Chapter Text
In hindsight, Gao Tu should really have seen this coming.
But he was so caught up in the whirlwind of one Shen Wenlang, it had totally slipped his mind.
Staying true to his words, the CEO had all but carried Gao Tu into his house on his shoulders the very next day.
He had also scrutinised each of his belongings and disposed of anything vaguely resembling suppressants.
“No more suppressants, Gao Tu! I'm making sure you live past 30!” He had insisted.
Which was very sweet and all, and paired with the fact that they were currently sharing Shen Wenlang’s bed since his guest rooms were all coincidentally under renovation, Gao Tu could almost believe that his life was finally taking a turn for the better.
Until a few days later..
Gao Tu woke up feeling like his insides were on fire.
Oh, he belatedly realised, I'm in heat.
He was reveling in the way he caught Shen Wenlang secretly sniffing him once or twice, he completely forgot that the suppressants were mainly to suppress something else apart from his scent.
And so now he was in heat, lying in a S-Tier Alpha's bed.
Oh, fuck me.
He opened his eyes to chance a look at the other man, who had seemed to come to the same conclusion as his pupils dilated.
Gao Tu swallowed, feeling a thrum of nervousness and thrill pass through him.
Maybe.. literally?
Although not planned, there seemed to be only one way things could go.
That is, until Shen Wenlang abruptly leapt out of bed, darted to the window and jumped out of his four-storey apartment.
“Wenlang!” Gao Tu had called in alarm, running over to the window to see the Alpha stick a superhero landing and sprint away unscathed.
Okay, so apparently there were two ways things could go.
He gave a sad sigh, slinking back onto the bed with shaky legs.
What was he expecting?
The CEO of HS Holdings was not going to sleep with an Omega just because they are in heat, no matter how much he said he liked them, he thought with a dejected whine.
For now, Gao Tu will just have to make do with burying himself in the leftover scent from the other man's bedding.
***
Something smelled heavenly.
The scent wrapped around Shen Wenlang like a warm and gooey cinnamon bun on a cold, rainy day.
His eyes snapped open to the view of a flushed and slightly panting Gao Tu next to him on his bed.
In the next two seconds, he had realised a few things.
Number one, Gao Tu was in heat.
Number two, wow, suddenly his mind was very creative with the amount of unspeakable things he would like to do to him.
Number three, he has to leave before he acts on these despicable thoughts and ruins their relationship forever.
To hide the view of an excited Wenlang Jr. from Gao Tu, the CEO opted to use the nearest exit which happened to be the window.
Thanks to Hua Yong, this wasn't his first escape stunt. The thought of the psycho helped clear his mind a bit.
A very effective turn-off.
He entered one of his cars parked at the entryway and drove away.
He could still feel his heart pound from the want. With one hand on the steering wheel, he dialed the one person who could help him.
The moment the call picked up, he blurted out, “Gao Tu is in heat.”
There was a pause from the other end.
“I am not giving you any bedroom advice.”
He bit in the fuck off and forced out a, “I need your rut room.”
“No,” came the immediate answer, “Get your own.”
“Too far,” He gritted out.
They both know that there weren't many rooms around that can trap an S-Tier Alpha in place.
“Hm, tough luck,” was the unsympathetic response.
“Hua Yong!” He snarled.
“I don't understand what's the problem,” The other man pointed out, “Aren't you two living together already?”
“It's only been 3 days!”
“Good for you, then.”
“It's not! I can't..,” Shen Wenlang groaned, “Look, you should be the one who understands most about restraint, okay?”
He heard a deep inhalation from the other end.
Then finally, a reluctant, “Fine.”
But before Shen Wenlang could let out a sigh of relief, Hua Yong added, “But you'll have to let Mr.Sheng beat you up a few more times without retaliating.”
“What the fuck?”
The other man gave a forlorn sigh.
“He's so mad and pent up these days, it can't be good for his health.”
And whose fault was that??? You're seriously sick in the head!!!
The CEO swallowed down the tirade of complaints as he felt more of his control slip. Sweat trickled down his temples.
“Fuck! Fine! Whatever!” He growled as if every word was personally stabbed out of him.
“Mn, you said it,” came the pleased tone. “I'll make some calls.”
The line cut.
Shen Wenlang took deep breaths to calm his boiling blood and skidded the car into Hotel X’s entrance.
