After Dissing The Aloof Omega In A Talent Show - Chapter 7

Ming Tang looked into those eyes, which were brimming with moisture, and nodded.

“Yes, I am an Alpha. What I did just now was a bit impolite. I’m sorry, I…”

“Can you spare me a little of your pheromones?”

Chi Ling made a request that was, frankly, quite audacious.

“Huh?” Ming Tang acted as if she hadn’t understood correctly.

Chi Ling bit her lip, a trace of embarrassment on her face. “I know this request is a bit sudden…”

Ming Tang shook her head quickly, like a rattle.

“My gland was injured. The hospital diagnosed that during unconventional heat cycles, in addition to suppressants, I need to be stabilized with an Alpha’s pheromones…”

More mist gathered in Chi Ling’s shallow eye sockets, threatening to fall. The corners of her eyes were tinged with a thin red.

“It hasn’t happened for a long time, so I wasn’t prepared… Could you please help me?” Chi Ling pleaded in a low voice.

Ming Tang was caught off guard by Chi Ling’s string of revelations.

What did she mean by needing supplemental Alpha pheromones? And what did she mean by it not happening for a long time? Whose pheromones had she relied on before?

Compared to the morning, Chi Ling’s face was now as pale as paper, yet her cheeks were flushed with an unnatural heat. Fine beads of sweat began to break out on her forehead and the tip of her nose, and her brow furrowed in distress.

“I will help you.”

Ming Tang took hold of Chi Ling’s wrist, through the thin skin, she could feel the hard, protruding bone.

“Qiao Xiangshu, open the door.” Ming Tang tapped on the door twice with her knuckle. Soon, the door opened from the inside.

“Why are you back?” Qiao Xiangshu was about to tease Ming Tang, but seeing an urgent Ming Tang clutching a clearly unwell Chi Ling, she hissed, “Don’t kidnap your goddess!”

“I’ll explain later.”

Leaving it at that, Ming Tang carefully led Chi Ling into the dormitory.

Qiao Xiangshu was observant enough to drag the forgotten suitcase inside. Before she could even close the main door, she heard the sound of the bathroom door locking.

Qiao Xiangshu: ?

In her mind, Qiao Xiangshu was screaming: Ming Tang! What are you doing taking Chi Ling into the bathroom and locking the door?!

The scent surrounding Chi Ling grew stronger. Ming Tang finally realized that the light tea fragrance was the smell of Chi Ling’s pheromones.

With two people squeezed into the bathroom, it felt a bit cramped. The white tea scent of Chi Ling’s pheromones quickly filled the entire space.

“Do you need to peel off the scent-blocking patch?” Ming Tang asked in a low voice.

Chi Ling shook her head.

“Then I’ll release a bit of my pheromones for you. If it makes you uncomfortable, tell me.”

Ming Tang felt that Chi Ling’s behavior, grabbing a random Alpha to ask for pheromones was actually quite dangerous. She hadn’t considered their compatibility at all. If the compatibility was too low, the pheromones might cause irritation rather than comfort, leading to the opposite effect.

“Mm.”

Chi Ling’s clear voice had become sticky and light, like a feather brushing against Ming Tang’s heart.

Ming Tang, of course, didn’t dare to release her pheromones recklessly, fearing she might overwhelm the already struggling Chi Ling. Furthermore, she wasn’t very practiced at it herself.

Ming Tang tried to trigger her pheromones. The gland at the back of her neck began to feel warm. Then, she felt a thin thread permeate through her skin and diffuse outward.

Amidst the plain white tea fragrance, a wisp of bitter orange intervened.

When the scents mixed, Ming Tang felt a bitter, astringent taste at the back of her throat.

Because of the extreme discomfort, Chi Ling’s breath fanned out across Ming Tang’s chest.

Whether it was the body heat or the merging of pheromones, Ming Tang felt the temperature in the bathroom rising. The air grew thin, making it difficult for her to breathe as well.

After an unknown amount of time, Chi Ling’s furrowed brow relaxed slightly.

Seeing that Chi Ling’s complexion had somewhat recovered, Ming Tang stopped and asked softly, “Is this okay?”

Chi Ling licked her dry lips and blinked hard to clear the tears from her eyes. When she looked at Ming Tang again, her gaze had regained its original clarity.

Ming Tang promptly let go of Chi Ling’s hand and tucked her own hands behind her back.

She wasn’t sure if it was just her imagination, but her fingertips felt hot, and the camisole she hadn’t had time to change into felt stifling against her skin.

Chi Ling lowered her gaze, still feeling a bit shy. “Thank you. I made you sacrifice your rest time to help me.”

Chi Ling was indeed embarrassed. She had been so miserable that she had used her weakness to force an Alpha she had only known for a few hours to help her in such an intimate way. Now that she had recovered, she felt her face burning with shame.

Ming Tang shook her head repeatedly. “It’s fine, it didn’t take long. I’m just glad I could help.”

Chi Ling recovered quickly. Since the dormitory rules forbade Alphas and Omegas from rooming together, Ming Tang worried that staying alone together would look bad, so she opened the door first.

Qiao Xiangshu immediately crowded over.

