Wen Xiuran nodded.
“Good boy.” Shen Yan reached out to stroke the alpha’s neck as a reward, then suddenly remembered something and added, “Oh, I might have to leave campus tomorrow.”
Wen Xiuran clearly struggled with the idea of being separated so soon after getting together, frowning as he asked, “Where to?”
“Didn’t I tell you? I’m going on a field trip for inspiration.” Shen Yan leaned in closer, playfully scratching Wen Xiuran’s palm, his tone teasing. “Worried about me? Want to come along?”
Wen Xiuran thought for a moment before nodding again.
Shen Yan placed both hands on his shoulders, tilting his head to whisper by Wen Xiuran’s ear, “Let’s play a quick Q&A game, okay?”
“What were you just thinking about?”
“I was thinking about how to finish the experiment quickly.”
“Is your experiment urgent?”
“Not really.”
“Won’t your advisor get mad?”
“He won’t.”
In the dim, cramped storage room, cluttered with haphazardly stacked boxes and worn-out tools, the air was thick with the scent of dust.
Shen Yan’s eyes suddenly gleamed as his tone shifted. Tilting his head, he asked, “When did you fall for me?”
“…” Wen Xiuran immediately pressed his lips together, his gaze darting away.
“Quick, answer—or you’ll have to wait a month before kissing me again.” Shen Yan lightly tapped Wen Xiuran’s scent gland as a playful threat. “We’ve already done it. Why are you so shy?”
Wen Xiuran’s hands clenched slightly, his knuckles whitening from the tension, his face flushing like a ripe apple. Taking a deep breath, as if steeling himself, he answered stiffly, “Love at first sight.”
Shen Yan pretended not to hear, pressing his entire body against Wen Xiuran and leaning closer to his ear. “Huh? Say that again.”
“…” Wen Xiuran’s embarrassment quickly turned to frustration, but he couldn’t bring himself to lash out. Instead, he abruptly turned his head away, brows furrowed in silence.
“Alright, I’ll stop teasing you.” Shen Yan burst into laughter, his eyes curving into crescents as he pinched Wen Xiuran’s cheek. “You’re so adorable.”
The hallway was much quieter now, the earlier bustle having faded into a subdued hush. Shen Yan paused briefly outside the office before raising his hand to knock lightly. After receiving permission, he carefully pushed the door open and stepped inside, greeting politely, “Hello, Professor.”
Liu Ji sat buried behind a slightly messy desk, surrounded by stacks of documents. At the sound of the knock, he slowly looked up, his gaze piercing through thick glasses to land on Shen Yan.
“There are a few must-visit spots for this field trip. Make sure to inform everyone in advance, rent cameras early, and take plenty of reference photos. Each person needs to submit at least five hundred images when we return.”
Liu Ji’s expression was stern, his eyes brimming with expectation as he continued, “I expect you to take six or seven thousand. We’ll select the best from those.”
Liu Ji was both the faculty advisor for this trip and Shen Yan’s mentor for the exhibition, which meant he held Shen Yan to higher standards. After meticulously going over details like the itinerary and precautions, he waved his hand, signaling that Shen Yan could leave.
Shen Yan had just stepped out of the office and hadn’t even had the chance to close the door behind him when he heard Liu Ji’s voice from inside. Liu Ji was sprawled inelegantly in his chair, legs crossed, taking a resigned sip of water while muttering, “I’m suffocating… Kids these days have no sense of restraint. Their pheromones are so strong.”
Standing by the door, leaning against the wall, Wen Xiuran spotted Shen Yan and immediately approached.
“What time are you leaving tomorrow?”
“Probably in the evening. Our department arranged group tickets.”
Wen Xiuran slightly rose onto his tiptoes, resting his chin atop Shen Yan’s head, his tone indifferent. “How about I take you there instead? We can take photos together and come back. Skip the group with your classmates.”
He shifted his posture, his canine teeth pausing just above Shen Yan’s scent gland, his expression tinged with displeasure. “I hate it when you carry other people’s scents. They all stink.”
An alpha’s possessiveness over their mate was always intense. Some alphas, driven by near-maddening jealousy, would go as far as confining their omegas, stripping them of their freedom.
In the past, society had witnessed numerous cases of omegas being imprisoned, most of whom suffered inhuman treatment, enduring severe physical and psychological trauma.
Yet, most of these cases were eventually swept under the rug, with the offending alphas escaping the harsh punishments they deserved.
Shen Yan naturally didn’t believe he would end up like those omegas. After all, his connection with Wen Xiuran wasn’t that deep.
Now that Wen Xiuran was clinging to him like this, Shen Yan, adhering to the principle of mutual benefit, would do his best to keep him happy.
“I can’t just leave the group and go off on my own,” Shen Yan murmured, his voice laced with a hypnotic charm. “But… I can let you make a wish. When I get back from the trip, I’ll fulfill it. How about it? Want to mark me again?”
