SDT 54

When Yu Xiaowen woke in the morning, he saw Lu Kongyun sitting on a chair not far from the bed, facing him.

The curtains were drawn, and the light in the room was dim. It took Yu Xiaowen a few seconds to realize that the pair of eyes in the shadows had been fixed on him the entire time.

…How long had Lu Kongyun been sitting there?

That stare made the air feel cold. Yu Xiaowen shivered, sat up, and checked his clothes, he was fully dressed. He stood, lifted the blanket, and spoke carefully, “What are you looking at? Why are you up so early? You don’t even have work today.”

Lu Kongyun didn’t answer or move. Only his gaze followed as Yu Xiaowen got up.

“…Did I take your bed?” Yu Xiaowen asked with forced casualness. “Sorry about that, Mr. Lu. You didn’t look well last night, so I stayed to keep an eye on you. Hope I didn’t disturb you. How are you feeling?”

There was still no response.

He glanced at the time on his phone. “If you’re fine, get some more sleep. I need to go to work. If anything happens, just call me.”

As he bent down to put on his shoes, he noticed that the two swans and the three small eggs on the desk were gone. Only a pile of twisted, uncoiled metal wire remained.

Recycling the wire? The craftsman was surprisingly thrifty.

He smiled faintly, finished putting on his shoes, went to the bathroom to wash briefly, then turned at the door and gave a little salute. “Goodbye, Mr. Lu.”

The door opened and closed.

He left without hesitation.

The room grew silent again. After a long while, Lu Kongyun’s fingers twitched. Then his expression began to change. His breathing grew heavy. He stood abruptly, went to his suitcase, and retrieved a syringe. Clenching his jaw, he injected himself quickly.

His knuckles turned white around his fist before he slowly began to calm down.

Still, before his eyes, that figure in a guard’s uniform remained, relaxed, indifferent, untroubled.

“Yu Xiaowen,” he said under his breath.

“How could you?”

….

The next morning, the cruise ship would dock. That evening, after his shift, Yu Xiaowen was caught by the manager along with a few other guards who could handle liquor and told to accompany several guests for a farewell dinner.

The toasts came and went. After a few rounds, someone suddenly grabbed him by the arm and pulled him up from his seat.

He turned around in surprise, Lu Kongyun.

“…You came to dinner? We’re almost done already…” he mumbled, eyes unfocused from the alcohol.

Under the watchful eyes of the crowd, Lu Kongyun took him away without a word.

“Hey, wait, I haven’t even said goodbye to the manager or the guests—” Yu Xiaowen reached out weakly.

Lu Kongyun said, “You’re off duty.”

No one at the table said a word. The manager and the guests only watched in silence as the two disappeared beyond the doors.

He was not as drunk as the first time he had toasted with Lu Kongyun, yet the man didn’t push him away. Instead, he held him tightly, as if supporting someone completely incapable of walking. Yu Xiaowen didn’t resist.

As they crossed the deck, he saw a small child chasing a marble that had rolled toward the edge. He straightened, went over to pick it up, and gently scolded the child, reminding him not to play there, it was dangerous for everyone.

Then he returned, allowing Lu Kongyun to guide him again.

Lu Kongyun said nothing about the interruption, only tightened his hold and continued toward his room.

“My room’s downstairs…” Yu Xiaowen murmured.

The other man acted as if he hadn’t heard.

Once inside, Yu Xiaowen immediately went into the bathroom. He rinsed his mouth and washed his face, knowing that an Alpha like Lu Kongyun would be sensitive to scents. He imagined that even escorting him here must have been difficult for him.

He dampened his collar in the process. When he turned, Lu Kongyun was standing at the doorway, his gaze unreadable.

Yu Xiaowen dried his hands with a paper towel, sat down, rubbed his face, and tried to clear his head. He unbuttoned the collar slightly and pulled at it to breathe.

Lu Kongyun’s eyes dropped briefly to his collarbone.

Time stretched in silence before Yu Xiaowen finally tilted his head, voice slurred but still polite. “Mr. Lu, you said yesterday you had something to tell me. Is now the time?”

Lu Kongyun looked toward the sofa but didn’t take it. Instead, he dragged over a chair, set it down in front of Yu Xiaowen, and sat directly opposite him.

Yu Xiaowen blinked.

Lu Kongyun crossed his arms, his eyes sharp. “You’ve been drinking for three days straight since you boarded this ship. Is this how you usually behave at work?”

Yu Xiaowen shook his head quickly. “…Of course not.”

He let out a small laugh. “We never get drinks on the job. Usually it’s the guests who get drunk and cause trouble. Sometimes they even hit people. Compared to that, this is practically a holiday. When you got drunk, you even dried my hair for me.”

Lu Kongyun’s expression darkened. “Guests at the estate hit the staff?”

