As soon as Jiang Yu finished speaking, the call was cut off.
Hearing the busy tone, Yu Shiqing frowned slightly, turned on his heel, and quickly walked to the door.
It all happened so suddenly that he didn’t know what was going on with Jiang Yu, but he knew Jiang Yu would never joke about his susceptibility period.
Only when he got to the elevator did he realize he was still wearing a bathrobe—definitely not up to Jiang Yu’s standards of appearance.
But there was no time to care about that now.
Ding—
As he stepped out of the elevator, Yu Shiqing walked straight to Jiang Yu’s door.
Just as he was about to press the doorbell, he noticed a strip of light showing through the door crack.
The door was ajar.
Yu Shiqing pushed it open.
Suddenly, a strong and dominant scent of tequila hit him in the face—it was Jiang Yu’s pheromones.
Yu Shiqing’s brows furrowed instantly.
Smelling another alpha’s pheromones triggered his instincts. He forced himself to suppress the urge to react and took a step forward.
“Jiang Yu?”
As he spoke, he closed the door behind him. His eyes scanned the spacious living room.
“Where are you?”
No answer.
Yu Shiqing looked around.
The room he had been staying in was still the same—door tightly shut. But Jiang Yu’s bedroom door was half open.
“Jiang Yu?”
This time, a hoarse and dry voice came from inside the room.
“I’m here.”
His voice sounded even more strained than over the phone—tight, like he was at his limit.
Yu Shiqing turned and walked toward the bedroom.
The deeper he went, the stronger the pheromones became.
The air was filled with the restless hostility of an alpha in heat.
Yu Shiqing walked in with a tight frown and immediately saw Jiang Yu sitting on the floor beside the bed.
Jiang Yu was also in a bathrobe. It looked like it had been thrown on in a hurry.
He leaned against the bed, head down. His pheromones were unstable and out of control, making his brows furrow and lips tightly pressed. His long legs were bent and stretched out across the space by the bed.
Hearing Yu Shiqing approach, he opened his eyes and looked toward the door.
“You’re late.”
He wasn’t blaming him—just stating a fact.
Yu Shiqing noticed he was holding an empty glass bottle of suppressant in his hand.
There was an open medicine box on the nightstand, with six more doses inside.
From the pheromones flooding the room, the suppressants clearly hadn’t worked on Jiang Yu.
No real effect—but the side effects were still there.
The weakness from within made him unable to move from the floor.
After speaking, Jiang Yu raised his hand toward Yu Shiqing.
“Help me up?”
Yu Shiqing was familiar with the suppressant’s side effects.
He had already walked over. Hearing that, he bent down, slid his arms under Jiang Yu’s armpits, and lifted him up into a seated position on the edge of the bed.
Jiang Yu let go, and the empty glass bottle dropped to the carpet with a soft thud.
“Wasn’t your susceptibility period supposed to be seven days?”
After helping Jiang Yu sit up straight, Yu Shiqing backed up a little.
Being this close to another alpha during his heat, Jiang Yu’s pheromones started stirring again, releasing instinctive hostility.
“It is seven days,” Jiang Yu replied, grabbing the front of Yu Shiqing’s robe.
His black eyes burned with an indescribable urgency.
“But instead of figuring that out, don’t you think… there’s something more important we should be doing right now?”
Yu Shiqing understood.
He stepped forward again, bent down, wrapped one arm around Jiang Yu’s waist and placed the other on his shoulder.
Remembering how Jiang Yu had trembled in pain the last two times, he warned softly:
“Bear with it.”
“Stop talking,” Jiang Yu said, turning his face away, uncomfortable with the warm breath on his skin.
Suppressing his pheromones and resisting the discomfort of being close to another alpha—Yu Shiqing knew how hard it was for him, so he didn’t say another word.
The next second, Jiang Yu felt cool, soft lips touch the side of his neck, and a shiver ran down his spine.
This was their first face-to-face marking.
