My Crush is My Childhood Friend Alpha 18

Chapter 18

June 17th, Saturday, sunny.

The summer sun was scorching, and many students were sweating on the basketball court.

Lush parasol trees lined the path, sunlight filtering through the leaves, dappling the ground with light and shadow.

Jay Chou’s songs played on the school’s PA system.

Today was the last day for the senior students to return to school.

The graduation photos taken in May had been developed and distributed to each student, followed by a burst of laughter.

“Teacher! Can we retake them?! I strongly request a retake! I’ll pay for it myself!”

“Who got caught rolling their eyes?”

“That’s hilarious.”

“Was that cross-eyed look intentional?”

“I wasn’t rolling my eyes! You’re laughing at me? Look at yourself, your mouth is crooked!”

“And there’s someone tilting their head, trying to look cool.”

The photos captured a variety of expressions, from students with proper smiles to those making funny faces.

The beautiful moments captured would last forever.

“Can each of you give me an autograph?”

“Please fill out my yearbook.”

“If anyone hasn’t added me on WeChat, please do so now.”

“What if I didn’t bring a notebook? Should I write on my uniform?”

“That’s a good idea.”

Yan Weiqiu was dizzy with activity, signing notebooks, filling out yearbooks, and posing for photos.

His uniform was covered in signatures.

Someone had even drawn a heart on his chest.

After he was finally free, the student in front turned around and said to him with a smile, “By the way, class monitor, have you seen the interview from the college entrance exam day?”

Yan Weiqiu: “What interview?”

“Jiang Yuebai’s interview.” The student in front sent him the video link.

On the day of the college entrance exam, many police officers were maintaining order at the school gate, along with parents and reporters.

After the exam, reporters swarmed the students, eager for interviews.

Jiang Yuebai was one of the unlucky ones caught by a reporter.

Jiang Yuebai glanced at the camera helplessly, suppressing his impatience.

Reporter: “Do you have any universities you want to apply to?”

Jiang Yuebai: “A University.”

Reporter: “Why A University?”

Jiang Yuebai: “Because the person I like is going to A University.”

The reporter’s eyes lit up, sensing good material. “Can you tell us about the Omega you like?”

Jiang Yuebai corrected him. “He’s not an Omega, he’s a Beta.”

The reporter was slightly taken aback.

Jiang Yuebai added, seemingly pleased with himself, “We’re childhood friends.”

The video ended with Jiang Yuebai’s slightly smug smile.

Yan Weiqiu: “…”

Jiang Yuebai, that attention-seeker.

The student in front clicked his tongue and teased, “Class monitor, the childhood friend Beta Jiang Yuebai mentioned must be you, right?”

Deskmate: “Who else could it be?”

Student in front: “I think Jiang Yuebai was deliberately confessing to the class monitor in that interview.”

Deskmate: “Does that count as a confession?”

Student in front: “Doesn’t it?”

Deskmate: “Class monitor, do you think it counts?”

Yan Weiqiu: “…”

He couldn’t describe how he felt, a mixture of joy and melancholy.

He downloaded the video and saved it to his photo album.

The student in front took several pictures of his face with his phone.

“Class monitor, aren’t you going to take some pictures with Jiang Yuebai?”

“It would be a pity not to have some photos to remember graduation by.”

“I can take some for you.”

Yan Weiqiu nodded. That’s exactly what he wanted to do.

They hadn’t been in the same class for the past three years of high school, so they didn’t have many photos together. He might as well take this opportunity to take some more.

“Then I’ll go find Jiang Yuebai.”

People greeted him all the way to Class 3.

Class 3 was noisy, a group of students huddled together watching a movie.

Jiang Yuebai wasn’t at his desk. Yan Weiqiu looked around but couldn’t find him, so he grabbed a random student and asked.

The boy scratched his head and said uncertainly, “I think I heard him say he left something in the lab and was going back to get it.”

The classrooms on the first floor of the school’s lab building were mostly unused, abandoned labs.

So during the college entrance exams, some students had temporarily stored their books there.

The lab building was quite far from the main teaching building. Today, the returning senior students were busy taking photos and saying goodbye to each other, so the lab building was almost deserted.

“Jiang Yuebai?”

Yan Weiqiu called out his name as he walked.

The lab was dark, and he couldn’t see if anyone was inside. He called Jiang Yuebai’s name again, but there was no response.

“Strange, where did he go?”

Wasn’t he supposed to be in the lab? There was no one inside.

Yan Weiqiu decided to check the second floor of the lab building. As he passed by the restroom near the stairwell, he smelled a faint scent of lime.

The scent was familiar; he seemed to have smelled it somewhere before.

Why was there a lime scent here?

