My Desk Mate is My Fiancée - Chapter 2

Chapter 2: What would Lin Xi’s Pheromone be?

The light in front of Zhong Xiu suddenly brightened, then dimmed again. A tall figure blocked most of the light from her view. The Alpha was nearly a head taller than the unprecented Beta, like a towering green bamboo that had shot up overnight.

However, the overly nervous Beta did not notice this change at all. Zhong Xiu slowly lifted her head.

Under the light, Lin Xi’s face was flushed from the heat, which was a stark contrast to her usual cool, pale skin. Her body was also hot, like a faint flame ignited after the rain.

Few Alphas and Omegas present alone. Whether at school or other public places, as soon as an adolescent is found to be presenting, they are immediately sent to the hospital for the best care—a special privilege for Alphas and Omegas.

They don’t have to worry about injecting inhibitors; the glandular doctors teach them how.

Yet, Lin Xi’s presentation was handled entirely by herself. Her uncle, Lin Keqin, had only visited once during this time, staying for less than five minutes. He took away the maid and the driver responsible for Lin Xi’s daily care, leaving behind only a 39°C thermometer and her nominal Beta fiancée.

The family doctor’s phone was constantly busy and couldn’t be reached. An Alpha in the early stages of presentation, still emitting pheromones, dared not go out rashly.

“I can’t reach it.” The long, slender fingers were still hooked around Zhong Xiu’s school uniform collar. The Alpha’s tone sounded slightly frustrated.

The Alpha’s voice had changed during presentation. Zhong Xiu, who was intimately familiar with her voice, immediately noticed the difference: it was clearer than before, carrying a slight low pitch that was very arresting.

“But… I don’t know how,” Zhong Xiu leaned against the door panel, her voice as quiet as a mosquito.

Physiology classes were held separately for different genders. In fact, she didn’t even know what an Alpha’s scent gland looked like.

“I’ll teach you.”

The food and her backpack were placed in the hallway, and Lin Xi pulled Zhong Xiu upstairs to the bedroom.

The curtains were open, and the sunset glow streamed through the window, evenly covering the bed, like a duvet woven from light.

A stack of notebooks and textbooks were neatly arranged on the desk. A black sports backpack rested next to them, a soft, small white cloud charm hanging from the side zipper. If you got closer, you could smell the faint fragrance of laundry detergent. The newly issued school uniform had straight creases from being folded against cardboard, suggesting it hadn’t been tried on yet, and it was casually draped over the back of the chair.

Needles and medicine boxes were scattered on the floor, looking particularly out of place in the clean, tidy room. As Lin Xi stepped over the mess, Zhong Xiu was afraid she might step on something and cut her foot.

The mirror that was usually placed near the window had been moved to the center of the room, next to the messy pile of medicine boxes. It wasn’t hard to imagine how the Alpha had been sitting on the floor just a while ago, trying to inject the inhibitor herself.

A thick, textbook-sized, color human physiology atlas was spread open on the desk. It was entirely in English, but the pictures were clear. A glance was enough to roughly understand what needed to be done.

“Just follow this.”

She was probably in a lot of discomfort. Lin Xi hastily put the syringe into Zhong Xiu’s hand, irritably ran a hand through her hair, and then bent her long legs, squatting by the bed.

The concentration of pheromones in the air was already excessive. The alarm light on the ceiling kept flashing red. A newly presented Alpha wasn’t sensitive enough to such warnings, and a Beta was utterly unaware. No one thought to turn on the ventilator.

Does this mean… Zhong Xiu’s mind started wandering uncontrollably. She quietly raised a hand and touched her flushed face.

Thump—thump—

She wondered if Lin Xi would be startled by the sound of her pounding heart, which felt like a drum, and catch the audacious secret admirer red-handed.

“I’m starting,” she carefully tore open the disposable packaging, trying her best not to let the other person hear the subtle tension in her voice.

“Mhm.” The Alpha’s eyes were slightly closed, her head curled and resting on her knees, looking quite compliant.

Her head was bowed, and from this angle, Zhong Xiu could clearly see her thick, long eyelashes, her slightly baby-fat cheeks, and her fair, tender skin, which made her look like a porcelain doll—very soft and childlike.

