Chapter 11: Meow p1
Jing Mimi still remembered what Sister Chestnut had said: after lovers break up, they won’t live together anymore, and they might even never see or contact each other again.
Having reunited with Little Papa for so long, he hadn’t found a chance to ask about Big Papa. He was still waiting for Big Papa to come pick him and Little Papa up. He didn’t expect that when he finally heard Little Papa mention Big Papa, it was to say they had broken up.
After the shock, an indescribable sadness welled up in his heart.
The little glutton, who had been eating so happily just moments ago, lost his appetite completely. His lips were pursed tight, shutting out the fragrant spoon.
The biggest crybaby kitten on Planet Meow wanted to cry again.
But he tried hard to hold it back.
Shedding tears would only melt small pits in the clouds; it wouldn’t solve any problems.
Before returning to Earth from Planet Meow, Sister Chestnut had also told him: lovers who have broken up might get back together, but it would likely be very difficult and require the help of a kitten.
He had long been prepared.
Actually, having not seen Big Papa for the past two days, he had vaguely sensed something.
He had to work hard to help Little Papa and Big Papa get back together!
Watching the little cub’s changing expression, Jing Zhi’s fingers gripping the spoon tightened unconsciously.
Mimi was actually a clumsy kitten who couldn’t hide his feelings at all. He had just come back, and his little tail had already shown itself many times.
Now he simply stopped hiding it, displaying it brightly right in front of him.
“Not eating anymore?” Jing Zhi’s voice was tinged with a dryness he didn’t notice.
From Mimi’s perspective, hearing that he and Jiang Suifeng had broken up must be sad.
Mimi called him Papa, so naturally, he would call Jiang Suifeng Papa too. The kitten Mimi’s home should have two papas.
But kittens don’t understand adult matters, and he couldn’t analyze it for the kitten.
The kitten’s departure was just the last straw that broke the camel’s back. It wasn’t something that could be easily fixed just because the kitten returned.
Between him and Jiang Suifeng, there was always the chasm of conventional family expectations.
He didn’t want to make things difficult for Jiang Suifeng.
He also didn’t want to receive that kind of text message again.
Moreover, now that the little human Mimi was back, he was even more afraid that Mimi would also be attacked by the outside world or even people around them because of them.
Between them, there were more things to consider now.
Before, it was just the two of them facing it. As grown men, they could endure a little grievance and get over it. But now there was a little cub; he couldn’t let the little guy suffer grievances with them.
Rather than having two fathers in an unsupportive family environment, it was better to live with a single father.
After breaking up with Jiang Suifeng, he probably wouldn’t fall in love with anyone else in this life.
Fortunately, there was still Mimi.
Thinking of this, Jing Zhi’s heart settled.
Jiang Suifeng would definitely look for him when he came back. He would tell him about Mimi and let him meet the current Mimi. He had the right to know about Mimi; Jing Zhi wouldn’t hide it from him.
But this time, he was determined to break up with him, for his own good, and for Mimi’s good.
Seeing the little cub not answering, Jing Zhi was about to withdraw the spoon when he saw the cub suddenly open his mouth and bite down, taking the food.
Jing Zhi was stunned. Seeing the cub’s cheeks moving as he chewed, staring straight at him, continuing to eat as if trying to cover up something, obviously not as happy as before—his acting wasn’t very good.
He didn’t know how much Mimi could understand as a kitten. Anyway, if Mimi didn’t point it out, they would consider this matter passed.
Jing Zhi withdrew the empty spoon and fed him the rest of the food.
Jing Mimi ate until his little tummy bulged.
Although he didn’t have much of an appetite, there was only a little food left. He wasn’t a kitten who wasted food. Habitually, he had to finish the small bowl every time—because of that wandering experience where he didn’t know where his next meal was coming from.
Moreover, he saw sadness in Papa’s eyes.
He didn’t want to make Papa sadder. Papa liked watching him finish his food.
It was like this after his papas argued in the past too. The kitten had to coax them first before he could start working on bringing them back together.
After feeding him, Jing Zhi wiped his mouth and went to the bathroom without a word.
The Cat God wasn’t there. Jing Mimi hugged the little fish doll, nestled on the bed, and pondered alone on a plan to get his papas back together.
The kitten’s head felt big.
When they lived together, he had many ways to coax his two papas.
Now, he couldn’t see Big Papa for the time being, so he could only start with Little Papa…
Thinking and thinking, his eyelids grew heavier and heavier. His small figure swayed, and not long after, he fell onto the pillow and fell asleep.
The kitten had a carb crash.
The care worker didn’t ask Jing Zhi about his boyfriend again. She agreed to accompany him for the gastroscopy, saying she didn’t need his red envelope, as it wasn’t a troublesome task anyway.
