Watching the man bury his face in the pillow, whining and grumbling, Liang Shen’s expression visibly shifted into something complicated.
He and Lu Yue had known each other since high school. In his memory, the other was a fierce, unbending Omega who would grit his teeth and endure even his heats without making a sound—someone who never showed weakness.
Before Bai Long marked him, Liang Shen had considered the possibility that Lu Yue might develop dependency. But based on his understanding of the man, he assumed it wouldn’t be any worse than enduring a heat.
In fact, initially, Liang Shen wasn’t worried about Bai Long taking advantage of Lu Yue while he was vulnerable. He was more concerned that Lu Yue, embarrassed by being seen in such a state, might lose his temper and lash out.
—That was precisely why he had told Bai Long to leave quickly.
Unexpectedly, he had misjudged not one, but two things.
First, Bai Long’s mental energy was higher than estimated. Second, Lu Yue’s reaction was far more intense than anticipated.
Liang Shen specialized as a pheromone specialist. His daily work primarily involved diagnosing patients with pheromonal anomalies or those who had lost control due to inhibitor failure.
He was all too familiar with dependency after marking. Generally, the degree of dependency was related to the pheromonal compatibility between the two individuals and their respective ranks.
The higher the compatibility, and the closer or higher the Alpha’s rank was to the Omega’s, the more severe and prolonged the Omega’s dependency period would be.
The opposite was also true.
And in Lu Yue’s current situation, both factors applied—making it clearly quite serious.
Before Bai Long’s pheromones fully faded, without the Alpha’s presence to soothe him, Lu Yue’s mental state would deteriorate further—potentially even leading to depression or illness.
The thought gave Liang Shen a headache. He raised a hand to massage his temples.
“It looks like until her pheromones completely fade, you won’t be able to leave her side.”
“How about this: she’s being discharged tomorrow. I’ll go get her contact information for you. If it gets too unbearable later, you can arrange to meet her—have a meal together, let her spend more time with you.”
“However inexperienced she may be, she is still an Alpha. Earlier, I was the one who told her to leave quickly. She knows you’re in the dependency period now. If you explain things properly, she probably won’t refuse.”
Based on Lu Yue’s current state, Liang Shen estimated conservatively that this dependency period would last around half a month—possibly even more grueling than the heat itself.
But meeting up every few days to talk or spend time together could definitely help ease the anxiety and restlessness during the dependency period.
Yet Lu Yue didn’t immediately accept this suggestion.
After a moment, he pushed himself up on the bed, propping himself up with his hands.
Sparse strands of hair fell across his eyes, but under the moonlight, a faint flush could still be seen at the corners.
“…I don’t want to.”
“I’ve already been humiliated enough earlier. Now you want me to take the initiative to contact her and ask her out? Have you ever seen an Omega groveling and begging an Alpha to keep them company? It’s too shameful. If I actually did that, I’d look down on myself.”
Even though he was trying to hold back, Liang Shen could clearly hear the tremor in his voice.
He wasn’t doing well at all. When he spoke, he sounded so aggrieved it seemed he might cry at any moment.
An Omega in the dependency period had their mental state stretched thin—it felt like even a stray straw could break them.
Liang Shen knew this was only temporary. Once the dependency period passed, Lu Yue would quickly return to the fierce, commanding Omega he was familiar with.
But Lu Yue despised Omegas who lost themselves over an Alpha, and now, it was Liang Shen who had directly caused this.
A deep sense of guilt and remorse settled in Liang Shen’s chest.
“Sigh… this really is my fault. At the time, her pheromones hadn’t stabilized, so many metrics were hard to measure accurately. Seeing your heat was approaching, I just…”
Liang Shen was careful not to upset Lu Yue further. He weighed his words carefully, trying to phrase it gently while considering the other’s emotional state.
“Anyway, this can’t go on. Even aside from Bai Long’s situation, since you’ve never been marked before, your dependency period would naturally be more intense than for other Omegas.”
“…How about this—if you really don’t want to contact her yourself, I can go get the bedding she used for you. It should have her pheromones on it, which might make you feel a bit better. The downside is, once the scent fades, you might feel even worse.”
As he laid out the pros and cons, Liang Shen kept his eyes on the man, observing his every reaction.
Lu Yue’s long lashes trembled slightly, his handsome face etched with a deep frown.
After a long silence, just as Liang Shen began to think he wouldn’t respond, Lu Yue lifted his head and looked over.
“I remember you mentioned before that an Omega’s dependency period can be alleviated by injecting synthesized pheromones, right?”
“It can, yes, but that method is like taking drugs—you’ll get addicted.”
“Ahhhh, this is so annoying! This doesn’t work, that doesn’t work!”
Lu Yue grabbed his hair in frustration, the man who had been sulking just a moment ago now flaring up with irritation again.
“Obviously, I’m the Omega! Shouldn’t it be her who can’t resist my pheromones, clinging to me and begging to be together? Why is everything reversed in my case?! I’m an S-rank Omega, why am I the one who can’t live without her?!”
“…”
Dammit, he’s starting up again.
Liang Shen had been a single Alpha for nearly thirty years, but he’d seen enough to know how unreasonable an Omega in dependency could be.
However, seeing that the one being unreasonable was Lu Yue, he still couldn’t quite adjust.
