Chapter 46
Mimi stood by the hospital bed, his eyes red-rimmed, “Is this illness very serious?”
Shao Sui nodded gravely, “Quite serious.”
Mimi remained silent for a long time, just staring blankly at the IV drip beside him. He whispered, “Why is this bed different from last time?”
Because this was the infusion lounge.
The doctor had said Shao Sui’s upper respiratory tract was swollen from the allergy, his breathing slightly obstructed, and recommended he stay in the hospital for four or five days. But Shao Sui felt it was unnecessary, he would have to take leave from work, it was better to just come in for two hours every day for IV treatment.
He chose a VIP seat, similar to a single sofa, that could recline. Firstly, because there were fewer people here, and secondly, to make his illness seem more serious.
Shao Sui sighed, “This time is different from last time.”
Mimi opened his mouth, automatically interpreting Shao Sui’s underlying meaning – this bed was for seriously ill people. After much contemplation, he asked fearfully, “Will you die?”
Shao Sui, lying through his teeth, said, “It’s possible.”
“Then what should we do?” Mimi’s voice trembled. “Can it be cured?”
“It’s hard to say.”
Mimi squatted down and gently touched the back of Shao Sui’s hand where the IV needle was inserted: “Does it hurt?”
Shao Sui couldn’t bring himself to continue the charade, “It doesn’t.”
Mimi thought his human was just being brave, saying with determination, “I can go work at a construction site carrying bricks.”
“Huh?”
“Netizens said you don’t need an ID card to work at construction sites.” The little cat spirit looked up, his eyes resolute. “I’ll earn money to treat your illness, don’t give up.”
Shao Sui tried to explain, “No, I…”
The little cat spirit said fiercely, “If the doctor can’t cure you, I’ll scratch him to death!”
That’s what domineering CEOs on TV did when their loved ones were in critical condition, threatening the doctor: I want her alive to see tomorrow’s sun! Otherwise, you won’t either!
Mimi stood up abruptly, ready for action, “I’m going now.”
Shao Sui realized he had gone too far and quickly called out, “Come back!”
Mimi ignored him completely, running towards the exit.
Shao Sui quickly got up, accidentally pulling on the IV needle, wincing in pain, but he couldn’t stop, pushing the IV stand and chasing after the cat, “Mimi!”
Everyone in the infusion lounge stared at him, probably wondering why he was calling out the generic name for cats.
Only at times like these did Shao Sui realize how fast a little cat spirit could run. He couldn’t catch up. Mimi being caught and spanked at home was purely because the cat was letting him.
“Hey!” A nurse called out. “What are you doing?”
Shao Sui, rushing towards the exit, yelled, “Going to the bathroom!”
He reached the lobby with the IV stand, but Mimi was nowhere to be seen.
He had gone too far with his joke.
Shao Sui quickly took out his phone and called Mimi, but he didn’t answer. He sent a text message, then worried Mimi might not recognize some of the characters, sent a voice message instead, “Come back! Are you trying to give me a heart attack? Do you even know where construction sites are? We have to plan this carefully!”
Feeling his tone was too harsh, he put on a weak, sickly voice, “Oh, I miss my cat so much, my heart is racing, I’m dizzy, I feel like I’m about to…”
He heard the little cat spirit’s angry voice behind him, “Stop talking nonsense!”
Shao Sui, finally relieved, hugged Mimi in front of everyone, “Why did you run off! I was so worried!”
Mimi said sadly, “I’m so useless.”
Shao Sui had run too fast, blood was backing up into the IV tube. He pulled Mimi back towards their seat, “Who said that?”
Mimi said dejectedly, “I couldn’t even find the hospital exit.”
Shao Sui was secretly relieved that Mimi hadn’t found it and run outside, but he said, “This illness isn’t expensive, you don’t have to work at a construction site.”
“Really?”
“Really, I’ve already paid.”
Having been tricked by Shao Sui many times, Mimi was wary, “Those terminal illnesses on TV always cost a fortune, bankrupting families.”
Before having Mimi, Shao Sui always thought he was relatively well-off among his peers, but after getting Mimi, he often felt poor.
“My illness is different.”
“How is it different?” Mimi, being pulled along, looked distraught, “Don’t try to comfort me.”
Shao Sui, overwhelmed with guilt, continued his lies, “It really is different. This illness, although serious, has a free cure, you don’t have to work at a construction site.”
Mimi pressed, “What is it?”
