“Welcome to A-Ning’s Desserts! Oh, Wen Ling, you’re here!”
Hearing the chime of the windbell, Cheng Yu walked out from the back kitchen. Her face lit up with a warm smile the moment she saw me.
My three friends, having never met Cheng Yu before, froze on the spot, completely caught off guard by her appearance.
I smiled and introduced her. “Everyone, this is Sister Cheng Yu. She works here and is a close friend of You Ning’s.”
Cheng Yu caught on immediately. Stepping forward with a gentle smile, she greeted them. “You must be Wen Ling’s friends. She talks about you all the time. I have albinism, which is why I look a bit different from everyone else. I hope I didn’t startle you.”
Shen Leqing was the first to snap out of it, speaking up quickly. “Not at all! Sister, if I had skin like yours and those beautiful violet eyes, I’d be strutting down the street showing off every single day.”
Cheng Yu let out a soft laugh. “Oh, you flatter me. Come on in, girls. Shake off the snow and warm up so you don’t catch a cold.”
Perhaps we were making too much noise because Wu Xue, the black cat, woke up. Looking thoroughly displeased, he padded over and glared at me.
“Wu Xue! Long time no see! Wow, how did you get so chubby?” Sheng Yitang suddenly materialized out of nowhere and scooped Wu Xue into her arms, catching the cat completely off guard.
Already annoyed from being woken up, and now being called fat, Wu Xue was not having it. With a low, disgruntled meow, he planted a paw squarely on Sheng Yitang’s chest and executed a flawless, mid-air backflip right onto the floor.
“Wu Xue, don’t you remember me?” Sheng Yitang whined, reaching out a hand in a tragic attempt to win him back.
“What can I get for you girls?” Cheng Yu interrupted, steering us back to the counter.
Sheng Yitang walked over and stared at the menu for a good while. “A strawberry mousse, and… passion fruit lemon tea!”
Sui Yue was right behind her. “I’ll have the cloud soufflé!”
Cheng Yu tapped away quickly on the screen, then looked up at Shen Leqing, who was standing a little further back. “And for you, sweetie? What would you like?”
Shen Leqing looked up. “Just a mango pomelo sago, please.”
“What about you, Wen Ling?”
I shot Cheng Yu a knowing look, and she instantly understood.
“Got it—one mango mille-crêpe cake and a mango-coconut smoothie, half-sweet.”
The shop wasn’t crowded. The atmosphere was peaceful, filled with the soothing tones of lo-fi music playing in the background. Outside, the weather had cleared, and the sunlight pouring through the windows added a touch of cozy perfection to the afternoon.
Suddenly, Jin Hu, the orange tabby, crawled out of his bed. He strolled grandly over to our table, took a brief look, and with a powerful leap, landed right in the center of the table. We all gasped as he stretched out, completely taking over the space.
“Jin Hu? Wake up, you can’t sleep here,” I said, patting his back in an attempt to nudge him off.
Sheng Yitang, however, didn’t say a word. The second Jin Hu hit the table, her phone was out, and she was already snapping photos from every conceivable angle.
Sui Yue stared at him, mesmerized. Unable to resist, she reached out to pet him, letting out an envious sigh.
“Wow, Jin Hu is huge. Did Sister You Ning feed him fertilizer or something?”
Jin Hu flicked his tail against the table, proving he wasn’t deaf.
Shen Leqing’s eyes were practically sparkling. She reached out, intending to pick him up.
“HISSS!”
The moment Shen Leqing’s hand brushed his fur, Jin Hu arched his back, his fur standing completely on end as he hissed fiercely at her.
We all jumped, and the other customers in the shop whipped their heads around to look at us. Anyone who knew Jin Hu knew he had a golden temperament; you could pet him, tease him, play with him, and he would never get angry. This sudden hostility was genuinely terrifying.
Shen Leqing froze, shrinking back in fear, while Jin Hu kept his eyes locked onto her, letting out a low, menacing growl.
“Jin Hu? What’s going on?” Hearing the commotion, Cheng Yu rushed out, with Zhang You Ning following closely behind, looking utterly bewildered.
“We don’t know! Jin Hu just snapped out of nowhere and hissed at Leqing.”
As Zhang You Ning stepped forward to soothe the agitated cat, Cheng Yu asked us what had happened.
I kept my eyes on Zhang You Ning. She was whispering to Jin Hu, and as she did, her expression grew increasingly grim.
I glanced over at Shen Leqing. Could there be something wrong with her?
When Zhang You Ning looked up, she shot me a heavy, loaded look before picking Jin Hu up and walking away. Wu Xue followed close at her heels, and together, they disappeared into the back kitchen.
“I’m just glad you aren’t hurt. Jin Hu was out of line today. I’ll make sure You Ning scolds him,” Cheng Yu said softly, letting out a sigh of relief after hearing the whole story before heading back to work.
Though Shen Leqing wasn’t physically hurt, it was obvious she was deeply upset.
I tried to comfort her. “Don’t worry about it, Leqing. Maybe Jin Hu is just having a bad day. He didn’t mean it.”
“Yeah,” Sui Yue chimed in. “He definitely didn’t mean to scare you. Don’t be sad.”
Shen Leqing looked up, glanced toward the back kitchen, and let out a soft, quiet sigh.
The two cats didn’t show their faces again. As the four of us ate our cake and moved on to other topics, the bizarre little incident was gradually forgotten.
“New Year’s is just around the corner. Where are you guys spending it?” Sui Yue asked, checking her phone calendar and realizing the holiday was only a week away.
