After Transmigrating as a Beta, I Got Messed Up with an Alpha (BL) - Chapter 23

Warmth enveloped Pei Yule, feeling as comfortable as being tucked under a thick duvet. In fact, human body heat felt a few degrees warmer than a blanket; simply pressing together easily dispelled the winter chill.

Pei Yule had been sickly as a child, and though he had improved as an adult, his body was always cool to the touch—especially his hands and feet, which felt like blocks of ice. Being held so closely now made the freezing winter day feel much more bearable.

Before their “Three Rules,” this person had always turned into an octopus, and though Pei Yule had been unable to resist at first, the discomfort had vanished with habit. Moreover, he and Huo Juan now had an agreement, and strictly speaking, he had been the one to take the initiative just now. His resistance had long since dissolved, replaced by a trace of sympathy.

He could sense that Huo Juan seemed a bit more restless than usual. He guessed it was because they hadn’t had a session in a week, and the man was likely in significant pain. Honestly, if he had to endure constant discomfort like Huo Juan, he certainly wouldn’t be able to stay this calm.

Huo Juan’s current state reminded Pei Yule of his own past. Out of sympathy, he didn’t mind being held so tightly; he even wrapped his arms around the Alpha to increase the “contact area.”

However, remembering his earlier question had gone unanswered, he asked again: “How long do we have to stay like this?”

Back in the empty classroom, Huo Juan would usually keep him until the end of lunch—roughly two hours. Subtracting the time spent eating, he was held for about an hour. So, perhaps an hour was the required dose?

That was a problem. The sports meet was in full swing outside; he could hear constant cheering. Not only did he have an event, but Huo Juan likely had one too. They couldn’t stay here forever. He had checked the schedule: the archery preliminaries were the fourth event of the morning. He had spent half an hour in the infirmary and another half-hour talking to Qiao Shengmo. It was almost time to assemble.

The principal had mentioned punishments for those who didn’t participate; he didn’t want the teacher to give him a demerit.

Hearing him, Huo Juan slowly opened his eyes, glancing at the light-colored curls near his face. “…It has to be constant. Otherwise, it only calms me down briefly.”

As soon as they let go, the pain would slowly resurface. It was never truly gone.

What!

Pei Yule looked up in shock, meeting Huo Juan’s downcast, dark eyes. He had assumed that an hour of contact would provide at least a day’s worth of relief.

“Isn’t that incredibly troublesome then?” he blurted out. “We can’t stay stuck together like Siamese twins. Besides, doing this for too long isn’t good…” Staying like this all day felt very “not okay” to him. He had thought an hour was the limit.

Huo Juan’s eyelids lowered slightly. He slowly released his grip on Pei Yule’s back, reaching out to press the heavy coat back onto the boy’s shoulders so it wouldn’t fall off. After a moment of silence, he said: “I won’t require you to be like this all the time.”

Uh, the way he let go so casually actually made Pei Yule feel a bit guilty, as if he were helping half-heartedly. He didn’t mean it that way. But he really hadn’t expected it to take so long; it felt like trying to quench thirst by thinking of plums—a temporary fix at best.

It seemed his role as “medicine” wasn’t that powerful if the effect was so short-lived. He couldn’t follow Huo Juan around all day. An hour or two was his limit; he had his own life to lead.

Come to think of it, the man had been quite considerate before, only taking up his lunch hour and usually spending less than sixty minutes on actual contact. He never bothered him while he was busy, even before the rules were set.

Pei Yule thought for a moment and said honestly: “Doing this all the time definitely won’t work, but I’m not unwilling to help. However, I think this method only treats the symptoms, not the cause. Why don’t we find a time to figure out why I can calm you down? Then we can find a real cure.”

He felt this was a solid proposal and sought Huo Juan’s opinion: “What do you think?”

“…Mm.” Huo Juan gazed at him and nodded slowly. “As you say.”

Since they had talked things out, this guy was remarkably easy to deal with. Communication really was key.

Pei Yule was satisfied. Estimating there was still a little time before assembly, he looked at the distance between them and wondered if they should squeeze in a bit more “therapy.” He opened his arms slightly in a questioning gesture. “Um… want more?”

“No.”

Huo Juan’s fingers at his side curled slightly, but his expression remained calm. “Change your clothes and go to the field.”

Everyone had to wear sportswear for their events. Pei Yule made a face. He knew sports clothes were more practical, but they were also freezing. Under his big coat, he was wearing his winter uniform—shirt, cotton vest, and a thermal undershirt. People here were remarkably resistant to the cold; the sports uniform was just a thin jacket. Even if he wore it over his current layers, a sports jacket was no match for a fleece-lined heavy coat.