He threw the car keys at the valet and rushed to the lift.
Everyone parted ways for him with hands flying up to their noses at the crazy amount of pheromones he was emitting.
He made it to the room in time before he heard the reinforced door click shut and his vision went red.
***
After a week, Gao Tu had just barely clawed his way out from the depths of hell.
If he'd known that his unsuppressed heat would hit this hard, he would've rather reunite with his deceased mother.
There wouldn't be much people to mourn him, after all.
Especially not Shen Wenlang, he thought glumly.
He was grateful for hot meals appearing at the room door by the housekeeper that kept him alive through the whole ordeal, but he knows when he's not welcomed anymore.
Gao Tu would've immediately moved out after his heat was done, but after he had dragged out his luggage he had barely any energy left to pack.
Gao Tu > Shen Wenlang
Are you okay?
He stared at his unanswered text on the phone forlornly.
He was just so tired, he just wanted to sleep for a thousand years.
But every time he closed his eyes, the memory of Shen Wenlang jumping out of the window haunted him.
He might as well have held up a sign that said ‘I wouldn't want to sleep with you even if you're the last man on earth’.
Gao Tu winced as his heart clenched. He was used to the hurt but the recent turn of events gave him hope and the fall this time hit harder.
His gaze wandered idly around the room and caught on the wine cabinet.
Alcohol heals all pains, right?
***
“--Tu? Are you alright? How much have you been drinking?” Gao Tu hears Shen Wenlang's voice drifting through his ear.
He cracked one eye open and was met with dual visions of the CEO.
Letting out a huff, he grabbed the other man by the collar and gave it a clumsy shake.
“You… you this JERK! You've finally.. decided to come back?!” He slurred.
Shen Wenlang was taken back by his sudden accusation, but then pulled the other man into his arms.
“Gao Tu, listen to me, I can explain..”
“NO! Don'twanna..” The secretary struggled weakly in his embrace.
“Hear me out, Gao Tu! If I hadn't jumped out of the window then.. then I would've definitely jumped your bones!” He defended.
“So you went.. went to find SECRETARY HUA instead?" Gao Tu huffed in grievance.
“What? No, I didn't–”
He pushed the other man away with a sudden burst of tears, “I KNOW! I know that Secretary Hua is GORGEOUS and–”
Shen Wenlang frowned with his eyes narrowed.
“--Wait, you think that he's gorgeous?” He interjected, “What about me then, is he more attractive than me?”
Gao Tu blinked, momentarily derailed from his outburst.
“Huh?”
“Tell me, Gao Tu, who is more good looking – Hua Yong or me?” He demanded, jutting his chin out.
Gao Tu’s drunk brain took awhile to process the question.
He scanned the other's face with a slow blink. Although he looked a little worse for wear with an unshaven stubble and deep eye bags, Shen Wenlang's jawline could still cut glass and those phoenix eyes still made his pulse race.
Finally, he answered, “Of course.. it's.. it's you..”
Shen Wenlang felt a wave of satisfaction wash over him. He could finally compete against the Enigma in one thing, especially in the eyes of the one person who mattered.
But before he could question Gao Tu more about it, the other man added with a snort, “I certainly.. didn't like you for your.. your *hic* BRAINS..”
His smug smile instantly fell.
“W-What do you mean???” He demanded.
“Apart from business, what else do you KNOW?” Gao Tu complained, “Always.. always asking me if I like whoever who'd talked to me for more than.. more than ten seconds! Haven't I.. been talking to you for TEN YEARS?”
“I-I was just–” Shen Wenlang sputtered.
Gao Tu knocked on the other man's forehead like he was rapping on a door.
“KONG! KONG!” he mimicked the sound of an empty barrel with a self-amused chuckle.
The CEO had never been so offended in his entire life.
“Gao Tu!”
The secretary ignored his cry of injustice and pinched his cheeks like one does to a child.
“You–!”
“And now, now you still expect me to believe you.. while smelling of ORCHIDS..”
Gao Tu gave a sad sigh and treated his cheeks like playdough, squishing and pulling them around.
“This face is tooooo handsome, you could have anyone you want..” he mumbled dolefully, “of course.. of course *hic* you wouldn't choose me.”
Shen Wenlang’s heartstrings tugged at the melancholy in his words.
