Senior, Stop Pretending to be an Alpha - Chapter 36.1

Watching the girl’s face gradually enlarge before her, Xie Bufei subconsciously held her breath.

She truly received a kiss.

Yu Qiao’s lips fell upon hers like a dragonfly skimming the water, even lingering for a brief moment.

Their lips pressed together; the point of contact was soft and moist, like kissing a damp rose petal. Yet, it carried a heat that was impossible to ignore, like a fuse being lit, erupting into a surging flame.

Under the moonlight, the girl’s eyes were misty, and her slender, pale body trembled slightly. A faint pink flush spread from her cheeks to the tips of her ears.

The scent of vegetation permeated the air, silently intertwining with the overly sweet fragrance of lily of the valley. Their naturally paired pheromones caused both of them to experience an uncontrollable, blurred dizziness at the same time.

It was truly a little intoxicating.

There was no deep kissing, no tangling of teeth or tongues; it was clearly just the simplest touch, yet it made their hearts skip a beat.

Xie Bufei saw Yu Qiao close her eyes, her thick, curled eyelashes shimmering under the moonlight.

She suddenly felt her own despicableness.

Clearly, she shouldn’t have made such a request. She was insatiable, yet whenever Yu Qiao took the initiative to draw near, she couldn’t help but indulge her own greed.

After a moment, Yu Qiao opened her eyes. She released the girl beneath her, slowly straightened her back, and sat on the other side.

Amidst the quiet eye contact, she looked away and said hoarsely, “I’m sorry.”

Xie Bufei pursed her lips gently, her red lips glistening with moisture. She lowered her eyes, her fingers unconsciously clutching the hem of her shirt.

“No need to apologize. It’s not your fault.”

“Thank you, Qiaoqiao, for comforting me.” She gave a somewhat pale smile, her voice tender. “Goodnight.”

For a time, Yu Qiao didn’t know what to say. She quietly steadied her racing heartbeat.

When she had seen the girl’s hurt expression, an inexplicable impulse had struck her. In that instant, she only wanted to make Xie Bufei a little happier; no matter what kind of request the other party made, she would have agreed.

Watching Xie Bufei slowly turn around to face away from her again, Yu Qiao bit her lip and lay down on her side.

A faint fragrance seemed to linger on her lips. She pressed them lightly with her fingertips; they were startlingly hot.

Yu Qiao took a deep breath, feeling a delayed sense of bashfulness as her ears turned a deep red.

She seemed to have done something she shouldn’t have done again.

Was a real goodnight kiss actually like this? It was just like between lovers, tender and lingering. Clearly, they were just friends, yet tonight felt a bit too ambiguous.

Yu Qiao stared blankly at the ceiling. The muffled sound of a car engine drifted in from the window, and streaks of light and shadow flickered across the white wall, moving closer and then further away.

Thinking about the night’s events, she stayed awake for nearly half the night. It wasn’t until the horizon turned the color of a fish’s belly that she finally felt a hazy sleepiness.

Between being half-awake and half-asleep, it felt as though someone was sitting beside her, gazing deeply at her and gently stroking her hair.

Then, footsteps slowly faded away, and she sank into a deep dream.

Bright midday light spilled into the bedroom. Yu Qiao slowly opened her eyes and sat up in bed.

Having stayed up until dawn, she sat there squinting bleat-eyed for a while, her brain a complete mess.

As her thoughts gradually cleared, Yu Qiao turned around, only to find that the person who should have been beside her was not in the bed.

“Senior?”

She grabbed her glasses from the nightstand, put them on, and shuffled out of the bedroom in her slippers.

Gu Cuilan was sitting in the living room cracking melon seeds. Hearing the noise, she turned around. “You’re up?”

Yu Qiao gave a hum of affirmation. She opened the bathroom door to take a look; no one was there.

She took a stroll onto the balcony; no one was there either.

Her expression gradually became blank. She wandered around the room like a headless fly.

“Looking for Xiao Fei?” Gu Cuilan cracked open a seed and looked at her. “She left this morning.”

Yu Qiao stopped in her tracks, repeating blankly, “Left?”

