Chapter 44
Only after getting in the car did Mimi relax.
The story about being a homeless orphan taken in by Shao Sui was something they had prepared long ago, for situations like this where his identity might be questioned.
Mimi sought praise, “Did I do well just now?”
“Exceptionally well.” So well that Shao Sui couldn’t stop smiling. “Come here, give me a kiss.”
As soon as Mimi crossed the center console, Shao Sui pushed him back, “Later.”
The police officer already suspected him of harboring a runaway; if he was seen kissing him, it would be hard to explain.
Mimi sat back, buckled his seatbelt, and looked straight ahead.
Humans were truly fickle. He had been kissing him non-stop before leaving, and now he didn’t want to anymore. Perhaps soon, Shao Sui wouldn’t want him as a partner anymore, wanting to find another human.
Shao Sui, unaware of the cat’s thoughts, said, “Don’t transform back into a cat recently, we can’t give them any evidence.”
Mimi replied, “Understood.”
Back at the apartment complex, someone was waiting at his door, the landlord.
Mimi hid behind Shao Sui, slightly curious.
The landlord asked, “Xiao Shao, I heard from the property management that a man came looking for a cat?”
Shao Sui briefly explained the situation.
The landlord exclaimed, “That kind of person is truly despicable! Good thing he didn’t catch the cat, or there would be blood all over my apartment!”
Shao Sui made a few polite remarks, then got to the point, “That person has other charges against him, the police said he’ll most likely be sentenced to prison.”
The landlord didn’t respond, changing the subject to Mimi, “Is this young man going to be living here long-term?”
Shao Sui replied with an “mm-hmm,” “A relative’s child, there’s been some trouble at home, he’ll be living with me from now on.”
“That’s not going to work, Xiao Shao.” The landlord said, “We agreed in the contract that only you would be living here, and you didn’t mention getting a cat, otherwise I wouldn’t have rented to you.”
Shao Sui asked, “So what do you suggest?”
The landlord offered two options, “Either you pay two more months’ deposit, so I don’t have to worry about not being able to find you if there are damages, or we terminate the contract.”
Shao Sui said, “Let’s terminate the contract, sorry for the trouble.”
Surprised by his ready agreement, the landlord paused, “Alright… then I’ll come next month to collect the keys. You’ll have to compensate me for any damages to the furniture.”
Shao Sui agreed, “I will, if it’s confirmed the damage was caused by a human or a cat.”
After the landlord left, Shao Sui took Mimi inside.
He immediately moved the surveillance camera, not wanting it to capture any intimate moments between him and Mimi, then have the footage seen by others like today.
Fortunately, the camera only stored three days of footage, and Shao Sui had already checked the footage the police copied, it was all normal, so he didn’t feel the need to delete anything.
Mimi followed closely, “Are we truly becoming homeless?”
“Yes, the landlord doesn’t want us here anymore.” Shao Sui asked, “Willing to sleep under a bridge with me? Wrapped in a blanket, you inside, me outside.”
Mimi said, “Okay.”
Shao Sui chuckled, “Really?”
The kitten wasn’t materialistic. As long as his owner was with him, he could kiss him, cuddle with him, and stay warm, that was enough.
Mimi felt he was very useful, “I can also catch bugs for you.”
Shao Sui said, “Then I’ll be relying on Mimi for protection from now on.”
Mimi said solemnly, “Call me Your Majesty.”
Shao Sui played along, “Your Majesty Mimi, please accept this human’s bow.”
“I accept.” Mimi said coolly, “From now on, this King will protect you.”
The mighty Meow King was then dragged into the bathroom by the human for a shower, then pinned down on the bed and kissed repeatedly.
The next morning, Shao Sui received a message from the police. Hu Yuan insisted that after entering the bedroom, he had checked the wardrobe, under the bed, everywhere a person could hide, but didn’t see Mimi.
This contradicted Mimi’s statement. Either Hu Yuan was blind, or Mimi was lying.
Shao Sui simply replied: He was probably hidden by the clothes in the wardrobe, thankfully.
The officer didn’t press further, replying quickly: Someone from the community or the household registration office might contact you in the next two days. We’ve deleted the photos and backups on Hu Yuan’s phone.
Shao Sui: Thank you, I appreciate it.
Mimi, beside him, asked, “Can I really get an ID card?”
“Let’s wait and see.” Shao Sui wasn’t sure either. “If you do get one, we’ll also have to choose a formal name for you.”
Mimi asked, “Is my name not formal enough?”
Shao Sui regretted choosing such a casual name. He said, “You’ll need both a given name and a surname for registration.”
Mimi had learned this in his online lessons: “Like those in the Hundred Family Surnames?” (A classic Chinese text listing common surnames.)
“Yes, like Li, Wang, Zhang, and many other less common ones, I have a student whose surname is Qi.”
“Isn’t Qi very common?”
“Not that Qi.” Shao Sui wrote it down for Mimi. “Two horizontal strokes, one downward stroke to the left, one vertical stroke.” (This describes the less common character for Qi, 亓.)
Mimi took the pen and wrote three characters.
Shao Sui took a sip of water and, looking through his glasses at the characters on the paper, asked, “You want to take my surname?”
—Shao Mimi.
Mimi said matter-of-factly, “Whose surname would I take if not yours?”
Shao Sui said, “You can choose any surname you like.”
Mimi carefully wrote down Shao Sui’s name: “I like your surname, I write it down many times every day.”
“Okay, I respect your decision.” Shao Sui said, already thinking about matching given names for the surname Shao. “I have to go to work now, don’t open the door for strangers, and remember to drink your water.”