His tone was leisurely, carrying a hint of slyness.
After all, Wen Xiuran could never truly mark him. It wouldn’t be long before Wen Xiuran’s parents sought him out.
By then, he’d walk away with a hefty sum, free to choose an omega better suited for him.
Wen Xiuran took a deep breath. As he withdrew, his lips brushed Shen Yan’s cheek in a fleeting kiss.
The next day, the sun hung high in the sky, its scorching rays pouring down.
A lively group set off from S University, the air filled with laughter and chatter.
“Hurry up and notify anyone who hasn’t arrived yet! The bus is about to leave!” the class monitor shouted over the crowd.
Students quickly boarded. Once most were on, Shen Yan, who had been lounging in the shade, leisurely climbed aboard. He tossed his backpack onto a random seat, then tugged at the brim of his baseball cap, pulling it low to obscure most of his face.
Arms crossed, he curled into his seat without a word, the surrounding bustle seeming entirely unrelated to him.
Last night, for some inexplicable reason, Wen Xiuran had insisted on dragging him out for a walk.
All the way, the alpha held his hand tightly but remained silent. The quiet atmosphere made Shen Yan feel rather strange, and he couldn’t help but mutter to himself. He looked up at Wen Xiuran’s back of the head and, for some inexplicable reason, felt the urge to tease him again.
Shen Yan started by casually asking a few questions, like “How was your day?” or “Have you encountered anything interesting lately?”
He had assumed the other wouldn’t respond, but to his surprise, Wen Xiuran answered every single one truthfully, even pausing occasionally to think before replying. His earnest demeanor made Shen Yan find him rather endearing.
Shen Yan decided to play the same trick again, scratching Wen Xiuran’s chin like a young master flirting with a maiden: “Did you miss me?”
Hearing this, Wen Xiuran turned his head away, refusing to look at him. After a long pause, he finally responded softly, “Mhm.”
His voice carried a hint of barely detectable shyness, even though the two had only been apart for a short afternoon.
Shen Yan kissed his knuckles. “I missed you too.”
The two sat chatting on a bench beneath the elm trees on campus, surrounded by tranquility. Moonlight, like water, filtered through the leaves, casting dappled shadows. In the distance, the teaching buildings and library were enveloped in the hazy night, with only a few street lamps emitting a dim, yellowish glow.
It wasn’t until Xu Chu called to urge him back that Shen Yan snapped out of it. Glancing at his phone screen, he realized it was already the next day.
As they were about to part, Wen Xiuran pulled him close, gently cupping the back of Shen Yan’s neck and drawing him nearer. Then, the alpha tilted his head slightly and bit down on Shen Yan’s scent gland.
In an instant, a burst of fresh peach flavor exploded from the bite, spreading rapidly like popping candy before slowly diffusing, gradually enveloping the two of them.
Shen Yan didn’t actually dislike Wen Xiuran’s pheromones. The scent of an S-rank alpha carried an overwhelming deterrent effect on anyone, and even if he was just basking in reflected glory, Shen Yan thoroughly enjoyed the peculiar looks others gave him.
Early that morning, to catch the departing bus, the class monitor had instructed everyone to wake up early. Shen Yan, bleary-eyed and yawning, felt as though his entire body had been crushed by something heavy—aching and sore, as if he were about to fall apart.
“Hey, classmate! Is this seat taken?” A crisp voice rang out.
Already irritated, Shen Yan impatiently pulled off his hood and glanced up, only to see the boy he had encountered in the infirmary before.
“You’re Lin—”
“I’m Lin Bai.” Lin Bai smiled brightly. “I’m surprised you remember me.”
Still slightly puzzled, Shen Yan asked, “Are you in the same major as me? Why didn’t I see you during the self-introductions at the start of the semester?”
Lin Bai placed his bag on the rack and sat down beside Shen Yan, fastening his seatbelt as he explained, “I took some time off recently because of family matters. I only just finished handling them and came back.”
As he spoke, his nose twitched slightly, and his expression changed.
“Your boyfriend is an S-rank alpha?”
Only then did Shen Yan turn to look at him, surprised. “You can smell it too?”
“An S-class pheromone is usually detectable, but I’ve heard pheromones have a guiding effect—partners probably sense them more intensely and clearly.” Lin Bai’s bright eyes gazed at him earnestly as he spoke. “Your boyfriend seems very protective of you. His pheromones have a somewhat suppressive effect on others. I’d recommend wearing a scent patch, or it might cause discomfort for your classmates.”
Shen Yan frowned slightly upon hearing this and tugged his cap down firmly. “Not wearing one.”
Seeing his stubbornness, Lin Bai shrugged helplessly and didn’t press further, simply turning to look out the window.
Before long, the bus slowly pulled into the station. Once it came to a stop, passengers began filing out one by one. After passing through security, Shen Yan pulled his phone from his pocket. The moment he unlocked it, an unread message appeared on the screen.
“Car 10, Seat 21.”