CHAPTER 4

"Blake, how many times do I need to tell you to stop harassing my juniors? Do you really want to graduate with flying colors or what?"

"Stop nagging me. I already knew that. There's no need for you to scold me until here."

“If only you keep your chill with you, then there’s no need for me to nag you."

"Tch. So you are now siding with that omega?"

"I’m not favoring any of you."

When Blake lets out an irritated huff, Lizzy can only let out a sigh and rolls her neck. They are now both climbing the stairs of their condominium building. The guard downstairs told them that all the elevators are not working today because of a minor electrical problem. As an apology for the inconvenience, they provided them with buffet tickets to the restaurant near their building.

Both of their units are on the seventeenth floor. They are still on the seventh floor since both of them are walking slowly. To kill the quietness between them, Lizzy decided to approach Blake about the small ruckus he had made before leaving their school.

"Tch. Why do you have to be the club president anyway?"

"Isn't it obvious? I'm a pretty and reliable Alpha, alright."

"Yeah, yeah."

Lizzy has been the only Alpha of their club for the past months. Their seniors were already graduates and they assigned her as the new club president before leaving their university. Since then, Lizzy dedicates herself to helping her club members to enhance their talents in music and encourages them to join more competitions to gain more experience and confidence while playing on stage.

Her club members respect and admire Lizzy a lot. It is not only because she is an alpha. They are respecting her because she is such a good leader to them and they can see how much effort she gives just to see them improve in their craft. These people know that they can always rely on Lizzy whenever they are in trouble.

This year, they have two new omega members in their club. Lizzy doesn't want to discriminate against anyone but she sometimes feels bothered because their new club members keep on clinging to her whether it is intentional or not.

Ever since Lizzy received the result that she is an alpha, her pheromones started producing her scent that attracts others' attention. A faint smell of her scent is enough for an omega to let them know their differences as well as attract them like a honey trap.

At first, Lizzy was ecstatic about it because she can use her scent to easily befriend others. But as time passes, she is starting to feel a bit burdened with it. Those omegas around her are weak and don't know yet how to control their urges and instincts. Unlike Blake, Lizzy is not rude to ignore or hurt their feelings. She will still entertain them while keeping a safe distance between them.

But there are still rare times when her scent can bring the others to their heat. It happened to her once and Lizzy felt guilty about it. That omega was supposed to enter his heat in the last week of that month but when he smelled Lizzy's scent, it triggered his urges, and had to endure his heat in advance. To prevent it from happening again, Lizzy learned how to use scent patches to completely conceal her scent from her body.

"Didn't I tell you to be harsh and rude if needed, right?" Blake asked.

"Yeah. But unlike you, I know what patience means." Lizzy answered him back.

"What? So are you saying I'm short-tempered and have no ounce of patience in my body?!"

"You're the one who said that, not me." Lizzy cheekily said. "But stop distracting me. I'm not done with you yet."

Blake lets out a frustrated groan and looks at Lizzy with a scowl on his face.

"Do you still want to nag at me?"

"As I've said, I'm not nagging you. I'm just reminding you to behave well in school."

"Stop acting like my mom."

"Oh my. I don't have any ambition to become your mother."

Letting out a huff, Blake stops climbing the stairs and sits on the first step of the stairs. Checking the sticker on the wall, they are now on the tenth floor. They still need to climb seven more floors to reach their units. Sighing, Lizzy sits next to Blake and stretches her legs.

"Next time, just tell them to stop approaching you. Or better yet, order them and let your wolf talk some senses on those annoying omegas." Blake advised with a frown.

"And again, I am not that rude to bully my juniors like that." Lizzy replied with a sigh.

Earlier, one of Lizzy's juniors approached her and asked if she could help him practice how to improve his piano skills. Although Lizzy had already said yes, the male omega kept on talking hoping to catch her attention once. Even if Lizzy was a bit annoyed with him, she still managed to smile at the omega because he was acting like a happy puppy in front of her.

But while patting his fluffy hair, the smell of burnt vanilla quickly spreads in the air and it showed the strong intensity of Blake's as he witnessed their interaction earlier.

Blake Myers smells like warm and light mint vanilla on normal days. But once he feels distressed or irritated, his vanilla scent is getting stronger until it turns into a burning scent. And that acrid scent as well as the anger of his inner wolf made the poor omega in front of Lizzy quiver in fear. If she doesn't stop Blake on time, her junior will surely fall on the floor while asking for his forgiveness.

"Blake Myers, you're a team captain of our volleyball team. You should know that there are a few omegas all over the campus who still don't know how to control their urges to approach us. You should become more understanding with them."

"Do you think I didn't know that?"

"If you know that already, then why do you have to scare him too much earlier?"

Blake opens his mouth to answer her question but he quickly closes it before he can say a word. What excuse will he use this time? That his unrestrained jealousy earlier controlled him? That's bullshit. Blake might as well fall down this staircase rather than admit it in front of Lizzy.

"What? Why did you do that?" Lizzy asked again. In order to force him to speak, she gently cups his face and rubs her thumb on his upper cheeks.

"I was in a bad mood, okay? He interrupted our conversation and kept on following you like a lost puppy." Blake grumbled in a soft voice.

"Blake..." Lizzy helplessly called his name.

He clicks his tongue and avoids meeting her eyes. Blake really hates it every time she looks at him with probing eyes. It always makes him surrender in the end and spill the thoughts running inside his head. But Blake cannot totally hate this kind of interaction between them because he's also taking advantage of this chance to feel her warmth near him.

"Blake, you can't always do that. Remember when our professors told us to behave all the time and stop causing more trouble in school? If you still want to graduate as the MVP of the year, then you should stop harassing your schoolmates. Okay?" Lizzy said in a soft voice.

"Stop talking to me like that. It really feels weird to be scolded by you with that tone of voice."

"Oh? Then I should do it all the time every time I scold you. Who knows if this method can finally make you behave properly."

Blake let out a soft growl because this woman beside him keeps on treating him like a naughty child. But instead of getting mad at him, Lizzy gives him a sweet smile instead. That quickly makes him shut up and purse his lips. Lizzy is about to remove her hands from his face when Blake stops him.

"Wait. Let us stay like this for a while."

"Blake..."

"Okay?"

Lizzy stares at Blake for a moment before she surrenders and nods her head. Blake let out a soft sigh and closed his eyes. He puts his hands on top of Lizzy's hands and enjoys the warmth that it provides on his cheeks. Soon, Blake opens his eyes and slowly lets go of her hands. Lizzy didn't say anything and gently pulled her hands away from his cheeks.

"Satisfied?" Lizzy asked.

Blake scoffs at her question and rolls his eyes.

"You're just asking the most obvious questions to me all the time." Blake remarked.

"It's now a new habit of mine." Lizzy answered.

"What a sadistic habit, Lizzy." Blake commented. "You should know that—"

"Blake, did I tell you before that I love staring at your eyes?"

Blake's brain seems like it stops functioning the moment he hears those words. Without waiting for his response, Lizzy stands up straight and continues climbing the stairs. As for Blake, he remains seated on his spot as he tries to calm himself down. Not only him but also the wolf inside of him cannot control the sudden burst of emotion in his chest.

'She got us again.'

'Well, yeah. Fuck it.'

"Blake, are you just going to sit there all day, or do you still want to play video games with me?" Lizzy said as she stared at him from above.

Blake didn't reply but he coughs several times to hide the bubbling happiness he was feeling. He also lowers the cap he's wearing to cover his ears. Even without looking at himself in the mirror, he knows that his ears are red as fresh tomatoes right now.