Chapter 53

Xie Ling paused for a moment. “…Well, we’re still different genders, sort of.”

“…I don’t mind if you see me naked.”

Xie Ling nearly choked.

It was true that although one of them was an Alpha and the other an Omega, their primary genders were both male, so they didn’t look any different at first glance. Back when Xie Ling had been pretending to be an Alpha, he’d even gone soaking in hot springs with Xiao Yanfei and Zhang Chengrui.

But the thought of helping Qin Han bathe still felt off to him somehow.

Seeing that Xie Ling had fallen silent, Qin Han thoughtfully added, “Or I won’t strip completely. I can keep my underwear on. That way, you won’t feel embarrassed.”

Xie Ling blurted out without thinking, “I’m not embarrassed…”

Qin Han tilted his head. “So you’re okay with it?”

Just as Xie Ling hesitated, his phone suddenly rang.

He answered immediately, and the more he listened, the graver his expression grew. Qin Han had no idea what was going on, but he held Xie Ling’s free hand the whole time, stroking it gently as if to comfort him.

Once the call ended, before Qin Han could even ask, Xie Ling said, “My mom’s been in a car accident!”

Qin Han’s playful demeanor vanished instantly. “How is she? Is she at the hospital now? I’ll go with you to see her.”

Xie Ling shook his head. “I asked on the phone—she’s got some minor injuries, nothing serious. Your condition isn’t stable yet, and it’s so late. You should stay put. I’ll go check on her, and you…”

Xie Ling trailed off uncertainly. He wasn’t sure if Qin Han’s health had fully stabilized. He couldn’t stop worrying about his mom, but he felt the same way about Qin Han.

If it had been anything else, Qin Han might have clung to Xie Ling, but there was no joking about something like this.

Qin Han released his hand. “I’m fine. You go ahead. Second Brother should still be up—have him call a driver to take you to the hospital.”

