逆转 (Reverse) – 莲鹤夫人
Chapter 15
The living room was dimly lit by a single soft lamp with a big, glossy bulb and white flowers and leaves at the edges, which the omega had personally chosen. Over the years, he had thoughtfully handpicked many of the house’s little decorations, sincerely hoping that these sweet, delicate touches could melt his partner’s cold heart.
He stood under the faint, hazy light and looked up at the alpha that was towering over him.
“Is…is my life worthless?” His voice trembled as he repeated, “Why are you asking me this now?”
When he asked the question, the alpha just stared at him, not moving or saying anything, seemingly taken aback.
“Why are you angry right now? Because I suggested giving up my gland as a way to get a divorce?” the omega’s eyes were filled with unshed tears, glinting like fragile stars, “It’s… it’s ridiculous… so ridiculous…”
The alpha’s Adam’s apple bobbed as he watched his wife. After that, he absorbed the words, and his voice remained calm and unwavering, “Then I’ll be straight. In exchange for a divorce, you want to sacrifice your gland to treat my ruts and to research the reverse virus. Do you think I can accept an offer like that?”
“You like making things clear in business? Then I’ll make all of this very clear.” the omega said, his voice rough but firm, “I’ve really wanted to leave you for a long time.”
The alpha, still in shock, unconsciously loosened his grip on the omega’s hand.
“Are you… really willing to endanger yourself just to break off our marriage?” the alpha’s voice was ragged and pained, “Why? Give me a reason.”
“You never loved me.” the omega flatly replied.
The reason was so foolish that it almost made the alpha laugh, “I… never loved you?”
His typically composed demeanor collapsed under the weight of this confrontation, and he retreated like a tamed lion, pacing restlessly in place. His voice broke sharply, “Love? Can you be rational for once? You need to grow up! Mutually beneficial relationships are worth more than any written or verbal agreement. I thought your parents and teachers would’ve taught you this when you were three! I keep your family safe so they can step into places they had never been before and enjoy all it has to offer. Everything you could ever want—status, money, diamonds, jewels—I give them to you. From now on, every cent I make will have your share. Do you understand? You want those? Just ask!”
The alpha was still raged. As he glanced at his partner, he could feel the heaviness of the pheromones surrounding him, like a misty rain falling on cedar forests in the north. Suddenly, he felt like a wall had gone up between them, one that they couldn’t cross or break. They had never really understood each other, and even now, they still couldn’t. Similar to how the omega couldn’t fully grasp the alpha’s world, the alpha couldn’t understand the omega’s endless stream of soft, innocent thoughts in a single second.
Getting tired, he said, “Unspoken rules run through everything around us. There are no permanent friends or enemies. Only achievable goals are important… And just because I don’t love you, you want to use this virus as an excuse to split up?”
The omega stood by him quietly, a single tear running down his cheek. An icy, dry drop.
“Because I love you.” he said softly, skipping the formality, and gazed longingly at the alpha’s handsome, sharp features as one would at their beloved, “I love you. I have loved you. Did you already forget?”
The alpha’s face turned gloomy as his heart raced. He muttered, almost inaudible, “Loved…”
“But you don’t love me. You don’t love anyone.” the omega went on, “Because you think less of me and those around you. You rule over this world. From the moment I first saw you, I knew—rules control everything around me, and you control those rules… and you control me.”
“Is there even such a thing as real sympathy anymore?” the alpha stood up and smoothed out the folds in his suit, “Honestly… what would’ve happened to your family’s resources if I hadn’t been patient and tolerant enough? They got something good in your name, right?”
The omega looked up with clear eyes. The alpha seemed to see that day’s light reflected there—bright, sharp, and undying, “Watching me lose my mind during my heat, begging desperately… didn’t that amuse you? You might not know the difference between a heat cycle for an omega and a regular alpha’s rut, but when I wear myself out pleading for you to stretch out a single hand, your pheromones instantly shift—it’s like a quiet mock… I can feel it. I almost see it!”
There was a subtle change in the power dynamic, and the alpha’s breathing got a little heavier. He said firmly, “I can make amends and apologize—but you refuse.”
“Those who haven’t experienced it can never grasp the innocent cruelty of it,” the omega said, ignoring the alpha’s defense. Sitting under the elegant lamp, as if on trial, he spoke with an air of desperate bravery, “Forgive me for using the word ‘innocent’—but it’s the word you’ve always used to describe me. You were just as cruel as the children who took pleasure in ripping butterfly wings and impaling beetles on red-hot needles. Language and words aren’t enough to describe the agony of being in heat. People can’t really be happy and sad at the same time… You can’t understand, but now, with the reverse virus, you might go through the agonizing pain of heat and feel a twinge of guilt for what I went through.”
The alpha fixed his gaze on him. As an official, his job is to find flaws in arguments and dismantle them using persuasive language—but now, as he stared into his wife’s eyes, he realized he couldn’t do it anymore.
“You don’t love me. Love isn’t being glued to one another all the time. You don’t have a heart for affection. You treat my love like a toy and play with it carelessly. You look at me as if I’m a hungry cat rolling for food or a thirsty bird shrieking for water—but I… I really…”
He was visibly shaken. He inhaled deeply, suppressing the rising flood of tears, “…I’m about to die. My heat is killing me. Do you understand?”
The alpha stood there motionless.
“You understand, right?” the omega kept going. “If not, why would you cry so much during your rut that you almost passed out, only to come back and question my intentions? You don’t trust my honesty.”
With a raspy voice, the alpha spoke, “…you said you once loved me.”
“I did.” the omega continued, “Even though you would never wear our wedding ring, I still feel sorry for you. I’d give up my health and have my gland removed for you, but I don’t… I just don’t want to make you breakfast every day anymore.”
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Translated and edited by janemoyu (01/19/26)
