In the figure store, Xie Ling pre-ordered a figure scheduled to arrive next month. Humming a cheerful tune, he stood at the counter completing the checkout.
A narrow alley separated a small side door from “Yellow Lover” and the back entrance of this figure store—the two were connected. Xie Ling had only discovered it by chance when he’d accidentally wandered in. He was certain Qin Han would never find it.
Let the guy act all high and mighty. If he weren’t worried about wasting time, Xie Ling would have loved to stick around and watch that smug expression twist into something priceless after stumbling into that shop.
The shop owner chuckled. “What’s got our young friend in such high spirits? Missing your sweetheart already?”
Xie Ling, lost in thoughts of Qin Han, suddenly choked on nothing. Before he could respond, a chorus of excited squeals erupted from the girls inside the store.
He whipped his head around to find Qin Han’s handsome face looming right in front of him, wearing that disarmingly innocent smile.
Xie Ling blinked. “……？？？”
Xie Ling demanded, “How the hell did you find this place?”
Qin Han replied simply, “I was determined to find you, so I did.”
Bullshit! Xie Ling had put real effort into uncovering that secret shortcut back then!!
He was about to grill Qin Han—had the bastard planted a tracker on him?—when Qin Han lifted a black paper bag with a grin. “Oh, and I picked up that thing you were so curious about.”
“?”
Xie Ling peeked into the open bag. His face ignited in an instant.
Round ones, flat ones, short ones, long ones… He jerked his gaze away, but not before confirming the bag was stuffed with merchandise from “Yellow Lover.”
What the actual fuck was wrong with this guy?!!
“Um… hi there.” Two omegas approached, cheeks flushed pink, their eyes darting back and forth between Xie Ling and Qin Han.
Without a second thought, Xie Ling seized Qin Han’s wrist and shifted his body to shield the bag.
The two omegas jumped at the sudden move.
Xie Ling cleared his throat and flashed a smile. “Sorry about that—we’ve got some urgent business to handle.”
He tossed a quick wave to the shop owner and bolted, dragging Qin Han along behind him.
Whispers trailed after them from the two omegas.
“Wow! What was that? Why am I kinda thrilled? Those are two alphas, right?!”
“AA forbidden romance!! Count me in!!”
The shop owner sighed wistfully. “Ah, young love…”
Qin Han listened, his eyes lingering on the hand clamped around his wrist. The smile on his face widened bit by bit.
They didn’t stop until they reached a deserted corner outside the store. Xie Ling released him and whirled around, glaring daggers. “When did I ever say I was curious about… these things?!”
He hissed the final words, barely above a whisper, teeth gritted.
Qin Han spotted the flush creeping to the tips of Xie Ling’s ears, peeking out from his hair.
He hadn’t realized the guy could be this innocent—just a glimpse of those items and he was blushing like that…
Something dark and predatory flickered in the alpha’s eyes, vanishing as quickly as it had appeared.
With perfect sincerity, Qin Han explained, “I saw you make a beeline for that store first, so I figured you must be into whatever’s inside. But when I went in, you weren’t there. I thought maybe you felt awkward or it wasn’t convenient, so I just bought some for you…”
He glanced around. “No one’s watching us. Which one do you want to check out first?”
Fuck off.
Xie Ling was convinced Qin Han was toying with him on purpose. Ears burning, he opened his mouth to snap—when a familiar bellow exploded from not far behind.
“You two in school uniforms up ahead! Are you from First High School?!”
The voice boomed down the entire street. Xie Ling jolted instinctively.
Holy shit?! What was Old Cai doing here?!
In a heartbeat, Qin Han had reversed their grip and taken off running.
“Don’t look back,” Qin Han said, his voice steady despite the frantic sprint. “That corner was pretty shadowy. He probably didn’t get a good look at our faces.”
Desperation overrode everything; Xie Ling ignored how Qin Han had dared pull ahead. All he cared about was ditching Director Cai. “Chairman Qin, do you even know where you’re going? We came from the left—why the hell are you heading right?!”
“Sorry,” Qin Han called back. “First time here. I took a wrong turn.”
No chance to double back now. Xie Ling had no choice but to stick with him.
Truth be told, with his inline skates on, Xie Ling could have blown past Qin Han easily. But that mop of flaxen hair was way too conspicuous. If he didn’t run interference, Qin Han would get nabbed with a bag full of 18+ contraband—and if that idiot spilled the beans, embellishing the story to boot, Xie Ling would be sunk. No amount of protesting would clear his name.
“Stop right there, you two! It’s not too late if you halt now! Which grade are you in? You think it’s okay to be hanging around here at this hour?!”
