After Rebirth, My Archrival Omega Looks at Me Differently - Chapter 46

Of course, eating a railing is impossible.

As Chi Yan’s long-time troublemaking friend, Zhong Yi, along with Wang Chuning, pulled the usually gossip-averse Chi Yan into the cafeteria’s second-floor dining area after witnessing a shocking and unknown moment of public humiliation. They chose a table not too far, but not too close, to where Yan Youqing was sitting with that Alpha named Wu Zhuiyang.

Noon was the loudest time in the cafeteria. Students came and went in a constant stream.

Yan Youqing did not sit in her usual quiet and unnoticed corner. Instead, she sat with Wu Zhuiyang by a window where the sunlight was especially bright.

A wall of lattice windows framed the winter sky. The red brick and white tile school building looked striking under the cloudless blue above.

Sunlight, at its brightest, spilled through the windows into the cafeteria. The row of tables nearest to the windows was the first to be bathed in light.

Yan Youqing sat diagonally from Chi Yan and her friends, facing Wu Zhuiyang across the table.

It wasn’t the first time Chi Yan felt like the sun had a special preference for Yan Youqing. The winter sunlight wrapped around her back and made her pale skin seem to glow with a crystalline shimmer.

Though spring had officially arrived, the chill of winter had not faded. Yan Youqing wore a misty blue overcoat on top of her school uniform.

Her smooth, long hair was tucked neatly behind one ear. The soft blue color of her coat made her side profile look even more delicate and composed, as if her calm presence made everything around her blur and fade away.

If only the Alpha sitting across from her, whose face couldn’t even be seen, could also blur away. That would be perfect.

As Chi Yan was thinking this, she heard Zhong Yi’s voice by her ear.

“Why aren’t they talking or interacting at all? Couldn’t they at least offer each other some food?”

Wang Chuning looked at Zhong Yi, who seemed more anxious than the people involved, and replied seriously, “Maybe rich people follow the rule of staying silent while eating and sleeping.”

Zhong Yi immediately caught on that she was joking. She scoffed and said, “As if.”

Then she rested her chin in her hand, staring at the scene by the window and sighed.

“But honestly, I think silence suits them. Just sitting like that, they could be the face of our school’s promotional posters. Enrollment would go through the roof.”

Hearing how Zhong Yi kept tying Yan Youqing and Wu Zhuiyang together, Chi Yan frowned.

“Yi, does our school really need promotion?”

“Exactly,” Wang Chuning agreed. “And I feel like something is just off between them.”

“Think about it. They’re sitting so upright and barely exchanging a word. If you just showed me a photo, maybe I could kind of ship it. But now that I’m watching them in real life, I just don’t see it anymore.”

“Why not?” Zhong Yi asked, confused. “They don’t look right together? Wu Zhuiyang doesn’t look bad at all.”

Wang Chuning shook her head. She looked especially serious as she began her mini lecture on CP chemistry.

“It’s not just about putting two good-looking people together. Chemistry is a mysterious thing. Being attractive is one thing, but whether they feel like a real couple is another. That’s what determines whether people will actually support the pairing.”

Zhong Yi listened and then turned back to look at Yan Youqing and Wu Zhuiyang again.

She kind of understood, but still wasn’t fully convinced. As someone who loved pretty faces, she said, “I think a handsome Alpha with a beautiful Omega is already great. What more do you need?”

Wang Chuning immediately gave her a disappointed look.

“Girl, if there’s no chemistry, how can you even ship them? Yan Youqing and that guy just don’t work.”

The two of them kept debating the idea of couple chemistry while Chi Yan’s chopsticks, which had been hovering over her small yellow croaker, finally dropped.

Under Zhong Yi’s hopeful gaze, Chi Yan picked up the last yellow croaker from her plate and passed it to Wang Chuning.

“I can’t finish it,” Chi Yan said.

Wang Chuning grinned. “Thank you, Big Sis Yan. Your loyal servant is honored to help.”

Then, as if she remembered something, she added with a sigh, “I still think the photo of you and Yan Youqing taken at the auditorium had real chemistry. Even though it was a little blurry, the way you two looked at each other, the whole vibe… honestly…”

She shook her head in regret and turned to Chi Yan with a small flicker of hope in her eyes.

“Yan-jie, I really thought you were going to win her over. After sitting together for so long, there wasn’t even a little bit of something?”

But before she could finish, she stopped.

The yellow croaker Chi Yan had given her was silently returned to its original plate.

Chi Yan poked it with her chopsticks and said in a voice that sounded like she had given up entirely, “Sorry to disappoint you.”

The sunlight that had once shone warmly through the window now seemed faded as it reached their table, casting a dull light over the three of them.

The others assumed Chi Yan still didn’t want to be associated with Yan Youqing, like always. No one noticed the heavy emotion hidden behind her lowered eyelashes.

Chi Yan gripped her chopsticks tightly. That familiar sense of powerlessness spread through her hands again.

Only this time, it was stronger.

The moon slowly rose from one side of the sky. Its pale light hung in the fading red of the sunset.

Very soon, school ended for the day. Chi Yan packed her bag and said to Yan Youqing, just like she had so many times last semester, “Same place as usual?”