Sheng Yitang didn’t even look up from her plate, shoving a big spoonful of strawberry mousse into her mouth. “Going back to my hometown village, of course! My grandma made cured meat and sausages, and Da Huang…my dog…is waiting for me to play with him. What about you, Wen Ling?”
I paused to think. To be honest, I wasn’t even sure if “Wen Ling” had a hometown to return to. I didn’t even know if my parents were coming back.
“Who knows,” I replied casually. “My parents barely come home, even for New Year’s. I’ll probably just be guarding an empty house by myself.”
“Wen Ling, are your parents in the military?” Shen Leqing asked, her eyes blinking with curiosity. “Your house is filled with so many certificates of honor, it looks incredible. But I feel like I’ve never actually met them.”
“My dad is with the border patrol in Yunnan, and my mom is a police officer who’s always out on missions. Neither of them has time for home. Forget about you guys…even I barely see them a few times a year.”
Sui Yue let out an awed gasp. “Wow… so your family is full of real-life heroes! That’s so cool. Major respect.”
I sighed. “Eh, it’s not as glamorous as it sounds. The house is always echoing and lonely. I can’t even call them most of the time because they’re too busy to pick up.”
“Well, you have us now,” Shen Leqing comforted me gently. “Whenever you’re bored, just call us. Plus, you have Sister You Ning, Sister Cheng Yu, and now you even have Nian Yu and Rong Cai. You won’t be lonely anymore.”
She paused, then added with a bright smile, “Tell you what…if you’re bored over the holidays, come over to my place! I’m going to be by myself anyway, so you can keep me company and we can watch movies.”
“Really? Are you sure?” I asked, thrilled.
“Of course! You two can come over too if you have time,” she said, looking at Sui Yue and Sheng Yitang. “My house is huge. You can all sleep over if you want.”
“Seriously? Say less, I am absolutely there!” Sui Yue squealed, leaning over to throw her arms around Shen Leqing.
Sheng Yitang looked at us, a pained expression on her face. “I want to go so bad! Why do I have to go back to the village?!”
Shen Leqing laughed. “Don’t worry about it. There’s plenty of time after the holidays. You can come over whenever you want, and I promise I’ll roll out the red carpet for you.”
That immediately cheered Sheng Yitang up. She grinned. “I knew Leqing was the best! I’ll bring you some local specialties from my village when I get back.”
“Deal!”
We hung out for a long time…long enough for the sun to dip below the horizon, the streetlights to flicker on, and the snow to start falling gently outside the window once again.
When the others finally left, I didn’t head home right away. Instead, I stayed behind and slipped into the back kitchen to find Zhang You Ning.
Seeing me, she gave a tender smile and pointed to a cardboard box next to her.
Curious, I walked over and looked inside. The box was lined with thick, cozy blankets, and Jin Hu and Wu Xue were curled up together, sleeping soundly like two freshly baked, fluffy loaves of whole-wheat bread.
Delighted, I crouched down beside them and carefully stroked their little heads. They opened their eyes groggily, letting out adorable, rumbling purrs. Recognizing me, they gave a soft meow and affectionately nuzzled my hand.
My goodness. How can creatures this cute exist in the world?
Seeing my happiness, Zhang You Ning smiled and reached out, gently patting my head.
I froze, looking up at her in confusion. “I’m not a cat. Why are you patting my head?”
“You are cute. You are a little cat,” she signed.
Damn you, Zhang You Ning. My face instantly flushed bright red.
“Stop teasing me,” I signed back, trying to hide my embarrassment.
But her expression remained perfectly earnest. “But you really are cute.”
Fine. I guess I’m cute then.
Shifting back to the real reason I was there, I signed, “What actually happened with Jin Hu earlier? Why did he suddenly lose his temper?”
Zhang You Ning’s smile faded. She let out a heavy sigh, giving me a deeply meaningful look, but said nothing.
Her silence only made me more anxious. My hands moved faster as I signed, “What is it? Just tell me.”
“It’s nothing,” she finally replied. “Jin Hu was just fast asleep. He was in a bad mood from being disturbed, so he threw a tantrum.”
I frowned, staring at her. Her expression didn’t change, but my gut told me it wasn’t that simple.
Seeing my hesitation, she continued to explain, “That’s what Jin Hu told me. He and Wu Xue were fooling around last night and he didn’t sleep well. Plus, he overate and had an upset stomach. He had just settled down when he was startled, so he snapped.”
While that did sound exactly like something Jin Hu would do, I still couldn’t shake the feeling that his reaction had been entirely abnormal.
“It’s a small matter, don’t worry about it. I’ll discipline him,” Zhang You Ning added. “Also, maybe mention to Leqing that she needs to be a bit gentler around small animals.”
I knew cats were incredibly spiritual creatures, capable of sensing things humans couldn’t. I also trusted Zhang You Ning’s abilities as a medium. She definitely knew something…she was just choosing not to tell me.
But since she wanted to keep it to herself, there was no point in pushing. Maybe it really was a trivial matter, or maybe it was just something too awkward to say out loud.
Or maybe… there really was a dark secret involved.
Who knew.
When I finally got home and saw NingYu and Rong Cai, my head immediately began to throb…in a fond way.
The moment I cracked the front door open, the two little kittens attached themselves to my ankles. Wherever I went, they waddled right behind me, crying at the top of their lungs as if competing to see who could scream louder.
I picked them up, one in each arm, and buried my face into their soft, warm bellies, taking a deep breath. Instantly, all the tension melted out of my body.
“Cats are so precious,” I muttered into their fur. “How could anyone ever be cruel enough to hurt them?”
“Meow,” Ning Yu purred, tapping my cheek with a tiny paw and looking up at me with wide, innocent eyes.
It was nice. With them around, I knew I would never truly be alone again.