Mimi, his voice full of reluctance, said, “Come back early.”
Shao Sui felt the urge to take another day off, but after much struggle, he still went to work, telling himself repeatedly, he had to work to support his cat.
Although the cat said he was willing to sleep under a bridge with him, could he really let him do that?
In the office, Shao Sui sat at his workstation, scrolling through webpages.
Shu Yi, passing by, glanced at his screen, surprised, “Teacher Shao, are you moving?”
Shao Sui was browsing real estate listings, “Yes, the lease is about to expire, does Teacher Shu have any friends or relatives renting out apartments?”
Shu Yi closed the window, her breath fogging the air, “I do, but they rent to families with children attending high school nearby, the apartments aren’t very nice, the walls and kitchen aren’t clean, definitely not up to your standards.”
Shao Sui sighed, “Finding an apartment is so difficult these days.”
He hadn’t felt this way when he lived alone, only after getting a cat did he realize how troublesome it was. Most landlords, to avoid potential damages, refused to rent to pet owners, especially cat and dog owners.
And he had his own requirements for apartments. Many pet-friendly apartments were in terrible condition, uninhabitable.
Shu Yi suddenly said, “You graduated in 2018, right? There’s a housing subsidy for teachers, isn’t there?”
Shao Sui nodded, “Yes, there is.”
Shu Yi said, “Then just buy one, you’ll need a place of your own sooner or later.”
Other teachers also chimed in, “There are several nice communities nearby, buy a furnished pre-owned apartment, just redecorate a little, very convenient.”
“I’ll think about it.” Shao Sui also got up to pour himself some hot water, “It’s getting really cold.”
Time to buy winter clothes.
With his fair skin, Mimi would probably look good in any color down jacket, two or three should be enough, plus a few sets of thermal underwear, sweaters, fleece pants… slippers, socks, loungewear, he needed everything.
A suddenly-appearing eighteen-year-old required a lot of new clothes.
But Shao Sui was happy to do it, pleased that every item Mimi owned was related to him.
That evening, Shao Sui browsed apartment listings with Mimi, “How about we buy an apartment?”
“Don’t like this one…” Mimi turned his head away quickly, “Do you even have that much money?”
“If I scrape together enough, I should have enough for the down payment.”
Before getting the cat, Shao Sui’s plan was to stay single and childless, buying an apartment after he turned fifty. By then, he would be older, have some savings, and wouldn’t have to worry about mortgage payments, a perfect retirement plan.
But after getting Mimi, he felt it was necessary to buy his own apartment sooner.
He shouldn’t let the cat live a nomadic life with him.
Shao Sui said, “We can buy a pre-owned apartment, around 150 square meters, and I can set up a room for you.”
Mimi said anxiously, “I don’t want a separate room, don’t you want to sleep with me anymore?”
Mimi felt heartbroken. Shao Sui had talked about being partners just a few days ago, and now he didn’t even want to sleep with him anymore.
“Of course I’ll sleep with you.” Shao Sui pulled the unhappy cat spirit into his arms. “But don’t you want your own room? For some privacy, to do things you don’t want others to see.”
Mimi said indifferently, “I have no secrets, I don’t need privacy.”
Shao Sui said, “I have Mimi, Mimi is my secret.”
“…” Mimi looked up, not understanding.
Shao Sui kissed him forcefully, feeling a strange sense of satisfaction. “You said you didn’t need privacy, so don’t accuse me of not giving you personal space later.”
“I wouldn’t.” Mimi obediently opened his mouth, his muffled voice barely audible, “You have red spots on your chin…”
Shao Sui’s voice dropped, “Just heaty, not contagious.”
Mimi, boneless, sprawled on the bed, instructing, “And… and hold my hands.”
The cat truly enjoyed being dominated.
Shao Sui held Mimi’s hands, pinning them above his head.
Perhaps because he had only kissed him, his pent-up desire manifested in his dreams. Mimi snuggled in his arms, calling his name repeatedly, “Shao Sui… Shao Sui…”
Touch me.
Shao Sui’s mind was filled with these two words. Waking up, he realized it wasn’t entirely a dream.
Mimi in his arms was burning hot, rubbing against him, his mouth unconsciously nibbling and sucking on his shoulder.
“Mimi?”
Mimi slowly opened his eyes, nuzzling closer and murmuring, “Uncomfortable.”
Shao Sui knew exactly what was happening. Mimi was in heat again. The night air was cool, and Shao Sui’s voice was slightly hoarse, “Where are you uncomfortable?”
Mimi grabbed Shao Sui’s hand and guided it, “Here… your hand is so cold, let me warm it up.”
Shao Sui gasped, instinctively wanting to pull his hand away, but he couldn’t bring himself to. He checked the time, it was only 4:30 AM, “This won’t do.”
Shao Sui turned on his side, pressed against Mimi’s reddened ear, and whispered, “Open them, I’ll teach you how humans do it.”
He gently massaged Mimi’s testicles, showing him how it felt good.
Shao Sui searched under the covers, “Where are your hands?”
Mimi raised his hands, his voice muffled, “Here.”
Under the warm blankets, the temperature continued to rise.
Shao Sui took the opportunity to ask, “Have you ever… been with other cats before?”
Mimi couldn’t form a coherent sentence, “N-no.”
Shao Sui kissed Mimi’s cheek, “Just a little longer, too fast isn’t good for your body.”
“Really…”
“Really, I wouldn’t lie to you.”
