67

 Shen Dai returned back to the capital, bringing Qiuqiu along with him.

He had thought about leaving him in Lancheng and going back to deal with things on his own. After all, it wasn't very convenient for a child that young to travel on a plane, but firstly, his grandmother really wanted to see Qiuqiu, and secondly, he felt uneasy being separated from him.

Qiuqiu had spent nearly half of the two-hour flight crying. This was probably the most embarrassing moment of Shen Dai’s life. He could distinctly hear the impatient clicks of the passengers around them and sense the critical gazes being directed their way. Then there was also the person who complained at a volume barely loud enough for him to hear: “What is such a little baby even doing on a plane?”

In the past, whenever he took public transport, he had always dreaded sitting next to an incessantly noisy child, so he could fully understand their annoyance. But now that the tables were turned, all he felt was helplessness, and every second which passed felt like being on pins and needles.

After a difficult journey, they finally reached their destination. No longer affected by the air pressure difference of the airplane, Qiuqiu, worn out from crying, very quickly fell asleep.

In the taxi, Shen Dai watched as Qiuqiu slept soundly. He looked at his reddened eyelids, damp eyelashes, pink nose, tiny mouth parting slightly and closing with each breath, and wondered to himself: Where did such a little baby find so much energy to cry for that long? Brushing a finger lightly across Qiuqiu’s cheek, he let out a deep sigh.

But in the next moment, a remark from the driver made him feel even worse.

“Your baby can’t be more than a few months old, right? And you’re just one Omega travelling with him alone?”

Catching the driver’s look of sympathy in the rear view mirror, he let out a faint murmur of agreement, before turning to gaze out the window.

The hotel he was staying at wasn’t far from his old home. Not long after he checked in, his grandmother hurried over. Considering her age and poor health, it wasn’t easy for her to go out by herself.

As soon as they saw each other, their eyes turned red. His grandmother couldn’t help but burst into tears as she hugged him.

After she had composed herself, her eyes were immediately drawn to the baby on the bed. She showered Qiuqiu with hugs and kisses, so in love with him she didn’t know which was best.

The baby took a natural liking towards her as well. His adorable and sweet smile could make anyone’s heart melt.

They started to chat about various things that had happened that year.

During this time, she was the only one that he had secretly kept in touch with. She complied with his wishes as well, keeping silent about his whereabouts and not disclosing the baby's existence to Shen Qin.

After finding out what Shen Qin had done, from the fragmented bits and pieces Shen Dai had told her, she was both furious and exasperated. But as she was dependent on her son to take care of her, all she could do was try her best to keep him from finding out that Shen Dai had given birth to Qu Moyu’s child. Otherwise, there was no way that Shen Qin would let the opportunity to cash in on it slide.

This time coming back, Shen Dai hadn’t planned on letting his father know about his return either. He only wanted to take care of two things: First, to complete the resignation process, and second, to talk to his grandmother about coming back to live with him in Lancheng.

But when he brought up the second matter, his grandmother unsurprisingly became hesitant.

As she held Qiuqiu’s plump little hand, she let out a soft sigh: “At my age and with my body the way it is, I just have no way of helping you look after him.”

Shen Dai quickly replied, “I don’t need you to. I’ve already found a nanny.”

“In that case, I would just be a burden to you.” She looked at him, her eyes filled with heartache. You're still so young. Raising a child on your own is already difficult enough. If you have to care for an elderly patient on top of that, how are you supposed to even live?”

Shen Dai put on a relaxed smile. “Even though my new role doesn’t pay as much as the jobs here, the salary is still considered high. The main thing is that the cost of living there is low. The apartment belongs to my friend and the rent is incredibly cheap. When you calculate it that way, it’s not too stressful.”

It isn’t just a question of money. You have your career to keep you busy and a baby to take care of, if you have to look after another elderly person on top of all that, it will be physically and mentally too much for you. A-Dai, you already have it so tough, I can’t possibly add on to your troubles.

“I have a son. Taking care of me when I’m old is his responsibility, not yours. You’ve already taken care of me for so many years, now you should go and take care of your own child.”

He knew his grandmother was right, but he just couldn’t bear to think of it. If not for Qiuqiu, his number one duty in life would have been to care for her in her old age. He said in a determined voice, “Grandma, I know it won’t be easy, but I can take care of you. I managed it back in those days when I didn’t have a stable job. I can do it now as well. As long as we’re together as a family, we can get through any hardships.”

“I don’t want to leave my hometown. I’ve lived here my entire life and I intend to die here.” She added mockingly, “If I move to the northwest, the climate and environment will all be completely different. I wouldn’t even know how to grow plants there.”

Shen Dai looked at his grandmother sadly. The both of them knew all too well that if they lived in separate places, the chances they would have left to meet again in this lifetime could probably be counted on one hand.

He was starting to doubt his decision. Perhaps he should return and find a job here after all. This way could take care of his grandmother. But then he would be too close to Qu Moyu, and he already had a position waiting for him back in Lancheng. How to choose…for the moment he was caught in a dilemma.

Seeing his discomfort, Grandma changed the subject and instead started chatting about Qiuqiu. Her questions were incredibly detailed, as if wanting to make up for all the time she had lost with her little great grandson.

