TAO | Chapter 79

About 800 meters from the recycling station, there was a small park called Xuyang Park.

At six or seven in the evening, the park was nearly empty. In a small grove next to the workout equipment, Wei Xiaochi was pinned against a banyan tree by Jiang Zhan.

The alpha held his face and kissed him over and over again.

They had just shared a cup of milk tea, and Jiang Zhan’s lips were still cool, carrying the faint creamy sweetness from the drink.

Since Wei Xiaochi had brought up the breakup, even though Jiang Zhan hadn’t agreed, he’d kept a respectful distance physically.

After spending some time in that hazy, undefined state, they’d finally cleared things up today. And Jiang Zhan instantly reverted to his clingy, kissy, always-wanting-hugs self.

Wei Xiaochi’s lips were hot and tingling, and his face was flushed red from the way Jiang Zhan kept murmuring “Chi Chi” in between kisses. He felt like he’d swallowed a ton of chili peppers—his whole body was burning.

This side of Jiang Zhan was all warmth and tenderness, filled with the most direct, uncomplicated kind of affection. He exposed his feelings openly, without even realizing it, as if he had nothing to hide.

He kissed Wei Xiaochi with eyes full of adoration and love—

“Chi Chi.”

His nose brushed against Wei Xiaochi’s cheek, voice low and sticky—

“Chi Chi.”

He held him close, forehead resting against Wei Xiaochi’s brow, gaze soft and steady, placing a kiss on his eyelids—

“Chi Chi.”

Every time he said it, Wei Xiaochi’s heart gave a little shudder.

No one had ever called him like that, with so much fondness and attachment.

Not even his own parents, as far as he could remember.

His nape started burning like it had been seared with a red-hot iron brand.

Suddenly, Jiang Zhan paused, then leaned closer and took a sniff at the back of Wei Xiaochi’s neck.

For a few seconds, his face went blank, breathing ragged.

Then he shook his head, blinking back to clarity. His voice was hoarse as he muttered, “Inhibitor.”

It felt like Wei Xiaochi had been dragged into a boiling-hot deep pool, scalding water flooding his senses, cutting off sound, sight, and touch. All he could hear was the rushing roar of water—nothing else.

Jiang Zhan frantically started searching Wei Xiaochi’s pockets. “Did you bring the inhibitor?”

Wei Xiaochi had no strength left. The moment Jiang Zhan loosened his hold, his legs went soft and nearly gave out.

Jiang Zhan quickly caught him.

The omega’s pheromones spilled out like a tidal wave, invading every inch of Jiang Zhan’s senses. Something primal stirred inside him, screaming to be let loose.

Wei Xiaochi’s flushed face was streaked with sweat, a single drop sliding down the curve of his cheek, tracing a faint line.

His long eyelashes trembled, damp and fluttering like a butterfly struggling in the rain.

Jiang Zhan’s expression grew hazy. He held Wei Xiaochi tighter, nose twitching as he kept inhaling the scent clinging to the omega’s skin.

But the sound of footsteps nearby startled him back to reality.

Territorial instinct flared. He couldn’t let anyone else catch even a whiff of Wei Xiaochi’s scent.

His muscles tensed like a spring ready to snap. While releasing warning pheromones to drive off any approaching alphas, he dug around in Wei Xiaochi’s pocket again, searching for the inhibitor.

He didn’t find it—but he did find the blocker pin he’d given him. Jiang Zhan quickly pressed the switch to activate it.

If the inhibitor wasn’t in his pockets, it had to be in his bag.

Wei Xiaochi still had his backpack slung over his shoulder. He was too weak to move, leaning fully on Jiang Zhan. Holding him up, Jiang Zhan reached around his shoulder and unzipped the bag.

—

Wei Xiaochi’s face was flushed deep red. Gripping Jiang Zhan’s shirt tightly, he murmured in a soft, watery voice, “You… you can bite me.”

Jiang Zhan froze on the spot, turning to stone. He stiffened like a sculpture, eyes going wide.

Wei Xiaochi couldn’t see Jiang Zhan’s expression, thought he hadn’t heard, and repeated, “You… bite—”

Before he could finish, Jiang Zhan suddenly scooped him up, flipped him around, and pressed his sharp canines to the gland on the back of Wei Xiaochi’s neck.