He walked towards the restroom, the scent growing stronger as he approached.

A sour and slightly astringent scent, with a refreshing herbal fragrance, invigorating.

He suddenly remembered smelling this scent on Jiang Yuebai that day when he had deliberately leaned close to his neck, teasing him about wanting to smell his pheromones.

But at the time, he had thought it was just Jiang Yuebai’s new shower gel or the scent of soap on his clothes, so he hadn’t paid much attention.

It turned out it wasn’t the scent of shower gel or soap, but Jiang Yuebai’s pheromones.

Lime?

Yan Weiqiu took a sniff, lost in thought.

Wait—

Yan Weiqiu froze.

Why could he smell Jiang Yuebai’s pheromones?

He took a step back, a look of disbelief on his face.

He subconsciously denied it, wanting to escape.

Perhaps he was mistaken; it wasn’t pheromones.

Jiang Yuebai wasn’t in the restroom either.

Perhaps he wasn’t even in the lab building.

Yan Weiqiu frantically dialed Jiang Yuebai’s number, his hand trembling.

Just as he turned around, he heard a familiar ringtone coming from the restroom behind him.

Yan Weiqiu stopped and abruptly turned back.

The ringtone ended, but Jiang Yuebai didn’t answer the call.

Yan Weiqiu called again, the ringtone echoing in the restroom, but no one answered.

“Answer the phone!”

“Why aren’t you answering?”

“Did you faint?”

Yan Weiqiu paced anxiously.

He didn’t dare to approach, only staying a distance away.

His mother had told him not to stay at school for too long. His gidh levels were high, and he could differentiate at any time.

So before he left the house, his mother had given him a box of suppressants.

It was meant for emergencies, and Yan Weiqiu hadn’t taken it seriously, but now it seemed to be coming in handy.

He hesitated for a long time, deciding to just deliver the suppressants to Jiang Yuebai and then leave.

The closer he got to the restroom, the more intense the pain became, his breathing growing labored, his legs feeling heavy. He could only slowly make his way forward, supporting himself against the wall.

The Alpha pheromones had already wrapped around him the moment he entered this area.

Yan Weiqiu felt his body temperature rising, as if countless ants were crawling all over him. His skin was flushed red, like an allergic reaction.

It hurt.

Yan Weiqiu knocked on the restroom door.

“Jiang Yuebai, are you still conscious?”

“I brought you suppressants.”

Still no response. Yan Weiqiu picked up his phone, preparing to call emergency services.

Suddenly, the restroom door opened from the inside. Yan Weiqiu froze, seeing a hand reach out and pull him inside.

Caught off guard, Yan Weiqiu’s phone dropped to the floor, and the emergency call wasn’t connected.

The restroom was dimly lit, but the familiar scent told Yan Weiqiu that the Alpha holding him was Jiang Yuebai.

The strong scent of lime washed over him.

Jiang Yuebai held him, placed him against the sink, and called his name affectionately.

“Xiaoqiu, my Xiaoqiu.”

Yan Weiqiu’s heart trembled.

“Xiaobai,” he whispered softly. He tried to hug Jiang Yuebai back, but he realized Jiang Yuebai’s body temperature was very high, his breath hot against his neck and shoulder.

Jiang Yuebai was holding him so tightly he could barely breathe. He struggled in his arms. “Xiaobai, let go of me.”

Jiang Yuebai stood between his legs, one arm wrapped around his waist, the other gently lifting his chin. He shook his dizzy head, unable to focus, his pupils dilating, and then he collapsed against Yan Weiqiu.

Yan Weiqiu stumbled backward, calling Jiang Yuebai’s name.

Jiang Yuebai leaned against him, sniffing him like a puppy, a look of infatuation on his face.

“Xiaoqiu.”

“Can I kiss you?”

“I really want to kiss you.”

Yan Weiqiu’s heart pounded. As Jiang Yuebai’s face approached, he pushed him away, turning his head to the side, and said nervously, “No, you can’t.”

“Why? Doesn’t Xiaoqiu like me?” Jiang Yuebai looked at him with a grieved expression and licked his palm.

Startled, Yan Weiqiu immediately pulled his hand back.

“Xiaoqiu.”

“I like Xiaoqiu so much.”

Jiang Yuebai’s fingertips slowly traced the back of his neck, the scorching heat making Yan Weiqiu tremble.

Unbeknownst to Yan Weiqiu, a small bump had formed on the back of his neck. His glands were swollen and red, emitting an alluring Omega pheromone.

Yan Weiqiu pursed his lips and took a deep breath.

He discreetly opened the box of suppressants, prepared the injection, and was about to grab Jiang Yuebai’s hand to administer it when Jiang Yuebai suddenly sniffed his neck and pushed him away forcefully before he could react.