Director Cai’s shouts rang out, crisp and unrelenting. They hadn’t lost him one bit.
Xie Ling muttered, baffled, “This makes no damn sense. How’s Old Cai this fast on his feet?”
Qin Han replied, “Hear those bicycle pedals? He’s chasing us on a bike.”
Xie Ling swore under his breath, then pictured the scene and burst out laughing. “Hahahaha—on a bike, no less. Gotta hand it to him. Wonder if that little belly baby of his will pop out from all the jostling…”
Qin Han faltered for a second, recalling Director Cai’s paunchy gut.
How did this guy even think of that, mid-chase?
So damn entertaining. And cute.
Qin Han chuckled. “That thing’s gotta gestate for decades. No way it’ll pop out.”
Xie Ling grinned. “What, you think he’s knocked up with the Calabash Brothers…?”
Hold up—why the hell were he and Qin Han chatting it up while fleeing? Were they besties or something?
Xie Ling’s laughter chilled. He barked imperiously, “Focus on the escape for Zhen. If we get pinched today, you can forget dinner tomorrow.”
“Got it, Your Majesty.” Qin Han’s lips curved, though his eyes darkened.
He’d played the model student for over a decade. This was his first time dodging a truant patrol—and with Xie Ling, no less. It felt exhilarating, brand-new… so much so that he’d nearly lost sight of his real goal.
Unobtrusively, Qin Han let a trace of his pheromones slip out…
At first, Xie Ling found the wild street chase a riot, pure adrenaline. But soon, something felt off.
Under the strain of this high-speed exertion, his body began to give out.
Weakness and a prickling ache crept in. As the doctor had warned, two weeks after halting the inducer shots, he’d lose his ability to produce alpha pheromones. When the flare-up hit, omega pheromones would pour out unchecked.
Just in case, Xie Ling had slapped a barrier patch on the back of his neck these last couple days. It should have bought him time even if things went south—but now, everything was spiraling.
“Keep running!! Stop!!” Director Cai wouldn’t quit. “Halt now, and the teacher might go easy—only a 3,000-word apology!”
“You…” Xie Ling’s breaths came ragged. “Why’d you start pumping out pheromones?”
An omega facing a perfectly matched alpha? Barrier agents and patches barely scratched the surface.
Qin Han kept pounding pavement. “Chased this hard, I got nervous. It slipped out… I’ll rein it in.”
Reining it in? His pheromones kept wafting, faint but persistent.
Too weak to fully calm Xie Ling’s worsening episode, but just enough to coax his own pheromones into restless agitation, yearning to tangle.
This couldn’t go on—he’d be outed.
Heart pounding with dread, Xie Ling passed a restroom, yanked free, and ducked inside.
Old Cai’s voice had faded; they’d probably shaken him. But relief didn’t come. Despair crashed in harder.
Qin Han had followed him inside.
And Xie Ling’s pheromones? Already leaking, flooding the air uncontrollably.
He watched shock bloom in Qin Han’s eyes. “Xie Ling, you…”
Busted.
Busted by him.
The realization hit, and agony peaked. Xie Ling clutched at his shirtfront, doubling over in pain as he sank to a squat.
Qin Han approached, his own faint pheromones trailing, eyes shadowed. His tone rang with feigned ignorance and worry. “What’s wrong? Can I do anything?”
No. Get out. It’s just toilet freshener.
Xie Ling ached to spit that out, but Qin Han’s scent wormed in—subtle, insidious—seeping into every pore.
His body eased a fraction… or maybe not. That teasing proximity shredded his last grip on sanity.
“Later…” Xie Ling lifted his head, glaring what he hoped was murderously at Qin Han. “If you don’t step up, I, your father, will kill you.”
Pain and pheromones rimmed the boy’s eyes red. His tough-guy scowl clashed with raw vulnerability, igniting the alpha’s primal urge to claim.
And the air? Thick with Xie Ling’s pheromones—omega pheromones this time. Qin Han knew the scent: free spirit.
His family’s garden had grown them once—a climbing rose variety.
Rich, intoxicatingly sweet.
Qin Han dug his nails into his palm to stay grounded, his voice a soothing promise. “You say it, I do it. Nothing you don’t want.”
Xie Ling stared at Qin Han for a long moment, until he was finally gasping for breath as he seized Qin Han’s wrist.
“Come over…” Xie Ling pulled Qin Han toward himself. His voice had lost its usual bright and vibrant ring, now laced with a frail, vulnerable rasp. “Come over… hold me…”
