DPT chapter 24

Zuo Chi woke up at half-past five in the morning. He turned over and caught sight of the unfamiliar bedside table, reminding him that he was in Tan Xingyu’s guest room.

The patch on the back of his neck had peeled off at some point. The room was filled with the scent of blackcurrant pheromones, where sweetness and fragrance were overlaid with sourness and bitterness, as if he had had a nightmare.

Indeed, it was a nightmare. His thoughts slowly returned, lingering on his confrontation with Sheng Li and his final words about wanting to be with him.

What expression did Sheng Li have? Surprise? Shock? Or indifference?

And what expression did Tan Xingyu, who was watching on the sidelines, have?

Zuo Chi couldn’t remember. He just felt pain all over his body, his head hurt, his neck hurt, and his heart hurt.

Sheng Li was an idiot, but not a fool. He must have understood the meaning behind his words.

Zuo Chi had thought about confessing to Sheng Li, imagining countless scenarios, but they were all after Sheng Li had accepted him as his fiancé, not blurting it out while intoxicated. He covered his face, wishing he could start over.

He was afraid of facing Sheng Li’s rejection.

Yes, he knew it would surely be a rejection. Perhaps it was his self-preservation mechanism at work that caused him to lose memory of what happened after the confession.

He didn’t want to be rejected again, just the thought made him shiver. At that moment, he even regretted accepting Sheng Li’s proposal. Maybe Sheng Li was right; they were fine the way they were before, maintaining a balance. He didn’t have to harbor any fantasies, and didn’t have to hope for a response. The important thing was that he could continue to secretly love, without worrying about losing that person.

Sheng Li occupied a crucial position in his life, and he couldn’t imagine what his life would be like without him.

He didn’t want to think about it.

Since he was very young, Zuo Yi had strict expectations of him. He had to learn everything faster than his peers, he had to rank among the top in every exam he took. He could use pressure to restrain himself and strive to meet Zuo Yi’s standards. Over time, he himself didn’t have much to pursue.

Sheng Li was a variable in his dull life. It was as if his world had been gray, and with Sheng Li, it became colorful.

How could he recognize reality—where the bright colors were striking, but never belonged to him?

His phone had around twenty percent battery left. Zuo Chi ordered a car and sent a message to Tan Xingyu: “I’m leaving first.”

As he stepped out, he realized it was drizzling outside. With a gust of wind, the door slammed shut. He stood under the eaves waiting for the car, the rain slanting in, dampening half of his shoulder.

The weather was a bit chilly, and Zuo Chi squatted down, staring at his phone screen, calculating how long it would take for the car to arrive.

Luckily, the distance wasn’t far, and the car arrived in front of him after just eight minutes without any traffic. The driver was a middle-aged Beta uncle, who chatted idly with him during the ride, asking why he was out so early.

He noticed the ring on Zuo Chi’s hand. “Married, huh?”

Zuo Chi smirked. “Not yet.”

The driver asked, “Then it’s soon, right? Where’s your partner?”

Zuo Chi didn’t have the mood or energy to respond, but the driver persisted, “Did you two have a fight?”

Zuo Chi just gave a grunt of acknowledgment.

“Arguing on New Year’s, not good. Is your partner a Beta or an Omega?”

Zuo Chi raised his eyebrows. “What?”

The driver didn’t notice anything amiss. “Whether it’s a Beta or an Omega, just be more accommodating. A little appeasement goes a long way.”

He mistook him for an Alpha. It was rare for Zuo Chi to encounter such a misunderstanding after his differentiation because he always wore a bite-resistant collar—no Alpha or Beta would wear such a thing. But yesterday he had used the suppressant patch and hadn’t worn his collar.

Usually, he wouldn’t bother explaining to strangers, but at this moment, feeling unlike his usual Omega self, he replied sharply, “Are your eyes not working properly? I’m an Omega.”

“Oh, sorry.” Perhaps sensing Zuo Chi’s mood, the driver didn’t speak for the rest of the journey.

After retrieving his computer and charger from Sheng Li’s house, Zuo Chi checked into a hotel. There was no faint amber scent in the hotel; he tried to divert his attention by reading a few papers on economic data analysis.

He read each word slowly, taking nearly an hour to finish one. The sky outside had completely brightened up, the rain had stopped, and a slight breeze crept in through the window, bringing a hint of coolness.

He called room service to order food, planning to have breakfast and lunch together. The Omega female waiter who brought the food said, “Sir, enjoy your meal… What happened to your neck?”

Zuo Chi touched his neck in confusion. “Huh?”

The waitress said, “It looks a bit red.”

After closing the door, Zuo Chi looked into the bathroom mirror and found small red dots on the back of his neck, like an allergic reaction. Pressing on them with his fingertips caused a slight pain. Perhaps because he had been using the suppressant patch frequently recently, his glands hadn’t adjusted yet.

He ate his meal nonchalantly, thinking the red dots would disappear after a while. But after twenty minutes or so, the pain in his glands became more pronounced, feeling like sharp blades cutting into his skin and pulling at his nerves.

“Ah.”

Zuo Chi gasped, his voice changing tone. He began to feel something was wrong. He thought about going downstairs to the clinic, but his legs gave out, and he knelt beside the bed.

He had only recently passed his heat; how could he suddenly go into heat again? Especially since during heat, the desires didn’t come on so overwhelmingly and fiercely.

