Last Love chapter 22

The North City District was the most avant-garde and pioneering area in City B, and Zeus naturally adhered to the same style.

The high-ceilinged, vast space was designed with an abandoned factory’s rough and bold style. Graffiti was crudely painted on the cement floor, and the central green leather train head was Zeus’s signature, reportedly obtained at a high price from the earliest batch of scrapped trains. After being refurbished, the steam engine maintained its appearance but was now used for dry ice.

That night’s Zeus was a Foam Night, which was quite special, featuring an external electronic music band. That’s why it was already lively around eight o’clock.

Before the band took the stage, Zeus’s resident guitarist played a solo on the stage. The psychedelic and lonely electric guitar sound poured into the venue like liquid mercury.

Fu Xiaoyu ordered two glasses of iced Macallan at the bar and handed one to Han Jiangque. He touched his own glass first and winked playfully, “Cheers to you, Mr. Macallan.”

Han Jiangque took it and drank it in one gulp, sincerely saying, “Fu Xiaoyu, happy birthday.”

Even among Alphas, the aggressive pheromones in the alcohol series scent were very rare, making them most favored by Omegas.

High-level alcohol series Alphas were easily distinguishable by their distinct tastes, and they could be referred to by different types of alcohol. Therefore, there were many jokes like “opened a bottle of Louis XIII today” circulating privately with some slightly suggestive meaning.

Han Jiangque’s pheromones were obviously in the rich whiskey faction, so it was quite fitting for Fu Xiaoyu to call him “Mr. Macallan.”

At this moment, with the sudden deafening electronic music, the entire pub’s lights suddenly turned into a mysterious and pulsating green glow.

Fu Xiaoyu squinted his eyes and smiled. Holding the glass he hadn’t finished drinking, he entered the dance floor.

With a slender figure, he remained conspicuous in the crowded space, especially in his pink shirt. One hand raised a glass, and with closed eyes, he swayed to the rhythm.

Han Jiangque didn’t go over immediately but sat at the bar, ordered a glass of iced water, and drank it slowly alone for a while.

Han Jiangque prefered sports that were less crowded but intense, so he liked boxing and basketball but disliked noisy crowds.

Fu Xiaoyu, on the other hand, was different. He was the kind of Omega who always knew how to showcase his charm and felt even more at home in a crowd.

Thinking about it now, he had changed a lot over the years, but the people he could get close to ultimately shared some common traits—smart, powerful, and proactive.

But Wen Ke was different.

Wen Ke was gentle, like the mist and sunlight in summer, thick and dense, enveloping him.

After being beaten in his first year of high school, he changed. He became less inclined to fight and gradually less angry. He started learning to grow tenaciously like a plant.

He never told Wen Ke how much he yearned for the life blueprint outlined by him—the idea of leaving his original family, going to a big city for university with Wen Ke, and then starting a new chapter.

Before meeting Wen Ke, his life had no hope or meaning. After meeting Wen Ke, the loneliness and vulnerability of his adolescence found a grounded home.

But in the end, Wen Ke abandoned him.

After the pre-exam period, the small northern town experienced several days of continuous heavy rain. After the rain came a clear day, and the weather was almost unbelievably hot.

The cicadas on the trees outside were incessantly chirping. Han Jiangque, with red eyes, set up a ladder and used a sticky rod to catch them.

All of them were newly emerged cicadas, reaching the final stages of molting. Using all their strength, they struggled to break free from their cicada shells, and once they emerged, they flapped their new, fragile cicada wings, appearing somewhat pitiful.

At the age of sixteen, he caught a hundred cicadas, thinking that this would capture the peak of that summer.

But, in reality, he couldn’t capture the summer or Wen Ke.

Han Jiangque looked at the lively and noisy dance floor, but his eyes gradually became lonely—

Being rejected again was really heartbreaking and frightening.

He was an Alpha who was far from as powerful as he looked. Even though ten years had passed, he still dared not recall the year when he was abandoned and Wen Ke severed all ties with him. He wondered how he struggled to survive.

Han Jiangque’s eyes were as dark as the night, and the more troubled he was, the more charming he became.

Several Omegas circled around him for a while, but seeing his indifferent expression, they reluctantly left one by one.

Han Jiangque finally raised his head and waved to Fu Xiaoyu in the dance floor.

After being friends for so many years, Han Jiangque gradually learned to compromise. So, when Fu Xiaoyu was in a bad mood and liked to come to the pub, he occasionally accompanied him. This time, it was Fu Xiaoyu’s birthday, and of course, he wouldn’t refuse.

He concealed his emotions, took off his suit jacket, left it on the seat next to the bar, and then walked into the dance floor.

…

After making a decision, Wen Ke felt like his whole person was spinning at high speed.

