Chapter 2

The two packed up their things and walked out of the school. The Gu’s family’s driver was waiting for them in the parking lot which was on the east side of the school gate.

“Here.” Gu Dian handed Qiu Suo a bottle of mint flavored Maidong [1].

Qiu Suo unceremoniously took it, unscrewed the bottle cap, tilted his head, and gulped two mouthfuls, his Adam’s apple slid up and down.    

‘How come his Adam’s apple hadn’t differentiated yet?’ Gu Dian glanced at Qiu Suo’s slender neck, coughed lightly, and quickly moved his eyes away.

The fact that Qiu Suo was genetically tested as an Omega when he was a child was not known to outsiders, but the Gu family and Qiu family knew about it and the parents were happy.

The Gu family and the Qiu family were friends. The Gu family was in Hotel and Tourism business, while the Qiu family had chains of supermarkets.

The villa where they lived was set by Mother Gu and Mother Qiu hand in hand. The two families were separated only by a narrow-wooded path, which was very convenient. Gu Dian and Qiu Suo didn’t treat themselves as outsiders. They could eat and sleep in any house as if it was their own home. If both families get united by marriage in the future, they will get even closer. It simply couldn’t get any better.

As an Alpha who had been designated as a baby parent ever since he was a child, Gu Dian was quite self-conscious. He had set rules for himself. The first rule was that ‘his wife is always right’, and the second rule was that ‘if he is wrong, please refer to the first rule’ [2]. 

The day before entering elementary school, Mother Qiu pulled Little Qiu Suo and taught him patiently, “You’re a primary school student now, so you have to know how to behave. You must be clear about the difference between A and O, and you must know how to protect yourself and not get too close to those Alphas, okay?”

“Oh,” Little Qiu Suo held a small stick and point it here and there, “How do I know who is Alpha? There’s no tag on their foreheads.”

“You’ll know in time. ” Mother Qiu looked helplessly at her son who doesn’t have an O-like appearance, thinking how he can marry in the future, “Little Suo, don’t always play with sticks and guns, you don’t a bit… look like.” 

“What? I don’t look like anything, mom?” Little Qiu Suo held a wooden stick and gently poked his mother’s waist, “Hey, put your hands up!” 

Mother Qiu got tickled and giggled, “Little Suo, as mom told you, you have to be quiet and behave in the future…”

The Qiu family did not deliberately tell Qiu Suo that he would be an Omega in the future. They didn’t want the gender differentiation to restrain Little Qiu Suo. They wanted him to grow up freely and pursue what he wanted without restraint, and not to be restricted by the worldly AO distinction.

“Like Gu Dian? The kind that doesn’t speak?” Little Qiu Suo raised his pale face and asked humbly.

Mother Qiu:??

“Mom,” Little Qiu Suo dropped the stick and hugged his mother’s leg, “Is Gu Dian an Alpha? I don’t have to stay far away from him, right? Because I am the same as him, right?”

Little Qiu Suo’s eyes shone brightly, and his head rubbed against his mother’s legs, like a well-behaved kitten.

Mother Qiu lowered her head and thought for a while, “Little Suo, you are different from Gu Dian…”

“Different?” Qiu Suo’s eyes widened without waiting for her mother to finish her words, he cried out with a “wah” sound, “Why is it different? Uwah wah wah…Where is it different? Waa wah… Obviously, it is the same, I saw it, we are the same, we even compared who peed farther last time …… Uwah wah wah wah, it’s the same, it’s the same ……” 

Little Qiu Suo cried like a bell, which brought Gu Dian from next door to come.

Gu Dian also held a stick, the same as Qiu Suo’s stick. When he entered the door, he saw Qiu Suo crying. Gu Dian raised his chest, nudged the floor with a small stick, and asked Mother Qiu in a very old-fashioned way, “Auntie, why did you make your brother cry again?”

“Wah -” Little Qiu Suo, who was backed by someone, cried more vigorously, “I want to be like him, I want to be like him… ..” 

Little Gu Dian sighed and shook his head, his little brow wrinkled, “Brother don’t cry, men can’t cry. Where’s your sword?”

“Hmm.” Qiu Suo sobbed, his small face crumpled, with tears on his face, like a window glass when it rains, “My sword?” Qiu Suo looked down at his empty hand and wailed out again, “My sword is gone, waaaaaaah …”

Qiu Suo let go of her mother’s legs and wobbled towards Gu Dian, “Gu Dian, waaaaaaaah… ..”

Little Gu Dian opened his arms to catch him, and his sky blue short-sleeved T-shirt was printed with large tears.

“Little Dian, play with your brother for a while. Auntie has to go out and do something now.” Mother Qiu squatted in front of Gu Dian and touched his little face.

“Go ahead, auntie, I’ll take care of my brother.” Gu Dian pursed his lips and nodded; his little hand also patted Qiu Suo’s back lightly which looked very reassuring.

On that day, Gu Dian answered Qiu Suo positively. Qiu Suo was right, they were the same, it’s the same, and it was useless for anyone to object.

The two children also made a promise to keep their word, that not only they are the same at that time, but they should also be the same in the future, all should be the same.

Qiu Suo believed that Gu Dian had believed this for more than ten years.

Several times, Qiu Suo would lay down on his table and doze off with his textbook on top of him. His deskmate Gu Dian had to elbow him to wake him up and remind him to listen to what the teacher was saying. Qiu Suo was not interested at all, he would shake his curled eyelashes twice, and would continue to sleep in a different direction.

Gu Dian couldn’t wake him up. He was afraid of missing some crucial content, so he made five full pages of notes to get a clear picture of the Omega differentiation period, estrus period, and blocker inhibitors. It was more serious than learning about Alpha. 

Later, Gu Dian gave up his plan to tell Qiu Suo the truth. Qiu Suo was happy, so it’s not important to know it. The kid will naturally know when differentiation comes.

Isn’t he Gu Dian? He just needs to guard the kid well, and the kid probably won’t suffer anything.

Just like now, Qiu Suo kicked the ball and injured his leg. Naturally, Gu Dian went to help him deal with it, without any objection.

After drinking a few sips, Qiu Suo tightened the cap and tossed and played the drink bottle with both hands.

“Are you going to sit in the front or the back?” Gu Dian opened the back door of the car and asked Qiu Suo.

“I’ll sit with you.” Qiu Suo smiled.

“Let’s sit apart, or I’ll touch your leg.” Gu Dian said.

“Alright, let me sit in the front.”

Gu Dian turned to help Qiu Suo open the co-driver’s door and watched Qiu Suo bend down and get in. “Slow down.”

“I know.” Qiu Suo pulled his seat belt sideways and fastened it.

The sky was getting dark, the car drove on the main road, the traffic was heavy, and it was blocked on the bridge. The headlights and taillights were all on, like a long river of lights.

“Would you like to eat chocolate?” Gu Dian asked while grabbing two alcohol heart chocolates from his backpack and touched Qiu Suo’s shoulder with the back of his hand.

“Of course, please feel free to give, thank you.” Qiu Suo turned his head grinning and took away the chocolate.

Qiu Suo peeled off the tin foil and threw the chocolate into his mouth. Gu Dian faintly smelled a different chocolate scent, which was thicker and sweeter. He inhaled hard, but unfortunately, he couldn’t smell it anymore, and it disappeared in a short while.

FOOTNOTES:

[1] Maidong – is a leading brand of vitamin beverages. It went on the market in 2003 and had always been loved by young consumers who admire health.

[2] ‘his wife is always right’, ‘if he is wrong, please refer to the first rule’ – Gu Dian was referring to Qiu Sou.