After Differentiation, I Marked My Arch-nemesis - Chapter 19

The light in the private room was dim, and the flickering lights made Lu Yaoyi’s face look exceptionally beautiful.

Lu Yaoyi’s expression was indifferent; she was still her usual cool self.

Everyone stared at her in shock. The laughter in the room stopped instantly, leaving only the sound of the music. Time seemed to stand still.

Lu Yaoyi is actually here?

The next second, Qiao Yixun walked in behind her.

Everyone was very surprised.

Although the entire school knew that Qiao Yixun was pursuing Lu Yaoyi, Lu Yaoyi had always ignored her. Could this situation mean that Qiao Yixun had succeeded?

An S-class Omega and a high-level Alpha.

They were indeed a good match.

Jiang Youli stared at the two people in the doorway, completely dumbfounded.

What’s going on? How were Lu Yaoyi and Qiao Yixun standing together? She had never seen them say a word to each other. Why was what she was seeing now completely different from what she saw every day after school?

Besides, she remembered that Lu Yaoyi didn’t like these kinds of events.

So why would Lu Yaoyi…

When did Lu Yaoyi let Qiao Yixun get close to her?

“A-You,” Qiao Yixun waved at her. “Come here for a second.”

Jiang Youli didn’t react.

Qiao Yixun was speechless.

Even though the room lights were off and only the colorful lights were flashing, she could clearly see that Jiang Youli’s expression was getting a little stiff. But she didn’t think much of it and tilted her head, calling out again, “A-You?”

Everyone turned to look at Jiang Youli.

They all knew that Jiang Youli and Lu Yaoyi couldn’t stand each other.

Now that the rivals had met, there was probably going to be a good show.

Cen Ziqin nudged Jiang Youli. “A-You, Sister Xun is calling you. What are you spaced out for?”

Jiang Youli snapped out of it. “What?”

“A-You, Sister Xun is calling you. What are you spacing out for?” Cen Ziqin suddenly leaned in and whispered. “You’re not stunned by Lu Yaoyi, are you?”

Jiang Youli rolled her eyes. “You’re the one who’s stunned.”

Then she stood up and walked toward Qiao Yixun and Lu Yaoyi at the door.

Chen Huaian clapped his hands. “Alright, stop looking. Let’s continue.”

The others looked away and stopped thinking about Lu Yaoyi.

Then they went back to their own things.

Jiang Youli walked up to Lu Yaoyi and Qiao Yixun. She subtly glanced at Lu Yaoyi and then asked, “Sister Xun, what do you need?”

Qiao Yixun looked at Lu Yaoyi. “Yaoyao, wait here for a second.”

Lu Yaoyi didn’t say anything.

Yaoyao? Jiang Youli’s brows furrowed slightly.

What’s with the rapid progress? They’re already calling each other by nicknames?

Qiao Yixun suddenly grabbed Jiang Youli and walked out. “Come out with me.”

Jiang Youli followed her.

Qiao Yixun pulled Jiang Youli to the hallway outside the room. “A-You, I know you don’t like Lu Yaoyi, but you’re the most familiar person to her here. I have to go greet some friends who flew in from abroad for my birthday. Can you help me look after her for a bit?”

Hearing this, Jiang Youli was a little hesitant. “But…”

It wasn’t that she didn’t want to.

After all, the Lu Yaoyi she knew didn’t like these kinds of events. She would have helped her out of respect for Lu Meishan and Guan Luyu. But what if that annoying girl, Lu Yaoyi, didn’t want her to look after her?

She didn’t want to put herself out there only to be rejected.

“I’ve already talked to her,” Qiao Yixun said. “She agreed.”

Jiang Youli was speechless.

She couldn’t believe it. “Lu Yaoyi agreed to let me look after her?”

“Yep. Please, A-You,” Qiao Yixun said.

Jiang Youli blinked. “Then… okay. I’ll take care of it.”

Qiao Yixun smiled. “Thanks, A-You.”

“You’re welcome, Sister Xun,” Jiang Youli said.

Qiao Yixun looked back at the room. “Then you’d better go in. I have to go now.”

“Okay,” Jiang Youli said.

