After the Beautiful Omega Was Targeted by His Straight Roommate - Chapter 13

After Zhao Kaiyun left, Jiang Zhao’s face darkened. Feeling that something was inexplicably off, he quickly sent a message to Qi Yuxiao.

Jiang Zhao: [Where did you sneak off to during class tonight?]

After a few minutes, Qi Yuxiao replied: [.]

Jiang Zhao: [Image] Jiang Zhao: [You and your roommate went running? You skipped class in the middle of a session just to accompany your roommate for a run?]

Qi Yuxiao: [Is there something strange about that?]

Suddenly remembering something, he sent another reply.

Qi Yuxiao: [Tell that guy in the room next to yours to stay away from my roommate.]

Jiang Zhao: [It is strange, very strange, and unprecedentedly strange.] Jiang Zhao: [Since when did you become so fond of meddling? He is a guy; what could he possibly be afraid of?] Jiang Zhao: [I would actually like to advise you to stay away from that roommate of yours!]

A moment later, Qi Yuxiao replied: [?]

As if waiting for that very symbol, Jiang Zhao passionately typed away on his phone.

Jiang Zhao: [Did I not say before? Plenty of gay guys in our PE academy like Tao Ran’s type. Do you not understand what that means? Do you not get it?]

Jiang Zhao felt he had put the meaning right on the table. Even the most obtuse straight man should have caught the drift by now. Instead, he saw Qi Yuxiao’s slow reply.

Qi Yuxiao: [Harassing someone every day is called ‘liking’ them?]

Jiang Zhao: [ ]

Jiang Zhao was fuming.

Jiang Zhao: [My point is, Tao Ran is also gay. He looks like a gay guy at first glance!!!!!] Jiang Zhao: [There is always a sort of magnetic field between gay people. Being liked by so many gay guys says a lot about the situation.]

Qi Yuxiao stared at the messages from Jiang Zhao, his eyes dark as he pondered for a moment.

Qi Yuxiao: [I think you are overthinking. I do not think he is.]

Jiang Zhao: [Then let me ask you: does your roommate have lifestyle habits different from ordinary guys? Like a very ‘refined’ feeling? For example, using a lot of skincare or makeup?]

Qi Yuxiao paused. He leaned slightly to the side and glanced at Tao Ran’s desk. Tao Ran’s desk was very tidy. Professional textbooks were stacked in a large pile at the back, next to his drawing tools. In the center sat his drawing tablet, and the cubby shelves mostly held common miscellaneous items.

Qi Yuxiao glimpsed one shelf containing Tao Ran’s toiletries and skincare. For washing, there were only three items: body wash, shampoo, and facial cleanser. For skincare, there was only a single tin of Frog Prince face cream. Qi Yuxiao withdrew his gaze and thought sarcastically, Jiang Zhao, a guy who raided his mother’s entire skincare set to bring to school, has no right to judge Tao Ran.

Qi Yuxiao: [Looked. He has less than you.]

Jiang Zhao: [???]

Jiang Zhao still did not believe it. [What about makeup? I heard many refined ‘zeros’ have superb makeup skills. Look and see if your roommate wears makeup. Even applying primer or BB cream counts!]

Just then, the glass door opened, and Tao Ran stepped out from the bathroom. Qi Yuxiao turned his head to look at him. Tao Ran was wearing a set of light green pajamas. His skin, soaked by the hot water, was shrouded in mist, looking like smooth, flowing milk. His eyes had a wet film over them, making everything he looked at appear sparkling. This face showed absolutely no difference between before and after the shower.

Tao Ran did not know why Qi Yuxiao was suddenly looking at him, so he reminded him, “Qi Yuxiao, I am finished. You can go wash now.”

Qi Yuxiao: “Okay.”

Once Tao Ran returned to his seat, Qi Yuxiao shifted his focus back to the phone screen.

Qi Yuxiao: [His face is the same before and after the shower.]

