The next day, Jun Yibai woke up in a cold sweat.

He had run home, scared he was being followed by the pretty boy. Even though he didn't see anyone, the fear wouldn't fade until he'd hidden under his blankets. His mother had called out to him but after minutes of silence, she accepted that he didn't want to talk.

It was just him and his mother in the house, which meant things were quiet and he could think.

That person... was probably going to be an omega.

Jun Yibai knew from what his father said. Omegas were super pretty and that boy was the prettiest person he had ever seen. He looked soft and helpless, like a stray.

They absolutely couldn't meet again.

Yet when he tried to go to sleep, his dreams were filled with the pretty child reaching out to him. His words were muffled as Jun Yibai tried to escape. Yet at every turn, he'd appear once more, saying something to him.

Curiously, he thought there might have been two people there but surely not. Why would he be chased by two scary shadows?

In the end, he got caught by them and woke up with a gasp. The night was quiet and cool, his mother having come in at some point to crack the window.

Jun Yibai stared out the window, his eyes looking over what little of the city he could see from his bedroom. Far away, tall buildings rose high into the sky, the lights as distant as stars in his eyes.

The notion that there were people in those lights, doing stuff he couldn't even imagine, was strange. His father worked far away but nowhere near that far.

He wondered briefly if he'd ever get to see from those stars. To look over the city, not from the ground up but from the sky down.

No, that would never happen. He chuckled to himself as he yawned. He was a pebble, like his father and grandfather before him. 

That's what his father had said and who else knew more about the world than his father?

Seeing as how he wasn't going to go back to sleep anytime soon, Jun Yibai jumped out of bed and left his room. As his small feet padded across the floor, he spotted his mother asleep on the couch. Without a word, he placed a blanket over her.

After getting himself a snack, the child returned to his room and began to study. 

He heard when his father returned home from work an hour later and the brief argument that his parents had. He didn't bother to listen in. It was none of his business.

Just keep your head down.

So Jun Yibai went back to his studies, drowning out the world as his little hand went through the textbook.

***

The next morning, his mother was smiling as she served breakfast. The redness around her eyes was clear as day but Jun Yibai said nothing about it.

They both knew there was no point bringing up things neither wished to talk about.

Their conversation was light and casual, if not a bit bland. It was nothing new. That was until he asked the question.

"Where is dad?"

"Ah!" Xiulan flinched, nearly dropping her cup. She hadn't expected the question but quickly recovered. "Your father is still asleep. He worked late last night."

"Okay." Jun Yibai continued to eat, not really wanting to know any more than that. It was rare for his dad to still be home in the morning. He worked a lot so he'd gotten used to almost never seeing the man.

After making sure he was set for school, Xiulan saw her son off as he walked to school. The neighborhood was filled with betas that all knew each other so no one worried about their children walking to and from school on their own.

Jun Yibai, despite being surrounded by others, chose to remain isolated. Dozens of children his own age ran passed him, calling out to their friends and greeting them. A few even tried to greet him.

They were all met with a cold blank stare.

It quickly spread that Jun Yibai was a living statue. You couldn't greet him or talk to him as he would never respond. Yet you couldn't bully him either, as he was bigger than most kids and nigh immovable.

This was how Jun Yibai liked to spend his days. Going to school and not being bothered. He stayed silent in class and took notes, diligently doing his best to excel. When the test came by and kids grouped together, only he alone remained isolated.

Children whispered among themselves like they were bound to do.

Was he alive?

Did he eat?

Why was he so weird?

As time went on, the children stopped asking such questions. They stopped greeting him in the morning or trying to get a rise out of him. They treated him like a statue. Something to be ignored and passed without even a look.

It was only then that Jun Yibai started to enjoy going to school.

Yet all that changed a few days after his nightmare, when someone spoke to him for the first time in months.

"Hey!"

Jun Yibai felt his skin tingle, not having to look up to know what was standing in front of his desk. His nightmare had come to life.

Somehow, this troublesome person had found him.

Li Suren sat down at the desk in front of Jun Yibai, resting his chin on his arms. A cool smile graced his pretty face, making the few students around them stare. Such a pretty child, why was he talking to that nobody?

"How did you find me?" Jun Yibai spat, feeling frustrated that this troublesome person was now here. "I know you don't go here."

The smile grew wider, nearly predatory. "I do now. "

Li Suren had been searching for this person for over a week now, lurking by the area they'd met every day in hopes of spotting him. Yet this person was so rude, avoiding the area and running away.

Why? Wasn't Li Suren the cutest? Why run away?

The child refused to let this go. There were so few interesting people around Li Suren. So many people fawned over him, wanting to give him nice things and make him smile. Even those bullies were the same, liking him but wanting to get his attention exclusively.