“Hiss.” Yan Weiqiu was pushed against the sink, his back hitting it hard, making him gasp in pain. The suppressant in his hand fell to the ground, shattering.

The Omega pheromones gradually spread, the sweet scent of orange mingling with the sour scent of lime.

The Alpha pheromones became aggressive, like countless blades attacking him.

The previously docile and sweet Alpha became dominant and fierce, his gaze cold.

“You’re not Xiaoqiu.”

The unfamiliar look in Jiang Yuebai’s eyes made Yan Weiqiu feel afraid of him for the first time.

Tears welled up in Yan Weiqiu’s eyes.

So the person Jiang Yuebai was thinking of during his rut was him.

So Jiang Yuebai could reject other Omegas during his rut.

So Jiang Yuebai really did hate Omegas.

Yan Weiqiu’s heart felt like it was breaking, the pain overriding the stinging sensation all over his body.

Jiang Yuebai seemed to have regained some consciousness, but not completely.

He stumbled, supporting himself against the wall, his vision blurry, everything appearing as double images, as if the world had turned black and white.

He couldn’t even tell who was standing in front of him.

The sweet orange pheromones in the air spread, cloying and alluring, a fatal temptation to any Alpha in rut.

He stumbled into the last stall and locked himself inside.

He couldn’t betray Xiaoqiu.

“Get out!” His voice was laced with coldness.

Yan Weiqiu looked at the broken suppressant on the ground and sighed softly.

He left the restroom, closed the door behind him, picked up his phone, and dialed emergency services again.

…

…

When Fang Xiu received the call from the hospital, Yan Weiqiu was already lying in a hospital bed.

The doctor beside him was checking his reports, a professional smile on his face. “Congratulations, you’ve become an Omega.”

Yan Weiqiu couldn’t even force a smile.

His entire back was bruised, especially his glands, which were still stinging.

The doctor sternly warned him not to stimulate his glands any further. His gidh levels were still unstable, but the Alpha’s rut had triggered his differentiation, and he had officially become an Omega.

Yan Weiqiu muttered softly, “There’s no chance of getting close to an Alpha now anyway.”

Jiang Yuebai was in the same hospital. Alphas in rut were forcibly quarantined until their rut ended.

During this period, apart from Betas, neither Alphas nor Omegas were allowed to visit.

Fang Xiu looked at the bruises on his body, her brow furrowed. “Were you beaten up? Weren’t you at school today? Did you get into a fight with a classmate? Where’s Xiaobai? Why isn’t he here? Didn’t he help you?”

It didn’t make sense. Xiaobai had always protected Xiaoqiu since they were young. He would go crazy if he saw Xiaoqiu injured like this.

Yan Weiqiu said with a deadpan expression, “Xiaobai did this.”

“What?!” Fang Xiu’s eyes widened in surprise. “Did he get stabbed by you? Is he in the hospital now? Is he dead or alive?”

Yan Weiqiu: “Huh?”

Fang Xiu: “Xiaobai has always been bullied by you since he was young. He never fought back when you hit him, and he never talked back when you argued with him. I don’t believe he would hit you. What happened?”

Yan Weiqiu: “…”

He was such a well-behaved child when he was young. Why did she make him sound like a little tyrant?

Yan Weiqiu: “Xiaobai was in rut, and I went to give him suppressants. He triggered my differentiation into an Omega, but he didn’t know I had differentiated and thought I was someone else, so he pushed me.”

Fang Xiu said with a complicated expression, “It’s a good thing he didn’t know you differentiated.”

Yan Weiqiu smiled faintly. “It wouldn’t matter even if he knew. He wouldn’t mark me. He doesn’t like Omegas, after all.”

Fang Xiu washed the fruit she had brought and placed it in front of Yan Weiqiu. Hearing his words, she was stunned. “He told you he doesn’t like Omegas?”

“Mm.” Yan Weiqiu took a large bite of a strawberry, remembering Jiang Yuebai’s expression when he pushed him away. He still remembered it clearly.

“He’s very resistant to Omegas.”

“He never made friends with Omegas at school.”

“If he knew I had differentiated into an Omega, I can’t imagine how devastated he would be.”

“No, he wouldn’t be.” Fang Xiu said firmly, smiling gently. “You should trust Xiaobai’s feelings.”

Matters of the heart were personal; she couldn’t interfere too much.

She wanted her child to experience these feelings himself.

If Xiaobai knew Xiaoqiu was an Omega, he wouldn’t care about hating being controlled by pheromones.

An Alpha’s mind would always be focused on how to mark his Omega, to claim him as his own, to declare to everyone that this was his Omega.

This was an Alpha’s inherent nature.