Qiao Yixun turned and walked away without looking back.

Jiang Youli returned to the room.

She closed the door and looked at Lu Yaoyi’s elegant back. Then she walked to her and said quietly, “Sister Xun just told me to help look after you. I only agreed because of her. Don’t get the wrong idea.”

“I know,” Lu Yaoyi said.

She turned and met Jiang Youli’s gaze. “Qiao Yixun already told me.”

Jiang Youli was speechless.

For some reason, hearing Lu Yaoyi say Qiao Yixun’s name made her feel uncomfortable. She frowned and looked away. “Where do you want to sit?”

Besides the scent of alcohol, the room was filled with a mix of Alpha and Omega pheromones. Lu Yaoyi didn’t like this kind of environment or being with people she wasn’t familiar with, so she went straight to the sofa in the corner.

Jiang Youli followed her.

The two of them sat on the sofa in the corner.

But they were sitting a little far apart.

Jiang Youli suddenly stood up to get a glass of orange juice and a plate of fruit. She placed them on the coffee table in front of Lu Yaoyi. After a moment of thought, she went back and got a straw to put in the orange juice. “Tell me if you want to eat or drink anything. Since I promised Sister Xun, I’ll take good care of you.”

She walked back to the sofa and sat down. “Just don’t make any outrageous requests.”

Lu Yaoyi looked at the orange juice on the table, and a wave of warmth suddenly rose in her heart.

Jiang Youli remembered what she liked to drink.

She looked at Jiang Youli. “Jiang Youli.”

Jiang Youli turned to meet her gaze. “What?”

The light in Lu Yaoyi’s eyes was mesmerizing, and her voice was gentle and pleasant. “Thank you.”

Jiang Youli was speechless.

She wasn’t used to Lu Yaoyi being so polite to her.

She looked away awkwardly. “Got it.”

A fleeting smile appeared on Lu Yaoyi’s lips. Then she leaned forward, picked up the orange juice, and took a sip through the straw. “Jiang Youli, are you afraid of me?”

Jiang Youli was confused.

She looked at Lu Yaoyi. “I’m afraid of you? Why would you say that?”

“You’re sitting so far away. Aren’t you afraid of me?” Lu Yaoyi asked.

Jiang Youli was speechless.

She looked at the distance between them.

It was almost a yard.

It was a little far, that was for sure.

But what did that have to do with her being afraid of Lu Yaoyi? She wasn’t afraid of that annoying girl. “Stop being so full of yourself, Lu Yaoyi. I’m not afraid of you.”

Lu Yaoyi put the orange juice back on the coffee table. “I’ll believe you if you sit closer to me.”

Jiang Youli was speechless.

What kind of request is that?

She was extremely unwilling, but she still moved closer to Lu Yaoyi. Then she asked nonchalantly, “Why are you here today?”

“She invited me,” Lu Yaoyi said, leaning back on the sofa. “So I came.”

Actually, she hadn’t originally planned to come.

She knew Qiao Yixun was trying to go after her, so she had never accepted her friend request or said a word to her. But Qiao Yixun kept sending messages through Jin Rubing. Jin Rubing didn’t dare to offend Qiao Yixun, so she just did what she was told. Later, for Jin Rubing’s sake, Lu Yaoyi accepted Qiao Yixun’s friend request.

She accepted it.

But no matter what Qiao Yixun sent her, she never replied.

Early this morning, Qiao Yixun invited her to her birthday party. She didn’t reply and didn’t want to go until Qiao Yixun told her that Jiang Youli was there and sent her a video. In the video, Jiang Youli was having a lot of fun with some other girls, so she came.

But she would never tell Jiang Youli the truth.

Jiang Youli was inexplicably annoyed. “Since when are you so close to Sister Xun?”

She remembered that Lu Yaoyi didn’t even talk to Qiao Yixun yesterday. How did they get so close in just one day that they were using nicknames? And Lu Yaoyi even came to Qiao Yixun’s birthday party. Was Lu Yaoyi going to accept Qiao Yixun? A wave of anger suddenly rose in her heart. Doesn’t Lu Yaoyi know that this is very dangerous?

