The Omega Who Canceled the Engagement Ended Up Falling for Me - Chapter 22

After this conversation, the relationship between the two of them grew a step closer. If a definition had to be applied to their cohabitation, “meal buddies” felt quite fitting.

“How are you getting back? Taking a taxi?” Xu Qing asked her.

Fu Shuang noticed the imitation racing bike parked by the curb and nodded with her chin. “Isn’t that your bike? Why take a taxi when you have a vehicle?”

“I only brought one helmet, and it might have my scent inside,” Xu Qing tilted her head to look at her. “Aren’t you afraid of riding motorcycles?”

“Hmm, your scent… that is indeed quite troublesome…”

Fu Shuang didn’t answer whether she was “afraid or not,” simply tossing out the remark nonchalantly.

Xu Qing smiled and raised a hand to touch her neck. “I probably can’t smell it myself, but these chemicals… they’re quite annoying, aren’t they?”

“It’s alright.” Fu Shuang leaned forward and hopped down from the curb. She walked over to Xu Qing’s bike and stroked the handlebars and the fuel tank—the movement was like stroking a person’s pectoral muscles (motorcycle fuel tanks are usually designed to be rounded and full; if a bike were personified, that position would correspond to the chest).

Fu Shuang didn’t realize that this bike was perhaps Xu Qing’s only hobby since returning to the country. Aside from Fu Shuang, she had never carried anyone else.

Seeing Fu Shuang touch her bike gave Xu Qing a strange feeling. She wanted to warn her, “Be careful not to get burned by the engine” or “Careful, the bike isn’t very stable,” but in the end, Xu Qing said nothing. She walked up behind Fu Shuang, placing one hand over the hand Fu Shuang had on the throttle, her palm covering the back of Fu Shuang’s hand. The posture looked as if she were embracing her from behind.

Fu Shuang’s small, thin body tensed up as she caught a glimpse of Xu Qing’s virtual embrace in the rearview mirror.

So handsome, she thought—the look of someone who was dead serious yet possessed a touch of wild abandon.

Xu Qing ignited the engine and revved the throttle in place. The sudden “vroom” startled Fu Shuang, causing her to jump back instinctively. She crashed firmly into Xu Qing’s embrace like a fluffy little animal seeking cover from a fright—though this “cover” seemed a bit stiff.

Fu Shuang looked up, seeing first Xu Qing’s sharply defined jawline, followed by those eyes filled with a hint of a smile. The expression was so charming that Fu Shuang couldn’t help but hold her breath.

“Don’t be afraid, it’s not in gear yet; the bike won’t move,” Xu Qing comforted her with a laugh. “With me here, I won’t let the bike get out of control.”

Fu Shuang was dazed by her words. It took a while for her to pull away slightly from the embrace, realizing that the hand controlling the throttle was actually her own right hand; Xu Qing’s hand was merely resting on hers, providing a bit of support.

Thus, Fu Shuang gathered her courage and tried twisting the throttle herself. With a “vroom,” Fu Shuang was both startled and delighted, so excited she didn’t know what to do. She turned to look at Xu Qing, and Xu Qing was looking back at her. At such a close distance, Fu Shuang felt as though she could just lean in and kiss her.

“I couldn’t tell you actually liked it,” Xu Qing said. “If you get a chance, go get a license. I’ll lend you the bike to ride.”

Fu Shuang blinked. “Really… really? Is it easy to get a license?”

“It’s very simple; you can get the certificate with just a bit of practice,” Xu Qing released her hand and picked up the helmet sitting nearby. “But getting the license doesn’t mean you can ride immediately. It’s best to practice on your own first. Riding in the city is too dangerous. If you get the chance, go ride on the mountain loop roads. The scenery is beautiful and there are very few cars. When the weather is good, it’s simply refreshing.”

Fu Shuang said with a face full of envy, “If I were an Alpha or a Beta, I would definitely be like you, riding everywhere to have fun.”