“No need. I can just grab a cab; it’ll be quick.” Xie Ling headed for the door. “If you feel off anywhere, call me right away.”

~~~

Madam Fu had gotten hurt swerving to avoid a bicycle that darted out into traffic. Her car had scraped the curb of a roadside greenbelt, but the injuries weren’t severe.

She insisted Xie Ling not tell Xie Cheng, who was abroad, and he had no choice but to go along with it. He stayed by her side as she got bandaged up and dealt with the police on the accident formalities. By the time they got home, it was nearly dawn.

Fortunately, it was a Sunday. With everything that had happened that day, after seeing Madam Fu to her room to rest, Xie Ling collapsed face-first into the Polar Bear Plushie on his bed.

When he woke, it was already evening. Xie Ling went out to make some food for Madam Fu, then returned to his room and remembered the stack of homework he still had to do. He was just about to start when his phone rang.

It was a video call from Qin Han.

Xie Ling blinked in surprise before accepting.

Qin Han’s face appeared on the screen. He looked like he’d just showered, dressed in a black bathrobe with damp flaxen bangs falling across his forehead. A soft yellow nightlight glowed beside him, casting a hazy light over his features that made him look both strikingly handsome and irresistibly sensual.

For a moment, Xie Ling lost himself in the sight. This was his first video call with Qin Han. Through the screen, with the lighting just right, it felt… strangely unreal somehow.

That face, that person—it was like something straight out of a painting.

“How’s your aunt doing?” Qin Han’s voice finally pulled Xie Ling back from his daze.

“She’s fine, just some scrapes on her shoulder and arm.” Xie Ling gave a helpless smile. “She even wanted to go for a walk that evening. Good thing I threatened to call my dad if she didn’t behave.”

“That’s a relief.” Qin Han smiled. “Did you sleep okay?”

Xie Ling was about to say yes when he paused. “How did you know I was sleeping earlier?”

It was obvious—the kid had been up all night, so he’d probably crash during the day to catch up. Qin Han had timed the call figuring Xie Ling would be waking up around then.

“Just a guess. Maybe we have a telepathic bond.”

“…How’s your body holding up? If anything feels off, you have to tell me—don’t hold back.”

“Much better already.”

Xie Ling let out a breath of relief. “Did you need something?”

“Nah.” Qin Han gazed at him steadily. “Just wanted to see you.”

Xie Ling: “…”

He knew Alphas in their susceptible period got extremely clingy with Omegas—especially since they were such a perfect physiological match, and Qin Han had already marked him. The possessiveness was unavoidable.

But even knowing that intellectually, being stared at so intently by Qin Han still made his heart race a little…

Xie Ling tsked to himself. What’s wrong with you, Xie Xiaoling? Since when are you such a coward? So what if he looks?

Qin Han paused, then asked, “Is Yu Rong there?”

Xie Ling blinked. “No.”

Yu Rong had gone with Xie Ling to the hospital to see Madam Fu the night before. That morning, his dad had called from overseas, asking him to visit an old friend before heading back home. Yu Rong had turned eighteen the day before, and that friend was a notorious drinker. Xie Ling hadn’t heard from him since waking up—probably got wasted by the guy.

Qin Han nodded. “No wonder I couldn’t reach him when I tried calling to apologize.” Xie Ling looked surprised. “You called him? I thought…”

“Apologies that need to be made should be.” Qin Han chuckled. “He’s heading back to France tomorrow, right? You going to see him off?”

“Thinking about it. There’s a final review session for key points tomorrow morning—with the Six-School Joint Exam coming up for finals, it seems pretty important. But I could probably catch up from Xia Yu’s notes afterward. Whether I attend or not…”

“You should go.” Qin Han stressed. “School comes first.”

“…” Xie Ling sighed. “I feel like you two just need a real chance to connect. Next time he’s back on break, I’ll drag you both to the parent-child activity room here. You can get back to basics, play some marbles or Parcheesi, bond a bit. He’s actually a great guy.”

“I know he’s great.” Qin Han smiled. “Your friends—how could they not be?”

He put special emphasis on “friends,” but Xie Ling didn’t catch it. He just rubbed his nose and wagged his little tail.

This little Alpha of his had such a sweet mouth.

“If you know he’s great, then why…”

Qin Han lowered his eyelids slightly. “He knows so many things about you that I don’t.”

Last night’s flare-up? Yu Rong’s final gesture toward Xie Ling had been the spark, but if you traced it back, it was all those little accumulated moments from the past.

Some things he hadn’t been able to say before—had no standing to say. But now that Xie Ling knew about his Krofell Syndrome, he could blame his uglier thoughts and hidden impulses on the illness without issue.

And sure enough, Xie Ling didn’t suspect a thing, chalking up all Qin Han’s odd behavior to the susceptible period plus Krofell Syndrome.

Poor guy. A person who’d always been so emotionally independent, now made insecure and needy by instinct and illness.

Even through the screen, Xie Ling could sense the restless agitation Qin Han was desperately suppressing, leaking out anyway. Just like how he’d lost control of his own body from the side effects before.

The more Xie Ling thought about it, the more empathy he felt. He knew logic wouldn’t get through to Qin Han right now, so he switched to a softer approach. “But there are plenty of things about me that only you know—stuff he doesn’t.”

Qin Han froze.

“You know I like sweets, down to specific brands of chocolate. You know I love plushies, right down to how I have to hug the Polar Bear to sleep…” Xie Ling’s voice softened, gentle and unhurried. “No one else knows those things but you.”

Each word landed clearly on Qin Han’s heart—like a stunning rose blooming on a barren, year-round coastline, its sweet, soft fragrance chasing the wild sea winds, softening them bit by bit.

The pent-up agitation in his body vanished without a trace, replaced by roaring flames at the tip of his heart.

Qin Han let out a hoarse chuckle. “Are you comforting me?”

“Just facts.” For some reason, Xie Ling felt Qin Han’s gaze had grown even hotter. Hadn’t he soothed him enough?

Xie Ling scratched his head and kept rambling on sweetly, eyes squeezed shut. “Sure, Yu Rong and I are childhood friends, but these days, I spend way more time with you. Isn’t seventeen or eighteen supposed to be the best years of your life? We’re living in each other’s best years right now. After the college entrance exams, we’ll definitely stay in touch. And as for stuff from when we were kids, I’ll tell you whatever you want to know…”

“Xie Ling.”

“Hm?” Qin Han’s sudden seriousness made Xie Ling straighten up instinctively.

“I want to bite you.” Even with his restraint, Qin Han’s expression and eyes right now looked ready to devour Xie Ling whole through the screen.

“…” How had sweet-talking made it worse? Xie Ling said hurriedly, “Feeling bad again? Should I come over now?”

“Don’t.” Qin Han replied. “It’s pouring outside, and your mom’s still recovering.”

“But your body…”

“I’m fine.” Qin Han stared at Xie Ling without blinking. “I want to bite you because I miss you.”

“…You sure you’re okay?”

“Really.” Qin Han’s voice was light as air, yet it wove into a dense net that wrapped around Xie Ling’s senses. “I promise—from now on, if my body acts up or I want to bite you, I’ll tell you right away.”

“Mm, that’s more like it.” It still felt a little off, though. Xie Ling sensed something strange in Qin Han’s tone. “If there’s nothing else, I’ll hang up first? I haven’t done my homework yet.”

“I haven’t either.” Qin Han pulled a thick stack of test papers and workbooks out of nowhere. “Let’s do it together. We can discuss anything we’re stuck on.”

Xie Ling: “……Sure.”

