Is My Cat Secretly Crushing on Me?! - Chapter 1
It was September, and the sunshine in the south was still scorching, but for the cats, this temperature was just right.
It was the height of a lazy afternoon, and three or four cats lay sprawled out on the open ground by the flowerbed downstairs from the male dormitory building of S University, sunbathing side by side.
A tabby cat twitched its ears and suddenly opened its eyes.
Then it let out a long, sticky sound: “Mee—”
Its purring was as sweet as honey, like a spoiled child.
The rest of the cats also quickly became excited.
They heard the sound of a cat food bag shaking from far away—shua-la shua-la—and a figure slowly walked over.
Lin Miao expertly rattled the cat food bag. In just three to five seconds, several cats moved at the sound, anxiously rushing to his feet.
“Meow-woo!”
“Mee-yee—”
It turned out that besides the ones in the sun, there were also a few cats sleeping hidden in the bushes.
Now they were all energized.
Some of the cats were even so eager that they wanted to climb up Lin Miao’s leg.
Lin Miao, used to this sight, laughed, “A bunch of hungry ghosts, hurry up and eat.”
“Meow meow!”
“Eat, eat, eat!” the cats cheered.
Lin Miao complained while adding food and pouring water for the cats.
Lin Miao was a junior student, and since his freshman year, he had joined the stray cat rescue department, making these tasks second nature to him.
He looked at the cats with an expression of tender indulgence, instinctively petting the affectionate little tabby.
“So cute. Little Li, hurry and eat.”
Little Li (Tabby) turned a deaf ear, rubbing fiercely against his backpack.
“Meow-mee! Meow!”
“I smell it! There’s a yummy smell!”
“The canned food isn’t for you to eat; you just ate it yesterday!”
Little Li stared with big, confused eyes, persistently humming and chirping, “Eat yummy stuff!”
Lin Miao couldn’t help but laugh.
The meows that sounded like simple sounds to outsiders were automatically converted into understandable speech in Lin Miao’s ears.
Lin Miao was not surprised at all and had long been accustomed to it.
This was a superpower he had possessed since childhood, but his ability was limited. Lin Miao could only understand the cats’ words, but he couldn’t make the cats understand human language.
However, Lin Miao seriously suspected that a cat’s small brain probably couldn’t hold anything besides eating, drinking, and playing. The smartest cat he had ever met could only barely understand human speech.
Understanding it was one thing; whether the cat master was bothered to pay attention to you was another.
Lin Miao gave the cat’s head a hearty rua (a sound effect for petting/rubbing): “I can’t do anything with you guys.”
He then reached into his bag, took out a can, and opened it: “Absolutely none tomorrow! Canned food is so expensive, I can’t afford it.”
With the delicious food, Little Li didn’t bother with him anymore, ba-ji ba-ji (chewing sound), practically burying its head in the can.
It had only eaten a few bites when it was shoved away by an orange-and-white cat’s butt.
This orange-and-white cat was so fat its jowls were starting to show. It occupied the can and ate slowly and methodically.
Lin Miao squatted to the side with great interest, watching their interaction.
While he was at it, he took a few pictures and sent them to their rescue department’s daily check-in group.
Miao Miao: [Fed the cats downstairs from the dorm on September 23rd (Image)]
Bikini Bottom’s Cat: “Wow! Little Li is still so cute and energetic!”
Xuan Zi: “Thank you for your hard work, Senior!”
Nan Nan: [Also fed the ones behind the cafeteria today (Image)]
The stray cat rescue department did not have many people, and their division of labor had only become relatively complete in the last two years.
The people in this group were only responsible for daily feeding, which was relatively easy.
It was also the department where Lin Miao felt most comfortable.
Not having to meet people was the best thing for the socially phobic Lin Miao.
He would rather chatter to a cat all day than socialize.
Cats were simple and cute; he could say anything to them without having to worry about his choice of words.
They wouldn’t leak secrets or gossip.
However…
“You! Hiding here and slacking off again!” a girl also approached, carrying large bags of cat food, teasing him with feigned anger.
Some people were not willing to let him off so easily.
Speak of the devil, and he shall appear.
“Lin Miao, I assigned you some cat food, but you didn’t even come over to help.”
Lin Miao’s fingers curled slightly, his expression became reserved, and he politely stood up: “Thank you for your hard work, Senior Xie.”
As he spoke, he was about to take the cat food from her hand.
Xie Xinlan raised her hand, suddenly not handing it over: “What have you decided about the election for the changing of officers that I spoke to you about earlier?”