But he had to change. Huo Juan hadn’t changed yet either, so they headed to the locker rooms together.

“What event are you doing?” Pei Yule asked curiously. Did someone like Huo Juan even have to participate, or did he have “Prince” privileges?

“The 3,000 meters,” Huo Juan replied.

He was actually participating. And in an event most students avoided. “Why that one?” Pei Yule asked.

“Every Alpha is forced to participate in this event,” Huo Juan added flatly. Since few volunteered, they drafted those with the best physical stats.

“I see…” Pei Yule murmured, glancing at Huo Juan’s enviably long legs. “I bet you’re pretty fast…” He could never do 3,000 meters. 800 was his limit; as a shut-in, 3,000 would literally kill him. With Huo Juan’s genes, the gold medal was basically a given.

Huo Juan’s gaze shifted to him. “What about you?”

Pei Yule perked up and gave a little chuckle. “I’m doing archery.”

Huo Juan looked at the rare smile on Pei Yule’s face and noticed he had a pair of small canines that showed when he grinned. Previously, the boy had mostly been resistant or trying to escape; this was the first time he had truly smiled at him. It wasn’t the first time Huo Juan had seen that smile—the boy smiled like that at the Omega next door all the time—but it was a first for him.

His palms began to itch again. Huo Juan curled his fingers to hide the budding desire, watching the smile with an unreadable gaze. “Is that so,” he murmured.

He didn’t know why the boy had suddenly become so energetic, but the smile lightened his mood, which had been soured by the lingering scent of Qiao Shengmo on Pei Yule. The boy’s smile was infectious. Yule (meaning “and joy”)—the name suited him. He should make him smile more often.

They reached the locker rooms. Like the restrooms, they were divided: Alpha, Beta, and Omega. The Beta locker room was a large room with built-in lockers and no partitions. As an open and upright man, Pei Yule didn’t mind being seen, but…

“Why are you coming in too?” Pei Yule asked, halfway through taking off his shirt. He was surprised to see Huo Juan follow him into the Beta locker room. The Alpha locker room was next door.

Huo Juan held a backpack. His gaze dropped to Pei Yule’s waist. While changing, the boy had accidentally pulled his shirt out of his pants, exposing a section of his narrow waist. He was over 1.8 meters tall, yet his waist was remarkably slender and incredibly pale—as if it had never seen the sun. It was a glowing white.

…It makes me want to leave a mark there.

His Adam’s apple bobbed imperceptibly. Huo Juan silently retracted his gaze, pulled a set of sportswear from his bag, and tossed it to Pei Yule.

“What’s this?” Pei Yule asked, catching it.

Seeing that the long sportswear now covered the boy’s waist, Huo Juan looked back. “Put it on.”

Pei Yule looked down and realized the uniform was the same style as the standard one, but… it was fleece-lined and padded! It was a “winter-proof” version of the sports kit!

Pei Yule’s eyes sparkled. “Is this… for me?”

Getting a custom-thickened uniform was easy for someone of Huo Juan’s status. He had seen Pei Yule’s miserable face at the mention of changing and knew how much he feared the cold. To prevent his “medicine” from getting sick again, he had to keep him warm.

“If you’re cold, wear it,” Huo Juan said, then turned and left.

Pei Yule spread out the uniform and was delighted to find it was a large size. He could wear it over his vest without it feeling tight. He happily pulled it on, feeling the cozy fleece. This is what winter sportswear should be!

Pei Yule was touched. Huo Juan is actually a real bro! For the sake of this uniform, he decided he wouldn’t mind if the guy wanted an hour-long hug later.

Outside, Huo Juan leaned against the wall. Two Betas approaching the room saw him and hesitated. “Huo…”

From inside, a faint, slightly off-key humming could be heard. It was Pei Yule, clearly in a good mood. Huo Juan looked up, and the two Betas saw something in his expression that made them pale. They immediately bypassed the door, not daring to enter while he was standing there.

Once they were gone, Huo Juan looked down again, his knuckles straining against the wall. A few seconds later, sensing Pei Yule was about to come out, he stood up and walked to the Alpha locker room.

Inside, he took a syringe from his private locker, uncapped it, and injected the liquid into his arm. The clear fluid entered his veins, calming the wild, restless impulses. He put the syringe away. The mirror reflected a cold, expressionless face. Just like usual.

By the time Pei Yule came out, Huo Juan was gone. He didn’t want to barge into the Alpha locker room, so he headed to the field alone. It was better this way—less attention.