~~~

Once they started on the homework, the odd atmosphere lingering in the air finally eased a bit. For a moment, all that could be heard from either side of the video call was the scratch of pens against paper.

They called it discussion, but the assignments were fairly straightforward. For Xie Ling and Qin Han, there weren’t many points worth debating—maybe just the final big math problem and the last two physics ones.

It was strange, really. They hadn’t agreed beforehand on which subjects to tackle first, and they couldn’t see what papers the other had picked up. Yet after finishing several sets, their order of completion and progress were almost identical.

This uncanny rapport filled Xie Ling with a peculiar sense of satisfaction.

When they wrapped up the last assignment, Qin Han couldn’t hold back a yawn. He was in the midst of his Susceptible Period right now, and his mental state wasn’t great—fatigue came easily.

Xie Ling: “Why don’t you go rest first? I’ll sort out those three approaches for the final question later. We can talk about it at school tomorrow?”

Qin Han smiled. “Okay.”

Xie Ling was about to say goodbye when Qin Han suddenly added, “Don’t hang up yet.”

“What’s up?”

Qin Han stood and adjusted his phone, angling the camera toward the bed. In a soft voice, he said, “Wait until I’m asleep before you hang up, alright?”

Xie Ling chuckled. “Sure.”

Qin Han was the type who just needed some coaxing during this period, and Xie Ling understood that.

A satisfied smile spread across Qin Han’s face. His desk wasn’t far from the bed, and Xie Ling watched as he grabbed a small bottle from the nightstand and spritzed it over the sheets and blanket.

Xie Ling blinked in confusion. “What are you spraying?”

“Pheromones my Second Brother extracted from your sweater.”

Xie Ling froze, his face heating up in a rush. “What?!”

Qin Han lowered his gaze slightly. “You’re not here with me, so I can’t sleep well. I need to be surrounded by your pheromones.”

Surrounded by his… pheromones??

Xie Ling’s mind flashed back to that metaphor from their biology teacher.

Pheromones were just like a person’s bodily fluids.

The heat kept rising, and before he could even respond, something even more suffocating happened on screen.

Xie Ling whipped his head away.

“Are you mad at me? Sorry, I just want to sleep better.”

“…I’m not mad.”

“Then why won’t you look at me?”

Xie Ling gritted his teeth. “You like to sleep naked?”

Qin Han let out a soft hum. “I prefer sleeping in the nude at home.”

…

Fuck. Sleeping naked buried in his pheromones—this was just…

“It’s not completely naked. I’m still wearing underwear.” Qin Han’s voice drifted over, low and lingering. “You promised to watch me sleep.”

“Turn your head back, okay?”