She stared straight at Lin Miao, her tone sincere.
Lin Miao slightly lowered his eyelids, avoiding her gaze: “Nothing much. I still don’t think I’m suitable to be the president. I’m already a junior.”
“Objection! Didn’t I, the president, stay in the position until my senior year?” Xie Xinlan sighed softly, trying to persuade him again: “Our department is short-staffed, and the rest are just kids. I’m worried they won’t do a good job, so I want you to be the president for a year and mentor them.”
“I can tell you genuinely love cats. Even if you only lead for one semester in your senior year, everyone will support you.”
Lin Miao wrung his fingers, unable to speak for a long time.
He knew the senior meant well, but, but…
Lin Miao opened his mouth: “I, I… I’m sorry, I really don’t like… I don’t think I have the ability.” His voice grew softer as he spoke.
Lin Miao reassured her: “There must be someone more suitable. Don’t worry, Senior.”
Xie Xinlan sighed and said nothing more.
“Never mind, never mind. Anyway, the transition is only at the end of this semester. We’ll talk about it later.”
She handed the cat food to Lin Miao: “These are for feeding the teaching building cats. They’re short on hands there now, so you might have to trouble you to feed them on the weekend.”
“No problem!” Lin Miao’s eyes lit up, and he smiled shyly: “That’s where the Orange-and-White Mom family is, right?”
Xie Xinlan nodded: “Good job on the cat census.”
Lin Miao pursed his lips, clutching the cat food bag somewhat sheepishly.
The senior squatted down next to him, very naturally starting to play with the cats, occasionally turning her head to say a couple of words to Lin Miao.
Lin Miao replied courteously, feeling completely uncomfortable.
In his heart, he was thinking about how he could politely leave.
Xie Xinlan suddenly thought of something: “I haven’t seen the orange cat at the foot of the mountain for several days. Did it run out of school?”
Lin Miao’s heart tightened: “Is it that very old orange cat? It wouldn’t wander off.”
Xie Xinlan frowned: “It is him. Could it be…” She stopped short of finishing her sentence.
Lin Miao couldn’t stay still.
That old orange cat was the smartest cat he had ever seen, practically ancient and refined.
Lin Miao wasn’t worried about the orange cat being tricked by people; he was only afraid that it had died of old age.
The average lifespan of a stray cat is less than three years, and according to their observations, the old orange cat was at least six or seven years old.
It was a veritable great-grandfather among cats.
He had been chatting with it fine just a few days ago, so why would it suddenly disappear?
Lin Miao was secretly anxious.
“I… How about this, I don’t have class this afternoon. I’ll go look for it first,” Lin Miao said.
“I’ll join you and look for a bit too.”
They hadn’t walked far when Lin Miao’s sharp eyes spotted a patch of orange in the grass.
“Is that an orange cat there? The pattern looks similar.”
Xie Xinlan followed Lin Miao’s finger, and both of them paused in surprise.
How to describe it? This orange cat’s fur was smooth, and its body shape was on the plump side. It clearly looked well-cared for.
It was just that, perhaps because it was injured, its four limbs were uncoordinated, and it was even walking with a “pacing” gait (moving both legs on the same side together).
It was also staring at a glass pane, seemingly very interested in its own reflection.
Lin Miao frowned slightly, crouching down and calling softly, “Meow-mee? Meow-mee, come here.”
The orange cat turned its head at the sound, its amber eyes widened, and its pupils narrowed into a slit.
It wasn’t the old orange cat’s emerald-green eyes.
While disappointed, Lin Miao couldn’t help but be amused, feeling as if its face was filled with astonishment, making it especially cute.
He beckoned: “Meow-mee, what’s wrong?”
The little orange cat’s ear tips trembled, and it hesitantly took a step.
Lin Miao squatted patiently in place.
The little orange cat tilted its head, then instantly rushed towards him.
Running, it let out a long sound: “Meow—”
In Lin Miao’s ears, this was translated as: “Wifey—”
Lin Miao’s foot slipped.
Enduring Xie Xinlan’s strange look, Lin Miao kept his expression neutral: “Haha, my leg fell asleep from squatting too long.”
He had heard cats call humans “sh1t-shovelers,” “two-legged beasts,” and “babies,” but what the heck was “wifey”?!
The orange cat was unaware of Lin Miao’s inner thoughts and excitedly rubbed against his knees.
“Wifey, wifey! I actually saw my wifey! Come and pet me now.”
