Strawberry Flavored A Does Not Want To Be In A Relationship - Chapter 4

Six-thirty in the evening, outside the entrance of Hongfu Mall.

A pretty young girl was pacing back and forth, drawing the attention of security guards and many passersby.

The girl was only about sixteen years old, possessing the slight baby fat characteristic of youth. Her eyes were watery, her lips slightly pursed, and her expression was one of innocence and softness, making her extremely pitiable and endearing.

She was wearing a school uniform, with knee high socks and a short skirt matched perfectly. Even as she walked slowly and casually, she was impossible to look away from.

Just as a security guard was about to step forward to inquire, the girl closed her eyes, took a deep breath, gave herself a fist bump for encouragement, and walked into the mall with the determined air of someone heading to a heroic sacrifice.

The girl, Ruan Mei, was there to look for a job. She immediately spotted a recruitment notice posted at the center reception desk of the mall, indicating they were hiring part-time evening customer service staff.

Ruan Mei put on a standard smile and spoke to the young woman behind the reception desk:

“Hello, I’d like to apply for the part-time evening customer service position.”

The young woman froze for a moment, then immediately frowned, squinted, and pursed her lips, saying to Ruan Mei:

“Don’t take it! The boss is a pervert!”

Ruan Mei:

“Ah.”

After speaking, the young woman acted as if nothing had happened and immediately turned, walking into a small cubicle next door. Soon after, she came out and called Ruan Mei in.

Ruan Mei hesitated. Should I expect the same kind of perverted boss as the female protagonist introduced?

Curiosity getting the better of her, she stepped inside despite her hesitation.

Inside the room sat a middle-aged woman in her forties, wearing the mall uniform with her hair meticulously tucked into a hairnet. Her nasolabial folds were deep, the corners of her mouth turned down, and her eyes were sharp. A mere glance from her gave Ruan Mei an urge to flee.

The middle-aged woman gestured for Ruan Mei to sit in the chair opposite and asked some common questions in a stern tone. Ruan Mei answered them all without hiding anything.

She initially thought such a strict person wouldn’t be interested in her, but to her surprise, the middle-aged woman soon nodded:

“You can start tomorrow. We are short-staffed. If you join us, I will treat you with the requirements for a full-time employee, and you will receive the benefits of an intern.”

Ruan Mei certainly knew how rare this was for a part time student. She had worked part-time during university, and no boss had treated part-timers as anything more than odd job workers, cutting benefits whenever possible.

Is this what a big company is like?

The middle aged woman then introduced herself:

“My name is Wang Chuang, you can call me Sister Chuang. Your working hours are from seven to nine every evening. Your job is reception customer service. I’ll give you an employee handbook and a customer service script handbook shortly. Study them well when you go back. Come back tomorrow at six-thirty I will have an exam. If you don’t pass, you can go home. By the way, your salary is 800 per week, paid weekly.”

Hearing all the harsh requirements beforehand, even the mandatory exam, Ruan Mei started to hesitate, the words “Thank you, no need” were on the tip of her tongue.

However, the last sentence suppressed them.

“I will work hard! Thank you, Sister Chuang, for giving me this opportunity!”

Ruan Mei was energized, her eyes shining with a bright smile. Sister Chuang remained unmoved and asked, “Any other questions?”

Ruan Mei remembered Fang Zhishui and cautiously asked:

“Which company does this mall belong to?”

Sister Chuang stated a company name. Ruan Mei breathed a sigh of relief. It wasn’t the same company as the group Fang Zhishui’s family owned, and the name sounded completely unrelated. There should be no connection… right?

Carrying the thick two major handbooks, along with a pile of the original owner’s new, gleaming textbooks, she walked out of the mall, hunched over.

After walking only a couple of steps, she suddenly saw two women on the roadside. Both were tall with striking looks, engaged in a conversation.

One of them was Fang Zhishui, wearing a school uniform, and the other was a sharp, career oriented young woman in a business suit. Their conversation seemed unpleasant, and the career woman eventually turned away with an expression of displeasure.

Ruan Mei watched the entire exchange in a daze. Just as she was about to find a place to hide, she was spotted by Fang Zhishui.

Fang Zhishui strode over:

“Were you eavesdropping on us?”

Ruan Mei immediately shook her head vigorously, like a rattle drum.

Fang Zhishui scrutinized her for a moment, her eyes still wary, her lips pressed into a thin line.

Ruan Mei dared not leave, feeling immense pressure under Fang Zhishui’s commanding gaze.

I really am a completely useless Alpha… being suppressed like this by a woman who will become an Omega in the future. What about the natural rank suppression that A-types should have over O-types? The settings are all lies!

Fang Zhishui suddenly wrinkled her nose, as if smelling something.

Ruan Mei was so scared she almost fled!

Did… did she smell my pheromones? Only differentiated AOs can smell pheromones! Could it be that Fang Zhishui differentiated before I came here?

Ruan Mei didn’t know and dared not ask. Right now, all she wanted was to sprout wings and fly away.

Fang Zhishui sniffed intently and stepped closer.

Ruan Mei’s heartbeat thundered in her ears.

Fang Zhishui brought her nose close to Ruan Mei’s hair. Ruan Mei sensitively stepped back, only to realize her back was against a wall.