・・・

Qu Moyu opened his eyes slowly. The space he was in was very dark, but he still felt an incredible pressure in his eyes, which were sore and swollen to the point of being unbearable.

His body was in a state of extreme contradiction - tired yet overstimulated. How could one describe it? Like an already overloaded machine that had been fitted with a high-capacity battery- exhausted with an endless stamina.

He sat up in bed and surveyed the desolate silence around him.

This was a large suite with a very strange decor. Everything was a deep ocean blue. All the walls were covered in padding. There were no windows. The door was made of thick metal and contained a smaller door, clearly used for deliveries. All the lighting was recessed. The floor was covered in thick, high-pile carpet. And the sole thing that could be considered as a piece of furniture in the entire room was a large mattress - and without a bed frame

A few necessities like food, water, clothes, medicine, among other things, were placed in a corner of the floor.

Beyond this, the rest of the functional space consisted of a shower cubicle and a toilet, both spartan to the extreme, with almost nothing besides the essentials.

Like a doomsday bunker, but even more like a jail cell. This was a safe house used by top alphas to get through their rut alone.

These were usually located in secure and isolated areas underground in order to protect others from being harmed by the alpha. Likewise, the soothing deep blue décor, the padded walls all around, the minimal use of hard surfaces, and the complete lack of unnecessary items, were all designed to protect the alpha from accidental injury during a state of agitation.

At present there were signs of destruction here. The damaged carpet and mattress, for one, or the door which was covered with impact marks from punches and traces of blood.

Qu Moyu looked down towards the source of pain in his body. When he saw the blood seeping through his hands that were wrapped in white gauze, he started to recall what happened before he had lost consciousness.

At the moment when his desire was at its most intense, his father had unlocked that eight centimetre thick, bulletproof alloyed door and allowed Zhou Xiaochu to enter. This docile and fragile omega - his gorgeous fiancée - had released pheromones carrying the sweet scent of plum, while trying to approach him with a mix of hope and apprehension.

The omega pheromones filled the room, infiltrating every corner of his brain. Sweet, intoxicating, and utterly seductive, they released an immeasurable temptation. And yet, it wasn’t what he wanted. What he wanted, who he wanted - both his body and soul had already given him a clear answer.

Within the safe house, every minute and every second of his raging hormones felt like an ascetic trial of endurance. So if it wasn’t the scent of the epiphyllum he craved to the point of madness, anything that dared to invade his territory at this moment would be taken as a provocation.

With one trace of reason left, he restrained himself from lunging forward and tearing the intruder apart, instead slamming his fist against the door again and again, using the pain as a way to hold on to his mental clarity, letting out a beast-like howl to warn and drive them away.

He was starting to get tired of the intruder’s shrieking, the last of his patience was quickly wearing thin.

That door once again swung open - that damned door which was preventing him from looking for his omega. He rushed towards it. He had to leave this place! He had to find that wisp of the epiphyllum scent. Don’t anyone dare think about trapping him! Don’t anyone think about snatching his person away!

Then his mother and father appeared. The only ones in the world most likely to be able to tame an S-class alpha were his or her parents. Of course not physically but psychologically, morally, and through genetic instincts. At least temporarily, the coercion of blood ties could overcome the coercion of pheromones.

He watched on as his father administered the tranquiliser injection. He suppressed the urge to resist and knelt beside his mother’s feet, repeating over and over, “Where is Shen Dai? Where is my omega? Give me Shen Dai!” until he lost consciousness.

Shen Dai, Shen Dai, Shen Dai.

This name was like a spell. reverberating over and over in his mind. He clutched his pounding head and tumbled off the bed onto the floor. A frenetic surge of desire and a gnawing hunger tormented his every sense and nerve. He was like a starving man on the verge of death craving sustenance.

He wanted him, wanted him insanely.

He frantically rushed to the door and once again pounded on that barrier which was keeping him from going after Shen Dai with his fists. He was desperate to get out of there, to find his Omega, to smell that intoxicating scent of epiphyllum again.

Only a faint voice inside was telling him that he would never find him, would never smell the epiphyllum’s scent, because it was he himself who had cast Shen Dai away. Shen Dai was now far, far away, and had walked far beyond his world, without ever looking back.

His heart ached so much he felt like he was going to die.

In the end, that door did open, but of course, Shen Dai was out of his reach. What he got instead were epiphyllum flowers, just in bloom, which his parents had searched the whole city for, and also all the personal items that Shen Dai had left in his home.

He piled Shen Dai’s clothes and bedsheets together, making them into a nest. Like a child who had lost his home, he curled himself up in it, this sole place that could give him a sense of security, trying to draw out Shen Dai’s faint scent from the already-washed fabrics.

As he hugged Shen Dai’s pyjamas he couldn’t stop sobbing. That epiphyllum scent was too faint, a pale comparison to what he had possessed before. And not just those sweet pheromones, but also heartfelt words, tender embraces, sweet kisses, and intense emotions.

As if having gone insane, he called out, murmuring, “A-Dai, where are you?”

A-Dai, Where are you? Do you not want me anymore? Why won’t you come back to me?

A-Dai, Come back and see me. Come and be with me. I miss you. I miss you. I miss you.

A-Dai, I really like you. All I want is you.

A-Dai, It hurts so much.

A-Dai, I’m sorry…