"Of all girls I don't see the reason you would talk to the same girl I just showed interest in!" Xiao Feng spoke the moment he got close to Yuan.
The words came out sharper than he had intended, propelled by the frustration that had been simmering inside him since he spotted them together.
Yuan did not answer. For a brief moment, it looked like he might simply walk away, the same way he always did, leaving Xiao Feng standing behind him with unresolved conversation.
Xiao Feng stepped forward and blocked his path, standing close enough that retreat was no longer an option.
"What do you want?" Yuan finally asked.
His voice carried the unmistakable tone of someone deeply bothered, weighed down by irritation.
"I like that girl, so just walk around and find another.. infact they will find you themselves because they seem to think you are a god or something.. there are better ones here for you, so stay away from the one girl who might actually like me back. And don't you dare tell me that you were just talking.. you haven't talked to anyone and suddenly you wanna talk to her?!" Xiao Feng complained.
His words spilled out in a rush, driven by a need to stake a claim he barely understood himself.
"When did I say I was just talking? I was telling her my concerns.. which must be clear to everyone here, I like her. And if you like her too then she will just have to choose between us herself, not we choosing, she chooses who she wants."
The words hit Xiao Feng unexpectedly.
For a moment, he could not breathe.
He had never heard Yuan speak like that before.
That he liked someone?!
The phrase echoed violently in Xiao Feng's head, repeating over and over, drowning out everything else. I like her.
He likes her?!
The realization unsettled him more than he could understand. He told himself it should not have mattered. It was just a girl. Someone he had spoken to for a few minutes and he didn't really like her, atleast not that way.
Someone he barely knew.
And yet, something deep inside him twisted sharply.
Was it about competition? But somewhere beneath the confusion and rationalizations he desperately tried to cling to, he knew that it was about Yuan liking her.
That was all he knew, and none of it made sense.
By the time his thoughts stumbled back into the present, Yuan was no longer standing in front of him.
Around him, movement had began to shift, the other Alpha princes had started drifting out of the hall in small groups.
Xiao Feng followed the flow with his eyes, confused at first, until fragments of conversation reached him.
-There was something happening outside, something far more entertaining than remaining inside the hall after hours of formal interaction.
When he stepped outside, darkness greeted him.
There were no lanterns, no guiding lights, no soft glow illuminating the grounds.
When he had arrived at seven, the area had been well lit, the paths clearly visible. Now everything was swallowed by darkness.
The realization struck him quickly. The lights had been put out intentionally, and certainly not with Alpha Shaohong's knowledge.
What followed left him completely stunned.
People began undressing without shame or hesitation, clothing discarded carelessly before bodies shifted and transformed into full wolves.
The air filled with the muted sounds of movement as wolves emerged, large and powerful, their forms unmistakable even in the dark.
They ran, played, circled one another, careful to keep their noises low while indulging in the freedom of their true selves.
It looked fun in every possible way.
Xiao Feng watched, rooted in place. He knew without question that he could not join them. He could not transform. He did not even know how to begin. He did not know how others summoned that part of themselves, how instinct guided bone and muscle into real wolves.
Standing there, surrounded by something he could not be part of, he felt painfully out of place.
All he wanted in that moment was to leave. He turned and began walking toward the gates, his steps quickening as though distance alone might ease the weight pressing down on him.
"Running away this early? Don't you think you are giving me a chance to win her over? Making it easy for me?"
The voice came from behind him, He did not need to turn around to know who it was. Xiao Feng slowed and the stopped. .
"Just because I'm not around doesn't mean she would choose you for being near, our bond is stronger than that." He answered, before turning around and meeting Yuan's gaze in the darkness.
They could see each other clearly, their vision unhindered by the absence of light. Yuan stood a short distance away, his expression unreadable.
"You're not going to be let out of the gate." He said.
"Why not?" Xiao Feng asked, his brows furrowing instinctively.
"That's a rule, you can only leave when others are leaving too, when the gala is over at 3am. Besides, it's for everyone's safety."
The explanation only deepened Xiao Feng's irritation. A groan slipped from him before he could stop it. He had needed to leave. Now he was trapped here for emotional torture.
"Why aren't you joining them anyway? You are obviously someone who enjoys these kind of things.."
The question caught him off guard.
For a moment, Xiao Feng wondered if something was wrong. If Yuan was drunk or If he was imagining the whole conversation and the length of it.
This was not how Yuan usually spoke to him. This was not how long he ever stayed to listen to him.
But since it was happening, Xiao Feng decided to take it.
"You know me better than I know myself."
The teasing slipped out naturally, but it did not have the effect he expected. Yuan turned away immediately, and started walking away.
Xiao Feng moved without thinking, blocking his path one last time. His voice changed, losing its lightness, settling into something serious, something almost fragile.
"I don't know how to transform into my wolf. Can you teach me, please."
The admission stripped him bare.
"You're lying." Yuan said, almost immediately.
"I'm really not lying, seriously, I know I spit a lot of nonsense and some things that are lies others don't make much sense but this time I'm really serious. So can you teach me please?"
He pleaded.
"Let me find out that you are wasting my time with something you know.. you'll pay dearly. Come." Yuan said, before turning and starting to walk.
Without hesitation, Xiao Feng followed him, excitement blooming in his chest.