I really want to poke her cheek. Zhong Xiu gently lifted the hair covering the back of Lin Xi’s neck.

The pink scent gland hidden in that snowy-white territory was abruptly exposed to Zhong Xiu’s sight. The girl’s delicate skin was incredibly soft, even for an Alpha.

Only then did Zhong Xiu truly realize what a huge challenge this was.

Because of the recent presentation, the gland was still very tender, appearing somewhat fragile. Its slight protrusion and full swelling were signs of actively releasing pheromones, seemingly sending out an invitation to an Omega.

Zhong Xiu quietly took a deep breath. Besides the air, there was no smell.

I can’t feel it, I can’t smell it. A flicker of disappointment crossed her bright eyes. She couldn’t sense the existence of pheromones, which the book said was the most important characteristic of an Alpha.

I wonder what Lin Xi’s pheromone smells like? For a moment, Zhong Xiu suddenly envied the Omega, the Omega who would be able to sense Lin Xi’s pheromones in the future.

Their pheromones would blend, becoming a part of each other’s existence.

Before this, Zhong Xiu had never felt that being a Beta was something to regret.

“Should I just inject it directly?” The needle of the syringe was sharp. Sticking it into the soft gland made Zhong Xiu wince just thinking about the pain. “Will you… will it hurt?”

Regarding the gland, the physiology book stated that it was the Alpha’s most private part, not to be seen by anyone except their own Omega, parents, and doctor. And yet, Lin Xi was presenting the most vulnerable part of her body so defenselessly to another person, even if that person was a Beta.

However, the surging pheromones inside her body caused her more distress.

“No,” Lin Xi pressed her fingertips, which were resting on the floor, into her palm. She wasn’t sure if asking a Beta for help was the right decision.

To maintain stability, Zhong Xiu’s left thumb and forefinger gently pressed on the skin next to Lin Xi’s posterior neck. The Beta’s fingers were slightly cool, which felt very comfortable to the feverish Alpha.

“Then tell me if it hurts.” Zhong Xiu felt as cautious as she did during the parent-teacher conference for the final exam, walking on eggshells, afraid of hurting that fragile gland. She didn’t notice the Alpha’s ears quickly turning red, along with the fine, tiny hairs on them.

The moment the needle pierced the gland, the pain was obvious, but the strong-willed Alpha naturally wouldn’t let it show. Lin Xi fiercely suppressed her throat, not allowing a single sound to escape.

When the inhibitor was fully injected, as a gift for this first contact, a fair exchange, the gland released its remaining stored pheromones.

The pheromones silently enveloped the only other person in the room besides their owner. Lin Xi hadn’t learned how to control them yet. Fortunately, Zhong Xiu was a Beta, completely oblivious and unaffected, and the struggling Alpha had no choice but to indulge the release.

“It’s done.” Zhong Xiu tossed the syringe and its packaging into the trash can, pressing the needle-pricked area with a cotton swab, watching the slightly swollen gland slowly calm down, turning into a tiny patch of red.

It seemed to be successful.

It looked very much like a mosquito bite, but a bit bigger than one. What did it look like? Like a Want Want mini-mantou, like the little tip of a longevity peach… None of those felt quite right. Zhong Xiu didn’t know what it looked like, and even if she did, she couldn’t say it.

“Thank you.” Lin Xi took a deep breath, leaning against the bed as if she were exhausted.

“Are you feeling better?” Zhong Xiu leaned in to check her complexion. The inhibitor was taking effect quickly. Lin Xi’s face no longer had that abnormal flush; it was a little pale, showing a hint of the grievance that comes after enduring torment—only a trace, hard to notice without looking closely.

The slightly red-eyed Alpha looked like a little white rabbit, making people want to bully her, which was a rare sight for a top-tier Alpha. Zhong Xiu’s heart skipped twice.

This was the first time she had looked at her so boldly.

At school, Zhong Xiu only dared to steal a glance at her profile with her peripheral vision while looking up at the blackboard, letting the captured image loop repeatedly in her mind.

