After being moved to tears by the sworn enemy's pheromones - Chapter 73

For Gu Yu, leaning on Shen Jin like this felt like something utterly embarrassing. 

He didn’t subscribe to the crude belief that an Omega must always be weaker than an Alpha, but the soft creamy scent of Shen Jin, mixed with a faint hint of medicine, made his nose tingle. He hated his past self for always letting Shen Jin get hurt, and he also despised his current self for showing such weakness in front of Shen Jin, exposing his lack of strength.

He thought, **Everyone encounters small frustrations at work. Shen Jin gets cursed at often enough during his gaming livestreams; I shouldn’t have brought my emotions back here.** 

Yet, when Shen Jin held him and asked if he wanted to take a bath or eat something, Gu Yu only gave a muffled shake of his head, not even offering the response he should have.

When Shen Jin cautiously asked if he was too tired, if something had happened, Gu Yu gave the same stiff reply: **No, nothing.**

In that moment, he felt a deep sense of despair.

He had once seriously warned himself to always be gentle and attentive to his senior from now on, to never use a cold tone with him again. But now, he realized just how far he was from that ideal of a “gentle, caring Alpha.”

“Shen Jin…” Gu Yu really wanted to let go of Shen Jin and cool off on his own. “…I’m in a bad mood. Go to sleep, don’t worry about me, and don’t talk to me for now.”

In his mind, he couldn’t stop imagining the horrible scene of Shen Jin being hurt by his harsh words, crying and wanting to break up with him.

At worst, he thought he might have to seriously hurt himself to make amends, but instead, Shen Jin just reached up, ruffled his hair, and insisted on talking: “How could I go to sleep when you’re in a bad mood? I started learning male etiquette when I was three, and by five, I had memorized how a male Omega should marry and obey his husband. I think it’s pretty good that I’m not on my knees taking off your shoes right now.”

Before Gu Yu could respond, Shen Jin had already pulled him to the edge of the sofa, hugging his waist. “Let’s hold each other for a bit longer, and when you feel better, tell me what happened, okay?”

Gu Yu could tell that Shen Jin was worried, but the scent in the hug was still soft and lingering, without a trace of urgency.

Gu Yu furrowed his brow, tightening his arms around Shen Jin, unable to resist inhaling the faint creamy scent by Shen Jin’s ear. In a low voice, he asked, “Was I too harsh just now?”

“No kidding, if this were before, you’d have gotten a beating.” Shen Jin replied with regret, “Missed my chance. Should’ve hit you a few more times before agreeing to be with you.”

He pulled away and playfully bumped his fist against Gu Yu’s chin, but Gu Yu effortlessly pulled him back into his arms, pinning him close. “So this is what you call obeying your husband?”

Shen Jin collapsed weakly against Gu Yu’s shoulder, feigning frailty: “Fine, beat me, scold me. I won’t fight back.”

Gu Yu knew Shen Jin would keep his word, so he couldn’t help but hold him even tighter, burying his face in the back of Shen Jin’s neck and inhaling deeply.

The hug was so quiet that only the sound of their clothes rustling could be heard. Gu Yu squeezed Shen Jin’s arms and legs, then toyed with his hands, like a big cat playing with a toy, his touches gradually becoming more carefree.

Shen Jin stayed quietly nestled in his arms, melting into a warm, unmoving bundle. His warmth slowly seeped into Gu Yu’s chest as well.

In the past, Gu Yu could clearly feel the difference in their body temperatures. Shen Jin, especially in the winter, was like an ice cube. Even after falling asleep in the bed for a long time, his limbs would still be cold. There had been countless nights when Gu Yu tried to warm Shen Jin’s hands and feet, but it never seemed to work. But now, that temperature difference seemed to have lessened. Gu Yu touched the bluish marks on Shen Jin’s hand, murmuring as if to himself, “Your hands aren’t as cold today…”

Shen Jin, nestled in Gu Yu’s shoulder, replied, “It’s all thanks to my little strawberry’s good care.”

