Sikong Sui’s eyes snapped open wide.
“Doctor Pei?”
Her voice trembled, but she tried her best to sound calmer.
“Your sweat contains the pheromones of a top-tier Omega.”
Pei Sichen cut her off.
His gaze shifted from her face to her neck, where Sikong Nian had left a temporary mark.
Pei Sichen: “The pheromones of an SSS-level Omega, mixed in sweat. If not cleaned in time, they’ll attract things that shouldn’t be attracted.”
Sikong Sui’s breath hitched.
“You’re injured. Let me help you clean up.”
He turned and walked to the shower area, turning on the faucet.
Hot water sprayed from the showerhead, hitting the tiles with a rushing sound.
Steam rose again. He reached out to test the water temperature, adjusted it to a moderate level, then turned to look at her.
Sikong Sui stood by the door, her back pressed against the door panel, her whole body curled into a ball.
Her fingers clutched the hem of her school uniform, looking very tense.
Pei Sichen walked toward her.
Barefoot on the wet tiles, he stopped in front of her, reached out, and his fingers settled on the first button of her school uniform.
Sikong Sui’s body stiffened abruptly.
Her breathing stopped, her heartbeat stopped, the whole world stopped.
All she could feel were his fingers, slowly undoing her buttons one by one.
The first one.
The collar loosened, revealing her fair collarbone.
The second one.
The front of her uniform opened a slit, revealing the edge of the white camisole inside.
The third one.
The school uniform came completely loose, slipping from his fingers and pooling silently at her feet.
Sikong Sui stood there in her white camisole and school skirt.
Barefoot, hair disheveled, her face covered in sweat and the steam from the bathroom.
Her left shoulder was wrapped in bandages, her skin tinged a faint pink from running too fast.
Pei Sichen’s hand paused on her shoulder.
His fingers rested on the thin strap of her camisole. His gaze moved down from her face, past the small exposed patch of pinkish skin at the edge of the camisole.
Then he stopped.
Sikong Sui didn’t dare look at him.
She turned her head away, her eyes fixed intently on a tile on the wall.
That tile had a thin crack running from the upper left corner to the lower right.
She silently counted the length of that crack in her mind.
One centimeter, two centimeters, three centimeters—
Pei Sichen’s hand moved away from her shoulder.
He didn’t continue.
He turned, walked to the sink, took a clean towel from the rack, soaked it under hot water, wrung it out, then walked back.
“Lift your arm,” he said.
Sikong Sui was stunned for a moment, then slowly raised her right arm.
Pei Sichen took the warm, damp towel and began wiping her arm, starting from her wrist and moving upward bit by bit.
The warmth of the towel seeped through her skin, bringing a relaxing, comforting sensation that made her want to close her eyes.
Sikong Sui felt something warm and soft, like a cloud, gently brushing over her skin.
She lowered her head, looking at the crown of his head.
His hair was still not dry, the deep black strands gleaming faintly under the light.
A few locks fell over his forehead, obscuring his brows and eyes.
It had to be said, Pei Sichen really looked ascetically handsome.
After finishing her arm, he set the towel aside, took a dry one, and began wiping her face.
His fingers gently lifted her chin through the towel, tenderly raising her face, and began wiping from her forehead, slowly moving downward.
When he reached her lips, his hand paused.
His thumb pressed against the center of her lower lip through the towel, lingered for a second, then moved away.
Sikong Sui’s tears finally fell.
“Why are you crying?” His voice was very low, so low it seemed squeezed from his chest, hoarse. “I haven’t done anything to you.”
Sikong Sui sniffled, wiping her eyes with the back of her hand. “You cornered me in the bathroom, unbuttoned my clothes, and still say you haven’t done anything?”
Pei Sichen looked at her, the corner of his mouth finally curving slightly.
“Your clothes are wet,” he said, pointing to her school uniform piled on the floor. “Soaked with sweat, unwearable.”
Sikong Sui glanced down at the school uniform on the floor, then at the white camisole and school skirt she still wore.
Then she looked up at him.
Her eyes were still red, tears clinging to her lashes, her lips slightly pouted. She looked like a little kitten caught in the rain.
“Then what do I wear to go back?” she asked.
Pei Sichen didn’t answer.
He turned around and brought back one of his shirts.
White, cotton, oversized—so large that when she put it on, the hem would hang down to mid-thigh.
He handed her the shirt, his gaze shifting from her face to a tile on the wall.
“Wear this for now. I’ll wash your clothes and return them to you tomorrow when they’re dry.”
Sikong Sui took the shirt. The moment her fingers touched the fabric, she caught a faint scent of vodka.
“Then turn around,” she said.