“I’m fine,” Lin Xi covered the back of her neck, stood up, and turned Zhong Xiu around, pushing her toward the door. “I’m going to change. I’ll be down in a moment.”

“Okay,” Zhong Xiu, realizing the Alpha was probably feeling shy, couldn’t help but curve her eyes into a smile.

As Lin Xi walked down the stairs, Zhong Xiu was arranging the dinner on the table with her back to her. Her hair was tied back in a ponytail, and her uniform collar was neat. Lin Xi could see the smooth back of her neck clearly.

Betas didn’t have to keep their hair down, nor did they need to wear inhibitor patches on their necks. They had no scent glands, so there was naturally no need.

In this house right now, her pheromone concentration was the highest. As an Alpha, Lin Xi’s attention was firmly drawn to it.

However, the Beta had absolutely no reaction to the overwhelming pheromones.

Lin Xi felt something was wrong with herself.

Perhaps she still needed to go to the hospital.

“I didn’t have enough time today, so I bought dinner from the snack street behind the school. The fried rice was recommended by You Tian and Gao Lan, and I occasionally eat the egg waffles myself. I don’t know if you’ll like them,” Zhong Xiu said, a little anxious.

Lin Xi changed into a fresh black T-shirt and walked over to the dining table, bending down to carefully examine the “strange” dinner.

Normally, her three meals a day were specially delivered by the maid. Lin Xi rarely ate out, and her parents controlled her strictly, so she didn’t have much exposure to snacks.

The only exception was that one time in her first year of high school, when she was studying with Zhong Xiu in her mother’s hospital room and ate a meal cooked by Zhong Xiu’s father. That was the only time.

The memory of the taste was awakened. Lin Xi quietly swallowed. The Alpha, who had been fasting for a whole day during her presentation period, felt an unprecedented, delayed sense of hunger in the face of the most irresistible human food.

“It might be a bit dry,” Zhong Xiu scanned the food, which seemed to be mostly main dishes. Even if Lin Xi ate half, she would probably be thirsty. “I’ll go pour you some milk.”

“Thank you,” Lin Xi sat down. She didn’t sit up straight as her parents required, nor did she use a napkin. She leaned in and poked the golden, soft egg waffles.

…

It took some time to heat the milk. When Zhong Xiu came out, her eyes went wide.

The Alpha was holding less than half of the egg waffle in one hand and a spoon in the other.

The overflowing bowl of fried rice was down to less than a third. It had only been five minutes.

“Slow down… Eating too fast isn’t good for your stomach.” The amount of this fried rice was usually only a third of what Zhong Xiu could eat at most. When You Tian recommended it to her, he guaranteed it would be enough.

“Hungry,” Lin Xi replied succinctly, not forgetting to elegantly take a bite of the egg waffle.

The Alpha ate very quietly, and her expression was quite serious, focusing intently on the bowl of fried rice, no different than doing a comprehensive science test.

She seemed serious about everything she did. Zhong Xiu, who had secretly watched her focused profile countless times in the classroom, felt a conditioned reflex to lower her head and reach for a pen.

She didn’t have a pen in her hand, and Lin Xi had taken the cup of milk, so Zhong Xiu could only shift her gaze elsewhere. Under the table, the Alpha’s feet were now encased in slippers, only two toes showing. Zhong Xiu was a little disappointed.

“Are you going to school the day after tomorrow? Do you want to take a few more days off?” As she asked this, Zhong Xiu was struggling internally, debating whether to tell her about Zhai Yong.

“We’ll see then.”

Sure enough, tomorrow’s monthly exam is out of the question, Zhong Xiu sighed internally. Will I really have to be Zhai Yong’s deskmate next month?

“What’s wrong?” Lin Xi didn’t miss the change in her expression.

It was highly likely due to the residual pheromones. Lin Xi could keenly detect the subtle changes in her mood. Pheromones were like invisible sensors.

“Nothing, you should rest well.”

It’s just one month, at most. Next month… Lin Xi should test well enough to get her seat back, right?

But what if Lin Xi was too lazy to switch deskmates by then?

Zhong Xiu suddenly became anxious.