Chapter 16
Bai He was woken up by the heat. He opened his drowsy eyes, his eyelids felt heavy, and his throat was dry.
The autumn weather was no longer too hot, and there was an air conditioner in the room, but Bai He had not turned it on, so the air moisture was not sucked dry like when the air conditioner was on. However, Bai He was still very thirsty. He turned over in bed, blindly groping under the pillow, and the light of the phone screen was strikingly obvious in the darkness. Bai He closed his eyes from the glare, and it was a while before he slowly opened them again.
It was two o’clock in the morning.
He lazily remained in the quilt for a long time, and his abdomen was also slightly sore and distended. Unable to bear it any longer, he finally had to flip open the thin blanket and get up. His feet searched in the darkness for a while before finally finding the slippers, and he slowly stood up, walking out in a daze.
There was no bathroom in the room, and the only bathroom was outside the room. Bai He lowered his eyelashes and slightly bowed his head, not turning on the lights, and groped his way to the bathroom along the wall.
In the darkness, there seemed to be a faint, barely perceptible aura lingering around, and for a moment, the aura became much more concentrated. Bai He, with his head bowed, was completely in standby mode.
Soon, the sound of handwashing came from the bathroom, the subtle movements amplified in the silence. In the living room, Alpha Qin Yao’s fiery eyes flickered in the darkness, and as he heard the sound of slippers dragging out of the bathroom, he slowly closed his eyes again.
The sound of movement was slow and light, not deliberately lightened, as Bai He walked loosely, without the slightest stealth, indicating that he was just too light, and the footsteps sounded vague and weak.
The sound went to the kitchen, and after a moment, the water dispenser placed in the kitchen made a sound – Bai He was drinking water, the sound of his fingers rubbing the cup, the sound of swallowing, every subtle movement was captured by the highly sensitive senses of Qin Yao in his heat period.
In this dark night, those sounds were magnified infinitely, and the timely activation of the Maine Coon’s genes made him clearly hear all the sounds Bai He made, smell Bai He’s pheromones, and even his excellent night vision ability let him see clearly the young man standing in the kitchen drinking water, only wearing a loose shirt, his long and straight legs shining bare.
A trace of gloominess flashed in the half-lowered eyes of Qin Yao, and he closed his eyes again, turning his head towards the sofa, burying his nose in the thin blanket Bai He had given him and taking a deep breath.
The sound of drinking water stopped, and the footsteps came out of the kitchen and slowly went towards the room. Qin Yao listened to Bai He’s footsteps, counting them in his heart, until the count should have stopped when Bai He entered the room, but the footsteps did not disappear, and instead came closer to him, and the Alpha’s heart sank.
Bai He came to Qin Yao’s side, just about to go back to his room, his throat seemed to be a little irritated again. Even though he had just drunk water, how could that be?
He instinctively touched his face, it was hot, and then touched his forehead, it was hot too. Bai He realized that he might have a fever. He stopped and walked out again, originally intending to go to the living room to find a fever reducer, but in the moonlight from the window, he found that there was someone lying on the sofa.
Bai He suddenly remembered that Qin Yao was staying at his place.
He looked at Qin Yao for a few seconds, and for some reason, he slowly squatted down next to the sofa, staring at Qin Yao’s profile.
The Alpha’s appearance was extremely good, with superior features, a sharp yet soft outline. From Bai He’s current angle, he could only see the side of Qin Yao’s face, and his eyes were closed, his eyelashes were very long.
It was strange, Bai He’s throat seemed to not be thirsty anymore. He touched his forehead, and it seemed to have cooled down a bit.
He smelled a very fragrant scent, like the aroma of fruit wine, and gradually, the pure, faint fragrance seemed to be sinking, the scent sweeping through his nose becoming the aroma of incense and pine, heavy and lingering. Bai He’s head felt a little dizzy, but not uncomfortable, and he even felt a bit happy.
He remembered a perfume from his previous life, Penhaligon’s Blenheim Bouquet. Bai He didn’t use perfume, he only occasionally smelled this brand, the deer’s head, giving him the first impression of stability, because this perfume was really like the faint scent of wine on a gentleman’s body. Bai He didn’t know why he would think that way, he had no concept of gentlemen, perhaps those thoughts were just from his inherent mentality.
Qin Yao’s aura, it should be his pheromones… Bai He remembered that Qin Yao had mentioned it when he had dinner at the Alpha’s place, so Qin Yao’s pheromones were similar to the scent of Penhaligon’s Blenheim Bouquet?
Blenheim Bouquet – Woody Brandy.
Bai He hugged his knees and squatted next to the sofa, tilting his head, looking at Qin Yao’s profile without getting tired. In his heart, he reached a conclusion: Qin Yao’s pheromones were more like the top notes of Blenheim Bouquet – the warm scent of fruit wine.
Qin Yao gave him an impression of gentleness, he was a person who loved to smile and was willing to help others. Bai He secretly felt that the drydown of Blenheim Bouquet was not suitable to describe Qin Yao, because Blenheim Bouquet also had a hidden layer of meaning – the masked gentleman.
“Jasmine might suit you better,” Bai He murmured, looking at Qin Yao’s slightly upturned eye corners, which were similar to the sharp and beautiful cat-like eyes in a certain way: “But you are not little cardamom or jasmine.”
After a few seconds of silence, Bai He lowered his eyes slightly and muttered to himself, “Brandy still smells good…”
The person pretending to sleep could no longer bear it, and in the darkness, Qin Yao closed his eyes and lightly chuckled, his voice full of tenderness and helplessness, “Does Bai He seem a little disappointed?”
Bai He was stunned, looking up and making eye contact with Qin Yao, who had turned his head to look at him in the darkness. After a few seconds of silence, he slowly shook his head, “No.”
