When Tao Fengche was awakened by the vibrating phone on his bedside table, he was still in a daze.

The room was dark, with heavy curtains tightly drawn, blocking out the sunlight from outside. In the dimness, the phone screen’s intermittent light felt quite glaring.

He frowned and buried his head further into the soft pillow, trying to drift back to sleep, but the constant buzzing noise made it impossible.

After a while, Tao Fengche, with a dark expression, reached out and fumbled around on the bedside table, pulling the phone closer.

He squinted his eyes and struggled to unlock Face ID. The next moment, he was overwhelmed by the flood of unread messages on the chat app—aside from notifications from public accounts, all the messages were from one person.

[Wang Yuan]: [Tao Ge, are you awake?]

[Wang Yuan]: [Tao Ge?]

[Wang Yuan]: [… You’re not still sleeping, are you? We’ve already finished our third class, and you’re still not up?]

[Wang Yuan]: [Damn, aren’t you turning 18 today? How can you sleep through something this big??]

[Wang Yuan]: [I’m impressed, really. Tao Ge, you’re something else.]

……

Further down were endless casual chatter and a long string of meaningless emojis.

[Tao Fengche]: [Shut up.]

He angrily tapped a few times on the phone, ignoring all the questions and coldly replying with two words. The indifference in his message was palpable, even the period at the end carried a cold, menacing intent, as if trying to scare off his talkative friend, who had nothing better to do than disturb him.

The workload in their senior year was unrelenting and never changed according to anyone’s will.

Especially for international students like Tao Fengche, who had to juggle multiple tasks; they were completely worn out during this time. They had to start applying for schools after New Year’s Day. Although he had already passed the language exam in his second year, preparing various application documents, related certifications, and recommendation letters was enough to make anyone feel overwhelmed. Not to mention, there was also the City Mock Exam in Jingpu at the beginning of January.

—If he didn’t get into a foreign university, he’d either have to repeat the year or rely solely on the college entrance exam. This unified city exam, with its standardized grading and ranking, was a crucial indicator for preparing for the college entrance exam.

During this time, Tao Fengche’s sleep schedule had been cut down to a minimum. Every morning on his way to school, he found himself dozing off whenever he had a spare moment. If it weren’t for wanting to see Sui Yuansheng a few more times, he would have wanted to stay in the school dorm like Wang Yuan.

Tao Fengche had been looking forward to his eighteenth birthday, which meant a day off. Though it was just one day, December 24th happened to fall on a Friday, and combined with the weekend, he would have three days off.

It had snowed heavily last night. Outside the window was a world covered in white, with a biting cold wind, but the heating inside was on full blast. Plus, since the mansion was located at the top of a mountain, it was very quiet, creating an ideal environment for sleeping.

To carve out a day of free time, Tao Fengche had stayed up late working until the early morning. Just when he finally thought he could catch up on sleep, Wang Yuan, that nemesis, had interrupted his sweet dreams.

He felt a deep sense of oppression all around him, as if it could solidify, but far away at school, Wang Yuan was completely oblivious.

Not only did he fail to notice Tao Fengche’s mood at that moment, but he quickly shoved his phone into a hole in the desk and typed back rapidly.

[Wang Yuan]: [It’s already past ten, and you’re really still asleep… I remember I was so nervous I couldn’t sleep all night. You’re really something.]

[Wang Yuan]: [Oh right, I forgot to say, happy birthday!]

[Wang Yuan]: [Now that you’re awake, don’t go back to sleep. Hurry up and share with your best buddy, what does your pheromone smell like?]

Once again, the screen was filled with messages, and the phone buzzed incessantly—this time, there was no chance of sleeping anymore.

The remnants of Tao Fengche’s drowsiness were completely shaken off by Wang Yuan’s persistent nagging. He yawned, turned over, and reluctantly sat up.

[Tao Fengche]: [Thanks, but not so fast. I probably won’t know until the afternoon.]

[Wang Yuan]: [Oh, I see. Do you feel a bit dizzy right now?]

[Tao Fengche]: [A little, but I think it’s because I stayed up late doing homework last night and then got woken up this morning.]

Wang Yuan sent a “holding heart” emoji.

[Wang Yuan]: [How can you say that? You’re really breaking my heart! I’m concerned about your health as your friend!]

[Wang Yuan]: [Besides, dizziness is a normal physiological phenomenon when an alpha comes of age, and it’s often accompanied by some degree of sleepiness. It has nothing to do with me, okay?! I can tell you didn’t pay attention in biology class!]

[Wang Yuan]: [But speaking of which, you can start praying for your pheromone’s scent now. Last-minute prayers can actually work pretty well.]

[Tao Fengche]: [… Are you really that bored? Stop with the superstition and focus on your studies, okay?]

[Wang Yuan]: [It’s clearly break time right now!]

