Chapter 12

Chapter 12

Li Yang: "..."

He nearly imploded on the spot.

This was utterly preposterous.

The things Ying Xi had said over the past few days, coupled with his odd habit of constantly following him, finally made sense.

"Stop messing around," Li Yang said flatly, feeling no joy at the confession—only profound numbness. "You don't actually like me."

He had just begun to grasp a sliver of reality in this world, only for Ying Xi's confession to shatter it once more.

Truly, this novel world lived up to its name. They had only known each other for a few days, yet here was such a casual, fluid confession.

"Why?" Ying Xi's jaw tightened, the flush in his ears gradually fading.

"You're an Alpha," Li Yang said, recalling his mother's words—a perfectly convenient excuse for rejection. "I'm a Beta. I don't get involved with Alphas."

"I can get surgery," Ying Xi replied without hesitation, pulling out his phone. "I'll become a Beta. Would that work?"

Li Yang: "..."

This surgery idea just wouldn't die.

Watching him start to book an appointment, Li Yang took a deep breath and said coldly, "No need. Even if you get the surgery, I won't be with you."

As far as he knew, this world didn't have a procedure to turn an Alpha into a Beta; he only remembered the setting mentioning gland removal surgery.

Ying Xi remained completely unfazed by his cold demeanor.

Having expressed his feelings, he seemed immensely satisfied, a faint smile playing on his lips the entire time.

"I'll keep trying."

"Don't bother," Li Yang protested, his expression a mask of agony. "Stop tormenting a Beta."

They were supposed to be friends, yet it turned out to be a friendship aimed at marriage.

Li Yang didn't want to deal with the lunatics in this world *and* someone who had feelings for him.

"I've caused you trouble. I'm sorry," Ying Xi lowered his head.

Hearing the apology, a flicker of hope lit up in Li Yang's eyes. "So you—"

"Just pretend I don't exist. I'll continue to like you, and you can continue not to like me," Ying Xi said slowly.

Li Yang: "?"

The words were spoken with such earnestness, as if he had found some balanced solution, that Li Yang stared at Ying Xi blankly, his mind too slow to process.

"No," Li Yang shook his head, shaking off those inappropriate thoughts and firmly rejecting the idea. "You cannot like me."

Ying Xi didn't press for a reason, but Li Yang had already decided to offer one.

Even if it wasn't entirely true.

"I hate Alphas."

He stared coldly at Ying Xi. "So there's no possibility of me ever being with you."

The words were sufficiently hurtful. Li Yang turned away, put on his mask, and said icily, "I can pretend you don't exist, but don't hover around me."

Ying Xi looked up, like a human-machine interface with only a string of data, unable to process the current complex situation, tilting his head as he tried his best to think of a solution.

Li Yang inexplicably found a hint of strange cuteness in this scene.

He quickly averted his gaze. "Whatever feelings you have for me are just a delusion."

What was there about him to like… or rather, did he like the *previous* Li Yang?

More importantly, Ying Xi should be pursuing the *other* protagonist, liking the *other* protagonist.

"It's not a delusion," Ying Xi took a step forward. "I know you don't believe me, but two weeks ago, I truly fell for you at first sight."

Li Yang's carefully maintained cold expression instantly crumbled.

Two weeks ago—that *was* him, not the original owner of this body.

Considering how he was constantly tormented by pheromones, forced to wear a mask, looked average at best, and had an ordinary personality—and Ying Xi *still* fell for him at first sight?

Li Yang felt a genuine sense of admiration.

Perhaps it was because he was a Beta, standing out too much among a crowd of Alphas and Omegas?

Li Yang sighed, his temples throbbing faintly, as fragmented memories flashed through his mind.

No wonder Ying Xi had come to take care of him when he was sick last time.

He had already liked him back then.

"...Until I'm clear about my own feelings, can I continue to stay by your side, as your friend?" Ying Xi took another step forward.

Only then did Li Yang realize how close they were.

Close enough that he could clearly feel Ying Xi's steady breathing and the faint scent of mint.

Pheromones?

No, he reacted to pheromones, but not to this scent.

Li Yang blinked, lost in thought.

"Li Yang?" Ying Xi leaned slightly, meeting his gaze.

Their eyes met. The sharp-eyed boy's gaze was filled with countless smiles, like a soft feather landing on his heart, bringing a tingling sensation.

The unfamiliar feeling was intoxicating, making him space out. Li Yang instinctively nodded in agreement.

"You agreed," Ying Xi said, as if afraid he would go back on his word, gripping Li Yang's wrist with his left hand and hooking his pinky with his right.

Their fingers intertwined intimately, warmth mingling, heat spreading from his fingers to every part of his body.

Li Yang wanted to struggle, but seeing Ying Xi's earnest expression, he momentarily forgot to react.

A strange emotion slowly blossomed, enveloping him tightly. Li Yang's lips moved slightly, but in the end, he silently looked away.

"Then it's settled, no backing out," Ying Xi murmured, tightening his grip as he gazed at their curved, yet not fully touching, fingers.

Then he watched as those fingers, like their owner, pulled away indifferently, without a moment's hesitation.

"Fine, whatever," Li Yang said helplessly.

He had never liked anyone before and wasn't sure if Ying Xi's "liking" was the delusion he thought it was, or genuine love at first sight.

But it didn't matter, just as Ying Xi had said.

He could like him all he wanted, and Li Yang could reject him all the same.

Li Yang turned, hands in his school uniform pockets, and lifted his eyelids slightly: "I'm going back to the classroom."