Xu Qing seemed to hear some of the young girl’s bittersweet secrets in those words. She didn’t know how to offer comfort. In reality, even Xu Qing didn’t have the chance to travel every weekend. She had to go back to the Xu family home to spend weekends with her parents, and before getting this job, she had been shut inside all day reviewing for exams. Only on extremely rare occasions could she go out for a ride—this was exactly why Xu Qing loved motorcycles. It was more convenient than driving; she could be alone without scruples, sinking her thoughts into the changing scenery of the outside world.

“Coming up?” Xu Qing asked, holding the helmet, eager to go. “I’ll take you for a spin.”

Fu Shuang arched an eyebrow and smiled: “Why not?”

Xu Qing helped her onto the bike. Luckily, the length of her skirt covered her knees this time, so there was no risk of exposure when she straddled the seat and pressed down the fabric.

“Put the helmet on. I washed it last time, so the scent should be lighter,” Xu Qing added somewhat unnaturally. “If you don’t wear a helmet, I won’t dare ride.”

“Such a strong sense of safety? So even if I’m dazed by sister’s fragrance, I still have to wear a helmet?”

Fu Shuang undid the bun in her hair, letting her hair fall loose before burying her head in the helmet. She gave Xu Qing a thumbs-up through the visor.

Xu Qing laughed at her, swung a long leg over to step on the footrest, and turned back to remind her: “Hold onto me.”

Fu Shuang threw herself against Xu Qing’s back, her hands hooking around her waist as she whispered in her ear, “Sister, is this okay?”

Xu Qing gasped. Looking in the rearview mirror, a patch of red had bloomed across her neck.

Twenty minutes later, they arrived downstairs at the apartment complex. Xu Qing parked and got off, then helped Fu Shuang down. Neither spoke until they were inside the elevator.

Someone’s stomach let out a growl. Fu Shuang’s eyes widened as she looked at Xu Qing with a guilty conscience. Xu Qing looked straight ahead and said, “I’m about to faint from hunger.”

Fu Shuang pursed her lips and stifled a laugh, afraid her stomach would embarrass her again at this moment.

The two busy themselves in the kitchen; Fu Shuang was in charge of washing the vegetables while Xu Qing did the chopping. Once finished with the washing, Fu Shuang crowded in front of Xu Qing to make trouble, picking up half-cut radish chunks to munch on, even laboriously recommending that Xu Qing try some too.

“It’s very sweet, just like fruit. Try it!” Fu Shuang brought a small piece to Xu Qing’s lips.

Xu Qing was looking down, focused on julienning the vegetables. Finding Fu Shuang clumsily offering the snack, she felt the cold fingers brush against her lips. Her focus was disturbed; the kitchen knife almost caught her hand, and she swallowed the radish chunk in one gulp.

“Is it good?” Fu Shuang asked, looking forward to her feedback.

“Mhm.” Xu Qing had been so nervous she forgot to chew, swallowing it whole without even registering the taste.

After finally finishing the prep work, Xu Qing went to light the stove. The gas stove made a continuous “click-click-click” sound, but no flame appeared.

“Is the gas bill unpaid?” Fu Shuang sat on a high stool at the kitchen bar, playing on her phone as if it were none of her business, snacking on the previous day’s treats to stave off hunger.

Xu Qing repeatedly checked the gas valve and the meter. “That shouldn’t be right. The water heater works, so why won’t the stove start?”

“There’s no hot water either,” Fu Shuang said, enjoying the chaos while sipping on leftover milk tea from the night before and swinging her legs. “It seems the gas company sent a notice saying they would stop the gas for maintenance.”

Xu Qing: “Nani?”

Fu Shuang showed her the phone. “The notice says the East District will have a gas shut-off for maintenance on the night of the 22nd. Are we in the East District?”

Xu Qing: “…”

Fu Shuang: “Hahahaha.”

“Let’s just order takeout,” Fu Shuang rolled up her sleeves. “My income has been considerable lately; I can treat you to another meal.”

