Chapter 49

The hospital was large, quiet, and spotless. A few other people were around, and the front desk wasn’t far away; pet owners came and went in an endless stream. Their corner was tucked against the wall, screened off by a fake green plant taller than a person. Yu Min kept her voice low enough that only the two of them could hear.

Lin Baixin didn’t answer right away. She just looked at her, then said gently, “Are you close with that girl?”

Yu Min replied, “Not really. Just okay, I guess.”

“I see.”

“Mm.”

Lin Baixin made no judgment. She kept her tone restrained; only after a while did she say, “Well, everyone makes their own choices. That’s your classmate’s decision. What other people think doesn’t matter.”

Yu Min pressed her lips together and went on, “But she cares a lot about what other people think.”

“Did she come out publicly?”

“Sort of.”

“Well, then that can’t really be helped.”

“...Yeah.”

Lin Baixin’s stance remained neutral. After all, it was someone else’s business, and since the person wasn’t a close acquaintance and it didn’t concern her, she wasn’t going to weigh in much. At most, she said, “Once the bow is drawn, there’s no taking it back. Since she’s already decided, she can only face it.”

Yu Min wanted a more direct answer, but Lin Baixin never gave her one. The conversation had gone as far as it could; if they pushed any further, the lie would start to show. Yu Min had made the classmate up. There wasn’t a girl like that in their class, at least none she knew of. She still wasn’t very familiar with her classmates, and if she kept talking, it would sound stranger than the original question.

The pet hospital also kept cats. A round-faced orange tabby had been sleeping on the cashier’s counter. While they were talking, it woke up and wandered over at a lazy pace, rubbing enthusiastically against both their calves, circling them once, then nimbly hopping onto the table and flopping down right between them.

They chatted on and off about other things after that. Lin Baixin changed the subject, clearly not very interested in gossiping about other people; that didn’t fit her usual principles. She stroked the orange tabby and, after a moment, said softly to Yu Min, “Its eyes are a lot like Lu Dagun’s, aren’t they?”

Yu Min couldn’t see it. The tabby’s pupils were amber; Lu Dagun’s were sky blue. They didn’t look alike at all.

“Their pupils are both pretty big, and very round,” Lin Baixin said gently, affectionate toward cats and sharing the affection she felt for Lu Dagun with the orange tabby too. “Very cute. They look a little dazed, kind of silly.”

Compared side by side, Yu Min could only barely make out the resemblance, and nodded. “Maybe.”

Lu Dagun’s neutering went smoothly. After the surgery, it still needed two hours of observation. The doctor came out to report the result and gave them a list of postoperative instructions: no water for four hours, no food for six, how long it had to avoid bathing, when to bring it back for a checkup, when the stitches would need to come out, and so on.

Yu Min memorized everything. They could go in and see the cat now, but Lu Dagun still hadn’t woken up; the anesthesia hadn’t worn off completely.

The little one woke up about ten minutes later. When the observation period ended, Lin Baixin drove while Yu Min carried the airline crate and sat in the backseat. On the way home, perhaps because she was focused on Lu Dagun, Yu Min was quiet and barely spoke to Lin Baixin at all. By the time they got home, Lu Dagun had already fully woken up. Unlike other kittens, it had an impressive tolerance for pain; even with the post-op recovery suit on, it could still scramble around without issue.

Following the doctor’s instructions, Yu Min began strictly carrying out every requirement once they got back. For the next two days, she stayed by Lu Dagun’s side. On the second day, Lin Baixin asked if she wanted to go shopping, but Yu Min refused and crouched on the floor to scratch Lu Dagun under the chin.

“You go ahead. I’m worried about Lu Dagun. We can go next time.”

A neutering surgery was still a surgery, but it didn’t require such meticulous care. The doctor had already said that as long as the kitten’s mental state was fine and the wound didn’t become infected, there was basically no need to fuss over it too much.

Besides, the hospital sent updates every day. They had already checked the wound online that morning and confirmed there was nothing wrong. There was still an aunt at home, too; the two of them could go out shopping during the day just fine.

Yu Min simply didn’t want to go. She was irritable, unable to shake that restlessness, and didn’t want Lin Baixin to notice, so she made excuses and brushed it off.

How could Lin Baixin not sense that something was off? Ever since their conversation at the hospital, Yu Min had clearly been acting strange. That was why Lin Baixin had asked her out shopping today; she wanted to take her out and clear her head.

Yu Min didn’t want to go, and Lin Baixin couldn’t force her. If she didn’t want to, then so be it.

Later that evening, Lin Baixin brought another plate of carefully cut fruit over to Yu Min and sat across from her, finally asking directly, “Are you unhappy?”

Yu Min shook her head. “No.”

“You look very unhappy.”

“Just a little tired from taking care of Lu Dagun. It kept crying last night and woke me up several times. I didn’t sleep well.”

Lin Baixin frowned, and it was hard to tell whether she believed that explanation or not. After a moment, she said, “Then tonight let it sleep in my room. It won’t disturb you anymore.”

