The nightmares had been getting worse, and now Yufei saw them from a first person perspective, feeling everything but incapable of controlling his body.
"Ha! Damn! Fucking! Defective! Alpha!"
Yufei spat each word with every kick to Xiaodan's gut. They were in an alleyway with Xiaodan curled up on the ground while Yufei beat him mercilessly.
"Huck…! Agh! P, please sto, urgh!"
Xiaodan pleaded with tears in his eyes. He couldn't fight back. Even though he was capable of bringing this kid to his knees with just one bout of pheromones, he would undeniably be dealt with by the influential Li family if he followed through.
'No… No, please… Stop it already!'
The real Yufei thought in agony.
He wanted to close his eyes desperately, but they stayed wide open, forcing him to witness the bloody scene. He wanted to plug his ears immensely, but he couldn't, forcing him to hear the gut-twisting groans of the person he cherished most.
Yufei experienced the scenario in its entirety, putting him in so much despair that it could be validly described as a form of torture, an incredibly effective one at that.
The indescribable vividness made it feel so real that he even started to feel an incredibly deep-seated self-loathing.
"Nnnnh… Hahhh…"
When Xiaodan stopped moving, seeming to have fainted, Yufei finally ceased the beating. He changed clothes, since they were splattered with blood, before turning away indifferently, leaving behind the unconscious boy on the grimy ground of an alleyway.
'Is it over?! Please…! Please be over!!!'
The horror Yufei felt as he saw Xiaodan faint and occasionally twitch with a tear-stained face could not be put into words. He could only pray to the gods above in hopes that it was finally done.
* * *
Yufei woke up heaving, his chest feeling like it was being crushed beneath something heavy as tears fell endlessly. He could barely breathe as he sobbed his heart out.
When the tears finally stopped, Yufei collapsed onto his damp pillow and sniffled his runny nose.
'Don't think about it…You'll cry if you do.'
Yufei felt his nose sting slightly, but luckily, no more tears welled up.
It was the weekend… And he was all alone in this vast and empty house…
Yufei knew he wouldn't be able to handle being alone here. Not after that horrific nightmare. So, he picked up his phone, squinting from the brightness, and called Xiaodan.
Since it was three in the morning, Yufei felt bad for calling him and decided that if he didn't answer, he'd call him later.
'Yeah… I can handle a few hou-'
- Hello? What's wrong Yufei…? Are you okay?
Xiaodan's drowsy voice played through the phone, and despite crying his heart out just moments ago, tears rapidly filled Yufei's vision.
"N, No…"
He spoke softly, his voice shaky and a bit cracked.
- Yufei! Are you okay?!! What's wrong?!
"Mmh… Can you just, hic, come here…?"
His chest eased slightly as he heard the voice that was obviously alright.
'It wasn't real… It wasn't real, Yufei…'
- Yes! I'm coming right now!
He could hear loud shuffling and then a door swinging open through the speaker.
"I'm, really s-sorry…"
He felt embarrassed since he couldn't control his stuttering, but Xiaodan just reassured him in a dependable tone.
- Don't apologize. You don't need to. I'll be there in ten minutes okay? Do you want to stay on the phone?
"…Mhm…"
- Alright.
After that, only white noise could be heard from the other side, but it comforted Yufei more than one could possibly know.
With his head a little clearer, Yufei pulled himself up and headed downstairs to the front door, sitting down on the small bench nearby it.
He wanted to see him as soon as he arrived.
* * *
Xiaodan woke up abruptly at three in the morning, feeling an awful unease in his gut. It was silent and nothing wrong seemed to be happening, but his anxiety only increased as the digital clock portrayed the passage of time, wrapping around his heart like a snake.
Suddenly, he startled at the sound of his phone ringing.
He swiftly looked at the screen and answered upon seeing the caller id.
"Yufei…?"
- C, can you, come here..?
Hearing the broken emotions in that quiet voice, Xiaodan's heart dropped to the floor.
He immediately became alert at the soft plea and wasted no time slipping on his shoes and heading to his car hastily.
He drove at the highest legal speed, his eyes distressed as his thoughts dashed around in a panic. Every red light made him feel more anxious, as if he was in a rush to stop a bomb before it killed thousands of people.
At long last, he pulled into the driveway, locked his car with a beep, and approached the house, but before he could even raise his hand to knock, the front door swung open abruptly and a sniffling Yufei immediately pulled him into a strong hug.
The plum fragrance wafting from him was stronger than usual, leading Xiaodan to think of a certain possibility…
But that thought would have to be reserved for another time because Yufei was the most important thing at the moment.
* * *
Yufei felt instant relief once he was in Xiaodan's arms. It really was like magic as his breathing gradually steadied within the warm embrace.
After a long time, Yufei reluctantly pulled out of the enfold and tugged Xiaodan along as he silently headed back to his bedroom.
Groggily climbing onto the mattress and lying down, he raised his arms out towards him, still not saying a word.
Xiaodan didn't ask anything either and just followed his lead, laying beside Yufei and obediently hugging him once again.
Neither of them spoke, and after feeling the warm and comfortable tranquility, Yufei quickly fell asleep.
* * *
Even after Yufei fell asleep, Xiaodan continued to lay with him, instinctually feeling like it'd be best to stay.
He had no complaints though because now he could hold Yufei all he wanted.
Relishing his signature sweet smell, Xiaodan noticed that the plum scent had changed into a different type of fragrance. The balance between sweetness and tartness was noticeably altered, creating a more mellow feeling.
He became more certain the more he thought about it: Yufei might be nearing a late differentiation.
He had heard that there were special recessives whose pheromone scent changed depending on their mood. That seemed to be the most likely type of subcategory for Yufei.
But since he presented as a beta during the mandatory subgender analysis, he clearly was a late bloomer.
Luckily, late differentations lacked the usual susceptibility period because they had more time for the pheromones to balance out.
Experts interpreted the first susceptibility period during differentiation as a reproductive mechanism characteristic to the subgenders.
But since the production of pheromones before differentiation couldn't keep up with natural secretion, the available pheromones would slowly dwindle, meaning that differentiation had to happen early.
It wasn't a good thing to differentiate late since it could cause severe pheromone instability, but if it doesn't happen too late, it can be a very subtle but safe process.
Xiaodan decided to convince Yufei to go to an ABO specialist when he had the chance.
He wanted to ensure that Yufei wouldn't have any trouble. He wanted to protect him and cherish him.
And, right now, he wanted to fall asleep with him nestled in his arms, surrounded by his scent.