Laundry

Shi Qi's gaze swept over his butterfly-wing lashes, his high brow bone... the more she looked, the more she felt he resembled the Alpha from her dream, and her eyes finally landed on Shang Sui's lips.

In an instant, the sensation of being carefully licked and kissed in the dream surged back, and Shi Qi's tongue felt as if it had been scalded, a wave of heat spreading through her.

Realizing she was actually letting her mind wander about Shang Sui, Shi Qi abruptly averted her gaze.

She unconsciously pressed her legs together, then widened her eyes, her face flushing crimson.

As if affected by the dream, the Omega's path to pleasure was damp and sticky. Shi Qi closed her eyes in despair, wanting to disappear on the spot.

Afraid to wake Shang Sui, she could only move as minimally as possible.

Just as she neared the edge of the bed, the Alpha, who had been still, made a faint sound. Shang Sui adjusted his position, reaching an arm out, nearly grabbing her.

In her panic, Shi Qi remembered Shang Sui saying he liked to hold things while sleeping. She figured that her leaving his arms had triggered this reaction.

Thinking quickly, Shi Qi stuffed a pillow into his arms. The Alpha's arm hooked around the soft pillow, and he fell back into deep sleep.

Luckily, he didn't wake up.

Shi Qi let out a breath of relief, slipped out of bed as quietly as possible, and left the bedroom in her slippers.

After she left, the sleeping person on the bed opened his eyes with interest. His gaze was clear, showing no trace of drowsiness.

He had just smelled Shi Qi's Pheromone scent, different from usual, as rich as a flower in full bloom.

And besides that, there was something else...

Like a snake lurking in the flowers, catching the scent of its prey, the Alpha's eyes curved slightly, his mood buoyant:

'So sensitive, baby.'

Shi Qi had a thin skin; if he had called her out just now, even if she couldn't sleep, she might be too embarrassed to come find him again for a while, let alone sleep with him.

He'd wait a bit before going over.

Shi Qi had no idea that all her little movements had been noticed by someone else. She first went to the bathroom, barely managed to wipe off the sticky stuff on her body, and then headed toward the laundry room with slightly unsteady hands and feet.

Her own clothes were hanging on the rack, and her underwear had already been dried, giving off the light scent of laundry detergent.

Shi Qi changed into a whole new set of clothes, rolled up her sweater sleeves, and hand-washed her soiled underwear in the laundry sink.

After thinking it over, she simply wet her pajamas too and washed them together.

Shi Qi rarely did housework, so her movements were a bit clumsy. Distracted, she thought back to her reaction just now.

Even if the Temporary Mark Shang Sui had given her suppressed the Heat Phase, an Omega's Heat Phase could still produce this kind of situation.

He had occasionally experienced similar phenomena after injecting an Inhibitor before; it wasn't the first time.

This time, she'd just had a slightly erotic dream, and the Alpha in the dream happened to resemble Shang Sui, which led to her washing clothes here after waking up.

Shi Qi kept trying to convince herself.

Yes, that's it.

It's really no big deal.

...Fuck! Of course it is.

Shi Qi scrubbed her underwear with her fingers, her face bright red.

She didn't notice someone silently approaching from behind.

'You're up early,' a voice came without warning. 'Why are you doing laundry?'

Shi Qi was startled by him, feeling he was like a ghost, walking without a sound.

Recovering, Shi Qi immediately covered the top with her pajamas, feigning calm: 'I sweated last night while sleeping, so I'm washing it.'

'Just throw it in the washing machine, no need to go through all this trouble.'

Shi Qi gave an 'oh' but didn't move.

Fortunately, Shang Sui didn't press further, instead looking at his phone and saying, 'What do you want for breakfast?'

Shi Qi just wanted him to leave quickly: 'Can you cook?'

'No, I'll have someone bring it over,' Shang Sui said casually. 'Do you have class in the morning? After you eat, I'll have the driver take you to School.'

Shi Qi agreed. She remembered that Shang Sui had spent three years abroad but couldn't cook. Did he have someone taking care of him back then too?

Shang Sui suddenly put down his phone: 'But if Xiao Qi likes the domestic type, I can learn.'

'What?' Shi Qi was taken aback.

'After all, a fake boyfriend counts as half a boyfriend,' Shang Sui said as he walked over, reaching out as if to touch her pajamas. 'Let me help you wash your clothes?'

'No need—' Her underwear was right underneath, and Shi Qi nearly bristled. 'I'll do it myself! You get out!'

Shang Sui withdrew his hand and walked away with a smile under Shi Qi's tense gaze.

So cute.

Really fun to tease.

Shi Qi quickly washed her underwear, tossed it into the dedicated dryer, and put her pajamas in the washing machine, finally relieved.

Despite the little incident in the morning, Shi Qi had slept very soundly last night, and the accumulated fatigue in her body was completely gone, no longer plagued by the previous headache and dizziness.