“What were you two doing in the bathroom? If you hadn’t come out, I would have broken the door down.”

Knowing she was only there to help and had no right to reveal Chi Ling’s privacy, Ming Tang was vague, trying to move the conversation along. “Nothing, just helping Chi Ling with something. You guys get some rest, we have to head out in about half an hour.”

Qiao Xiangshu nodded. Though she couldn’t smell the pheromones, her sharp eyes caught the scent-blocking patch on the back of Chi Ling’s neck.

“You should go rest too. You helped me with my luggage and then helped Chi Ling.” Qiao Xiangshu pulled out a chair for Chi Ling to sit, then went to open the door for Ming Tang.

“Don’t worry, I’ve got your goddess covered.” Qiao Xiangshu saw Ming Tang out and gave her a reassuring pat on the shoulder. “Don’t forget to change into your training T-shirt. If you’re the only one dressed differently, you’ll certainly stand out.”

“Yeah.” Ming Tang imagined the scene and chuckled. “Might as well attract the audience’s attention. Maybe they’ll be won over by my ‘personal charm’.”

“Forget it. Given your current situation, the chances of being flamed are way higher than gaining fans,” Qiao Xiangshu suggested sincerely.

“Who says ‘black-gold’ (negative fame) isn’t fame?” Ming Tang looked up, her gaze moving past Qiao Xiangshu to steal one last look at Chi Ling. “I’m off.”

Chi Ling waved her hand at her, mouthing the words “Thank you.”

When Ming Tang pushed open her own dormitory door, the lights were off and the curtains were drawn. She could hear the soft breathing of her roommates.

There weren’t many Alphas assigned to Class F; they didn’t even have enough to fill one four persons room. The three of them shared a room meant for four. While it wasn’t as nice as the two persons rooms for Class A, it was more comfortable than a standard dorm.

The training T-shirts provided by the production team were placed on each bed. The beds were lined up on one side, close enough to be pushed together into one large platform, while the other side held four desks with small cabinets.

Ming Tang grabbed the T-shirt from her bed. In the dim room, she couldn’t see the color clearly. She moved quietly, afraid of waking her roommates, and gingerly changed her top. She lay diagonally across her quilt to nap for a while but couldn’t fall asleep.

Chi Ling’s words replayed clearly in her mind.

Unconventional heat cycle?

Ming Tang had never even heard the term before today. But she figured it was likely similar to a hormonal imbalance, though for an Omega like Chi Ling, the impact was much more severe than what Qiao Xiangshu experienced.

Chi Ling said it hadn’t happened in a long time, so why did it suddenly flare up today?

Ming Tang couldn’t sleep and couldn’t untangle her thoughts. Her mind wandered to why Chi Ling’s gland was injured and whose pheromones she had relied on before. Since even Huayin hadn’t used this as a weapon against Chi Ling, it meant the secret was carefully guarded.

So why did she reveal such a weakness to someone she had just met?

A soft alarm went off, one of her roommates’ timers. Ming Tang sat bolt upright.

The production team was somewhat humane, providing each room with a small alarm clock. The trainee sleeping near the window got up and pulled the curtains open. The afternoon sunlight flooded the room, forcing Ming Tang to shield her eyes.

“What’s that smell?”

The roommate closer to Ming Tang rubbed her eyes while sniffing the air. Eventually, she turned toward Ming Tang.

“What smell?” Ming Tang asked, feigning composure.

The girl sniffed again. “I can’t quite tell. It smells like… some kind of woody perfume?”

The roommate didn’t know, but Ming Tang knew exactly what it was. That so-called “wood toned perfume” was actually the scent of Chi Ling’s pheromones on her.

Another trainee immediately teased, “Qi Deng, can you stop using that dog nose of yours? Is it appropriate to go around sniffing your roommates?”

Qi Deng rubbed her nose and pulled back with an embarrassed laugh. “Don’t mind me, Ming Tang. Oh right, I see you haven’t changed your pants yet. You can’t do basic training in jeans. Hurry up, it’s almost time to go.”

Ming Tang nodded. She grabbed a pair of loose pants from her suitcase, changed quickly, stuffed her things back in, and headed toward the training building with her two roommates.

Ming Tang and her roommates arrived early. As they walked down the hallway, they peeked into the classrooms, most were empty or had only a few scattered people. When they reached the Class F room at the very end, it was empty. Ming Tang flipped the light switch as she entered.

While Qi Deng and Jian Jiahe chatted, Ming Tang went to the barre to start stretching. Gradually, people trickled in, and the drowsiness of the afternoon was replaced by the growing buzz of the atmosphere.

At exactly 1:30 PM, the instructor pushed the door open. Ming Tang bowed with the crowd. When she looked up, she saw the instructor who had teased her about being “tipsy” earlier.

Xia Yindong clapped her hands to get everyone’s attention. “We will start by learning the vocal parts of the theme song. I want to emphasize that you only have three days to practice the theme song.”

“If everyone performs well in the next half hour, I have an interesting new regulation regarding Class F that I can tell you in advance.”

The group was easily motivated. Upon hearing the instructor’s words, everyone became full of energy.

A new regulation for Class F? Ming Tang couldn’t help but feel a flicker of curiosity.