[Wang Yuan]: [Tao Ge, I’m not trying to scare you. You really should believe in the power of metaphysics. Don’t think that my mugwort scent is plain; I’ve actually prayed about it. Remember that omega who smelled like durian? I heard from his roommate that he scoffed at this whole routine and mocked it, which is why… he turned into the durian scent.]

[Wang Yuan]: [They say it could be divine retribution.]

[Tao Fengche]: […]

Tao Fengche felt a shiver run through him at the mention of the “divine retribution” full of middle-school angst. His toes curled involuntarily. He was about to tell Wang Yuan to believe in science, but when his gaze fell on the words “durian scent,” his hand suddenly froze.

The usually fearless young master of the Tao family felt a jolt in his heart.

Tao Fengche squinted slightly.

He didn’t have high demands for his pheromone and never believed in theories that “the scent of pheromones would determine a person’s future status.”

As long as the smell wasn’t too bizarre—like fish mint, cilantro, spicy hot pot, or heather—he could accept it.

Even if it was a bit ordinary or mediocre, it wouldn’t be a problem.

But… it would be best if it could match the scent of Sui Yuansheng, right?

Tao Fengche found himself lost in thought.

His fingers unconsciously tightened, gripping the phone harder, even causing his knuckles to turn a little white.

After a moment, a familiar vibration snapped him back to reality.

[Wang Yuan]: [By the way, what are your plans for today? Is your brother coming back after work to spend time with you?]

[Tao Fengche]: [Yeah, we’ll have dinner together when he gets back.]

Thinking of Sui Yuansheng, Tao Fengche’s mood improved, and the slight unease about his pheromone dissipated. His fingers relaxed a bit, and the corners of his eyes even curved up slightly, hinting at a smile.

[Wang Yuan]: [Sounds nice.]

Although Tao Fengche had not yet publicly acknowledged the change in his relationship with Sui Yuesheng, he had always been very willing to share with Wang Yuan about his time with Sui Yuesheng. Unknowingly, Wang Yuan had already consumed tons of “dog food”.

While Sui Yuesheng hadn’t mentioned it, he still remembered the promise made in September to have a meal with Wang Yuan’s family.

September and October were busy months, and by the end of November, the two families had finally managed to squeeze out some time to have a meal together.

The location was decided by Sui Yuesheng, in a quiet environment with delicious dishes. The time was set for the day of the monthly exam results, and at the dining table, Wang Yuan looked at the two of them with a bit more gratitude.

This meal had the nature of a family gathering. As soon as Sui Yuesheng arrived, he said to treat him as Tao Fengche’s older brother, placing himself in the role of the younger generation, which Wang’s parents readily accepted.

Sui Yuesheng was extremely skilled at manipulating people’s feelings; for him, as long as he wanted to be liked, it was easy. Moreover, since there was no conflict of interest between the Tao and Wang families, after this meal, Wang’s parents were very fond of him, and their gazes towards Wang Yuan had an added touch of disappointment.

“Why don’t I have an older brother like that!”

After seeing Sui Yuesheng chatting with his father while effortlessly serving Tao Fengche a dish, Wang Yuan couldn’t help but express his frustration with a soulful roar.

Tao Fengche smiled, putting the food into his mouth and chewing slowly, feeling a sense of smug satisfaction—no, not only do you not have an older brother like this, you also don’t have a boyfriend like this.

Thinking this way, he looked at Wang Yuan with a bit more pity.

Wang Yuan felt a chill under his gaze: “Tao Ge, can you just say what you mean? Your look is really creepy.”

“What nonsense are you talking about, you brat?” Wang’s father lightly hit the back of Wang Yuan’s hand with his chopsticks.

“It hurts!” Wang Yuan feigned grievance. “Dad, if you’re going to talk, just talk. Why hit me again?”

Tao Fengche and Wang Yuan had grown up together and Tao Fengche was close with the Wang family. Instead of helping Wang Yuan save face, he enjoyed the spectacle and even casually handed a piece of dessert to Sui Yuesheng.

“Ge, enjoy your meal,” he said obediently.

“Look how well Xiao Tao behaves, and now look at you!” Wang’s mother chimed in.

“Mm.” Sui Yuesheng nodded slightly, but his gaze remained fixed on Wang’s family.

Following his line of sight, Tao Fengche realized that although Sui Yuesheng didn’t show it on the surface, he still envied this warm family life. Remembering some past events related to Sui Yuesheng made his heart feel a bit sour.

After pondering for a moment, he put down his chopsticks and quietly reached out to hold Sui Yuesheng’s hand under the table.

After a moment, Sui Yuesheng grasped his hand back.

Tao Fengche’s thoughts gradually returned, and his mind became clearer. The matters he had brushed aside not long ago began to resurface.

Tao Fengche: [By the way, I’ve already bought this year’s Christmas gift, and it should arrive at your house in a couple of days. Remember to receive it.]

[Wang Yuan]: [Gift?? Did your brother unfreeze your card?!]

[Tao Fengche]: [Mm.]

He replied with a reserved single word, feeling very sweet inside.