He immediately clasped the wandering hands into his and shook his head.
“That's not true, Gao Tu! You.. you are the single most beautiful and important person in my life, everyone else can go fuck themselves!” He declared with a red face.
Gao Tu gave an unconvinced pout.
“I'm serious! In fact..” He hesitated in telling the truth.
Ah fuck it, he'd rather the other man thinks that Shen Wenlang is a pervert than him being unwanted!
“In fact, your scent was so enticing, it sent me straight into a rut with mate-seeking syndrome! The only reason I smell like Hua Yong is because I borrowed his fortified rut room to stop me from going berserk!” He confessed fervently.
“Don’t try to lie!” The drunk man rebutted, “Why would an Omega have *hic* have a rut room?!”
“Hua Yong is not a goddamn Omega, he's an Enigma!”
Gao Tu's brows furrowed in confusion.
“Enig..Enigma..?”
Shen Wenlang paused.
Oh well, since the cat's already out of the bag, might was well empty the whole thing altogether.
“Yes! He's the ever elusive Enigma! But because Sheng Shaoyou only likes weak Omegas, he used an Omega pheromones spray to mask his scent!”
Even with Gao Tu’s fuzzy brain, he could agree that Hua Yong was always a little bit scary to him.
“So.. so you didn't go find him?” He asked in a small voice.
“No!” Shen Wenlang hugged him with his nose stuffed into his neck and whined, “Believe me, Gao Tu, you are the only one I wanted to see so badly.”
He took a deep breath of the sage scent he had been craving for the past week and felt the other man relaxed in his embrace.
“My.. text..” He heard the other mumble into his shoulder.
“What text? What did you text me? I broke my phone during the rut.” Amongst wrecking the rest of the room…
He was answered by steady breathing.
He pulled back to find that Gao Tu had fallen asleep.
The CEO gave a helpless chuckle.
He submitted to his impulse and gave the other's cheek a soft, reproachful bite.
Then, he scooped the other into a princess carry and brought him back to their room.
***
Gao Tu woke up with a familiar throbbing in his head.
He groaned as his eyes opened to find himself back in bed.
How did I get back here?
Was last night just all a dream?
He wasn't too sure to feel relieved or disappointed.
Scratching the back of his head, he went to wash up.
Once he came back out, Shen Wenlang was lounging lazily on the bed with his head propped up on one hand.
“You're finally awake,” He drawled.
Gao Tu froze like a deer in headlights.
The CEO raised a questioning brow.
Gao Tu swallowed.
“You...You're back.”
Shen Wenlang snorted.
“I was back last night, but someone was busy drinking and throwing a fit.”
He felt a sense of deja vu washing over him.
Shit, so last night wasn't a dream too??!
Gao Tu recalled knocking on the other's forehead and winced internally.
He didn't know how to respond, so he did the next best option – Run.
“I.. I need to use the bathroom,” He coughed and turned back around.
In the next second, his path was immediately blocked by Shen Wenlang with his S-tier Alpha speed.
“Why? Weren’t you just done with it?” The CEO questioned, taking a step towards him.
Gao Tu took a step back.
“Ermm.. t-that is, I..”
The other man continued forth.
He continued back.
Gao Tu suddenly felt the back of his knee hit the bed, making him lose his balance.
“Ah!”
But before he could fall onto the mattress, a strong arm gripped him around the waist and hauled him to his feet.
They end up almost nose to nose with Gao Tu's hands on the other man's chest. He tried to back off but the CEO's hand around his waist did not budge.
Feeling that Shen Wenlang won't let him off until he explained himself, he turned his burning face away and muttered, “I-I’m sorry, I was drunk out of my mind last night, I didn't mean the words I'd said..”
The other man narrowed his eyes with a dangerous glint.
“You didn't mean it? Are you trying to deny all responsibility now?”
Well, what was Gao Tu supposed to say?
'Actually, yes, I do believe you're a bit of a himbo?'
“N-No.. I just meant that sometimes.. very, very occasionally,” Gao Tu admitted meekly, “you speak before you think..”
“What?!” Shen Wenlang squawked in indignance. “When have I ever–?” He suddenly recalled all those times he had put his foot in his mouth when talking to Gao Tu.
“Anyway! I'm not talking about that!” The CEO quickly waved it all away, “I'm talking about the other stuff!”