He first rushed into the bathroom and took a good shower, then hurriedly ran out to blow-dry his hair.

It had been a long time since he felt this excited and nervous.

After carefully grooming himself, when he saw his familiar face in the mirror, he couldn’t help but have a strange thought—

Compared to the handsome and intimidating Han Jiangque, his appearance seemed quite ordinary.

Thin and long eyebrows, round corners of the eyes, making him look particularly mild. The only bright spot on his face was a slightly red teardrop mole.

Did Han Jiangque really want to kiss him?

Recalling the previous time at the hotel, when Han Jiangque leaned in as if wanting to kiss his lips, but ultimately only lightly kissed his cheek, he didn’t dare think too much at the time. However, the heartbeat of that moment was now almost blush-inducing when remembered.

After coming out of the bathroom, Wen Ke picked out clothes for a while and finally decided to dress more casually to avoid looking too peculiar.

While scrutinizing himself in the mirror, he asked Xu Jiale, “Does it look okay? What do you think? Can I buy something and invite Han Jiangque to my place for hot pot later? Would it seem more natural to talk to him while eating?”

Xu Jiale, leaning against the door and eating yogurt, heard Wen Ke’s series of questions and couldn’t be bothered to answer each one. He just squinted and asked, “Do you want me to stay away?”

“No, no need…” Wen Ke said hesitantly. He even had a little calculation in his heart, “If I say something wrong later, please help me out.”

“Don’t forget that I love beef and crab sticks,” Xu Jiale finally couldn’t stand it, took the half-prepared Wen Ke, and pushed him out of the door. “Do whatever you want. Don’t waste time.”

Wen Ke then went to a high-end supermarket to buy groceries. While shopping, he made two phone calls to Han Jiangque, but there was no answer.

When it was time to check out, he looked at the still connected number and suddenly panicked.

Could it be that Han Jiangque didn’t want to contact him anymore?

Although only a day had passed, human emotions are so complex that he could suddenly change his mind within a day. Han Jiangque could also decide to give up within a day.

The terror of this thought made him almost unable to breathe. Clutching the eco-friendly bag tightly, he suddenly felt the supermarket’s lights were dazzling, almost dizzying.

He couldn’t wait any longer, so he drove hastily to LM Club.

This time, there was no mood to admire the night in the northern city. He hurriedly arrived at the lobby of the club, and the receptionist was not Miss Yu, but someone who seemed to know him.

“Excuse me, is Consultant Han Jiangque here?”

Wen Ke couldn’t care less and asked eagerly as soon as he saw her.

“Mr. Wen, right?” The Beta woman showed a very enthusiastic smile. “Consultant Han already informed us a few days ago and said that if you came looking for him, we should notify him immediately. He is in Zeus next door. Shall I take you there?”

“He… he informed you?” Wen Ke repeated in a daze, not even thinking about what it meant. He quickly said, “Thank you, no need to trouble you. I already saw Zeus when I came here, so I’ll find him myself.”

“Please wait a moment,” the Beta woman lowered her head and picked up a yellow and red card from the table, handing it to Wen Ke. “Take this VIP card with you. Zeus is crowded, and you won’t be able to get in without it.”

So, in a hurry, he left LM and found Zeus along the same route.

Zeus’s facade indicated that it was a pub. Although Wen Ke had a VIP card, he hesitated as he walked down the dim and black corridor.

Since marrying Zhuo Yuan, he had basically not been to such entertainment places. Listening to the increasingly loud music and smelling the strong scent of alcohol in the air, this environment made him very nervous.

The narrow corridor was deliberately designed. After walking through it, he would find a completely different world.

Wen Ke didn’t know much about Zeus. As soon as he turned around, he was suddenly dazzled by the flickering blue and green lights, and the deafening drumbeat surrounded him.

When he regained his senses, he found himself standing on the circular platform on the second floor of Zeus, overlooking the people in the center of the dance floor.

Not only Betas, but Alphas and Omegas also had no boundaries, almost sticking together and swaying their bodies to the intense electronic music. They were crazy yet uninhibited. In the dazzling lights and the rising dry ice, almost everyone looked incredibly young and vibrant.

It was a world completely different from his previously orderly life—bizarre, noisy, and mysterious.

This unfamiliarity almost made him frightened.

He desperately searched for Han Jiangque as if he were a drowning man. After patrolling twice, he found Han Jiangque, who was almost in the center.

The tall Alpha was solemnly wearing a gray small waistcoat over his shirt, making him even more striking from a distance.

Just as Wen Ke was about to walk down the stairs, he suddenly stopped.

There was another person beside Han Jiangque.

