26 Together?

No matter from which angle He Juan saw it, he felt like he had entered a trap.

The 'talk' Su Xieren was referring to turned out to be another check up in the hospital. As soon as he woke up, He Juan had received a good morning note from Su Xieren, saying that he had an early shift in the hospital and he had already booked a nine am appointment for He Juan, which meant that He Juan had to attend or else. No — there was no 'or else'. He had to drag his ass there even though the sky was raining flames, period.

He Juan did not know whether to laugh or cry. He could bet his entire fortune that this was a joint effort from Su Xieren and Jia Molei, despite how the two Betas would deny the claim later. Fortunately, he only had an afternoon class today and he already prepared the teaching material early on.

Wearing his favorite loose collared sweater and dark jeans, He Juan drove to Yuyang Hospital Center.

He was already too familiar with the hospital's layout as well as the doctors and nurses, after going through countless check-ups and blood tests in this place. Like always, he entered the café nearby and bought two cups of coffee for Jia Molei and Su Xieren, and a large box of donuts for the others, carrying them up to the fifth floor where he could get his regular check-up.

"He-xiansheng!" The nurses in the front station stood up as soon as they spotted him, bright-eyed and smiling brilliantly. "Doctor Jia has told us to expect your arrival. Are you unwell again?"

"Oh, I am not." He Juan laughed good-naturedly as he placed the donuts on the counter. "You know how much of a worrywart Doctor Jia is. Here is a little snack for you. Share it with everyone, okay?"

The nurses squealed in delight. "He-xiansheng, you're so generous! You're everyone's favorite, you know? On top of being an Alpha, you're also handsome, gentle and kind! If not for Doctor Jia, many nurses in the floor would have jumped on you!"

"Please don't flatter me, ladies." He Juan merely dismissed them by a wave of hand, amused. "If it's not enough then I will bring more next time. You only need to say the words."

After a few nice pleasantries, He Juan spotted Er Meilin — Jia Molei's secretary — and had to spend another fifteen minutes to assure her that no, nothing was wrong with him and yes, Jia Molei was definitely exaggerating. He passed the coffees to her, assured that she would definitely leave them in Jia Molei and Su Xieren's offices.

It did not take long for him to be invited into the examination room. After that, it was a series of questions, blood drawing, probing and poking, then laying down while the machine scanned his whole body, focusing especially on his head.

The very first few years, He Juan still felt mildly uncomfortable from how exposed he was to these machines. It was all instinct, Jia Molei explained one time. It was the uneasiness of handing his life over to machines that went against He Juan's controlling Alpha nature. After knowing that, he learned to take everything in stride and let himself relax. Nothing was going to happen, he told himself again and again.

Without him realizing, two hours passed by in a blur.

The check-up result would only come out tomorrow at the latest. He Juan was ready to leave when the nurse that was in charge of his last examination suddenly exclaimed, "Mr. He, Doctor Su is expecting you in his office. He said that he has something to tell you."

He Juan raised a brow. How unusual. For a second, he thought that it was Jia Molei because usually he was the one who would take every chance to nag He Juan like an anxious mother hen. What did Su Xieren want to talk to him about?

Curious, He Juan offered his thanks to the nurse before he made his way through the familiar hospital. Su Xieren's office was on a different floor so He Juan had to ride the elevator up to reach it. As soon as the metal door opened, He Juan's eyes widened as a familiar scent wafted to his nose.

Almost immediately, he whipped his head toward the source of the scent, his heart thumping irregularly in his chest. The name slipped off his mouth with too much zeal and enthusiasm. "Xiao Ze!"

All of the mild discomfort, stress and practically every single thought in his mind bounced away like darkness that was repelled by the glaring beam of light at the sight of the slender omega walking down the hallway.

Upon hearing his name, Mu Yuze halted in his tracks but he did not turn around.

He Juan caught up with him in a few large strides, slightly breathless for some reason. "Xiao Ze…" He called out once again, softer this time. He was smiling so wide that his cheeks started to hurt. When did he start to smile?

