The thought had barely surfaced in Wei Xiaochi’s mind before he quickly dismissed it.

Jiang Zhan’s recent behavior was indeed odd, but this ambiguous behavior could simply be due to an alpha reacting to an omega.

To put it bluntly, Jiang Zhan was just drawn to his pheromones.

After all, Jiang Zhan was going through the most sensitive period for an alpha, so these unusual actions were understandable. Wei Xiaochi had enough self-awareness to see that.

Once this phase was over, Jiang Zhan would likely return to normal. There was no way he could actually like him, right?

Just yesterday, Zhang Mingyang had called him a disgrace to omegas everywhere, dragging down the standard and looks of the whole gender. Although Wei Xiaochi had clapped back, a small part of him couldn’t help but agree.

Jiang Zhan couldn’t possibly have such heavy tastes.

Sitting on the messy bed, Wei Xiaochi was dazed, his head feeling as heavy as if it weighed a thousand pounds.

He had never been the type to handle awkward situations gracefully, let alone one as uncomfortable as this. It was pure agony for him.

Even Jiang Zhan, who usually had a wild and unpredictable way of thinking, stayed silent.

The room was steeped in awkward tension.

At that moment, Song Langlang pushed the door open. She was wearing pink cartoon pajamas, her delicate, fair face flushed from sleep, her eyes half-lidded in drowsiness.

“Zhan-Zhan,” she mumbled as she toddled over and plopped herself into Jiang Zhan’s arms, dozing off again.

Her little head bobbed against Jiang Zhan’s firm chest, clearly not fully awake yet.

She wasn’t usually picky about where she slept, but when she wasn’t well-rested, she became clingy and whiny, so she had come to Jiang Zhan for comfort.

It was Friday, and Song Langlang still had school today, but with little time left, she refused to get up from Jiang Zhan’s embrace.

Jiang Zhan had no choice but to hold the clinging little girl. Supporting her back with one hand, he adjusted her position and stole a glance at Wei Xiaochi.

Wei Xiaochi, still lost in his chaotic thoughts, sat there for a while before starting to tidy up the bedding, folding the blanket he had used.

Jiang Zhan spoke up, “Aunt Zhou will clean it.”

Wei Xiaochi paused awkwardly, then slowly moved to the edge of the bed to put on his shoes. With his back to Jiang Zhan, he asked, “Can you ask the driver to take me home?”

Jiang Zhan frowned immediately, his voice gruff. “Why do you need to go back?”

Wei Xiaochi froze for a moment before quietly saying, “I haven’t been home in a few days. They might be worried.”

Jiang Zhan seemed displeased and muttered, “What’s there to worry about? Do they think I’d eat you?”

Wei Xiaochi felt a sudden wave of embarrassment.

Although he believed Jiang Zhan’s clinginess was just a side effect of his sensitivity period, the alpha’s actions were undeniably misleading.

If this had been Jiang Zhan in the past, Wei Xiaochi would’ve chalked it up to his strange temperament. Now, though, his first thought was that Jiang Zhan didn’t want him to leave.

This realization startled Wei Xiaochi.

Song Langlang, lazily hugging Jiang Zhan’s neck, rolled her dark eyes, now more awake.

She glanced at Jiang Zhan, then at Wei Xiaochi, and let out a big yawn.

Resting her chin on Jiang Zhan’s shoulder, she asked softly, “Zhan-Zhan.”

“What?” Jiang Zhan responded.

Song Langlang rubbed at the corner of her eye and tilted her head up to ask, “Is this the other Zhan-Zhan you found for me?”

Both Wei Xiaochi and Jiang Zhan froze in place.

She continued, “Are you two going to get married? Will you have a baby sister for me to play with?”

Jiang Zhan shouted in panic, “What nonsense are you talking about?!”

His eyes darted nervously, and after a pause, he added, “Even if we have a baby sister, it wouldn’t be for you to play with!”

Wei Xiaochi: …

After much insistence, Wei Xiaochi finally convinced Jiang Zhan to let the driver take him home.

Ignoring Aunt Zhou’s advice to stay put, Jiang Zhan insisted on tagging along, refusing to listen to anyone.

Though his sensitivity phase had mostly passed, Aunt Zhou thought it was unnecessary for him to go out. Why not just let the driver handle things?

