, bye-bye!”
“Goodbye, Guoguo!” Gu Nansong beamed and waved again, while Dai Li stared at Xu Changxing’s retreating back and fell into deep thought.
This modest interlude turned out to be the biggest event of the weekend, and Monday soon arrived.
It was already noon, and looking at the empty seat beside him, Xu Changxing found himself feeling a bit unaccustomed to not having Dai Li buzzing around and disturbing him.
Yet they had only known each other for a single week!
Xu Changxing hurriedly brushed the thought from his mind, telling himself it was all just an illusion and that he must not stir up further trouble.
As it turned out, by Wednesday Dai Li still had not appeared, and the rest of the class had no idea about his situation.
When Xu Changxing returned to the dormitory that evening, Lin Guo hurried over. “Xingxing, I heard that Boss Dai has not come to class for several days. Do you know what is going on?”
“I do not know.” Xu Changxing shook his head.
“Could it be Boss Dai’s rut? I heard that an Alpha’s rut can last for several days,” Lin Guo speculated.
“A rut?” As a Beta, Xu Changxing was not particularly familiar with the ruts of Alphas and Omegas.
“Xingxing, you have no idea. Ruts are agonizing; not only do you run a high fever, but you also experience an uncontrollable impulse,” Lin Guo described vividly. “During one of my own ruts before, I smashed my dad’s favorite antique vase. It was so terrifying.”
Recalling his own experience, Lin Guo quickly wrapped his arms around himself.
Xu Changxing reached out as if to pat Lin Guo’s head, but suddenly remembering something, changed it to a pat on the shoulder, then picked up his washing basket and walked into the bathroom.
Xu Changxing walked up to the mirror and reached out to touch the back of his neck. It was smooth with no bumps, lacking the glands possessed by Alphas and Omegas. He shrugged his shoulders and turned on the shower.
In a flash, the weekend arrived again, and there was still no sign of Dai Li. Xu Changxing silently wondered to himself: do Alpha ruts really last this long?
As soon as the dismissal bell rang, a small figure appeared at the front door of Class 1: it was Lin Guo.
“Xingxing, let us go to the hospital together to visit Boss Dai.” Lin Guo poked half his body through the rear door. Raising his eyes, Xu Changxing saw a tall boy standing behind Lin Guo, and it was Gu Nansong.
Xu Changxing packed his books neatly into his backpack, slung it over his shoulders, and walked to the back door. “A hospital?”
“His rut is not over yet,” Gu Nansong added from the side, wearing a somewhat solemn expression.
“Let us go buy some things on the way then.” Xu Changxing thought for a moment. Should they bring a fruit basket?
Thus, outside the glass window of a VIP isolation room in City A’s private hospital, Lin Guo held up a fruit basket tied with a red ribbon and spun it around twice to display it to Dai Li inside.
“What on earth is that?” The intercom embedded in the glass buzzed to life, and Dai Li’s voice came through.
“Crowdfunded and bought for you,” Lin Guo said loudly, leaning right up against the microphone of the intercom.
“Back up, back up a bit, I can hear you just fine.” Dai Li rubbed his ears because the earlier screech of static had been ear-piercing.
“Oh, right.” Lin Guo obediently retreated a few steps. Seeing this, Gu Nansong stepped forward and intentionally yelled into the microphone, “Why are you being so fierce?!”
“Are you out of your mind, Gu Nansong? I am a patient right now!” Dai Li crossed his legs, his swivel chair rocking left and right beneath him.
“How are you holding up? Is your rut still not over?” Gu Nansong brought the topic back on track.
“It actually ended yesterday, but the doctor said I should stay for a few more days of observation. You know how it is, my situation is a bit special.” Mentioning this, Dai Li looked surprised as he described it to Gu Nansong. “You have no idea, after I went home last Saturday, I suddenly ran a fever, and it spiked to nearly forty degrees Celsius! Our family doctor came over and said it was an Alpha rut. I was completely dumbfounded at the time.”
“Alright, alright, stop right there, stop right there.” Gu Nansong hurriedly interrupted Dai Li’s account, flashing him several frantic warning looks.
“What does it matter? Anyway, the two of them are bound to find out eventually.” Dai Li spread his hands with total indifference.
A special situation?
Although Xu Changxing felt puzzled, he did not intend to pry.
After all, he empathized deeply with having such a special situation. If it was a special situation like skin hunger, it was certainly a secret he would never make public.
“What is it, what is it? Why did you stop talking?” Lin Guo poked his head forward and asked curiously.
“Children should not ask.” Gu Nansong patted Lin Guo’s head, shaking his head with a doting smile.
Taking advantage of the moment, Lin Guo kicked him right in his expensive-looking casual trousers. “Touch me again and I will not grow any taller!”
“I am going to go back and frame these trousers bearing Xiao Guo’s footprint and hang them at the head of my bed.” Gu Nansong chuckled stealthily.
Xu Changxing stood quietly to the side, watching the farce play out among them.
“When are you being discharged?” Finally, Xu Changxing spoke his first words since arriving here.
“Hard to say. I should be able to make it back to school next week.” Dai Li furrowed his brows with a distressed expression. “My studies, my future! And I said I was going to beat you on the next exam, seatmate.”
“I can lend you my notes.” Xu Changxing gazed at Dai Li through the glass. The lighting in the isolation room was soft, wearing away much of his usual arrogant and overbearing ruffian demeanor, and his deep facial features under the shifting light and shadow made him look like an ancient Greek sculpture.
At the very least, Xu Changxing had to admit that Dai Li was indeed a very handsome Alpha.