Leaning against the cold wall backstage, I gasped for breath, my cat ears pressed tight against my head, standing alert and on guard. Even my breathing was deliberately kept as light as possible.
From outside, the sound of guests laughing and chatting, and the clattering of dishes, buzzed through the cloth curtain. Every time someone neared the door curtain, all the fur on my body bristled reflexively.
“Guiyun~” Ling Xiaoxiao’s voice suddenly slipped in through a gap in the curtain, startling me so much I nearly jumped in place. Her pale pink rabbit ears swayed back and forth under the curtain, and her barely contained pride nearly overflowed in her tone, “Hiding back here is such a waste, everyone still wants to take pictures with you!”
A slit was suddenly lifted at the bottom of the curtain, and a blinding ray of light slipped in. I could almost imagine her sly grin as she stifled a laugh behind her hand.
“Shut up!” I growled back in a low voice, my claws clutching the edge of the curtain so tightly I nearly ripped through the fabric.
The heat on my cheeks hadn’t faded yet. The scene just now, with camera flashes going off nonstop as I was feeding, still played before my eyes. Worse yet… a phone camera suddenly poked through the gap in the curtain!
“Meow-aow!” I practically rolled and crawled backwards, and in my panic, the back of my head banged “thunk” against the corner’s metal shelf, making several empty tin cans above rattle noisily.
“Ugh… ouch…” Tears instantly shot from my eyes. I curled up, clutching my head, my tail puffed up in alarm like a fluffy feather duster.
That wretched Ling Xiaoxiao, she actually ambushed me!!
Outside the curtain, Ling Xiaoxiao’s exaggerated exclamation came, “Wow! Guiyun, is your head okay? Did you knock yourself silly?” Then, trying hard to stifle her laughter but still sounding annoyingly sarcastic, she asked, “Need me to call an ambulance for you? The number is 1—”
“Ling! Xiao! Xiao!” I gritted her name out through clenched teeth, ignoring the bump on the back of my head as I prepared to lunge out and fight her.
But as soon as I lifted a corner of the curtain, several scorching gazes from outside instantly pinned me in place.
Even as she teased me, Ling Xiaoxiao the little devil didn’t forget to rally the crowd, “The catgirl’s out! Look!”
“Meow!!”
I’d fallen into her trap!!
By the time I thought to duck back, I realized everyone’s attention was already fixed on my embarrassed, blushing face.
I stood there, body stiff.
Fortunately, right then, Yue Ran spoke up.
“Dear guests, please refrain from taking photos.”
Yue Ran’s voice was elegant and low, a polite warning to the customers hoping to capture my current state.
The curtain was gently lifted a crack. Yue Ran bent over to peek in, flour dusting the ends of her hair.
Her warm fingertips carefully avoided the bump, gently massaging the sore spot on the back of my head. “Does it still hurt?” Her voice was soft and gentle, “That girl Xiaoxiao’s off busy now, she won’t block you for a while.”
I sniffled, my response muffled, “Mm.”
She fished out a small oil-paper-wrapped packet of cookies from her apron pocket. The caramel-colored shortbread was studded with whole almonds, the sweet scent wafting straight to my nose.
“Just baked. Think of it as a reward for little Guiyun’s hard work.” She smiled, placing them in my hand, her fingertips brushing away the tears at the corner of my eye. “Eat slowly here; I have to get back to work.”
Yue Ran left, and the warmth from the oil-paper-wrapped cookies soothed my palm. I nibbled at the crispy cookies, the slight bitterness of caramel mingling with the nutty aroma on my tongue.
Mmm! Delicious!!
It really feels like if I stay by Yue Ran’s side much longer, I’m bound to get chubby.
But then it occurred to me: Yue Ran just said this was a reward for my earlier hard work. Didn’t Ling Xiaoxiao, who skipped her lazy sleep to help out in the shop, deserve some too?
Peeking out, I saw Shiyu directing Xiaoxiao as she served dishes to the guests, and I could almost hear her reluctant muttering.
Watching that scene, I smiled and placed the cookies on the table in the back room, planning to eat them with that fool after things quieted down.
When Ling Xiaoxiao came back to the kitchen carrying the last cup of coffee, her nose suddenly twitched.
Her pink-white rabbit ears pricked up like two little radars, zeroing in on the faint trace of sweetness in the air. Her gaze swept the corner, and in an instant she spotted the familiar oil-paper packet on the little table backstage.
“Huh?” She leaned in, carefully lifting a corner of the paper. The sweet scent of caramel and roasted almonds filled the air, warm and inviting.
Her eyes lit up, but she quickly folded her arms, trying to look nonchalant, her fluffy white tail lazily tracing circles behind her. “Hmph, caught you sneaking off to eat good stuff back here, huh?”
I was leaning against the wall, sipping water in small gulps, and nearly choked when I heard that. “Who’s sneaking? Yue Ran gave them to me!” I put down my cup and pointed irritably at the oil-paper packet. “Here, I saved you some! So you can’t complain I’m stingy or cheating you!”
“Really?” Ling Xiaoxiao’s ears gave a suspicious twitch, but she still put on her little act, “How do I know you didn’t just leave the scraps for me…”
“Eat it or don’t!” I made as if to snatch them away. “If you don’t want it, I’ll take it back!”
“Who said I don’t want it!” She immediately pounced and pinned down the oil-paper packet like a little animal protecting its food.
Watching her forced composure crumble in an instant, I couldn’t help but burst out laughing.
Funny thing is, back when I was a guy, I had no interest in sweets like these—actually, I’d have found them way too sugary.
But for some reason, ever since becoming a catgirl, these desserts that used to be overwhelmingly sweet don’t bother me as much anymore. In fact, I quite like them.
I bet Ling Xiaoxiao feels the same way I do.
She couldn’t wait to grab a cookie, the caramel shortbread glinting temptingly under the light. She gingerly took a tiny bite; the crisp “crunch” was especially clear in the quiet back room.
The scent of almond filled her mouth, blending with caramel’s unique bitter edge and the rich butteriness.
“Mm…” she mumbled contentedly, her cheeks bulging with cookie like a little hamster. Even the sly gleam that usually danced in her eyes softened, leaving her looking dazed and utterly absorbed in the treat.
Seeing her like this, I suddenly found it both amusing and… hmm, kind of cute? When she’s quiet and eating, she’s not nearly as infuriating.
“So? How is it?” I couldn’t help but copy Yue Ran’s tone, folding my arms as I asked.
Ling Xiaoxiao didn’t answer right away. She took another bite of cookie, her voice soft and content, “…Not bad.” She paused, her pink-white ears twitching again as if a little embarrassed to admit it, but in the end she muttered in a tiny voice, “…It’s pretty tasty.”
“Pff!!” I couldn’t hold back my laughter. This girl, what’s so hard about being honest!
“Hmph! What are you laughing at!”
“Alright~ I’ll stop laughing~”
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