After Transmigrating as a Man-Eater Omega, I Got the Protagonist Shou - Chapter 6

Wen Ke could not outtalk Qiao Xingyin.

Qiao Xingyin insisted that he go and understand the truest side of Qi Yan. His certain expression even made Wen Ke start to wonder if he was actually the one in the wrong.

“Good heavens,” Wen Ke thought. Was he eventually going to end up like Qiao Xingyin, believing that Qi Yan was actually a good person? That would mean making an enemy of the entire school.

Wen Ke could not wrap his head around the problem. The more he thought about it, the more his head ached, so he finally decided to take a nap.

Ten minutes before class started in the afternoon, Jiang Shixu stood in front of Qiao Xingyin’s desk and pushed a deep blue gift box toward him.

“The class meeting on Monday was originally supposed to welcome you, but you were on leave,” Jiang Shixu said in a voice that was gentle and polite. “This fountain pen is a welcoming gift from us.”

Qiao Xingyin took the gift box, feeling flattered, and thanked him sincerely. “Thank you, Class Monitor.”

Opening the box, an elegant silver-gray R-brand fountain pen lay quietly on the velvet lining. Qiao Xingyin wondered if transferring schools always came with this kind of hospitality.

He looked up at Jiang Shixu, who was discreetly observing his reaction while his Adam’s apple bobbed slightly. “Do you want to join the class group chat?” Jiang Shixu asked.

Qiao Xingyin nodded. “Is there a QR code? I will scan it.”

Jiang Shixu flipped through his phone, appearing a bit troubled. “There are quite a few groups. Just add me, and I will pull you in.”

Qiao Xingyin was easygoing. “No problem.”

Jiang Shixu’s movements as he clicked on his personal business card were slightly hurried; he almost swiped to the wrong interface. Qiao Xingyin successfully added Jiang Shixu as a WeChat friend, and Jiang Shixu added him to all the major groups.

There were indeed quite a lot of Class 8 groups. There was a group without the homeroom teacher, groups for various study cells, groups for hanging out on weekends, and groups for selling second-hand items.

The notifications chimed incessantly. Qiao Xingyin quickly turned on “Do Not Disturb” and finished labeling each group. Finally, he checked his friend request list. There were no new requests. Qi Yan had not added him yet. In fact, this was the final moment of peace for his friend request list.

Shao Chong, Jiang Shixu’s desk mate and best friend, saw through Jiang Shixu’s not-so-subtle scheme at a glance. “What do you mean ‘us’? You clearly wanted to give it to him yourself.”

A rare crack appeared in Jiang Shixu’s calm expression. “See it, but do not say it.”

Shao Chong tutted twice. “Your first love is still intact, I see. I am rooting for you.”

Jiang Shixu did not argue. He lowered his head to organize his textbooks, his fingertips brushing against a black fountain pen. It was the same model as the silver-gray one he gave Qiao Xingyin, a prize he had won in a competition last year.

Through the gaps between the pages, he looked at Qiao Xingyin, who was testing out the new pen. The boy’s profile as he bent his head to write was exquisite and fair, pure and beautiful. Jiang Shixu thought that someone like Qiao Xingyin truly deserved the most outstanding Alpha, and he would work hard for that.

News always traveled fast. Qiao Xingyin had joined many Class 8 groups, and since the students were in the same groups, they had access to his profile. His contact information was circulated frantically through various small groups.

During the lunch break, a few boys in the back of Class 1 gathered to whisper.

“Brother Cheng got the transfer student’s contact info. Does anyone need it?”

“Give me one! I heard he is insanely good-looking.”

“Omegas are rare these days, and top-tier Omegas are even rarer.”

“Is he really that high-quality?”

“For real. According to the grapevine, his pheromones smell amazing too. They are so sweet they make your legs weak.”

“Ah, Omegas who are both good-looking and have great-smelling pheromones are rare. I bet that person is just biased. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder; the filter is probably too heavy.”

“Exactly. And ‘weak legs’? Is ‘weak legs’ not used to describe Omegas?”

“What is actually going on? You will know once you experience it yourself.”

“Add him, add him. Whoever among us can chase him down, that is the real legend.”

Qi Yan heard their discussion, and a surge of stifled irritability rose in his chest. He unconsciously gripped the pen in his hand, his knuckles turning white from the force. Those words were like tiny steel needles piercing through his ear canals into his brain.

