Senior, Stop Pretending to be an Alpha - Chapter 1

“A305, right? Your delivery is here.”

There was a flurry of chaotic noise on the other end of the line. The owner of the number gave a hasty, distracted reply and hung up abruptly.

Yu Qiao crouched on the ground, fiddling with the plastic delivery bag. As the busy signal droned in her ear, she set her phone down.

It was dusk, and the sky was dimming. The area beneath the dormitory was quiet; most people were likely eating at the canteen, making this spot feel particularly desolate and cold.

Only one tall girl stood near the green belt, looking down at her phone as if waiting for someone.

Yu Qiao stared at her absentmindedly for a moment before realizing it was rude and quickly averted her gaze.

Her legs were starting to feel numb from crouching. Bracing her hands on her knees, she arched her back and slowly stood up.

Her phone showed 18:05. Five minutes had passed, and the person still hadn’t come down.

With every breath, white mist clouded her glasses. Though the National Day holiday had just passed, the weather was still sweltering. Yu Qiao pulled her mask down to her chin, revealing a face the size of a palm, a petite nose beaded with condensation, and a forehead drenched in sweat.

After another five minutes, the iron dorm gate swung open. A girl in pajamas rushed out clutching her campus card, looking around frantically.

Yu Qiao quickly waved to her. “Over here.”

The girl jogged over, flashing a wide grin. “I’m so sorry! I was in the middle of a rank-up match in my game and couldn’t stop.”

Yu Qiao didn’t quite understand the gaming slang, but she replied calmly, “It’s fine.”

“Yeah, thanks for your hard work…” The girl took the plastic bag. “Then… I’ll head back up?”

“Okay… Oh, watch out!” Yu Qiao reached out, but she was too late. The girl moved too quickly, causing the bag to swing violently. The soup container inside hadn’t been sealed tightly enough; half of it splashed out, soaking Yu Qiao’s pant leg.

The girl froze, holding the bag in a daze. “Ah! I—I’m so sorry!”

Yu Qiao knit her brows and let out a long breath. “It’s okay. Go ahead and go up.”

“Did it burn you?” The girl turned her pockets inside out but couldn’t find a single tissue. She could only ask awkwardly.

Yu Qiao shook her head. “No.”

After asking several more times and receiving a firm reassurance, the girl finally headed back inside, glancing back with a face full of guilt every few steps.

Once she was gone, Yu Qiao crouched down and rolled up her pant leg. The skin on her calf was slightly flushed. The soup must have been fresh out of the pot; it was indeed a bit hot. But there was nothing to be done—it was just bad luck.

She clutched her pant leg, her eyebrows drawn together in deep conflict. She was debating whether to walk back dripping wet to change or to continue delivering the rest of the orders.

“Do you need a tissue?”

“No thanks, I—” Yu Qiao instinctively started to refuse, then blinked and looked up. A scent wafted toward her.

It was light, elegant, and slightly sweet—like the faint fragrance of flowers.

A pair of legs stood before her. They were straight and slender, encased in slim-fit jeans—a pleasing sight.

Yu Qiao pushed up her glasses, dazed for a moment.

It was the tall girl who had been waiting for someone.

“Take it,” the girl said, looking down at her. Her palm was turned upward, her wide sleeve falling back to reveal a slender, pale wrist. A pack of tissues sat in the middle of her clean palm.

She must be used to giving orders, Yu Qiao thought silently as she accepted the tissues. “Thank you.”

The girl looked at her face, her thoughts unreadable, and crooked an eyebrow. Her brows were thin, reminiscent of the swaying willow leaves Yu Qiao used to see by the river back in her hometown. The corners of her eyes tilted upward slightly, like some sort of clever, cunning animal.

…What kind of animal would it be?

Yu Qiao looked down to wipe her pant leg. When she looked up again, the tall girl was gone.

She had no choice but to tuck the pack of tissues away, pick up her delivery bags, and rush to the next customer.

While waiting for the next person, Yu Qiao’s mind wandered back to the tall girl, and she reached a random conclusion.

…She’s a bit like a fox.

Once the damp fabric of her pants dried, it felt uncomfortably sticky against her ankle, but she eventually got used to it.