“She said she felt bad for continuing to disturb us, so she went to stay at a friend’s house.” Gu Cuilan said, “Sigh, that child. I tried to persuade her several times, but I couldn’t stop her. Did something happen between you two yesterday? You didn’t settle things?”

“No…” Yu Qiao suddenly remembered the kiss from last night and choked up.

She walked quickly into the room. Sure enough, everything belonging to Xie Bufei had vanished without a trace, and the clothes that had been drying on the balcony were gone.

She had come with nothing and left with only a set of clothes and a phone.

The faint scent of lily of the valley flowing through the air had completely dissipated, just like the girl who had quietly departed.

The National Day holiday passed in the blink of an eye, and the students of A University reluctantly returned to their dorms.

“Yunyun, Qiaoqiao! Long time no see!”

Yao Rudong appeared at the door, carrying several bags of local specialties. She lunged forward and gave Yu Qiao a bear hug.

When it was Lu Yun’s turn, Lu Yun quickly pressed a finger against Yao Rudong’s forehead, pretending to be disgusted. “All right, look at all that sweat on you. Sit down and rest.”

In mid-October, the weather was still sweltering. The air conditioner was running as usual in the dorm. Yu Qiao sat at her desk, head down, typing code and writing system requirement documents.

Lines of black English symbols jumped across the screen, their logic rigorous and precise.

Yu Qiao liked all computer languages because they were easy to control and followed a traceable path. As long as you found the calculation method, you would surely find the result.

Yet many answers in life could not be found.

Since that day, Xie Bufei had not contacted her once.

Yu Qiao tried to strike up a conversation, but the other party only replied with a few hurried, brief words—not at all like her previous warmth.

Yu Qiao realized belatedly that perhaps this was an answer she could not find. Perhaps she had done something that had once again caused someone to feel repulsed.

Perhaps that kiss had been wrong all along.

On Wednesday afternoon, the students of Class A arrived at the classroom in twos and threes. This was Advanced Mathematics, and since it was 2:00 PM, many people were slumped over their desks, drowsy.

The professor could see clearly from the podium. Intending to liven up the atmosphere, she said, “Does anyone know how to answer this question? If no one comes up, I’ll just pick someone at random to do it for me.”

At this, the students below immediately grew tense, all of them starting to calculate on their scratch paper.

The professor was satisfied. She looked around and finally selected her favorite student to come up.

“Yu Qiao, come up and answer this question.”

The girl stared at the blackboard, motionless in her seat.

The professor frowned. “Yu Qiao?”

Seeing this, Lu Yun quickly pinched Yu Qiao’s hand and whispered, “Qiaoqiao, the professor is calling you to write the problem!”

She called several times before Yu Qiao snapped out of it as if waking from a dream. She stood up and walked toward the blackboard.

The professor looked at her suspiciously. “Write out this problem.”

Yu Qiao looked up, scanned it briefly, and picked up a piece of chalk. The girl’s silhouette was thin and tall, wearing a simple light-blue shirt. Lines of elegant chalk handwriting flowed from her fingertips, a pleasant sight to behold.

The professor looked on with satisfaction and nodded. “Well done. You may go back. Pay closer attention next time.”

Yu Qiao thanked her in a small voice and returned to her seat.

Finally, the class ended. The three of them came down from the teaching building and went to the cafeteria for dinner. As they walked, Yao Rudong asked, “Qiaoqiao, why does it feel like you’ve been distracted these past few days? Is everything okay?”

Yu Qiao shook her head and said softly, “It’s fine.”

Yao Rudong and Lu Yun exchanged a glance, suddenly feeling that something was wrong.

“I haven’t seen Senior Xie lately.” Lu Yun said, “Is she very busy? I heard the Student Union is preparing for the Autumn Sports Meet.”

Yu Qiao paused, blinking her eyes tiredly. “I’m not sure.”

Yao Rudong frowned. “You guys haven’t chatted lately?”

It was strange. This news had reached the Sports Department; there was no reason Yu Qiao, who was closest to Xie Bufei, wouldn’t know.

“I don’t know,” Yu Qiao said. “I haven’t seen Senior in a long time either.”