Yu Shiqing heard Jiang Yu hold his breath. But soon, a muffled groan of restraint escaped beside his ear.
Jiang Yu suddenly grabbed the back of Yu Shiqing’s collar, his knuckles turning white from the force.
His other hand slowly slid down Yu Shiqing’s chest and rested on his wrist.
Yu Shiqing could hear his shaky, short breaths and feel the firm grip on his wrist.
Not long after, the marking was done.
Yu Shiqing lifted his head from Jiang Yu’s neck.
Jiang Yu hadn’t let go, but his strength gave out and he started to fall back.
Yu Shiqing supported his back with one hand, knelt on one knee beside him, and slowly lowered him onto the bed.
Jiang Yu still had his eyes closed, frowning, trying to control his ragged breathing.
His hand was still on Yu Shiqing’s collar.
Yu Shiqing propped himself up on his elbow, glanced at Jiang Yu’s flushed eyes, and looked away.
“Jiang Yu, let go,” he said.
Jiang Yu didn’t respond.
Yu Shiqing reached out and grabbed his wrist, looked back at him.
“Jiang Yu?”
Jiang Yu finally opened his eyes and met his gaze.
“What?”
His voice was hoarse, his breath brushing against Yu Shiqing’s cheek.
“Let go,” Yu Shiqing repeated.
Being this close made him a bit uncomfortable. He was about to get up—
But Jiang Yu suddenly grabbed him.
“Don’t move!”
Yu Shiqing stopped, lowered his eyes.
“What’s wrong?”
But he didn’t need an answer anymore.
Through the thin fabric of their robes, their lower bodies were pressed tightly.
Any small movement would cause friction.
Even before Jiang Yu could finish his sentence, his face was already darkening.
But no matter how he felt, his body still reacted—and he couldn’t hide it.
Yu Shiqing glanced down. A smile slowly crept into his eyes.
Jiang Yu gritted his teeth.
“Don’t laugh!”
“I’m not,” Yu Shiqing said calmly.
Jiang Yu’s mood didn’t improve at all.
Even if he wasn’t smiling, Jiang Yu could tell he was laughing inside.
“You still won’t let go?”
Only then did Jiang Yu realize their position—and his face darkened even more.
But after releasing him and watching Yu Shiqing slowly pull away, Jiang Yu suddenly grabbed his robe again.
“Don’t go.”
Yu Shiqing looked down at him.
“What is it?”
Jiang Yu seemed to snap out of it and, seeing Yu Shiqing’s half-open robe, quickly let go.
Even he didn’t know why he had done that.
After a pause, he said:
“Can you blow-dry my hair?”
“Blow-dry?” Yu Shiqing looked at his short, half-dry hair.
But knowing how picky Jiang Yu was, he didn’t argue.
He helped Jiang Yu sit up and went to get the hairdryer.
With his hair so short, it dried quickly.
Just as Yu Shiqing finished and was putting away the cord, Jiang Yu suddenly asked:
“Are you this nice to everyone?”
Yu Shiqing paused.
He looked at Jiang Yu.
“In what way?”
Jiang Yu frowned.
“Have you marked anyone else before?”
“No,” Yu Shiqing replied.
Jiang Yu smiled slightly, full of self-confidence.
But then he asked again:
“Do you have someone you like? Would you mark him?”
Yu Shiqing didn’t answer right away.
Jiang Yu’s behavior was clearly off.
“Why aren’t you answering?” Jiang Yu pressed, frowning.
“Don’t tell me… you do like someone?”
Yu Shiqing replied, “No.”
Jiang Yu smiled.
“I figured.”
Yu Shiqing watched his expression, but wasn’t so sure.
Jiang Yu’s mood clearly showed signs of emotional sensitivity during his heat—and a possessiveness that usually only appeared between alpha-omega mates.
But Yu Shiqing couldn’t be sure. Jiang Yu had always been single.
If he had a partner, he wouldn’t need suppressants during his susceptibility period.
