Chapter 25: Does It Work?
After a while.
He Siming felt that Jiang Rong’s peach scent had faded a little. “Are you okay?”
Hearing the aggrieved, uncomfortable tone in his voice, He Siming unconsciously softened his own.
Jiang Rong realized that being held in his arms felt much better. Surrounded by He Siming’s pheromones, his head no longer felt as dizzy.
“Much better.”
He Siming looked at him in confusion. “Is your head uncomfortable?”
Jiang Rong nodded. “Yeah. I ran over just now, so I felt a bit dizzy.”
He Siming reached up and touched his head. “Did you hit it and get a concussion? Don’t run next time.”
Jiang Rong said, “I didn’t hit my head. Last time when I said I’d damaged my brain, that wasn’t true—there was another reason.”
He Siming could tell whether Jiang Rong was lying. His eyes were like glass washed clean by rain—clear and bright.
He Siming frowned slightly. “Are you sure?”
Jiang Rong said, “Yeah. I might have pheromone disorder.”
He Siming: “……”
Why was there yet another condition now? The worldview in his head was surprisingly complete—he could even invent illnesses for himself.
Drunk people always say they aren’t drunk. Was Jiang Rong the same? He’d hit his head and was occasionally confused, thinking his brain wasn’t damaged at all—memory all mixed up.
What he’d just experienced was probably dizziness from lack of oxygen after running, yet he’d even come up with his own explanation. He Siming found his “brain damage” rather interesting.
He didn’t tell Jiang Rong that there was no such thing as “pheromone disorder” in this world.
Wiping away the cold sweat on Jiang Rong’s forehead, he smiled and asked, “So what is pheromone disorder?”
Jiang Rong explained awkwardly yet earnestly, “It’s when pheromones aren’t normal. Usually after a heat ends, pheromones return to a stable state. But with this disorder, the pheromones spike chaotically—sometimes high, sometimes low—and you need an Alpha’s pheromones to soothe it.”
He Siming looked at him, half-smiling. “Got it. So basically, you need my pheromones, treat me like a tool, and that tool is called an Alpha. Is that it?”
Jiang Rong thought to himself that he really was a top student—but he couldn’t admit it. “I’m not treating you like a tool.”
In a good mood, He Siming tidied Jiang Rong’s hair that had been messed up by running and chuckled. “So how are you going to repay this Alpha?”
Jiang Rong pulled out of his arms. Hearing He Siming’s chuckle, his face grew warm. “I—I already hugged you once.”
The word “repay” made Jiang Rong react instinctively. He was afraid He Siming would just lean in and kiss him without warning. Kissing another guy—wouldn’t that affect his campus heartthrob image?
Cheers for the Finance Department echoed from inside the basketball hall.
He stiffly changed the subject. “Aren’t you going on the court? What’s the score now?”
Back at his previous school, he would occasionally play basketball with classmates. In high school, he had almost been recruited into the school team, but when his parents found out, his mother called the teacher and ordered him to focus on studying and making money in the future. He could only withdraw from the team in disappointment.
“We should be down by about ten,” He Siming said calmly. He regretted not having tricked out a kiss and withdrew his gaze from Jiang Rong’s lips.
Jiang Rong asked, “Is our Computer Science department leading?”
He Siming replied, “No, we’re the ones behind.”
Jiang Rong grew worried for them. “Then what should we do?”
Seeing someone approaching ahead, He Siming stopped fixating on whether to kiss or not. “Let’s go. It should get better once I’m on.”
Jiang Rong asked, “You weren’t playing just now?”
He Siming swallowed the vague “mm” he was about to say. “Where do you want to sit? With the players, or in the stands?”
“I’ll go to the stands to find Yao Shule and the others.”
“Mm. They’re in a very noticeable spot—you’ll see them as soon as you go in.”
The cheers in the basketball hall grew louder and louder. They split up at the entrance—one heading to the stands, the other toward the players’ rest area.
At the end of the second quarter, after a two-minute break, the third quarter began.
He Siming went on the court.
Everyone noticed that after resting for a quarter, He Siming’s eyes and posture had changed. Not only did his brows and eyes look relaxed, even his body seemed looser, no longer as stiff as before.
As soon as he got on, he sank a long-range three-pointer with incredible touch.
“Ahhhhhh!”
“So handsome!”
“Go, He-god! Go, Comp Sci!”