Qi Yan pressed his thin lips together. He originally wanted to endure the emotion, but it remained trapped in his chest, intensifying like a shaken carbonated drink ready to explode at any moment. He finally could not focus on the problems in front of him. He took his phone out of the drawer along with the note Qiao Xingyin had handed him.

Meanwhile, Qiao Xingyin’s phone was vibrating constantly. The red number representing friend requests in the notification bar was climbing steadily. Amidst the swarm of friend requests, Qiao Xingyin spotted Qi Yan at a glance.

Qi Yan’s profile picture was a shot of the Milky Way. It was a photo taken in the countryside with an old-fashioned DSLR. The star trails dragged long, thin silver threads across the ink-blue sky, looking like crushed diamonds spilled onto velvet. The Milky Way in the center of the frame appeared as a hazy milky white. At the edges, the nebulae looked like splashed fluorescent paint. It was silent and dreamlike.

Qiao Xingyin’s fingertip hovered over the screen, his heart suddenly accelerating. He ignored all the other requests and only accepted this one. The system prompted that he had successfully added Qi Yan as a friend. Qiao Xingyin felt a daze, then stared blankly at the empty chat interface. His finger slid back and forth through his sticker list, pondering which expression to use as an opening to seem natural.

Just then, a new message popped up in the dialogue box.

“I do not go to the convenience store every day.”

Qiao Xingyin blinked. Before he could reply, the “typing” status appeared next to Qi Yan’s avatar, and another message followed.

“I go on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays.”

Today was Friday; Qi Yan was not at the convenience store. The other employee on duty today was a lecher who was quite disrespectful toward Omegas. Qi Yan did not want him to meet Qiao Xingyin. This sentence was followed by a transfer. The amount was exactly for the supper and the umbrella from that day.

Clutching his phone, Qiao Xingyin felt something swaying gently in his chest. He could almost picture Qi Yan frowning while typing these words, those always-cold eyes surely hiding some awkward emotions right now.

“Then what are you doing on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays, and Sundays? Do you go straight home after school?” Qiao Xingyin asked.

He asked too bluntly; unsurprisingly, Qi Yan chose silence. Yet Qiao Xingyin continued sending messages with great interest.

“Not answering means you are not going home. Are you working part-time somewhere else?”

“If you will not tell me where, you are not expecting me to just bump into you, are you?”

“That is not impossible though. I believe fate will favor us.”

In the evening, while Qiao Xingyin was curled up on the sofa reading, the sound of a key turning came from the entryway. Qiao Xingyin immediately closed his book and ran to open the door. Tomorrow was the weekend, the time for Qiao Xingyue to return home.

Sure enough, he saw Qiao Xingyue standing tall, wearing a deep camel-colored trench coat and holding a document folder.

“Brother, you are back,” Qiao Xingyin said.

The fatigue between Qiao Xingyue’s brows dissolved the moment he saw him. “How was your week?” He asked. His gaze carefully swept over Qiao Xingyin, confirming there was nothing amiss.

Qiao Xingyin’s eyes curved. “Peaceful and uneventful.”

Although people occasionally followed him after school, the pepper spray and alarm he carried had not been used yet. At least for now, no one dared to do anything to him in light of day.

Qiao Xingyue washed his hands and sat at the other end of the sofa, picking up a tangerine to peel. “Did you meet any new friends?”

“I did.” Qiao Xingyin took the tangerine segment handed over by Qiao Xingyue, the sweet juice bursting in his mouth. “You just got home. Let me peel them for you.”

Qiao Xingyue waved him off in refusal. “An Omega?” He asked.

In their relationship, it was always Qiao Xingyue who took more care of Qiao Xingyin. Qiao Xingyue did not find this tiring; on the contrary, he relished it.

Qiao Xingyin answered, “A Beta.”

Both Wen Ke and Qi Yan were Betas.

Qiao Xingyue’s brow furrowed almost imperceptibly. “Even if it is a Beta, I am not entirely at ease.”

Qiao Xingyin felt a bit helpless. “Brother, Betas cannot smell pheromones.”

Qiao Xingyue sighed. “Do not forget, you are already very good-looking to begin with. It is safer to make Omega friends.”

If he had not been peeling a tangerine, he would have reached out to gently pinch his cheek. Qiao Xingyin remained silent.

Qiao Xingyue also realized his demands were too strict. “Of course, I will not interfere with your friendships. Just let things take their natural course. I am being too nervous.”