Both were very clean and good-looking.

Jiang Zhao: [ ]

At that moment, Zhuo Qiang, who had just finished a game and opened his WeChat, let out a startled cry. “Ah, holy crap!”

The sound caught everyone’s attention in the dorm.

Su Jialiang: “Why are you always shouting?”

Zhuo Qiang scratched his head. “I forgot to buy my sister a birthday gift! She is currently berating me in a rage! I am dead, I am absolutely dead.” He hurriedly opened a shopping app. “Is it too late to buy a gift? What should I get her? Do you guys have any suggestions?”

Su Jialiang listed: “Skincare? Makeup? Bags?”

Zhuo Qiang’s eyes lit up. “Makeup works! I heard my sister complaining a while ago that her foundation was not good. Do you guys know which brands are good?”

Tao Ran shook his head. “I have never used it, and I do not really know.”

The conversation continued, but Qi Yuxiao was not listening closely, his eyes returning to his phone.

Jiang Zhao: [Er, maybe his makeup skills are just peak perfection. No-makeup makeup! You know, the kind that makes you look better invisibly, where others cannot see the traces of makeup!]

Qi Yuxiao’s face darkened, and he replied impatiently, [That is enough. I said he is not.]

Just as he was about to turn off his screen, he saw another message from Jiang Zhao. Jiang Zhao was still persistent. [Oh, right! Perfume! Plenty of gay guys study that deeply too!]

Qi Yuxiao’s movements paused. In his memory, Tao Ran had indeed mentioned using perfume. But he did not seem to be using it much lately; the fragrance in the dorm had faded significantly. Thinking of this, Qi Yuxiao felt a surge of thirst deep within him, somewhat like a symptom caused by a deficiency in some trace element.

He would not conclude that Tao Ran was gay just because he used perfume. Tao Ran’s terrified state when being harassed by Zhao Kaiyun was not an act. Therefore, Qi Yuxiao believed that Tao Ran was not gay; rather, he was a victim of harassment by gay men.

Snapping back to reality, Qi Yuxiao replied, [What about the fact that your dad has a cabinet at home just for collecting perfume?]

Jiang Zhao: [You]

Jiang Zhao was speechless, feeling that Qi Yuxiao’s stubbornness was beyond saving.

Jiang Zhao: [Fine, fine. If you think he is not, then he is not. Do not blame me for not warning you.] Jiang Zhao: [By the way, why have you been staying at the dorm so frequently lately? You used to complain that the dorm affected your sleep. Now you are leaving your two-meter bed at home to squeeze into a dorm with roommates. Are you a masochist or something?]

Qi Yuxiao: [Suddenly found that I sleep better at the dorm.]

Although his sleep quality in the dorm had also declined recently, it was still much better than at home.

At 11:00 PM, Tao Ran was overcome by a wave of sleepiness. He rubbed his tired eyes and prepared to go to bed. He instinctively reached for his water glass, but fearing he would be woken up in the middle of the night to use the bathroom, he thought about it and put it down, then climbed into bed.

Halfway up, his gaze accidentally brushed against his Spongebob Squarepants pillow, lying peacefully at the head of Qi Yuxiao’s bed. Qi Yuxiao’s sheets and bed curtains were a cold, deep gray. A bright, almost neon yellow cartoon doll appearing on that bed was a visual mismatch that looked like it had been Photoshopped in.

This Spongebob pillow was something Dr. Chi had won in a supermarket lottery; he thought it was too childish and gave it to him. Tao Ran originally did not feel much for it either, but he kept it by his bed. Unknowingly, it had accompanied him through his entire senior year of high school and then followed him to university.

This was the first time it had been away from him for so long, and Tao Ran was not quite used to it. He did not know when Qi Yuxiao would buy a new pillow and return his. Tao Ran stared at Spongebob lingeringly for a few seconds before withdrawing his gaze and climbing onto his own bed.

