Chapter 3: 3 – familiarity amidst helpful advice

With his elbows propped against the counter, holding up his weight, Old Wu raised his gaze, swept over the newcomer’s black mask and met his pale eyes. “What can I get you?”

The customer waved his phone’s screen at him, saying, “Came to pick up room 31’s pot.”

Old Wu glanced at the screen and read the familiar conversation he had partook in 30 minutes ago. “Ah, the brats that made a reservation, right?” He suddenly paused and it was obvious from his expression that he was connecting the dots. “Didn’t one of your friends just drop by?”

When the customer shook his head, Old Wu simply went “ah” and shrugged. “Sorry lad, that was my last one. Why don’t you and your buddies join that guy? Go cultivate feelings, become best buds over food, or whatever it is you young’uns do nowadays.”

He didn’t expect the wronged customer to actually heed his advice, seeing as he left without further conflict. Yet somehow, Old Wu swore he saw a mischievous gleam in those pale eyes.

And so a certain black-haired youth, who didn’t even crave hot pot in the first place, had to suffer the consequences of those passionate words.

“Get off.”

“Admitting defeat, little thief?”

“...”

Ying Lin could feel a very warm hand grip the base of his thigh as another pinned his wrist against the floor—and from his back pocket, came the vibrations of his phone, probably the anxious probing of his two trouble-seeking friends; similarly, his temples throbbed with annoyance.

[XYz: Lin-ge…the guard by the side gates just started another round…]

[Qing-shao: Boss, what’s the hold up? Send your usual ‘.’ if you need help!]

Truthfully, the location of their staredown wasn’t exactly the most inconspicuous, they were just a few footsteps shy of the side gates, and if the guard decided to feel extra motivated tonight and checked outside the school’s perimeter, they’d be caught redhanded—and quite awkwardly at that, given their current positions.

His straight lashes fluttered as he raised his eyes to study the person who had caught him by surprise. The teen above himself had a slightly larger frame, hair as dark as midnight, and a deep-set of pale eyes with a gaze so sharp yet unfathomable. 

Because the teen was wearing a mask, his voice sounded muffled and the lower half of his face was not privy to others; yet, Ying Lin felt as though those irises were familiar, especially when they were paired with that black mask.

The teen was very close, quite literally between his legs. If Ying Lin could just shift slightly, he’d be able to…

“Let’s not resort to such violent acts, hmm?” the masked teen chuckled, having long guessed his captee’s train of thought.

“Then I advise you to get off before I do.”

“Then you’ll run away and I’ll be left empty-handed. The boys and I called up Old Wu first.”

Ying Lin clicked his tongue and reluctantly compromised, “...I won’t, so unhand me.”

He thought his words meant well, but apparently the idiot above himself didn’t agree, because instead of cooperating, the hood of his sweater was swiftly removed by the idiot’s hand.

Ying Lin squinted slightly as the glint from the lamppost by their side pierced his eyes.

With a slightly astonished tone, the teen leaned closer, unconsciously gripping the leg hooked over his shoulder tighter.

“So it is you…”

Again, Ying Lin was abruptly reminded of how close they were, and the idiot just had to crunch inwards, causing his own body to almost snap in half. He could feel a prickle of heat rush up his nape, all the way up to the tips of his ears—for once, he thanked the lampposts for being so dainty.

Unable to withstand the teen’s ardent body heat any longer, Ying Lin was about to mercilessly drive his knee into that exposed abdomen.

But perhaps luck was on the teen’s side because, as soon as that thought manifested, the telltale heavy footsteps of a guard sounded from a distance. Then he felt the weight on his body suddenly disappear, taking with it the sparks of tension between the two.

Ying Lin wasn’t idle either. He briskly stood up, grabbed the bag from the ground and, sparing the idiot one last glare, he ran up towards the back wall, kicked off with his foot, and smoothly landed on the other side.

By the time the teen similarly pulled himself up, the little thief was gone, as quick as lightning. He dazedly sat on the wall for a moment, pulling his mask down just enough to flash the amused tilt at the corner of his lips; his fingers a stark contrast against the dark fabric they were curled in.

“It’s been twice, what else will he steal from me?”