Zuo Chi crawled onto the bed, rolling from one end to the other. His body temperature rose rapidly, sweat beading on his forehead, and his mind was consumed by one thought: the desire to mate.

He reached out to grab his phone from the table, dialing the number he knew by heart in a panic.

……..

Sheng Li walked from the guest room to the living room, seeing Tai Xingyu busy working on his computer. He rubbed his eyes. “Working so hard.”

Tai Xingyu said, “The first few years of entrepreneurship are always like this. Zhou Jing ordered takeout in the morning. What do you want to eat? I’ll heat it up in the microwave for you.”

Sheng Li asked, “Where are the others?”

“Xiang Yiqun had something to do at home, so Zhou Jing went with him. Xu Hui and Bai Fan left not long ago.” Tai Xingyu paused. “Zuo Chi sent me a message at six, saying he left early.”

“He left early?” Sheng Li opened his phone in surprise. There were several unread messages on WeChat, but none were from Zuo Chi. He opened the message box unwillingly, still empty. “Why did he message you and not me?”

“Who knows, maybe because it was at my place?” Tai Xingyu looked up, smiling knowingly. “I say, you weren’t too drunk last night, were you?”

“No… Damn it.” Sheng Li said, “I wish you were the one who was drunk.”

After Zuo Chi spoke those words last night, Sheng Li was stunned for half a minute.

He was at a loss, partly because Zuo Chi mentioned wanting to be with him, and partly because Zuo Chi cried.

His heart pounded abnormally fast and had said awkwardly, “You’re drunk.”

Zuo Chi’s face had at the time gradually approached, as if trying to steal a kiss. But the next second, the Omega’s head tilted, and he fell onto him.

Tai Xingyu closed his computer, asking with concern, “What are you thinking?”

Sheng Li blurted out, “I’ve always treated Zuo Chi as a friend.”

Tai Xingyu asked, “What kind of friend? Like me, Xu Hui, or Xiang Yiqun?”

It seemed the same, yet different. Sheng Li furrowed his brows, unable to articulate the difference.

His phone in his pocket rang. He picked it up and saw the caller ID, the very person they were discussing—”Ah Chi.”

Sheng Li’s heart fluttered, and he hung up the call. Last night, he could have said Zuo Chi was drunk, but if Zuo Chi said something similar today, he wouldn’t be able to deceive himself anymore.

Tai Xingyu asked, “Aren’t you going to answer?”

Sheng Li said impatiently, “What could it be? Probably just asking why I haven’t come home yet…”

The phone rang again, startling Sheng Li when he picked it up.

Zuo Chi’s voice was weak and soft, completely different from usual. “Sheng Li…”

Sheng Li gripped his phone tightly with five fingers. “What’s wrong with you?”

“I…” The words trailed off into ambiguous gasps.

Sheng Li’s heart was hanging by a thread. “Where are you?!”

Zuo Chi managed to say the name of the hotel and the room number, then the call disconnected.

Sheng Li immediately turned to the door, quickly changing his shoes. He also searched for the location on his phone.

Tai Xingyu sensed something was off and stood up. “What’s wrong? Shall I come with you?”

“No need,” Sheng Li said, unaware of the situation on Zuo Chi’s side. “You keep an eye on your phone. If there’s any problem, I’ll call you.”

Tai Xingyu didn’t hesitate. “Okay, you drive safely.”

The hotel Zuo Chi mentioned was part of a chain, with more than one in S city. Sheng Li located the nearest one and drove there, taking about twenty minutes. When he parked, he realized his palms were sweating profusely. Inside the elevator, he anxiously pressed the corresponding button.

As soon as the elevator stopped, he sprinted to the door of the room, knocking frantically. “Zuo Chi! Are you in there? Say something!”

Zuo Chi left in the early morning, and now he was in the hotel. When he called him, it was like… like he was in heat.

But it wasn’t time for Zuo Chi’s next heat cycle yet.

Sheng Li was on the verge of losing it. If there was another person in the room, he felt like he would have to kill them.

The door opened, and Sheng Li’s worries and frustrations instantly transformed into desire.

It smelled so good, the overwhelming scent of blackcurrant filled the air, making his breathing quicken.

Zuo Chi’s hair was soaked, his bangs lay smoothly on his forehead. The top three buttons of his shirt were undone, revealing his fair and slightly flushed skin. He hung limp against the door, as if he had no bones.

He looked at Sheng Li, his eyes misty with moisture, his voice trembling, “You’re here.”

Sheng Li swallowed hard, glanced inside to ensure no one else was there, then took a step back, “I’ll go ask the front desk for suppressants.”

Zuo Chi couldn’t stand firmly, his knees gave way, and he fell to the ground. He grasped Sheng Li’s wrist, “N-No suppressants…”

“I want you.”

The string of rationality in Sheng Li’s mind completely snapped because of this sentence. He, an Alpha, completely fell into a passive heat, and he reached back to close the door.

 

¹

Author’s Note:

I’m sorry, it’s so cheesy and cliché, but I love this series.

The crematorium is really counting down! Swearing on my drafts, Sheng Li has cried for over ten chapters!

 

 

• 1
  
  
  Author’s Note:
  
  I’m sorry, it’s so cheesy and cliché, but I love this series.
  
  The crematorium is really counting down! Swearing on my drafts, Sheng Li has cried for over ten chapters!