As the saying goes, “when it rains, it pours.”

Rong Yi almost spent the entire night sleepless. He tossed and turned, replaying the conversation between him and Chen Keyao at the parking lot over and over in his mind. In hindsight, beyond the anger and frustration, there was also a strong sense of regret.

He felt that, in the heat of the moment, even his insults had been ineffective. In that situation, there were definitely better ways to launch an attack.

If he could do it again, he was sure he’d tear Chen Keyao apart with his words.

No, if he had the chance to start over, he’d go back to the day they first met. When Chen Keyao offered him a ride, he should have rolled his eyes and told him, “Get lost, you damned gay.”

After rolling around in bed about 180 times, just as his consciousness started to blur, dawn arrived.

When he forced himself out of bed, another unfortunate thing happened. His ID card was missing.

Rong Yi vaguely remembered the last time he took out his ID was in Chen Keyao’s car. After that, his emotions had been all over the place, and many details of what happened afterward had become blurry. No matter how hard he tried to recall, he couldn’t remember if he had put his ID back in his pocket.

If he had dropped it in Chen Keyao’s car, that would be terribly awkward.

Putting himself in Chen Keyao’s shoes, Rong Yi figured that if he had found Chen Keyao’s ID, he’d probably snap it in half without hesitation and toss it in the trash. What’s more, on his way home yesterday, he had already blocked all contact with Chen Keyao.

At this point, he’d just have to find time to reissue his ID.

##

Rong Yi arrived at the office with a dark expression, only to find the whole place filled with a light and cheerful atmosphere.

Thanks to him, the team had managed to catch a bit of a break. Yesterday, everyone had even gotten off work on time for the first time in ages. Compared to the stressful days before, things were much more relaxed.

Only Rong Yi was in a different state. When everyone else had been drowning in work, he was basking in the sweetness of a new relationship. Now, while everyone else was in high spirits, he was barely holding on.

“What’s wrong? Those dark circles are intense,” the office’s only other Omega coworker gave him a strange smile as soon as she saw him. “What were you up to last night?”

Rong Yi forced a smile but said nothing.

His gender wasn’t a secret at his company. In their team, aside from him, there were only two unmarried Betas and the Omega girl who was speaking to him. Her name was Zhang, and when she first joined the team, she would blush when she saw Rong Yi. After they got to know each other, they’d often gush over various handsome, hormone-packed Alpha celebrities together, and now she saw him as one of her closest girlfriends.

When Rong Yi had gotten into a relationship, he couldn’t help but share the sweetness with someone. Yesterday, before leaving, he had even waved goodbye to Zhang, proudly flashing a victory sign as he boasted that he was going on a date with his boyfriend, telling them that they, the single folks, could go home early to rest and recharge.

He never expected he was digging a pit for himself.

Now, Zhang was sizing him up from every angle, shaking her head and clicking her tongue repeatedly.

“Your boyfriend must be something else,” she teased with a grin. “You look like you didn’t get a wink of sleep.”

“Yeah,” Rong Yi replied expressionlessly, “he got hit by a car last night, and I was busy arranging his funeral.”

“…”

Zhang fell silent.

Rong Yi knocked on her desk twice. “Time is tight. Let’s get to work.”

Though they were close, Rong Yi was still her supervisor. Zhang was curious, but seeing his gloomy face, she didn’t dare press further.

##

However, there were plenty of people who loved to bring up the most unfortunate topics.

When he went to the entrance to pick up his lunch order at noon, he ran into the receptionist. She greeted him with a smile.

“That super handsome guy who looked like he might be your boyfriend didn’t show up to bring you lunch today?”

Rong Yi felt suffocated.

“What’s wrong?” The receptionist noticed the shift in his mood. “Did something happen to him…”

“He’s been cremated.” Rong Yi said flatly.

After speaking, he took his lunch and walked back to the office, leaving the receptionist standing there in stunned silence.

After dragging Chen Keyao’s name through the mud several times like this, it didn’t take long for the entire company to find out that Mr. Rong, who had been desperate to get married and had recently found love, was now back in the cold winter of singlehood.

Rong Yi was already someone with a commanding presence. When he put on a stern face, it made people nervous just to look at him, so naturally, no one dared to deliberately provoke him.

But, unfortunately, he still had to deal with people from other companies.

When Liu Yuan called him, his voice was particularly cheerful.

“Rong Yi, the bald guy wants to know when you’ll have time to come by,” Liu Yuan said, laughing. “You better be ready. He’s definitely going to bring up the topic of blind dates again. Do you want me to scope out your match beforehand?”

Rong Yi’s reply was very direct: “No need.”

“Right,” Liu Yuan said, “it’s just a formality for you anyway, since you’ve already got someone.”