Yet this person, he was the first person to see him and reject him.

Perhaps he should have let it go, having to beg his mama to find this person. He demanded that his mother, who claimed to love him and want his happiness above all else, to find his favorite person.

Sure he had no clue what his name was, where he lived or anything other than vague description but his mother wasn't a big shot in the police force for nothing.

Yet on such short notice, he only managed to get into the same school. They were still separated by class. Too bad.

Jun Yibai had no clue how much trouble Li Suren had gone through just to get here, having to beg and promise things to his parents that would never happen otherwise.

"Of course, you do." The child sighed, feeling a headache coming on. He should have known this person was a weirdo too.

Li Suren stared at the boy, curious about him. He really wasn't anything to look at. When placed side by side, clearly this prince was the one who would get all the looks. He was pretty, cute, and completely humble.

Yet Li Suren felt a deep longing to stay close to this person.

"Do you want to be friends?" He offered, showing off his most charming smile. It was the first time he'd ever asked anyone this and was confident this dumpy-looking guy would say yes.

It was Li Suren asking after all.

And yet...

"No."

"Eh?" It took the child a second to catch up. Had... had he been rejected again? So quickly?! "You didn't even think about it."

"I don't have to." Jun Yibai could tell what kind of person this preening kitten was. He was not about to get involved with a showoff.

He'd rather just continue to be unnoticed.

The kitten in question bristled, feeling aggrieved. He'd offered this person friendship and was rejected!? There was no way he'd give up with just that.

"Well, I'm Li Suren." He continued, continuing to stare. "It's nice to meet you."

The boy said nothing, turning back to the book he'd been reading before he was interrupted. If he didn't study, how was he going to get through the quiz later? Within moments, Jun Yibai had forgotten there was a kitty vying for his attention.

"You won't talk to me?" Li Suren hissed, living up to his nickname.

"Will it make you go away?" He shot back, not looking up once.

"No."

"Then no."

Li Suren pouted, not wanting to leave and give up but also feeling sad. He'd never been rejected this much. Perhaps it was pride keeping him here but he really did want to befriend this person.

There was no envy or admiration in his eyes when he looked at Li Suren. No, it was pure indifference, like he wasn't anyone special at all. Like he was just another person rather than a pretty face. He thought it might be nice to just be another face in the crowd if it was this person doing so.

Unaware of his contribution to Li Suren's worldview, Jun Yibai continued to study, quietly ignoring the boy in front of him. Li Suren, while determined, knew better than to push too much and just remained nearby, using any opportunity to enter his soon-to-be friend's line of sight.

Watching the two, it was easy to imagine a lonesome cat watching their owner, trying to get their attention but failing to do so. It was adorable but lasted only five minutes.

The bell rang and the students started to return to their classes.

Still, Li Suren remained, waiting to put himself in this person's eye. No one had bothered to get close before now, earning a glare from Li Suren whenever they drew near.

"H-hey, Li Suren?" One brave ventured forth, just wanting her seat back.

"What do you want?" He grumbled, glaring at the poor girl.

"Class will be starting soon." She pointed to the teacher who had just walked in.

"Oh?" He turned back to Jun Yibai, seeing that he still had yet to put down his book. How stingy. "Then I'll come here later, okay?" 

Despite him not looking up, Jun Yibai knew this troublesome person was talking to him. Li Suren was just passing the boy when he responded.

"Don't bother."

The kitty perked up, finally acknowledged by its owner. With glee, Li Suren wrapped his arms around Jun Yibai, hugging his tightly.

"Aw, don't be so quick to reject me." He purred, his smile widening as Jun Yibai let himself be hugged. He was sure the boy did so just cause it would be too troublesome to push him away but how could Li Suren not be happy?

***

Much to his chagrin, Li Suren kept his promise, showing up at his classroom mere moments after the lunch bell rang.

"Sweetie!?" He called out, his eyes darting about the room. Everyone's head shot up, amazed by the sight of the pretty boy.

All but one.

Jun Yibai clenched his fists, trying not to be noticed by that person as he attempted to sneak out the room.

He had better not be talking about-

"There you are, sweetie!" A hand slammed onto the door, trapping Jun Yibai in the corner. "Do you want to have lunch together?"

"Who are you calling sweetie?!" He snapped back, unable to hold it in anymore.

"You, of course." He replied smoothly. He was so happy his sweetie had finally responded to him. His papa was right about using pet names to soothe people over. "What else am I supposed to call you?"

"My name."

"Oh?" His smile grew. "Are you sharing?"

Jun Yibai clenched his teeth, refusing to be tricked by this troublesome person. It's not like there was much that could stop him from calling the child whatever he liked.

"Do what you want." He pushed Li Suren's arm away, slipping past the silver-haired boy.

