What Should I Do If My Ex-Girlfriend's Pheromones Smell Too Good? - Chapter 38

Chapter 38: Novels

Early morning on Base Star arrived quickly.

At 5:20 AM, the wristband alarm began vibrating incessantly. Shu Qiong opened her eyes, finding her posture quite strange in a state of mild confusion. She was curled up like a dried shrimp inside her sleeping bag, practically lying sideways across the space, with her head resting on Yan Xiangyu’s lower abdomen—looking exceptionally arrogant.

Shu Qiong bolted upright. She sat there in a daze, reflecting on her sleeping position, eventually deciding it must be because the space was too cramped for her to stretch her limbs. It was perfectly logical that she hadn’t slept soundly.

Feeling the movement, Yan Xiangyu also slowly opened her eyes.

“Good morning.”

“…Morning.” Shu Qiong noticed a small spot of dark red at the corner of the other girl’s mouth and guiltily averted her gaze.

Outside, the sounds of tents opening and luggage being packed began to filter in. The two didn’t delay, quickly dressing and heading to the small building to wash up.

The interior of the building was simple, featuring a long row of large porcelain sinks in the communal wash area and mirrors mounted on the walls. Jin Yan, who was already brushing her teeth, gave a bubbly greeting with a mouth full of foam. Her eyes were probing, as if trying to stare a hole through the two of them.

She first scanned Shu Qiong from head to toe, dying to peel back her collar to check for suspicious marks, like a farmer checking if her prized cabbage had been rooted by a pig.

After a long while, she sighed in relief. “How did you sleep last night?”

“Fine… I guess.” Shu Qiong squeezed out some toothpaste and gave a forced, toothy grin.

Yan Xiangyu said nothing, simply extending her own toothbrush. Shu Qiong glanced at her and squeezed a line of paste onto it as well.

Jin Yan suddenly felt like a total third wheel. This feeling was all too familiar to her; a similar, exclusive atmosphere often existed between her two mothers that no third party could ever penetrate.

“Your mouth…” Jin Yan’s sharp eyes caught a tiny, dark red wound on Yan Xiangyu’s lower lip that had already scabbed over. She remembered clearly that the lip had been perfectly fine before they went to sleep last night.

Looking into the mirror, Yan Xiangyu brushed her thumb against it. “I accidentally bit it.”

“You sure are clumsy then,” Jin Yan said, half-believing.

Yan Xiangyu looked at Shu Qiong through the reflection, agreeing with a smile: “Yeah, very clumsy.”

Shu Qiong kept her head down to rinse her mouth, acting as if she hadn’t heard a word while secretly complaining to herself. Why did I bite her? Because she wouldn’t stop!

Her original plan last night was a “pure love” approach—a light taste, followed by both of them going to sleep in their own bags. They were in training, after all, and sleep was precious. Even if Yan Xiangyu wasn’t tired, Shu Qiong was!

But the kissing had turned into a contest of wills. Every time Shu Qiong tried to stop, Yan Xiangyu would playfully goad her with provocative lines like, “I thought you were going to show me your ‘superior’ kissing skills?” or “Maybe I should take the lead,” and “You’ve improved, keep it up next time.”

Could Shu Qiong endure that? No, she could not.

She had lunged forward with a “Awoo!” and pinned Yan Xiangyu down for a round of frantic, chaotic biting, focusing entirely on passion over technique. However, Shu Qiong soon grew tired, feeling that no matter how she kissed, it wasn’t quite hitting the mark.

“Is it a problem on your end?” She had pulled back, sitting upright and scrutinizing Yan Xiangyu, who was lying flat and letting herself be kissed. Shu Qiong said matter-of-factly, “It’s because your response is too flat that I can’t display my skills.”

“Mhm, that is indeed my problem,” Yan Xiangyu had nodded, inviting her: “Once more?”

Shu Qiong actually wanted to stop because she was out of moves, but since the gauntlet had been thrown, she agreed magnanimously: “One last time, then sleep.”

Yan Xiangyu had readily agreed: “Alright.”

The result? As soon as Shu Qiong’s lips touched hers, a hand clamped onto the back of Shu Qiong’s head. Yan Xiangyu responded exactly as requested—with extreme enthusiasm.

Shu Qiong realized then that kissing was a technical skill. But… Yan Xiangyu was like a naughty child who had discovered a new toy; she wouldn’t stop. Her tongue explored a “new” Shu Qiong, and her palm slid down past Shu Qiong’s waistline, stopping at the boundary of the forbidden zone.

For Yan Xiangyu, this was a novel experience too, though she was clearly more naturally gifted than Shu Qiong. Shu Qiong’s breathing became disordered, letting out soft gasps that she then forced herself to suppress, staring with eyes full of silent accusation. This tent has terrible soundproofing! Isn’t this… isn’t this a bit too stimulating!

Yan Xiangyu showed no sign of stopping, but Shu Qiong couldn’t hold out. Kissing was hard work. Shu Qiong pushed at Yan Xiangyu’s shoulders, only to be met with a more fervent response. She tried to kick her, only to have her legs firmly locked by Yan Xiangyu’s through the sleeping bags.

“…”

“Hiss.” Yan Xiangyu finally stopped, licking her lower lip and tasting a hint of metallic sweetness. Shu Qiong, having bitten her, quickly pulled away and dove back into her own sleeping bag.