Yu Xiaowen nodded. “Ah, yes. When that happens, the other security guards, those cowardly Alphas, hide behind me. Including my roommate.”

Lu Kongyun’s jaw tightened. “You mean you still share a room with that Alpha?”

Yu Xiaowen nodded again. “Yes. A few others asked to switch, but Da Guang’s fine. I didn’t change.”

Silence.

Lu Kongyun exhaled, his lashes trembling, then let out a short, bitter laugh.

Yu Xiaowen noticed the two wristbands around his wrists and thought, At least my health’s fine now. Didn’t expect the one who’s unwell to be Young Master Lu Kongyun instead.

He felt no schadenfreude, only concern. He wanted to ask about the illness, but Lu Kongyun spoke first. “The gunshot wound on your chest. What is it from?”

“Wha—”

Yu Xiaowen looked down at his collar.

That old injury, left from the armed encounter years ago, wasn’t something a mere bodyguard should have.

He couldn’t find words.

Lu Kongyun leaned forward until their knees nearly touched, his eyes fixed on Yu Xiaowen’s face. His voice dropped low. “Can you stop lying to me?”

Yu Xiaowen said nothing.

Even though Lu Kongyun’s brows were furrowed in anger, there was something fragile in the tone, it almost sounded like a plea.

Something inside Yu Xiaowen snapped. His heart trembled. The memories he had forced down came flooding back.

He had blackmailed Lu Kongyun once, and yet the man still believed he was a good person.

Now he was deceiving him again under another name.

He covered his face with his hand. Yu Xiaowen, you’re despicable.

He forced a laugh through a tight throat. “Ha… it’s a long story, really. I’d rather… not say, if that’s alright?”

He tried to sound calm, but his voice was uneven.

Because I was a detective. Because I took a bullet protecting civilians. Because that’s why the burn pattern looks like that.

Because I was a good police officer.

Because I am Yu Xiaowen. Hao Dali is Yu Xiaowen. I was never anyone’s twin.

His chest heaved visibly. He couldn’t control it.

Damn it. It’s over. He’ll see through me. So much for my so-called self-control.

But Lu Kongyun stayed silent for a long time. When Yu Xiaowen finally lowered his hand, their eyes met, clear, close, and disturbingly gentle.

Was that pain? Or understanding? Or simply a trick of light and exhaustion, softening Lu Kongyun’s cold face into something almost tender?

Yu Xiaowen rubbed his eyes, trying to focus, but Lu Kongyun’s gaze drifted away.

“…Enough,” Lu Kongyun said at last. He leaned back, still frowning. His breathing deepened, and his jaw tightened before he spoke again. “You—”

The word broke off.

He held the breath for a few seconds, then released it. Whatever he had been about to say, he swallowed it whole.

Lu Kongyun said, “Forget it. If you don’t want to say it now, then don’t.”

He adjusted his wristband, took out his phone, and lowered his gaze to check the monitoring data.

Yu Xiaowen felt slightly embarrassed. After all, he had once been the blackmailer who ordered Lu Kongyun around, and now under a new identity, he had somehow left the impression of being unreliable and childish. He straightened his expression, glanced at Lu Kongyun’s screen from afar, and asked with concern, “Are you alright?”

Lu Kongyun replied without looking up, “It’s nothing. Routine monitoring.”

Yu Xiaowen said, “Are you sure? You had a nosebleed the other day.”

After another moment of looking at the data, Lu Kongyun set the phone down and turned off the screen.

Then he said, “You cared, yet you left.”

“…,” Yu Xiaowen was caught off guard. He pointed at the spot where his earpiece should have been and said, “Because there was a work call at the time.”

They looked at each other.

The air turned heavy.

Yu Xiaowen stood. “It’s getting late. I should head back. You should rest early, Mr. Lu.”

“Wait.” Lu Kongyun also stood. “You’re going back to that dormitory of yours?”

“Yeah.” Yu Xiaowen answered as he slowly walked toward the door. His pace was unhurried, yet the distance between them widened with every step.

Behind him, Lu Kongyun exhaled.

“Wait,” Lu Kongyun called out again. “There’s still an Alpha living in your dormitory.”

“Yes,” Yu Xiaowen turned and explained, “that’s how we all live. My roommate’s a good kid, very innocent.”

“Innocent.” Lu Kongyun gave a derisive laugh.

“You really have no understanding of Alphas.”

“…,” Yu Xiaowen almost said something teasing, but stopped himself. This was not the time. He was no longer the dying blackmailer who could afford to speak recklessly.

Yet Lu Kongyun seemed to read the unspoken thought. He stepped closer, removed his jacket and tossed it aside, loosened his tie, and looked down at him. “You know about Alpha nesting behavior, don’t you?”