At 3:00 AM, Tao Ran was woken up by thirst. He swallowed; his throat was as dry as sandpaper, and a surge of dry heaving rose up. Tao Ran resigned himself to throwing off the covers, intending to get down and find some water.

He pulled back the bed curtain. The dorm was as dark as a cloud of black mist. Tao Ran could only rely on his senses, slowly feeling for the ladder. His foot probed in the darkness and landed right on the second rung. Just as he was about to bend his leg to reach for the next step, his calf hit a warm, unknown object. It then wrapped around his ankle and gave it a very light squeeze.

The color drained from Tao Ran’s cheeks. In his panicked struggle, his hand accidentally slipped from the ladder, and his stiff body tilted forward.

“Ugh!”

The expected pain never came; he was caught steadily by a pair of powerful arms. Tao Ran’s heart nearly leaped out of his throat. Still shaken, he used the faint moonlight to see the sharp shadows of Qi Yuxiao’s face.

Tao Ran called out to him in a disbelieving whisper, “Qi, Qi Yuxiao?”

“Mm,” Qi Yuxiao responded softly.

Realizing he was collapsed in the other man’s arms, Tao Ran instinctively pushed against him. Qi Yuxiao understood immediately and let go, allowing Tao Ran to stand on his own.

During that brief close contact, his nose had been close to the other’s exposed skin, and he had caught that familiar fragrance. But it was very faint. The unspeakable physical need remained unsatisfied. A surge of irritability rose in Qi Yuxiao’s heart. He glanced at Tao Ran, said nothing, and turned to go to the balcony.

Tao Ran’s gaze followed Qi Yuxiao curiously. Only after seeing him go to the balcony did he remember his purpose for getting out of bed. Picking up the glass on the desk, Tao Ran tilted his head and drank until not a drop was left, his thirst finally easing slightly. Putting the glass down, Tao Ran looked sideways at Qi Yuxiao, who was still on the balcony, and his body moved toward him involuntarily.

Fearing he would wake the sleeping roommates, Tao Ran lowered his voice. “Qi Yuxiao, why are you not going back to sleep?”

He was a bit sleepy and rubbed his eyes, asking further, “Did you wake up in the middle of the night, or have you not slept at all?”

Qi Yuxiao’s voice was somewhat low and raspy. “Have not slept.”

“It is so late; why are you not sleeping?”

Having not slept at this ungodly hour was unimaginable to Tao Ran, who had a regular early-to-bed, early-to-rise schedule.

“Cannot sleep.”

“Cannot sleep?” Tao Ran’s eyes shimmered with a faint light as he asked with concern, “Do you have insomnia?”

“Mm.”

Tao Ran was shocked. “How can you have insomnia?”

Qi Yuxiao’s tone was flat. “It is often like this. An old problem.”

“Did you not go see a doctor?” Tao Ran had not expected Qi Yuxiao to suffer from insomnia. Tao Ran’s sleep quality was always excellent; he could fall asleep almost the moment he hit the bed. He could not imagine how painful it must be for Qi Yuxiao to be unable to sleep in the middle of the night.

“The doctor prescribed sleeping pills. After taking too many, I have developed a tolerance now,” Qi Yuxiao said calmly, as if the person troubled by insomnia was not himself.

Tao Ran opened his mouth. “How can that be?”

In the night, Qi Yuxiao’s features appeared even more intense. Tao Ran looked up with concern and found the other man staring at him with a heavy gaze, as if he were restraining something. The two stared at each other for a few seconds. Qi Yuxiao suddenly asked, “Are you not using perfume lately?”

“???”

What did that have to do with the topic of insomnia?

Tao Ran froze. He had applied the blocker and worked hard to hide his pheromones; he did not know why he was being asked this. He swallowed nervously. “W, why do you ask?”

A flash of hidden struggle crossed Qi Yuxiao’s eyes. Finally, one side collapsed. He closed his eyes and said in a deep voice, “The scent on your body, it smells very good.”

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