A Stand-in Alpha Awakens - Chapter 32

At 3:00 PM, the doors and windows of Room 601 were tightly shut, and the curtains were drawn so securely that not a single sliver of light could escape. Standing at the door, one couldn’t hear a sound from inside; it was impossible to tell if the inhabitants were intentionally staying quiet or if the world outside was simply too noisy.

Chu Zishan stood there with a dark expression for a while. The more she thought, the more pointless it felt, and the more pointless it felt, the more her temper flared. A fire seemed to be burning in her heart, making her chest feel suffocatingly tight and her head throb.

“Fuck!” She turned around and kicked the low wall beside her. A clear, half-footprint appeared instantly on the snow-white surface.

Heading down from the sixth floor, she walked with practiced ease into the dormitory where Chu Ziyan stayed. Coldly nodding a greeting to Gu Wenjing—the only person she recognized there—she grabbed Chu Ziyan, who was slumped over her desk, and dragged her toward the exit.

“What are you doing? Didn’t I tell you I wasn’t going this afternoon? If Mom and Dad ask, just say I’m too tired from class and catching up on sleep or doing practice problems… anything works.” Chu Ziyan grabbed her sister’s hand, stumbling to keep up. Her face was haggard, devoid of any energy.

Chu Zishan was already fuming; hearing this made her angrier. Once out of the dormitory building, she turned around in a rage, releasing her grip and shoving Ziyan’s hand away. “Who agreed to that? I clearly said I wasn’t going to get involved. If you want to lie, lie yourself.”

Chu Ziyan took half a step back, her voice sounding weak. “How is this lying, Shanshan…”

Chu Zishan didn’t want to hear her pathetic excuses. She raised her hand impatiently to cut her off. “Enough, Sis! Can you just tell me the truth? What is wrong with you?”

Chu Ziyan remained silent.

Chu Zishan couldn’t stand her “half-dead” look. She crossed her arms and turned away. “I seriously don’t understand. You can invite Jiang Lu for afternoon tea, but you can’t eat with our own parents? Are you for real?”

“Shanshan, you don’t understand.” Chu Ziyan lowered her head, her gaze failing to focus on the ground at her feet.

Ever since she was a child, Chu Zishan hated the phrase “you don’t understand” more than anything. Hearing it from her sister—who was only a year older—made her snap. “I don’t understand? What don’t I understand? I don’t understand you acting like you don’t want to live? I don’t understand you acting like this because you failed to get an Alpha to eat with you…”

Chu Ziyan froze as if her connection to the world had been severed. She stood there dazed, the words she had said to Liang Shuang in the cafeteria earlier echoing in her mind like a burst of fireworks.

“Wait, Sis… you like Alphas?” Chu Zishan’s lowered volume formed a sharp contrast to her previous recklessness. “Are you in this miserable state because of Jiang Lu?”

“You… you…”

“No! I don’t have such ‘heavy’ tastes!” Chu Ziyan denied it vehemently.

For Betas, falling in love with the same second gender had no physiological impact. For Alphas and Omegas, it was fatal. Especially for Alphas—death was considered a light outcome. Their mutually repellent and aggressive pheromones would clash violently. Either one party would have to proactively surgically remove their scent glands—and then wait for the inevitable separation as their health failed—or both would passively endure the clash until their glands withered, burning their lives away in love and heading to the grave together. It was so cruel that even the possibility of a “Platonic” relationship barely existed.

An Alpha falling for another Alpha? In Chu Zishan’s eyes, you might as well just die; at least it would be quicker and less painful.

Seeing that Chu Ziyan was serious about her denial, Chu Zishan asked with a cold sneer: “Then tell me, which Omega is it?”

“I’m not telling you. Forget it, I’ll go with you to see Mom and Dad.” Chu Zishan didn’t know about Chu Ziyan’s feelings for Su Mengrui, but their parents had known for a long time. At the time, they hadn’t opposed it, only making a “Three Chapters of Agreement” with Chu Ziyan: before the College Entrance Exam, the two were not allowed to engage in any behavior beyond friendship.