Gao Tu blinked in confusion.
“..Other stuff?”
There was a sudden silence where Shen Wenlang stared at him expectantly.
Finally, he gritted out, “Gao Tu, I've been tolerating you for a very long time now..”
Gao Tu felt his palms start to sweat.
Did he go too far to offend the other man? Was he going to get dumped from a strange relationship he wasn't even sure they were in???
Shen Wenlang was at his wits end.
Ever since the other man had moved in with him, he'd pulled out all the stops mentioned on the internet.
Wearing a deep V pajamas that made Gao Tu choke when he first saw it, learning how to sit and lie down in a sexy manner – he’d learnt them all!
He can't cook and didn't know what food Gao Tu liked, so he'd asked the housekeeper to make a bit of everything and noted the ones he ate more of. Then, he'd tried to replicate them to varying degrees of success.
He'd even lean close to the other man a few times but he still didn't catch the hint, only stammering and backing off.
In this relationship, Shen Wenlang really felt like he was a dog begging for scraps!
It really made him doubt Gao Tu's feelings for him. He only had a drunk call, photoframe and a drink bottle as proof, after all.
But then, last night! Last night happened and the CEO could finally hear Gao Tu's true thoughts. Barring a certain part he opted to forget, the other man basically admitted that he was in love with him!
So why.. then why was Shen Wenlang the only one acting like he wanted this???
He really can't stand it anymore!
“You–! You.. when exactly are you going to kiss me?!” The CEO demanded haughtily.
Gao Tu's brows jumped as his jaw dropped.
“H-Huh?”
“Weren’t you jealous of Hua Yong? Didn't you say that I'm very handsome? Don't you like me?” The other man shot him a barrage of questions, each one putting Gao Tu in the most awkward spot ever.
How was he even expected to respond to all of that???
Hold on, he thought back to the other's very first question.
‘When exactly are you going to kiss me?!’
Gao Tu looked at Shen Wenlang, like really took a good look at him.
His eyes seemed fierce at first glance, but their glistening sheen held unspoken longing. His cheeks were tinted in red while his lips quivered in a petulant pout.
If he had dog ears, they'd be drooping like a sad puppy who had been left out in the rain.
If what Shen Wenlang had said last night was true, then he had also been suffering much more the past week, alone.
Gao Tu's chest ached at that thought.
So perhaps.. He didn't even have to reply a single word.
Taking a deep breath, he closed his eyes and hesitantly gave a quick peck on the other's lips.
The soft press of lips from Gao Tu was all Shen Wenlang needed to appease all his grievances.
He didn't give the other man a chance to pull back too much, leaning forward to chase those lips he had been yearning for the past week with fervor…
***BONUS***
6 months later...
“Gao Tuuuuu, you.. you have never called me Ge before! How can you call another man Ge!” Shen Wenlang complained as the secretary helped him stumble back into their bedroom.
He seemed to have drunk more than usual at the business gala tonight, Gao Tu mused. He had happened to meet Ma Heng and was catching up with him, so he didn't manage to stop the CEO in time before he got drunk.
“I've been calling him Ma Heng Ge since I was young,” He retorted, “Besides, I'm older than you, why would I call you Ge?”
Unfortunately, logic doesn't work for the inebriated.
Shen Wenlang grabbed him by the shoulders and demanded, “Since younggggg??? Tell me the truth, Gao Tu, did you.. did you have a crush on him before?!”
Here we go again…
“No, I don't. We’re just neighbours,” He answered flatly.
Shen Wenlang gasped.
“Neighbours? Means that.. you two lived together???”
Gao Tu rolled his eyes.
“No, we live next to each other.”
He started to peel the suit jacket off the other man but was met with resistance.
“You.. you lived with another man and you still want to take off my clothes?!!” Shen Wenlang cried like a scandalised maiden.
Gao Tu huffed in fond exasperation.
“I just said that we stayed next door in separate houses. I’ve never seen him ever since I moved away when I was ten.”
The CEO squinted dubiously at him for a moment before throwing his arms around him and burying his face into his neck.
“Gao Tuuuuu,” He whined, “I wished that we stayed together when we were young..”
If they had been together when he was young, Gao Tu's sure his life would've turned out very different. He could imagine a young Shen Wenlang fending off his father with a tree branch.
