109. Cola
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Tu Junhui was starting to think that Lin Nan must have hit his head recently.
He was already hopelessly girly, yet suddenly he started imitating Chen Yao, sitting around with his legs wide open or propping up a masculine leg while gaming, spouting obscenities, and even bringing up HS in conversations.
Tu Junhui wondered if Lin Nan had knocked himself silly on his weekend trip home.
“Hey, Tu Tu, are you still a virgin?”
“!” Tu Junhui’s face turned beet red as he shook his head without hesitation.
Lin Nan leaned in with glowing eyes, “What’s it like? Spill the beans for us old virgins!”
Xiong Da, who was lounging on the bed, peered over the edge with a blank expression and nodded, “They say you can’t find the entrance the first time, right?”
What kind of wolfish talk is that?
Tu Junhui thought if Lin Nan wasn’t in the dorm, he could boast shamelessly about his exploits; but with Lin Nan around, it felt like he was sharing raunchy jokes with a girl.
The usual boisterous Tu Junhui was uncharacteristically bashful, stammering for ages, and ultimately could only helplessly admit he was just bragging.
Lin Nan looked skeptically at him while Tu Junhui awkwardly scratched his head.
Talking about these things with Lin Nan felt a bit embarrassing.
“What a pity, I’m still a virgin.” Lin Nan muttered as he returned to his spot, resting his chin on his hand, staring blankly at the computer screen.
He was practically turning into a girl, yet he hadn’t even had a girlfriend. He felt like he was missing out big time.
Tu Junhui suspected the guy might not only have bumped his head but actually created a dent in his brain.
“I’m back, I’m back!” Chen Yao suddenly burst in, panting heavily and lugging a huge bag of deliveries. “Lin Nan, how much cat food and litter did you buy? It’s so heavy!”
“If it’s not heavy, why would you carry it?” Lin Nan quickly moved over to open the packages, “There was a sale, so I bought some extra to stock up. After all, they’re consumables, and I just so happen to have a bit of money now.”
He had swindled quite a bit from his uncle, plus his part-time job, along with money from Chen Jiang’s dad and Uncle Liu’s five hundred; his finances were looking pretty good this month.
Too bad next month he wouldn’t have any spending money, so he’d have to save.
Lin Nan realized that back in high school, he used to spend money on cafeteria takeouts and the occasional late-night snacks, maybe only around 800 or 900 a month, without ever feeling broke. But since he got to college, it felt like money was slipping through his fingers like water. By the end of the month, he was pinching pennies, and that was with a part-time job!
The worst part? Every time the month ended and he looked at his bills, he had no clue where his money had gone.
It was just three meals a day, for crying out loud.
Chen Yao crouched down to help unpack the deliveries, and Cola, maybe sensing all this was for her, meowed and trotted over.
This cat was pretty smart. Lin Nan had worried she would run around the dorm, carelessly tumble off the balcony, but she never got within ten centimeters of the railing.
Compared to dogs that needed training or indifferent cats, Cola seemed much more affectionate, ready to stick by his side at a glance, and when left alone, she would cheerfully play with her toys without making a fuss.
She was also super cute, all fluffy and round. Despite being completely black, she had white paws that made her look like she was stepping on clouds. It was like the phrase “black clouds stepping on snow” was made for her, though sadly, her tail had a little bend in it.
Lin Nan really liked this cat, but hearing from Lin Yuan that kitten should ideally not be bathed, he felt a bit put off by Cola’s messy fur.
After finally unpacking everything and stacking it neatly in the corner of the dorm room, Lin Nan stretched his back.
Chen Yao, glancing over, couldn’t help but notice that when Lin Nan stretched, his not-so-obvious curves somehow created a rather awe-inspiring illusion.
He quickly averted his gaze, asking, “Wanna game?”
“Let it go, I’ve got an appointment at the vet; gotta get Cola her shots.” Lin Nan picked up an empty delivery box, squatted down, and called out to Cola, “Get in.”
Cola seemed to understand as she confidently hopped into the box, looking curiously out with her big eyes.
“So good~” Lin Nan’s voice turned a bit sweet.
Chen Yao heard that and couldn’t help but conjure some unmentionable images in his mind, flooding him with sudden guilt.
Here was Lin Nan treating him as a friend, and yet…
He promptly moved toward the balcony to splash some water on his face to cool down, but as he unwittingly glanced back, he noticed Lin Nan’s pants were snug against his rear, outlining that dainty little behind in a way that made him gasp.
He quickly cast a glance at Tu Junhui and Xiong Da, only to find they were utterly oblivious to Lin Nan’s figure. So, he grabbed Lin Nan’s sun shirt that was draped over a chair and stepped over to help him put it on.
That felt much better.
“Um, thanks.” Lin Nan, blissfully unaware, donned the shirt, hoisting up the delivery box as he stood and instructed, “I bought disinfectant; you disinfect Cola’s stuff while I take her to the vet for her shots.”
“Got it.”
Cola had only been a month old when she first came to the dorm and still needed to be weaned; it wasn’t suitable for vaccines yet. Now, at two months old, and Lin Nan fortunately having a little money, it was the perfect time to take Cola for her shots.
Otherwise, he had no idea how much money he’d have left after this period.
As he pushed open the dormitory door, Lin Yuan was already waiting in the hallway. This was Lin Nan’s first time raising a cat—and his first time taking one for a vet check-up, fearing getting scammed, so he called in Lin Yuan for backup.
Lin Yuan seemed completely unfazed by Lin Nan’s increasingly girly appearance; he had his eyes fixed firmly on Cola in the box. “She looks way better than when she first arrived.”
“It’s a pity I didn’t have money back then; if I had taken her to the vet sooner, her tail might have been saved.” Lin Nan gently stroked Cola’s broken tail with a twinge of sadness.
“Hey, we’re all broke students here, nothing out of the ordinary.” Lin Yuan took the delivery box and led Lin Nan toward the pet hospital on the back street of school.
Lin Nan noticed that while Lin Yuan had a cold demeanor, he had a warm heart, especially when it came to cats and dogs. He had seen Lin Yuan feeding the stray cats around campus multiple times.
“You really like cats, huh?” Lin Nan couldn’t help but ask.
“Just black cats.” Lin Yuan paused, continuing to walk while saying, “There was a black cat that grew up with me. It ran away when I was twelve. My mom said cats have a sixth sense; they know when they’re nearing the end, so they run off to spare us the pain of seeing them go.”
Although his tone was flat, Lin Nan could sense a hint of sadness tucked away in those words.
“If you love cats so much, why not keep Cola?”
“Once you lose a beloved pet, you can’t bring yourself to get another.” Lin Yuan reached into the delivery box, gently patting Cola on the head. “Since then, we haven’t had any pets at home.”
It seemed like Lin Yuan considered his old cat a part of the family.
Lin Nan couldn’t quite relate to that; when he was a child, he would often be scared sleepless by the howling of stray cats. If he hadn’t come across pretty cat pictures later on, he might have never developed a fondness for them.
To him, Cola was just a cute way to pass the time, not the household member Lin Yuan thought of her as.
