My hand holding the chopsticks trembled slightly, my gaze fixed on the glistening lobster tail.
The hard shell gleamed with a blue-red luster, fine spines arranged like tiny sawteeth—I had no idea where to start.
My clumsy fingertips poked at the shell, almost dropping the chopsticks, my cheeks so hot they could fry an egg.
Ugh, this is how we poor folks are. I’ve never eaten something this fancy…
“Idiot.”
Ning Dongya suddenly snatched the chopsticks from my hand, her nails flashing coldly under the light.
Her slender fingers gripped the lobster tail. With a light twist of her thumb, the shell came off, revealing snowy white flesh mixed with golden roe. Before I could react, she tore off a small piece with her fingers and brought it to my lips. “Open up.”
“Eh?!” I recoiled as if scalded, my cat ears springing straight up.
But she didn’t give me any chance to refuse. Her fingertips, with the shrimp, gently brushed my lips.
The cool sensation sparked like a jolt of electricity through my whole body. I opened my mouth instinctively, but her fingers, with the shrimp, grazed my lips again.
Her cool fingertip lingered at the corner of my mouth, the fragrance of fresh shrimp wafting into my nose.
“Meow!!!” The sudden touch startled me so much I jumped, quickly pulling away from her. My tail smacked the chair uncontrollably, and my cheeks burned crimson.
This girl definitely did that on purpose!
The feeling of her fingertips lingered on my lips, and I could even sense the deliberate pause in her movement. “S-sorry!” I blurted out in panic, my voice quivering, while my cat ears caught her low chuckle.
She acted like nothing happened, licking the fingertip I had bitten. The smile in her eyes deepened. “Did you burn yourself? Then let me blow on it for you.”
As she spoke, she suddenly leaned in. Before I could react, warm breath with a hint of cedar drifted over me as she gently blew on the shrimp by my lips.
“Meow meow meow!!!” Shame surged like a volcano, exploding in my head—I felt the tips of my ears were smoking.
Yet my catgirl body responded honestly, a shiver running through me, the tip of my tail taut with tension, my voice almost crying, “Uuu, n-no, don’t do this, meow!!!”
“Don’t do what? Do you mean this? Hoo~”
With that, Ning Dongya tore off another piece of shrimp and held it to my lips. I reached out instinctively, but she blew gently on the shrimp by my mouth again.
The warm airflow felt like an invisible finger, teasing my lips, raising my embarrassment to a new height…
“Meow!!!!!!”
Lunch finally ended. Though it was embarrassing, at least it was over.
When Ning Dongya finally said I could go, I bolted from my seat like I’d received a pardon, forgetting even to thank her.
The corridor was quiet; everyone seemed to be at lunch.
But as I rounded the corner, I noticed something unusual.
A flurry of soft voices drifted to my ears—who works this hard even during lunch break?
Curious, I crept closer.
The voices came from a small conference room at the end of the hall. Warm yellow light glowed through the glass door, which had no frosted covering, letting me clearly see what was happening inside.
A dozen desks were pushed together. Several young people in casual clothes were clustered around a projector, deep in discussion.
Someone was sketching quickly with a marker on drafting paper. Another, holding a tablet and showing off a layered design draft, excitedly slapped the table: “How about adding a catgirl Easter egg here? That way, we can set up the next new character, and their CP dynamic won’t feel forced.” Yet another squatted on the floor rummaging through reference albums—a small mountain of colorful comics piled beside them.
Seeing this little world inside, my heart thudded as if something had nudged it.
To draw what you love with like-minded people, to work together…
My fingertip unconsciously picked at the crack in the glass, my cat tail curling behind me in envy. If only I could have a studio like that too…
“Jealous?”
A familiar cold scent suddenly brushed the back of my neck. I jolted away as if doused in ice water, slamming my back into the wall opposite. My cat ears shot up like radar, my tail puffing out uncontrollably.
Ning Dongya was standing behind me—I didn’t even know when she’d arrived. Her silver-gray pupils looked especially deep in the glass reflection. She was supposed to be back in her office half an hour ago handling business. Why was she here? Had she been following me all along?
“P-President! Why are you…” I waved my hands in panic, my cheeks so hot they could cook shrimp. “I was just passing by! Just looking!”
She stepped in closer, the scent of cedar enveloping me completely. Her fingertip lazily traced over the back of my hand, still pressed to the glass, her voice trailing like a feather tickling my heart: “Passing by needs you to get this close? Or is it that our little intern wants to join the outsourcing team?”
“N-no!” I shook my head like a rattle-drum, but my cat ears still trembled uncontrollably.
Suddenly, cheers erupted from inside the room: “Got it! Add the Easter egg here—these cat ears are definitely adorable!”
My ears shot up even higher, my tail reflexively swishing. Ning Dongya’s mocking chuckle tickled my ear, “Still say you don’t want to?”
As the presentation inside finished, thunderous applause broke out.
I was drawn in again. Watching their atmosphere, that feeling of envy flared up once more.
“Of course I’d like it, but I must be far behind these professional outsourcing teams, right?”
Besides, if they could work with Ning Dongya’s company, every one of them must be incredibly skilled…
And I’m just an illustrator who draws at home all day, shut away from the world.
At that thought, I lowered my head, sighing dejectedly.
“It’s alright, take it slow. I have faith in you—you can do it.”
Ning Dongya’s tone was no longer teasing. She gently rubbed my ear.
She paused, then looked again through the glass door, her feelings complicated.
Could I really do something like this?
Ning Dongya’s fingers suddenly pinched my burning earlobe, as gentle as kneading cotton candy. “If you don’t even believe in yourself, how could your characters ever have a soul?”
“But I…”
I tried to say something, but she interrupted me again.
She bent down to look me straight in the eye, her silver-gray pupils reflecting the shifting lights behind the glass door. “Weren’t those works you showed me yesterday pretty good?”
The tip of my tail instantly tensed up. Why did this girl have to bring up the drawings I showed her yesterday?
At that time, I almost got exposed because my style matched the comics that had spread rumors about her!
She suddenly leaned in, her warm breath brushing my burning ear, “How about this—bring your drawings, and let’s see what those professionals think?”
“Meow!!! No!!!”
Flustered, I shoved her away and escaped.
If I really agreed, she might realize that I was the one who spread rumors with those comics!
And besides, this woman always manages to mess with my emotions so easily! Damn it!!
(PS: Mysterious code 2163032556, the answer is Guiyun Meow, auto-check meow~)
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