ROT CH 34

Chapter 34: Are You Junzhou’s Omega?

When the group arrived at the basketball court, Guo Xinkai was already there, along with Yue Qi and his students, who were warming up on the court. Seeing their arrival, they warmly welcomed them to join in.

Han Junzhou excused himself, claiming that his dress shirt, trousers, and leather shoes were unsuitable for playing. He also noted that the teams were already complete, so he sat on the sidelines with the female students to watch.

Bai Chengyu initially had no intention of playing basketball with strangers, but the desire to show off in front of Han Junzhou motivated him. Moreover, after observing Yue Qi and his students playing—a clean and fair style without annoying antics—Bai Chengyu decided to join the game.

Although it was just an informal match, Yue Qi and the team included some of the school’s well-known and handsome Alpha players. Quickly, a crowd of spectators formed around the court, cheering loudly and supporting their favorites.

Bai Chengyu, usually low-key, showcased his skills with a few critical shots and flashy jumps, earning enthusiastic applause.

With 30 seconds left on the clock and the teams separated by just one point, Li Wenting dribbled the ball across from the opponent’s basket. Wen Yuyi jumped to her feet, shouting and cheering, while Liang Yuchan and Lin Yunru joined in enthusiastically. Even Han Junzhou stood up, his excitement apparent.

Yue Qi’s team quickly caught up. Li Wenting glimpsed Wang Ziheng running ahead at an angle and shouted for him to pass the ball. Pretending to throw, Li Wenting faked out Yue Qi, who leaped to block. Instead, Li Wenting passed the ball behind him to Guo Xinkai. Guo Xinkai, catching the ball, made a long pass to Liao Sheng.

Liao Sheng received it and shot towards the backboard. The ball hit and rebounded as Bai Chengyu, positioned perfectly under the basket, jumped up for a layup. The buzzer sounded as he landed, securing the final point.

The match ended in a tie, and applause and whistles erupted from all around. Wang Ziheng and the others gathered around Bai Chengyu, hugging and cheering. Among them, only Guo Xinkai was a Beta, while the rest were Alphas. The overwhelming mixture of Alpha pheromones left Bai Chengyu dizzy and irritated. Laughing and scolding, he pushed everyone away.

Afterward, they joined the freshmen players, and soon, the students began mingling playfully. Some female students shyly approached to offer water bottles.

Taking a moment, Yue Qi walked over to Bai Chengyu and patted his shoulder, offering praise: “Well played. Those jumps earlier were impressive—great bounce and balance. Have you been trained?”

Bai Chengyu smiled modestly and thanked him but couldn’t help sneaking a proud glance toward Han Junzhou on the sidelines. Han Junzhou returned the look with a beaming smile and a big thumbs-up.

Observing the exchange, Yue Qi furrowed his brows. He had noticed the interactions before, but this time, it was undeniable. Adding the faint rosewood scent coming from Bai Chengyu and the bite mark partially hidden beneath his collar, Yue Qi couldn’t believe it.

Han Junzhou had gone from being disciplined to crossing a line—claiming his student in less than a semester.

“You are…” Yue Qi hesitated, softly asking, “Junzhou’s Omega?”

“Ah?” Bai Chengyu, still riding the adrenaline high, was startled by the direct question. He panicked momentarily but lowered his voice to maintain composure and countered, “What do you mean? Han Junzhou is my teacher.”

“I didn’t mean anything else. It’s just…” Yue Qi, noticing the boy’s wary and defensive expression, quickly denied any ill intent. Gesturing to his own nape as a hint, he smiled bitterly. “You have his scent. That rosewood fragrance—it’s coming from you.”

Yue Qi couldn’t hide the bitterness in his heart. He and Han Junzhou had never been able to mark each other successfully, to leave behind a lasting scent.

Bai Chengyu instinctively covered the glands on the back of his neck with his hand, realizing only afterward how foolish it was. He’d taken off his high-collared jacket earlier during the game because of the heat, leaving only a thin, round-neck shirt that couldn’t conceal anything. Now, sweaty from head to toe, simply covering his neck was pointless. The gesture itself was practically a dead giveaway.