Wei Xiaochi braced himself against the rough tree trunk, his lashes fluttering uncontrollably.

—

Scarlet flames roared through Wei Xiaochi’s body, seeping into his skin, his bones, pulsing through his bloodstream.

But instead of burning him, it felt like new life igniting in dead embers—a spark turning into a flourishing flame.

Jiang Zhan held him in his arms afterward, gently stroking his head, awkwardly but silently trying to comfort him.

It was Jiang Zhan’s first time marking an Omega.

He’d actually read up on it beforehand. But now that it had happened, he realized—some things were just instinct. Built into their very DNA. Something they were born knowing.

He kept Wei Xiaochi wrapped tight in his arms, resting his chin on his head.

“Still feeling bad?” he asked.

Wei Xiaochi hadn’t quite regained his strength, leaning back against the banyan tree as he shook his head. “Not so bad now.”

His neck bore fresh bite marks, little flecks of red. Jiang Zhan lowered his head to gently blow on the wound. His voice muffled, “Did it hurt? Was it painful?”

Wei Xiaochi instinctively drew his neck back. “N-no. Not really.”

Looking at the mark he’d left, Jiang Zhan’s face slowly flushed. He murmured, “Come home with me tonight.”

Afraid Wei Xiaochi would say no, he added, “We need to bandage the wound. You can’t see it, and you can’t reach it either.”

Wei Xiaochi quickly lowered his head, clearly flustered, torn between agreeing and refusing.

Jiang Zhan tried to sound totally innocent. “It has to be cleaned, or it’ll get infected.”

Wei Xiaochi still hadn’t told his family about any of this. Going home in this state would definitely raise suspicions from Fang Yuan and the rest.

Originally, Wei Xiaochi had been planning to talk to Wei Dongjia about it eventually. But as time passed, and especially after everything that had happened recently, he started to change his mind.

If no one noticed anything, he figured he’d just keep hiding it until after the college entrance exam. His gut told him that coming clean now would only stir up trouble.

He figured by the time he got into college and became fully independent, no matter how his family reacted, he’d be able to handle it.

In the end, Wei Xiaochi agreed to Jiang Zhan’s proposal—to stay at his place for the night.

Jiang Zhan called his family’s driver to come pick them up at Xuyang Park.

The trash bins were too big for the car’s trunk, so he left them with the recycling station for safekeeping.

—

When the doorbell rang, Aunt Zhou opened the door to find Jiang Zhan holding someone completely bundled up in a blanket.

She was startled. “Who’s this? What happened?”

Wei Xiaochi was still dazed from his heat, his head fuzzy. He heard Aunt Zhou’s voice and wanted to speak, but his throat was so hoarse he couldn’t get a word out.

Jiang Zhan carried him straight upstairs, Aunt Zhou trailing behind anxiously.

When they got to the bedroom door, Jiang Zhan was about to kick it open like always. Aunt Zhou hurried forward to open it for him.

He stepped inside and gently laid Wei Xiaochi on the bed, pulling the blanket over him.

Once Aunt Zhou saw who it was, her worry deepened. She stepped forward and touched Wei Xiaochi’s forehead. “Why’s your face so red? Does he have a fever?”

Jiang Zhan said, “He’s in heat.”

The moment she heard that, Aunt Zhou swatted him twice, scolding, “You brat! Why didn’t you take him home? Bringing him here like this—his family must be worried sick!”

If he was just sick with a cold or something, staying over at a friend’s house was fine. But an alpha bringing a heat-phase omega home? That was another story entirely.

Wei Xiaochi forced his eyelids open, rasping out, “It’s okay… There’s no one at home anyway.”

That part was a lie—he couldn’t explain the truth.

And if there really was no one at home, then given his current state, he definitely couldn’t go back alone.

Aunt Zhou sighed and crouched beside the bed, stroking his forehead. “Then you just rest well here. I’ll make something you like.”

Wei Xiaochi could barely speak, voice soft as air. “Thank you…”

“Don’t talk anymore, or you’ll hurt your throat,” she said, clearly worried.

After Aunt Zhou left the room, Jiang Zhan—who’d been playing it cool the whole time—immediately leaned in close again, crouching beside the bed like a dragon guarding its treasure, staring intently at the sleepy omega.