Even though Yu Shiqing had marked him by accident, both of them were alphas. This reaction shouldn’t be happening.
Yu Shiqing glanced at the suppressants on the nightstand.
Could it be a side effect?
If so, even the pharmaceutical company might not have an explanation for such a rare case.
While he was thinking, his wrist was suddenly grabbed.
Then he heard Jiang Yu say:
“It’s still early. Stay and read the script with me?”
“My script’s upstairs. I didn’t bring it down.”
Yu Shiqing tried to pull free—but Jiang Yu didn’t let go.
“Mine works too.”
Yu Shiqing checked his watch.
Suppressant side effects usually last three to five hours. With Jiang Yu’s unique case, who knew how long it would last?
Just in case, he agreed.
“Alright.”
“Sit,” Jiang Yu said.
Yu Shiqing was just about to sit—
“If you’re cold, you can come up here,” Jiang Yu said, lifting the blanket. His meaning was obvious.
Yu Shiqing politely declined.
“I’m not cold.”
Jiang Yu placed his hand on Yu Shiqing’s leg to feel the temperature.
“This is not cold?”
Their robes were already messy, exposing a lot of skin.
Yu Shiqing: “……”
He glanced down at Jiang Yu’s bold hand, then looked at his face with mixed feelings.
Jiang Yu frowned again.
“Or do you just not want to sleep in my bed?”
Yu Shiqing said, “I just think it’s not appropriate.”
Normally, Jiang Yu couldn’t even stand him not wearing pajamas—let alone sleeping together.
But Jiang Yu didn’t seem to care at all now.
“We’re both alphas. What’s the problem?”
Yu Shiqing hadn’t said anything yet.
But Jiang Yu already looked annoyed.
“Or just tell me directly—what problem do you have with me?”
Yu Shiqing: “……”
Jiang Yu didn’t see him as an omega mate—that was good.
But he was acting emotionally sensitive like someone in heat. That was a problem.
“I don’t have a problem with you,” Yu Shiqing finally said.
Jiang Yu didn’t respond.
He just lifted the blanket again, gesturing for proof.
Yu Shiqing was silent for a moment, then climbed into bed.
There was no better way to deal with this than to go along with him.
Jiang Yu sat right beside him, their arms touching.
Yu Shiqing let him.
But it wasn’t long before Jiang Yu started to feel sleepy.
The weakness from the suppressant and the exhaustion from the marking were catching up with him.
They hadn’t even read much of the script when Jiang Yu’s head suddenly rested on Yu Shiqing’s shoulder.
Yu Shiqing turned and saw him fast asleep.
“Jiang Yu?”
His eyelids twitched, but he didn’t wake up.
Yu Shiqing closed the script and set it aside.
He gently supported Jiang Yu’s head, shifted, and pulled up the blanket to help him lie down.
But as he got up to leave, something tugged at him from behind.
Yu Shiqing turned back.
It was Jiang Yu—still holding the edge of his robe.
“Don’t go,” Jiang Yu mumbled in his sleep, the words barely audible.
Yu Shiqing looked at him and smiled lightly.
“I hope when you wake up tomorrow, you won’t regret this.”
—
Regret was inevitable.
Morning.
Jiang Yu woke up and opened his eyes—to find Yu Shiqing’s face right in front of him.
He jumped back in shock, and the bed trembled with the sudden movement.
Yu Shiqing was awakened too. He rubbed his nose bridge.
Jiang Yu’s always sharp eyes were filled with shock.
He asked in a low voice, “Why are you here?”
Yu Shiqing looked at him calmly.
“You don’t remember what happened last night?”
Jiang Yu frowned.
As Yu Shiqing spoke, scenes from the night before started flooding back into his mind.
Watching his expression change, Yu Shiqing—rarely in a good mood right after waking—smiled.
When Jiang Yu looked back at him again, Yu Shiqing greeted him with a smile:
“Morning.”
Jiang Yu: “……”
He shut his eyes.
First thing in the morning, and his mood had already hit rock bottom.15