The junior who had boldly confessed to him at the school gate before shouted, “Senior He, so handsome!”
Before long, He Siming scored two more baskets. Right after coming on, he clawed back seven points against the Finance Department, shrinking the gap to three. The Finance players were completely stunned—was the campus heartthrob suddenly buffed like he’d secretly chewed some gum?
Ding Yan leaned back in his chair and finally relaxed. “Now that’s the old He.”
Li Yizhou had been clenching his fists earlier, wishing he could jump on the court himself. “His form’s back.”
Yao Shule somehow got hold of two cheer pom-poms. “Amazing! Awesome!”
Jiang Rong also felt that He Siming playing basketball had an indescribable kind of handsomeness. He casually asked Yao Shule, “He played earlier?”
“Yeah,” Yao Shule said. “No idea why—he was totally off, losing points as soon as he went on. Then he went out to the restroom and came back fine.”
Jiang Rong leaned forward, elbows on his knees, palms propping up his face. Instead of speculating along with Yao Shule, he focused on watching He Siming soaring freely across the court.
He had to admit—He Siming had incredible sex appeal. When he jumped, his clothes lifted with the motion, revealing a small section of abs that sent the stands into wild screams.
Cradling his flushed face, Jiang Rong couldn’t help thinking that he himself had touched those eight-pack abs several times—the texture had been great, smooth and firm.
He seemed to have kissed them too, though he only vaguely remembered.
But back then, he really needed pheromones. He’d only kissed He Siming’s abs to make him give more pheromones, more willingly. And afterward, He Siming had given him far more than he’d imagined—so much that he’d nearly been overwhelmed.
Men with abs really were something.
He couldn’t think about it anymore. If he did, he wouldn’t even be able to look at He Siming.
With the campus heartthrob aura on full display, He Siming racked up over twenty points in the third quarter, successfully widening the lead over the Finance Department.
In the fourth quarter, he was targeted by the opposing team, but even then, he still grabbed rebounds and scored plenty.
Cheers from the Computer Science department kept coming, overpowering those from Finance.
Ding Yan: “Holy crap, did he take steroids or something?”
Yao Shule could only shout “six six six” now.
Li Yizhou: “So handsome. Comparing people really makes you mad.”
That junior who liked He Siming had shouted his throat hoarse. “Senior, I love you!”
Jiang Rong glanced at the enthusiastic, sunny, handsome junior and felt a bit envious—he couldn’t shout like that.
The game ended, and the Computer Science department successfully won. He Siming’s teammates nearly lifted him up, but he quickly stepped away, foiling their plan and making everyone laugh instead.
The campus heartthrob really had his idol baggage.
After finally winning against the odds, the basketball team planned to go out for a meal.
Ding Yan waved his hand grandly and said to the people around him, “Let’s go, let’s go! Tonight’s on me—celebrating Old He winning the game!”
Li Yizhou: “Big spender, Brother Yan!”
Yao Shule: “Our 519 dorm is blessed again.”
Ding Yan: “What do you want to eat?”
Li Yizhou: “He-god is the star tonight—of course we’ll go with what he wants.”
Just then, Yang Qin arrived with a few of her girlfriends.
She tucked her hair behind her ear. “Ding Yan, I heard you’re all going to eat together. We have four girls here—how about we join? It’ll be livelier.”
Ding Yan didn’t dare decide on his own. Right on cue, He Siming came out after changing clothes with the basketball team.
The basketball team also planned to eat together. Ding Yan shot He Siming a look and whispered, “Yang Qin wants to join us too. I couldn’t refuse.”
He Siming turned to the team. “How about we all eat together tonight?”
The basketball team unanimously agreed—an excellent plan.
“Sure, sure!”
“No objections!”
“The more, the merrier!”
“That comeback game felt amazing—I could eat a whole cow.”
Yang Qin: “……”
Some players had brought their girlfriends, so a group of nearly twenty people headed toward a nearby buffet restaurant.
The girls naturally clustered together, the atmosphere harmonious.
Jiang Rong had been walking with Yao Shule and the others, but after leaving the basketball hall, He Siming came to walk beside him. As soon as He Siming got close, Jiang Rong could smell his pheromones and quietly edged closer to him.
Perhaps because He Siming had sweated a lot during the game, his pheromone scent was much stronger.
