Chapter 39

Chapter 39

"Touch what?" Meeting his gaze, Li Yang suddenly understood, even forgetting to maintain their usual safe distance.

Only when warm breath brushed his face did he snap out of it, immediately taking a step back.

Ying Xi gently guided his hand to his shoulder.

At first, the sensation was soft and yielding, but then it turned firm. Li Yang’s curiosity quickly overshadowed his shyness.

"Why was it soft at first?"

"My body was relaxed. It's firm now because I'm tensing up," Ying Xi explained with a gentle smile.

Li Yang ran his hand from shoulder to arm, feeling the defined muscle lines glide under his palm before quickly withdrawing his hand.

"It's cold outside. You should put your coat on."

Li Yang pulled up his hoodie, hiding his subtly warming cheeks.

Ying Xi slipped on his gray overcoat and was the first to open the door.

Li Yang’s gaze lingered on him for a moment before he glanced down at his own jacket.

Ying Xi looked like a runway model, while he felt like a mere teenager.

But the moment they stepped outside, that thought vanished.

It was freezing.

Li Yang had initially left his jacket open, but now, completely disregarding appearances, he yanked the zipper all the way up and practically dove into the car.

Bad call. Today was even colder than when it had snowed.

Watching Ying Xi calmly fasten his seatbelt and cross his legs, utterly unbothered, Li Yang couldn’t help but ask, "Aren’t you cold?"

Ying Xi didn’t answer. Instead, he reached over and placed his palm on the back of Li Yang’s hand—just for a second, but a spark of warmth ignited through him.

He really wasn’t cold.

Li Yang rubbed the back of his hand, his mind buzzing, and the chill was forgotten.

Arriving in the classroom, Li Yang unzipped his jacket and sat down.

Before long, Wen Yun walked in, clutching a novel, and immediately noticed him. "You look different today."

"Where?" Li Yang glanced down, wondering if there was something unusual about his appearance.

"Sharper than usual." Wen Yun looked behind him. "Ying Xi too—dressed like he’s going out. And both of you are wearing gray. Did you plan this?"

Before Li Yang could respond, Wen Yun suddenly smirked knowingly. "Matching couple outfits?"

"How can a hoodie and an overcoat be a couple outfit?" Li Yang chuckled awkwardly. "Nothing’s different. I’m just wearing a thinner jacket today, so maybe it looks better than a puffy winter coat."

"True." Wen Yun sat down, placing the novel on the desk, his eyes lighting up as he praised, "I think you’re getting more and more handsome."

"Thanks, you look good too," Li Yang replied sincerely. "Especially your eyes—they’ve gotten brighter."

Wen Yun pointed at his eyelids. "You noticed? I pulled an all-nighter reading a novel, and now my double eyelids look way better than usual."

Li Yang couldn’t help but laugh at his words.

"Did something happen between you two? Ying Xi’s been staring this way like he’s trying to burn a hole through us," Wen Yun asked, teetering on his chair.

"No," Li Yang answered immediately.

Wen Yun gave him a side-eye. "Answering that fast means something definitely happened."

Li Yang hesitated, then sighed. "Really, nothing. I just… worked some things out."

True to his reputation as an avid novel reader, Wen Yun instantly picked up on the key point and analyzed it swiftly. "Figured out your feelings?"

Li Yang glanced at the novel in Wen Yun’s hand, evasively. "No."

It wasn’t just feelings, so it didn’t count.

"New Year’s Eve is in a few days. Want to hang out?" Wen Yun smoothly changed the subject.

New Year’s Eve?

Li Yang froze, realizing he’d been here for almost three months.

How time flew. The old him would never have imagined getting entangled with Ying Xi like this.

"Have you decided where to go for New Year’s?" Li Yang asked.

"Not yet, but I’ve got plans for Christmas tomorrow." Wen Yun whipped out his phone and showed a photo. "This place. Wanna come?"

The photo showed a street dripping with red and green decorations, lined with glittering presents and Christmas trees.

Li Yang checked his phone, surprised. "I didn’t even realize today’s Christmas Eve."

"I’ll go." He nodded and started scrolling for gift ideas.

Wen Xinci had indeed transferred into their class.

But ever since his self-introduction, he’d been glued to his phone, and with Li Yang actively avoiding him, he hadn’t noticed.

That was, until after class, when Wen Xinci caught sight of Ying Xi—impossible to miss in the classroom.

He did a double take, startled.

At their first meeting, Wen Xinci had been genuinely interested in Ying Xi, but now he felt nothing. Instead, his gaze swept the room, searching.

Soon, he spotted someone face-down on a desk in front, face hidden.

Wen Xinci walked over. "I sent you so many messages, and you didn’t reply. Did you block me?"

Li Yang didn’t look up. "Wrong guy."

Wen Xinci scoffed. "I’d recognize you even if you shrank to ant-size."

Without waiting for a response, he continued, "Talk about fate—last time we met, and now we’re classmates. Let’s spend Christmas together tomorrow."

"I already have plans," Li Yang said tonelessly, finally lifting his head, his face blank.

Wen Xinci wasn’t buying it.

Wen Yun cut in quickly, "Yeah, he’s already booked to come with us."

