Chapter 3: A Pleasant Fragrance
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An Lan went home and told his parents about the situation. His parents were overjoyed and prepared many delicious dishes.
As for his older sister, she was scolded by their parents. After all, she refused to lend money to An Lan for the check-up.
An Lan didn’t mind all this. He kept telling his parents that this might be temporary pheromone disruption, and he might not successfully differentiate into an alpha.
Mom’s thoughts were quite simple—anyway, even if he couldn’t differentiate into an alpha in the end, the height he gained during this period wouldn’t shrink back.
Becoming a tall and handsome beta is great too.
Influenced by his mom’s optimistic attitude, An Lan also felt quite happy.
Back in his room, An Lan sent a message to Qiao Chuluo: “[How are you?]”
Unexpectedly, Qiao Chuluo immediately called him, “Brother, are you worried about me?”
It seemed there was also a crunching sound on the other side.
An Lan immediately asked, “Are you eating potato chips?”
“Yeah,” Qiao Chuluo said proudly.
“D*mn, you scared me today. I was worried about you, and you’re already so carefree? Did you finish the English paper? Is physics and chemistry sorted out?”
“I suddenly entered the susceptible period today, scaring my homeroom teacher. He told me not to do the paper today and take a good rest.”
“The privilege of the wicked!” An Lan looked at his papers and felt a bit of a headache.
“Hehe, if you want to enjoy the privilege, then become an omega with me!” Qiao Chuluo was still sunny and cheerful, as if today’s events were nothing.
An Lan smiled. Ah Luo’s mood seemed unaffected; he could relax.
But Qiao Chuluo conscientiously completed the physics and chemistry comprehensive big questions, took pictures, and sent them to An Lan with a message, “[Dad will always be your study cheat].”
Seeing this, An Lan laughed. Suddenly, he felt that it didn’t matter what gender he would eventually differentiate into.
Look at Qiao Chuluo. In the eyes of others, omegas are supposed to be weak and in need of protection, but Qiao Chuluo’s physics and chemistry are better than most alphas in the class. He even represented the school in the provincial high jump competition and won second place, defeating many alphas.
So, even if he differentiated into an inferior alpha, it wouldn’t be a big deal.
An Lan looked at the comprehensive mock paper sent by Qiao Chuluo and understood it in a moment. Before 10 p.m., he had solved the science comprehensive simulation paper.
Qiao Chuluo sent a WeChat message: “[Dad, I’m waiting online. If you don’t understand, ask quickly; I’m going to sleep.]”
An Lan replied: “[I understood everything. Little Qiao, sleep well.]”
Unexpectedly, Qiao Chuluo called again, “An Lan, are you afraid of disturbing my adjustment, so you dare not ask me?”
“Huh? What do I dare not ask you?” An Lan was confused.
“The big physics question is quite difficult. Did you understand it?” Qiao Chuluo asked.
“I understood it. Your solution steps are very clear.”
“… An Lan, did your IQ skyrocket?” Qiao Chuluo said.
“Believe it or not, I’ll hit you!”
They chatted and laughed for a while before hanging up.
An Lan looked at his mock paper, carefully analyzing the last physics question, a comprehensive question combining mechanics and electromagnetics. Usually, this was his weak point. An Lan had to have him explain it to him for a long time before he could understand it.
But today, he suddenly understood it with just a glance at Qiao Chuluo’s solution steps. Wasn’t it not only his body that was differentiating but also his brain undergoing a second development?
After 10 p.m., An Lan was extremely tired and fell asleep as soon as he laid on his pillow.
The next morning, An Lan got up, rode his bicycle to school.
The gentle wind greeted him. An Lan closed his eyes, as if he could smell the scent of young buds on the branches, the fragrance of tender grass breaking through the soil, and even the aroma rising from the steaming hot soy milk several streets away.
The sounds in his ears also changed. For example, the faint sound of bicycle wheels rolling over fallen leaves, the fluttering of birds’ wings passing over electric poles a few streets away, and the sizzling sound from the breakfast stall a few streets away.
It was as if the presence of all the details he hadn’t noticed before had been magnified.
When he opened his eyes, the street he had ridden up and down countless times for class hadn’t changed compared to yesterday, but it felt like a different world.
—All the colors became vivid.
An Lan rubbed his eyes, thinking it was an illusion, but when he opened his eyes again, everything was still bright, and all the colors became more layered.
Was this the heightened senses of an alpha?
A bicycle passed by An Lan, and the ding-ding sound of the bell brought him back to his senses.
Oh, God, he had been daydreaming for five minutes; he had to hurry, or he would be late!
He rushed all the way, and just before the school gate closed, he finally made it in.
Arriving at the bicycle shed, An Lan planned to quickly lock up his bike and go to class. However, there was a voice coming from above.
“Hey, come over and give me a boost.”
Following the direction of the voice, An Lan saw someone sitting on the wall, with a lazy posture. Facial features were shrouded in shadows, but the forehead and nose bone, illuminated from the backlight, interweaved a sense of unruliness and sharpness.
An Lan didn’t recognize the person at first, but the voice was very familiar.
“Hurry up.” The person’s voice lowered a bit, seeming a little impatient.
“Xiao… Xiao Chen?” An Lan suddenly reacted.
“I’m not called Xiao Xiao Chen, it’s Xiao Chen.” Xiao Chen rarely smiled and seemed very serious.
His lips were neat; looking at them alone wouldn’t make one feel that they were good-looking. However, when combined with his facial features and jawline, there was a kind of flamboyant beauty.