But instead of the usual soft and subtle “mm,” what she got was, “Sorry.”

Yan Youqing placed her packed bag on the desk and said, “I have plans today. I can’t walk with you. Let’s skip the video tutoring tonight too.”

Chi Yan was surprised. The bag hanging off one shoulder tilted her posture a little.

She stared at Yan Youqing, then glanced out the classroom door as if something came to mind.

The same boy who had shown up at their classroom door during lunch was standing there again.

He seemed to be popular among Omegas. Several who passed by greeted him warmly.

The reddish sunlight brushed against the back window of the classroom, and a sharp glint flashed in Chi Yan’s eyes.

She quietly said “mm” in reply, but to her, the Alpha standing at the door seemed even more blinding than Xu Minxue had ever been.

At the school gate, the crowd was as thick as always. The first day back had traffic completely blocked again.

Chi Yan pushed her bike around the crowded areas and rode away, just like she used to on the days when she did not walk Yan Youqing home.

Spring had come, but Chi Yan still felt very cold.

Especially today.

Most of the sun’s orange warmth had disappeared from the sky. Bare tree branches, not yet sprouting leaves, stretched overhead, making everything feel even more lonely.

Chi Yan passed the same bridge she always crossed on her way home, but this time, her bike didn’t stop at the usual spot.

Wind from the river brushed against her as she rode. The golden shimmer reflected on the clear water flickered in her eyes.

But Chi Yan felt like something in this scene was missing.

It suddenly seemed bland and empty.

The setting sun still hung low in the sky, but this time, Chi Yan got home ten minutes earlier than usual.

The kitchen was filled with the loud hum of the old exhaust fan. Surprisingly, Chi Xufeng was home and busy cooking. He poked his head out from the kitchen and called out, “You’re back early today. Are you hungry? I bought your favorite salt-braised duck. Eat a little first, dinner will be ready soon.”

Salt…

Chi Yan frowned slightly when she heard that word.

She washed her hands and sat down at the table. Though she was somewhat hungry, she didn’t touch the only dish on the table.

The exhaust fan fell silent. Chi Xufeng brought out a freshly cooked dish and set it down. When he noticed the untouched duck, he felt something strange and asked, “What’s wrong? I thought this was your favorite.”

Chi Yan’s eyes flickered for a moment. She came up with an excuse. “It’s too salty. I read this article that said eating light at dinner is better for your brain.”

But Chi Xufeng wasn’t convinced. From the moment she walked through the door, he had sensed something was off about her. He asked tentatively, “Yan Yan, are you in a bad mood today? Did something happen at school?”

“No way,” Chi Yan replied quickly, sounding just like her usual self when denying something. She explained, “It’s just… there’s this one question I couldn’t solve. It’s bothering me.”

Still concerned, Chi Xufeng asked, “Is it that difficult? Want me to take a look?”

“No need,” Chi Yan shook her head and forced a smile. “After dinner I’ll look it up in my study guide. It’s not that hard once you understand it. Trust your amazing daughter.”

Chi Xufeng relaxed a little after seeing her behave the way she usually did. He placed a duck leg into her bowl and said gently, “It’s okay to eat a little. Don’t be so hard on yourself.”

Chi Yan knew she couldn’t say no, so she nodded in agreement.

The salt-braised duck still tasted the way she remembered liking it. But tonight, every bite felt dull and flavorless.

After a quick dinner, she excused herself by saying she had a lot of homework and carried her backpack into her room.

Once the door closed, her small bedroom became her secret world.

In truth, she didn’t have much homework. She had already finished it all during study period at school.

Chi Yan never would have imagined that one day she would start doing her assignments early just to have more time to video call Yan Youqing. And somehow, she had gotten used to it without even realizing it.

The moon hung high in the sky like a silver plate. Outside the window, dry branches trembled in the wind.

Chi Yan lay in bed on her side, staring out at the window. A withered branch swayed in the wind, looking fragile but refusing to break no matter how long it struggled.

There was a trace of frustration in the girl’s dark eyes.

It felt like she had misjudged things again.

Maybe it was that overly salty duck leg she had eaten earlier, but thoughts about Yan Youqing kept slipping into her mind whenever her focus loosened.

Just like now.

Chi Yan stared at the branch that refused to snap. Dusty memories long buried began to stir again. A frown slowly creased her forehead like a sharp ridge forming between her brows.

Why couldn’t she remember ever seeing that Alpha around Yan Youqing in her past life?

Was it her family that had forced her to get close to him?

Or was it she herself who had…

Her train of thought came to an abrupt halt just before she could finish that possibility. The crease between her brows deepened.

Lying on her bed, Chi Yan began to feel restless. An old habit, long suppressed, rose back to the surface.

Her mouth felt empty. She wanted a cigarette.

She forgot who she was now. Without thinking, her hand slid into her pocket, a motion made purely out of habit.

But just as her fingers touched something, her hand froze.

Not because she remembered there could never be cigarettes in her pocket anymore, but because she felt many small, round objects all packed tightly together.

A handful of colorful lollipops spilled out of her pocket, forming a small pile on the bed.

At some point, Yan Youqing had quietly filled her coat pocket with them, as if she had already known Chi Yan would feel this way tonight.

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