Omega, Always Wants to Mark Me - Chapter 16

“Ming Xiaoyue, don’t push me,” Lu Jinxi said, her voice trembling slightly.

Ming Xiaoyue felt like she’d heard those words before, but the thought vanished before she could grasp it.

She stared at the woman pressing down on her, yet whose hands didn’t touch her at all, leaving even a small gap between their bodies.

“Hmph,” Ming Xiaoyue scoffed coldly, easily pushing Lu Jinxi off her. Just as she was about to speak, a voice came from outside the door.

“Hmm? Why can’t I open this door?”

“I don’t know!”

Lu Jinxi quickly moved away from Ming Xiaoyue. The door swung open, and when their eyes met, the newcomer rolled her eyes inexplicably and clicked her tongue.

Ming Xiaoyue turned to face Yang Yuting, who stood there in a striking red gown, her sharp features and high, straight nose radiating a classic “mature woman” aura.

“Hmph,” Ming Xiaoyue retorted with equal disdain.

Yang Yuting, a wealthy heiress, acted as if her family’s “mere millions” entitled her to the entire girl group’s attention. Ming Xiaoyue was the sole exception, and the two had clashed from the very beginning.

Of course, it was merely a matter of personal dislike, not yet rising to the level of mortal enemies. As for the reason, Yang Yuting’s low IQ and EQ made her unwilling to stoop to arguing with such elementary school-level opponents.

“How disgusting!” Yang Yuting spat coldly before turning to head toward the restroom.

“I’m so sorry!” Xi Ruoqiong, who had been following behind Yang Yuting, quickly apologized.

“What are you apologizing for? Who knows whose bed they had to crawl into to get that music video? Ha!” Yang Yuting’s venomous words dripped with arrogance.

“What’s this? Still jealous you didn’t get chosen back then? Hmm?” Ming Xiaoyue had initially planned to ignore her, but her innate temperament drew her into the fray.

“Who cares! My family’s jewelry endorsements are worth tens of millions. I wouldn’t waste my time being free labor. Only you two,” she sneered, her gaze sweeping over them with contempt, “would eagerly volunteer to work for free.”

“Ha! We earned this through our own merit. You, on the other hand, got yours through family connections. What’s there to be jealous of? If you’re so capable, go get your own!” Ming Xiaoyue retorted sharply, her voice dripping with sarcasm. She had always believed in settling scores promptly. After all, we only live once—why should she let anyone walk over her?

“You—”

See? Just like a grade-schooler, exactly like those pampered young mistresses. At home, everyone revolves around her, so she thinks the whole world should revolve around her too.

Unfortunately for Yang Yuting, Ming Xiaoyue never pulls her punches. She tore down her safe haven without hesitation.

“Hmph!” Unable to win the argument, Yang Yuting turned and stormed off in a huff.

“I’m so sorry, you know how she is,” Xi Ruoqiong quickly apologized to Ming Xiaoyue.

“It’s fine,” Ming Xiaoyue replied, meeting Xi Ruoqiong’s steady gaze. For some reason, she sensed a unique aura about her. She studied Xi Ruoqiong’s face, her expression subtly shifting.

In her previous life, after her scandal broke, every member of the girl group had avoided her like the plague, fearing they’d be implicated. Back then, Ming Xiaoyue couldn’t even find a backup dancer.

Unexpectedly, Xi Ruoqiong had been willing to help her complete her final performance, even entering the revival round because of her involvement.

Xi Ruoqiong, the group’s renowned “good girl,” was like a walking air conditioner—wherever she went, warmth followed. No wonder her debut hadn’t stirred envy among the others.

“I’ll go check on her now. See you later,” Xi Ruoqiong said with a smile before leaving.

“Mm,” Ming Xiaoyue replied, her tone softening. Lu Jinxi, standing beside her, frowned at the noticeable shift in Ming Xiaoyue’s demeanor.

She recalled a moment from their previous life: when Ming Xiaoyue achieved the Grand Slam of Best Actress awards in China, reporters had been more interested in her romantic scandals, constantly probing and hinting about her love life.

Whether Ming Xiaoyue had grown weary of the reporters’ relentless questioning or if there was truth to the rumors, she once declared on a red carpet, “I’ve felt my heart flutter before—back when I was in a girl group.”

When people reach a certain height in their careers or a certain age in life, they often speak openly about past wounds without hesitation.

At the time, Lu Jinxi was on set when she saw the news. Hope stirred within her as fans speculated that the girl Ming Xiaoyue had spoken of was most likely Lu Jinxi herself.

In that instant, Lu Jinxi felt her heart, long dormant, spring back to life. Despite being at a crucial stage in her career, she recklessly squeezed out three days, bought a plane ticket back to China, and rushed home.

But Ming Xiaoyue had clearly underestimated the reporters’ shamelessness. She had assumed that releasing this tidbit would keep them at bay.

The very next day, at a charity event, the reporters relentlessly pressed her about her identity. They had no sense of propriety, interrupting a donation drive for left-behind children to pursue their own agenda.

What left Ming Xiaoyue utterly speechless was their mention of someone she had long buried in the depths of her memory—the very root of her pain.

The reporters brazenly confronted her, asking if Lu Jinxi was the girl who had once captured her heart.