Moreover, when he smiled, he appeared somewhat cool, An Lan’s gaze seemed to be soaked in oil, scalding.
An Lan knew Xiao Chen’s personality—once he decided something, he wouldn’t change his mind.
He quickly ran to the base of the wall and looked up, “How do I give you a boost?”
Who knew Xiao Chen unexpectedly stepped on An Lan’s shoulder and easily came down.
Although the other party obviously supported most of the weight with his arms, An Lan still stumbled and almost sat on the ground.
Before he fell, Xiao Chen unexpectedly reached out and pulled him back up.
“Aren’t you supposed to differentiate into an alpha? Why are you still so weak?” Xiao Chen suddenly leaned toward An Lan, and his gaze was quite oppressive. An Lan instinctively retreated, but Xiao Chen firmly held him in place.
The other person appraised him.
In An Lan’s dictionary, the term “school bully” represented an arrogant person who bullied the weak or acted unreasonably.
But, in reality, Xiao Chen did not fit any of these points.
As long as you carefully looked into his eyes, you could sense the sharpness in his gaze. An Lan didn’t know what he was trying to see in him.
“Um… the morning reading bell has already rung.” An Lan swallowed his saliva and reminded the other person.
At that moment, An Lan felt the strength of Xiao Chen’s arm muscles; it was the pure strength of a high-quality alpha.
Xiao Chen’s fingertips scraped through An Lan’s bangs, as if to get a clear view of An Lan’s eyes. “Tsk, are you really an omega?”
“No!” An Lan immediately denied.
“Hahaha, kidding. You’ve become handsome.” Xiao Chen’s mouth curled up high, and he looked at An Lan from another angle, as if exploring all the characteristics of An Lan turning into an alpha.
Taking advantage of the relaxation of Xiao Chen’s arm strength, An Lan wasted no time. He quickly shouldered his bag, took a step, and ran towards the teaching building without looking back.
He ran all the way, treating three steps as one, and quickly crossed them.
In his ears, Xiao Chen’s words, “become handsome,” echoed.
Inadvertent words, but the listener felt a bit stimulated.
Did Xiao Chen actually say he became handsome? Was this a return to his human nature, or just a casual remark?
Running past the boiling water room, a teacher was just coming out while covering the lid of a thermos. An Lan ran into him directly.
“Ouch—” The teacher tilted his body, and the thermos was pulled out, and the improperly sealed lid just opened like that.
Seeing that the hot water was about to spill on An Lan, he even felt the heat but a force held An Lan’s wrist and pulled him over.
The sound of the thermos falling to the ground rang out, and An Lan imagined the pain of being scalded, but it didn’t happen.
“Student! Why are you running! It was so dangerous just now!” The teacher turned around and saw a tall figure standing in front of him.
An Lan was still a little confused. He moved, only to realize that he was being held by someone. The person encircled him, with no room to breathe. An Lan caught a faint faint scent in his nose.
Perhaps the person had just washed his head this morning. The faint scent between his neck and hair… made An Lan think of the gentle colors of the ocean intertwined with the light in the clouds.
“Oh my God! Student Gu Liyu! Are you okay!”
The teacher’s exclamation brought An Lan back.
Was the person who protected him Gu Liyu?
In surprise, An Lan raised his head and saw the person’s chin and those cold eyes. He immediately pushed the other person away. It was only then that he realized that hot water had been spilled on Gu Liyu’s back.
“Are you okay!”
“I’m fine.” Gu Liyu bent down, picked up the teacher’s thermos, and leisurely screwed on the lid.
An Lan noticed Gu Liyu’s hands for the first time. His fingers were long, with no obvious joints. When he rotated the lid, it revealed the rigidness of an alpha. When he twisted his wrist, elegance and strength fused together.
Gu Liyu handed the cup back to the teacher and said casually, “Morning reading is over.”
Then, he turned and walked into the classroom, as if the series of actions—pulling An Lan over, blocking in front of An Lan—were just casual.
It was only now that An Lan realized he hadn’t checked whether Gu Liyu was scalded!
But looking at how he walked, he didn’t seem to be injured.
But why did Gu Liyu help him just now?
Now was not the time to think about these things; he had to hurry into the classroom!
As soon as An Lan sat down, his desk mate Qiao Chuluo leaned over, sniffing around him like a little dog.
“What are you doing?” An Lan smiled and pushed Qiao Chuluo’s head away.
He had just run up from downstairs, and his back had a thin layer of sweat. His heart was still beating a bit fast. He didn’t know what Qiao Chuluo was trying to smell on him.
The smell of a potential alpha’s sweat?
“Little Lan Lan, did you change your shower gel?” Qiao Chuluo was pushed away but leaned over again.
An Lan couldn’t help but laugh. “Dove Fresh Cucumber Shower Gel, left by my older sister. If you want, I can buy a whole box for you online.”
Speaking of shower gel, Gu Liyu’s scent was more pleasant, low-key and restrained with artistic conception. But the things he used must not be cheap.
An Lan turned to look at Gu Liyu, wondering if he had been scalded on the back. However, he was supporting his chin, with earphones in his ears, probably listening to English listening comprehension, completely unharmed. An Lan’s worries seemed a bit unnecessary.
Today was English morning reading. An Lan lowered his head, rummaged through his bag for the English word book.
“Not Dove Cucumber, it’s… it’s… I can’t say it. I could still smell it a bit just now, but now I can’t smell it at all.” Qiao Chuluo retracted his head.
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