He reached the archery team just in time. The teacher in charge asked, “Archery team?”

“Yes.”

“Be earlier next time. Go join the line.”

Pei Yule found a line of Betas and stood at the back. Archery was divided into preliminaries, semi-finals, and finals, with both team and individual categories. Pei Yule had only signed up for the individual event.

Fei Yisa had originally wanted to form a mixed ABO team with him and Shen Pin, but he’d been drafted for the Omega 4x100m relay. Despite his cool looks, Fei Yisa was a top-tier Omega and a star athlete in that category.

The teacher explained the rules: “Preliminaries are a 60-point system. 10 arrows, 10 points for a bullseye. You need over 60 points to advance. Semi-finals are 3 arrows; you need 25 points to advance. Finals are head-to-head.”

To get 60 points in 10 shots, you needed at least a 6 on every arrow. One mistake would be hard to recover from. And the semi-finals were even worse—an average of over 8 points per arrow!

The students grumbled. You call this simple?

The Alpha teacher released a burst of pheromones. “Where’s the spirit? Stand up straight!”

Many Betas and even some Alphas buckled under the pressure. Pei Yule expected to feel the same, but he found it remarkably easy. Compared to Huo Juan’s overwhelming presence, this teacher’s pheromones were like a light breeze. He didn’t know that being “trained” by a top-tier Alpha like Huo Juan had given him a high level of resistance.

“I said, where is the spirit!” the teacher roared.

The students shouted back: “None!” (Meaning no lack of spirit).

“Good! Go get your number tags. Assemble in ten minutes!”

Pei Yule looked at his tag: Team 2, Row B, No. 38.

Perfect. What a lucky number. He sat in the waiting area. Two Omegas from his class, friends of Qiao Shengmo, saw him and scoffed.

“Look at him, entering the competition with those thin arms. He’ll be eliminated in the first round.”

“I don’t know what Huo Juan sees in him. He’s ugly and stupid. He can’t even follow the lessons.”

Pei Yule looked at himself in the reflection of a nearby camera. Ugly? My sister says I’m the ‘cute puppy’ type! And he wasn’t “stupid”—he had gotten in on his own merit when the school opened up to Betas.

Archery wasn’t about arm thickness; it was about skill.

“Team 2, Row B, No. 38! To the line!” the judge called.

Pei Yule walked out. Out of the 37 people before him, only 7 had advanced. It was almost a total wipeout. The two Omegas watched, waiting for him to fail.

Nearby, on a balcony, Xu Yanxi said to Huo Juan, “Your little Beta is up.”

Huo Juan turned to watch. The oversized uniform made Pei Yule look small. He saw the boy take a deep breath and test the bow.

“Do you think he’ll advance?” Xu Yanxi asked.

Huo Juan watched Pei Yule clumsily place an arrow on the rest. He looked like a complete amateur. As Pei Yule prepared to shoot, Huo Juan answered: “He will.”

Zip! The arrow hit the 4-ring. 4 points.

He seemed to have poor form, shaking his fingers after the shot. He took a second arrow.

“Are you sure?” Xu Yanxi asked.

“Mm,” Huo Juan grunted.

Zip! Another 4.

The third, fourth, and fifth shots were all 4s. After 5 arrows, he had 20 points. He needed 40 more from the final 5. If he missed high scores twice more, he was out.

The crowd shook their heads. “No way he makes it.”

The sixth arrow hit a 5. 25 points total. He needed 35 points from 4 arrows.

The seventh arrow hit another 5. 30 points. He needed 30 points from 3 arrows.

He had three arrows left. To advance, he needed three perfect bullseyes. Impossible.

But Xu Yanxi noticed something. “I believe you now. He’ll advance.”

Pei Yule had been “failing,” but he was perfectly calm. His expression never changed.

Pei Yule raised his bow again.

Zip!

The arrow slammed into the gold. Not just the gold—the dead center.

10 points!

The crowd gasped. “A fluke!”

Pei Yule didn’t wait. He drew the ninth arrow.

Zip! Another 10!

The whispers died down. Xu Yanxi whistled. “Playing the pig to eat the tiger.”

Huo Juan smiled.

Pei Yule actually was an expert. He’d been a regular at the 10-ring since middle school. He had a natural talent for it. He’d just been finding his rhythm with the first few shots. He wanted to show these Alphas and Omegas what an “ordinary Beta” could do.

He drew the final arrow.

Zip!

“Team 2, Row B, No. 38. Total score: 60 points. Advance to the semi-finals!.