“Why is there the scent of Omega pheromones in your room?”
Jiang Wei looked up almost instinctively, a flash of imperceptible shock crossing his eyes before he met the other’s gaze.
“Is there? Your nose… must be broken.” Jiang Wei pulled the quilt tighter around himself. He even lowered his head to take a deliberate sniff before looking up with a silly grin. “I got the… stuff. You’ll get sick if you stay too long. Hurry up and… leave.”
He had to pause every few words to sniffle. The rims of his eyes were faintly red, making him look somewhat like a startled rabbit. Even his attempt to shoo Tang Zihe away carried absolutely no weight.
Tang Zihe didn't rush to respond. He simply leaned against the door, showing no intention of leaving.
Instead, it was Jiang Wei who retreated two steps, trying to put some distance between them. His grip on the quilt didn't loosen for a second; if anything, he held on tighter, his knuckles beginning to turn white.
Tang Zihe’s face remained expressionless, but his eyes hadn't strayed from Jiang Wei for even half a second since he entered, observing his every move.
Jiang Wei felt like his throat was about to split open from the pain.
But he just swallowed hard and stayed put.
He was absolutely certain that he couldn't possibly go pour himself some water under that intense scrutiny.
Just as his mind began to churn with all sorts of unrealistic ideas—including, but not limited to, beating Tang Zihe up and throwing him out—the person in front of him finally moved.
Tang Zihe took a step forward.
“When pheromones leak, no matter how good the neutralizer is, it won't work if two people are close enough.” The look in Tang Zihe’s eyes was complicated, and his brow furrowed slightly as if he had encountered an unsolvable puzzle. “Instead of questioning my sense of smell, you should think about how to give me a reasonable explanation.”
The thoughts swirling in his head were no less chaotic than Jiang Wei’s.
He had clearly seen Jiang Wei’s secondary gender medical report with his own eyes. It had stated in plain black and white: Alpha.
Furthermore, Jiang Wei had been fifteen when he left. At that age, unless there was some horrific stimulus or irreversible external factor, it was absolutely impossible for someone who had already differentiated years ago to change their secondary gender.
And yet, the person in front of him had transformed into an Omega.
It defied logic.
Jiang Wei suddenly felt that it wasn't just his throat that hurt, but his head as well.
Could he still lie? Keep up the charade?
The answer was obviously no—unless Tang Zihe was an idiot.
He couldn't be sure what the other was thinking, or if he might accidentally stumble upon the truth.
A flurry of thoughts flashed through his mind in an instant. For the first time, he experienced the feeling of utter mental chaos. He reached out to touch his water glass, only to find that his hand was shaking so violently he couldn't even pick it up.
He could only manage a weak smile at Tang Zihe. “Help me… pour a glass of water.”
The other didn't want a confession; he wanted an explanation.
After a month and a half of painstakingly hiding his secret without leaving a single trace, he had been completely exposed because of this unexpected turn of events.
Jiang Wei couldn't help but feel a sense of exhaustion.
Tang Zihe, naturally, had no idea what Jiang Wei was thinking as he stood there with his head bowed. He walked forward, glanced at the glass and the kettle on the desk, and reached out—
He picked Jiang Wei up, quilt and all.
Jiang Wei froze for two seconds before reacting with extreme discomfort to the bridal carry, though he didn't dare struggle. “What are you—*cough, cough*—doing?!”
Tang Zihe placed him on the bed. Aside from the initial surprise, he handled him with extreme care throughout the process.
“You’re quite light.”
Jiang Wei heard him mutter this after setting him down.
…For the first time in his life, Jiang Wei wondered if he really should put on some weight to prevent something like this from happening again.
After setting him down, Tang Zihe actually did go and pour a glass of water, turning back to hand it over.
“Thanks.”
Jiang Wei was currently wrapped up like a cocoon. It took him a great deal of effort to wiggle his arms out to take the glass. He tilted his head back and took a sip, feeling significantly better instantly.
Tang Zihe stood to the side with his arms crossed.
“I am…” Jiang Wei’s hand holding the glass began to tremble again along with his voice. After a long silence, he smiled and said softly, “What you need to know… don’t you already know it all?”
Tang Zihe was stunned for a moment and blurted out, “I only know you’re an Omega now. As for the rest…”
He cut himself off, meeting Jiang Wei’s gaze.
This person had seemingly admitted to the facts before him with great candor, giving him a definitive answer, yet he hadn't breathed a word of the explanation Tang Zihe wanted.
So, there was no explanation.
Jiang Wei had already given him the answer to his question.
Yes, everything that needed to be known was known.
What about the rest?
Jiang Wei blinked at him and changed the subject with a raspy voice. “You’re… late for class.”
“It’s Ms. Liu’s class. It doesn't matter if I skip. As long as my English grades are good, she doesn't bother to care.”
“Oh.”
It seemed this topic couldn't go any further. Tang Zihe showed no sign of leaving, and Jiang Wei didn't know what else to say, so they both fell into silence.