"Eh?" Li Suren rushed to follow after Jun Yibai, calling out to him. "Sweetie, come back I-"

A girl stepped between them her face mildly flushed as she spoke. "Li Suren?"

Li Suren jumped, his eyes darting toward Jun Yibai impatiently. If he didn't stop him, Li Suren would miss his chance to have lunch with him. Yet he couldn't be rude.

Stupid papa and his ultimatums.

So he smiled, which was clearly forced but went unnoticed by the girls who began to swarm him.

"Li Suren? Are you going to lunch?"

"Yeah." He grumbled.

How about we share? My mama makes really good lunches.

"Sure." He sighed, his eyes drifting back up. To his surprise, his target was still nearby, watching the exchange. Li Suren beamed, waving his arm to catch the boy's eye. "Sweetie, do you-"

"Go by yourself." He snapped, turning away. He didn't have to look to know the girls were glaring at him. They didn't want him with them any more than he wanted to be there.

Why not respect the mutual feelings, eh?

"Fine." Li Suren pouted, feeling defeated for a moment. His sweetie was a stubborn guy but so was he! "Then I'll eat with you tomorrow."

Jun Yibai flinched, hoping against hope the annoying guy would get the hint. Why was he so fixated on him?

"No, leave me alone!"

"I'll see you!" He called out, his arm being pulled by the girls who fawned over him. "Wait for me, okay?"

Jun Yibai watched as he was dragged away, feeling a sense of relief that that weird guy was gone. But he was then left standing in the hallway with over a dozen other children staring at him.

Flushed, Jun Yibai ran to a dark corner and ate in peace, scolding himself for getting like that. He was trying not to be noticed so why did he let that guy rile him up? He was just an annoying guy. If he just ignored him, he would go away.

Yet life had a way of ruining one's assumptions in the worst way.

Not only did Li Suren continue to show up whenever possible, but he also began proclaiming their friendship to anyone who was willing to listen. While he never managed to get a name out of Jun Yibai, he did manage to make everyone in the school pair the two as friends.

This pretty and cool guy was friends with the statue? Surely that was just a rumor, right? How could they be friends?

The children were wildly curious, wanting to know who had started the friendship and how close they were. This left Jun Yibai in a bind, not wanting to talk to anybody yet being forced to.

No matter how much he denied it, no one believed him. Why would they? Other than his name, Li Suren seemed to know everything about him. Where he lived, his favorite food even his secret hobby of knitting.

"What don't you know about me?!" He snapped one day, having dragged the devious boy into a secret corner. Jun Yibai knew all the secret places in the school, having bundled himself in them for months.

Li Suren grinned, all teeth like a fox. "Everything but Sweetie's name."

"You know where I live." He still didn't know how he did that but the letters he'd found in his mailbox were causing problems at home. "Of course you know my name."

"Sure, but I want you to tell me."

His eyes narrowed. "Why?"

Seeing that look, Li Suren flinched, feeling unsure for the first time in his life. Was he... disliked by this person? But why?

"Because I want to be your friend." He said earnestly, wanting to convince Jun Yibai. He truly only wanted to be this person's friend.

"You've already convinced everyone that we are." He snapped back. The endless nagging he received from Li Suren's fans was annoying. No one believed him even when he stated they weren't friends.

It was either that Jun Yibai was lying or Li Suren was lying and in their minds, the amazing Li Suren couldn't lie.

"Yeah," Li Suren sighed, looking away. "but you don't bend under peer pressure."

"So you admit that that was what you were doing?!"

To say he wasn't would be a lie. He'd hoped his sweetie would just relent and let them be friends. Li Suren was sure they'd get along. Outside the name conflict, they could get along well enough.

So why was he making this an issue?

"If I tell you my name, will you leave me alone?

"No!" Li Suren snapped, suppressing the urge to cry. Why did it have to be like that? Couldn't they be friends?

Jun Yibai saw that Li Suren was near tears and felt himself soften a bit. He didn't want to make this person cry but it was getting way too troublesome.

"What do I have to do to make you go away?" He breathed, taking a step back. Yet Li Suren grabbed his sleeve, pulling him back.

"Why do you want me to go away?"

Jun Yibai snapped his mouth shut, not wanting to say. It was for the best they did not get close. Li Suren was different from him. It was obvious.

Li Suren was cute, smart, and charming. He had the school wrapped around his finger within only a few days of attending. Girls liked him and boys yearned to be around him.

He was nothing like Jun Yibai.

"I don't need someone whose going to cause me trouble." He snapped, turning his back. Silence fell between the two. Before Jun Yibai could call up the courage to apologize, Li Suren had left.

Much to his surprise, his request was acknowledged. The boy kept his distance and didn't bother him afterward.

But that was not the end of it.