Another leaf fell from the tree. The temperature was getting colder and colder. As soon as the window was opened, a cat nimbly jumped down from the windowsill, then squatted under the tree trunk for a while, slowly licking its fur, circling the tree, waiting for the next leaf to fall.
This is a recent daily routine for a calico cat named Conch.
As it grew older, it became increasingly lazy and lost interest in waking its sleeping owner. On mornings when its owner hadn't gotten up, it would always sneak out for a stroll.
Seashell had long forgotten what life was like before it came to its owner. It was an old cat and its memory wasn't very good. It only remembered its current life and that it was a very happy cat.
As another leaf fell, the wind picked up a bit more. The calico cat considered the time for a moment, then leaped back onto the windowsill. Sensing that its owner was gradually waking up, it quietly crouched at the doorway, displaying a well-behaved and adorable expression.
At times like these, the owner would always rub its chin for a while before quietly going to wash up. Its owner wasn't a very noisy person, and had always been—at certain times of the year, the house would become much livelier, and the owner's smile would be brighter than usual.
But that hasn't happened recently, because that person hasn't been home lately.
Conch still hasn't figured out that person's identity.
That person was clearly a living, breathing human. It liked to rub the conch shell's back and would occasionally provokely touch the conch shell's tail. Although it didn't mean to hurt itself, the calico cat, when it was young, would chase that person around several times to retaliate against the other party's evil behavior of playing with its tail.
In such situations, even the most biased owner will side with the other party.
The conch will feel aggrieved for a while, and even its favorite cat food won't taste as good anymore.
As a cat, it has a keen sense of smell and touch. It can sense that when that person is at home, the owner's scent and warmth are different. For humans, that should be a feeling called happiness.
Of course, it's not that the owner will be unhappy when that person is not around, but the owner will definitely be happier than usual when they see that person.
The conch was always puzzled by the fact that the people it often saw would suddenly appear on the bright screen in the room, wearing different clothes, and would die inexplicably. The first time the conch saw that scene, it was really scared. But soon after, the person would come back and continue to rub its back and tail, and the conch, which saw it as a provocation, would chase it all over the room.
After brushing her teeth, the owner would give her some cat food and some milk, but the amount was much less than last year. Ever since the owner took Hailuo to that house with white walls and an unpleasant smell, the owner has been controlling the amount of food she gives Hailuo every day.
From then on, it became a cat that couldn't even get enough to eat.
The 15-pound conch was very worried.
It meowed several times to protest the reduction in its food intake. Not only was there less cat food, but the amount of shrimp and fish it was usually fed had also decreased. However, the conch knew very well that although its owner was very gentle and would not scold it, but would instead hold it and play beautiful music for it, the owner was actually quite strict when it came to feeding it.
That person... is probably the only one who can persuade the master.
The conch used to dislike him, but gradually, it got used to having such a person in its life. The other person's hands were very gentle, and when he looked at his owner, there was a warm feeling about him that the conch found comforting.
If that person is home, he will secretly feed it treats when the owner isn't looking. Although the person and the cat aren't particularly close, they have a tacit understanding in this matter that most people don't know about.
Sometimes, Conch still hoped he could come back soon.
...
As I ate my not-so-full breakfast, the temperature slowly rose, and the sunlight shone through the glass window, making me feel warm and cozy. The conch liked to stand in the brightest part of the sun, and it felt like all its feathers were getting fluffy.
On such a quiet morning, the owner would usually pick up a book to read. He wasn't nearsighted, but he would wear glasses while reading. As he turned the pages, the conch shell would jump onto the sofa and then lightly leap onto the owner's chest. Sometimes, the conch shell would stare intently at the book. If there were beautiful illustrations in the book, the conch shell would also come closer to take a look.
At this time, the owner's attention will also temporarily turn to it.
He would take out his phone and take a picture of it reading. When the phone beeped, the owner would pick up the phone, and the snail would sniff the scent on its body, which would feel warmer.
The conch shell likes its owner's scent, so whenever its owner wants to take a picture, it acts like a well-behaved kitten, even though it hears its owner complaining on the phone: "It thought it didn't know it jumped on me, but it's actually quite heavy."
The voice on the other end of the phone sounded familiar: "It's so cute, please be understanding."
All right.
Actually, it was jumping very lightly, much less nimbly than when it jumped off the windowsill, because it was afraid of seeing its owner's suddenly furrowed brow.
But the owner did not.
The conch shell enjoys reading time with its owner. The sound of turning pages is very soft, and its owner is very warm. It often falls asleep without even realizing it.
The morning always flies by. In the afternoon, the owner will pick up his piano and play a piece, or call that person again to ask if the filming is finished.
Hailuo guesses that acting is probably that person's job.
Although its relationship with that person wasn't as friendly as its relationship with its owner, from a cat's perspective, that person was still considered quite good-looking among humans. At least when it carried her downstairs, as a calico cat, it would be approached by many elegant and aloof cats.
The conch yawned and lazily lay down on the ground.