There was a bittersweet tug at his heart. But rather than mull on the unchangeable past, one can only look towards the upcoming happier future.
“Aren’t we living together now?”
“Hm? Yes, yes, together now.. good..,” Shen Wenlang nodded into his neck.
He paused before pulling back to pout at him.
“But.. but now that Ma.. Heng is trying to steal you away from me!”
Gao Tu clucked his tongue.
“Don't spout nonsense,” he replied wryly.
In fact, Ma Heng had just gotten married last month.
“He called you TuTu,” The CEO grumbled, “But.. but you are my TuTu!”
Gao Tu felt his cheeks flushed at that nickname. He'd never given it much thought but it sounded much more intimate coming from Shen Wenlang’s mouth.
“Alright, alright.. I'm yours,” He pacified bashfully before he cleared his throat, “Now be good and change into your pajamas, okay?”
“Really? No, tell me,” He puffed his chest out, “Am I.. I more handsome or is that Ma Heng more handsome?”
Gao Tu snorted as he started to loosen the other's tie.
“It’s you, you're more handsome,” He humoured him.
“By.. how many times?”
His hands paused.
“What?”
“How many.. many times more handsome?” The other demanded.
Gao Tu didn't know whether to laugh or cry.
Even drunk, Shen Wenlang's ego wouldn't even catch a break.
“Two times,” He eventually relented, “Twice as handsome.”
“What! How can it be only twice???”
Shen Wenlang looked absolutely distraught.
Before Gao Tu could tighten his tie back up and use it as a noose, the CEO continued, “My TuTu is.. is ten times better than everyone! If I'm only twice as much.. it's not enough.. not enough.”
Gao Tu felt his heart flutter as he let out a helpless chuckle.
Somewhere along the way, he'd figured out that the CEO was less of the cool and suave Wolf as expected, but more of an overgrown, needy Husky.
He kissed the other man on the cheek.
“You've always been more than enough for me, silly.”
Shen Wenlang blinked at him with a dazed look.
“Really?”
Gao Tu nodded with a small smile.
“Mn.”
“Then.. then can I mark you permanently?”
Gao Tu inhaled sharply.
So far, the Omega had been insistent on keeping their relationship under wraps. It was exciting at first to have a secret office romance, but at times like this, Shen Wenlang really wished he could mark his TuTu so that others will already know that he's taken!
For Gao Tu, however, things aren't as simple as it seems. Making their relationship public will inevitably invite gossip. Whether he'll be accused of sleeping his way up or that the CEO was abusing his power on his employee, both will be casting the company in a bad light.
And most importantly, it'll be making their relationship real.
The past 6 months have been like living through a realistic fantasy.
No longer hiding his Omega identity, living with the man of his dreams while being treated like someone important, someone worthy in Shen Wenlang's eyes, trading kisses and more... It’s exhilarating.
Like Gao Tu was living like a hamster drowning in an eternally flushing toilet bowl his whole life, but now, he's fished out, dried with a warm towel and released into a field full of sunflowers.
Things have been too good to be true, so he'd always been waiting for the other shoe to drop.
But to share a permanent mark – it's a guarantee. No more dropping shoes. Even if there was, everyone's stuck with the consequences.
A literal ‘till death do us apart’.
For Shen Wenlang to even suggest it, it's almost unthinkable.
Must be that drunk, Alpha brain.
So he concluded, “Y-You're drunk.”
“I’mm not drunk! I really, really want to mark you.. be with you forever and no one can steal you away...” Shen Wenlang whined with a small nip to the Omega's neck, making him jump.
Gao Tu's heart melted at that declaration.
Didn't the other man know that Gao Tu was already his since ten years ago? He didn't even need a permanent mark. Sometimes a handsome face and hidden kindness from a cheap bottle of juice will do, he thought to himself with a chuckle.
“Ask me again tomorrow,” Gao Tu offered instead.
If Shen Wenlang would still have him, sober, with PR plans to make their relationship public with the least amount of backlash, then.. then maybe it's okay for Gao Tu to have this. For real. Forever.
“I will!” the CEO nodded into his shoulder sleepily. “You.. promise..?”
“I promise,” Gao Tu reassured while he carded his fingers through the other's hair with a soft smile.
And it's a promise he plans to keep.