Lin Miao, who usually loved cats so much he wasn’t afraid of being scratched, for a moment didn’t know how to proceed.
After a while, the orange cat also realized something, sensing it might have scared Lin Miao, and retreated slightly.
Tilting its head, its round cat eyes were filled with grievance.
Lin Miao instantly surrendered.
It was just a cat; it didn’t understand anything.
It probably picked up a weird title from somewhere.
Lin Miao reached out with a look of affectionate indulgence and stroked its forehead.
The orange cat instantly started purring happily, instinctively rubbing back and forth on Lin Miao’s hand, leaving its scent.
Lin Miao’s heart almost melted: “Whose kitten is this? It looks so young.”
Xie Xinlan also squatted down, curious: “Yeah, I’ve never seen it before. Its eyes are so pretty; I would definitely remember it if I had.”
She squatted beside Lin Miao, and seeing the orange cat was so affectionate, her hands also felt itchy.
She reached out, wanting to touch its fluffy, round texture.
Before her hand could get close, the orange cat suddenly raised its head and hissed: “Men and women should keep their distance!”
It looked absolutely fierce and aggressive.
The corners of Lin Miao’s tightly pressed lips kept turning up. This little cat was too peculiar and witty.
The orange cat relentlessly nudged Lin Miao with its forehead until he moved away from Xie Xinlan. Only when there was a full half-meter gap between the two did the orange cat finally give up.
“Hey, it’s quite discerning about people.”
Xie Xinlan was unfazed. For some reason, Lin Miao was simply a cat magnet.
Lin Miao scratched the orange cat’s chin: “You really are a little cutie.”
He couldn’t help but take out a cat treat stick and feed it.
The orange cat ate very carefully.
As soon as it got close to Lin Miao’s fingers, it retracted its sharp teeth, afraid of biting him.
Lin Miao couldn’t help but marvel again: where did this well-behaved little kitten come from?
Just then, the greedy little tabby next door also smelled the treat and came over, wanting a few licks of the snack.
Little Li looked at the unfamiliar orange cat warily, its nose twitching.
Unfortunately, the orange cat completely ignored it and had no intention of sharing Lin Miao’s treat stick.
Little Li didn’t mind and circled the orange cat in surprise: “Meow-woo?”
“Why does this cat smell like a two-legged beast?”
The orange cat chased the tabby away: “Go away! He’s mine.”
Lin Miao’s face didn’t show it after hearing that, but his guess in his heart became a little more certain.
This cat was so well cared for; it likely had an owner. And since this was near the student dormitories, someone was probably secretly keeping it in their dorm.
But keeping cats in dorms was forbidden. It would be best to find its owner to discuss things…
“Oh dear!”
Lin Miao’s thoughts were interrupted by Xie Xinlan: “What’s wrong?”
“I lost track of time! I have class, so I have to go first!” She waved her hand hurriedly, “Bye bye.”
Lin Miao waved goodbye. When he turned back, he saw the orange cat seemed to be full, shaking its head and walking away.
The orange cat’s tail flicked listlessly, looking somewhat uncomfortable.
It raised its leg and scratched its ear, feeling muddled as if someone was calling its name.
“What’s wrong, Meow-mee? Where are you going?”
Lin Miao hurried after it.
The orange cat looked back at him, but for some unknown reason, it instinctively darted into the bushes in a couple of steps and disappeared without a trace.
Lin Miao stood rooted to the spot, wondering what had just happened.
—
Meanwhile, in a dormitory room on the first floor of the Science Dormitory Building.
It was the perfect time for an afternoon nap.
“Holy cow, what time is it! We’re going to be late, get up, hurry, ahhh!” Yue Zi’ang’s deafening voice rang out.
“Brother Lan? Lan Shen! Stop sleeping, get up quickly!”
The boy named Lan Shen frowned slightly and slowly opened his eyes.
If one looked closely, they would notice a rare hint of confusion in his deep-set eyes.
“Are you dead? Sleeping so heavily! I’ve been calling you for ages.”
Lan Shen rubbed his temples: “I had a strange dream.”
“I don’t care what kind of dream you had. If you dare to be late for Old Liu’s class, you’ll fail the course.” Yue Zi’ang angrily cursed while anxiously tapping his foot, waiting for him.
Yue Zi’ang: “Hurry up, you motherf**ker.”
Lan Shen curved his lips, unconcerned.
He quickly packed his things, his mouth not idle: “You’re welcome to try, as long as you can beat my dad.”
“Damn, you’re shameless.”