Ying Xi: "Let's go together."

Li Yang didn't refuse, nodding with a detached expression.

The fingers that had been touched in his pocket trembled faintly, still distinctly feeling the lingering warmth.

Scorching, stinging.

He lowered his gaze, trying hard to ignore this unsettling sensation.

＊

On a day in the low teens (Celsius), the classroom was already heated.

The moment Li Yang stepped inside, he thought he had somehow teleported to summer. Disbelieving, he backed out of the classroom door and glanced at the class sign.

No mistake.

Only an elite private school would do this.

Li Yang unzipped his jacket and returned to his seat.

From the moment he appeared, Jiang Su’s gaze had followed him.

Seeing Ying Xi sit down right after Li Yang, he couldn't wait to blurt out: "Ying Xi, why are you always following the class president?"

Ying Xi ignored him.

He slumped over the desk, face turned toward Li Yang, staring intently.

Perhaps because he had already endured a confession, Li Yang remained completely unfazed by that scorching gaze.

"You even hit me for the class president before—don’t tell me you actually like him?"

Jiang Su had been getting the cold shoulder for days, seething with frustration with nowhere to vent. Seeing Ying Xi constantly ignore him only fueled his resentment.

Acting all high and mighty.

His nostrils flared with anger, eyes brimming with disdain, though he didn’t dare show it too openly—his fidgeting was visible.

Ying Xi still didn’t respond, not even moving a muscle.

Jiang Su’s eyes darted around before he slyly redirected the topic toward Li Yang.

"Class president, Ying Xi’s basically admitting he likes you. Don’t you have anything to say about that?"

The boy who had just pulled out a book paused slightly, tilting his head to give Jiang Su a cool, sidelong glare before raising his hand and flipping him off.

The look in his eyes was icy and detached, utterly devoid of emotion, yet the middle finger hit like a truck.

Jiang Su slammed a fist on the desk, shooting up, red-faced.

Li Yang, masked and unfazed, withdrew his gaze and went back to his own business.

"Just a Beta." Jiang Su’s eyes fixed on the back of Ying Xi’s head as he forced himself to calm down, lashing out verbally. "Who does he think he is? He should know his place."

Li Yang showed no reaction, as if he hadn't heard a word.

All his anger felt like punching cotton—Jiang Su was choking on rage.

If Ying Xi was off-limits, could he really not touch this Beta either?

At that thought, Jiang Su took a step forward—only for the boy sitting beside Li Yang to sit up abruptly, arching his back in a stretch with an expressionless face.

His movements were casual, almost indifferent, his posture erect yet radiating a barrier of cold detachment.

No one could guess what he was thinking, making it impossible to make a move.

Jiang Su plopped back into his chair, scoffing and eye-rolling before snatching a bag of chips from the lackey beside him and cramming them into his mouth.

Once he found an opportunity, he’d make sure to teach this Beta a brutal lesson.

Jiang Su’s eyes glinted venomously, his movements growing more aggressive as the bag of chips was emptied in no time.

He munched noisily before tossing the empty bag onto his lackey’s head.

The lackey sniveled, "Boss, if you don’t like him, just hit him already."

"Shut up." Jiang Su gritted his teeth. "Can’t you see Ying Xi’s right there?"

"He wouldn’t care about some Beta." The lackey scratched his head. "None of the prime Omegas in class caught his eye—why would he defend a Beta over you?"

Jiang Su remembered getting humiliated to his face last week and punched the lackey’s head. "Shut up. If you’re so curious, go ask him yourself."

He had said so much just now, and Ying Xi had let it all slide—was he really protective of Li Yang, or did he just not care at all?

Jiang Su leaned toward the latter, but the incident from last week was still fresh in his mind. Grinding his molars, he decided to test the waters.

Jiang Su tilted his head toward the lackey. "When class ends, you..."

The lackey nodded eagerly. "Got it, boss. Don’t worry."

A wave of intense malice washed over Li Yang, who raised an eyebrow and glanced over.

Jiang Su guiltily averted his gaze, while the lackey beside him shot Li Yang a slimy glance.

Li Yang cheerfully flipped off the lackey.

Lackey: "Boss, that Beta just flipped me off! How dare he? That’s so disrespectful!"

"Shut up." Jiang Su refused to look at Li Yang. "Who told you to look at him? You’ll blow our cover. Look somewhere somewhere else."

The lackey muttered an "Oh" and turned to face the wall like a scolded child.

Morons.

Li Yang lowered his head calmly, already guessing these two were up to no good.

The scratching sound continued by his ear, and out of the corner of his eye, he caught sight of a lean, knuckled hand gripping a pen, writing nonstop.

Li Yang straightened up and stole a glance, immediately regretting it.

Ying Xi keenly noticed his curiosity and earnestly showed him the notebook.

Li Yang covered his face with his hand, pushing back hard. "I don't want to see it."

Yet the notebook was still placed on his desk.

The page was filled with the words "Li Yang," scrawled in bold, forceful strokes, carrying a sharpness that contrasted with his outward appearance.

The heater made the room stuffy, and Li Yang's cheeks burned hot.

He quickly peeled off his school jacket and handed the notebook back to Ying Xi.

"Stop writing my name all the time," he said coldly. "If you really want to write something, write your own."

Ying Xi readily agreed.

How quickly he agreed gave Li Yang a bad feeling. His right eye started twitching like crazy, and then he watched as Ying Xi added his own name after "Li Yang."

Then, with a flourish, he drew a heart in the middle.