They all knew—including Chu Ziyan herself—that she was too sensitive. And love is the thing most likely to fluctuate one’s emotions. Chu Ziyan tried to restrain herself, but there are too many things in this world that are beyond control. She couldn’t control her own emotions, and she certainly couldn’t control Su Mengrui.

Gambling one’s future was a poor move from any angle, especially since the two could coexist; it was just difficult for her. The Chu parents intended to arrange a marriage for their daughters to maximize the family’s interests. Since they valued profit and calculated life so heavily, they naturally saw no reason to let her damage her own value before they could collect the returns.

Chu Ziyan knew this well, which was why she was so afraid to lay it all out. Once the problem between her and Su Mengrui escalated from two people to two families, there would truly be no room for regret.

Chu Zishan couldn’t understand her sister’s pain. She leaned against the car seat, looking at the scenery outside the window, her heart and eyes full of longing for life outside school. Having not been home for three weeks, she missed her holiday lifestyle dearly. Fortunately, the monthly exams were coming up; after the exams, there would be two days to relax, followed by another week or so before the Mid-Autumn long weekend arrived. Just thinking about it felt comfortable.

The more Chu Zishan thought, the more relaxed she became. Seeing the gardenia flowers blooming beautifully by the road, she rolled down the window and took a deep breath. She was just about to comment on how good they smelled when she caught sight of a familiar-looking girl in a silver car in the next lane.

The tint on the car window was too dark to see clearly, but the silhouette looked remarkably similar. Is it her? The Omega who appeared at No. 1 High on the first day of school. She had seen her last time too and wanted to chase her to strike up a conversation, but Jiang Lu had delayed her.

Tsk!

Chu Zishan leaned against the window edge to get a better look, not realizing the car was in a different lane and heading a different way. Just then, the light turned green. The two cars separated at the intersection, heading in completely opposite directions.

License plate, license plate! Chu Zishan immediately turned her head back to look. Unfortunately, an SUV pulled up behind each of them, blocking the view completely.

Damn! I didn’t see anything! I don’t even know the car brand!

Chu Zishan pounded her fist on the seat back in disappointment. She turned back and closed the window, feeling a mix of excitement and irritation. The last two times she’d seen her, the girl wasn’t wearing a school uniform, and this time she was driving her own car—she really looked like a “Big Sister” (older student/alumna).

“Big Sister?” As long as the age gap wasn’t more than ten years, it wasn’t a problem for her! Chu Zishan thought dazed; next time they met, no matter what, she had to get her contact information.

Beside her, Chu Ziyan thought Zishan was calling her and gave a small “Mhm,” leaning back to wait for the rest. However, Chu Zishan didn’t say another word until they got out of the car.

After dropping Jiang Lu and her “grumpy-faced” friend at the gate of No. 1 High, Bai Yue immediately headed home with the custom cake. Entering the house, she saw Xiao Bai and Yi Tiao (the cats) lying on the sofa. Su Cheng wasn’t there. She called out curiously: “Mom? The cake is here!”

Su Cheng was in the kitchen looking for scissors to cut a cat treat. Hearing the voice, she shuffled out quickly in her slippers. “Yueyue, you’re back! Did you buy the freeze-dried snacks and dried fish I asked for?”

“I did, I did. Bought them all.” Bai Yue set the cake down. “I left the ones for them at the door. I’ll take them directly upstairs later.”

Su Cheng unhappily handed one of the cat treats to her daughter. “Why take them up? Didn’t I tell you? From now on, Xiao Bai and Yi Tiao stay with me.”

“Mom, didn’t we discuss this? We’ll talk about it when I come back for winter break. You can’t go back on your word.” Bai Yue picked up the ten-plus-pound Xiao Bai to feed it, her eyes secretly observing Su Cheng, who was pouting in anger.

Su Cheng hadn’t expected her daughter—who usually gave in to her on everything—to be so stubborn about the cats. After a few grumbles, she compromised while stroking Yi Tiao’s back. “Fine, fine. Aren’t you supposed to leave? Go on. I’ll take them up after we eat the cake.”

Bai Yue stroked Xiao Bai’s head, her smile gentle. “There’s no rush. I’ll stay while you finish.”

