Chapter 10: Lonely Catfolk, Single Man

Chapter 10: Solitary Cat, Lonely Man

"Okay." Fei Yu's face was completely red, his voice low and muffled as he nodded.

The main teaching building was quite far from the cafeterias, and with classes just ending, streams of students were flooding toward them. By the time they got there, it would be a zoo.

After asking Fei Yu, they headed to a nearby convenience store.

Because it was close to the academic buildings, the store was huge. The staff had just restocked, and Song Ji immediately spotted a mountain of oranges in the fruit section.

It was just after the Qingming Festival, and all kinds of oranges were flooding the market. Under the lights, their golden-orange skins shone with a glossy sheen, looking fresh and perfect for a post-meal palate cleanser.

He was about to pick a couple when his peripheral vision suddenly caught something.

The teenager who had been standing right next to him had abruptly backed away, his handsome features scrunched up, backing away from the orange mountain like it was poison.

As if sensing something, Song Ji withdrew his hand and asked quietly, "You don't like oranges?"

"I don't." Fei Yu shook his head vigorously, his eyes wide, his face scrunched in protest.

Oranges—who even likes those things!

Most cats hate the sharp smell of orange peels, and Fei Yu was no exception. He kept a wide berth from all citrus fruits.

He glared at the orange mountain like it was a mortal enemy, held his breath, and edged away cautiously, not letting a single whiff of orange get near his nose.

"Alright." Song Ji nodded and casually picked some grapes instead.

After they picked out their lunch, they sat down at the counter.

The small table was loaded with all kinds of snacks: rice balls, oden, fried chicken wings, yogurt, grapes... it was almost overflowing.

Fei Yu stared at the mountain of food in shock, sneaking a glance at the composed young man across from him.

No wonder Song Ji had grown so tall.

Then something came to mind, and a conflicted, awkward look came over his face.

Last time, he had only bought one rice ball—had he left Song Ji hungry?

The food was steaming hot, releasing fragrant white plumes. In the paper cup, several meatballs were packed tightly together, their surfaces glistening with oily broth, giving off a tempting, sweet smell. They looked delicious.

Fei Yu had never eaten this kind of food before. He licked his lips and eagerly picked up one.

Biting through the skin, the hot, savory juices burst out instantly, flooding his tongue and exploding into a delicious savory flavor.

So good!

Fei Yu's eyes sparkled as he looked at Song Ji, the corners of his eyes flushed with excitement. "This is delicious! What's it called?"

Not knowing what Fei Yu liked, Song Ji had bought a bit of everything from the convenience store's popular snacks.

He thought back to the menu and hesitated briefly before answering in his clear, cool voice, "Juicy, bouncy fish balls."

Fei Yu's eyes sparkled. He silently repeated the name in his mind, then picked up another one, chewing contentedly and savoring each bite before swallowing.

It was really, really good. When he went back to Cat Village, he had to bring some for the cats there.

A gentle breeze carried the scent of flowers, mixed with the crisp, clean scent of the guy next to him, brushing softly against his face.

Fei Yu half-lowered his eyelids, eating distractedly, his gaze constantly drifting toward the young man beside him.

With such good looks right in front of him, it was hard for a little catman to keep his cool.

The young man's shoulders were broad, his posture upright as he sat, staying properly upright even while eating. It was a pleasing sight.

He slowly unwrapped the rice ball's packaging. His palm was broad, his fingers long and slender, easily wrapping his whole hand around it.

Fei Yu couldn't help but recall the feel of Song Ji's hand stroking "Pearl."

Remembering the warmth of the young man's palm gliding along the cat's back, it felt like an electric jolt shot through his own body.

Fei Yu's breathing immediately became uneven. His cheeks flushed, and he unconsciously curled his toes.

A worried, cool voice reached his ears. "Your face is a little red."

Fei Yu looked up to find Song Ji staring right at him, his brows drawn together slightly. "What's wrong? Are you feeling unwell?"