Under the warm, gentle light, as Gu Yu’s breathing steadied, Shen Jin swallowed his dry throat and continued talking—about how wonderful his little strawberry was, about his recent treatment, and even about his newfound appreciation for winter.

As Gu Yu listened, his fingers played with the fluffy hair on Shen Jin’s head, and gradually, the heaviness in his heart began to lift.

It seemed that as long as Shen Jin was by his side, no challenge felt insurmountable.

If that customer really did give him a bad review, he had location records to support his case. The worst outcome wouldn’t be so terrible after all. There was nothing to be ashamed of about being a delivery driver. Several of the people around him had spoken up for him too. The ones who should be embarrassed were the people in the elevator who had tried to make him get out.

He was earning an honest living, training himself, diligent, frugal, self-reliant. As Shen Jin had put it, he probably deserved a role model award for modern college students.

“…I’m a bit hungry.” After a while, Gu Yu opened his eyes, loosened his grip, and asked Shen Jin, “Do we have anything to eat?”

The person in front of him already had teary eyes. Shen Jin quickly nodded and said, “Yes.”

Gu Yu paused in surprise, scooped Shen Jin up in frustration, and mockingly scolded him, “You want to cry again?”

That habit of crying at the slightest provocation was probably never going to change. Shen Jin didn’t avoid it, wiping his eyes with a raised hand and saying, “Knowing that my Alpha is tired and feeling wronged, I can’t help but cry a little. Is that so bad?”

He firmly believed that he was the biggest romantic in West Street of the university town, and if crying was unavoidable, so be it. Gu Yu nodded along with his claim, while hoisting him up and heading towards the dining table, “I’m neither tired nor wronged. This job is less physically demanding than my old running workouts, and I don’t even have to wake up early. I get a nice long break at noon. It’s just that my Omega at home cries over every little thing—now that’s a bit troublesome.”

Shen Jin clung to Gu Yu, unable to escape, and replied, “Well… if your Omega prepared a full Manchu-Han banquet for a midnight snack, could that make up for it?”

“Make up for it?” Gu Yu glanced at the dishes on the table, not noticing anything unusual just yet. “Let me check if he even remembered to add salt first.”

Shen Jin had already tasted and adjusted all the dishes, so he confidently broke free from Gu Yu’s arms, walked over to the microwave, and declared, “If we ever open a restaurant, I’ll be the head chef, and you’ll be my assistant.”

“?” A natural question mark appeared over Gu Yu’s head, but after finishing the meal that Shen Jin cooked, he had to admit, Shen Jin’s confidence today wasn’t unfounded.

The fish soup was delicious, the shrimp tender, and the scrambled eggs were cooked just right. Gu Yu didn’t hold back his praise: “Not bad, at least I won’t get food poisoning anymore.”

Shen Jin tossed a drumstick into Gu Yu’s bowl. “I should’ve left you single for life.”

After saying that, Shen Jin insisted that tomorrow, no matter what, he was going out with him. Even if it got cold in the evening and he needed to come back for an injection, Gu Yu couldn’t talk him out of it. After checking tomorrow’s weather, Gu Yu finally gave in: “… Three hours at most, or I’ll leave you by the side of the road.”

Seeing Gu Yu relent, Shen Jin nodded so quickly that his head nearly spun off. “Okay! I’ll go borrow a helmet from Brother Chen at the BBQ shop downstairs!”

*

Later, in a few brief words, Gu Yu mentioned that he’d just encountered one or two difficult customers today, but Shen Jin could guess that the details probably went far beyond that.

He had experience in this sort of thing. Back when he used to deliver groceries to various neighborhoods, he often ran into picky customers.

More than once, elderly men and women would point at his nose and scold him over something as small as a slightly wilted leaf of lettuce. But he had thick skin, and an apology always smoothed things over. Yet the thought of Gu Yu possibly facing similar situations made Shen Jin’s chest tighten with an unshakable bitterness.

He didn’t believe that any profession was inherently noble or lowly, but his aloof and proud little young master shouldn’t have to humble himself and endure such grievances just to get by.