No self-restraint! she grumbled internally.

After washing up, Shu Qiong drank a tube of thick, sweet nutritional supplement. It tasted mediocre but was efficient for replenishing nutrients. At 6:00 AM, everyone assembled on time and followed the instructor back onto the trail. Moving intermittently with only two rest breaks, they finally saw their destination around 11:00 AM.

This place was even larger than their previous base, with newer, taller buildings that felt significantly more high-tech. Before dismissing them, the instructor said, “The next few days of mecha special training will be held here. Official pilot training begins after the lunch break.”

The students felt their fatigue vanish instantly. They finally got to touch mechas! They were mecha pilots, after all!

As the crowd dispersed toward the cafeteria, Shu Qiong noticed several uniformed hovercars driving through the main gate. A group of people stepped out; Shu Qiong recognized the academy doctor and their lead instructor, Chu Yimeng.

Chang Xichun dragged her tired legs forward slowly. “Instructor Chu and the others get to take a hovercar straight here. I wish I could…”

Shu Qiong recalled the hovercar ride they took when they first arrived at Base Star and said with lingering fear, “You might not be tired, but you’d definitely be vomiting.”

“…True.” Chang Xichun shut her mouth gloomily.

The facilities at the Mecha Combat Base were excellent. The dormitories were far better than the previous base; most importantly, they finally had private bathrooms where they could take hot showers freely. Shu Qiong was moved to tears.

They took turns washing up and enjoyed a brief afternoon nap. However, before 12:30 PM, they were jolted awake by a sharp, piercing alarm. It wasn’t the assembly bell; its frantic rhythm signaled something unfamiliar and unsettling.

“What? What’s happening!” Jin Yan bolted upright in bed. “Is it an enemy attack?”

Shu Qiong scrambled up as well, watching warily as He Xuchou, who was closest to the window, jumped down and pulled back the curtains.

The midday sun poured into the room along with a startling sight. The open ground was filled with hovercars. Instructors were running out in hurried but orderly lines, boarding the vehicles with their teams. Soon, the loaded hovercars roared and sped away.

“It’s likely a military mobilization order,” He Xuchou explained thoughtfully. “The base instructors are active-duty soldiers; they have to follow orders from above at all times. Training us is just an extra assignment.”

She checked the time. “It’s still early. You guys can rest a bit longer.”

Shu Qiong and the others shook their heads. After being forcibly woken by that alarm, sleep was impossible; their heads were still ringing.

The room fell into silence until Jin Yan suddenly asked, “Do you guys want to read some novels or manga? I saved a ton before I came.” She had guessed there would be no entertainment on Base Star and that the internet would be a hassle, so she had pre-downloaded a mountain of reading material.

He Xuchou shook her head, planning to try and sleep again to regain her strength. Shu Qiong also declined, opening her mecha models on her wristband to do some actual work.

Only Yan Xiangyu asked, uncharacteristically, “What kind do you have?”

Jin Yan cleared her throat. “What kind do you want? I have everything!” She began wirelessly transferring files to Yan Xiangyu.

Yan Xiangyu’s wrist vibrated. Seeing that the transfer was over ten gigabytes, she paused before pulling up the list. The first thing she saw was the title: The Overbearing Ex-Lover and the Pretty Roommate.

Yan Xiangyu shot a suspicious look at Jin Yan, questioning the latter’s taste. Jin Yan gave her a “trust me” look.

Hesitating for a moment, Yan Xiangyu clicked in. It turned out to be a webtoon anthology; the art style was surprisingly good, with a unique sense of line aesthetics. The story opened with the female protagonist differentiating as an Alpha, only to run into her ex-girlfriend who had also differentiated as an Alpha. Years after their breakup, they ended up as roommates through a twist of fate. The first chapter ended with the first girl blushing furiously while the second girl performed a dominant “kabedon” (wall-slam).

Yan Xiangyu sank into deep thought over this plot, her finger twitching as she exited the app.

She then clicked on a text file titled The Guide to Seducing Your Straight Roommate: Bed-Crawling Strategy. She was shocked by the content. This novel contained a high volume of explicit scenes (“cars”). It opened with the protagonist’s monologue: she had a crush on her roommate for years and planned to crawl into her bed tonight. To this end, she put on extremely seductive pajamas, timed it for when her roommate was asleep, and crept under the covers.

However, just as she was about to get frisky, she was “taken care of” by her roommate instead. It turned out the “straight” roommate was faking sleep; she knew exactly what type of woman the protagonist liked and had been intentionally masquerading as her ideal type to lure her in. The plot followed the two women starting a relationship that seemed to be “body first, heart later,” but was actually a story of mutual secret crushes.

When a love rival intervened, they had “angry sex.” When moved by the other’s actions, they had “gentle sex.” Finally, when the misunderstanding was cleared, they had “happy, passionate sex.”

Yan Xiangyu: “…”

She couldn’t help but ask Jin Yan, “Is this what you usually read?” She was starting to wonder if Jin Yan really liked Omegas, or why she kept reading roommate romances.

“Huh?” Jin Yan paused in confusion. She checked her transfer list and blurted out, “Oh no! I sent the wrong ones! That’s the folder of stuff I put in my ‘Not Interested’ list! Wait, let me send the real ones.”