“Of course,” Yu Xiaowen replied quickly. The closeness made his ears heat up. He rubbed the back of his neck unconsciously before dropping his hand again.

Lu Kongyun’s gaze followed the motion.

Then he asked, “Have you ever seen that Alpha roommate of yours build a nest in front of you?”

Yu Xiaowen froze, scratching his cheek. “How could that happen? He wouldn’t… do that where I could see… right?”

Lu Kongyun said evenly, “During their susceptibility period, Alphas surround themselves with clothes or belongings carrying an Omega’s scent to simulate being noticed and desired. It fulfills their need for attention. In that dormitory, there’s only the two of you. When he needed something like that, whose things do you think he used?”

Yu Xiaowen went silent. His expression shifted slightly. “…That can’t be.”

Lu Kongyun continued, “Perhaps the clothes you carelessly left lying around, or anything you’ve touched, have already been used for every possible purpose. And you return each night unaware.”

Yu Xiaowen blinked rapidly, his mind reeling. He had lost his parents early, and most of what he knew about AO matters came from coworkers later in life.

“…Do all Alphas do this?” he asked, incredulous.

Lu Kongyun paused and didn’t answer.

After a moment of thought, Yu Xiaowen said, “That’s just speculation. I’ll check for evidence when I go back. If it’s true, I’ll tell him to stop using my clothes.”

He wrinkled his nose slightly. “Thanks for the biology lesson. Honestly, I’d never imagined something like that.”

He turned too quickly and stumbled. Lu Kongyun reached out and caught him. “Now you understand Alphas a little better,” Lu Kongyun said. “They’re far more animalistic than you think.”

“Fine, I get it.”

Yu Xiaowen thought to himself that perhaps it was time to move out and rent his own place.

Lu Kongyun said quietly, “Take me, for example. I have a severe pheromone imbalance disorder. You’ve seen it. In S Country I use simulated pheromones prescribed by my doctor to maintain control, but I didn’t bring them this time.”

Yu Xiaowen stayed silent. He remembered. Back in the Orange Garden, he had witnessed firsthand the overwhelming force of a S-class Alpha’s rut. He had even helped stabilize it.

After speaking, Lu Kongyun released him.

Yu Xiaowen walked slowly toward the door again. There was no further sound from behind him.

He hesitated. He knew Lu Kongyun disliked his scent, yet back in the Orange Garden it had worked. And knowing Lu Kongyun’s character, he wouldn’t ask another Omega for help. The trip wasn’t over yet. Without assistance, his condition might worsen.

Pheromones weren’t perfume, but better they be unpleasant than have him collapse again.

After thinking it over, Yu Xiaowen turned back. “If you really need it,” he said, “I can help. I can give you some pheromones. Do you want that?”

Lu Kongyun looked at him for a moment, then silently handed him a bathrobe.

“…A bathrobe?”

“Your pheromone level affects how long the scent lasts. Stay here tonight. It’ll linger longer.” Lu Kongyun removed his tie, changed into his sleepwear, and went to wash up.

Yu Xiaowen, stunned, followed through the motions and climbed onto the sofa.

Lu Kongyun pulled him up, placed him on the bed, covered him with the blanket, and lay down on the other side.

They lay side by side.

Lu Kongyun stared at the ceiling. Yu Xiaowen turned his head to look at Lu Kongyun.

Two consecutive nights sharing a bed, it felt unreal.

It was an undeserved gift, a happiness he knew he shouldn’t have, yet one he would remember. A memory to sustain him through loneliness for the rest of his life.

But for some reason, Lu Kongyun’s face looked conflicted, as though he were wrestling the ceiling itself.

“What are you thinking about?” Yu Xiaowen asked softly.

After a long silence, Lu Kongyun answered calmly, “I think I’ve gone insane.”

Yu Xiaowen assumed he was referring to his pheromone disorder. Seeing the double restraint on his wrists, he felt pity. “If you need,” he said, “I…I can come every day to help.”

Yu Xiaowen knew Lu Kongyun would soon attend the M Country expo. Including the days on the ship, he would be there only three or four days before returning. During that time, proper treatment would be difficult. Helping nightly could serve as a temporary substitute, a living dose of Omega scent therapy.

Lu Kongyun turned his head, disbelief in his eyes.

“Every day?”

“Yes.”

“You’re lying.”

Yu Xiaowen raised his hand toward the strands of hair near Lu Kongyun’s eyes, then hesitated and lowered it. “I’m not lying.”

Lu Kongyun’s gaze followed his movement, then returned to Yu Xiaowen’s face. His gaze was unreadable.

His lips parted slightly, his tongue moving against his sharp Alpha teeth.

The look made Yu Xiaowen’s pulse quiver. But before anything more could be said, Lu Kongyun turned away, closed his eyes with a faint tremor, and murmured hoarsely, “I’ve gone insane.”