Chapter 12

With that, he put on his headphones, pulled out a Literature reading comprehension workbook—something he usually never touched—and buried his head in his work, leaving Sebastian with nothing but a cold side profile.

He possessed peach-blossom eyes that naturally curved inward and tilted upward at the corners. His double eyelids extended slightly outward, framing jet-black pupils and long, naturally curled eyelashes; it was a gaze destined to look affectionate no matter what.

Yet right now, completely cooled down, his eyes were filled with absolute displeasure. He lacked his usual flashy, radiant allure, but for some unknown reason, his current state only made people intensely want to coax him.

Sebastian felt that after the commotion of the past two days, the young master might have found his pride a bit damaged. His words earlier had clearly been meant as a tease, yet he had accidentally driven the boy into such a severe rage.

He himself would never leave Riverdale Prep, and it was impossible for Asher not to be an Alpha. For Asher to establish such absolute, ruthless words meant he was genuinely harboring a deep grudge, determined to fight to the bitter end.

Sebastian pinched the bridge of his nose.

Whatever. The boy had already harbored a grudge against him for over a decade anyway.

Ultimately, the road ahead was bound to be long and arduous.

Once class dismissed, Sebastian left the classroom without uttering a single word.

Asher naturally wished the guy would stay as far away as possible—out of sight, out of mind. Yet for some inexplicable reason, the moment Sebastian stepped away, his body’s uncomfortable reactions became noticeably more severe.

His entire frame felt sore and weak, his head spun with a heavy dizziness, and the line stretching from his neck down his spine was excruciatingly painful, carrying a burning sensation that felt as if it were consuming his internal organs.

Was the presentation phase genuinely this intense?

There did seem to be a saying that the later one presented, the more severe the biological reaction would be. If it truly became unbearable, he would just have to take a few days off.

Counting the days, Eleanor should be returning soon anyway. At that time, even if he were unwilling, she wouldn't permit him to step out the door.

With these thoughts, Asher intended to send Eleanor a WeChat message to give her a heads-up. Reaching into his pants pocket, he finally remembered that his phone had been confiscated and he hadn't brought his spare. Glancing at his tablet, it had completely run out of battery from streaming music.

Instantly, his chest felt even more constricted.

He had no idea what kind of day today was; absolutely everything was going wrong.

Asher slumped onto his desk, burying his head inside the crook of his arm. He rested one hand against the back of his head, his pale, slender fingers curling slightly as his knuckles tensed. His short, jet-black hair poked through the gaps of his fingers, his entire posture radiating a giant declaration of absolute unhappiness.

After slumping for a bit, he suddenly detected a slight movement beside him. It felt as though a hand was slipping into his desk through the empty space between his uniform and the desk surface.

His uniform was loose and hollow, and the hand’s movements were exceptionally cautious, refraining from touching him at all, as if deliberately avoiding contact.

The guy was actually acting like a thief!

Enraged, Asher grabbed the offending hand and straightened his body. Sparing a rapid glance, he caught the thief holding the stolen goods red-handed.

Staring more closely, it was his own confiscated phone.

He froze for a brief second.

Sebastian was leaning over, one hand propped against the desk while the other remained caught in Asher's grip. Looking at the few stray locks of hair standing upright on Asher's head from his nap, the corner of his mouth curved up. "So you weren't actually asleep."

"..."

He gave the phone a slight shake. "I originally wanted to give you a surprise."

"..."

"I got it back for you, so stop being angry, alright?"

"..."

Mr. Peng was a notoriously monstrous teacher who was exceptionally difficult to deal with. Securing the phone back must have cost a fair amount of breath, and might have even involved some unspeakable, filthy transaction.

Asher felt this guy's humanity hadn't completely withered away after all.

Releasing his grip, he took the phone and stuffed it straight into his desk. Dropping his eyebrows, he let out two words in a muffled voice: "We'll see."

"Not bad. At least you're willing to open your mouth to speak."

A smile hooked Sebastian's lips. Maintaining his leaning posture, he extended the hand that had just been gripped to naturally smooth down the few stray locks of hair on Asher's forehead.