The heavy feeling in his chest lingered for a long time. It wasn’t until he realized that Gu Yu was still clinging to the scent of his pheromones that Shen Jin pulled him into a hug, not daring to let his mind wander any further. He didn’t want Gu Yu getting huffy and pinching his face again, making sure he wouldn’t have an easy time.

…

…

After taking a shower, Gu Yu wrapped Shen Jin in a towel and carried him to the edge of the bed, telling him to wait for a while.

The sound of water in the bathroom came in fits and starts. Shen Jin stared at the misty glass door for a while before lowering his head and repeatedly scrolling through his chat with the contact from that esports team. He wasn’t sure if he’d be able to officially become their online analyst.

He regretted not saving up more money. 

As he stared at his phone, he thought, I shouldn’t have eaten that box of strawberries last year. I shouldn’t have bought those cigarettes. The prize skins in games were even more of a waste. I don’t even know what I was splurging on back then.

He almost wanted to ask Qin Zhu if he could cash out this month’s streaming earnings early, but to avoid getting mocked with something like “Why don’t you just sell your blood for your beloved alpha,” he gritted his teeth and held back. He decided to ask the team contact for an update instead.

Just as he turned over, though, the flood of new messages on Gu Yu’s phone caught his attention.

Even with the screen locked, Shen Jin could see one transfer notification after another, all from someone marked: Sister.

Sister…

Shen Jin quickly guessed that it was Gu Yu’s cousin—a woman six or seven years older than him. Gu Yu had mentioned she’d attended middle school at the same school as him for two years, but she went abroad after graduating, so Shen Jin had never met her.

Before Shen Jin could react further, more messages kept popping up in the notification bar:

[Take the money and come back home for the New Year.]

[Are you sick or something? Do you need me to come pick you up myself?]

[If you don’t come back, I’ll beat Jiang Lan and Tao Yan to death. Your call.]

With the New Year approaching, although Gu Yu had fallen out with his father and aunt, his other relatives would surely be concerned about where the youngest in the family had gone. His aunt treated Gu Yu like her own child, so she’d likely soften her stance. It seemed his cousin wasn’t the first person to worry about why Gu Yu hadn’t returned for the holidays.

Realizing that he was intruding on Gu Yu’s privacy, Shen Jin quickly snapped out of it, moved his gaze away, and flipped Gu Yu’s phone over.

After his little “crime,” his heart pounded, but fortunately, Gu Yu didn’t notice anything strange when he came out of the bathroom. He bent down to touch Shen Jin’s face as usual, then picked up his phone and headed to dry his hair.

Shen Jin shrank under the covers, nervously glancing up at Gu Yu to see if he noticed anything.

With his back to him, Gu Yu’s movements noticeably paused when he unlocked the screen.

Shen Jin immediately looked away, though out of the corner of his eye, he couldn’t help but catch a glimpse of Gu Yu rapidly replying to messages.

When Gu Yu was done and lay down beside him, Shen Jin felt a sinking feeling in his chest. Hugging Gu Yu, he blurted out, “Do… do you want to mark me tonight?”

He knew Gu Yu wouldn’t go back, but at that moment, his heart sank as he realized all too clearly why he said such a thing.

He hated how selfish and ugly this desire to keep Gu Yu with him felt, but Gu Yu didn’t know the real reason behind it. Embarrassed and confused, Gu Yu’s ears flushed red. “Wh… why are you suddenly saying that, senior?”

“…Just teasing you.” Shen Jin felt it was abrupt himself. He quickly wrapped an arm around Gu Yu’s waist and coaxed him like a child. “Go to sleep. I’ll make you something tasty for breakfast tomorrow, okay?”

Gu Yu must have been tired, as he didn’t put up his usual fight for the “dignity” of his alpha. Instead, he obediently nodded and leaned in, falling asleep soon after.

The room quickly fell silent, but Shen Jin couldn’t sleep for a long time.

In the hazy moonlight, a strange sense of foreboding and reluctance bubbled up in his chest. He kept staring at Gu Yu’s sleeping face, as if he wouldn’t have another chance to see it in a few days.