TAM 11

When he landed on the ground, the black cat let go of Mo Yao.

Mo Yao felt a little uncomfortable, as if someone had invaded his territory, and he looked at the black cat.

The black cat already started walking ahead.

Outside the school’s side gate, the entire street was lined with small restaurants, but most were closed at this hour, and only a few barbecue places were still open.

The black cat stopped in front of a grilled fish shop.

The shop had already closed, and a young waitress was sweeping the floor with a broom.

Mo Yao followed her.

When the girl saw the black cat, her broom stopped in her hand, and she smiled as she said, “Mimi!”

Mo Yao couldn’t help looking at the black cat and saw that the black cat, called Mimi, kept the same expression.

The girl continued sweeping.

Mo Yao didn’t understand the black cat’s intention. When he saw it sitting still, he couldn’t help walking around it several times.

Before the grilled fish shop’s rolling door fully closed, the girl came out with a grilled fish wrapped in foil and placed it on the ground.

She said, “Take your time eating, I’m getting off work.”

After the girl left, Mo Yao went closer to look at the grilled fish. A piece was missing, so someone had already eaten from it, but it still looked clean, and more than half was left.

He was really hungry, and leftovers were still cleaner than food from the trash, so Mo Yao lowered his head and started eating the fish.

The small door in the middle of the rolling door had been locked, and the white light shining from under it disappeared after a while.

When Mo Yao was half full, he finally looked up at the black cat and saw that it had been sitting next to him the whole time without coming to eat.

The black cat had brought him here on purpose to eat fish, and Mo Yao understood that now. He hesitated, stepped back half a step, and gestured for the black cat to come.

But the black cat still didn’t move.

Mo Yao thought, since you’re not eating, then I won’t hold back. So he stopped hesitating and lowered his head to eat in big bites.

After so many nights, this was the first time Mo Yao ate until he was full.

On the quiet street late at night, the full cat walked slowly with a satisfied look, and its tail swung left and right behind its hips.

The black cat walked ahead at an unhurried pace, its figure agile and its steps light.

Mo Yao looked at its back. He wanted to thank it, but he couldn’t express it in words, so he went after it. The black cat continued walking, and since Mo Yao couldn’t pat its shoulder, he rubbed against it with his body instead.

The black cat turned to look at him.

Under the streetlight, Mo Yao saw the black cat’s face up close. Its whole face was black, but its round eyes looked cute, like the soot sprites in a Miyazaki film, so Mo Yao rubbed against it again.

This time the black cat moved and gently bumped him away.

Feeling good, Mo Yao got excited and kept rubbing against the black cat all the way back to school.

When they returned, Mo Yao went to the sink beside the soccer field and turned on the faucet to drink water.

The black cat stood on the ground, and when it didn’t move, it blended perfectly into the darkness.

Mo Yao drank until he was full, and he flicked off the water droplets sticking to the hair under his chin, then he turned his head and saw the black cat suddenly leap onto the tree beside them.

He grew curious, and he climbed up after it, squeezed next to the black cat, and looked ahead.

Then he saw the male cat that had been in the grove earlier.

The light had been too dim before, so he had only seen that the male cat was large and heavy. Now, under the streetlight, he could see its fur was matted and dirty, its long thick tail dragged behind it, and its slow steps seemed strangely heavy.

Mo Yao frowned slightly, and his face was almost pressed against the black cat’s.

The male cat walked toward their direction.

Mo Yao felt tense for no reason, and he turned to look at the black cat. The black cat made no sound, and it hid between the branches and leaves, showing no sign of moving.

When the male cat passed under the tree, a tabby suddenly jumped out from the bushes beside it, pounced on the male cat, and ran off right after.

The male cat’s body moved in an instant. Its speed wasn’t fast, but its power was terrifying. Even though the tabby seemed far away already, the male cat caught up within a few strides and knocked it into the grass.

Mo Yao saw the tabby struggle and let out a hiss. It rolled onto its back to show submission and whimpered quietly.

