GBROTAH CH4

Chapter 4: Pheromone Disorder

In the last row of a large, spacious lecture hall, Xie Yuanxing was secretly looking at his phone. Not to play games, but because the part-time job he’d applied for had replied to his friend request yesterday. Having only recently graduated from high school, he wasn’t used to openly taking out his phone in class, and he couldn’t help but look up at the lecturer on the stage whenever he replied to a message.

A: “Come for an interview this afternoon, six o’clock, do you have time?”

Xie Yuanxing thought about the time for the class meeting that afternoon. Time wasn’t exactly abundant, but… he lowered his eyes, his fingertips tapping the keyboard, sending a few words: “Okay, I have time.”

He had originally wanted to ask his counselor today if his dormitory change application could be approved.

Their counselor liked to arrive exactly on time for class meetings and start talking immediately. Waiting beforehand was useless, and messages sent via VX usually got no reply, so he could only go to the office or ask directly after the class meeting.

But now, it seemed he wouldn’t have time to see the counselor for a while. He’d even have to sneak out halfway through the class meeting.

The wound on the back of his neck still throbbed faintly. After what happened last night, Xie Yuanxing didn’t want to see Shen Bianye at all, but compared to eating a full meal, an unbearable roommate was something he could only temporarily endure.

This was the last class of the morning.

The piercing sound of the dismissal bell rang, scattering the tangled thoughts in his mind. Xie Yuanxing slowly packed his things, planning to wait for the crowd to disperse before leaving.

His old phone, a grey, old-fashioned pencil case, white notebooks—people passing by occasionally looked at him with surprised, astonished eyes. Most were harmless, but occasionally, glances mixed with disdain and contempt were cast his way.

Anyone could see his embarrassment. Xie Yuanxing seemed oblivious to these gazes, his dark bangs falling slightly to obscure his view. His packing speed was unhurried and slow, as if he cherished these items. Xie Yuanxing owned very few things, and he treasured every single one.

When he arrived at the cafeteria, there weren’t many people queuing at the various counters.

Xie Yuanxing didn’t consider other places and walked straight to the “Love Window” to queue. The types of dishes here were almost fixed, with little variety, but they were very cheap.

For five yuan, he could get a nutritionally balanced meal with two meat dishes and one vegetable.

He got his food, found an empty seat, and sat down. The surrounding environment was noisy and lively, with conversations everywhere. People next to him were laughing, talking about the interesting things that happened in the morning, and discussing gossip.

Xie Yuanxing held his chopsticks, sitting quietly amidst the bustle.

His phone buzzed twice. Xie Yuanxing paused, took out his phone from his pocket, and opened the message.

Xie Zhuowu: “Playing dead? You bought me a game console for over two thousand, and you’re reluctant to buy a game cartridge for two hundred?”

Xie Zhuowu: “Get this straight, whose family is raising you? How can you be such an ingrate?”

“Even dogs know to wag their tails at their owners after eating. What about you?”

“How about this, you shake your bare ass at me twice, and I won’t ask you for this money. How’s that?”

He quietly watched the increasingly disgusting messages, screenshotting each one and saving them in an album named “Evidence.” As for the money for the game cartridge, he currently had less than two hundred yuan on him. Xie Yuanxing didn’t want to reply, and wouldn’t.

Xie Zhuowu: “You started playing dead after going to college?”

Xie Zhuowu: “Do you think you’ve broken free? Gotten too big for your britches?”

Xie Yuanxing watched coldly and reached out to mute the messages. For the person he detested most, he didn’t want to say a single word. But he still needed to keep Xie Zhuowu’s contact information, to use it at the right time for revenge. He had endured living under someone else’s roof for many years; a little more time wouldn’t make a difference.

His food was a bit cold and dry to the taste. Xie Yuanxing unseasonably thought of the cream puffs in the glass display cabinet again. Perhaps he could buy one to celebrate if the interview this afternoon went well. A moment later, he placed his empty tray in the collection area. As he turned to leave the cafeteria, he changed his mind. Never mind, it was too expensive.