Still, Jiang Rong could only smell He Siming’s pheromones—he couldn’t detect anyone else’s. Did others simply not have any?
Seeing that Jiang Rong looked much better, He Siming said, “Stick with me later. They’ll be drinking.”
Jiang Rong asked, “Aren’t you drinking?”
“Not really into it. Do you want to?”
He only drank a little when he was particularly annoyed—and even then, he restrained himself, especially in group settings.
Jiang Rong shook his head. “I won’t.”
He still didn’t know what to do about his pheromone disorder—drinking might actually kill him.
On weekends, the restaurants around campus were much less crowded. When nearly twenty young people entered, the place instantly became lively. The manager arranged a section just for them; the tables fit them perfectly, becoming their own little territory.
Most tables in the restaurant were for four or six people, so it was impossible for everyone to sit together. They had to split up.
How the seating was arranged was… interesting.
But that concern was quickly resolved.
He Siming chose a six-person table. Beside him sat Jiang Rong, whom no one knew very well, while He Siming himself took the seat by the window.
Across from them were his two roommates. Ding Yan, being He Siming’s close friend, saw that only one seat remained. Knowing He Siming wanted to keep some distance from Yang Qin, he directly dragged over a single basketball team member.
The single guy, Zhang Yang, protested, “Damn it, I wanted to sit at the campus belle’s table—why’d you drag me over here?”
Ding Yan said, “The campus heartthrob is here.”
Zhang Yang replied, “But I don’t like guys. Is the campus heartthrob going to like me?”
“Relax. You’re not Yang Qin’s type, and my buddy won’t fancy you either.”
“Your mouth is vicious. I really don’t want to sit with you.”
“Nope, you’re sitting here tonight. We’re not going home until we’re drunk.”
“Bring it on. Who’s afraid of who?”
Yao Shule loved the liveliness. “Count me in! Count me in! Playing ‘Little Bee’?”
Zhang Yang: “Absolutely!”
Watching them have so much fun lifted Jiang Rong’s mood too. Those four completely forgot about him and He Siming, leaving them tucked away in a corner with a totally different vibe.
He Siming liked the scene. “What do you want to eat? I’ll get it for you.”
It was Jiang Rong’s first time at a buffet in this world, and curiosity got the better of him. “I’ll go with you.”
“Mm.”
This buffet had been He Siming’s choice—mid-range, with fairly fresh ingredients and a wide variety.
Standing in the food area, Jiang Rong exclaimed, “So much food.”
He Siming rarely came to buffets, but that didn’t stop him from knowing which items were more expensive.
“Pick things that are pricey but not filling—that way you get your money’s worth.”
“I thought you wouldn’t care about that,” Jiang Rong said.
He Siming laughed. “Do you have some misunderstanding about me? I check prices when I buy things too.”
“Really?”
“Really.”
Jiang Rong smelled the fragrant grilled squid and then spotted the mini hotpot station where you could blanch ingredients.
However, the squid line was pretty long.
He Siming immediately saw what he wanted. “I’ll queue for the squid. You go get the mini hotpot and ingredients.”
“Okay. Should I get you a mini hotpot too?”
“The table’s small. I’ll eat from yours—hotpot.”
Jiang Rong heard the slight pause in his words and saw him smile before belatedly realizing what he’d meant.
He tugged hard on He Siming’s sleeve and turned to get the mini hotpot.
Watching the tips of Jiang Rong’s ears flush red, He Siming patiently queued behind a group of kids and parents. The line was really long.
The buffet food was more refined than the school cafeteria’s. Jiang Rong wanted to take a little of everything he saw, but knowing he couldn’t waste food, he reluctantly looked away.
“Do you like red velvet cake too?”
He turned to see who was speaking—it was Yang Qin.
“Just so-so,” Jiang Rong replied. He’d only looked a bit longer because the red color was pretty.
Yang Qin smiled. “I can’t finish a whole slice. Want to split one with me?”
Jiang Rong shook his head. “I’m not eating cake right now. Maybe you could share with your friends.”
“All right.”
Jiang Rong had already asked the server to bring him a mini hotpot. He continued choosing ingredients, remembering He Siming’s advice to pick fresh ones, not frozen.
Yang Qin asked, “Are you He Siming’s roommate?”
“Mm.”
“I haven’t seen you before.”
“We don’t do activities together very often.”
They weren’t close, and he didn’t know what to chat about.
