Chapter 1
1144words
The notifications on my alt account were blowing up—an ordinary basketball video had gone viral overnight.
In the video, the guy named Axel moved with incredible agility; each jump, drive past defenders, and shot carried a raw, wild power.
Under the sunlight, his gray wolf tail accidentally swept out from a tear in his basketball shorts during a particularly intense move, tracing a beautiful arc through the air.
I was mesmerized by that moment, my finger instinctively hitting the record button.
The comment section had absolutely lost it.
【Holy shit! What a prime Alpha specimen! That waist! Those legs! That tail!】
【Damn, the rhythm of his dribbling is making my pheromones go haywire!】
And the most-liked comment hit me like a dagger straight to the heart.
"Trust me, this Alpha is definitely into you!"
My cheeks instantly flamed hot.
My heart hammered against my ribcage—half from the terror of being discovered, half from a wild, secret thrill.
As a Beta, I was supposed to be completely immune to pheromones.
But I'll never forget that day in the library when he walked past me, and how that sharp scent of whiskey and pine made my heart skip a beat.
My phone screen suddenly lit up with a text notification.
The contact name was "Axel".
My breath caught in my throat.
I opened it to find a single line of text staring back at me.
"Luna, I saw the video."
My mind went completely blank, a static buzz filling my ears.
He immediately sent another message.
"Nice camera work, but why only film me from behind?"
I stared at those words, my heart nearly jumping out of my throat. He wasn't angry?
With trembling fingers, I frantically typed.
"…Sorry, I'll delete it."
The screen showed "Axel is typing…"
Each time those words flashed, it felt like tiny knives slicing through my nerves.
"Don't delete it."
"I'll pay you to be my videographer. How many more clips should we shoot?"
"By the way, I'm Axel."
A video call request suddenly popped up.
My hand trembled as I hit accept.
Axel's handsome face immediately filled my screen. He looked like he'd just finished working out—his dark bangs still damp with sweat, his eyes gleaming with mischief.
The gray wolf ears on top of his head twitched slightly with barely contained excitement.
In the video, he casually tossed his keys onto the table with a sharp clink.
My eyes were drawn to the sound, then froze in place.
Dangling from his keyring was a fluffy charm.
A palm-sized, chibi snow leopard plushie.
This dominant Alpha, this fierce gray wolf who turned into a beast on the basketball court, had a… snow leopard plushie on his keys?
The contrast was absolutely mind-blowing!
But in the next second, an even more shocking realization hit me like a bolt of lightning.
Wait a damn minute!
Snow leopard…
I'm literally a snow leopard!
With a rush, all the blood in my body surged to my head, my cheeks burning hot enough to fry an egg.
This couldn't possibly be a coincidence!
He has my video, he knows my name is Luna, and now there's a snow leopard plushie…
Has he known who I am all along?!
What exactly does he want from me now?
My heart was hammering so hard I thought it might burst, and a wild, ridiculous hope began to bloom in my chest.
Could it be… he likes me too?
"Hello?"
On the screen, Axel's voice pulled me back to reality. He shifted position lazily, propping his elbow on the table, watching me with amused confidence.
"So? Will you help me make more videos?"
Axel's voice came through the speaker, deep and magnetic, sending tingles down my spine.
I snapped back to reality and quickly nodded.
He chuckled softly, the sound rumbling deep in his chest.
"Next time, don't just film my back."
My face instantly turned crimson.
"…Alright."
I practically squeezed those words through clenched teeth, but the ears on top of my head perked up with a swoosh, betraying me completely.
The call ended.
The screen went dark, reflecting my flushed face.
And at the other end, which I couldn't see, Axel leaned back in his chair, the smile at the corner of his lips growing deeper.
His long fingers picked up the keychain, and his thick gray wolf tail silently wrapped around it, gently stroking the small figurine.
Still clutching my phone, I found myself opening Axel's social media profile.
Pinned at the top was a photo of a sunset, the orange-red glow painting half the sky, almost too beautiful to be real.
The caption was just one line: "I have a crush on a girl, she's beautiful beyond words."
My heart suddenly plummeted.
My fingers instinctively zoomed in on the photo, then zoomed in further.
In the lower left corner, a girl's silhouette was outlined against the sunset—those slightly drooping long ears, I recognized them instantly.
It was my roommate, Daisy.
A cute lop-eared rabbit Omega.
My blood instantly ran cold.
So that out-of-place snow leopard plushie wasn't meant for me at all.
Just proof that he likes fluffy things—that he likes cute Omegas.
My snow leopard intuition, usually so keen, now felt like a knife twisting in my heart.
My phone screen suddenly lit up with another message from Axel.
"Why have you never brought me water before?"
I stared at those words, my fingertips suddenly ice-cold.
Bitterness welled up from the pit of my stomach as I typed back coldly.
"Too many people bring you water already."
His reply came almost instantly.
"I've never had any."
Those three words hit me like an electric shock.
Then he sent another message.
"Tomorrow evening, bring me water at the basketball court. Bring that roommate of yours too."
Of course.
He was creating an opportunity to meet Daisy.
I gripped my phone tightly. The "cute" plushie he liked, Daisy's drooping bunny ears—it all made perfect sense now.
When I got back to the dorm, Daisy was sipping bubble tea and excitedly telling us about her date with her crush, Kane.
Her long rabbit ears were standing straight up, swaying with excitement.
"He complimented my pheromones today! Said they smell amazing!"
I listened half-heartedly, my mind stuck on Axel's post.
I looked at her and cautiously asked, "If Axel liked you, would you be interested?"
"Pfft—cough cough cough!"
Daisy choked on her bubble tea, coughing until her face turned bright red.
Her upright ears instantly drooped down with a swoosh, clinging to her cheeks like she'd received an electric shock.
"Are you kidding? That gray wolf Axel is so not my type! I'm all about Kane's caramel coffee scent!"
My heart settled back into place.
But immediately after, a sharp ache surged up again.
For Axel and his unrequited crush.