“Jasmine?” Qin Yao smiled, “The captivating Jasmine? Cathead?”
Bai He paused again, then nodded.
So this world also had that perfume.
Qin Yao didn’t sit up, just turned his head and looked at Bai He, his face barely visible in the darkness, his voice carrying an ambiguous smile, like a hook, “Jasmine rose, charming delicacy, I shouldn’t be called a femme fatale, right?”
“Of course not,” Bai He responded instinctively.
Qin Yao sat up, suddenly towering over Bai He by a lot, he lowered his head, his eyes reflecting Bai He’s upturned face, “Then a dandy?”
“No…” Bai He was about to blurt out, but he realized it was not right, and quickly shook his head, “You’re not a masked gentleman either.”
Cathead had the reputation of being a femme fatale, while Blenheim Bouquet was called a masked gentleman. Bai He felt that Qin Yao was neither of these, so he looked up at Qin Yao and said, “I just think your eye corners look a bit like a cat, nothing else.”
This time it was Qin Yao who fell silent for a while, and then let out a soft laugh. He leaned closer to Bai He, his warm breath sweeping over Bai He’s ear tip, causing a ripple.
“How can you be sure?” Qin Yao asked him.
Bai He blinked, “What?”
Qin Yao smiled, “How can you be sure I’m not a masked gentleman?”
Bai He almost immediately replied, “Because you’re a good person.”
The Alpha who received the “nice person” card was delighted inside. He raised his hand and pinched Bai He’s ear lobe, soft, his heart also softened, and he couldn’t resist it anymore. Qin Yao slowly lowered his head, unobtrusively approaching Bai He’s neck, “Why aren’t you sleeping and squatting here?”
Bai He thought Qin Yao was sleepy, “I might have a fever, I came to find medicine. Are you sleepy?”
The Alpha naturally rested his head on Bai He’s shoulder, hooking his lips, “Mm, sleepy, let me lean on you.”
Completely unaware of anything unusual, Bai He just quietly squatted next to him and let Qin Yao use him as a pillow. After a long time, Qin Yao sighed very softly, “Are you really going to let me lean on you all the time?”
Bai He thought for two seconds, “No, I was going to call you in a while.”
Qin Yao pondered, then suddenly asked, “Bai He, have you been to the hospital for a checkup?”
At this moment, Bai He felt like a student whose homework was being checked by a teacher, but it only lasted a few seconds, he traced his fingertips on his knees and honestly said, “Not yet.”
The timing was indeed tight, Qin Yao expressed understanding, he looked seriously into Bai He’s eyes, “I smelled your pheromones.”
Silence.
Bai He reacted a bit slower, his lips slightly parted, the pearls of his lips seemed to have stuck together a bit from being pressed for too long, and when he opened them, they lightly quivered. In the weak moonlight, Qin Yao, with his excellent night vision ability, saw it clearly, his gaze stuck on those soft lips for a moment before shifting away.
“What does it smell like?” Bai He asked.
“……” Qin Yao calmly smiled, “Bai He, I think I should give you a brief introduction to some gender knowledge.”
Bai He thought his question might have been out of character, then he reacted again, remembering that in this world, betas did not take AO-related sex education courses.
Basically, he was still a beta, without a uterus or anything, but now he could secrete pheromones, so he should indeed learn some gender knowledge.
“Don’t casually ask others about their pheromones outside, and don’t ask others about your own pheromone scent either,” Qin Yao said, “That would be impolite.”
“…Impolite?” Bai He’s expression stiffened.
Qin Yao nodded, “In other words, it would be flirtatious.”
“Pheromones are very private things, mutual smelling or discussing scent…” He smiled and lowered his voice, “It’s a very ambiguous behavior, only lovers would do that.”
Bai He was struck by lightning. He began to reflect on who he had ever asked or discussed pheromones with, and found that it was only with Qin Yao, so he breathed a sigh of relief.
Seeing his reaction, the Alpha raised an eyebrow, not speaking. After a few seconds, Bai He remembered something else and frowned, “But didn’t Zhang Wenyi also mention your pheromones? He said he got the information from someone else, and it seems many people know your pheromones are brandy?”
“Hmm.” Qin Yao’s voice was lazy, “I don’t care where they got the information from, but they’ve never discussed my pheromones to my face.”
In fact, it’s not that they never discussed it, but Qin Yao just wanted to say this to Bai He now, for some reason he himself found inexplicable.
Bai He fell silent.
Qin Yao didn’t tease him anymore, “Your pheromones are very faint, I couldn’t smell them.”
Bai He looked up.
“But…” Qin Yao smiled, gently tapping Bai He’s brow, “It smells good, remember to go to the hospital when you have a chance.”
“…Okay.” Bai He blinked and nodded.
Qin Yao lazily lay back on the sofa, “Go back to sleep, night owl.”
Bai He hummed in response, just about to turn and leave, but his legs had gone numb from squatting for too long, and he completely didn’t have time to react, his body sliding down. Qin Yao reacted extremely quickly, supporting himself and pulling Bai He onto the sofa, thus preventing Bai He from falling to the floor.
The numbness and tingling in his legs had not yet subsided, so Bai He couldn’t get up. He had to sit there and not move, unconsciously clenching the nearby fabric, his waist being held, Bai He sensed the warmth of the person behind him, he stiffened for a moment, then dryly said, “Thank you.”
There was no response for a long time, then Qin Yao gave a short “en”.
Bai He was sitting on Qin Yao’s lap, his body a bit tense, his gaze wandering down, only then did he realize that his legs were bare.
Suddenly, he felt something hard pressing against his right buttock, it was painful. He turned his head and asked Qin Yao, “What do you have in your pocket? It’s so hard.”
Qin Yao’s breath was heavy, his voice a bit hoarse, “A phone… I think.”
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