Chapter 130
Xiao Xiao didn’t dare to leave.
Even though he knew the passcode, even though he knew the elevator ride down was only five or six minutes, he couldn’t bring himself to go.
He was terrified.
Hiding under the covers, he pressed his hands to his face, his sobs muffled and helpless.
When Gu Qian returned and didn’t see Xiao Xiao on the living room sofa, he immediately dropped what he was holding and went to find him.
He found him in the bedroom.
Xiao Xiao was lying motionless under the blanket. Gu Qian sat on the edge of the bed. “Are you sleeping, Xiao Xiao, or are you crying in secret?”
But Xiao Xiao didn’t speak, didn’t even acknowledge him.
Gu Qian sat there for a little while longer. Usually, by now, Xiao Xiao would have emerged from the covers to hug him.
But today, he didn’t move an inch, didn’t even make a sound.
Growing impatient, Gu Qian pulled back the blanket himself. He saw that Xiao Xiao’s color was off, his face flushed bright red. When he touched him, he realized he had a fever.
Gu Qian’s expression changed instantly. He had only intended this to be a temporary place; he hadn’t considered that Xiao Xiao might get sick, so there was no medicine.
Worried the fever would do permanent damage, he quickly scooped him up and headed for the door.
Being moved and held by Gu Qian, Xiao Xiao’s eyes finally fluttered open. He instinctively grabbed Gu Qian’s shirt and started to cry. “I… I’m scared… sob…”
He didn’t know why, but a sudden fear washed over him.
He had nowhere to voice all the feelings pent up inside him. He was just so, so scared.
“Don’t be afraid.”
Gu Qian carried him out the door and into the elevator. He cradled Xiao Xiao’s head, pressing him into his chest. “Don’t be scared,” he cooed. “Just don’t look. I’m taking you downstairs. Once you’re better, we’ll never come back here again.”
He knew what Xiao Xiao had done at home today.
He knew he had tried to leave, only to run back in fear.
Just as he’d hoped, Xiao Xiao was already dependent on him, terrified of this high-rise, even afraid of the elevator.
This was the result he had wanted.
But now, for some reason, his heart ached for him.
He drove him to the hospital, where doctors quickly gave Xiao Xiao fever-reducing medicine and put him on an IV drip.
Before long, the fever broke.
When he woke up, he found himself in a hospital. Just as he had grown accustomed to doing while he was locked up, he instinctively looked for Gu Qian.
Only after seeing him sitting by the bed, peeling an apple, did he finally feel at ease.
“What were you looking for just now, Xiao Xiao?” Gu Qian asked. “Were you looking for me?”
Xiao Xiao paused, then nodded.
Gu Qian smiled, cutting the apple into small pieces. He speared a slice with a toothpick and held it to Xiao Xiao’s lips. “I’m right here with you,” he said with a smile. “I’m not going anywhere.”
Xiao Xiao nodded again and ate the apple.
Piece by piece, Gu Qian fed him the entire apple before asking, “Do you want to eat anything else?”
Xiao Xiao shook his head. “No.”
He didn’t feel hungry at all.
Gu Qian asked again, “Do you feel unwell anywhere else?”
At that, Xiao Xiao paused, but still shook his head. “No.”
He hadn’t felt particularly unwell to begin with, so he didn’t know why he was in the hospital.
With a confused look, Xiao Xiao instinctively grabbed Gu Qian’s hand. “I want some of your pheromones,” he said softly.
He didn’t know why, but even after leaving that terrifying apartment, he still felt no sense of security.
He wanted Gu Qian’s scent.
Maybe it was because he’d been marked by him, or maybe it was because the first alpha pheromones he’d ever smelled were Gu Qian’s. Whatever the reason, he felt an indescribable dependence on him.
He liked Gu Qian’s pheromones.
They made him feel safe.
Gu Qian never hesitated to give Xiao Xiao his scent, but he always liked to tease him first.
He held Xiao Xiao’s hand and asked in a low voice, “Whose pheromones do you want?”
Xiao Xiao’s eyes glistened with unshed tears. “I want my husband’s pheromones,” he whispered.
Gu Qian was instantly satisfied. “Alright,” he said happily. “Husband will give them to you.”
He immediately released his pheromones, then pulled Xiao Xiao into his arms.
Xiao Xiao felt completely content. He clung to Gu Qian’s clothes and asked softly, “Husband, what floor are we on in the hospital?”
Gu Qian: “The second floor. Don’t worry, it’s not high.”
“That’s good.”
Xiao Xiao relaxed against him, his voice faint. “I think I heard you say earlier that we’re never going back to that place again. Is that true?”
Gu Qian: “It’s true. Weren’t you scared of that place? If you’re scared, we won’t go back. Never again.”
His goal had been achieved. There was no need to keep him locked up there anymore. If he was terrified day and night for too long, Xiao Xiao’s mind would break.
He didn’t want Xiao Xiao to have mental problems.
He didn’t want Xiao Xiao to become like him.
Gu Qian’s eyes were full of doting love, his gaze filled with an unspeakable obsession.
A few moments later, there was a knock on the door.
Gu Qian looked toward the door. “Come in.”