So annoying.

Lu Yaoyi’s lips parted, and she was about to answer.

Then she changed her mind.

She turned to Jiang Youli. “Are you worried about me?”

Jiang Youli was already in a bad mood, and now it was as if she had been exposed. She was so angry that she snapped, her tone was very bad, and her attitude was extremely hostile. “Stop being so full of yourself! Who’s worried about you? I’ve seen narcissists, but I’ve never seen one like you. Stay here by yourself.”

Then she got up and left.

Lu Yaoyi watched Jiang Youli’s back.

She saw Jiang Youli sit down next to Cen Ziqin and join their game. She wasn’t angry or unhappy. Jiang Youli was always that prideful, awkward, and childish girl in her heart. She just decided that Jiang Youli was worried about her.

Her gaze slowly fell on the orange juice with the straw in it.

This was enough.

Chen Huaian and the others were still playing the dice game.

When Cen Ziqin saw Jiang Youli, he asked, “A-You, why did you come over here?”

Jiang Youli’s face was dark. “Nothing,” she said grumpily.

Cen Ziqin looked at Lu Yaoyi, who was sitting alone in the corner. “Didn’t Sister Xun ask you to look after Lu Yaoyi? Are you just going to leave her there alone?”

Jiang Youli completely ignored him.

She picked up a pair of dice from the table. “When you’re done with this round, let me join.”

Cen Ziqin was speechless.

Only God knew why Jiang Youli was suddenly so mad.

After a while, Chen Huaian looked back at Lu Yaoyi and then leaned in close to Jiang Youli. “Boss, Lu Yaoyi looks so pathetic sitting there all by herself…”

Hearing this, Jiang Youli turned and looked at Lu Yaoyi.

Lu Yaoyi was sitting alone in the corner, looking lonely and dejected.

Her heart softened instantly.

Of all the people there, Lu Yaoyi had only spoken to her. She was the only person Lu Yaoyi was familiar with. But she had thrown a fit and left Lu Yaoyi all alone.

She felt like she had gone too far.

Just as she realized her mistake and was about to get up to find Lu Yaoyi, the door to the room suddenly opened.

Qiao Yixun walked in and went straight to Lu Yaoyi.

After seeing Qiao Yixun sit next to Lu Yaoyi, Jiang Youli gave up the idea of going to find her. She looked away and said sullenly, “She’s not pathetic at all. She has someone to keep her company. Why should I care about her? Let’s keep playing.”

Chen Huaian shrugged. “Okay…”

At around 10 p.m., the people in Jiang Youli’s private room left.

Since they were still high school students, Qiao Yixun took them home.

Because Jiang Youli and Lu Yaoyi lived in the same neighborhood, they got into the same car. But they didn’t say a word to each other the entire way home.

Jiang Youli just stared out the window the whole time, as if she were holding a grudge.

She didn’t even look at Lu Yaoyi.

Lu Yaoyi, on the other hand, secretly stared at the back of Jiang Youli’s head when she wasn’t looking. It had been a long time since she had looked at her like this.

She wished the car would go a little slower.

That way, she could look at her for a little longer.

The black Porsche slowly drove in the direction of Jiang Youli’s house.

Just as they were about to leave the main street and enter the alley, Lu Yaoyi suddenly said, “Sir, can you please pull over?”

Jiang Youli was confused.

She looked at Lu Yaoyi. “Why are we stopping?”

They weren’t home yet. Why were they stopping?

The driver had already listened to Lu Yaoyi and pulled over.

Jiang Youli was speechless.

Lu Yaoyi opened the car door and got out without saying a word.

Jiang Youli had no choice but to follow her.

She looked back at the black Porsche disappearing into the traffic and then looked away, catching up to Lu Yaoyi, who had already walked dozens of yards ahead. “Lu Yaoyi, we’re not home yet. Why did you ask the driver to stop here?”

“I was sitting in that room for a long time,” Lu Yaoyi said.

She seemed to be in a good mood. “I want to get out and walk.”

Because I want to be alone with you for a little longer, she said to herself.

“Did you ever consider my feelings?” Jiang Youli asked angrily.