The 40-minute car ride was silent. Neither Wei Xiaochi nor Jiang Zhan spoke, and the quiet stretched all the way to the old neighborhood where Wei Xiaochi lived.

“Thanks,” Wei Xiaochi said as he opened the car door. “Take care on the way back.”

Jiang Zhan called out to him, and Wei Xiaochi turned around.

The alpha glanced at him briefly before looking away, his tone stiff. “I’ll send someone to pick you up tomorrow.”

Wei Xiaochi’s eyes widened slightly, then he shook his head. “I can’t come. I have plans tomorrow.”

It had been a long time since he last worked at the milk tea shop, and there was no way he could skip this weekend.

Jiang Zhan’s head shot up. “What plans?”

The truth was on the tip of Wei Xiaochi’s tongue, but he swallowed it back. “I… I’m going back to my hometown to visit my grandma. I’ll probably stay for two days.”

Afraid Jiang Zhan might try to argue, he added, “It’s been so long since I last visited. I really have to go this time.”

Jiang Zhan’s condition was stable now, and he no longer needed pheromone soothing, but Wei Xiaochi’s financial situation was still pressing.

Jiang Zhan opened his mouth as if to protest, but in the end, all he said was, “Can’t you just stay for one day?”

His gaze lingered on Wei Xiaochi, his expectation obvious.

The sensitive alpha was hard to handle, and Wei Xiaochi felt cornered. “…It’s really been too long. I have to go.”

Jiang Zhan kicked the car door in frustration but said nothing more.

Wei Xiaochi let out a breath of relief, as though he had just survived a battle.

Returning home, Wei Xiaochi called the store manager, Zhou Yun, to ask if he could still work over the weekend.

“Are your exams over?” Zhou Yun asked.

Wei Xiaochi explained about helping his classmates with their studies but didn’t mention that it had been paid tutoring.

“They’re over. Everyone passed,” Wei Xiaochi said nervously, licking his lips. “Sister Zhou, can I still come to work?”

“Of course you can,” Zhou Yun joked. “I was worried you wouldn’t come back. You’re always welcome here.”

Wei Xiaochi thanked her repeatedly, feeling genuinely grateful.

Zhou Yun laughed. “Alright, no need to keep thanking me. Just focus on your studies and keep it up.”

After hanging up, Wei Xiaochi started studying until eleven o’clock before heading to the kitchen to make dinner.

When Fang Yuan returned with the twins, Wei Xiaochi was just finishing the last dish.

“Wash your hands quickly. Your brother made dinner,” Fang Yuan said as she carried the last plate to the table.

During dinner, Fang Yuan casually asked about Wei Xiaochi’s whereabouts over the past three nights.

Since marrying into the family, Fang Yuan had never had any major issues with Wei Xiaochi. He had always been well-behaved and caused little trouble, rarely giving anyone a reason to worry.

But lately, his late returns and occasional absences had raised her concerns. She feared he might be getting into trouble, and if anything happened, she wouldn’t know how to explain it to Wei Dongjia.

Though she didn’t want to be overly controlling and risk alienating him, she had to at least maintain a balance in their relationship.

Wei Xiaochi had already prepared his answers in advance, calmly responding to each of her questions.

For a brief moment, he considered confessing everything—that he had differentiated into an omega.

If Fang Yuan knew, she would undoubtedly tell Wei Dongjia, sparing him the need to face his father directly.

But before he could speak, the twins started arguing, jostling each other until Wei Zimo accidentally knocked a bowl to the floor.

Fang Yuan’s temper flared. “What are you fighting about again? Can’t you give me one peaceful day? Especially you, Wei Zimo! If you don’t want to eat, then just leave!”

Wei Zimo, unconvinced, raised his head defiantly. “She started it! She hit me first!”

Wei Zixin, quicker with her words, retorted crisply, “I was eating properly, and he kept pushing into my space! My chopsticks were about to fall out of my hands, so I pushed him back, and then he hit me!”

“I didn’t push you!” Wei Zimo protested.

“You did!” Wei Zixin shot back.

The argument spiraled, as it always did during meals.

Wei Xiaochi pursed his lips and quietly crouched to clean up the spilled rice with a wet wipe, leaving Fang Yuan to manage the twins.