Pei Yujang was momentarily stunned by being suddenly "married young," but she quickly opened the car door and gently pushed Yu Zhiwan inside. Feeling uneasy, she first activated the car's self-driving mode, set the time, and then climbed into the backseat to be next to Yu Zhiwan.
"You're drunk."
To avoid the headlights being too bright and disturbing other drivers at night, Pei Yujang had set the lights to a soft mode. The gentle light illuminated Yu Zhiwan, who was lazily reclining on the large cushion, softly humming something. She didn't respond when Pei Yujang spoke to her.
A moment later, the Omega's head tilted and rested on her shoulder.
"Wife, when are we getting home?"
"Yu Zhiwan, you're single, you don't have a wife."
"Wife, don't you recognize me?"
Each time Yu Zhiwan called her "wife," Pei Yujang patiently reminded her that they weren't in that kind of relationship. But not only did Yu Zhiwan ignore her, she even seemed to get upset. Her delicate almond-shaped eyes grew misty as she pouted in frustration.
An Omega's desire for intimacy during their heat is overwhelming, and they may even experience mild hallucinations.
Yu Zhiwan was treating her as her wife.
The Omega's fluffy head gently rubbed against her shoulder like a spoiled kitten, clinging tightly. Under Yu Zhiwan's affectionate onslaught, Pei Yujang had no choice but to reach out and wrap her arm around Yu Zhiwan's shoulder, making it easier for her to lean into her embrace.
"When are we getting home, wife?"
Yu Zhiwan repeated the question, and Pei Yujang glanced at the GPS on her phone:
"About half an hour."
She quickly calculated in her mind.
They'd need to go to her own home. It had started raining outside, and though their homes were across from each other, the distance and the heavy rain would leave them drenched. The car couldn't navigate the turns in the neighborhood.
Pei Yujang couldn't remember if she had any inhibitors at home. Being a Beta, she didn't need inhibitors or suppressant patches, and the small amount she had was for emergencies with Yu Zhiwan.
To avoid any mishaps, Pei Yujang decided to order some inhibitors immediately and have them delivered to her home so they could use them as soon as they arrived.
But just as she opened the delivery app, the phone was abruptly snatched away by the Omega.
"No wonder you're not paying attention to me," Yu Zhiwan huffed through her nose, hiding the phone behind her. "You've got a pretty girl on your phone."
Pei Yujang: "…I don't."
What kind of script was this Omega giving her?
She was simply stating the truth, her tone calm and normal, but something in her words must have triggered Yu Zhiwan. The woman immediately pulled away, tears streaming down her face as she raised her voice, choked with emotion:
"Last time, you lied about being on a business trip, but you were really at a KTV, surrounded by pretty girls, neglecting me because I'm disabled and didn't sleep with you. Now you want to bring an Omega home and mark her right in front of me!"
She spoke with such heartfelt sincerity, her tear-filled eyes streaming down her cheeks. Pei Yujang was stunned by Yu Zhiwan's sudden outburst and only found her voice again after a moment of being bombarded by the Omega's accusations.
"You're talking about Liu Huanran, right?"
"Who's Liu Huanran?"
Hearing this, Pei Yujang became serious, turning to carefully observe the Omega's tear-streaked face in the soft light, incredulous as she asked:
"You don't know Liu Huanran? You've forgotten your ex-fiancée?"
Without waiting for Yu Zhiwan to confirm or deny, Pei Yujang quickly took control of the conversation:
"You told me she was your fiancée, a super scummy Alpha who tried to forcibly mark you but failed, so she kept harassing you. She lives in your house, leeching off your rent, verbally harassing you, and even trying to get physical with you. Eventually, after being bullied by her, you moved out and cut off her living expenses and rent."
Pei Yujang adopted a sorrowful expression, throwing herself into the emotion:
"Why are you blaming Liu Huanran's actions on me? Even if I were your wife, we could still get divorced. Right now, I'm just your fiancée. If you miss her, we can amicably break up. Stop pushing all the blame on me. Do you have a little mistress out there too?"
Pei Yujang wanted to cry but couldn't, and even pinching her hand didn't help. Instead, she used a choked-up tone to confront Yu Zhiwan, her voice even more forceful and justified than Yu Zhiwan's earlier outburst.