“You’re the one who got out,” Lu Yaoyi said.

“You…” Jiang Youli said.

She took a deep breath and told herself not to get angry. “Fine, I won’t argue with you.”

A smile flashed in Lu Yaoyi’s eyes.

She didn’t say anything.

The bright moon hung high in the night sky, casting a silver glow on the streets and alleys. The evening breeze rustled the swaying trees, and a fresh, elegant floral scent spread throughout the alley.

The two of them walked home under the moonlight.

Jiang Youli was a little shorter than Lu Yaoyi. She looked sideways and secretly admired Lu Yaoyi’s beautiful profile. When she was quiet and not arguing with her, Lu Yaoyi was really beautiful and a very excellent person with good character and grades.

Who could ever be worthy of a person like this?

In her eyes, Qiao Yixun was not worthy of an excellent person like Lu Yaoyi.

At least not in a relationship.

As she thought about this, her anger dissipated by more than half. She couldn’t stand the thought of Lu Yaoyi being messed around with by an Alpha like Qiao Yixun. Maybe now is the time to…

But then she thought about how she would be the one to make the first move.

Whatever. It’s better than watching Lu Yaoyi go down the path of a doomed relationship.

She looked ahead and said softly, “Lu Yaoyi.”

“Hmm?” Lu Yaoyi asked.

“I have something to tell you,” Jiang Youli said.

Lu Yaoyi looked at her. “What do you want to tell me?”

“Well, about Sister Xun…” Jiang Youli said.

“What about her?” Lu Yaoyi asked.

Jiang Youli didn’t know how to start. After a long time of hesitating, she finally blurted out, “She’s not a very good Alpha.”

“Why do you say that?” Lu Yaoyi asked.

“Sister Xun has messed with a lot of Omegas,” Jiang Youli said truthfully. “Don’t accept her and get played just because she’s being nice to you for a little while.”

Lu Yaoyi was a little surprised that Jiang Youli would tell her this.

Her surprise was then replaced by happiness.

She smiled and asked, “Isn’t Qiao Yixun your good friend? Aren’t you afraid she’ll get mad if she finds out you said that?”

Jiang Youli immediately made her stance clear. “Just because Sister Xun and I are good friends doesn’t mean I agree with what she does. She’s a player when it comes to relationships, but she’s a great friend. She’s especially good to me. I’m not afraid of her getting mad because she knows herself that she’s a player.”

She paused and then glanced at Lu Yaoyi.

“I just wanted to warn you that Sister Xun isn’t serious about Omegas or relationships.”

She awkwardly squeezed her fingers. “So… be careful.”

“Did you also warn the other Omegas she pursued before?” Lu Yaoyi asked, her gaze fixed on Jiang Youli. “Or… just me?”

Jiang Youli was speechless.

Lu Yaoyi’s question suddenly made her realize something. When Qiao Yixun had messed with other Omegas before, she had never even bothered to ask. This was the first time she had the thought of not wanting an Omega to be played by Qiao Yixun, and that Omega was Lu Yaoyi.

This question is so…

Lu Yaoyi is so annoying.

She reluctantly admitted, “Yes, just you.”

“Why?” Lu Yaoyi was genuinely happy. “Why only me?”

Jiang Youli didn’t say anything.

Lu Yaoyi suddenly stopped and grabbed Jiang Youli’s hand. Then she looked into her eyes and asked seriously and confidently, “Jiang Youli, you’re worried about me, aren’t you?”

Jiang Youli was stunned.

She looked into Lu Yaoyi’s eyes, which seemed exceptionally bright in the moonlight.

Was she worried about Lu Yaoyi?

No way! She wasn’t worried about Lu Yaoyi at all!

She guiltily pulled her hand away and walked forward. “Can you stop being so narcissistic? Who’s worried about you? Auntie Guan and Auntie Lu are so good to me. I’m only warning you out of respect for them, okay?”

Lu Yaoyi followed her. “Then why are you only warning me now?”

“It’s because…” Jiang Youli said.

It’s because I was waiting for you to ask me.

“Because of what?” Lu Yaoyi asked.

