Chapter 49

Again, it was the wrong thing to say.

Oscar's expression shuttered completely, their gaze instantly turning icy. "So you are considering it."

"No!" Hu Yetao exclaimed vehemently, sliding his hand into his hair and clenching the strands in agitation. "I'm just pointing out… Oh for fuck's sake, Zhou Keyu isn't a threat to you."

"No, he isn't, because you're not going anywhere near him again."

Hu Yetao stiffened, feeling his exasperation teeter on the edge of defiant recalcitrance. "What do you mean?" he asked evenly, forcing calm into his tone that he didn't remotely feel.

Oscar sat on the edge of the bed and began to rip through his laces before roughly pulling his shoes off and throwing them to the floor.

"What are you doing?"

His mate started on the buttons of his white shirt next. "We're not going."

Hu Yetao stared, disbelieving. "Are you serious? We can't go; this party is for us. Your mother would be so upset."

"I'll send her an owl with our apologies."

Hu Yetao walked over to stand in front of him, watching as Oscar unbuttoned his shirt with fingers that were still trembling with anger. "I'm not missing this party just because you're having a jealous Alpha meltdown. Your mother put too much effort into it and is looking forward to it too much for us to do this to her. What does it matter if Zhou Keyu is there? You'll be with me the whole time."

Oscar paused in his jerky movements and looked up at Hu Yetao with a scowl. "I don't want you anywhere near him again, especially at a party with alcohol and lots of people; I could lose sight of you."

"And what?" Hu Yetao snapped scathingly. "I'll forget all about you and let him fuck me up against the wall?"

Oscar's eyes flared and Hu Yetao knew he'd crossed a line - but then so had his mate. Who was he to order him around? To act like he had no free will like he was just some slutty Omega who couldn't resist an Alpha's charms.

"If he gets you alone-"

"What?" Hu Yetao interrupted furiously. "What will happen? I've already proven that I can say no when I want to."

"Yes, but do you want to? Perhaps Zhou Keyu is different; you invited him to Hogsmeade once upon a time."

Hu Yetao clenched his jaw and glared at his mate. He could see that there was no winning this argument with the temperamental idiot. "You're being a complete wanker about this, you know that right?"

Oscar narrowed his eyes. "We're not going and that's final."

Hu Yetao stared at him, fuming, a million responses running through his head. "Fine," he eventually bit out.

He spun on his heel and stormed over to his wardrobe where he began tossing clothes onto the floor.

"What are you doing?"

"I'm not sleeping here tonight," Hu Yetao replied shortly, fury strangling his voice. He strode into the ensuite and grabbed his toothbrush.

Oscar stood, watching him with narrowed eyes as he returned and threw his things into an overnight bag. "Where are you going then?"

"Gryffindor Tower," Hu Yetao spat back, turning to face him. "I'll stay with the girls if it will make you feel better, but I'm not staying here in this room with you when you're being such a controlling prick."

Oscar's expression tightened and he crossed his arms over his chest. "Fine."

Hu Yetao straightened his shoulders and lifted his bag. "Fine."

He turned and walked to the door, feeling Oscar's silent gaze on him the whole way. Without a backward glance, Hu Yetao wrenched the door open and threw it shut behind him, making it rattle on its hinges, before striding angrily down the empty corridor. He knew he was acting ridiculously petulant now too but he was too infuriated to care.

He collapsed against the wall the next corridor over, breathing hard and dropping his bag to the ground. He couldn't believe the fucking audacity of Oscar ordering him not to go simply because he didn't think Hu Yetao was capable of controlling himself. After all their conversations about having an equal partnership, he couldn't believe Oscar would do this to him; play the Alpha card and act as though he were in charge like he was the one responsible for making all of their joint decisions like some sort of mateship dictator.

Hu Yetao scowled and kicked the wall behind him in anger. This was exactly what he was afraid of when his Omega inheritance was confirmed, that he would feel out of control and prohibited from making his own choices and decisions in life.

"Right," Hu Yetao muttered determinedly, straightening up from the wall.

He tossed his bag into an alcove, close enough to the third-floor corridor that no one would probably find it, then turned and swiftly walked to the stairs and made his way down to the entrance hall, heart pounding in his ears. Without pausing to second-guess his decision, he pushed through the heavy oak doors and out into the cold evening air.

He cursed the fact that he didn't have his winter cloak with him, but at least he had his wand.

He picked up his pace and jogged down the snow-covered drive to the gates unimpeded. As soon as he was outside the Hogwart's grounds, he Disapparated with a grimly resolute expression on his face; he was not going to disappoint Shui Xian after all of their friendly ice-breaking letters over the past week, in which she mentioned how much she was looking forward to this evening, and he was not going to miss out on getting to know the Wang family's close friends either.

This night was important in making him feel accepted and comfortable with Oscar's family, and if Oscar couldn't see that then he could just stay behind and sulk on his own.