Finally, Tang Zihe walked to the desk, picked up a box of fever medicine, checked the dosage instructions on the back, and walked back.
“Three times a day, one pill at a time.” Tang Zihe watched Jiang Wei briskly swallow the medicine with some water before continuing with a frown, “How did you get yourself soaked like a drowned rat yesterday? It was raining so hard; didn't you know to find a place to take cover?”
Jiang Wei sniffled and shook his head with a smile. It was a perfectly normal movement, yet it looked inexplicably… silly.
“I didn't… know where I had walked to at the time. Anyway, I went into a… dark room and sat there for a while.” Jiang Wei seemed to be trying his best to recall the situation, but eventually gave up when he realized he truly couldn't remember clearly. “The floor was… quite cold.”
“By the time I snapped out of it, it was… pouring outside. I think there was… thunder. Then, I calculated the… time and realized class had started. I didn't… remember the schedule and thought it was Old Shi’s class, so I ran… back.”
Jiang Wei’s fragmented voice echoed in the room, but Tang Zihe wasn't listening with full concentration. Ever since he noticed the other was an Omega, he felt as though a faint scent of pheromones was lingering at the tip of his nose. The more he tried to ignore it, the easier it was to notice.
It was the fragrance of camellias.
Back when Jiang Wei was an Alpha, his pheromone scent had also been camellia. He had expressed his dissatisfaction with this many times, feeling that as an Alpha male, he shouldn't have such a "girly" scent, and that it would definitely fail to leave a good impression on the girls he liked.
Tang Zihe looked at the poor thing sitting on the bed, huddled in a ball and sniffling, and suddenly curled his lips in a very unsympathetic smirk.
It seemed many things had changed, yet many things remained exactly as they were.
Once the talking stopped, they fell into silence again.
Tang Zihe’s mind was filled with random thoughts, making it hard to focus on speaking. Jiang Wei was happy not to have to answer questions; he acted like a human water dispenser, taking sip after sip and making soft swallowing sounds.
After a while, Jiang Wei suddenly burst out laughing without warning.
Tang Zihe looked at him in surprise, wondering for a moment if the fever had turned his brain to mush.
“What are you laughing at?”
Jiang Wei pursed his lips and laughed again. “I thought of… something funny.”
“I suddenly feel like those… Omegas on the CP forums… are quite pitiful.”
They had no idea that one of the "Double Alphas" they screamed about and shipped so happily every day was actually an Omega.
Of course, even the other protagonist had only just found out.
Tang Zihe’s expression wasn't particularly great—at least, he didn't look nearly as gleeful as Jiang Wei.
“But…” Jiang Wei reached out and gently tugged at the other’s sleeve. “You won’t… tell. Right?”
Tang Zihe looked down at the person sitting on the bed. The other was just staring at him with wide eyes, his hand tugging at the sleeve shaking slightly, wearing an expression like a small animal piteously begging for mercy.
He did his best to suppress his nearly uncontrollable expression.
Jiang Wei would likely be living in this Alpha dormitory for a while, perhaps even until graduation.
The risk was both large and small.
If another accident happened one day that led to a pheromone leak…
Tang Zihe’s expression darkened further.
Jiang Wei had no idea what Tang Zihe was thinking. He was sure this guy was a sucker for his "weak" act, but why did it… look different from the effect he had imagined?
“I’ll… go public later,” Jiang Wei gritted his teeth and made a decision. “In three months at most, I’ll tell the school…”
Before he could finish, Tang Zihe nodded.
“I’ll keep your secret,” Tang Zihe promised. “But on one condition.”
Before he could even state the condition, Jiang Wei was already nodding like a chick pecking at grain.
“If something like this happens again, notify me immediately,” Tang Zihe said slowly.
Jiang Wei gave an "OK" gesture.
There were certainly benefits to notifying Tang Zihe in such a situation. As long as an Alpha was willing, their pheromones could perfectly mask an Omega’s. For instance, in today’s situation, Tang Zihe could have released his own pheromones in the room or simply lent Jiang Wei his school jacket. Although the latter might not be as perfect as a direct injection of pheromones via a temporary mark on the gland, it would definitely prevent the next person who opened the door from smelling Jiang Wei’s scent.
Jiang Wei naturally wouldn't refuse a condition that seemed to have only benefits and no drawbacks.
The bell for the end of class rang outside.
“Class is over.” Jiang Wei turned and asked, “Next class?”
“It’s Old Shi’s. I have to go.” Tang Zihe probably felt that even if he stayed, he wouldn't be able to pry any more valuable information out of Jiang Wei. He helped boil another pot of water and turned to head out.
As he reached the door, Jiang Wei suddenly called out to him.
“Do the pheromones… smell good?” He kept his head down as he asked, avoiding all eye contact.
Tang Zihe suddenly smiled. His back was to Jiang Wei, so no one could see his expression.
“Haven't I answered this question before?”
“I’ve always liked it.”
***