Jiang Youli felt that telling Lu Yaoyi was a huge step for her, so she wasn’t going to admit the truth and let that annoying girl get all cocky. She intentionally kept her face straight and said in a fierce tone, “It’s a good thing I even told you. Don’t be ungrateful.”

“I won’t like Qiao Yixun, and I won’t get together with her,” Lu Yaoyi said, feeling both sweet and warm inside. “So, Jiang Youli, you don’t have to worry about me.”

Jiang Youli was speechless.

The first part was nice to hear, but what’s with the second part?

She looked at Lu Yaoyi with a scowl and fired back, “I’m not worried about you. If you keep being so narcissistic, I can’t talk to you anymore.”

Lu Yaoyi looked at Jiang Youli’s profile and smiled slightly. “Then can you tell Qiao Yixun to stop pursuing me? She follows me home every day now. What if she tries to do something to me when no one’s around? So can you…”

“I’ll talk to Sister Xun,” Jiang Youli said.

She had regretted it.

If she had said she minded when Qiao Yixun asked her, things might not have turned out this way. She wasn’t usually an impulsive person, but when it came to Lu Yaoyi, her brain would overheat.

She was so frustrated.

“What if she doesn’t listen?” Lu Yaoyi asked.

“If she doesn’t listen…” Jiang Youli said.

“Jiang Youli, will you protect me?” Lu Yaoyi asked.

Jiang Youli was slightly stunned.

Protect…

She looked at Lu Yaoyi in disbelief.

What is she saying?

“I mean, can you walk home with me after school from now on? Walking home with me is like protecting me, isn’t it?” Lu Yaoyi asked.

Jiang Youli didn’t say anything.

“Forget it. It’s fine if you don’t want to,” Lu Yaoyi said, her tone sounding disappointed. “It’s not like you’ll care if I live or die. Just pretend I didn’t say those things.”

Jiang Youli was speechless.

She couldn’t stand Lu Yaoyi talking about whether she lived or died. Why couldn’t she wish herself well? She could have ignored Lu Yaoyi, but she used Lu Meishan and Guan Luyu as her reason to agree. “Fine, fine. I’ll reluctantly agree to protect you out of respect for Auntie Guan and Auntie Lu.”

Lu Yaoyi’s lips curled into a beautiful smile.

She looked at Jiang Youli with anticipation. “Will you protect me forever?”

“Why are you so pushy?” Jiang Youli frowned.

Lu Yaoyi just stared at Jiang Youli’s eyes without saying anything.

Jiang Youli thought she saw a hint of grievance and hope in Lu Yaoyi’s eyes. So, she agreed again. “I can protect you for a while, but it’s only for Auntie Guan and Auntie Lu. Don’t get any ideas, and stop being so narcissistic.”

Lu Yaoyi smiled. “Okay, you said it. You’ll protect me forever.”

Jiang Youli was speechless.

Why is she suddenly smiling at me when we’re just talking?

The smile in her eyes was like the most beautiful and moving scenery in the world. For a moment, it felt like a hundred flowers were blooming in Jiang Youli’s heart. How is that annoying girl, Lu Yaoyi, so beautiful? She awkwardly looked away and walked forward.

“I know, I know. You’re so annoying. It’s so late. Let’s hurry up.”

Lu Yaoyi suddenly stopped and looked at Jiang Youli’s back. “Jiang Youli, you just said you’d protect me for my mom’s sake. Now you’re leaving me here alone. What if an Alpha suddenly comes out of nowhere and hurts me?”

Jiang Youli was speechless.

She turned to Lu Yaoyi. “Then what do you want?”

“I want you to come back and walk with me,” Lu Yaoyi said.

Jiang Youli was speechless.

Lu Yaoyi gave her a way out. “For my mom’s sake.”

Jiang Youli was speechless.

She obediently walked back to Lu Yaoyi. “Is this okay now?”

“Yep,” Lu Yaoyi said.

They walked home together under the moonlight. The evening breeze blew the girl’s ink-black hair across her shoulders. Their shadows, walking side by side, stretched long under the streetlights.

Jiang Youli didn’t know that her childhood friend was smiling the whole time.