His quiet laugh was carried off by the wind, dwindling before it could reach the ears of stars.

“Hm?” The guard directed his flashlight towards the wall, scratching the crown of his head, “I thought I saw two shadows dart past…must’ve been a stray cat running from a wild dog.”

 

 

 

 

“Lin-ge, you’re alive!” Xiao Yun heaved a large sigh and slumped into a chair. “We thought you got caught!”

Qin Shaoqing, who had been lifelessly sprawled on the bed, energetically sat up. “You didn’t even blue tick us, so we were about to risk it all and bail you out of trouble.”

“If your definition of ‘risk it all’ was enjoying my warm bed, then don’t bother.” 

Ying Lin threw the bag towards the omega, ignored the slight “oomph” he received in return, and dug through his closet for another top. He grabbed the hem of his sweater and pulled it off, his smooth back was only revealed for the briefest of seconds before it was once again covered.

Then he dumped the poor sweater into the washing machine, shut its lid and ran it. Making his way over, he added belatedly, “Return the pot by Friday.” 

Xiao Yun looked up from tearing a packet of noodles, asking, “Ah, Lin-ge…wasn’t that also washed a few days ago?”

Ying Lin nudged Qin Shaoqing closer to the edge of the bed, took a seat smack in its middle, and hummed, “Mm, got dirty.”

At that, two certain trouble-seeking friends shared a cursory glance, “...” Didn’t he just go out for less than an hour? How’d it get dirty?

Although they were dying to ask, one glance at the aloof omega’s frosty face braked their tongues and stitched their mouths; they only dared to smack their lips when the tantalising scent of spices gushed into their noses.

 

 

 

 

Ding—

Walking through the school’s side gates, with breakfast in one hand and another digging into his pockets, Jun Sheng swiped his phone’s lock screen aside and tapped the notification with a thumb.

You are reading story This Red Thread of Ours at novel35.com

[First son: Sheng-ge, where are you? I’m too scared to look at the bulletin board myself, hurry up and come.]

Stepping into the school’s building, Jun Sheng leisurely typed a short reply.

[S: Look back.]

‘First son’ had just received the message and was about to read it when—

”Shit, you scared me!” 

—he felt a light tap on his shoulder. Turning around, he met eye-to-eye with the person he had just been anxiously texting. “Great master, you walk so silently. Have mercy on this one’s heart.”

Jun Sheng stuffed the plastic bag full of light snacks into Hu Duyi’s hand, saying, “You’re such a strong-looking A, and you still get scared like this?”

He glanced at the said alpha, whose free hand was clutching at his heart, and curbed a laugh. When he had first met Hu Duyi, he’d thought the other’s personality was akin to a calm student’s good nature, then he was abruptly slapped with the truth. 

Beneath that seemingly proper front was a boy with a temperamental, potty mouth; the way the three buttons of his uniform were undone had been a hint all along.

“You don’t understand, alpha or not, a man has to stay true to himself. If he’s scared then he’s scared, what of it?” Hu Duyi picked a carton of soymilk, tore the straw free and stabbed it through the drink’s thin film. “Now that you’re here, quickly see if we’re in the same class this year.”

“Don’t your eyes function just fine?”

Although having said that, Jun Sheng nonchalantly searched through the plethora of pinned papers under the year three section of the board, skimming through irrelevant names as he went. 

In the distance, the bell before the last rang, and the guard outside was already closing the school gates.

“I originally wasn’t worried, but my darn brother the other day said he had a dream of how I wasn’t in your class. Then for new years, he wished that I’d take this chance to become more independent. Does he think he’s a prophet or what? I swear—”

“Not a prophet, your brother just has a crow’s mouthIf someone has a crow’s mouth it means what they say will come true (usually unlucky events)..”

“...” Hu Duyi crushed the carton in his hand as he gnawed on the straw. “Fuck, don’t tell me—”

“Mhm, you’re in class four.” Jun Sheng consoled him with a pitiful pat, laughing, “Don’t worry, I’ll still lend you my notes for maths. It’s time to leave the nest, my son.”