For several days in a row, she stayed at Shang Sui's place.

Not seeing Shi Qi's shadow for so long, Lin Yan finally couldn't help but ask about the situation.

'Our baby's face is practically glowing; looks like you're doing just fine without me,' Lin Yan observed her for a while during the public class, his expression mournful. 'Who've you been running off with? Leaving me to guard the Dormitory all alone.'

'Stop acting,' Shi Qi called him out mercilessly. 'Your WeChat Moments from yesterday showed you playing mahjong at two in the morning.'

'Yeah, I won big with a pure one-suit seven-pair, no need to brag about my skills,' Lin Yan changed the subject. 'But that's because you weren't there. Did you go home to sleep with Uncle Xiao An because you couldn't sleep?'

Maybe it was a dependence on her elder; by Shi An's side, Shi Qi could sleep better.

But this method became less effective as she grew older. Plus, there was a period when Shi Qi slept with Shi An for a whole month, only to be carried out of the room by Jiang Li, with the bedroom door mercilessly shut in her face.

At the time, facing the bewildered Shi Qi, Jiang Yoning cackled: 'Dad needs to blow off steam too, you understand.'

Once Shi Qi figured it out, her ears grew warm.

'Xiao An Baba can't sleep with you tonight, but you can sleep with your sister,' Jiang Yoning coaxed. 'I can keep you company too, but you have to wear a skirt for me.'

Shi Qi looked at her like she was crazy: 'No way.'

'Then forget it.' Jiang Yoning hadn't held out much hope anyway. Shi Qi grew more beautiful as she got older, but also harder to trick. The image of her brother in a skirt probably only existed in memories and the Album.

She shrugged, then took his hand, her face full of innuendo: 'Come on, let's go eavesdrop. A month without paying the tax, the battle must be intense.'

'...'

Snapping back to reality, Shi Qi said to Lin Yan, 'No, I went to Shang Sui's. His Pheromone works really well; I fall asleep quickly.'

'He really takes care of you,' Lin Yan said meaningfully. 'He's even taken you to his place.'

Next step might be taking care of you in bed.

No.

Judging by Shi Qi's look, she'd probably already been in bed, just not in the usual sense.

In this day and age, there were actually Alpha and Omega just sleeping together under the covers. These two were a rare species.

'Oh right,' Lin Yan remembered something important and temporarily set aside the gossip. 'We're going to Qi Jiang this weekend for a social practice. Do you want to come back and pack?'

Shi Qi nodded: 'The Heat Phase is over. I'll stay in the Dormitory tonight.'

-

The journey from Capital City to Qi Jiang was long, requiring two days by car.

Many students got carsick on the way. Qin Shuhe was especially bad; he could only take one motion sickness pill and one melatonin pill to knock himself out completely as a countermeasure.

At a rest stop, Shi Qi watched him practically float off the bus, like a wilted blade of grass, and offered a rare word of concern: 'You slept all day; what are you going to do tonight?'

'Game all night,' Qin Shuhe was prepared. 'I downloaded Stardew Valley on my tablet. Want to join? I think it can do multiplayer.'

Stardew Valley was a farm management game. Qin Shuhe going to farm was basically raising his own kind.

Shi Qi shook her head and encouraged, 'Good luck growing veggies, wilted grass.'

'?' What wilted grass?

In the distance, Lin Yan was talking to Fu Siyue.

Fu Siyue was in bioengineering, and happened to be joining them for the social practice. It had been a while, and Shi Qi remembered the last news she'd heard about Fu Siyue was him crying until his Sensitivity Period came early, so she glanced over.

But unexpectedly, Fu Siyue seemed to have eyes in the back of his head, sensing her gaze, and immediately looked over, then quickly averted his eyes.

'I feel like that guy keeps glaring at me.'

Qin Shuhe pointed sneakily at Fu Siyue, quite displeased.

'Probably because you're handsome.'

Shi Qi said casually. Qin Shuhe was rarely complimented by her, so he immediately beamed.

Shi Qi looked around carefully and noticed that the familiar figure from Meiyan Academy wasn't there: 'Where's Shang Sui?'

'Bro had something come up, so he didn't come with us. He'll fly over in a couple of days,' Qin Shuhe said, full of regret. 'If I'd known the car sickness would be this bad, I'd have booked my own ticket.'

Unlike the snowy Capital City, Qi Jiang was lush with greenery and blooming flowers, the sunlight bright as if it were the cusp of spring and summer.

After two days and two nights on the bus, Shi Qi hadn't been feeling very energetic, but when she got off and smelled the floral scent in the air, she twitched her nose, her gaze drawn to the vast expanse of blooming magnolia flowers in the distance.

Shi Qi took a photo and casually posted it on her social media account.

@1717177: [Shared image]

[Cat sends you a spring postcard.]

