YPSSS Chapter 35

At the start of the second half, the Physics team played aggressively.

But Xie Ji was even more aggressive.

The atmosphere on the court reached its peak after that block and throw. Someone, no one knew who, shouted “Fight! Fight!” and both teams turned the basketball game into something resembling an actual fight.

The game ended with the Military Engineering team pulling far ahead in points.

“Did you eat fertilizer mixed with pig feed in the second half?” The captain slung an arm over Xie Ji’s shoulder as soon as the referee announced the results, ignoring the screams from the audience. Breathing heavily, he leaned most of his weight on Xie Ji. “I was chasing after you the whole time. My legs are about to give out.”

Xie Ji steadied his breathing, raised an eyebrow, and pushed the captain’s hand away. “Are you really an Alpha?”

“You little…” The captain laughed despite his annoyance. “Name one person on the court who isn’t an Alpha? Look at that dark-skinned guy on the other side…” He jerked his chin toward the opposing team. “Looks like he’s about to explode.”

The Physics team had lost, and the dark-skinned player was particularly furious. He was currently raging while his teammates tried to calm him down.

Xie Ji glanced in that direction, then quickly lost interest and looked the opposite way.

The captain noticed his small movement and said with a smile, “I’ve been wanting to ask, where do you keep looking? You keep sneaking glances over there.”

Xie Ji smiled but didn’t answer. He opened a bottle of water and took a drink, his eyes glinting with bright flecks of light.

“You even ran over to block that shot,” the captain grew more intrigued as he spoke, and eagerly pressed on, “Is there someone you like over there?”

When the captain asked this, he meant it as a joke and didn’t expect a real answer.

He’d known Xie Ji for many years and was quite familiar with him. He knew that while his friend had good qualities, he was rather clueless when it came to romance.

For instance, at their high school graduation, they attended a birthday party for the son of some family friends. They’d invited a popular Omega idol group to dance at the party, and the atmosphere got quite heated.

Even the birthday boy’s eighty-year-old Alpha grandfather was chuckling with delight.

But Xie Ji, a perfectly healthy young male Alpha, had pushed away an Omega who tried to dance close to him.

That Omega had millions of followers on online but nearly fell over from the push. They had been so stunned by the rejection that they just stood there, frozen in shock.

Even now, the captain still wanted to laugh thinking about that scene.

But before he could laugh, he heard Xie Ji say, “Mm.”

“Yeah, there is.” He answered casually, not looking like he was joking.

The captain’s mouth gradually widened along with his eyes, and the basketball rolled from his hands onto the ground.

Xie Ji screwed the cap back on and shoved the empty bottle against the captain’s chest, showing no intention of saying anything more. “So I’m heading off first. See you later.”

Only after Xie Ji had walked far away did the captain slowly close his shocked mouth, belatedly shouting, “Why are you running! Who is it! Bring them to dinner with us tonight!”

Xie Ji waved his hand from afar without looking back.

Xia Shiruan hadn’t yet freed himself from his feelings of confusion and self-doubt.

In the six months since Xie Ji came back, these undefinable and uncontrollable emotions had become more frequent, often throwing him into panic.

This feeling of being completely caught off guard was unpleasant, similar to his heat cycles, always striking when he least expected it.

But at least heat cycles could be dealt with using suppressants. This panic had no solution.

As soon as the game ended, Yi Junya abandoned Xia Shiruan and ran off to bring water to a guy he had his eye on.

Xia Shiruan waited for him in place, unconsciously fidgeting with the mineral water bottle cap while staring blankly downward.

“Excuse me…” a soft voice spoke up, “Could you help us with something?”

Xia Shiruan looked up to see two Omegas arm in arm, looking nervous but hopeful.

Xia Shiruan nodded and said “Sure,” then asked, “What is it?”

Seeing his agreement, both Omegas’ expressions grew excited, and they asked, “Um, we were wondering if you had Number 8’s contact information…”

Hearing this, Xia Shiruan raised his eyes and looked at them each in turn, his gaze questioning.

One of the Omegas hurriedly explained, “It’s like this. Before the game started, Number 8 came over to talk to you, so we thought you might know each other.”

The Omega’s eyes were bright, cheeks flushed with shy pink, the kind of feelings that even Xia Shiruan could easily recognize.