Almost by intuition, Wen Ke could feel that it was an Omega—

They were facing each other very closely. Although the dance floor was indeed crowded, Wen Ke could still see the difference. Because, from time to time, Han Jiangque would extend his arm to shield the Omega from people who got too close. This kind of protection was not something an ordinary relationship could provide.

Wen Ke stood still, feeling lost, just staring at the two people in the dance floor below.

It was a very charming Omega. The pink shirt outlined a slender and beautiful figure. Although Wen Ke couldn’t see the face clearly, the body swaying with the rhythm had a surprising and sexy rhythm, making it impossible to ignore.

At this moment, Han Jiangque slightly turned his back to Wen Ke, and the Omega, facing the position where Wen Ke was upstairs, raised his head.

In that instant, Wen Ke could almost be sure that they made eye contact.

Amidst the constantly moving lights, the Omega looked at him deeply, as if they had known each other for a long time.

At a glance, Wen Ke could vaguely see the stunning beauty of the Omega, the exquisite and glamorous attire, and the skillful rhythm—like an elf on the dance floor.

On the contrary, he, holding a ridiculous environmentally friendly bag from the supermarket, wearing the most ordinary T-shirt and beige pants, had no charm at all. He was an awkward presence that didn’t belong to this mysterious world.

The courage he had finally built up seemed to dissipate at this moment.

He felt like he was stepping on thin air, about to fall with each step. Even the gazes from the people passing by him at that moment made him feel at a loss.

He lowered his head, turned his body, and retraced his steps along the long dark corridor.

With each step, it felt like there was a place in his heart quietly crying.

He, the weak and inconspicuous one, who had just gathered some courage, was truly a failure.

…

Outside Zeus, the northern city district was also bustling and bright. Occasionally, sports cars sped past on the streets, people of all kinds chatted and laughed around Wen Ke, and each person seemed separated by an invisible film.

Dejected, he stood under a utility pole, not even knowing where to go.

A drunken Omega stumbled over, lit a cigarette, and skillfully exhaled smoke by Wen Ke’s side. Halfway through, the Omega sighed deeply. He looked up, his eyes also red, as if he had just cried.

“Hey… can you give me a cigarette too?”

Wen Ke didn’t know what had gotten into him; he unexpectedly asked a stranger Omega for a cigarette, which was quite out of character.

“Here.” The Omega sniffed again, handed one over, and then lit it for Wen Ke. “Go ahead and smoke.”

They stood side by side, not asking each other what was on their minds. They just looked at the Twin Stars Building, the landmark building in the northern city district, together. Between the two buildings, a huge screen still hung on the bridge, displaying the familiar golden English letters: YOLO.

The Omega suddenly said dully, “I don’t understand English. Every time I come here, I really want to know what these letters mean. I’ve kept this question in my heart, but every time I come and drink until dawn, I forget about it when I get home. It’s really annoying.”

Wen Ke remained silent for a while. He probably also knew that the Omega didn’t want to talk to him. But after a while, he involuntarily said, “It’s an abbreviation—”

“You Only Live Once, the abbreviation.”

Wen Ke muttered to himself, “It means you only live once.”

“That’s fucking obvious,” the Omega said.

“Yeah.” Wen Ke nodded. While they were talking, the four letters flashed again, the entire screen became dark, and then, as expected, the next second—

The golden letters exploded in the night sky above their heads like fireworks!

It was like the scene he saw the first time he came to LM Club.

It was also on that day that he reunited with Han Jiangque, as if it were destiny.

“I only live once.”

Wen Ke looked at the dazzling scene and repeated it foolishly.

The Omega tilted his head, seeming a bit puzzled.

“I only live once, so—”

Wen Ke gazed at the vast starry sky of B City, his eyes seemingly glistening with a hint of tears in the light. “I don’t want to regret; I absolutely don’t want to let myself regret.”

He said this, suddenly pressed the cigarette butt against the utility pole, threw it into the trash can, and then turned around and rushed back into the doors of Zeus.

It was the same long corridor, as deep as a person’s heart.

Running, he trampled down the darkness, the weakness, the uncertainty, step by step behind him.

As the drumbeat became louder, he felt his heartbeat in his chest like a tsunami, becoming more and more intense, like a roaring roar about to burst out—

That was his suppressed roar for ten years.

He was already twenty-eight years old.

Life was so precious; he absolutely didn’t want to hand over the next ten years.

He no longer wanted to stay at the end of that wilderness, the wheat field was his, Han Jiangque was also his. He wanted to chase, he wasn’t afraid of failure, not afraid of embarrassment, he wasn’t afraid of anything.

“Bourbon whiskey,” Wen Ke slapped the environmentally friendly bag on the counter, saying to the bartender, “Three shots.” This was a drink he had tried before.

The bartender was also startled by the appearance of this red-eyed Omega, but didn’t say anything. After all, there were quite a few crazy people in the pub every day. He quickly prepared three shots and placed them in front of Wen Ke.