As Lu Jinxi stepped off the plane, she watched from the business car as Ming Xiaoyue, disregarding all pretense of composure before the cameras, rolled her eyes and sneered, “Lu Jinxi? Who’s that? I don’t know her.”

Everyone knew Ming Xiaoyue was lying. By then, Lu Jinxi had already achieved modest success abroad. Moreover, during their time in the girl group, the two had been marketed as a couple. How could she possibly forget so easily?

You can never wake someone who’s pretending to be asleep. At least Ming Xiaoyue’s response made her stance clear.

Inside the business car, the privacy-tinted windows dimmed the bright sunlight streaming in, casting the interior into a gloomy twilight.

In the dimness, Lu Jinxi pressed her lips tightly together. Her boiling heart seemed to have been doused with a bucket of cold water, the chill gradually turning to frost before freezing her heart completely.

Lu Jinxi switched off her phone, her gaze lowered, the dark circles beneath her eyes starkly visible. She had stayed up all night for a week straight, pushing herself to meet her deadlines for these three days.

Finally, her lips moved slightly, and she murmured to the driver, “Let’s go back. Take me to the airport.”

The driver paused, but ultimately obeyed Lu Jinxi’s instructions. They returned to the airport, changed her ticket, and Lu Jinxi flew back overseas that same day.

Afterward, no matter how deliberately Lu Jinxi avoided discussing the topic with Ming Xiaoyue, she remained part of Ming Xiaoyue’s fan community. Eventually, she saw the joint posts the two women shared on social media.

By then, Xi Ruoqiong had already retired from the entertainment industry for some time. Rumor had it that she had started a family, though netizens had spent ages trying to uncover the identity of her partner without success.

The posts were simple reflections on their shared youth. Fans lamented the fact that Xi Ruoqiong had married so young.

Lu Jinxi suddenly remembered Xi Ruoqiong, the “central air conditioner” of the girl group…

Creak! Ming Xiaoyue left without hesitation, the sudden slam of the door snapping Lu Jinxi out of her thoughts. In the dimness, she realized her eyes had already turned completely red, her face etched with sorrow.

So, if given another chance, would Ming Xiaoyue choose Xi Ruoqiong?

In the dimness, Lu Jinxi suddenly lifted her gaze to the tightly closed door. For a moment, her eyes filled with disappointment. Ming Xiaoyue had never lingered for her, neither in their past life nor in this one.

But just as quickly, a flicker of conflict appeared in her eyes. Should she let Ming Xiaoyue go? After all, sometimes the greatest act of love is letting go.

Lu Jinxi’s fingers twitched slightly at her side.

Creak! Just then, the fire door was pushed open from the outside again. Lu Jinxi watched the light stream in, a flicker of hope returning to her eyes. Her lips began to curve upward in anticipation.

“Eh?” The voice was familiar, but Lu Jinxi’s expression instantly turned cold. It wasn’t Ming Xiaoyue who had returned, but Xi Ruoqiong.

“A Jin, is that you? Xiaoyue, dear?” Xi Ruoqiong greeted with a warm smile, her two dimples deepening as she spoke. Her gentle demeanor radiated the warmth of a kind older sister from next door, instantly putting people at ease.

There are some people whose warmth is like a gentle breeze; their mere presence inspires trust.

Lu Jinxi lowered her gaze and replied softly, “She just left.”

“Oh, really?” Xi Ruoqiong said, pulling out a handful of candies and slipping them into Lu Jinxi’s coat pocket. “I’m sorry about earlier. A’Yu doesn’t mean any harm; she just speaks without thinking. These candies are really sweet, you know.”

Lu Jinxi didn’t know how to respond. At that moment, she felt a deep sense of helplessness welling up inside her.

It was then that she truly understood the meaning behind that viral internet phrase: The pain isn’t that you have no choice, but that I know you have a better one.

“I need to go rehearse now. Bye!” Xi Ruoqiong said with a smile, but she politely waited for Lu Jinxi’s reply.

Lu Jinxi’s throat tightened with bitterness, and she couldn’t force a smile. It felt like swallowing a mouthful of bitter herbs.

But she knew this wasn’t Xi Ruoqiong’s fault. When love is involved, people become selfish.

“Mm,” she finally managed to squeeze out a single word.

Xi Ruoqiong seemed unfazed, gently closed the door, and left.

In the hallway, Lu Jinxi was once again alone, utterly isolated. She suddenly turned around, gazing at the empty corridor, as if she had been transported back to the past…

Five minutes later, Lu Jinxi hurried back. After all, they had already been delayed for several days due to filming the music video. Entering the training room, each team occupied a separate room—not large, but more than adequate.

“We were just talking about you, A Jin,” Song Wanwen said with a smile. “We think you should practice your solo dance with Wu Yingyun first while the three of us work on our formations. What do you think?”

Lu Jinxi instinctively looked up, meeting the simultaneous gazes of Ming Xiaoyue and Wu Yingyun. Unexpectedly, she avoided their eyes, her gaze drifting to the side as she murmured, “Mm, okay.”

The others in the room visibly relaxed. They had been worried Lu Jinxi might be dissatisfied with the arrangement and were preparing to discuss it with her upon her return. After all, internal conflict was the last thing a team needed.

But to their surprise, Lu Jinxi showed no signs of resentment.