Reservoir Dogs chapter 14

 Stutterer

Xiao Zhou had never expected Ji Yang to be an Alpha.

Ji Yang emitted almost no scent of pheromones. Xiao Zhou had always thought he was a Beta; with his appearance, it was also possible he was an omega suppressing his gender with inhibitors. No alpha would be so low-key. Alphas were like roosters with feathers, even if they disliked being conspicuous, they would occasionally subtly display their alpha charm. They wouldn’t hide their scent so well, blending in with a crowd of betas without a trace.

Ji Yang appeared flamboyant but deliberately concealed his Alpha identity. Why?

Suddenly, Xiao Zhou thought of Jiang Chengyuan’s sensitivity to Omega pheromones. Could he be equally sensitive to Alpha pheromones? If one was an aphrodisiac, the other was like chili oil—unpleasant for those who didn’t like it.

But the idea that Ji Yang would suppress his pheromones and conceal his scent for Jiang Chengyuan seemed too far-fetched.

Following Jiang Chengyuan into the hotel suite, the suite also included a relatively low-key secondary bedroom, so Xiao Zhou wouldn’t end up sleeping on the couch.

After entering the room, Jiang Chengyuan received a phone call and went to the master bedroom.

After washing up, Xiao Zhou hung up his clothes that were originally on the bed and found the medicine he had been prescribed in the hospital from his pocket.

He glanced down at the medicine bottle. Normally, the clemency Court would give both AO parties a month to adjust and adapt. During this month, they needed to bring hospital check-up reports to the court for registration every week. If they couldn’t successfully mark within a month, the released person would be sent back to wait for re-matching.

He didn’t want to go back. Although the Omega cell was not as violent and chaotic as the AB-mixed cell, it was the darkest and most humid place due to its lack of attention and poor environment. The cells were small, emitting a year-round smell of mold and decay.

Only the top rectangular ventilator allowed a few rays of sunlight to filter through at its highest point, while the rest of the time it remained dim and sunless. It reminded him a lot of the solitary confinement cell he had been in before.

He feared this dark and claustrophobic environment, often having nightmares in the middle of the night.

Such an environment always reminded him of the past.

When he first entered prison, he was in a place where Alphas and Betas mixed together. There was a fellow inmate who had been imprisoned for robbery, a Beta, thin and small, with fairly good looks and a pair of sharp, cunning eyes that looked shrewd. Because he wasn’t very articulate, the other inmates called him Stutterer.

Xiao Zhou had already been stripped of his spirit by the intense interrogation process and the final verdict that sealed his fate. When the gavel fell, he knew his life was over; any future prospects became meaningless, and even if he served his sentence and was released, he would forever carry a criminal record, unable to hold his head up high.

After entering prison, he was like a walking corpse, filled with despair. He avoided conversation, sticking to his routine without joining any groups or offending anyone. Everyone knew he was in for murder, an Alpha who looked intimidating with a dark complexion and a solitary personality. Despite the complex factions in the prison, no one dared provoke him.

Stutterer couldn’t fight and had no connections outside; here, he was at the bottom, constantly bullied and oppressed.

Terrified by the beatings, he sought protection, seeing Xiao Zhou as formidable. He tried to get closer to Xiao Zhou, ingratiating himself wherever possible—during outdoor breaks, lunch, or work—like an inseparable piece of gum. Xiao Zhou remained indifferent, accepting gestures of kindness when necessary but rejecting gifts and favors. He allowed Stutterer to follow him only because he knew leaving him alone would make things worse for him.

But he couldn’t always be around.

Once, passing by the laundry room, Xiao Zhou saw a half-open door and a group of people crowded inside, emitting a dense scent of hormones, their voices occasionally whimpering for help. Xiao Zhou, moved by compassion, intervened and got injured himself.

His fighting style was strict and methodical, unlike the fights he’d seen on the streets.

When it came to pure strength, he could hold his own, but playing dirty was not his forte, especially after a mistaken killing that left him wary of fighting, always holding back and vulnerable to exploitation.

Eye-gouging, teasing, and joint-locking moves—if someone managed to pull these off once, it was enough to cause serious harm.

Stutterer was covered in bruises, his face swollen like a pig’s head, clothes torn apart. Xiao Zhou could tell he had almost been used like an omega, a common occurrence here. Later, when the guards intervened, everyone involved in the fight was placed in solitary confinement for three days.

Xiao Zhou was released, but Stutterer’s wounds didn’t seem to heal at all. Late one night, Stutterer climbed onto Xiao Zhou’s bed, having brought ointment from outside. “Rub, rub… it’ll help, hurry,” he stuttered.

Xiao Zhou took the small jar of ointment and in return, Stutterer quickly handed him something, glancing around nervously to avoid the others in their cell from seeing. It was a box.

Xiao Zhou looked down at the box of cigarettes. He didn’t smoke, and as he started to return them, Stutterer became anxious. He hurriedly scrambled off Xiao Zhou’s bed, nearly twisting his ankle.

Xiao Zhou sat up.

Stutterer stood in the corridor of their cell, illuminated by moonlight streaming through, his face brightened as he gestured, as if saying no thanks were necessary, before lying down on his own bed.

Xiao Zhou was momentarily speechless, tucking the cigarettes under his pillow before falling asleep.

The next day during recreation time, he found a secluded corner, tried smoking one and found it hard to breathe, but gradually, the nicotine took effect, soothing the pain in his throat and filling his chest.

He relaxed against the peeling wall, feeling the cool breeze, the knee-high weeds swaying as the wind passed, the golden sunset not far away, casting a radiant glow over everything.

He squinted, mesmerized by the sunset’s beauty, outlining the distant dilapidated factory, a sense of desolate vastness creeping in.

Unconsciously, he finished the entire cigarette. He carefully stored the remainder and slowly walked back. When he returned to the cell, he saw Stutterer sitting at the head of his bed, back to the door, sharpening something. Hearing the noise of someone coming, he quickly stuffed whatever he was holding into his pocket and turned around, visibly relieved when he saw it was him. “Zhou, Zhou ge.”

Xiao Zhou just gave him a faint glance, not liking to meddle in others’ affairs, and asked no more.