Xu Qing’s vision went dark: “I recall someone saying home cooking is better and that we should cook at home often from now on?”

Fu Shuang took no responsibility for her past words. She rested her chin on the bar counter with a giggle, saying softly, “But there’s no gas in the house, sister. I can’t let you go hungry.”

Xu Qing looked at the mess on the bar—all the packaging from the snacks Fu Shuang had opened. She didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. “Is that so? But you’re almost full, aren’t you?”

Fu Shuang patted her rounded belly and gave an “Mhm.”

“If we can’t cook, then so be it, but how are we going to shower without hot water?” Xu Qing put down the spatula, looking worried for the world. “I don’t mind, but can you handle it?”

Fu Shuang nodded, her brownish-long hair swinging forward. A few strands stuck to her face, smudging her makeup, so she shook her head like a rattle, looking a bit pathetically cute.

After all, having experienced that incident in the subway, not to mention Fu Shuang, even Xu Qing felt she smelled foul, tainted with all sorts of strange odors.

“Let’s wait. The notice says the inspection will be finished by morning, so the gas should be back on then,” Xu Qing washed her hands and put a piece of Napoleon cake into her mouth, saying indistinctly, “Today has really been a mess.”

“Indeed,” Fu Shuang began to feel sleepy now that she was full. She forced herself to stay awake to tell Xu Qing, “I’m going to brush my teeth and sleep. You should rest early too, sister.”

Xu Qing continued eating the snacks Fu Shuang hadn’t finished, her thoughts gradually drifting away.

When Ms. Min first planned to buy this apartment in the suburbs, Xu Qing had been against it.

The family already owned eight properties, many of which were luxury homes in the city center. This location was so remote it had no resources other than the subway—why was it necessary to add this property?

Ms. Min had bought this 200-square-meter flat with the idea of property appreciation, spending 600,000 to 700,000 on renovations. As it turned out, before Xu Qing returned to the country, the house had sat vacant, unable to even be rented out—and now the price had dropped by half!

Reality had slapped Ms. Min hard in the face. By the time Xu Qing moved in, Ms. Min could at least console herself that the house she purchased had finally realized its basic utility.

Xu Qing had never agreed with Ms. Min, but it wasn’t until Fu Shuang and Koala moved in that the house finally began to feel like a home.

Fortunately, Ms. Min had originally bought a four-bedroom apartment. The space was large enough that Xu Qing could sit in the dining room and ignore Fu Shuang in the corner bedroom.

After simply tidying the kitchen, Xu Qing took out her phone and typed into the search engine: “Omega heat cycle symptoms.”

In the images that popped up, some people were self-harming because they couldn’t endure the pain of the heat; some were hooking up in bars; others were injecting drugs. The entire group seemed filled with a morbid and mentally abusive atmosphere. Those shocking images actually served to provoke the desires of other groups on a visual level.

Xu Qing closed the browser and habitually deleted her search history.

The survival environment of the Omega group was a completely unknown territory to her. Fu Shuang’s line, “If I were an Alpha or a Beta…” had caused a ripple within her, and a thought that had never existed before began to gradually surface.

Can I change all of this?

If only I could do something.

Even a woman with social status like Ms. Min was limited to the small unit of the family because of her additional identity as an Omega. She only believed in her own set of survival rules—which, in Xu Qing’s view, was complete nonsense.

But Ms. Min wasn’t born this way. In her youth, she was a graduate of a prestigious university, entering the government sector with high spirits. She was fluent in multiple languages and had mastered a vast amount of theoretical knowledge. She had once written papers on social structure analysis and group fairness. Yet, in the end, she fell deep into the family vortex and became an accomplice to the patriarchal society.

The few slaps she had swung at Xu Qing remained hot on Xu Qing’s face—vivid enough for her to sever ties with the family.

She set a topic for herself in her heart:

When I fall in love with an Omega, how can I provide her with true happiness?