Xiao Xiao instinctively hid in Gu Qian’s arms, not even wanting to lift his head.
He heard footsteps approaching. The person seemed to be carrying something. “President Gu,” a low voice said, “the items have arrived.”
Gu Qian nodded and took the bag from his hands. “Alright, you can go rest now.”
The person left.
Only then did Xiao Xiao peek his head out.
The man had brought him food.
But since he was sick, he couldn’t eat anything else, so there were three different kinds of porridge.
Gu Qian opened them one by one for Xiao Xiao to see. “Which flavor do you like, Xiao Xiao?”
Xiao Xiao looked and pointed at the century egg and pork congee. “That one.”
Then, Gu Qian took the bowl and fed it to him, one spoonful at a time.
Only after Xiao Xiao had finished did he pick up the other two and eat them himself.
Xiao Xiao watched him, saying nothing.
Even now, after everything that had happened, he still felt that if Gu Qian wasn’t having one of his episodes, he was truly a good alpha.
Too gentle.
So gentle it was almost frightening.
Not long after eating, Xiao Xiao fell asleep.
When he woke up again, it was already noon.
Gu Qian was gone.
He sat up and looked around, then got out of bed, opened the door, and walked out into the hallway. Seeing more and more people, he followed them into the elevator and down to the first floor.
Wearing a hospital gown, Xiao Xiao stood茫然ly in the lobby.
Gu Qian wasn’t keeping him locked up anymore, wasn’t restricting his freedom.
He could go wherever he wanted, do whatever he wanted.
But as he stood there in the lobby, looking at the road that could lead him away, he was suddenly overcome with a sense of confusion.
He had nowhere to go.
No family, no friends, no company. He was like a piece of duckweed floating on water, rootless and without support, just drifting along with the current.
And a voice kept echoing in his mind: Go back. Go back to Gu Qian’s side.
It’s too hard out there. As a beta, you’ll just get bullied again.
You have no education, no connections. Without Gu Qian, you can’t even find a job.
Only Gu Qian will tolerate you, give you a job, give you a salary, love you, provide for you, be good to you.
So, go back. Go back to Gu Qian’s side.
Xiao Xiao stood in the lobby, his face deathly pale. What was he supposed to do?
He wanted to go back to Gu Qian. He craved the tenderness and care he gave him, but he feared his madness and obsession.
He stood there for a long time, unable to decide whether to go back or to leave.
Just then, a hand grabbed his arm.
He turned his head and saw Gu Qian, his eyes red. He was gritting his teeth, holding back a roar of fury. “You’re trying to run away!”
Xiao Xiao instinctively shook his head. “No, I’m not. I wasn’t trying to run, I just came down to look, I…”
“What’s there to see down here? Can’t you see it from upstairs? You just want to run! You hate that I locked you up, you hate that I’m not good to you! You just want to run away!”
As he spoke, Gu Qian’s gaze shifted, a crazed look entering his eyes. “You just want to run away, you just don’t like me! No, you can’t leave, you can’t run! You’re my omega! You have to come home with me!”
Gu Qian dragged him toward the door.
He didn’t bother with the discharge papers, didn’t grab any of their things from upstairs. He just dragged Xiao Xiao straight out of the hospital.
Terrified, Xiao Xiao cried and shook his head, trying to explain. “I really wasn’t running! Can’t you just calm down? I wasn’t running, I won’t leave you! Gu Qian, husband, I really won’t run, please believe me… sob…”
Gu Qian didn’t say a word. He pulled him into the car and sped toward home.
Xiao Xiao thought he was being taken back to that 60th-floor high-rise.
He truly didn’t want to go back there. If he had to go back, he would really lose his mind.
But thankfully, this time, Gu Qian took him to a normal apartment.
It was only three stories high, and the hallways and elevator were very spacious. Xiao Xiao didn’t feel too scared.
But the moment they stepped inside, he felt something was wrong. Gu Qian took him straight to the bedroom, pulled an iron chain out from the head of the bed, and locked it around his ankle.
Xiao Xiao was stunned. “Wh-Why?”
He grabbed Gu Qian’s shirt, screaming and crying. “Why? Why are you doing this? I already said I wouldn’t leave! I already said I wouldn’t run away! Why are you doing this to me?”
“I liked you! I loved you! Why are you destroying my love for you like this? Don’t you know you’re the one killing my feelings for you? You… you’re a lunatic!”
Xiao Xiao couldn’t take it anymore and broke down into uncontrollable sobs.
He was a beta who now had heat cycles that only Gu Qian could resolve. Wasn’t that an invisible chain in itself?
Why did Gu Qian think he would run?
Why was he doing this to him?
Seeing him completely break down, Gu Qian panicked. He quickly pulled him up onto the bed, holding him and cooing, “I was wrong, I was wrong. Don’t cry, Xiao Xiao. I won’t chain you. I’ll unlock it right now, I’ll unlock it.”
With that, Gu Qian started searching everywhere for the key.
But he couldn’t find it anywhere. He cupped Xiao Xiao’s face. “The key is at the office,” he said helplessly. “I’ll go get it right now. Don’t be scared, just wait for me. I’ll be back soon.”
Recommended Reads