Nowhere to retreat!

Ruan Mei looked up at the other girl, hoping her eyes, red from anxiety, might evoke a shred of sympathy from Fang Zhishui.

Unfortunately, Fang Zhishui seemed naturally devoid of such sentiment, remaining very close, sniffing her hair repeatedly.

“You…”

Hearing Fang Zhishui speak, Ruan Mei swallowed hard, making a “gulp” sound in her throat.

Hmm… that sounded a bit too comical, even Fang Zhishui couldn’t help but chuckle.

When Fang Zhishui smiled, her eyes narrowed, and tiny glints of starlight shone within them.

Ruan Mei cleared her throat to help herself, quietly shifted a step sideways, moving away from Fang Zhishui’s deadly pressure.

Fang Zhishui laughed for a while, then turned back to look at Ruan Mei, a lingering trace of a smile around her eyes.

This made her look both beautiful and gentle.

Ruan Mei was somewhat mesmerized, standing still, unsure of what to do.

Fang Zhishui’s voice broke the silence:

“What shampoo are you using?”

Ruan Mei was extremely apprehensive and answered truthfully:

“My grandmother picked it up for me I don’t know what kind it is.”

Fang Zhishui nodded, her gaze lingering on Ruan Mei with interest.

Ruan Mei desperately wanted to ask the questions: Do you smell strawberry? Or, have you differentiated?

But she didn’t dare.

She only dared to give Fang Zhishui a weak smile and slowly retreat backward, attempting to put distance between them, but with little success, as she didn’t dare take large strides.

The scene looked somewhat comical.

She suddenly remembered something, reached into her pocket, and felt a pink-wrapped candy.

It was the cheapest candy she bought at the school store to bolster her courage—two for one yuan.

She had already eaten one, planning to give the remaining one to her grandmother, but now she offered it up to escape the situation.

She squeezed the candy tightly in her pocket, clenched her fist, and extended it toward Fang Zhishui.

“This, for you.”

As she presented her fist, Fang Zhishui showed a look of vigilance, thinking that this little punk, who had been playing nice all day, was finally making a move to trick her, preparing to dodge any small stones that might pop out.

Unexpectedly, Ruan Mei just slowly opened her fist.

In her palm lay a single pink candy.

The glittering pink plastic wrapper shone brilliantly in the fading twilight.

Even though Fang Zhishui knew this candy was extremely cheap she had never even bothered to look at it, let alone eat one at this moment, Fang Zhishui suddenly felt that cheap things weren’t necessarily ugly.

Especially when accompanied by Ruan Mei’s teary eyes.

Fang Zhishui looked up and observed Ruan Mei’s face seriously for the first time, noticing an absence of anger, unwillingness, or gloom, only innocence shining through her apprehension.

Why… did this person change like this?

“You… don’t mind it, okay? If you argue with family, eating something sweet makes the discomfort go away faster.”

Ruan Mei said earnestly.

This was something her mother had told her in her previous life. Every time her parents fought, her father or mother would buy a small dessert, bring it home to eat with the other, and the painful emotions would vanish.

Fang Zhishui raised an eyebrow, reached out, grabbed the candy from Ruan Mei’s palm, and lightly scratched Ruan Mei’s palm with her fingertip.

Ruan Mei’s palm trembled, and she immediately pulled it back.

Fang Zhishui held the candy in her own palm and asked casually:

“How did you know that was my family?”

Ruan Mei replied as a matter of course:

“You two look very alike.”

Fang Zhishui let out a cold laugh, her eyes filled with unconcealable mockery and indifference. It seemed she was talking to Ruan Mei, but perhaps more to herself:

“Just a sister by blood… Who would want to look like her.”

Ruan Mei’s brain spun rapidly, trying to recall the plot details about Fang Zhishui’s family situation from the original novel, but she couldn’t remember much.

Fang Zhishui’s family should have an Alpha mother and an Omega mother, and an Alpha sister. The whole family was prejudiced against Omegas. When Fang Zhishui differentiated as an Omega, it caused a huge stir in the family, and she was apparently kicked out.

But Ruan Mei couldn’t recall any more details, as she hadn’t finished reading the book.

Noticing Ruan Mei seemed lost in thought, Fang Zhishui waved a long hand in front of her face:

“Hey!”

Ruan Mei snapped back to attention, quickly forcing a perfunctory smile:

“Then I’ll be going now, I have to go home and study, it was nice meeting you, goodbye!”

With a string of words without any punctuation, Ruan Mei quickly turned and walked toward home, afraid that Fang Zhishui would stop her to ask more questions.

For instance, why she pretended to sprain her ankle in gym class… Couldn’t she just use a memory eraser for that part?

Ruan Mei walked on, shaking her head, trying to fling the awkward memory out of her mind, making her movements look quite strange.

Fang Zhishui, watching her retreating figure from behind, silently evaluated in her mind: Idiot.

The candy wrapper in her palm persistently pricked her delicate skin, making it quite uncomfortable.

Of course, Fang Zhishui had no intention of eating it. She turned and walked towards her car. She paused briefly when passing a trash can.

However, she didn’t raise her hand to throw anything away. Instead, she got into her luxury car, casually tossed the candy into her school bag, and didn’t look at it again.