"That won't work..."
"There's nothing that can't work. You were the one who raised the cat from the start."
He laughed at himself. "It never listened and ended up taking a lot of your time, too."
9.
Lucas Carter moved out, just like he said he would.
I stayed behind with the cat in his spacious apartment right in the heart of the city.
It was only after Lucas Carter moved out that I realized just how enormous his place was—so big it was almost unnatural.
Hạt Dẻ kept eating, sleeping, and playing as usual, though sometimes she did a few odd things.
For example, she would drag Lucas Carter's slippers over to me, then look up with wide eyes and meow, as if asking, "Where's Dad?"
Sometimes she would run into Lucas Carter's bedroom, jump onto the bed, roll around, and finally stretch out her paws, inviting me to sleep there.
The cat missed Lucas Carter too.
Honestly, I kind of missed him myself.
Maybe it was just a habit.
After all, I'd lived with him for months and had gotten used to having him around the house.
Now, with everything so quiet, I couldn't help but feel a little lonely.
But I couldn't see him at all.
As long as Lucas Carter wanted to avoid me, I couldn't even catch a glimpse of his shirt sleeve.
Our work didn't overlap, our lives had nothing to do with each other. It was as if he'd never been here at all, and even the time we'd spent together felt like a mirage.
He was avoiding me.
Just like I wanted.
Hạt Dẻ missed him more and more.
She often sat by Lucas Carter's bedroom door, meowing nonstop, looking absolutely miserable.
I couldn't take it anymore. I picked up my phone and reached out to Lucas Carter.
Me: [Are you there?]
Lucas Carter replied right away: [What's up?]
I recorded a video of Hạt Dẻ staring at his bedroom door and meowing, then sent it to him.
I added a message: [Hạt Dẻ misses her dad.]
For some reason, seeing those words made me feel a little embarrassed.
Lucas Carter's reply caught me completely off guard. He said, [Tell your boyfriend to come comfort her.]
I was absolutely speechless.
Now I finally understood what my cousin meant by "green tea level." Gritting my teeth, I typed: [I don't have a boyfriend.]
After a long while, Lucas Carter still didn't respond.
I kept typing: [I don't like anyone either.]
[So you lied to me at first.]
He still didn't reply. I waited a bit, then played my trump card: [Hạt Dẻ misses you.]
I hadn't even finished typing [Me too] when he sent a voice message.
His voice was a little breathless: "Open the door, I'm outside."
10.
Lucas Carter said he'd moved out, but in reality, he was still living in the same building.
He was just trying so hard to avoid me that I never ran into him.
Father and daughter hadn't seen each other in a while, so they clung to each other affectionately for a bit.
Looking at the obedient, fluffy little cat, I couldn't help but suspect that these two had teamed up to pull a sympathy act on me.
I picked up my glass of water and asked Lucas Carter, "Are you leaving again?"
His eyes lit up: "If you ask me to stay, I won't go."
I thought to myself, wow, he really knows how to push his luck.
Luckily, I didn't have to ask him to stay.
Hạt Dẻ was curled up asleep in Lucas Carter's lap, her claws gripping his shirt so tightly he couldn't move at all.
As he stroked the cat, he looked at me and asked, "So can I take it to mean that... you kind of missed me too?"
I couldn't stand that smug look on his face, so I deliberately contradicted him: "You can't take it that way."
He just laughed: "My literature teacher said there's nothing wrong with interpreting it that way."
I pressed my lips together, deciding not to argue with him anymore.
Lucas Carter was completely at ease, not saying much, just occasionally glancing at me with a lingering gaze.
Curious, I asked, "Why do you like me?"
If you say it started when I was training the cat, then you must have liked me even before I joined the company.
But how could that be possible?
Back then, we didn't even know each other.
Lucas Carter thought for a moment, then said, "The year I started my business, life was really tough. I was getting into fights everywhere, even ended up at the police station. I was sitting on the curb, probably looking so pitiful that when you walked by, you gave me a steamed bun and some sugar-roasted chestnuts."
No matter how much I guessed, I never would have thought of that. I was disappointed: "...That's it?"
He seemed unable to understand how I felt and added, "Back then, you were wearing your blue and white senior year uniform, your hair in a ponytail. You were so beautiful—so beautiful I couldn't even put it into words."
"It was love at first sight," he said.
I still couldn't wrap my head around it.
He went on, "That moment stuck with me for a long time."
"So long that every time I remembered it, I kept telling myself I hadn't done anything wrong, I just wasn't good enough for you. I couldn't bother you, and I definitely couldn't drag you into my mess."
Suddenly, he smiled. "Can you imagine how I felt when I saw your résumé in HR?"
"In that moment, it felt like fate was finally looking out for me."
He said, "I thought, maybe the universe was giving me a second chance."
His eyes were bright, his voice steady: "And this time, I won't let it slip away."
I stayed silent.