[Xiao Qi went out to play? Such beautiful flowers!]

[Heard from a friend that A University's biochem department has a social practice recently; should be in Qi Jiang?]

[Welcome, Cat Boss, to Qi Jiang for inspection! Baby, secretly tell me where you're staying so I can run into you!]

...

Among the enthusiastic comments, an account that followed her also left a message.

@Yu Zhiling: [You're in Qi Jiang too?]

Yu Zhiling was a friend Shi Qi had made while working as a model. In high school, Jiang Yoning had found her quite a few jobs, and Shi Qi had some minor fame in the industry, but she wasn't very interested and later stopped doing related work.

Unlike Shi Qi, Yu Zhiling had remained active in the field, and with her outstanding looks and professional skills, she was currently a hot Omega model.

After saying that on social media, Yu Zhiling also sent her a private message: [What a coincidence! I'm in Qi Jiang too. I have a shoot today; I'll come find you when I'm done.]

The two hadn't seen each other in a while, so Shi Qi agreed quickly.

By the time she finished checking in with the leading teacher, it was nearly evening. Remembering Qin Shuhe saying Shang Sui would arrive today, but seeing no sign of him, Shi Qi guessed he might still be on the plane.

The last time she'd seen Shang Sui was several days ago. They'd even slept in the same bed, but in the meantime, neither had spoken to the other.

Like some unspoken game: she didn't contact Shang Sui, and he didn't come looking for her.

After a moment's hesitation, Shi Qi took the initiative to send him a message.

17: [When will you arrive?]

Unexpectedly, Shang Sui replied quickly.

Ss: [Just landed, taking a cab over.]

Ss: [Did Xiao Qi miss me? ><]

...A few days apart, and this guy was still as cheeky as ever.

And his emoji had even evolved.

Shi Qi was silent for a moment, then replied with a period.

There were no activities arranged by the department tonight, but they had to visit a factory early tomorrow morning, so the leading teacher reminded everyone not to stay out too late and to be careful outside.

Shi Qi changed into clothes suitable for the local climate and was about to head out for food when a message from Yu Zhiling came through:

[I'm here, at the entrance of your hotel.]

Shi Qi looked up and saw a tall figure not far away, raising a hand toward her.

Yu Zhiling wore a black mask, having just finished a shoot, with glittery makeup still on her eyelids.

Unlike most Omegas, Yu Zhiling was 183 cm tall, even taller than many Alphas.

Her features were also sharp, yet carried the unique brightness of an Omega. Her fanbase was evenly split among the three genders, truly appealing to all ABO types.

'Long time no see,' Yu Zhiling greeted her first. 'Why do you still love wearing black so much?'

Shi Qi was wearing a black half-turtleneck sweater, a fitted style, paired with loose cargo pants, making her look like a thin silhouette.

The last time Yu Zhiling had seen Shi Qi was about half a year ago. Although she'd seen photos online, this was the first time she'd seen Shi Qi's new hair color in person.

Platinum blonde and black—two strongly contrasting colors didn't look jarring on her at all; instead, they suited Shi Qi's somewhat aloof temperament perfectly.

Yu Zhiling suddenly stretched out both arms, picked Shi Qi up, and even bounced her a couple of times.

'...'

After being set down, Shi Qi held back and didn't kick her right away: 'Can you drop that habit?'

Back when they met in high school, Shi Qi was shorter than she was now. Every time they met, Yu Zhiling would lift her up and bounce her to gauge her height and weight.

'Height hasn't changed,' Yu Zhiling said with a grin, 'but how come you've gotten lighter—'

Before she could finish, a hand as cold as an iron clamp grabbed Shi Qi. Yu Zhiling only had time to see the hollow lace-like colored gem Ring on that hand.

Shi Qi was tightly gripped by the wrist and yanked backward.

An unfamiliar Alpha, holding a suitcase in one hand and Shi Qi in the other, looked over with a blank expression.

Yu Zhiling was stunned by his appearance for a few seconds, then quickly snapped back: 'What are you doing!'

Shang Sui was even more furious than her, asking coldly, 'Who are you?'

'Are all you Alphas this irrational?' Yu Zhiling's eyes showed a trace of disgust. 'I'm his boyfriend, got it? Let go now!'

In the past, she and Shi Qi often did this. Because of their outstanding looks and being rare Omegas, they were frequently asked for contact info outside and occasionally faced harassment. Yu Zhiling would use a similar excuse to get out of it.

But unexpectedly, this person not only didn't let go, but smiled instead.

Shi Qi snapped back: 'Wait—'

'Is that so,' Shang Sui's tone was devoid of warmth. 'What a coincidence, I'm his boyfriend too.'

Shang Sui watched Yu Zhiling's expression shift instantly and said with a half-smile, 'How about you get in line? Wait until we break up, then you can take your turn.'