Qiao Xingyin thought that, music to his ears, Qi Yan was the best candidate for a friend. Qi Yan was the protagonist of the original story; it was impossible for him to have improper thoughts about Qiao Xingyin. This kind of pure relationship made him feel at peace.

“I understand,” Qiao Xingyin said softly.

Qiao Xingyue handed him another peeled tangerine. “Where do you want to go play tomorrow?”

Qiao Xingyin bit through the tangerine membrane, juice splashing onto his lips and staining them a deeper red. “I have not planned it yet.”

Qiao Xingyue looked at him for a few seconds. “If you do not have arrangements, listen to me. There are many good places in North City.”

Qiao Xingyin never had objections to Qiao Xingyue’s plans. “Sure.”

Qiao Xingyue wiped his fingertips clean with a wet wipe, took out his phone, and showed Qiao Xingyin an interface. “The Science and Technology Museum has a starry sky exhibition.”

Hearing the suggestion, Qiao Xingyin’s eyes lit up. Perhaps because their parents had given them names containing the word “Star,” or perhaps because the Milky Way was inherently romantic, he had felt a special connection to the starry sky since childhood. Those distant celestial bodies and the boundless universe always brought him a sense of peace and longing. He loved its profound brilliance and the shining stars.

On Saturday, Qiao Xingyin went to the Science and Technology Museum with Qiao Xingyue.

As advertised, the astronomy hall was shrouded in a deep, profound blue. The vaulted ceiling was like an inverted night sky with countless points of light slowly circulating, outlining the magnificent silhouette of the Milky Way’s spiral arms. The moment they stepped into the hall, the sensor-activated floor tiles lit up with nebula-like patterns that rippled out with every step, as if they were walking on cosmic dust.

The background audio in the hall played the pulsation of the universe, making the starlight from billions of light-years away feel reachable in that moment. Qiao Xingyin looked up at the rotating nebula projection, the flowing spots of light reflected in his pupils.

Standing beside him, Qiao Xingyue looked at Qiao Xingyin’s focused profile, and for a moment, it felt like they were back in the summer nights of their childhood, counting shooting stars together.

Meanwhile, Qi Yan was still working at the convenience store. Every time the glass door was pushed open, the crisp sound of the wind chimes made him look up subconsciously, but it was never the person he wanted to see. Qiao Xingyin had not appeared all day.

Qi Yan lowered his eyes, his lips curling into a self-mocking smirk. What exactly was he expecting? Qiao Xingyin had his own life, his own friends, and perhaps even someone closer to him. The convenience store was just a place he stepped into occasionally when he needed to buy something. Did Qi Yan really expect him to wander over just because he had free time to see him?

As soon as the thought surfaced, Qi Yan ruthlessly snuffed it out.

Right then, a familiar figure suddenly flickered in his peripheral vision. Through the glass window, Qi Yan suddenly saw Qiao Xingyin crossing the street side-by-side with a tall boy, walking toward the residential area.

Qi Yan’s breath hitched. For a moment, he thought he had seen wrong, thinking it was an illusion born from his deep desire to see him. The slight stinging of his wound reminded him that this scene was real, without embellishment. That man had broad shoulders and an upright posture. Even in casual clothes, he could not hide the characteristic aura of an Alpha. When he lowered his head slightly to listen to Qiao Xingyin speak, there was an intimate smile on his lips.

Qi Yan’s knuckles suddenly tightened, and the barcode scanner in his hand let out a mistaken beep. He quickly looked down to organize the bills, as if doing so could help him avoid that glaring scene.

Qi Yan did not expect that he would still see Qiao Xingyin that night.

Returning from the planetarium, Qiao Xingyin planned to use his free time to repair the umbrella that his classmate had broken for Qi Yan. The tools at home were not complete, so he thought he could check the convenience store. Qi Yan had told him he would be working at the convenience store on Saturday.

As the twilight deepened, the wind chimes suddenly chimed. Qi Yan looked up and met those eyes reflecting the warm light. Qiao Xingyin walked in holding a cardboard box.

“I am here to buy glue,” Qiao Xingyin said. The box was large, making his frame look even thinner and more delicate.

Qi Yan asked him, “Are you making crafts?”

“That is right,” Qiao Xingyin replied. Fixing an umbrella was a type of craft.

Actually, Qi Yan just wanted to ask him what kind of glue he needed and if it was the type for crafting. Qi Yan quickly helped him find the tools he needed, his gaze shifting to the box in Qiao Xingyin’s arms. “What is this?”