He Juan instinctively drank in the air around Mu Yuze, chasing after the traces of his pheromones that lingered in the air. He had no idea how much he missed Mu Yuze until he saw him. Goodness… what could have made him think that he would be able to go on with his life like usual? He was so foolish to even entertain that thought. Just by having Mu Yuze in front of him already dissolved his resolution into bits, He Juan could not even scoop them up even if he wanted to.

Every cell in his body ached in yearning for the omega in front of him.

It was not like He Juan doubted his own feelings, but he had surmised that he would be able to regain his senses better after a good night's sleep, that the intense emotions he felt for this omega must be the result of yesterday's rut, making him long for a stable anchor. And coincidentally, Mu Yuze was there. Mu Yuze, who smelled so good, sweet and alluring. Mu Yuze, who was adorable, gutsy and so, so naïve that it made He Juan want to bite him on the cheek.

Oh, how wrong he was. Instead of calming down, everything he had been trying to suppress burst out like a volcano that had long been dormant in lieu of storing the magma deep beneath its belly, leaving nothing but destruction in its wake. His chest was practically vibrating with the might of his emotions. He felt unhinged, unfettered, like his feelings were going to burst out of his pores toward Mu Yuze, to caress him, to mark him.

He raked his gaze across Mu Yuze's body, marvelling in how the jeans had hugged his legs snugly and also, the shirt that would definitely feel so soft if He Juan were to run his hands across it. He trailed his eyes up and up and when he saw the obvious dark shadows beneath Mu Yuze's eyes, he recalled with a jerk what this place was supposed to be for.

His gaze turned worried, so did his voice. "What are you doing here, Xiao Ze? Are you hurt somewhere? Do you feel sick? Did you get home okay yesterday?"

Subconsciously, he reached out toward Mu Yuze's arm only for the omega to avoid him like a plague. "It's Officer Mu for you, Mr. He," he said coldly.

He Juan froze with his hand still in midair and his heart, which was floating in bliss due to Mu Yuze's presence, suddenly crashed to the pit of his stomach.

…Of course, what did he expect?

After the stunt he had pulled yesterday, he was lucky that Mu Yuze did not report him for sexual assault. It was already generous of him to speak to He Juan again, even if it was only to dismiss him.

Ignoring the fresh wave of pain surging up his throat, he slowly lowered his hand and let it fall limply to his side, cold and bereft. He deserved this, he told himself. Steeling himself one last time, He Juan pulled his lips into an apologetic smile and lifted his head — the epitome of impeccable composure. "I'm sorry, Officer Mu—"

"Da-ge!"

He Juan screwed his eyes shut and groaned inwardly. Talk about timing.

He held Mu Yuze's gaze, almost pleading. "Can you give me a little bit of your time after… after you have finished your business here? Please…" No matter what, He Juan could not let Mu Yuze walk away. Not like this. Even if he had to be cursed, punched and hated within an inch of his life, he had to finish what he was going to say. Relief flooded him when Mu Yuze gave him a nod. But then He Juan recalled that Mu Yuze had not answered his previous question so he asked again. "What are you doing here, Xiao – I mean, Officer Mu? You are not sick, aren't you?"

"Da-ge!" Su Xieren finally made it to his side. "I was worried when you didn't arrive. What are you— oh." His gaze on Mu Yuze was filled with recognition. He nodded politely and then when he spoke again, his eyes were fixed on He Juan, even though his sentence was clearly not directed toward him. He raised one meaningful brow. "Aren't you the one who was waiting outside Da-ge's door yesterday? Are you two here together?"

He Juan hastily waved to deny the claim in case Su Xieren's words had offended the omega. "No, we are not—"

"Mr. Su Xieren?" Mu Yuze flashed his police badge and assumed a professional air. He Juan just had a second to admire how badass Mu Yuze's move was when the omega's next sentence caused his blood to run cold.

"I am Mu Yuze, from the Violent Crime Investigation Unit. May I ask if your girlfriend is named Zhao Xinya?"

The air seemed to freeze around them for a split second. He Juan's heart lurched in his chest. What… did Mu Yuze just say? Miss Zhao and Su Xieren—?!

Slowly, He Juan turned his head to Su Xieren, aghast.

Su Xieren's shy girlfriend was… Miss Zhao Xinya, his neighbor who was currently missing and most likely dead?!