Jing Zhi helped the care worker soak the little cub’s lunch box in the bathroom sink and squeezed some dish soap she brought. With the IV needle in his hand, he couldn’t wash it himself.
When he returned, he saw the little guy asleep hugging the little fish doll.
Jing Zhi couldn’t help but lighten his steps, afraid of waking him.
In the past, when the kitten Mimi was sleeping, as long as he and Jiang Suifeng approached, it would instantly open its eyes and look at them. Kittens had very sensitive hearing.
Now the little human Mimi slept very soundly. As long as he moved lightly, he wouldn’t disturb his sweet dreams.
Watching his little face pressed against the doll, cheeks slightly bulging into pink, tender lumps, Jing Zhi’s heart softened. He sat on the stool by the bed, picked up his phone, and took a few photos of him.
On his phone, he hadn’t replied to Jiang Suifeng’s text message yet, and he didn’t know how to reply.
Let’s leave it like this for now. They could talk when he came back. These things couldn’t be explained clearly over the internet, and it would affect his work on the business trip.
After taking photos for a while, Jing Zhi casually clicked on the album in the lower-left corner.
Most of the photos in his phone album were of the kitten Mimi.
When he was at home before, whenever he had nothing to do, he would point the camera at the kitten and snap away.
After Mimi left, he hadn’t dared to click on any of its photos.
Now, facing the sleeping little cub, Jing Zhi finally mustered the courage to look through the photos of the kitten from the past.
Mimi was probably a cream-white British Shorthair Scottish Fold, or maybe mixed with some other breed, but overall, it was a round-headed, round-brained beige Scottish Fold kitten with beautiful patterns and high looks.
Although the drooping little ears were cute, just like some humans’ aesthetic of excessively pursuing thinness to be beautiful, it wasn’t a healthy aesthetic.
Scottish Folds are products of genetic defects, and the kittens bred suffer a lot.
If he could, he would rather Mimi be a straight-eared kitten, healthy and free from illness and disaster, equally cute.
Putting away his phone, Jing Zhi stared at the little cub’s sleeping face in a daze.
From the looks of it, the little guy was quite healthy. Although he had a fever and was delirious when they first met, he recovered quickly and was now lively and active.
That was good.
…
Jing Mimi was suddenly startled awake from his dream.
The moment he woke up, he was still dazed and had some palpitations.
Not only because he dreamed during his nap that a wide river separated Big Papa and Little Papa, preventing them from ever meeting again, and the kitten, unable to swim, could only meow anxiously.
But also because of a slight fluctuation sensed in the surrounding environment.
“Yes, there was an earthquake in City B. Not a big one, no casualties.” It was Papa’s very quiet voice.
“Earthquake predictions are quite accurate nowadays, and prevention is done well. It won’t be like in the early 2000s anymore.” It was the care worker auntie’s very quiet voice.
“…Awake?” Jing Zhi shifted his gaze slightly and met the amber eyes of the little cub on the bed.
“Mm.” Jing Mimi got up quickly, abandoning the little fish doll, and pressed straight against Jing Zhi.
Jing Zhi immediately put down his phone, pulled him into his arms, and patted his back. “What’s wrong? Scared? It’s okay, it’s okay…”
There was an earthquake in the neighboring province just now. They were close, so they felt a shake too. The ward was on a higher floor, so the shaking was slightly more noticeable.
He didn’t expect the little guy to wake up suddenly. Maybe he was affected by the magnetic field or something.
After being held and coaxed by Papa for a while, Jing Mimi’s heartbeat gradually steadied. Like a kitten waking up from sleep, he started acting coquettishly in Papa’s arms.
Seeing this, the care worker thought to herself that these two were looking more and more like a real father and son.
After a while, several doctors came over, saying that at the request of the police station, they needed to take Jing Mimi for some checkups.
Jing Zhi and the care worker went along.
First was a physical examination. The results showed the little guy was very healthy, just a bit malnourished and on the thin side.
Then came the psychological examination. Jing Mimi was taken into a small room, while Jing Zhi and the care worker waited outside.
While waiting, Jing Zhi searched for nutritious recipes for children of this age on his phone.
His cooking skills were excellent. Jiang Suifeng and the kitten Mimi both loved the food he made.
After discovering his father’s affair, his mother resolutely chose to divorce and fought for his custody. Although his father gave some child support every month as required by law, his mother was a bit overwhelmed balancing work and his studies alone. Once, when she came back from work to cook, she was too tired and distracted, accidentally touching the red-hot pan with her finger, causing a huge blister. After that, he started learning to cook.
Jing Zhi bookmarked many recipes on his phone, planning to nourish the little guy properly after being discharged.
Just like how he used to make nutritious cat meals for the kitten.
…