He had no choice but to wait for Lu Yue’s emotions to settle a bit before daring to speak, afraid that interrupting might backfire and make things even harder to handle.
“Alright, that’s enough now. It’s just the dependency period—do you really have to act so… Omega-like?”
As soon as he said it, Liang Shen remembered the other actually was an Omega. When he met Lu Yue’s reproachful gaze, he awkwardly shifted the topic.
“Ahem, what I mean is, don’t be so pessimistic. You’re sharp when it comes to work—why are you so stuck when it comes to this?”
“Since you can’t bring yourself to contact her directly, why not find a legitimate reason to see her?”
This opened up a new line of thought for Lu Yue. He blinked, unusually obedient, like a student asking a teacher for guidance.
“What legitimate reason?”
“Doesn’t your company have that campus youth film project that’s still casting? Bai Long goes to Yicheng First High. Their school is holding a sports meet soon, with an evening arts performance.”
“You mean… I should go to her school for casting?”
Liang Shen crossed his arms and nodded, then added.
“To be precise, use the casting as a cover. Besides, didn’t you donate a few buildings to Yicheng First High? The school will definitely invite you. Don’t turn them down this year—just accept and go.”
The reason he knew Bai Long was from Yicheng First High wasn’t because he’d looked into her background. It was simply because when she was brought in after being knocked out by the volleyball, she was wearing that school’s uniform.
It looked familiar, so he had taken note of it.
Hearing this, Lu Yue unconsciously tightened his grip on the bedsheet. After a moment of hesitation, he gave a slight nod.
Seeing the man agree, Liang Shen felt he had solved a tricky problem and let out a sigh of relief.
“Alright, it’s settled then. It’s getting late, so I’ll head out. Your pheromones have finally stabilized—don’t overthink things. Get some proper rest.”
“Wait.”
Seeing Liang Shen stand up to leave, Lu Yue frowned and called out to him.
“What time is she being discharged tomorrow?”
“Around 10 a.m., I think. Why do you ask?”
The man who had earlier been too proud to even reach out was suddenly showing interest. Liang Shen found it a bit surprising.
“What’s this? Can’t bear to see her go? Want to see her off?”
To be honest, the moment Liang Shen finished speaking, Lu Yue almost nodded reflexively.
He forced himself to suppress the effect Bai Long had on him and replied in a low, muffled tone.
“…Remember to bring me the bedding she used tomorrow.”
“…”
…
The next day, Bai Long woke up early and went to the front desk to handle her discharge procedures.
Just as she finished, she happened to run into the Beta doctor who had examined her earlier right at the entrance.
The doctor wasn’t surprised to see her handling her discharge, but he instinctively took a step back, keeping some distance between them.
Bai Long was taken aback, only then recalling that her pheromones had flared up around him while she was unconscious.
He was a Beta, after all—he was probably still wary of her because of that incident.
“Sorry about last time, Doctor. I wasn’t really conscious then…”
“It’s alright. It was my fault—I shouldn’t have approached so abruptly.”
The young man took a deep breath. This time, it wasn’t because he felt threatened by Bai Long, but for a different reason.
As he spoke, his eyes flickered slightly, and his body tensed inexplicably.
“…But are you really planning to go out like this?”
He had come specifically to fetch the bedding for Lu Yue. Originally, he intended to wait until Bai Long had left before entering the room. But before he even got close, he caught the scent of white cedar on the girl.
While Alphas were inherently possessive and enjoyed having their Omegas carry their pheromones as a sign of ownership,
If an Alpha carried an Omega’s pheromones instead—a little was fine, but this strong—it was essentially like walking around as a living aphrodisiac.
“I don’t mean anything by it, but you’re carrying very strong Omega pheromones. I’d suggest staying in an isolation room for a while before leaving.”
Bai Long wasn’t from this world and lacked much common sense about such things.
The crisp scent of white cedar was pleasant to her, and she didn’t feel any discomfort.
So she hadn’t paid much attention to it, treating it almost like perfume.
It was only after the young man’s reminder that she noticed something was off.
They were standing near the entrance, and while the hallway wasn’t crowded, several passing nurses and doctors were inexplicably flushed.
One Alpha even stumbled, legs nearly giving out.
Alphas were inherently possessive and territorial by nature, and with such high compatibility between them,
Even though Lu Yue wasn’t her Omega, seeing this still stirred a sense of irritation within her.
Bai Long accepted the young man’s suggestion.
However, just as she was about to head toward the isolation room with a slightly darkened expression, she caught sight of him entering the room and carrying out her bedding.
“Are you taking that to be washed?”
Suddenly asked, the young man paused mid-step. Remembering Lu Yue’s instruction to keep it confidential, he quickly nodded.
“Is it urgent?”
“Huh?”
“What I mean is, that bedding not only carries my pheromones but also… I didn’t realize it earlier, but I think if you carry it out like that, a lot of people will be able to smell it.”
“If it’s not urgent, could you leave it in the isolation room to air out for a bit?”
Bai Long was straightforward—she said exactly what was on her mind.
Seeing the young doctor’s stunned expression, she thought she hadn’t made herself clear. Pressing her red lips together, she spoke with a serious expression.
“I don’t like it.”
She didn’t like other people smelling his pheromones.