There were many people around, so Shao Sui lowered his voice, “I’ll tell you later.”
Mimi quickly caught up, helping to push the IV stand.
Back at their VIP seat, Shao Sui held Mimi’s hand and exhaled in relief. Mimi stood beside him, staring intently at Shao Sui, waiting for the cure.
Meeting his gaze, Shao Sui found it hard to speak, feeling like a pervert tricking a naive teenager.
Mimi became anxious, “Tell me! Are you lying again, is there no cure at all?”
“Of course there is.” Shao Sui, abandoning his useless sense of morality, made up an excuse, “Actually, my allergy is caused by a deficiency of certain elements in my body.”
Mimi responded with an “oh,” “Can allergies kill you?”
Shao Sui said, “Of course they can, look it up if you don’t believe me.”
The online experts confirmed it for Mimi, severe allergies could indeed be fatal. He looked up and asked, “Then the cure you mentioned…”
Shao Sui guided him, “Why don’t you ask me what I’m lacking?”
Mimi asked innocently, “What are you lacking?”
Shao Sui said, “A partner’s love.”
Even Mimi, lacking in common sense, felt something was off, “Are you trying to marry someone else and lying to me?”
“No…”
“If you get another cat, I can kill it, but if you marry someone else, what can I do? Killing a person means getting shot.” Mimi looked down sadly. “Why lie to me about being sick?”
Shao Sui: “No, I…”
A passing nurse gave them a strange look.
Shao Sui took a deep breath, “I’ve never thought about marrying anyone else, really, I swear to god, may lightning strike me if I’m lying—”
Mimi, imitating what he saw on TV, covered Shao Sui’s mouth, “Don’t say such things!”
“Okay, I won’t.” Shao Sui held Mimi’s hand tightly. “Where were we? My illness needs a partner, a cat spirit partner would be even better.”
Mimi asked, confused, “Aren’t I one?”
Shao Sui hinted, “But you don’t want to be my partner.”
Mimi said, “But you can do… couple things with me.”
“That’s not enough.” Shao Sui said. “Humans not only have physical needs, but also emotional needs. If they’re not met for a long time, their bodies want to explode, but their minds, on the contrary, develop a huge void.”
Mimi’s limited brain capacity took ten seconds to process this. “Then…”
Shao Sui looked at the cat expectantly.
Mimi looked down at his toes, “If it’s life-threatening, you can find a partner, let’s forget about our previous agreement…”
He looked like he was about to cry, utterly heartbroken, yet his words were incredibly selfless.
Shao Sui said bluntly, “Anyone else won’t do.”
Mimi looked up, “Why?”
“Because I only like you.” Shao Sui said with genuine helplessness. “How can anyone else fulfill my emotional needs?”
Mimi slowly looked away, “Humans and cats are different…”
Shao Sui said, “As long as we hide your identity and aren’t discovered by Taoist priests, we’ll have a happy ending.”
Mimi responded with an “oh,” his eyes darting around, “But…”
Shao Sui released Mimi’s hand and said sadly, “If my emotional needs aren’t met, the void will grow bigger and bigger, and I might even develop a mental illness and want to die every day…”
Mimi quickly covered Shao Sui’s mouth, “Don’t say that word!”
Shao Sui fell silent.
Mimi asked, as if to himself, “What does a mental illness have to do with an allergy?”
Shao Sui, his heart filled with despair, turned his head away, “A severe mental illness can manifest physically.”
Mimi was lost in thought.
The IV drip was almost finished.
After the nurse removed the needle and applied pressure with a cotton swab, Mimi, despite being preoccupied, still held Shao Sui’s hand, pressing the cotton swab for him, as if he was incredibly frail.
Shao Sui went to the pharmacy to get some allergy medication, silent on the way back, giving Mimi time to think. Back in the car, he asked, “Have you thought about it?”
Mimi, avoiding the question, said, “So many pills?”
“Yes, my illness is very serious.” Shao Sui coughed, covering his mouth with a tissue, which, when he removed it, had spots of blood on it. “Are you still going to be a straight cat?”
“N-no more!” Mimi, startled, scrambled from the passenger seat onto Shao Sui’s lap, hugging him tightly, “I’m a gay cat now, be my partner!”
Shao Sui, satisfied, reclined his seat and hugged the little cat spirit tightly, “You also have to be my partner.”
Out of Mimi’s sight, he wiped the blood from his cracked, swollen lips.