“Really? You have to watch me take them up? In your eyes, is your mother that untrustworthy?” Su Cheng curled her lip and turned her back to Bai Yue.

Bai Yue set the cat down and moved to her side, hugging her from behind while quietly releasing some soothing pheromones. “It’s not that, Mom. I haven’t seen you in days and I missed you. I just want to spend more time with you.”

“Really?” The frown on Su Cheng’s face smoothed out. She turned back to look at her daughter leaning on her arm. “Then I’ll choose to believe you for now!”

Bai Yue leaned against Su Cheng’s arm, the corners of her mouth—which she had held up for so long—slumping down. Her heart felt unutterably heavy. Su Cheng’s state over the last two years was much better compared to when Bai Yue was in middle school, but every time she sensed a shift in her mother’s emotions, Bai Yue’s heart would tighten instinctively. She lived in fear that the scenes she was used to, but never wanted to see again, would happen the very next second.

She didn’t know if this counted as overthinking, but as long as there was even a shred of possibility, Bai Yue couldn’t help but be on guard.

Su Cheng grew a bit tired of being hugged and reached out to pat the top of her daughter’s head. “Alright, alright, stop acting like a baby. Let’s eat the cake. It’s hot, so it won’t keep long. It won’t taste good if the cream melts.”

“Mhm, okay.” Bai Yue adjusted her mood and looked up, standing to unpack the cake.

The cake wasn’t large. When they were almost finished eating, a knock sounded at the door, followed by the sound of the digital lock opening. After a set of familiar footsteps, Sister Qiao—who was specifically responsible for helping Bai Yue care for the cats—walked out from the entryway.

Seeing Su Cheng focused on eating, Bai Yue picked up Yi Tiao. “Mom, Sister Qiao is here. I’m going up with her for a bit.”

Su Cheng waved her off. “Go on. I know you’re in a hurry. Just leave directly afterward, no need to come back down.”

“Okay,” Bai Yue replied. After stepping out, she headed upstairs with Sister Qiao, the cats, and the new supplies. “Next time my mother wants to take the cats downstairs, follow her. Don’t let her be alone with the cats. Sister Zhang is on leave for the next two days.”

“I’ll have to trouble you to keep a close eye.” After speaking, Bai Yue put the cats on the climbing frame and pulled an envelope from her bag to hand it over.

Heading down from the upper floor, Bai Yue drove straight to the high-speed rail station, preparing to return to A-City.

Vibrate, vibrate.

The dark phone screen and the smartwatch lit up simultaneously. Jiang Lu lifted her wrist; the same content appeared on both the large and small screens.

Bai Yue: I’m heading back to A-City. Remember to tell me if there’s anything you want~

A smile touched Jiang Lu’s lips. She covered the screen with her hand, determined to finish the rest of the movie before replying. Today’s chosen film was only an hour and forty minutes long. Playing it at 1.25x speed, she would have plenty of time to chat afterward. Even if it was just a few lines of small talk.

After the movie, Room 601 returned to normal. The curtains were pulled aside, and sunlight hit the desks below the beds. Liang Shuang hadn’t showered yet. She leaned against her bed, looking at Jiang Lu, who was sitting on her own bunk. “Hey! What are you looking at? You’re so entranced Shuyi called you three times and you didn’t react at all.”

“Huh?” Jiang Lu looked up blankly. “Shuyi called me?”

Shao Shuyi stood at the open dormitory door and nodded. “Yes! I wanted to ask if you wanted some mint cookies. I bought them today; they’re delicious, but everyone else says they don’t like them.”

“Mint flavor?” Jiang Lu caught the keyword accurately. “There are mint-flavored cookies? I want to try. I want some!”

“Got it, I’ll go get them for you.” Shao Shuyi turned to leave.

Jiang Lu tossed her phone aside and jumped down into her slippers. “Wait, I’ll go with you.”

Ten-plus seconds later, the dormitory door closed behind them. The phone lying by the pillow flashed, and a message from an unknown number popped up. Liang Shuang stood by the bed and craned her neck to look. Before she could even clear the first line, the screen went black.