"No problem, I can just tag along with you guys," Wen Xinci said in a tone that left no room for argument.

Wen Yun hesitated, holding back from being too blunt.

"No," Li Yang refused outright. "You can't come with us."

"Why not?"

"You're too noisy," Li Yang said bluntly, his eyes brimming with clear dislike.

Surprised by how openly Li Yang displayed his dislike, Wen Xinci sulked and lounged casually against Li Yang’s desk, unfazed.

"That Alpha can be close to you, but I can’t? What gives?"

Hearing this, Wen Yun discreetly glanced back and silently said a prayer for Wen Xinci in his mind.

*Not only is he close, they even live together. If you’d just turn around, you wouldn’t be so cocky.*

Behind them, Ying Xi sat upright, arms resting on the desk, fingers interlaced beneath his chin. He watched Wen Xinci with a smile that didn’t reach his eyes—only an endless, frosty glare.

Finally sensing the unusual weight of that gaze, Wen Xinci locked eyes with Ying Xi and shot a challenging grin.

"What’s between you and that Alpha? Staring at me like he wants to eat me alive—what, does he like you or something?"

Initially assuming this Beta was the one pestering the Alpha, Wen Xinci now had a completely different impression.

Unable to endure any more of his rambling, Li Yang picked up a book and pushed him away from the desk, his voice cool. "Like I said last time, he’s obsessed with me."

The first time, it could’ve been dismissed as a joke. But now, paired with Ying Xi’s piercing stare, the statement suddenly seemed credible.

For a brief moment, Wen Xinci froze.

He stood there, hesitant, before finally speaking with unexpected seriousness.

"Maybe you should consider me instead. Wouldn’t it be better to be with an Omega like me than an Alpha?"

Before Li Yang could react, Wen Yun’s face went pale.

*Given Ying Xi’s possessiveness, this Wen Xinci guy is toast.*

Li Yang wondered if everyone assumed Betas were easy targets, given how often people approached him with half-baked confessions.

Ignoring Wen Xinci, his expression iced over, transforming his previously approachable demeanor into something distant and closed-off.

"Don’t be like that," Wen Xinci said, grinning, visibly pleased to have gotten a reaction out of Li Yang. "Just a suggestion—I’m interested in you. Take me off block, yeah?"

He leaned in slightly. "That Alpha won’t treat you right, but I will. I’m a premium Omega. Li Yang, choose me."

The mocking glee in his tone and the gleeful anticipation in his eyes made Li Yang scowl.

"You’ve been overstepping from the start," Li Yang said coldly. "Someone like you probably doesn’t have any real friends, which is why you’re harassing me. Am I wrong?"

"What does being ‘high-quality’ matter? Go find someone who actually likes that kind of bragging. Not someone who clearly dislikes you yet you still insist on annoying me."

Wen Xinci’s smile stiffened, clearly stung by Li Yang’s words, his smile strained.

"Why the attitude all of a sudden?" Wen Xinci forced a grin, though his act slipped. "I was being genuine, you know."

"Whatever," he muttered before turning and walking back to his seat.

As he passed Ying Xi, the latter—who had been scowling—tilted his head to look at him, eyes cold.

Wen Xinci paid him no mind, stewing over Li Yang’s comeback.

Wen Yun sighed. "Anyone watching would think you two were close, the way you laid into him. Guess you struck a chord—he left because he was embarrassed."

Li Yang opened his book. "Maybe."

Someone with Wen Xinci’s personality probably struggled to form real connections, only suited for followers who kissed his ass as a "high-quality Omega."

Irritated, Li Yang gave up reading. He rubbed his temples and looked around, only to find Ying Xi gone.

Spotting Wen Xinci still at his seat, Li Yang relaxed slightly, glad Ying Xi hadn’t jumped him.

"Have you seen Ying Xi?"

"No, maybe he dipped," Wen Yun said.

Li Yang zoned out at his textbook.

A moment later, a cup of milk tea appeared in front of him, instantly cooling his temper. He looked up.

"Don’t let others bother you," Ying Xi said softly, handing another cup to Wen Yun.

"My turn?" Wen Yun accepted it with a smile, lowering his voice. "I think Wen Xinci’s just bored and messing with Li Yang. We should be careful tomorrow during Christmas."

Ying Xi paused, his expression neutral. "We should."

Holding the warm cup, Li Yang felt a weird flutter in his chest.

No one had ever paid such close attention to his moods, let alone tried to comfort him.

Only Ying Xi.

The tall youth walked back to his seat.

Meeting Wen Xinci’s disdainful gaze, Ying Xi smiled faintly—this time, completely dismissing him.

*If it’s about winning favor, I can do that too.*

Wen Xinci, seeing this, marched into the convenience store and returned with two large bags of snacks, dumping them on Li Yang’s desk.

"Okay, my tone earlier was off," Wen Xinci said, patting the bags. "Consider this an apology."

Li Yang pushed the bags aside and said bluntly, "I don’t like Omegas, so stop trying to talk to me."

"If Alphas are fine, why not Omegas?" Wen Xinci frowned, oblivious to how grating his forced familiarity was.

Noticing Ying Xi’s piercing stare, he scoffed. "What, are you two already together or something?"