Frustrated, Bai Chengyu dropped his hand and stubbornly argued, “Who says rosewood has to be his scent? I could smell like rosewood too, couldn’t I?”

“Sure, sure,” Yue Qi said soothingly, trying to calm the irate boy.

A twinge of jealousy stirred in Yue Qi. He and Han Junzhou had been close for years—once even intimate lovers. How desperately had they wanted to imprint their scents on each other back then, to declare, “He’s mine.” Yue Qi could never mistake Han Junzhou’s scent. Yet here was this young Omega denying it outright, carelessly dismissing what Yue Qi had always longed for. It left him feeling both bitter and unworthy on Han Junzhou’s behalf.

Just as Yue Qi was about to conclude that Bai Chengyu didn’t deserve Han Junzhou, he heard the boy soften his tone: “Mr. Yue, please don’t tell anyone. He’s my teacher. If any strange rumors spread, it would be bad for him.” Bai Chengyu looked genuinely anxious as he glanced at Han Junzhou approaching from a distance. He hastily added, “I know you’re good friends—maybe even were more than that—but please don’t harm him. Otherwise, I won’t let you off.”

Yue Qi was surprised, listening to the boy’s mix of pleas and threats. Bai Chengyu seemed aggressive, even fierce, yet his words revealed deep concern about their relationship being exposed and the damage it could bring to Han Junzhou’s reputation.

Yue Qi felt a sense of release. This young Omega, so much younger than them, was trying to shield his Alpha in this moment. Looking at the boy’s anxious dark-green eyes, Yue Qi’s earlier jealousy turned into admiration for Han Junzhou.

“What won’t you let him off for?” Han Junzhou walked over, holding a jacket. Hearing his “little leopard” speak so rudely to Yue Qi, he frowned in disapproval.

Caught off guard, Bai Chengyu snatched the jacket from Han Junzhou and hurriedly pulled it on despite still being drenched in sweat.

“Nothing. He was just challenging me to another game, saying he’d crush me next time,” Yue Qi replied, raising an eyebrow at Bai Chengyu as the boy fumbled to put on the jacket. “Big words for someone who should worry about himself more. No need to worry about your teacher,” Yue Qi added with a pointed tone. “‘Your’ teacher won’t go down so easily.”

With that, Yue Qi prepared to leave. Before walking off, he patted Han Junzhou on the arm and cryptically remarked, “You’re lucky.” He glanced between Han Junzhou and Bai Chengyu, smiled, and bid them farewell.

“…?” Han Junzhou watched Yue Qi walk away, puzzled. He turned to Bai Chengyu and asked, “What were you two talking about? Yue Qi was acting so strange.”

“No.” Bai Chengyu could never admit that he had just threatened Han Junzhou’s ex. Awkwardly, he changed the topic: “Han Junzhou, do you have a scent blocker? Quickly spray some on me—the scent seems to be leaking out.”

When he said Han Junzhou’s name, his voice softened, dragging out the last syllable slightly. Clearly, he was trying to avoid the topic, but the way he spoke made it sound more like he was being coquettish.

Han Junzhou eyed him suspiciously. As far as he knew, whenever Bai Chengyu carried the rosewood fragrance on him, he seemed more than happy to let it linger in the air, reinforcing the mistaken impression that he was an Alpha. Now that Bai Chengyu was actively trying to suppress the scent, something unusual had clearly happened.

But Bai Chengyu wasn’t willing to explain, and pressing him too hard might make this normally docile “little leopard” bare his claws.

Resigned, Han Junzhou took out a scent blocker and sprayed it on Bai Chengyu. He even pulled back the collar of Bai Chengyu’s shirt, spraying twice inside for good measure.

As he adjusted the collar, Han Junzhou caught a glimpse of the bite mark on the back of Bai Chengyu’s neck peeking out from under his thin inner shirt. A realization struck him. “Yue Qi figured out our relationship, didn’t he?”

Before Bai Chengyu could respond, Xue Bingsheng suddenly appeared before them.

“I figured out your relationship too,” Xue Bingsheng said coldly, his gaze fixed on them with a stormy expression.

(To Be Continued…)

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