“That’s besides the point!” Hu Duyi threw the empty carton into a disposal bin nearby. Raising a hand, he pinched between his brows. “This means I won’t be your deskmate”—he glanced at class one’s numbers—”40 students excluding you, let’s say there’s 20 As, 15 Os, and 5 Bs, then you’ll have a whopping 37.5% chance of getting an omega deskmate!”

Sighing helplessly, Jun Sheng turned and headed for the stairs, and as his so-called son followed, he said, “So this is what your 1% of maths knowledge is used for?”

“...” Great master, I’m just worried about you.

“If I do get an omega deskmate, and if they try anything funny, I can always request for a seat change, no?”

“But…” Hu Duyi frowned. 

Even if his Sheng-ge was uncomfortable with omegas, he was still nevertheless careful with his actions, not wanting to implicate the other party by causing a scene; rumours do travel fast via the express mail known as the students’ mouths, after all.

“If you don’t want me to misunderstand your intentions…” Jun Sheng, with a shrewd smile, smacked Hu Duyi’s back with enough force to make him splutter. “Then hurry up and scram, class will start soon.”

The soymilk Hu Duyi just drank threatened to rise up his throat. He coughed, waved a hand in defeat and sauntered off in the opposite direction. “I know, I know. I’ll come find you later!”

 

 

 

 

“Hey, isn’t that our school’s unobtainable flower?”

“Shh, keep it down! Never mind that, did you hear? Other classes are already filled but my fellow sisters just messaged and said that the school’s grass hasn’t shown up!”

“Holy shit, you don’t mean—”

Tuning out the excited gossip of the betas huddled in a group at the front, Ying Lin simply crossed his arms on his desk, laid his head down and closed his eyes. As he was seated at the back by the large windows, a light breeze slipped through its gaps and further muffled their hushed whispers.

It was just ten minutes before eight, and the impatient morning’s rays spilled into the classroom, splaying the desks of his year three classmates and their reddish uniforms with specks of gold. 

Ying Lin drowsily blinked at a lone drop of light which airbrushed the corner of his desk, already beckoned by the sweet lulls of sleep. Just as he was about to nod off and habitually nap through the homeroom period, a few loud gasps rang aloud—but that wasn’t surprising.

What was though, was the fact that the once rambling students and the brotherly chats prior this very second suddenly paused, and then the classroom went deathly still.

Indifferent to what had happened, Ying Lin didn’t even make an effort to raise his head, not until a large shadow loomed over his figure, blocking the vivid hue behind his eyelids.

“T-that…isn’t that?” a beta, clutching the hem of her skirt, stuttered. She lifted a finger to point at the classroom’s corner, whispering, “Do I need glasses?”

“If my eyes aren’t deceiving me, then yours are fine, Jia Mei.” Qi Yu helped her pick her jaw up from the floor, saying, “You’ll catch flies like that.”

“O-oh…” Jia Mei drawled. Then she snapped her neck towards Qi Yu with an incredulous expression. “That’s not the point right now!”

Indeed, after all, the main event that had caused her to gape so astonishedly was certainly more important than accidentally swallowing insects.

Qi Yu glanced at the two who were in the limelight and cracked a small smile. “Do they know each other already? Were we deceived all these years?”

At the steadily growing but nevertheless incessant buzzing, Ying Lin finally lifted his head from his arms, just in time for when his desk was knocked on twice. He tipped his head back slightly to meet the culprit’s pale eyes and frowned. “You are…?”

“Running away after two fateful nights together? How shameless.”

Ying Lin, “...”

Everyone else, “...” Two fateful nights?! 

Blinking, Ying Lin observed the newcomer’s handsome face and the familiar colour of his irises. Then, as though something had clicked, he abruptly recalled two certain occasions where he had seen this very same teen, whose face was half hidden in shadow and half blinded by fragile lamps.

Ying Lin gave the teen an unimpressed stare, saying flatly, “Oh, you’re that alpha scum.”

Although his tone was dry, his last two words were clearly enunciated, deliberately brushing into the ears of their busybody classmates.

Jun-alpha scum-Sheng, “Mn?”

Their classmates, “...” Was this some sort of cliche drama? Did the school grass bully the kaolin flower?

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