“…”

“By the way, I’m really curious,” Liu Yuan said, “I forgot to ask before. Is your partner an Alpha?”

“…”

“What’s wrong? Feeling shy?” Liu Yuan laughed heartily. “You’re acting like a real Omega now.”

Holding the phone, Rong Yi silently wondered why he had ever liked such an idiot.

##

Two days later, when Rong Yi returned to the client company with part of his progress report for a meeting, the bald man indeed called him aside after the meeting.

The bald man invited him into his office, even closing the door behind him. Then, with a wide smile, he turned to Rong Yi, making him feel completely uncomfortable.

“Little Rong,” he said, trying to look friendly, “I heard you’re still single, right?”

Yes, and I’m also an Omega. Doesn’t everyone in our company know that? Didn’t they tell you?

Rong Yi mentally rolled his eyes, but since the entire team still had to rely on this bald man for their project, he forced himself to smile and nodded.

“You young folks shouldn’t focus only on your careers,” the bald man continued. “You need to think about your personal life too. How old are you now, Little Rong?”

Do you think I don’t want to focus on that?

You have no idea what kind of Alphas I’ve encountered!

Rong Yi took a deep breath, still smiling. “I’m 26.”

“Not young anymore! You should be considering this seriously,” the bald man nodded while speaking, finally getting to the point. “I have a nephew, a few years younger than you, just graduated from university, very outstanding. I think the two of you would make a great match. How about I introduce you?”

Rong Yi couldn’t keep up the smile anymore and asked, expressionless, “What’s his gender? We might not be a good match…”

“My nephew is a boy, of course,” the bald man said. “I thought only older folks like my parents cared about first genders. Young people like you shouldn’t be so rigid, right? I think you two would be a perfect fit in other ways.”

##

Rong Yi felt like he was living a nightmare.

First, he had been deceived by a gay Alpha. Now, for the sake of his company’s project, he had to go on a blind date with an Omega. His work was already busy, and on top of that, he had to make time to go to the police station to reissue his ID.

Worst of all, he realized that this brief, failed relationship had impacted him far more than he had expected.

They hadn’t even known each other for long, and their understanding of each other was shallow. They had barely gone on any dates. But somehow, memories of Chen Keyao kept surfacing unexpectedly, and always at the worst moments.

On his way home from work, he saw a car that was the same model as Chen Keyao’s.

When he got home, the handkerchief he thought he had lost in Chen Keyao’s car was still lying on the table.

The next day, as he stepped into the office, he remembered Chen Keyao standing at the entrance not long ago, smiling with a packed dinner in hand as he walked out.

In the afternoon, when he took time off to go to the police station, sitting in the waiting area, he was reminded of the day they first met.

And every time he reached his apartment building, he would instinctively remind himself that this was the first place he had ever kissed someone.

He still remembered that feeling—soft, warm, sweet, filled with passion and a dizzying scent. Once you’ve experienced it, it’s hard not to crave more.

By the weekend, when he went to the cinema, standing in front of the snack counter, looking at the popcorn behind the glass, he could almost feel the lingering heat on his fingertips again.

All these little fragments, so easily triggered. But all the happiness they once brought had now turned into a cruel joke.

For an Omega like him, perhaps finding the kind of love he truly wanted would be impossible.

Why wasn’t he like a typical Omega? Small, cute, evoking a protective instinct in Alphas, and not attracting weirdos with strange sexual orientations.

Just like the boy not far away, wearing a light-colored jacket and looking down while making a phone call.

As Rong Yi was lost in thought, his phone suddenly vibrated. He answered the call and the voice on the other end perfectly matched that of the boy in front of him.

“Hello, is this Mr. Rong? I’ve arrived. Where are you?”

“…I’m behind you.”

As Rong Yi spoke, he watched his blind date turn around, his eyes widening immediately.

After locking eyes, Rong Yi gave him a smile.

##

In truth, Rong Yi looked pretty shabby today.

He hadn’t had a haircut in a while, and he was dressed casually, far from the polished and handsome image he usually presented when he put effort into his appearance.

But his natural looks were too good for him to really look bad.

At least, the look in the other guy’s eyes showed clear surprise.

“Hello, Mr. Rong,” the boy with almond-shaped eyes and slightly curly short hair, looking very cute, quickly ran up to him. “I think I introduced myself before? My name is Zhou. Zhou Li.”

Rong Yi smiled. “Hello.”

He was a little surprised himself. Given how plain-looking the bald man was, it was hard not to have doubts about the appearance of his relatives. But the boy in front of him was quite good-looking. And he seemed even younger than described.

As Rong Yi was reflecting on this, the boy hadn’t taken his eyes off him.

“Uh… Mr. Rong,” Zhou Li said with a half-smile, “I feel like we’ve met somewhere before.”