After the night of his high school graduation, Di Zhe had once thought that it would be the worst night of his life.
At the time, he had never imagined that life could still play an even crueler joke on him.
Back when he watched ABO themed movies and read novels where the protagonists would end up tangled together because of pheromones, Di Zhe had always treated it as entertainment, something amusing but not to be taken seriously.
He used to think, was it really that extreme?
Besides, based on his own experiences, when he encountered an omega he felt fond of, he would only think they smelled sweet and pleasant. At most, it stirred a faint, shy desire. How could anyone possibly lose control on the spot and turn into some kind of beast?
But today, he had almost become exactly that.
He had nearly forced himself on that omega.
A violent surge of shame and guilt crashed through his chest, over and over again.
If Shen Yandong hadn’t stopped him, things might truly have reached a point of no return.
Shen Yandong opened his medicine packet and asked, “Is it only oral medication?”
Di Zhe answered in a low voice, “That’s all I have.”
How could he have ever imagined that he would face a situation like this?
Otherwise, he would have brought an injection.
After taking the medication and applying a suppression patch, his body finally felt somewhat better.
At the very least, he had regained his sense of being a civilized person.
Shen Yandong took his hand and led him away.
Di Zhe tightened his grip in return, clinging to him like a lifeline.
Tears and sweat streamed endlessly down his face. He kept wiping them away, using up the entire pack of tissues Shen Yandong had brought.
Shen Yandong stopped walking. Seeing how pitiful he looked, he lifted his hand as if to pull him into an embrace but in the end, it only rested on Di Zhe’s arm, gently patting and soothing him.
“Does it feel unbearable?” he asked. “Endure it a little longer. We’ll be home soon.”
Di Zhe nodded, then shook his head. The moment he was shown concern, the tears he had just managed to hold back surged out again. Choking with humiliation, he said, “I just feel… it’s too embarrassing.”
His tears kept falling.
“I almost got arrested by the police.”
He cried even harder.
Without another word, Shen Yandong simply took off his trench coat and handed it to him as a handkerchief.
“It won’t happen,” Shen Yandong said. “With me here, I won’t let anyone lay a hand on you.”
At that moment, Di Zhe felt a faint, strange sense of safety.
He spread out the black trench coat and draped it over his head, covering his face so no one could see him anymore. The downside was that he now looked like a thief and he couldn’t see the road ahead clearly. He could only let Shen Yandong lead him, not knowing where they were going.
Like this, furtive and disheveled, they got into a car.
At first, Di Zhe thought it was a taxi. After lying in the back seat for a while, he lifted the coat covering his face and realized it was actually a private car.
Shen Yandong was driving.
There were only the two of them inside.
The suppressant medication quickly began to take some effect, though not completely.
Before long, the car was filled with his alpha pheromones, so dense that even he himself felt uncomfortable.
For a brief moment, Di Zhe even found himself envying Shen Yandong for being a beta, able to remain calm forever, unaffected by such overwhelming, primitive urges.
Shen Yandong didn’t drive back to the school. Instead, he headed to a nearby apartment he had recently purchased.
As they were pulled along into the elevator, Di Zhe, still wrapped in the trench coat, asked, “Where is this? Aren’t we going back to school?”
Shen Yandong replied irritably, “Are you planning to go back reeking of pheromones? By the next day, half the school would know. You definitely wouldn’t be able to accept that. So where would you run to then?”
It made perfect sense.
Troubled, Di Zhe still hadn’t fully processed it when he was already being led upstairs, arriving at the apartment door.
Shen Yandong had given him the trench coat, so now he was only wearing a short sleeved shirt. As he stood with his back turned, unlocking the door, the pale, clean line of his neck was fully exposed to Di Zhe’s gaze.
Even though Di Zhe knew Shen Yandong was a beta, that his nape was smooth and unmarked, without any gland hidden beneath, he still felt an itch at the roots of his teeth, a sudden urge to bite down.
He was really going insane.
Di Zhe shrank his neck, lowering his head and burying the lower half of his face, including his nose, into the raised collar of the trench coat.
But in doing so, he became aware of the scent lingering on the coat.
It was Shen Yandong’s scent.
Back in high school, one of his favorite little habits had been to sneak close to Shen Yandong when he wasn’t paying attention and quickly, secretly take a sniff.
It wasn’t like pheromones that could stimulate glands and bring physical pleasure.
It was simply because he liked him.
And just catching that scent alone had been enough to make him happy.