There was no way a kitten’s sleeping arrangements could really be controlled by people. Yu Min gave a perfunctory reply. “Okay.”

That night, though, Lu Dagun still ended up in Yu Min’s room. Lin Baixin had taken it out at first, but the little thing came back on its own. It had grown used to treating Yu Min’s bed as its nest and refused to sleep anywhere else.

For the next several days, Yu Min still took good care of Lu Dagun and was the one who took it to the hospital for follow-up checkups. She had classes during the day, and Lin Baixin had wanted to take the cat herself, but Yu Min insisted on going. Lu Dagun was even clingier to Yu Min; ever since the surgery, it basically followed her step for step the moment she got home. Wherever Yu Min went, it went. Sometimes Yu Min would go out onto the balcony to catch some air, but since Lu Dagun couldn’t get out, it would immediately start yowling through the glass door until Yu Min came back inside.

Lu Dagun was noisy, but Yu Min didn’t find it annoying. Sometimes she even had a strange sense of shared hardship; both of them were living in Lin Baixin’s house, both being fed and cared for by Lin Baixin without asking for anything in return. But a pet was a pet, and Yu Min was Yu Min. A person and a cat could both stay here without conditions, but it still couldn’t be the kind of companionship Yu Min wanted.

Lin Baixin came home earlier and earlier. In the past, the earliest she could get home was after six; these days, she was always back before five, and sometimes even got off work before four. Every time, she got home before Yu Min was out of school.

Yu Min had the fewest classes on Wednesdays. She had a full schedule in the morning and only one class in the afternoon. After class, when she got back, Lin Baixin had already arrived home before her twice in a row. One day, this person even brought back a gift for no reason at all: a necklace with a diamond in it, given to Yu Min without any special occasion whatsoever.

It wasn’t Yu Min’s birthday, nor was it any meaningful day. It was just an ordinary day like any other.

After taking the necklace, Yu Min’s suppressed distress eased a little, at least. The design was simple, with a pendant shaped like an elegant, delicate long-tailed cat. Yu Min liked it very much. The next day, she wore it to try it on and took a photo to send to the group chat.

Zhao Shiyu and the others were very supportive, assuming Yu Min had bought the necklace herself. The three of them lined up one after another to praise it like they were reciting a chain of idioms. Later, when Yu Min admitted that it had been a gift from Lin Baixin, the three people in the chat exclaimed in unison: -Your Sister Baixin is so good.

Li Xue Ting: -Jealous. I want one too.

Zhao Shiyu: -Jealous. I want one too.

Wen Yun: +1.

Chatting with friends about random things at least made her feel less stifled. Yu Min wouldn’t stay in a bad mood forever. Because of that necklace, she set those unpleasant feelings aside for the time being, and when she faced Lin Baixin again, she felt much better.

Lu Dagun had taken off its recovery suit, and the little guy was recovering extremely well. Maybe it sensed the change in its owner’s mood; the atmosphere in the house had returned to the way it used to be. Lu Dagun kept lying on the floor, rolling over to expose its belly and stretching lazily, then rolling this way and that, rubbing against Yu Min for a while and Lin Baixin the next.

Lin Baixin found it amusing. She stroked the little cat’s head, then tucked it into Yu Min’s arms and said gently, “Keep her company more. Make her happier.”

Yu Min lifted her eyes; her lashes trembled. Lin Baixin had been paying attention to her lately and knew she wasn’t happy.

Emotions always came and went in waves. One stretch was bad, another better. Now that things had improved, Lin Baixin asked Yu Min to go swimming with her on the weekend.

It wasn’t just the two of them going alone. Lin Qi and a few friends would also be there. The weather was gradually warming up, and summer was the best season for swimming; it was good exercise and helped beat the heat. More importantly, the pool they were going to was a private one in a mountain villa, so the trip was basically no different from going out to have fun.

Of course, Lin Baixin paid for everything. Lin Qi was not polite at all; not only did she want to go, she even brought the bar owner from last time.

Lin Qi had gotten back together with the bar owner, and when someone was in a good mood, it showed. Seeing Yu Min, Lin Qi grinned with shameless delight, clearly thinking Yu Min didn’t know she and the bar owner had gotten back together, and even put on an act as she introduced them again.

Yu Min’s swimsuit was bought by Lin Baixin. She didn’t have one of her own. Lin Baixin had only taken her to buy it the day before. It was a tie-string style and a little complicated. Yu Min wasn’t very good at putting that kind on, and after struggling for a while, she still couldn’t get it right. She hesitated for a long time, embarrassed to ask someone else for help; and since she wasn’t familiar with anyone except Lin Qi, it wasn’t appropriate to ask Lin Qi. After much thought, she could only ask Lin Baixin, who was waiting outside, for help.

She called out twice, but there was no response from outside. Thinking Lin Baixin had already gone out and wasn’t there anymore, Yu Min was just about to give up and try again herself when Lin Baixin finally answered from outside the door.

“Coming.”

Yu Min glanced outside, but couldn’t see anyone through the door. When Lin Baixin was about to come in, she quickly turned around so her back was to the door and stood properly, waiting obediently.