There's an Alpha

Duan Hu came over too and hugged Qiu Shan and Duan Xu together. "Xuxu has gotten even cuter!"

Being called cute by his parents made him very happy, and he immediately broke into a smile.

The family hugged for a while before letting go. Duan Xu said, "I'll take my suitcase upstairs first."

"Okay." Qiu Shan helped him pull his suitcase. Duan Xu did not fight her for it. "Mom, what are we having for dinner tonight?"

Qiu Shan pulled the suitcase to the foot of the stairs, and Duan Hu took it from her and carried it upstairs. "I'm cooking tonight. You pick the dishes—anything you want."

"Then I want sweet and sour fish, braised beef with potatoes, and garlic broccoli." Duan Hu was the best cook in the family. Just talking about it made Duan Xu drool.

Duan Hu carried the suitcase up to the second floor in one go. "Sure, no problem!"

"Then I'll go buy groceries." Qiu Shan started downstairs, and Duan Hu went with her. "I'll come with you."

After saying that, Duan Hu turned back to Duan Xu. "Rest for a bit first. Your mom and I are going grocery shopping."

"Okay." Duan Xu smiled and waved. His dad and mom were still as loving as ever.

Only after Qiu Shan and Duan Hu left did Duan Xu pull his suitcase back to his room to unpack. Just as he finished, his phone rang. When he picked it up, he saw a message from Shen Yanlang.

Shen Yanlang: [Are you home?]

Duan Xu immediately replied: [I'm home.]

Shen Yanlang: [Are you tired? If you are, get some rest.]

Duan Xu: [I'm okay, not tired.]

Shen Yanlang: [Xuxu, I miss you.]

Seeing the message, Duan Xu's ears turned slightly red. He smiled shyly before replying with a single [Mm].

Shen Yanlang: [You don't miss me?]

How was he supposed to answer that?

If he said he missed him, would Shen Yanlang get so excited that he came straight over?

But if he said he did not, he was afraid Shen Yanlang would be hurt. Sigh!

After Duan Xu did not reply for a long time, Shen Yanlang called him directly. He startled, stared at the screen for a while, then finally answered. "Hello?"

"Xuxu." Shen Yanlang's low voice came through the phone, even more magnetic than usual. "Why didn't you reply to me? Hmm?"

"Mm..." Sitting on the bed, Duan Xu unconsciously rubbed his pants with his hand. After a long while, he said, "If you miss me, then you miss me."

Shen Yanlang was silent for a moment, then a soft chuckle came through the phone. "Then I'll take that as you missing me."

"Mm," Duan Xu answered.

Shen Yanlang took a quiet breath and proactively changed the subject. "Where are your parents? Are they home?"

"They went out to buy groceries. They're making me something delicious tonight." Duan Xu's tone became much lighter when he mentioned it.

Listening to him, Shen Yanlang was happy with him. "Really? My parents never cook."

"...Your family probably has a private chef, right?" Duan Xu said with a slight pout.

Shen Yanlang hummed. "The chef's cooking is pretty good. When you come to my house, I'll have him make whatever you like."

Duan Xu answered vaguely, "We'll talk about that later."

They were not even officially together yet, and he already wanted to bring him home?

Shen Yanlang understood what Duan Xu meant and smiled. Then he asked, "When are you going to the hospital?"

"Tomorrow." Qiu Shan had called Duan Xu while he was on the high-speed train and told him she had made an appointment for tomorrow.

Shen Yanlang hummed again, then asked, "What day after the New Year will you be free? I'll come see you."

"This..." Duan Xu thought about it. "We don't have many relatives. We'll be done visiting everyone by the third day, and there won't be much to do after that."

"Then I'll come see you on the fourth day?" If one listened closely, there was a trace of suppressed excitement and anticipation in Shen Yanlang's voice.

Duan Xu gave a quiet little hum.

Speaking of which, if Shen Yanlang was coming on the fourth day, then he needed to prepare early.

The two talked for a while longer before hanging up.

That evening, Duan Hu made all the dishes Duan Xu had ordered, plus an extra soup. The family happily enjoyed their meal together.

The next morning, after breakfast, the family drove to the hospital.

Qiu Shan and Duan Hu stayed with Duan Xu the entire time. Once the results of all the examinations came out, they took them to see the doctor.

After looking over the results, the doctor told them, "Based on the data, he has fully differentiated, and his gland has developed very well. There are no problems. He is now an adult omega."

Hearing this, all three of them breathed a relieved sigh. At last, the differentiation was complete.

But the doctor added, "His situation is unusual. His first heat after differentiation will be more intense than that of an ordinary omega, so he needs to find a compatible alpha before it begins. If he truly cannot find one, then he can only come to the hospital for suppressants and isolation."

Duan Xu had not told Qiu Shan and Duan Hu about heats before. Hearing this, their faces filled with worry. They now understood that his heat was unavoidable, which only made them more concerned.

Seeing this, Duan Xu tugged on Qiu Shan's sleeve. "Mom, let's go home first. We can talk about it there."

"Okay, we'll talk when we get home." Qiu Shan nodded. After thanking the doctor, the family went home.

Once home, the three sat in the living room. Duan Hu frowned deeply. "You just finished differentiating, and now you have to find an alpha? This, this isn't..."

"Exactly!" Just thinking about it made Qiu Shan upset. Her child was still so young, yet someone was already going to whisk him away. "But it's fine. We can still go to the hospital. It'll just be hard on Xuxu."

Seeing them like this, Duan Xu gathered his words and said, "Dad, Mom, you don't need to worry about this. There's... there's already an alpha."

"What did you say?" The two were shocked, looking as though they had misheard him.

Duan Xu felt a little embarrassed, his cheeks faintly flushing. "I... I already have a boyfriend."

Though they had not officially confirmed it yet, he was definitely his boyfriend.

Qiu Shan took a deep breath, unable to believe it. "A boyfriend? When did you get a boyfriend?"

Duan Hu was even more incredulous. "Who is he? What's his surname? What's his name? Where is his family from? How did you two get together? Why didn't you tell us before? What kind of person is he? Is he sincere or not? Huh?"

Duan Xu: "..."

"Dad, Mom, calm down first. Can I explain slowly?" Duan Xu soothed them.

As soon as he finished speaking, Duan Hu and Qiu Shan looked at each other, then both took several deep breaths. After a few times, they calmed down somewhat. Qiu Shan said, "You talk first. We'll talk after you're done."

"Mm." Duan Xu nodded, then explained that he and Shen Yanlang were roommates, that they had gradually developed feelings for each other and liked each other, but had not officially confirmed their relationship yet. He also said that he planned to confess to Shen Yanlang before getting together with him.

As for the novel's cannon fodder, awakening consciousness, and hearing Shen Yanlang's inner thoughts, he did not mention any of it.

After hearing him out, Qiu Shan and Duan Hu fell silent for quite a while.

In the end, Duan Hu spoke first. "Are you sure he really likes you? If he really likes you, why is he letting you confess?"

"I rejected him once, so I thought I should be the one to confess this time," Duan Xu replied weakly. He also spoke up for Shen Yanlang. "He's always been very good to me. If anything, I'm the one who kept him waiting for so long."

Qiu Shan and Duan Hu were experienced adults. One look was enough to tell that Duan Xu truly liked him. Then Qiu Shan asked, "Do you know what his family situation is like?"