“Can I add you on WeChat?” Yang Qin asked.
Before Jiang Rong could respond, Yao Shule walked over and interrupted. “What are you picking?”
“Looking for fresh stuff for the mini hotpot.”
“Over there—I’ll take you.”
He pulled Jiang Rong away from Yang Qin.
Once they were farther away, Yao Shule whispered, “Don’t get too close to Yang Qin. She has a lot of followers, and some of them are pretty extreme.”
“Then I’ll keep my distance,” Jiang Rong said.
Yao Shule added, “There are guys on the basketball team who like her too. Her popularity is only slightly less than He Siming’s.”
Jiang Rong wasn’t interested in other people’s gossip, so he didn’t ask more.
He took some shrimp from the seafood section. It was crab season, and he wanted to take two—one for himself, one for He Siming.
But before he could pick one up, the fishy smell made him retreat. He decided not to eat any—he’d just get some for He Siming.
Turning around, he saw Yao Shule grabbing four or five.
Seeing that Jiang Rong had taken only one, Yao Shule said, “Why are you taking just one? This season is for eating crab.”
“I’m not eating crab. It’s for He Siming.”
“Then go to the grill section—there’s grilled steak over there.”
“Sounds good.”
He added some shellfish to his plate before leaving.
When he returned to the table with a pile of ingredients, the table in front of Ding Yan and the others was already packed, while the space in front of him and He Siming was still relatively empty.
He put the corn into the pot first.
When He Siming came back, he was holding two skewers of sizzling grilled squid.
Smelling it, Ding Yan reached out. “Old He, give me one!”
He Siming placed one skewer in front of Jiang Rong and refused without mercy. “Queue up yourself.”
Ding Yan: “……” How exactly had Jiang Rong obtained all of He Siming’s affection? He wanted it too!
Jiang Rong was very satisfied with this buffet meal and also watched Yao Shule and Li Yizhou having a blast with Ding Yan and the others.
Later on, He Siming even drank two beers with them.
Jiang Rong and He Siming switched seats—He Siming had him sit on the inner side, effectively trapping him in. Unless He Siming got up, Jiang Rong couldn’t get out.
While Yao Shule and the others were having a great time, He Siming noticed that Jiang Rong had been rubbing his waist all evening.
He Siming leaned toward him and whispered, “Is your waist uncomfortable?”
Jiang Rong nodded. “Probably because I’ve been standing a lot at my part-time job these past couple of days. My waist’s a bit sore.”
“Come closer. I’ll rub it for you.” His hand naturally settled at Jiang Rong’s lower back, drawing him closer.
Feeling the strength in those large, long fingers, Jiang Rong leaned in toward him.
He Siming’s palm pressed against his lower back. “Here?”
Jiang Rong leaned back to make it easier for him. “Mm-hm.”
“Is the pressure okay?”
“Yes.” Jiang Rong felt a pleasant tingling numbness—something he could never achieve on his own.
The room was warm, and everyone’s faces were flushed from heat and alcohol. Jiang Rong’s face, heated by the warmth beside him, looked as if he were wearing blush.
He Siming caught a whiff of the faint peach scent on him and wanted to bite.
With the noise all around them, He Siming lowered his head and asked in a voice only the two of them could hear, “Can I kiss you tonight?”
Jiang Rong suddenly stiffened. At some point, He Siming’s hand had slipped beneath his clothes, pinching the sorest spot on his waist. He pressed lightly.
Jiang Rong let out a low sound. “He Siming…”
He Siming’s dark brown eyes deepened. “Does it work?”
Jiang Rong shifted sideways, and He Siming pressed in, trapping him against the sofa. If Jiang Rong didn’t respond, He Siming had no intention of moving away.
His hand remained at Jiang Rong’s waist, continuing to knead and gently stroke the side of it. His voice was low and hoarse with allure. “Say it. Will you let me kiss you or not?”
Jiang Rong smelled the alcohol-tinged pheromones on him, making him feel a little drunk. He replied softly, “Mm… yes.” His waist was about to go numb.
Suddenly, Ding Yan’s flushed face popped in. He was already half drunk.
“Hehehe—what are you two doing?”
“Why are you sneaking around like you’re dating!”
“Old He, come drink!”
Jiang Rong turned and hid behind He Siming, trying to shield his burning face. “……”
They weren’t—weren’t dating at all.