Then, sliding a thermos from his own desk onto Asher's, he sat back down in his seat and returned to his own work.

Everything was executed so naturally that Asher didn't even comprehend the fact that his head had just been ruffled.

Mason caught a glimpse of the scene. Turning around, he grabbed Caleb's sleeve, leaning in to whisper in a low voice, "Don't you think... when Boss Seb was speaking to Ash just now, his tone was actually quite gentle? Like he was coaxing a child."

Caleb cast a stealthy look backward, only to be instantly frozen back by the absolute clash of the North and South poles, letting out a sharp shiver.

"Maybe he dropped poison into that thermos and felt a pang of guilt, so he wanted to grant Ash a final wave of care before he drops dead."

Mason thought about it seriously. "I think your logic is entirely sound."

When school let out that evening, Sebastian received a message from his newly acquainted friend, Lulu.

She was thoroughly enraged.

[BB, do you think these people are completely blind? How could they possibly think Sebastian’s deadpan face is more handsome than my boy!]

Sebastian: "..."

He actually felt his facial expressions were quite rich.

However, he couldn't defend himself in front of the president of Asher's fan club, so he replied calmly: [Yeah, I also think Asher looks better. But why do you call him 'boy'?]

Lulu: [Because I'm a mother-fan! A mother-fan obviously calls him her boy!]

Lulu: [Wait a second, you aren't a girlfriend-fan, are you?]

Sebastian froze.

Lulu typed back at lightning speed: [You absolutely cannot be a girlfriend-fan! Our boy is only seventeen right now—he’s a minor, he hasn't presented, and he hasn't taken the university entrance exam. He is strictly forbidden from dating! He needs to grow tall and study hard! A mother does not permit him to date! If you are a girlfriend-fan, we might officially become enemies.]

Sebastian: "..."

B.S.: [I am not.]

Lulu: [Really?]

B.S.: [Really.]

Lulu: [That's good, then. I can rest easy.]

Lulu: [I caught a distant glimpse of our boy when school let out today, and his mood appeared exceptionally terrible. Waaa, my heart aches for him. It's all the fault of that big villain Sebastian! He just had to mobilize an army of water-voters from High School No.1 to snatch the school heartthrob title, and he insisted on beating our boy by exactly one point on the exam. My boy is so excellent; when has he ever suffered such a blow?]

Lulu: [I wonder what exactly could make our boy a bit happier, sigh.]

Sebastian shifted his head to look at the boy slumped in the corner of the back seat with an entirely drained expression, silently indicating that he also desperately wanted to know the answer to that question.

Lulu sent another message over: [Probably only if that deadpan Sebastian gets brutally crushed a few times or transfers away will our boy finally be happy. Should we find a way to run Sebastian out of town?]

Sebastian had always deemed his own popularity to be quite high, making this the very first time he encountered two people wanting to run him out of town within a single day.

Letting out a bitter smile, he typed: [Sebastian won't leave.]

Lulu: [Sigh, true. It took so much effort for him to transfer here, how could he possibly leave? Then we can only pray our boy presents swiftly as a top-tier Alpha, completely crushing that ice block with pure pheromones!]

Lulu: [No, the more I think about it, the more my heart aches. Our boy’s expression today looked far too bleak. To make him happy, I am willing to go a full year without eating taro balls, praying to the heavens to make Sebastian fall desperately in love with our boy—becoming completely infatuated and consumed by him day and night. Then our boy will definitely be thrilled to death!]

Sebastian felt his city-wide number one title might have been achieved in vain, as he found himself completely failing to keep pace with this Omega's logic. He typed hesitatingly: [If Sebastian loves Asher, will Asher genuinely be happy?]

Lulu: [Of course! Because our boy will absolutely never love him back! He snatched the school heartthrob title and then snatched the rank one spot, driving my Ash into such a rage—how could my Ash possibly find him an eyesore? However proud he is right now, that's exactly how miserable he will be later! He will definitely suffer an unrequited chase all the way to a crematorium end, letting Ash brutally wreck him! Just thinking about it feels amazing!]

Sebastian: "..."

What on earth was all of this.

He didn't offer another reply.