Pei Sichen turned, his back to her.
Sikong Sui quickly took off the damp camisole and slipped the shirt on.
The fabric was too large, like a tent enveloping her entirely.
Her fingers trembled as she tried to button it.
“Done?” Pei Sichen’s voice came from ahead.
“Almost, almost,” Sikong Sui’s voice was muffled, nasal. “Don’t turn around.”
She tried again, but the button still wouldn’t fasten.
Her hands wouldn’t obey her, trembling uncontrollably, making her eyes redden again.
Pei Sichen turned around.
Before Sikong Sui could stop him, he had already seen her.
Wearing his ridiculously oversized white shirt, her hair disheveled over her shoulders, tear stains still on her cheeks, she looked like a child who had stolen an adult’s clothes.
Clumsy, adorable, heart-meltingly soft.
He walked over, reached out, and his slender fingers covered her trembling hands.
His fingers took the button from her grasp, threaded it through the buttonhole, and gently pulled it closed.
“Done,” he said.
Sikong Sui looked down at herself.
The hem of the shirt hung down to mid-thigh.
The sleeves were too long; she rolled the cuffs twice, revealing a section of her wrists.
The collar was too wide, exposing her collarbone and a small part of her chest, glowing a faint pink under the light.
She looked up at Pei Sichen.
He was watching her, his eyes darkening again.
“Pei Sichen…” Sikong Sui’s voice was very, very soft.
He didn’t answer.
His hand moved from her collarbone to the back of her neck, his fingers threading through her damp hair.
Then he kissed her.
For a long, long time.
So long that she forgot who she was, where she was, and what she was doing.
His tongue pried open her lips, delving inside, tangling with her tongue, sweeping away all the sweetness and unease from her mouth.
Sikong Sui was kissed until her legs went weak, and she slipped downward slightly.
Pei Sichen’s hand slid from the nape of her neck to her waist, tightening around her, lifting her entire body and pressing her against himself.
The moment her chest pressed against his bare chest, both of them stiffened.
Pei Sichen’s breathing finally grew ragged.
His lips moved away from hers, trailing down along her jawline.
Sikong Sui trembled in his embrace, making sounds she herself couldn’t understand.
“Pei Sichen…”
She called his name again.
Her voice was so hoarse it didn’t sound like her own.
Pei Sichen lifted his head and looked at her.
His breathing was heavy and scorching, brushing against her face, carrying the scent of vodka, so intense it made her dizzy.
“I gave you a chance. Last time, I said, if you dare seduce me again…”
He didn’t finish.
His hand moved from her waist, cupping the back of her head, pulling her toward him.
His other hand undid the buttons of her shirt that had just been fastened.
The collar of the shirt fell open, and Sikong Sui didn’t pull away.
Pei Sichen lifted her up, placing her on the bathroom counter.
The cool touch of the marble surface seeped through from behind her thighs, sending a shiver through her.
But she soon couldn’t feel it anymore.
Because Pei Sichen stood between her legs, his body scorching hot, as if it would melt her.
He lowered his head, his lips pressing against the Temporary Mark on her neck.
Sikong Sui’s fingers tightened around the edge of the counter.
“Pei Sichen… Pei Sichen…”
Pei Sichen lifted his head and looked into her eyes.
In those unfathomably dark eyes, there was finally something she had always wanted to see.
He wanted her.
The blood-soaked her on the operating table, the towel-wrapped her in the bathroom, the her wearing his shirt—he wanted all of it.
“Suisui, I told you, I will give you a Lifelong Marking.”
Sikong Sui’s tears fell once more.
He kissed her, inch by inch, bit by bit, molding her into his own body.
His hand moved from the counter, gripping her waist, pulling her down from the surface and pressing her against himself.
Her legs wrapped around his waist.
Her toes curled.
She clung to him like a koala.
At this moment, the Pheromones spiraled completely out of control.
The scents of jasmine, milk, and peach surged from her body, intertwining with Pei Sichen’s vodka.
In the cramped bathroom, they swirled, blended, and burned.
Pei Sichen pressed her against the bathroom wall.
The white shirt slipped from her shoulders, pooling at her waist.
His gaze fell on her left shoulder, and Pei Sichen’s hand paused at the edge of the bandage.
“Suisui, do you know what I’m doing?”
Sikong Sui’s fingers threaded through his damp hair, her fingertips gently stroking his scalp, “Loving… loving me…”
…
[System Notification: Pei Sichen’s Favorability -40. Current Favorability: -61]
Pei Sichen kissed away the tears at the corner of her eyes.
Then…
He sank in.
Water droplets fell onto the tiles one by one, making crisp sounds, one after another, again and again.