"I-is it?" Fei Yu felt the tips of his ears burn with heat, his voice stammering.

"Maybe it's just because it's hot today. It's nothing."

He didn't dare to let his thoughts wander anymore. He dropped his head and focused on his food.

Song Ji silently observed Fei Yu across from him.

The teenager in front of him was eating quietly with his head down. He ate very slowly, his cheeks puffed out. His long, fine lashes fluttered with each swallow. His soft, dark hair fell neatly over his brows and eyes.

Song Ji thought that Fei Yu seemed to like fish-flavored stuff: he had eaten a lot of fish fillet and fish balls, but showed little interest in the other food, just taking a bite or two and then leaving it.

It was very similar to Pearl's taste.

And it wasn't just the taste. Song Ji paused slightly—even the way they ate, the earnest, satisfied expression, were like a perfect match.

His heartstrings gave a little tug. He found the random thought that popped into his head funny.

Song Ji silently noted Fei Yu's preferences in his mind, picked up the food Fei Yu had barely touched, and quietly polished it off.

Both of them ate with their heads down, neither noticing a streak of yellow darting past outside.

The orange tabby, Drumstick, had been kinda down lately.

The human who fed him kept saying he was too fat and needed to lose weight.

Lately, he had been getting much less offerings, and he wasn't even allowed to swipe the cow cat's kibble.

Ridiculous! He was just a little fluffy—how was that fat!

He had just finished lunch but was still hungry. All worked up, he passed by the convenience store, and the smells from inside wafted out.

Drumstick was immediately drawn in by the smell. He licked his lips and suddenly felt hungry. He hopped over to shake down some humans.

"Hey human! Hurry up and give me tribute!"

"Meow meow meow!"

The cat's grumpy meows reached Fei Yu's ears. He looked up and saw the orange tabby. His eyes immediately crinkled into a smile as he stretched out his hand and called, "Drumstick! Over here!"

Awesome, it was the boss!

The orange cat was secretly delighted, trotting over all excited, and leaped onto the dining table.

But when it looked up, it unexpectedly saw the Castration Demon sitting opposite the boss, with a cold and stern expression.

Chicken Leg: !!!

The man was a good half a head taller than the boss, with broad shoulders and a broad back, a sturdy build, and sitting there silently like a mountain.

The orange cat silently compared the fighting ability of the boss and himself, froze solid, and didn't dare to move.

Which was more important, eating or keeping its own little cat life?

After debating for a while, it shuffled reluctantly over to the boss, meowing sweetly twice.

Eating was more important, meow.

Fei Yu patted the orange cat’s round head, took out some cat grass tablets from his pocket, and comforted softly, "Chicken Leg, I heard the Cat Association is putting you on a diet. You can't have extra meals now. How about some cat grass tablets, okay?"

"Meow!" The orange cat looked as if the sky had fallen, drooping its ears unwillingly.

It didn’t want to, and was about to lie on the table and roll around cutely, when it caught a glimpse of the dark gaze of the demon beside it, and suddenly shivered in fright.

Timidly cowering, it squeezed over to Fei Yu, swallowing the cat grass tablets in his palm in a few bites.

Fei Yu's eyes crinkled, and he praised, "Good boy, Chicken Leg."

Chicken Leg glanced at the demon’s expression, didn’t dare to stay long. It tucked its tail between its legs, meowed softly a couple of times to say goodbye to the boss, then jumped off the windowsill and ran away without looking back.

"Hey, that's strange, why did Chicken Leg leave so fast today?"

Fei Yu put the cat grass tablets back into his bag, turned around and saw the orange cat sticking its butt into the grass, scratching his face in confusion.

The culprit, Song Ji, was silent for two seconds, then said casually, "Maybe there’s something else going on."

"Alright." Fei Yu accepted this reason, lowered his head, and took a sip of yogurt.