After a while, its ears perked up because it heard its owner talking on the phone with that person again... Once that person had a moment to spare, the two of them would chat endlessly. The conch felt that they were disturbing its sleep, so it slowly went to another room to take a nap. But when it came back from its nap, they were still talking.
It's unbearable for a cat.
Its owner used to be a noble and aloof two-legged creature.
However, the conch didn't dislike its owner's change, because it also liked its owner's smile, especially the dimple on its owner's face. Not only did that person like to poke it, but the conch couldn't help but poke it a couple of times when it saw it.
The owner didn't talk much before, but once that person's face appeared on his phone, they would talk for a long time. However, they talked about topics that the conch couldn't understand, such as eating sand and soaking in seawater. The person even said, with a wronged expression, that he had injured his hand while being suspended by wires.
Hmph, what a hypocrite.
The conch shell had long seen through his sinister intentions.
But the owner is very susceptible to this. His voice becomes even gentler, making the cat's heart itch. The person feels even more wronged, and the owner spoils him even more.
Hmph hmph hmph hmph.
When they chat, they also mention conch shells, but they use words that conch shells don't like, such as fat or eating too much. The contradiction is that he will complain to his owner that he is fat, but when his owner reduces his food intake, he will also ask his owner not to be too harsh on him.
conch:"……"
Sometimes it wants to scratch him, but sometimes it wants to lick him.
A cunning two-legged creature.
The owner often feels happier after chatting.
Actually, the owner isn't home often. He also has his own work, and his studio is another place where Hailuo lives. There's another cat there, which belongs to the owner's teammate. The cat is very small, and Hailuo privately considers it his little sister. But Hailuo is also a little jealous of it because it's a tortoiseshell cat. In Hailuo's eyes, it's the most beautiful cat in the world.
I always felt that the other cat would steal its affection.
"Is Teacher Ji still filming recently?" the host's teammate asked him.
"Um."
"It took him a really long time to make this movie, several months, right?"
"Um."
"Da Ning, don't be so cold. I know you miss your teacher Ji very much."
"He's making fewer films these days than he did a few years ago. The script for his new film seems quite interesting. Is it currently being filmed in G City?"
"Um."
conch:"……"
The conch shell tried to identify its owner, who was quite talkative at home but rarely spoke in front of its companions. Unfortunately, no matter how strongly the conch shell expressed its desire, its owner only heard it meowing.
He fed it some good food.
conch:"……"
It wasn't actually hungry, but the result wasn't too bad.
The conch shell can only share its daily life with the tortoiseshell cat. The beautiful tortoiseshell cat listens patiently and meows at it a few times. The tortoiseshell cat thinks its owner is the most talkative two-legged creature in the world. It holds it and talks to it every day. Occasionally, when it talks less, it gets worried and wonders if its owner is sick.
The conch shell couldn't help but sigh, "Indeed, even cats have their troubles."
After talking with the tortoiseshell cat, it couldn't help but hope that person would come back soon. Of course, the owner who kept answering questions with "hmm" was also very nice, but it always felt that the owner seemed happier when he was with that person.
They would lean back on the sofa together and lick each other.
They would also read together, the other person would read to the master, let the master fall asleep leaning on his shoulder, and call the conch to sleep between them, and then stroke its back to their heart's content.
It's not bad this way.
What the conch didn't like was that when they went to sleep at night, they would close the bedroom door to prevent the conch from going in, and some noise would come out of the room. Although they tried to keep it very low, the conch was a cat with very sensitive ears, and it could hear everything.
When that person went out to film something called "drama," the leaves on the trees were just beginning to turn yellow.
The conch shell also missed him a little.
Although that person's smile was silly, and he would touch its tail.
It can also suddenly turn into a big bad guy on a bright screen.
But that person would take the conch out for a stroll, massage it, and protect it when its owner was angry—the owner was rarely angry, maybe once or twice a year, usually because it had done something wrong. In such situations, the conch would automatically tuck its tail behind that person.
It knows very well who to turn to when it makes a mistake.
It was really boring when that person wasn't around.
The owner also misses him very much.
When we got off the bus on our way home, Conch heard him talking to his owner on the phone, saying that he had sent some things back and asked his owner to remember to receive them.
The master agreed.
The lights in the room were turned on, but for some reason, the conch felt a strange sense of emptiness in the house, which was bright and warm during the day, when it was filled with warm light.
The doorbell is ringing.
The item that person sent must have arrived.
Suddenly, the conch sniffed a familiar scent. It darted out of the house and saw—under the lamplight, the shadows of its owner and that person overlapped.
There was a warm light in the master's eyes, and in that person's eyes.
The two of them stood there quietly, without saying a word. The atmosphere was very quiet, but the conch shell could smell warmth emanating from them. Their master was different from during the day; he was now... a little warmer.
The conch shell didn't know how to describe it; it could only leap nimbly into that person's arms.
Then the person hugged it with one hand and took the owner's hand with the other: "Teacher Ning, I'm back."
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