“I, I’m also your partner,” Mimi said, sounding aggrieved, as if being held at gunpoint.
He felt incredibly uneasy. Male kittens should be with female kittens, male humans with female humans, how could a male kitten be with a male human?
He suddenly realized his previous offer to let Shao Sui “do him” when he was feeling frustrated was foolish. He wasn’t built the same way as female humans, how could he mate with Shao Sui?
Mimi, sullenly nestled against Shao Sui, asked, “Then can I not give Milk Tea dried fish anymore?”
Shao Sui had almost forgotten about the cat next door. Hearing Mimi mention her, he suddenly felt a pang of jealousy. “You’re still thinking about her? Still planning to visit her during mating season?”
“I always think about her.” Mimi stared at Shao Sui’s collarbone, its smooth, elegant lines, and he couldn’t resist nibbling on it. Realizing what he was doing, he nonchalantly licked it and continued, “But the internet said you should stay away from the opposite sex after you have a partner.”
Shao Sui was constantly tempted to take Mimi right then and there, but he always managed to restrain himself. “The internet is right, you have to be a virtuous cat.”
Mimi said, “But Milk Tea is really pretty, I want to…”
Shao Sui didn’t want to hear this and interrupted immediately, “You like her that much? Then I’ll talk to her owner and bring her to live with us.”
Mimi instantly sat up straight, saying warily, “I don’t like her anymore.”
Shao Sui’s hand had a mind of its own, slipping inside Mimi’s clothes and caressing his waist, while his mouth uttered words of feigned indifference, “Forget it, you don’t seem very willing to be my partner anyway, I’ll just bring Milk Tea home, you two can share a room, I’ll sleep separately, it’s fine.”
Mimi was stunned, “No! I want to sleep with you… no, don’t bring her here!”
Shao Sui: “Then kill her.”
Mimi fell silent.
If it was Milk Tea, he might send her back to her original home, or chase her away, occasionally giving her some food… killing her seemed too cruel.
Shao Sui had initially just been teasing the cat, seeing if he could trick him into “bending,” but now he felt genuinely uneasy. Mimi had sworn he would kill any second cat, but now, faced with Milk Tea, he hesitated.
Why did he fall for such a traditional and stubborn cat spirit?
Not only rejecting homosexuality, but also a human-cat relationship.
Shao Sui pushed Mimi away, “Sit back.”
Mimi said cautiously, “Don’t think about… that.”
“Not thinking about dying, we have to go home and make dinner.”
“Oh.” Mimi reluctantly touched Shao Sui’s collarbone and climbed back into the passenger seat.
Things were peaceful for a long time after that, or so Shao Sui thought. He had accepted the situation, relieving his frustration manually whenever he was tempted, believing Mimi’s mindset would change eventually, it couldn’t be rushed.
As long as he kept a close eye on Mimi, preventing any other humans or cats from getting close, sooner or later, he would have both the cat and its heart.
Mimi’s perspective, however, was quite tragic.
Shao Sui was still very good to him, but many details had changed. Firstly, he no longer sucked on his lips or explored his mouth during kisses. Whenever he tentatively tried to stick his tongue out, Shao Sui would dodge him, finding various excuses.
And during his heat cycles, Shao Sui refused to “teach” him anymore, telling him to take care of it himself in the bathroom or under the covers.
Only when Mimi, frustrated and unable to cope, was sulking, would Shao Sui reach out and help him briefly, keeping a distance, no intimacy.
“I already agreed to be your partner.”
“Cats also have emotional needs.”
Mimi, alone in his room, nestled in the wardrobe, hugging Shao Sui’s clothes and muttering to himself.
“Ding-dong—”
The doorbell rang.
Mimi’s ears perked up, considering various possibilities.
Shao Sui had facial recognition, he wouldn’t ring the doorbell. He had already eaten lunch and wouldn’t order takeout. That bad man was in jail, he couldn’t be here…
He tiptoed to the door and peeked through the peephole—
Several people in uniform.
Just as Mimi was about to call Shao Sui, his phone rang, startling him almost dropping it on his foot.
The people outside seemed to hear the sound and called out, “Is anyone home?”
Mimi instinctively replied, “N-no one’s home!”
He was a cat, not a human.
The uniformed people outside chuckled.
Mimi, feeling mocked, silently opened WeChat, intending to complain to Shao Sui, but saw a friend request from an unfamiliar ID, “Cat Spirit Mutual Aid Association”: We’re outside your door, want to chat?