After finishing all her deliveries, Yu Qiao returned to the canteen to hand back her hat and apron.

She stretched and walked slowly into Dorm Building A. Before she even pushed the door open, she heard Yao Rudong’s sharp, thin voice.

There were four people in the dorm. Yao Rudong and Lu Yun were in the same major as her. Su Qixue was in a different major and had chosen to live off-campus; they hadn’t seen her in a while.

“Yunyun, let me tell you… Oh, Qiaoqiao is back?” Yao Rudong had sharp ears; she whipped her head around the moment she heard the door.

Yu Qiao walked in, nodded, and placed her backpack on her seat. Yao Rudong lunged over and wrapped her arms around Yu Qiao’s neck.

“Qiaoqiao, Qiaoqiao! Are you tired today?”

Yu Qiao’s glasses were knocked askew by the embrace. She tried to straighten them but couldn’t move her arms, so she just said, “Not tired.”

“Our Qiaoqiao is so hardworking,” Yao Rudong rubbed her hair, cooing as if to a child. “Don’t overwork yourself, okay?”

Lu Yun spoke up: “Someone who plays games all day has no right to say that.”

Yao Rudong pouted and let go of Yu Qiao, turning to face Lu Yun with her hands on her hips. “I want to work hard too, but we’re only freshmen! We just escaped the misery of the College Entrance Exams. Why make life so hard…?”

“You escaped months ago.” Lu Yun put down her book, expressionless. “Did you finish this week’s Python programming problems?”

Yao Rudong shut up instantly, looking guilty.

Yu Qiao took off her glasses and set them gently on the desk. Lu Yun noticed and said, “You’ve had those glasses for a long time, haven’t you?”

Yu Qiao had only been slightly nearsighted at first. During her senior year of high school, she sat in the back row and suddenly realized she couldn’t see the blackboard. When she went to the eye hospital for a prescription, the doctor said she was overusing her eyes and shouldn’t read for too long, or her vision would worsen.

Yu Qiao had agreed but didn’t take it to heart. She continued to burn the midnight oil, successfully increasing her prescription to over 300 degrees. When she returned to the hospital, the ophthalmologist could only shake his head at her.

A year had passed, and the black-rimmed frames were looking a bit dated. Yao Rudong agreed: “Qiaoqiao, you should switch to thin frames. You’d look great in them, and they’re trendy right now.”

Yu Qiao smiled. “Maybe later.”

She sat down and looked at her sticky pant leg. Seeing this, Lu Yun asked, “What happened?”

“Nothing, I just spilled some soup while delivering.”

Yao Rudong winced. “You didn’t get burned, did you?”

“No, don’t worry,” Yu Qiao said. “I’m going to take a shower first.”

Carrying her nightgown into the bathroom, she looked at herself in the mirror: a clean face, lips shaped like a fish’s tail, a developing figure, and a faint red mark on her thin calf. She tilted her head back, letting the hot water from the shower head wash over her.

All her exhaustion was swept away.

She squeezed some lemon-scented body wash into her hand and slowly lathered up. For some reason, Yu Qiao thought of the faint scent on the “fox girl” again.

…It smelled so good, but it didn’t seem like perfume.

Lost in thought, she finished her shower and walked out. Yao Rudong and Lu Yun were huddled in front of a computer looking at gossip. Seeing Yu Qiao, they hurriedly waved her over. “Qiaoqiao, come look!”

Yu Qiao walked over with a towel on her head. The computer screen was so bright she squinted reflexively.

“What are you looking at?” she asked.

“The school’s Confession Wall! There’s new gossip!”

Yao Rudong cupped her cheeks. “Someone saw Xie Bufei and Cheng Yeli getting into the same car. They’re probably going on a date.”

Lu Yun added, “Their families are quite close, right?”

“Rich, childhood sweethearts… why does it sound so much like a novel?” Yao Rudong looked up at the ceiling. “Does this actually exist in real life?!”

Yu Qiao listened quietly for a moment, then suddenly asked, “Who are Xie Bufei and Cheng Yeli?”

Lu Yun looked at her as if she were a ghost. “You don’t know them?”

Yu Qiao shook her head.