Xie Yuanxing didn’t like crowded places and usually returned to his dorm at noon, but now… He wondered if Shen Bianye would be in the dorm. Although the other person usually didn’t go back at noon, there were occasional times he did. To avoid that “occasional,” he hesitated at the crossroads and chose to go to the library instead.

He buried himself in the library, doing dizzying linear algebra, then routinely went to class in the afternoon and sat in a corner acting as background during the class meeting. Halfway through the class meeting, Xie Yuanxing secretly slipped out. Following the address provided by the part-time job, he walked towards the school gate. The location was very close to the school, which was why Xie Yuanxing felt he could stick with it for a while. One hundred and fifty yuan per day. Excluding travel time, he could get four hours of sleep daily. As for the job being in a bar, that was no longer within Xie Yuanxing’s consideration. He hoped this interview would pass.

Walking into the bar, Xie Yuanxing felt a little awkward. He had never been to such a place, and walking in inevitably made him feel a bit out of place. It was still early, far from the bar’s opening hours. There weren’t many people inside, only one person who looked like a staff member wiping the bar counter. Xie Yuanxing clasped his fingers and spoke to the person, “Hello, may I ask who I should look for regarding the part-time job interview?”

The person looked up and sized up Xie Yuanxing. “Your appearance…”

Xie Yuanxing became even more embarrassed. Under the other person’s scrutinizing gaze, he felt exposed and instinctively bowed his head slightly to avoid eye contact. His forehead suddenly felt cool, and as his hair was pushed up, Xie Yuanxing also looked up, a little bewildered.

“Your hair looks quite delicate when it’s brushed up, and your face is clean. Why hide it? Your height is also decent.” The person paused. “Are you a beta?”

Xie Yuanxing nodded, not knowing what to say, only giving a brief “Mm.”

The person then said, “Right, Omegas are prettier. Betas are fine too, but you’ll have to do more dirty and hard work. If you’re willing to do it, you can start working tonight.”

“The job is simple: cleaning, serving drinks. When there are fewer people, you can take off your uniform and join the atmosphere team, but you don’t need to do that now, we’re short-staffed.”

“Follow me, and I’ll tell you the procedures and where everything is. Oh, you can call me Brother A. What’s your name? I’ll make a note.”

At nine in the evening, guests gradually started to enter the bar. The other servers were already in place. Although it was Xie Yuanxing’s first time doing this, he had served plates in many restaurants before, and in his opinion, the two jobs were similar, so he adapted quickly. Once busy, time passed very quickly.

But time in another place seemed to stretch exceptionally long. The phone screen on the table lit up, 21:59 flashing before turning to 22:00. Just then, a call came in, the phone’s cheerful ringtone becoming an inspiring soundtrack to the passage of time.

Shen Bianye answered the phone with a dark face. Before the other person could speak, he coldly said, “Spit it out.”

“Damn, why is the young master so angry today? Who pissed you off?” Zhou Chao, who had been playing with him since childhood, wasn’t afraid of Shen Bianye. “A new bar just opened near your school. How about it, want to come out and have some fun?” He gave a short laugh. “Though the quality is just so-so, and you can only play it ‘clean,’ sometimes you need to taste some vegetables after eating too much meat, right?”

Shen Bianye sneered, “Get lost. You can have your fun; don’t drag me into it.”

Zhou Chao: “I know, I know. Young master keeps himself pure. Just tell me if you’re coming. It’s right near your school. Haven’t seen you in a while, let’s catch up.”

Shen Bianye turned his head to look at the empty dorm room, his face as dark as ink. He turned back to the phone and said, “I’ll come. Don’t bring your group of boyfriends and girlfriends.”

Zhou Chao chuckled. “Alright, hurry up.”

He hung up the phone and gestured to a server not far away. “Let me see the drink menu.” New bars always liked to come up with fancy new names. He was too lazy to study them. He didn’t care for any of the drinks here. If it weren’t close to Shen Bianye’s school, he wouldn’t have chosen this place. He randomly ordered a few things, then said, “Start with your special cocktail. My friend will be here later, then you can bring the rest.”