His soft lips were slightly stained with milk, then licked clean by a wet red tongue.

Song Ji rubbed his fingertips, silently looked away, and mused, Fei Yu really knows the campus cats well.

The scene of his first meeting with the boy flashed before his eyes—back then, Fei Yu was already very familiar with Pearl’s condition.

That meant that, before he came, they already knew each other.

Both the boy and the cat had quiet, gentle personalities, so they must have gotten along well.

Song Ji's usually indifferent heart suddenly melted, and he parted his lips and asked softly, "Do you want to go see Pearl together tonight?"

Fei Yu suddenly choked on his yogurt and coughed.

He lowered his eyes, his eyelashes fluttering, and lied without a trace of guilt, "Can't. I have plans tonight."

A flicker of regret passed through Song Ji's heart, and he said, "I really like Pearl. If it's willing, I want to adopt it."

Fei Yu's lips curved up involuntarily, then he tried hard to suppress them.

Catfolk are very independent, and there have been no cases of them being adopted by humans. Even Pang Qiu comes and goes freely at the coffee shop.

But if it were Song Ji…

Fei Yu looked at Song Ji, his eyes crinkling, and said seriously, "Then you'll have to try your best."

Song Ji smiled faintly. "Mm."

"I will do my best."

*

Open Study Room

Zhou Qian typed the last character on his computer, leaned back in his chair, and finally let out a long breath: "Done!"

"Seriously, what are these professors thinking? So many group projects, it's tough on college students, right?"

He complained, then looked to the side: "Hey A Ji, are you free this weekend?"

"There's a car show opening near my place, and I'm planning to get a new car. Come with me, just the two of us?"

"Not free." Song Ji's gaze was fixed on his laptop, he answered indifferently without looking up, the screen casting cold white light on his face.

"Mr. Busy Song, what's the matter this time?"

Zhou Qian glanced at his computer screen, raised an eyebrow, and asked knowingly: "Didn’t you pass the CET-4 and CET-6 a long time ago? Why are you still doing this stuff? Planning to get a perfect score?"

Without waiting for Song Ji to answer, he drawled dramatically: "Oh, I see, you're preparing for that 'friend' of yours from the coffee shop."

Zhou Qian deliberately emphasized the word "friend," his expression full of gossip.

Earlier, when the Cat Association had a meeting at the coffee shop, Song Ji surprisingly showed up too, and got to know an employee there.

Given his childhood buddy's solitary nature, there's got to be something going on.

Zhou Qian nudged Song Ji’s shoulder with his elbow, giving him a suggestive grin: "Three years in college, finally ready to start dating?"

Song Ji paused in his typing, his brow furrowing, seeming a bit displeased by his friend’s wild speculation about his relationship with Fei Yu.

After a moment, he said quietly, with a hint of disappointment he didn't even notice himself: "We're just friends."

Friends? Someone like Old Song, who wants to be alone everywhere he goes, would never go out of his way to make friends.

Zhou Qian didn’t believe it at all, crossed his arms, even more curious now: "So what’s this 'friend' of yours like?"

Song Ji lowered his eyes, his voice low: "He had some family issues, had to suspend his studies temporarily, and works at the school coffee shop."

Zhou Qian thought for a moment and asked: "Which university did he go to, what major? Can we do anonymous support?"

"Since you're worried, why not contact his previous university and ask?"

Song Ji frowned, disapproving, "That's his privacy."

Zhou Qian asked again: "Then what exactly happened to his family? Can it be solved easily?"

Song Ji shot him a reproachful look: "How can I proactively open old wounds?"

Zhou Qian: "..."

So he really knows nothing.

"Man, so you haven't asked about anything at all?"

Zhou Qian felt conflicted and hesitated, choosing his words as tactfully as possible: "Is there a chance that, maybe, perhaps…"

"Like a seriously ill father, a deceased mother, a younger sister in school, or something?"

Author's note:

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Sorry for