He knew that scent very well. Shen Yandong liked to use a body wash with a fresh, botanical fragrance, carrying a faint hint of mint, cool and refreshing when inhaled.
Di Zhe took a couple of breaths and felt the restless heat inside him ease slightly.
All the way inside, Shen Yandong kept hold of his hand, leading him through the door, into the bedroom. He made the bed, adjusted the air conditioning to a comfortable temperature and even placed a jug of water and two boxes of tissues by the bedside, with a trash bin set nearby.
After that, Shen Yandong prepared to leave the room. Before going, he said to him, “I’ll be right outside. If anything happens, call me. Lock the door from the inside.”
Di Zhe’s face was flushed an unhealthy red. He stared at him with a kind of desperate longing yet what he said was, “Don’t worry. I’m not so far gone that I’d force you.”
Shen Yandong clenched his fist and turned his face away, not looking at him. “I’m afraid I won’t be able to resist coming in to mess with you in the middle of the night.”
Di Zhe fell silent.
Even with his muddled mind, he could tell that this wasn’t a joke.
What on earth was going on?
Haven’t we already slept together? Weren’t you still pursuing me?
Then why are you refusing to be close to me now?
Di Zhe thought dizzily.
Shen Yandong quietly wished him good night, then closed the door and left.
Di Zhe sat by the bed for a while, still feeling uncomfortable. Eventually, he stood up and, as if driven by some unseen force, opened the wardrobe.
He thought that perhaps he could find a few of Shen Yandong’s clothes and surround himself with his scent, maybe it would help ease the discomfort in his body.
But the wardrobe was empty.
Disappointed, Di Zhe picked up Shen Yandong’s trench coat again, lay down on the bed and stripped off all the clothes that had been soaked through with sweat. He tried to wrap himself completely in the coat.
He didn’t even know how long he stayed like that. The heat he had managed to suppress earlier surged back even more violently, leaving his mind in chaos, unbearable.
He grabbed at the coat, pressing it close but after so much repeated sniffing and rubbing, the fabric was now saturated with his own pheromones, there was barely any trace of Shen Yandong’s scent left.
Shen Yandong… Shen Yandong… Shen Yandong.
He wanted to smell Shen Yandong again. He wanted to kiss him. He wanted Shen Yandong to help him.
Even just that… wasn’t it allowed?
The instincts of an alpha and the feelings buried deep in his subconscious intertwined, driving his body to leave the bed, open the door and walk toward the living room.
Shen Yandong hadn’t gone to sleep at all.
The lights in the living room were off, leaving it in complete darkness.
The light from the bedroom behind Di Zhe spilled outward, forming a path that led straight to Shen Yandong, who was sitting on the sofa.
Shen Yandong watched as Di Zhe, draped in his coat, bare legged like a small animal, cautiously approached him.
His expression couldn’t be seen clearly but his voice was sharp with warning. “Go back.”
Di Zhe hesitated for a moment.
Then, he continued forward anyway.
Shen Yandong looked at him with a deep, unreadable gaze. He took a slow breath, as if making a decision, or perhaps as if he had reached the limit of his restraint, on the verge of losing control. Suddenly, he stood up and walked straight toward him.
Before Di Zhe could react, Shen Yandong had already grabbed him roughly and pushed him back toward the bedroom. “You came to me first.”
He was pressed down onto the bed.
The trench coat slipped from his body.
But now, he no longer needed it.
Now, he was enveloped in Shen Yandong’s scent.
Di Zhe reached out, clutching Shen Yandong’s collar, pulling him downward as he leaned up to meet him. He licked at his neck, about to bite down but Shen Yandong gripped his jaw firmly, stopping him before he could succeed.
A muffled sound escaped him.
Once again, Di Zhe realized that he had been restrained, pinned helplessly against the bed.
He tried to pry Shen Yandong’s hand away from his chin with both hands but no matter how he struggled, it wouldn’t budge. He strained once, failed. Struggled again, still failed.
There was nothing left on his body. Like an animal, disheveled, his mind in disarray, everything about him, inside and out, had collapsed.
Yet when he tilted his head back, he could see that Shen Yandong remained composed as ever, his clothes still neat and orderly, not a trace of disarray.
At last, Shen Yandong released his jaw but then slipped his fingers into his mouth, as if toying with him, his nails lightly grazing the sharp edge of his canine teeth.