Xie Yuanxing nodded, taking notes one by one, then turned and walked towards the bar. He was already slender, and the vest uniform cinched his narrow waist, his buttocks filling out the fitted trousers into a curve, like an invisible rabbit tail was attached in the middle, drawing attention. Zhou Chao watched with interest. His face was delicate, and his figure was good. In the clubs he usually frequented, it would be unacceptable not to add a rabbit tail behind that butt.

When Shen Bianye arrived at the address, Zhou Chao had one foot propped on a chair, waving high-handedly at him. The music in the bar made his ears ache, but this method was faster than searching for people booth by booth. But Shen Bianye was in a bad mood right now, everything seemed a bit more annoying. He walked over and saw the empty table, speaking with a sarcastic tone, “Did your family go bankrupt? Can’t even afford one drink?”

Zhou Chao retorted impatiently, “Go away, go away, don’t curse me. I was just thinking of waiting for you to come before serving, so the ice wouldn’t melt.” He waved, about to call a server over. In fact, Xie Yuanxing had already noticed that table when Shen Bianye sat down. That table’s order was Xie Yuanxing’s responsibility, and it was his first day, so it was hard to ask others for help. He could only suppress his annoyance and walk over. “Hello, would you like the drinks now?”

Shen Bianye instinctively looked up when he heard the familiar voice and saw the person he had been waiting for all day in the dorm appearing in this place he never would have imagined. He was startled, surprised, and a little annoyed: “Why are you here?”

Xie Yuanxing lowered his head and glanced at himself, confirming that the uniform was still on him. “I’m working as a server here. Isn’t it obvious?” He turned to get the drinks, but his hand was grabbed. This scene had repeated several times yesterday, and the consequences of not breaking free immediately were still evident on his neck through the pain.

Xie Yuanxing’s body instinctively trembled. He took a dramatically large step backward, giving Shen Bianye a cold look. “Please don’t disturb my work.”

“Work?” Shen Bianye laughed in exasperation. “Do you know how late you’ll be working at a bar? First year courses are packed, aren’t they? Are you skipping classes or throwing your life away?”

“How much money can you earn here?”

“Go resign right now.”

Xie Yuanxing was silent for a moment, then genuinely asked, “Did you still not go see a doctor?” Shen Bianye was no one to him; he had no obligation to obey the other person’s commands. Who gave Shen Bianye the idea that he would obediently resign?

Shen Bianye’s face visibly darkened, his tone cold and hard: “If you resign, with what happened yesterday, I won’t ignore you.” He paused. “If you don’t have money, I can give it to you.” He paused again. “But don’t think you can cling to me just because of yesterday’s incident. My patience has limits.”

Xie Yuanxing: “You’re overthinking it. I’m not trying to cling to you. If you want to give me money, go ahead. I won’t resign.” He was inexplicably bitten, and if Shen Bianye wanted to give him money, he wasn’t so nobly principled as to refuse, but he also didn’t intend to cling to anyone because of it.

Shen Bianye frowned at him, his sharp, defined brows showing unconcealable anger. A moment later, his expression changed, and he sneered repeatedly, “Xie Yuanxing, don’t bite the hand that feeds you.”

Idiot.

Xie Yuanxing silently cursed, then turned and walked away. He had a lot of work to do and no time to waste on an idiot here. People were everywhere around the bar. The recent argument had already drawn some attention. This wasn’t a good place or an opportune time to talk. Shen Bianye didn’t stop him, but his face was particularly grim as he sat down. He picked up a drink and chugged it. As if remembering something, he pulled out his phone, flipped through a few apps, and then sneered, staring at the screen.

Shen Bianye: “Damn it, it’s been a month, and he hasn’t even thought about adding my contact info.”

Now he wanted to transfer money, but he couldn’t find a way.

Damn it.

Zhou Chao, beside him, clicked his tongue in wonder. It was the first time he’d seen Shen Bianye so rattled. If he weren’t afraid of Shen Bianye’s anger, he would have even wanted to take a picture.

Rare, too rare.