Yu Zhiwan was indeed startled by Pei Yujang's sudden outburst. She sat up straight, no longer leaning against her, and lowered her head in silence for a moment.
After a while, the Omega slowly lifted her head and cautiously asked:
"I was just joking. Are you mad?"
Pei Yujang turned her head away:
"No."
"Yujang~" Pei Yujang had never heard Yu Zhiwan speak in such a soft, sweet tone, her voice laced with a playful lilt, like it was soaked in honey. It was then that Pei Yujang truly understood the sweetness of being an Omega. Even if the voice was intentionally cutesy, it wasn't annoying. Yu Zhiwan softly said, "I'm sorry, don't be mad."
"I'm not mad."
"You're ignoring me."
Yu Zhiwan continued to call her "wife" over and over, moving closer to nuzzle her affectionately. Pei Yujang hadn't expected this tactic to be so effective. She shifted to the side, trying to avoid Yu Zhiwan so she could place the online order for the inhibitors.
But when Yu Zhiwan leaned over and couldn't reach her, she gasped and nearly fell off the seat.
"Zhiyuan!"
Pei Yujang was so startled that she quickly dropped her phone and lunged forward to catch her. It was a close call—if she had been even slightly careless, Yu Zhiwan would have fallen. The back seat was spacious and high off the ground, so a fall, especially headfirst, would have hurt.
Although automatic driving technology had advanced significantly, it still wasn't perfect. When encountering faster-moving vehicles on the road, the car had to swerve, which could cause an unavoidable jolt. Normally, this wouldn't be an issue, but since Yu Zhiwan couldn't control her legs, there was a risk of her falling.
The national traffic regulations didn't mandate seatbelts in the backseat, but Pei Yujang usually buckled up. However, today had been a bit chaotic, so she forgot. Feeling guilty for her negligence, she decided to sit beside Yu Zhiwan, letting the Omega nuzzle her face against hers.
When they finally arrived home, the rain had only intensified. Pei Yujang took out her phone and reopened the delivery app, only to find that orders were no longer being accepted, even for expedited delivery.
Holding onto a sliver of hope, Pei Yujang rushed to her room, rummaged through drawers and cabinets, but couldn't find any inhibitors, just one last suppressant patch.
Being neither an Alpha nor an Omega, she rarely stocked up on these supplies and usually didn't think about them. Now she was faced with the dilemma of whether to brave the rain and fetch an inhibitor from Yu Zhiwan's place. But then she heard the Omega call her name from the sofa.
"Coming!"
Pei Yujang quickly tore open the suppressant patch's packaging and hurried over, fearing that Yu Zhiwan might do something unexpected while she wasn't paying attention.
Fortunately, Yu Zhiwan had only called for her out of dissatisfaction at being left alone for too long.
"Wife."
The Omega was half-lying on the sofa, propping herself up slightly. Two buttons on her shirt were undone, revealing fair skin tinged pink from the alcohol, a stark contrast against her pale complexion. Yu Zhiwan looked relaxed, as if discussing something mundane:
"Why don't you mark me? I'm okay with it."
"Cough, cough!"
Pei Yujang hadn't drunk any water, but she felt as though she was choking on her own saliva. She glanced at Yu Zhiwan in disbelief before quickly turning her head away.
At that moment, the Omega looked inexplicably alluring. Though she wasn't exposing much skin, her lashes, damp from the physiological tears, rested on her eyes, and her coat had slipped off, revealing her smooth, graceful upper body. The most striking detail was how one of her arms reached up, her fingertips slowly trailing down her neck, lightly peeling back the edge of the suppressant patch that had started to lift.
The suppressant patch contained a significant amount of medication to block the release of pheromones. With the corner now peeled back, the Omega's already restless pheromones surged forth, like a bubbling spring, impossible to conceal.
"Wife?" Yu Zhiwan called out again, "Don't you like me anymore?"
Under the pressure of the pheromones, Pei Yujang took slow, deliberate steps forward. As a Beta, she wasn't as sensitive to pheromones as an Alpha would be, but she could tell that Yu Zhiwan's pheromones were highly compatible with her own, judging by her instinctive attraction to them.