“The beautiful ‘Department Flower’ of the Music Department and the ‘Department Grass’ (heartthrob) of the Physics Department!”

Yao Rudong gave her a heavy pat on the back, nearly knocking Yu Qiao over. “Handsome guys, beautiful girls, legendary figures—and you’re telling me you don’t know who they are?”

Yu Qiao truly didn’t. Her life was packed with the three-point routine of studying, part-time jobs, and assignments. She had neither the interest nor the time to keep up with such things.

“Forget it. If it’s you, it’s not surprising,” Lu Yun shrugged.

“Qiaoqiao, it’s fine to love studying, but you should at least handle your social life and learn a bit about the school gossip.”

Yao Rudong scrolled down the page. “I’ll show you their photos… where are they? There should be plenty of people confessing to them.”

Yu Qiao dried her hair with the towel, neither agreeing nor disagreeing. Cheng Yeli had many admirers; cheesy love poems covered the Confession Wall like climbing ivy. He was indeed a very handsome man with striking features.

“Look, handsome, right?”

Yu Qiao rolled up her towel and nodded expressionlessly.

As the page continued to scroll, a pair of fox-like eyes suddenly appeared.

Yu Qiao’s movements froze. She let out a soft, “Ah.”

“It’s her.”

“Xie Bufei. Isn’t she beautiful?” Yao Rudong didn’t hear her clearly and continued, “Too bad she’s an Alpha.”

Yu Qiao looked at those bright, clear eyes. In her memory, that faint fragrance came rushing back like a mist.

She asked in a low voice, “Is being an Alpha bad?”

“It’s not bad,” Lu Yun said. “It’s just that Alphas don’t usually fall for Betas like us.”

Yu Qiao murmured, “Not necessarily.”

“Sigh, the pheromones of Alphas and Omegas are a match made in heaven. Who can resist that ‘destined’ feeling?”

Yao Rudong leaned back, lost in a fantasy. “If only I were an Omega, I could marry into a wealthy family…”

Lu Yun replied heartlessly, “Keep dreaming.” She turned to Yu Qiao. “I remember Qiaoqiao hasn’t differentiated yet, right?”

Yu Qiao’s differentiation period was later than most. Those who hadn’t differentiated yet lived in the same dorms as Betas.

She nodded. Yao Rudong put an arm around her and laughed. “I think our Qiaoqiao is destined to be a cute and excellent little Beta.”

“I think so too,” Lu Yun agreed. They both looked at Yu Qiao, waiting for her opinion.

Yu Qiao could only say, “A Beta, I suppose.”

Internally, she thought: I don’t really mind either way.

She had been quiet and introverted since she was a child. Everyone around her assumed she was a regular Beta—and if not a Beta, then surely an Omega.

Yao Rudong sighed. “If only I could have a girlfriend as pretty as the Department Flower.”

Lu Yun: “Only in your dreams.”

“Then I’m going to sleep and dream.” Yao Rudong flopped backward onto the bed. Lu Yun grabbed her arm and pulled her up, scolding, “Get up, that’s my bed!”

Yu Qiao couldn’t help but smile. She looked at the fox-like eyes on the screen and asked, “Her name is Xie Bufei?”

“Yeah.”

Yu Qiao nodded. “I’ve seen her.”

Yao Rudong shot up from the bed and Lu Yun’s eyes widened. Both asked simultaneously, “You’ve seen her? When? Where?”

“While delivering food today,” Yu Qiao said.

“I’m so jealous! I haven’t seen her in person yet! Is she pretty?” Yao Rudong asked impatiently. “Is she as cold and aloof as the rumors say?”

Aloof? Yu Qiao thought about it but hadn’t felt that way.

“She’s pretty. When the soup spilled, she lent me a tissue.”

Lu Yun reached a realization. “I didn’t expect her to be so helpful…”

“You’re so lucky,” Yao Rudong said with envy, grabbing Yu Qiao’s hand and rubbing it vigorously. “Lend me some of your luck! I’m going downstairs to try and run into her too!”

Yu Qiao was shaken back and forth by her friend. She straightened the towel on her head and smiled helplessly.

Looking at the computer screen, she thought of the pack of tissues in her pocket, and suddenly, the skin touching them felt warm.

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