The male cat loosened its strength a little.

The tabby used the chance to slip away, but Mo Yao was high up, so he could still see it in the distance, and one of its legs seemed injured.

He looked at the male cat again and saw that it kept walking ahead at an unhurried pace, and he thought, campus violence is terrifying.

He waited until the male cat left before the black cat jumped down from the tree. This time it didn’t wait for Mo Yao, and it walked away by itself.

Two days later at noon, Mo Yao saw that same fierce male cat at school.

It was lunchtime, and students were going in and out of the cafeteria and dorms nearby.

He saw the male cat crouched at the girls’ dorm entrance, just like that night, acting imposing as it begged food from the girls who passed by.

The cat’s fur was filthy, and under the sunlight, its original color couldn’t even be seen. Its long hair clumped together in tangled tufts, its face was big and flat, and its eyes were triangular, which made it look fierce.

Mo Yao took his meal from the cafeteria. He had planned to go back to the dorm, but instead he found a spot to crouch down, eating while watching the cat.

That cat’s look should have been unpleasant, but the girls still fed it. Someone even placed a paper lunch box in front of it, and others scooped rice and meat into it.

The begging cat showed no flattery. When someone fed it, it ate. When no one fed it, it sat upright waiting for lunch to be served like a noble.

Mo Yao watched for about ten minutes, and he realized the girls’ dorm entrance at lunchtime was a perfect place for begging. The college girls gave all their overflowing affection to these stray cats, feeding them until they grew fat and well-fed.

Why was he the only one going hungry every night?

He couldn’t understand. He stood up and looked around, and in the distance he saw a white cat hiding in the corner. Except for that one, there were no other cats in sight.

He started to realize that this area belonged to that male cat. It had claimed all the girls’ affection and refused to share food with others, and the other cats didn’t dare appear within its sight.

Mo Yao was angry.

That night, Mo Yao lay in bed early. He put his hands under his head and thought about what to do next.

Ever since the black cat had taken him to eat fish that night, it hadn’t shown up again for two days.

He had climbed over the wall and gone out himself, but both times the grilled fish shop had been closed. He didn’t know if it was bad luck or if something else had happened.

He was hungry.

He couldn’t rely on the black cat forever, and he decided to think of a way himself tonight.

Before sleeping, Zhang Ziyu and Chen Xinyong lay in their beds talking, and Mo Yao pretended to sleep without saying a word. He hoped they would stop talking and go to sleep.

Sure enough, after a while, the two lowered their voices, thinking he was asleep, and then stopped talking altogether.

“Why didn’t you make a sound?” Mo Yao spoke first to hide his embarrassment.

Mo Yao heard them fall asleep, but there was still one problem. Si Yuan hadn’t come back tonight.

Would Si Yuan come back? Mo Yao wasn’t sure. Sometimes he didn’t stay in the dorm at night, maybe because the building was locked too late, so he didn’t bother returning.

It wasn’t that late yet, so Si Yuan might still come back.

Mo Yao grew restless. He lifted the blanket and got out of bed. He wore only his underwear, so he grabbed a shirt and threw it on.

He went to the door, reached out, and turned the lock. He opened a narrow gap to peek out, and he almost bumped into someone standing right outside.

Si Yuan had already taken out his key and was about to unlock the door.

Mo Yao looked up and met Si Yuan’s eyes, and the air turned awkward.

“What are you doing?” Si Yuan said.

Mo Yao said, “I couldn’t sleep, so I was going to take a walk.”

Under the hallway light, Si Yuan’s eyes dropped from his open shirt to his bare legs.

Mo Yao stepped back half a step. He thought of saying, can’t I go out without pants? but after a moment he decided not to and turned back toward his bed.

Si Yuan walked in and said softly, “The dorm gate is already locked.”

It was exactly eleven o’clock.

Mo Yao answered, “Mm,” and crawled back into his blanket that still held his body warmth.

The door closed and locked.