Xia Shiruan was quiet for a moment, ignoring the subtle discomfort in his heart, and said, “Why don’t you ask him directly?”

“Ah, I’m too nervous!” The Omega smiled and peeked in another direction, saying, “Number 8’s personality… seems hard to approach. Nobody dares to bring him water, and we don’t dare either, so we had to come ask you.”

Xia Shiruan frowned. He did not respond immediately, his expression showing some hesitation.

The Omega pressed their hands together and said softly, “Please.”

“What do you want his contact information for?” Xia Shiruan asked.

“Huh?” The Omega paused, then couldn’t help laughing. “What else could it be for? Of course, it’s because I like him and want to pursue him…”

Xia Shiruan pressed his lips together, the uncomfortable feeling in his heart growing more distinct.

The other Omega had already noticed Xia Shiruan’s reluctance and tugged their companion’s sleeve, whispering, “Let it go. They probably don’t want to give it to us. Let’s forget it and think of another way.”

With that, they started to pull their friend away.

But the other one wasn’t ready to give up. Even as one arm was being pulled, they twisted back to ask, “Xiao Gege, do you actually have Number 8’s contact information or not?”

Their voice was a bit too loud, making others around them turn to look.

Xia Shiruan had no choice but to admit, “I do.”

“Then can you give it to me?”

Xia Shiruan paused, “No.”

“Why not?” So close to getting the contact information, the Omega grew anxious and suddenly thought of a possibility. “Could it be that he already has a girlfriend? That’s impossible, why didn’t his girlfriend come to the game…”

“That’s not it.”

“Then why? He doesn’t have a girlfriend, so why can’t you give it to me? Is there some other reason?”

The other person was too persistent, and Xia Shiruan’s tone grew urgent. Without thinking, he blurted out, “Because he already likes someone.”

When these words came out, not only did the two young Omegas freeze, but Xia Shiruan himself was stunned.

Xia Shiruan bit his lower lip, feeling frustrated.

Actually, there were many excuses he could have used to refuse.

For example, he could have told them that he couldn’t give out a friend’s contact information to strangers on his own.

Or he could have told them from the start that he and Xie Ji weren’t that close, so he didn’t have his contact information.

Given Xia Shiruan’s personality, he was used to avoiding all trouble in the simplest way possible. He shouldn’t have said such inappropriate things that only made things more complicated.

But when Xia Shiruan saw the expressions on their faces, his mood turned strange. He inexplicably thought of that night on Mount Xia, and even developed a childish, petty sense of competition in his heart.

He wanted to secretly let them know: the person you like already has someone he likes.

So I don’t want to give it to you.

“Who is it?” The young Omega paused, then smiled, their face full of disbelief. “Who does he like?”

Xia Shiruan froze.

A simple word rolled on the tip of his tongue, almost slipping out.

Me.

Xie Ji likes me.

As these five words formed into a sentence, Xia Shiruan looked up, meeting the scrutinizing gazes of the two people in front of him. His throat suddenly felt dry, and he couldn’t say a word.

But the thoughts that came with these words swirled in his mind, refusing to leave. Xia Shiruan felt he couldn’t continue the conversation.

“Sorry.” Xia Shiruan cleared his throat and said hoarsely, “I have something to do. I need to go.”

“…”

Xia Shiruan left that place as if he was running away.

After walking far enough, he covered his face with his hands.

This was the scene Xie Ji saw as he walked over from afar.

Xia Shiruan stood still, his whole face buried in his hands, only his pink-tinged ears visible.

Xie Ji found it amusing and stopped a few meters in front of him, watching with folded arms.

After a few seconds, the person seemed to come to his senses, lowered his hands, let out a long breath, and started walking forward with his head down.

Xie Ji watched his walking direction and lazily shifted a few steps to the side, extending one arm.

The next second, Xia Shiruan crashed into him as expected.

Like a frightened rabbit, accurately captured by the hunter lying in wait.

The familiar sweet scent wafted into his nose. Xia Shiruan looked up, meeting Xie Ji’s playful eyes, his body growing increasingly stiff.

“What’s this?” Xie Ji still had sweat from exercise hanging on his neck, his Adam’s apple bobbing as he smiled. His eyes curved into crescents as he teased with evident good humor, “Have you figured things out and come to give me a hug?”