Meow!! Why is she here!!
The moment I noticed Ning Dongya’s presence, my cat ears flattened tight against my head, and my tail fluffed up into a huge ball.
While my mind was still in a state of shutdown, Ling Xiaoxiao reacted before I did. She immediately reminded me, “Hide, quick!”
Snapping out of it, I dove behind the counter, just as Shiyu’s teal-green tail brushed past the tip of my nose.
In the reflection of the counter’s glass sign, I caught the curve at Ning Dongya’s lips—it was exactly the same as in the Office.
Seeing this, I jolted in fright, not even sure if she’d noticed me just now.
And soon, Ning Dongya’s voice drifted from the front, “Heh, what a surprising discovery.”
Meow!!!
Hearing this, my already unsettled heartbeat sped up again.
Was the “surprise” she mentioned just now because she saw me?
“Do you like this place?” the Assistant asked at her side.
“It’s nice,” Ning Dongya answered briefly, then started walking this way.
Fortunately, Shiyu wasn’t the type to lose her cool. She stepped forward to greet the customer, probably wondering why I was hiding as well.
“Welcome, may I take your order?”
Ning Dongya’s gaze swept over the counter. Her icy blue pupils shimmered coldly under the lights. She raised a hand to neaten the sleeve of her suit. “One Cappuccino, no sugar.” The Assistant quickly added, “I’ll have an Iced Americano, thank you.”
“One Cappuccino, no sugar, and one Iced Americano, is that correct? Please wait a moment, I’ll have them right out.” Shiyu turned to make the drinks.
With the order placed, everything should be fine, right? I just had to wait for Ning Dongya to finish her drink and leave.
Ning Dongya suddenly let out a soft laugh, tapping her fingertips on the table. “Do you have any Catgirl waitresses here?” The end of her sentence lifted slightly. “If you do, have the Catgirl bring the drinks, since this is a Cat Cafe after all.”
Ling Xiaoxiao’s rabbit ears shot upright, her pink-and-white tail nervously wrapping around the mop handle. She peeked out from the side of the counter, her voice trembling, “N-no Catgirl here!”
Shiyu’s teal-green fox ears twitched. She hurriedly held the Disinfectant Spray bottle in front of her. “That’s right, the ‘cat’ in Cat Cafe means there are cats, not Catgirls.” As Shiyu spoke, her tail tip subtly nudged me deeper into hiding, hinting that I should stay farther back.
Crouched behind the counter, I instantly held my breath, my cat paws clamped tightly over my mouth to keep any whimpers from leaking out.
The scent of disinfectant mixed with cat food filled my nose, but I didn’t even have the strength to sneeze. All I could picture was her in the Office, gripping my chin and saying, “Wasting your settings,” the sting of her nails digging into my skin still fresh in my mind.
“Meow…” I bit my lip hard, my cat ears trembling among my hair like leaves in the wind. Luckily my voice wasn’t loud; Ning Dongya probably hadn’t noticed.
“Is that so?” Ning Dongya toyed with her hair, a teasing smile playing on her lips.
Suddenly she stood up. Her icy blue eyes locked onto my hiding place through the gap in the counter, her voice sharp as a blade chilled in ice: “But I just saw a fluffed-up little kitten dart in here.”
My heart shrank into a tight ball, my blood freezing instantly. She really did see me! Her mocking tone was exactly like when she’d forced me to sign the Internship Contract back in the Office.
I knew there was no hiding anymore. Rather than letting her come find me, I might as well go out myself.
“Hoo…woo…”
Taking a deep breath, I finally crawled out from under the counter. I kept my head down, hands awkwardly clasped in front of me, the fluffy tail behind me twitching restlessly.
“What are you hiding for? I don’t bite, you know.” She propped her chin in her hand, leaning on the counter with a pleasant smile, then leaned closer to my face, “Well, isn’t this tomorrow’s New Employee? So you work here, huh?”
My whole body froze, my ears trembling even harder, my voice barely a whisper, “Y-yes… today’s my first day…” My cat paws unconsciously picked at the edge of my clothes, not daring to meet her gaze.
Ning Dongya raised her eyebrows, her eyes drifting over my plain clothes, lips curling in a mischievous grin, “Oh? Skipping out on work on your first day? Where’s your Uniform?”
My cheeks burned. I stammered, “H-haven’t had time to change yet…”
Before I finished, Shiyu came out of the kitchen with two cups of coffee. “Your orders are ready.”
Ning Dongya glanced at Shiyu, then turned back to me, her tone leaving no room for argument. “Go change.” She tapped the coffee cup with her fingertip. “After you put on your Uniform, bring them over yourself.”
I instinctively stepped back half a pace, my cat paws clutching my clothes tightly. “N-no! I haven’t officially started yet…” But before I could finish, Ning Dongya’s icy gaze pinned me in place. She slowly pulled out her phone. “Is that so? Then I’ll just leave a bad review for this store online.”
Seeing how things were going, Shiyu hurried to speak up for me. “Miss, how about this: I’ll serve the drinks, so please don’t make things difficult for her.”
“No way. Since this is a Cat Cafe, it’s only reasonable to have a Catgirl in Uniform serve the drinks, right?” Ning Dongya waved her hand. It was clear she had no intention of negotiating.
Ning Dongya’s fingertip slid lazily over her phone screen. Her tone was careless. “Catgirl, you wouldn’t want to get a bad review on your first day, would you?”
She looked up at me, those icy blue eyes filled with calculation. “After all, the store’s rating is just one star short of five. And you know who I am. If I asked everyone under me to give this place a bad review, what do you think would happen?”
“Uu…” I bit my lip, tears welling in my eyes.
I knew Ning Dongya’s threats were never empty. She really might do it. Although Yueran, that jerk, has bullied me since we were kids, I’d never be able to forgive myself if she got dragged down by this.
“Catgirl, have you made up your mind?”
Ning Dongya’s voice pressed me like a funeral bell, finally making me loosen my grip on my clothes in resignation.
“I’ll change… I’ll go change into my Uniform right now… please don’t give a bad review, meow!”
“Good, then we’ll just sit here and wait with high expectations.” Ning Dongya’s lips curved upward, outlining a scheming smile of victory.
Just then, her Assistant spoke up at the worst possible moment, “President Ning, don’t we still have a lot of business this afternoon? Isn’t this a waste of time…”
Ning Dongya raised her hand to cut the Assistant off, her icy blue nails tapping lightly on the counter. “What’s the rush,” she said, shooting me a mischievous look, “It’s rare to find such an interesting New Employee. She deserves a chance to show off, don’t you think?” Her words lingered like a cat paw scratching at my heart.
I followed Shiyu toward the Changing Room, her teal-green fox tail brushing my hand, warm and comforting. But my own tail felt weighted with lead, dragging behind me and thudding dully on the floor with every step.
She’s doing this on purpose! She clearly has things to do this afternoon, but insists on hanging around—just to watch me embarrass myself in the Uniform! Or maybe… I suddenly stopped in my tracks, my cat ears pricking up alertly. Could she really have noticed something’s off?
Shiyu turned to look at me, her fox ears drooping with worry, though her tone was still lazy as ever, “Don’t worry, the Uniform’s really cute. I’m sure it’ll look great on you.”
Ugh, that’s not what I’m worried about at all.
It’s that, in my heart, I’m still a dude! I don’t want to wear a skirt!
Premium Chapter
Login to buy access to this Chapter.