Without even looking, Wen Ke raised his head and drank all three shots one by one.

His face instantly turned as red as if it were on fire, and he involuntarily trembled slightly. The power of alcohol made his feet feel somewhat floating, but he surprisingly remained calm.

He turned around, facing the unfamiliar dance floor, and determinedly squeezed his way toward Han Jiangque.

As he struggled through the crowd, he suddenly thought:

Yes, he was living in the moment, living in this moment when love was invincible.

…

Not knowing how long he had been floating in the crowd, Wen Ke almost pushed aside each person in front of him and finally reached Han Jiangque’s side. He tightly grabbed the arm of Han Jiangque, who had his back to him, and gasped, “Han, Han Jiangque…”

He felt like he had never exerted so much force in his life, almost pulling the tall Han Jiangque into his arms.

When Han Jiangque turned around in surprise, the Omega in front of him also looked over.

When Wen Ke looked at this Omega from such a close distance, he realized that he had a pair of very captivating cat eyes. At this moment, those eyes were fixed on him, with an expression so complex that it was almost indescribable.

Even before Han Jiangque spoke, the Omega had already asked in a hoarse voice, “What are you doing?”

Wen Ke wanted to speak, but perhaps due to the strong alcohol, his teeth were chattering.

“I’m asking you, who are you? What do you want?” The Omega approached Wen Ke aggressively, narrowing his eyes and asking.

“I, I…” The alcohol left Wen Ke’s brain blank. He only remembered that he hadn’t let go, nor had he taken a step back.

At that moment, he completely lost his sanity and blurted out, “I am his boss, his… client…”

The dance floor was too noisy, and he almost shouted this out.

In a daze, he vaguely knew that saying this seemed inappropriate and not polite.

But he couldn’t stop himself; he couldn’t stop anything. He straightened his chest and said slowly, word by word, “Yes, I am his client, and he is mine.”

When the Omega heard this answer, his eyes instantly became deep, and finally, he carried a hint of a helpless smile. He turned his head to look at Han Jiangque and said, “Is that so?”

Wen Ke also turned his head to look at Han Jiangque.

In fact, he was strong and weak at the same time. He held onto Han Jiangque’s arm tightly, but at the same time, he almost couldn’t help but cry and beg Han Jiangque—

“Fu Xiaoyu, sorry, I need to leave for a moment.”

Han Jiangque looked down at Wen Ke. Although he was speaking to Fu Xiaoyu, he didn’t even turn to look at Fu Xiaoyu. His deep eyes seemed to be glued to Wen Ke.

“Okay.”

Fu Xiaoyu remained silent for a moment, ultimately not saying anything else. He held the glass and stepped back, giving space to Han Jiangque and Wen Ke.

Wen Ke’s heart thumped, and he felt like he understood what Han Jiangque meant but also felt a bit confused in his mind.

He raised his head and also looked at Han Jiangque. Only then did he realize that he had almost reddened Han Jiangque’s arm. He hurriedly let go.

“Wen Ke…” Han Jiangque called softly.

His pitch-black eyes were so bright that they seemed to shine like meteors in the night sky.

Suddenly, Wen Ke realized that Han Jiangque was smiling, smiling so brightly that his white teeth and shallow dimples were revealed.

Since their reunion, he had never seen Han Jiangque smile so brilliantly, and for a moment, it left him stunned.

“Are you here to find me?”

Han Jiangque seemed to realize that he had asked a redundant question and then, a bit shy and a bit happy, lowered his eyes and asked, “Wen Ke, you said I am yours, Is that true?”

Wen Ke thought that Han Jiangque’s silly and joyful appearance was really cute.

He nodded forcefully but couldn’t help burping.

“Burp—Yes.”

Han Jiangque suddenly rushed over and hugged him—

Not only that, he almost circled Wen Ke’s butt with his hands and lifted him up high.

For a moment, Wen Ke was lifted higher than Han Jiangque.

At that moment, he felt that the alcohol in his body, along with his entire being, soared into the clouds with the music. People around the dance floor couldn’t help but cast astonished glances.

He had never been so crazy, but he had never been so happy either.

Han Jiangque focused on looking at him, while Wen Ke lowered his head and wrapped his arms around his neck.

Both their faces slowly approached each other, and just when they were about to kiss, their noses collided heavily.

Wen Ke was awakened a bit by the collision, so he closed his eyes and waited, somewhat shy.

He waited for a while, and then the hot breath of Han Jiangque came over again.

He suddenly felt warm on his forehead, not on his lips—

He then realized that Han Jiangque’s forehead was rubbing gently and awkwardly against his.

“Wen Ke, I have always loved you.”

He said.