If she were her former self, she would have fled in panic by now. Even the strongest Alpha wouldn't claim to be immune to the straightforward and focused allure of an Omega's pheromones.
"I do."
She answered softly, the rich scent of roses invading her senses. The closer she got, the stronger the top-tier Omega's pheromones became.
Many people misunderstood Omegas, thinking they were weak. But an Omega's pheromones could be just as powerful, though their power lay in their seductive allure rather than aggression.
Pei Yujang had once heard of a famous "Beauty's Extinction Plan" battle, where several high-level Omegas in heat released their pheromones in the midst of a gathering of Alphas. The pheromones spread indiscriminately through the air, causing some Alphas to succumb on the spot, their heat cycles thrown into chaos.
But the fate of those high-level Omegas was also tragic. Such a brutal tactic was akin to sacrificing the Omegas. Even if the Alphas on their side took preventive medication, they would still be affected, making it a last-ditch, self-destructive measure that was never used again.
Yu Zhiwan's pheromones were no less potent than those Omegas who could carry out the "Beauty's Extinction Plan."
Pei Yujang forced herself to stay focused and firmly grasped Yu Zhiwan's wrist.
But the Omega immediately leaned into her embrace.
This position made it difficult for Pei Yujang to free her hands and perform the action of removing and reapplying the suppressant patch. Now kneeling on the edge of the sofa, Pei Yujang was in a delicate position, with the blind Omega fully trusting and leaning against her. If she didn't stabilize both of them, they could both fall.
If that happened, whether or not Yu Zhiwan would cooperate was uncertain. Forcing the issue could end up hurting her.
Pei Yujang felt a headache coming on.
After a moment of hesitation, she steeled herself, lifting the Omega to sit on her lap, freeing her hands to brush aside Yu Zhiwan's hair and place her hand in Yu Zhiwan's, allowing her to play with it as a sign of trust.
Meanwhile, Pei Yujang seized the opportunity to bite the edge of the suppressant patch.
The patch had likely been on her skin for too long, with the adhesive sticking to the skin, requiring it to be slowly peeled off to avoid damaging the gland. This was why Pei Yujang hadn't immediately removed it.
Being so close, the Omega's pheromones rushed into her nose, even more intense than before. The scent of roses mixed with the sweetness of raspberries, reminding her of the most refreshing bite of ice cream on a summer day, unique and rich.
The taste of the suppressant patch in her mouth was unpleasant. Made from a special material, it wasn't exactly palatable. Combined with the pheromones assaulting her senses, Pei Yujang felt dizzy, the alcohol buzz hitting her hard.
But Pei Yujang remained focused, driven by a single thought: she couldn't let the Omega in her arms get hurt.
The gland was a delicate area, and any damage would be difficult to repair. That's why in many of the original stories about scummy Alphas, the punishment for them often involved cutting out their glands. Pei Yujang wasn't sure how long this suppressant patch had been on Yu Zhiwan's neck, but the medication had worn off. Carefully peeling it back, Pei Yujang worked slowly to avoid hurting her, while the Omega let out a soft whimper in her arms.
An Omega in heat struggles to control their thoughts. Even snuggling close wasn't enough to ease the discomfort. Yu Zhiwan tried to turn her head to find Pei Yujang's lips, but seeing that Pei Yujang was busy with something and hadn't marked her, she grew frustrated and pushed against her.
Pei Yujang quickly tightened her grip, soothing her with muffled reassurances that it was almost done.
The patch had only a small section left to peel off. With just a bit more time, Pei Yujang could remove it, but she was being cautious to avoid hurting the skin, so she moved slowly, feeling a twinge of discomfort in her jaw. However, the Omega didn't understand her carefulness, instead struggling against her, even grabbing her hand and pressing it against the soft curves of her chest, guiding her to trace the lacy patterns through the fabric.
Pei Yujang felt a rush of heat to her ears, the sensation of the Omega's fingers sending small electric shocks through her body. With Yu Zhiwan's urgent insistence, she steeled herself and leaned down, her lips closing over the Omega's gland.