Chapter 24

Ji Chi's breathing took a long time to settle. His lips felt numb, as though weighted with lead. They had been split by the kiss, and the wind stung them relentlessly.

Somehow, now that Huo Jin had left, he did not feel nearly as relieved as he had imagined.

Ji Chi slowly slid down, eventually sitting beneath a roadside tree for a long time. He did not know what he was thinking, only stared blankly at the amber streetlight before him.

Only when the streetlights went out did he get up and go home.

Ding-dong-

Suddenly, his phone buzzed.

He had received several messages from the hospital.

After going to the hospital with Song Lin last time, he had added the young attending physician on WeChat.

The doctor had said he would follow up on Ji Chi's condition. Ji Chi could sense his goodwill, though it came from a place of self-interest.

Come to think of it, this was the first time Gu Baizhou had contacted him.

Ji Chi was in no mood to read the messages. Once home, he switched off his phone and went straight to bed.

He did not hold the rabbit as he fell asleep again.

Instead, he took two sleeping pills.

Only deep, steady breathing could be heard in the spacious room. Its occupant slept heavily, as though under anesthesia. The rabbit lay on its back in the farthest corner of the windowsill, its soft fur gleaming in the moonlight. The curtain stirred in the breeze, obscuring that patch of moonlight, and the room sank into deathly darkness.

It was not until two the next afternoon, when the sleeping pills wore off, that Ji Chi slowly opened his eyes.

Despite sleeping for so long, he felt utterly weak and listless.

It took him half an hour to drag himself through washing up.

After finding some clothes and putting them on, he rummaged around his room until he found half a pack of cigarettes.

Then he smoked them all on the balcony in one go.

Ash scattered across the floor. The swirling haze stung his eyes and nose.

The bedroom door was open. Catching the smell of smoke, Lin Jun looked over just as Ji Chi irritably kicked a balcony pillar. He walked toward Ji Chi, and the moment he reached the balcony, he saw the pile of cigarette butts in the ashtray on the tea table.

There was also a half-finished glass of hard liquor.

Lin Jun snatched the last cigarette from Ji Chi's hand.

"What are you doing, trying to kill yourself?" He glared at Ji Chi.

If Lin Jun had not spoken, Ji Chi would not even have noticed he was there.

Ji Chi watched Lin Jun stub out the cigarette he had taken from him.

For some reason, Huo Jin's cold expression came crashing into his mind.

Without the slightest warning.

Inexplicably, he seemed to hear Huo Jin questioning him again, asking why.

Fuck.

Ji Chi did not answer Lin Jun. He did not want to say anything right now.

Nor could he understand where this inexplicable irritation had come from.

He just felt miserable.

He kissed me, and I slapped him back. Wasn't that satisfying enough?

Was it because the deal with Boshen might fall through?

Ji Chi could not say. Perhaps he should have beaten Huo Jin senseless yesterday.

"Got your heart broken?" Lin Jun continued.

Ji Chi's brows knitted. That was both outrageous and absurd.

"Dad..." Ji Chi suddenly called to Lin Jun, his voice flat and dejected.

He let out a long breath, trailing lingering smoke.

"Tell me... if an alpha likes you but never releases pheromones to suppress you, what does that mean?"

Lin Jun gave a teasing laugh. "What does it mean? It means there's something wrong with him."

In the corner of Ji Chi's vision was the gloomy sky outside the window.

Something wrong with him...

He saw Lin Jun take a step closer. This time, his tone was more serious.

"If an alpha likes an omega but doesn't release pheromones to suppress him."

"Either he doesn't like him that much and simply doesn't care."

"Or he likes him too much to bear doing it."

Ji Chi frowned slightly. Doesn't like him that much...

That might make sense.

"What about someone who takes a slap without suppressing the other person? Does that count as not liking them that much?"

Lin Jun paused and studied Ji Chi's face. There was no handprint. "Would you be angry if an omega slapped you?"

"Of course I would." A slap was the worst affront to someone's dignity. What alpha could stand it?

"Then would you hit him? Or use your pheromones to make the omega's legs go weak?" Lin Jun asked.

Ji Chi pressed his lips together. "No." He did not hit omegas.

"That's because your upbringing taught you restraint and consideration. Because you respect omegas."

Respect.

Ji Chi had hardly ever seen an alpha who did not use pheromones to suppress his omega. He had almost forgotten such a principle existed.

Respect.

Huo Jin?

Perhaps.

Ji Chi parted his lips, about to say something, when his phone began to vibrate.

It was the attending physician from last time.

Ji Chi tapped the answer button.

"Dr. Gu," Ji Chi said in a low voice.

Gu Baizhou was Ji Chi's attending physician. Perhaps because Ji Chi's condition was unusual, he had taken the initiative to ask for his contact information.

After all, a case of an alpha marked by an enigma was enough to make someone pore over every piece of data again and again.

"Ji Chi, did you read the messages I sent you?" Gu Baizhou asked without preamble.

Ji Chi's brows drew together. "I haven't checked my phone."

The voice on the other end grew grave. "I recommend coming to the hospital to have your sex pheromone levels checked again."

Ji Chi drew a heavy breath, deeply irritated. "I understand."

"This afternoon?" Gu Baizhou asked tentatively.

"Sometime in the next few days." Ji Chi impatiently wanted to hang up.

The voice on the other end became noticeably more serious. "I recommend coming to see me as soon as possible."

"Your heat is approaching."

Ji Chi lost his grip, and his phone fell to the floor. His Adam's apple bobbed as he glanced at Lin Jun. Once he was sure Lin Jun had heard nothing, he bent down to pick up his phone and gripped it tightly again, his heart pounding.

Gu Baizhou said a few more things before hanging up, but Ji Chi was already in a daze.

Holding his phone, he unlocked it, swiped aimlessly a couple of times, then locked it again. A second later, he unlocked it and mechanically fiddled with it, only to inexplicably lock it once more. He had no idea what he was looking at, what he was swiping through, or what he was avoiding.

Lin Jun rested a hand on the balcony railing and watched Ji Chi from the side without asking him anything.

He had not listened closely, only catching a few indistinct words from Ji Chi.

Something about needing to go to the hospital.

Lin Jun always gave Ji Chi complete freedom in his life. He believed no one should be constrained.

Unless Ji Chi brought something up himself, Lin Jun never asked another question.

Ji Chi's gaze flickered. He looked at Lin Jun before him, his mother.

His expression was filled with bitter sorrow, and suddenly he desperately wanted to cry. "Dad, you know... about enigmas, right?"