Lucas Carter was still holding the cat, and maybe it was awkward, so he nudged his knee against mine.
It was the first time he'd ever initiated physical contact.
He said, "If you don't have anyone you like, could you maybe try liking me a little?"
11.
"And then? And then?" My cousin leaned in, eager. "What did you say to him?"
"I didn't answer."
"Huh?"
"It's like... I can't say I don't like him, but I also can't just say I like him that easily."
I looked at my cousin and said sincerely, "If I say I like him, doesn't that mean we'd be together? That feels way too fast."
"What are you worried about?" my cousin asked.
"That he likes me," I said. "It just doesn't feel real."
"That's because you don't understand how men get fixated," my cousin replied, sounding like someone who's been through it all.
"The things you can't have when you're young become obsessions. Every night before bed, they turn into dreams that haunt you... That's why men are so desperate to succeed."
I still didn't really get it.
She gave an example: "Like how Auntie never let you eat French fries, so now you love them as an adult."
...Okay, now I kind of get it.
Suddenly, my cousin sighed, "But seeing you like this actually makes me feel a lot better."
?
"I used to worry that someone as smart as him would totally eat you alive, but now I'm not even sure who's going to win here."
I blinked. "So what do I do now?"
"Simple," my cousin said. "If you like him, say so. If you don't, let it go."
I decided I should say something.
The first thing I did when I got back to Lucas Carter's place was start packing my things.
Lucas Carter panicked. He hurried over to stop me, asking what was going on.
I gathered all my courage and, hinting a little, asked, "If we start dating and immediately move in together, isn't that a bit much?"
"Us, what..."
He suddenly froze.
When he finally processed what I meant, his whole face lit up with joy.
His eyes were full of disbelief, his expression like he wanted to say something but didn't dare, and after a long, careful pause, he answered softly, "Yeah, I guess that would be a bit much."
His careful tone sounded like he was afraid of waking from a beautiful dream.
He said, "But there isn't just one way to be in a relationship. We started dating and moved in together right away—I think that's fine."
"Really?"
"Really." He nodded firmly.
Seeing that I was still hesitant, he added, "Besides, Hạt Dẻ basically can't be apart from you now."
His movements slowed, and little by little, he pulled me into his arms, holding me tighter as he continued, "Neither can I."
"I really can't be apart from you."
12.
The first thing that troubled me after making things official with Lucas Carter was that I had no idea how to tell my advisor about it.
After all, I was the one who had sworn up and down before that there was nothing going on between me and Lucas Carter.
Even though my advisor had always been suspicious.
But him being suspicious and me actually admitting it were two very different things.
Thanks to his help, I made rapid progress on the project, and often could handle things on my own.
I could never deny what I owed him as a mentor.
One time, while we were out for an event, I decided to come clean.
In the car, I opened the photo album on my phone and gestured for him to look at pictures of Hạt Dẻ.
I said, "Professor, this is my cat."
He gave a short "Mm," and said, "I already knew you had a cat."
I added, "Actually, this is also Lucas Carter's cat."
His eyes lost their usual calm. He stared at me in surprise for a long moment before finally letting out a relieved sigh.
I quickly asked, "What's wrong?"
"Nothing," he said. "I was just thinking, if they ever ask me how it feels to have the wife of Lucas Carter as my student, what should I say?"
...Professor, you're kind of wicked too.
After Lucas Carter found out I'd made our relationship public, he got even more smug.
Specifically, he started bringing Hạt Dẻ to the office all the time.
As soon as Hạt Dẻ arrived at the office, she would run straight to me, and before long, everyone figured out what was going on.
How could the boss's cat possibly be so attached to a female employee?
The relationship between Lucas Carter and me was no longer innocent.
But Lucas Carter seemed to really enjoy having our names linked together, and he became even more showy about it.
Sometimes, he'd walk straight over to my desk and wait for me to finish work.
He would stand behind me, completely ignoring the curious or openly judgmental looks from others.
Someone like him would stand out wherever he went—even just yawning would draw attention.
Someone asked, "Lucas Carter, did you not sleep well last night?"
Lucas Carter smiled and replied, “The cat at home has been noisy as always.”
He added, “She cries loudly at night and scratches people, too.”
I shot him a suspicious look, thinking he was lying. Hạt Dẻ was being so well-behaved lately, just quietly sleeping without moving. He definitely wasn't just talking about the cat.
Embarrassed, I pinched his waist.
And I was pretty mad, too. How could he talk about this in front of everyone like that!
Lucas Carter still had a smile in his eyes as he gently asked me, “Ready to go?”
I let go of him.
Grumbling to myself, I thought, tonight you can go sleep with the cat!
Our not-so-innocent relationship came to an end after Lucas Carter posted a photo on his social feed.
The photo was of our marriage certificate.
He was the groom, and I was the bride.
He captioned it: [Come meet your new boss lady.]
With well-wishes flooding the screen, he and I ran together down our own road of love.
[The End]