Yet after returning home, finishing dinner, taking a shower, and lying down on his bed, those exact sentences suddenly flashed back into his mind.

Regarding the school heartthrob matter, he had never possessed an ounce of interest from the start, and it was merely an unfair advantage based on the numbers from High School No.1, so it didn't count. As for taking rank one, it was simply that the science section happened to be simple this once, allowing him to secure a cheap victory and place exactly one point above him on the total score.

He hadn't intended to deliberately anger Asher, yet through a twist of fate, he had indeed driven the person into unhappiness.

According to Lulu's words, losing to Asher a few times was likely the definitive way to coax him. But the boy was far too proud; if he intentionally threw a match, it would likely result in an absolute fracture of their relationship.

As for all that chaotic unrequited chasing and crematorium nonsense...

Lying on his bed, Sebastian stared silently at the window opposite his for a brief moment. Standing up abruptly, he opened his bedroom door.

"Auntie Liu, has the uniform I took off today been dried? I'll deliver it across the street."

Asher didn't consider himself a person with a good temper; he was quite arrogant, loved putting on flashy fronts, and thoroughly enjoyed showing off.

But he wasn't a sore loser either.

He was simply unaccustomed to losing. Even if he truly lost, it wouldn't reach the point of harboring a malicious grudge against his opponent.

The only reason he felt so thoroughly unsettled was because that specific opponent was Sebastian.

For some unknown reason, he was simply unwilling for that person to be Sebastian.

It had been this way since childhood.

He also felt that the ruthless words he had unleashed today had been a bit excessive, somewhat damaging their sentiments. After all, Sebastian hadn't actively sought out the school heartthrob poll, the bet had been established by himself, and losing the exam was simply a matter of his own skills falling short. In the end, throwing such a tantrum was somewhat groundless.

However, spoken words were like spilled water, and the flag he had established could only be accepted. He ultimately had to make Sebastian leave the school thoroughly accepting his defeat, after all—Riverdale Prep wasn't big enough for two Alphas.

Asher let out a self-deprecating chuckle, yet the movement caused his neck to seize with an agonizing spasm.

It had been painful the entire day, and by nightfall, that pain and discomfort grew increasingly intense.

He estimated that he was likely about to present.

Fortunately, presenting as an Alpha didn't require any extensive preparation. Perhaps he would wake up tomorrow and be able to deliver the good news to Eleanor, sparing her from constant worry.

Taking a deep breath, Asher adjusted his posture to try to make himself more comfortable, yet it was entirely useless.

Did presenting as an Alpha genuinely have to be this painful? He had heard that an Omega's reaction was ten times more severe than an Alpha's; how on earth did those Omegas manage to survive?

Asher felt a wave of pity for those poor little things.

He forced himself to sleep to dilute the pain. In a hazy haze, he finally managed to drift off for a brief period. When he woke up again, his lips were so dry they felt ready to split, his throat burned as if it were emitting smoke, and waves of sharp cramps twisted through his lower abdomen, overturning his insides.

Wanting to grab a sip of water, the moment he stood up, he collapsed straight back down.

He felt thoroughly top-heavy, completely stripped of strength, and his entire frame was shaking with cold.

A fever.

Asher deduced as much, yet he lacked the spare energy to make a response. He could only rely on pure instinct to wrap his blanket tightly around himself, burying his entire being inside, letting the burning pain deep within his body consume him bit by bit.

His phone began to ring. Asher lacked the strength to pull his hand out from beneath the blanket, nor did he possess the energy to open his mouth to speak.

It rang relentlessly; the person calling was likely exceptionally anxious, yet Asher truly had no way to respond.

He had never endured such agony in his life. By the end, the pain turned completely numb, leaving him hovering on the edge of losing consciousness. Yet right before he drifted off into a stupor, he faintly caught the sound of the combination lock being pressed downstairs.

The door opened.

The footsteps rushing up the stairs were exceptionally hurried.

He caught an incredibly beautiful fragrance.

He felt as though he had been completely enveloped by snow, the burning heat and agonizing pain instantly finding a gentle, warm soothing.

He caught a familiar voice.

"It’s fine now. I’m here."