Lu Yun asked perceptively, “You two didn’t have a fight, did you?”

Yu Qiao pursed her lips. “Probably… not.”

Yao Rudong: “If there really is a misunderstanding, I suggest you ask Senior and clear it up.”

The three of them queued up for spicy malatang. Yu Qiao lowered her eyes and said softly, “I asked, but she hasn’t really replied to me.”

The girl’s head drooped, looking quite lonely.

“Then it might not be something that can be explained in just a few words.” Lu Yun couldn’t help but smile and pat her head. “Instead of being sad here, why don’t you go find her and ask her in person?”

Yu Qiao said honestly, “I don’t know where she is, and she won’t tell me.”

Yao Rudong was blunt: “Impossible. Don’t you have the contact info for her other friends?”

Yu Qiao thought for a moment; she did indeed have Cheng Yeli’s WeChat.

While waiting for the malatang, she opened the messaging app and selected Cheng Yeli.

Yu Qiao: “Senior Cheng, do you know where Senior Xie has been these past few days?”

A few minutes later, Cheng Yeli replied: “I know, but she’s in a bad mood right now and doesn’t really want to see you.”

Yu Qiao paused, then said politely: “Okay, thank you, Senior.”

Putting down her phone, she let out a frustrated sigh.

How did things end up like this?

“What’s wrong? No reply?” Yao Rudong looked at her expression and tilted her head.

“Senior Cheng said that Senior doesn’t want to see me.”

Lu Yun clicked her tongue. “Then things are in bad shape…”

Yu Qiao slumped onto the table, burying her face in the crook of her arm, and said in a muffled voice, “What should I do now?”

…

“Do you really not want to see her, or are you just afraid to see her?” At the bar counter, Cheng Yeli looked at the girl beside him and asked with a half-smile.

The bar was bustling in the evening. The dance floor was crowded, the lights were dim and blurred, and even the music felt ambiguous.

Xie Bufei said nothing. She picked up a glass and drained it in one gulp.

Cheng Yeli frowned and reached out to stop her. “Don’t drink too much.”

“Why do you look like you’re the one going through a breakup?”

The bartender they knew stood behind the counter and laughed upon hearing this. “The school beauty having a breakup? How is that possible?”

Xie Bufei put down her glass, her gaze heavy. “Something like that.”

She rested her chin on her hand, her eyes downcast and emotionless. Her beautiful features looked exceptionally cold and elegant. She wore a black spaghetti-strap dress, her shoulders and back glowing like white jade under the lights, making passersby stare.

Cheng Yeli: “If you’re this scared, why don’t you just come clean with her?”

“She doesn’t like people who lie.” Xie Bufei was quiet for a moment, then lowered her head dejectedly. “But I’ve been lying all along…”

She gripped the wine glass so tightly her knuckles turned white. “If I tell her, will she hate me?”

“You haven’t said it yet, so how would you know? Besides, you have your reasons.”

Cheng Yeli was helpless. He glanced down at his phone and laughed. “Look, your Qiaoqiao just came looking for me, asking where you are.”

Xie Bufei immediately looked up and pleaded in a low voice, “Don’t. Don’t tell her yet.”

“Fine.”

After replying, Cheng Yeli said earnestly, “Are you serious about being with her, or are you just playing around?”

Xie Bufei murmured, “Of course I’m serious.”

Cheng Yeli: “If you really want to be with her, this matter will have to be told sooner or later. It’s better to explain it to her as soon as possible.”

The bartender beside them said with a grin, “What’s so hard about that? If it were me, I’d just pin her against the wall, lure her with pheromones, and shout: ‘I’m an Omega, if you have the guts, come and mark me!'”

Cheng Yeli didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. “Go away, don’t cause trouble.”

Xie Bufei let out a sigh, clearly taking it to heart. She nodded. “I’ll think about it more.”

“Qiaoqiao, stop sleeping, get up and eat.” Lu Yun knocked on the bed rail and said, “Maybe we’ll run into Senior in the cafeteria today.”

On the iron bunk bed, Yu Qiao was curled into a ball, buried in her soft blankets. She slowly opened her eyes.

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