In an instant, Di Zhe’s face flushed even deeper red. His body trembled with a strange, overwhelming sensation. Moisture mixed with the alpha pheromones seeping from his teeth, surging uncontrollably, coating Shen Yandong’s hand.
It began.
This loss of control during his sensitive period lasted for two days and two nights.
Only on the afternoon of the third day did Di Zhe finally regain his clarity of mind, woken by the bright sunlight streaming in.
There was no one beside his pillow.
He sat up cross legged, pressing a hand to his aching temples, trying to piece together his fragmented memories.
After a moment, he gave up.
Better not to think about it.
He was clearly an alpha yet he had been thrown into heat by pheromones, lost all reason and for two entire days had been toyed with by Shen Yandong as if he were nothing more than a plaything.
Right now, he only wanted to run.
His clothes? Where were his clothes?! He hadn’t worn any for two whole days!
Di Zhe searched the room in a panic and eventually found them drying on the balcony. That was also when he realized the apartment was on a high floor. He quickly put on the clean clothes and prepared to make a break for it.
Then anxiety crept in again.
Where could he even run to? They lived in the same dormitory. He still had to go to school, didn’t he?
Forget it. He would just avoid things for a few days first.
Right now, he didn’t dare face Shen Yandong.
It was too humiliating.
However, when Di Zhe went to open the door, the electronic lock emitted a harsh rejection sound.
Di Zhe froze.
He planted one foot against the door, gripping the handle with all his strength and yanking hard.
He used every ounce of strength he had, his face turning red from the effort but the heavy door didn’t budge at all.
At that moment, a voice sounded from behind him, cold and composed. “I’m not foolish enough to make the same mistake twice.”
The sudden voice startled Di Zhe so badly that he nearly jumped. His grip slipped, twisting awkwardly.
For a split second, he thought he heard the door handle give slightly.
Great. Now it was completely stuck.
He turned around.
Shen Yandong was already walking toward him.
Flustered, Di Zhe said, “I’m fine now. About this, this situation… how should I put it… Shen Yandong, thank you for helping me but, ”
Meanwhile, Shen Yandong remained perfectly calm. He even took out his phone and started playing something. From the recording came two ragged, disordered voices, tangled with uneven breathing.
“Repeat after me, I, Di Zhe, willingly enter into a relationship with Shen Yandong.”
“I.. I… Di Zhe… willingly… willingly… with Shen Yandong… in a relationship… mm… mm…”
Damn it.
It was his own voice.
The speed at which Di Zhe’s face flushed could rival a thermometer dropped into boiling water. When he looked at Shen Yandong again, the image he once had of him, calm in all situations, refined, graceful, like moonlight gathered in one’s arms, shattered completely.
Beneath that elegant exterior,
was something else entirely.
Shen Yandong was a beta. There wasn’t even an excuse to hide behind.
Whatever madness he had, it was his own, untouched by any pheromonal influence.
Step by step, Shen Yandong walked toward him.
“You heard it yourself, Di Zhe.”
“Now that you’re sober, say it again. Make the promise to me one more time.”
“Last time, you said we weren’t suitable. You said a beta couldn’t handle an alpha’s excessive desires but now, reality has proven otherwise.”
✦ ✧ ✦
Fleurveil
[Translator]
☕ A LITTLE SOMETHING FOR THE TRANSLATOR
Tiny coffee. Big appreciation. ✧
☕ BUY THEM A COFFEE →
✧ (づ｡•ㅅ•｡)づ ☕ ✧
✦ thank you for reading ✦
← PreviousNext →
ChaptersChapter 1 · Love at first sightChapter 2 · Lack of discretionChapter 3 · ShamelessChapter 4 · UnreasonableChapter 5 · PerseveranceChapter 6 · College Entrance Examination EndChapter 7 · Graduation dinnerChapter 8 · Confession nightChapter 9 · Pressing in step by stepChapter 10 · Enough is enoughChapter 11 · A huge blowChapter 12 · University start dateChapter 13 · Roommate meetingChapter 14 · Relentless harassmentChapter 15 · I’ll pick you upChapter 16 · It’s my vulnerable periodChapter 17 · Voluntary datingChapter 18 · Open your heartChapter 19 · Obedient to allChapter 20 · Not a virginChapter 21 · Swear to love meChapter 22 · Youthful DaydreamsChapter 23 · Teenage ThoughtsChapter 24 · EmptyChapter 25 · Extremely anxiousChapter 26 · Too lazy to struggleChapter 27 · From now on