“These are supplies for that special customer from last time,” Qiao Xingyin said. The box was filled with cat food, cat treats, and canned cat food.

“I want to give the kitten a name. What do you think would be good?” Qiao Xingyin set up the food bowl for the stray cat. “If you do not come up with an idea, I am calling it ‘Xiao Yan’.”

Qi Yan’s footsteps came to an abrupt halt. He replied neither warmly nor coldly, “Pick another one.”

Qiao Xingyin teased him, “Are you looking down on it because it is a stray, or because it is not good-looking?”

“I am not,” Qi Yan interrupted him, his earlobes burning slightly.

Qiao Xingyin made a bossy decision. “Then I will call it A-Yan. It is the ‘Yan’ for flame. Since it is a ginger cat, the word ‘flame’ fits its color better.”

“Xiao Yan” and “A-Yan” were names his own biological parents had never given him as intimate nicknames. Yet these two words flowed naturally from the mouth of this Omega he had not known for long. Qi Yan’s heart rate accelerated uncontrollably, making his already stiff back even stiffer.

After Qiao Xingyin bought the tools and returned home, he began his great umbrella-repair project. He sat cross-legged on the carpet, lining up the newly purchased tools one by one. Aluminum foil tape, waterproof resin, and specialized needle and thread were arranged neatly like surgical instruments. The damaged black umbrella lay quietly on the carpet, the fracture in the rib looking somewhat gruesome.

Qiao Xingyue walked into Qiao Xingyin’s room carrying warm milk. Seeing the scene before him, he worried he would get tired. “The umbrella is broken. Just buy a new one.”

But Qiao Xingyin said, “This umbrella is different.”

Qiao Xingyue also noticed something unusual. “In my memory, you do not seem to have ever bought an umbrella this color.”

Qiao Xingyin’s personal belongings were mostly bright-colored. Not just his belongings, but his clothing was as well. For example, right now, Qiao Xingyin was wearing cheese-yellow pajamas, making him look like a soft glutinous rice ball. Seeing him like this, Qiao Xingyue always had to suppress the urge to reach out and ruffle his hair. Black, gray, and other dark-toned items were rare.

This umbrella, however, was pure black, deep and somber as if it came from a long, cold, rainy night. Even if he was busy with his career and could not be present in Qiao Xingyin’s life every day, Qiao Xingyue could instantly recognize that this was not an item belonging to his brother.

“This is my classmate’s umbrella,” Qiao Xingyin said. “It rained that day and I did not have one, so I borrowed it, but then I accidentally broke it.”

“Then it really is necessary to fix it properly,” Qiao Xingyue expressed his understanding. “I will join you. Let us see if there is anything I can help with.”

With Qiao Xingyue’s help, the originally unfamiliar and complex process became less difficult. Qiao Xingyin praised him repeatedly. “Brother, you really are omnipotent.”

His movements in mending the umbrella canopy were clumsy but earnest. Looking at Qiao Xingyin’s lowered eyelashes, Qiao Xingyue suddenly wished he truly were omnipotent so he could forever protect that small patch of moonlight-like skin revealed on the back of the boy’s neck when he bowed his head. He reached out to brush away non-existent dust from Qiao Xingyin’s hair, wondering if the classmate who lent the umbrella had ever seen such a moment.

When Qi Yan found the repaired black umbrella at his seat, his pupils constricted slightly.

The umbrella was folded neatly. The broken rib had been wrapped with professional-grade waterproof tape, with each loop precisely overlapping by a third. The edges were trimmed round and smooth so they would not scratch a finger. He reached out to touch the canopy and only saw upon turning it over that the jagged tear had been resewn with silk thread, the stitches arranged in an exquisite herringbone pattern. The direction of the thread perfectly matched the texture of the fabric. If he had not felt it with his own hands, he could hardly see the traces of repair. Even the tip of the umbrella had been carefully polished.

The handle had also been meticulously wiped with a soft cloth. The years of accumulated grime between the wood grains had vanished, revealing the original warm texture. A sticky note was attached to it in a handwriting he recognized, which read, “It is not repaired very well, so just make do with it. ”

It turned out that Qiao Xingyin had gone to the convenience store for tools specifically to fix the umbrella for him. And he really had fixed it.

A look of astonishment flooded Qi Yan’s eyes, and his chest was hit with a powerful jolt. He as a person, along with his belongings, was usually treated as worthless by others. In this life, he had never been treated with such earnest care.

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