Don't overthink it

Soon, the yacht's staff came over pushing a meal cart.

Everyone ate dinner on the deck, enjoying the cool night breeze off the sea.

After dinner, the production crew came over to tell them their room numbers.

They weren't the stars of tonight's show, and everyone was tired, so after chatting briefly, they each returned to their rooms.

The second floor had a restaurant with ocean views, so it had fewer rooms than the third.

Whether the production crew had done it deliberately or not, Lin Xu, Leng Haiyue, and Yu He had rooms on the second floor, while Jiang Yumiao had been assigned to the third with the other Alphas.

With Mu Yunzhi and An Zhiwan now "enjoying" some time alone on the second floor, only Jiang Yumiao, Ning Chunchi, and Qin Yuan were on the third.

The moment Qin Yuan got a little closer to Jiang Yumiao, he could smell the intensely aggressive Alpha scent surrounding him.

Qin Yuan: "..." Looks like those two had marked each other again.

Qin Yuan nodded to Jiang Yumiao, then turned and strode toward his room.

Watching the award-winning actor's retreating back, Jiang Yumiao inexplicably felt as though he were running away. Jiang Yumiao glanced at the key card in his hand. His room was close to the stairs, only a couple of steps away.

Jiang Yumiao held up his key card and unlocked the door. Just as he was about to step inside, a hand suddenly reached past him from behind, caught the handle, and shut the door again.

Goosebumps rose all over Jiang Yumiao in fright, and he hurriedly turned around.

Fuck, he knew it was Ning Chunchi. Only the second male lead managed to be this silent every single time.

Ning Chunchi didn't release the door handle. Instead, he raised his other hand and pressed it against the door too.

Jiang Yumiao was completely trapped between the door and his body.

Why was the second male lead pinning him against the door?! More precisely, other people only needed one hand for this, but Ning Chunchi was using both!

His lashes trembling, Jiang Yumiao turned his face slightly to the side. They were so close that he could feel their breaths mingling.

He heard Ning Chunchi chuckle.

Having frightened his prey enough, the Alpha straightened up and even took two steps back, putting a "safe" distance between them and temporarily allowing his prey to escape his territory.

Jiang Yumiao let out a soft breath. He felt there had to be something wrong with him. Ning Chunchi had let him go, yet he actually felt a little reluctant to leave.

Ning Chunchi spoke, his voice cool and low. "Don't overthink it."

Jiang Yumiao looked at Ning Chunchi with moist eyes, a trace of confusion in them.

Ning Chunchi offered no further explanation. He merely gazed deeply at Jiang Yumiao for a moment before saying softly, "Get some rest."

With that, he headed in the same direction Qin Yuan had gone, returning to his own room.

His mind a tangle of thoughts, Jiang Yumiao turned and opened his door again.

As expected of a top-tier yacht, this room was twice the size of the luxurious king room he'd stayed in at Hot Spring City the previous night. It was a suite with a living room, a full set of custom-made furniture, and modern decor. Opening the balcony door brought him face-to-face with the sea, with an exceptional view.

This was the most luxurious room Jiang Yumiao had stayed in throughout his twenty-three years.

But he had no time to appreciate it now. He was still puzzling over Ning Chunchi's words.

Don't overthink... what?

Jiang Yumiao stepped onto the balcony, hoping the cool sea breeze would clear his head.

He picked up his phone to see what viewers thought of today's show. Opening the Fat Duck Video App, he found the livestream replay, quickly scrolled to his performance, and turned on the bullet comments. Just as he'd expected, most people were saying the song was a little melancholy.

Suddenly, two comments gave Jiang Yumiao a flash of insight.

[This song has such strong bad-ending vibes, like being unable to hold on to the person you love and only getting to see him in your dreams.]

[I keep feeling like Yumiao is using this song to express his own feelings.]

His original intention in singing this song had been to convey his unwavering determination to win over his future husband. But the reality of the enormous gap between their wealth and backgrounds had also tinged his singing with a little pessimism.

Since even the viewers had heard it, someone as perceptive as Ning Chunchi must have noticed too...

"So when Ning Chunchi said not to overthink it... did he mean I shouldn't be so pessimistic about our relationship?" Jiang Yumiao murmured.

The sound of "Golden Hour" playing on his phone interrupted Jiang Yumiao's tangled thoughts. Listening to the song again, he could still feel the tenderness and acceptance that belonged to Ning Chunchi alone.

Jiang Yumiao smiled in relief. There was still a long future ahead, and he believed that, just like in this song, he too would see the clouds part and the sun emerge.

Since he'd already opened the livestream replay, Jiang Yumiao decided to check on An Zhiwan. He hadn't watched the live broadcast of "Love Mailbox" yet and had no idea how it actually looked.

Jiang Yumiao opened the livestream and saw several camera feeds for viewers to choose from.

Judging from the wide shot, the enormous restaurant really did contain only the two of them, without even a camera operator. It seemed the crew had set up the cameras and cleared the room.

Mu Yunzhi's voice came through the screen, gentler than ever before. "Zhiwan, I know what happened tonight left you flustered. It's my fault."

An Zhiwan bit his lip and shook his head. "You didn't do anything wrong. I just thought it was too sudden, and I couldn't process it right away."

After a moment of silence, Mu Yunzhi spoke again. "We're on a dating show now. Just set our past aside and think of me as one of your suitors." A self-deprecating smile curved his lips. "As for your answer, the rules mean you can't tell me yet. Give me three weeks, at least..."

An Zhiwan lowered his lashes and gave an almost imperceptible nod.

Mu Yunzhi raised his glass of red wine, and the two quietly clinked glasses.

Oof, why didn't the atmosphere between this Alpha-Alpha couple feel as sweet as he'd imagined-

In the candlelit dinner Jiang Yumiao had pictured, even if they weren't being intimate enough to feed each other, Little An Puppy's presence should have made the atmosphere pleasant. He hadn't expected it to be this heavy.

He couldn't help seeing himself in Mu Yunzhi. They were both chasing after, yearning for, someone almost beyond their reach.

Aah, stop thinking about it! He'd finally stopped feeling gloomy, and thinking any more would only make him miserable again.

Once again, Jiang Yumiao blamed all his emotional turmoil on his heat. When the hell would this damn heat end?! Could it please give him back a cool, rational brain?!

The system suddenly spoke. "Did the host ever have that kind of brain?"

Jiang Yumiao: "..." Why did it feel like the system had just insulted him?

Jiang Yumiao pursed his lips and retorted, "I-I certainly did!"

The system said bluntly, "Oh, the system never noticed! Who knew the host had a hidden side? The system looks forward to the host showing it soon~"

Jiang Yumiao was nearly beside himself with irritation. The system always sounded sincere, which only made it seem even more sarcastic.

Still, thanks to the system's interruption, Jiang Yumiao stopped thinking about anything else and went back inside to take a shower.

A room deep down the corridor held the scent of Alpha pheromones, with notes of cedar and the ocean.

The lights were off, and the pristine white wall was serving as a screen.

Ning Chunchi had undone the top two buttons of his shirt and pulled the belt from his suit trousers, tossing it aside.

He, too, was watching the show's livestream replay.

But he watched only the long-haired Omega's scenes, leaving the bullet comments off and simply projecting the footage onto the wall.

He watched them over and over again.