Maimai Chapter 2

“…I’ve been thinking for a while now that it’d be great if I could turn into a human,” Maimai said, sitting cross-legged on the couch, forced to wear Cheng Lin’s clothes. He eagerly shared his thoughts about becoming human.

His account was filled with details from their life together, all of which matched perfectly—even down to knowing what color underwear Cheng Lin wore. These were details only someone very close to the owner of the house would know.

“Since you can turn into a human,” Cheng Lin said after listening patiently, “why don’t you change back now?”

Human Maimai was silent for a few seconds before responding, “I don’t think I can. I don’t know how.”

“Then how am I supposed to believe you’re Maimai?” Cheng Lin asked, “My cat is only a year old. You look like you’re in your teens or twenties. And how do you even know how to talk?”

“I listen to you every day, and I learn from watching TV,” Maimai answered earnestly. “Yesterday, I felt like I was about to turn human. Didn’t I tell you? But you didn’t want to listen and told me to sleep.”

“How was I supposed to understand what you were saying? You were meowing at me for ages. I thought you were just saying the salmon tasted delicious,” Cheng Lin replied.

Maimai went quiet. Last night, before falling asleep, one-year-old Maimai had placed his four paws on Cheng Lin’s chest, endlessly chattering about how excited he was to become human.

“We’re going to be the same size,” he had said, “So ever if you’re about to die, I can save you.”

Cheng Lin patted his butt and said, “Can you get off me first?” So Maimai jumped down and continued to chatter beside him.

Cheng Lin looked at his cat, rubbed Maimai’s head, then stroked his back, clearly content.

Maimai had been so comfortable that he started purring like an engine, eventually nudging Cheng Lin’s neck with his head.

“Stop messing around,” Cheng Lin said, pressing him down and giving him a kiss. “Enough. Sleep.”

Recalling the scene, Maimai said, “But you kissed me.”

“So what? I’ve kissed you plenty of times,” Cheng Lin said. “You could always refuse if you didn’t want to.”

“But I wanted to,” Maimai responded.

Cheng Lin leaned back on the sofa, observing the person in front of him.

As a human, Maimai was slightly shorter than Cheng Lin, with a youthful appearance that made him look like a kid not yet twenty. His eyes were still big and round, filled with a naive innocence that showed how little he understood about the world.

Cheng Lin had never seen this face before, but the combination of features was so familiar that he felt if Maimai could really become human, this is probably what he’d look like.

But how could Maimai turn into a human? He was supposed to be just a kitten.

“How exactly do you plan to prove you’re Maimai?” Cheng Lin asked, “Maybe I should take you to the police for an investigation. Then everything would be clear.”

“…Am I going to jail?” Maimai asked nervously.

He had learned from watching TV that in some shows, the villains ended up getting arrested by the police, sentenced by the court, and hauled away in silver handcuffs.

“Yeah.” Cheng Lin nodded. “At least ten years.”

“Will you come visit me?”

“No.”

Seeing Maimai’s expression, Cheng Lin added, “I’m kidding.”

Maimai fidgeted with his fingers, realizing that Cheng Lin’s attitude toward him had changed.

But, being human for the first time, he thought this change might be normal. It just felt so different from the dream he had.

Maimai wondered, “How am I supposed to prove I’m Maimai?”

How could he prove it? Cheng Lin had no idea who to ask about this situation. If he went online and posted, “My cat turned into a human, what do I do?” people would probably think he was a delusional lunatic.

He would have preferred a break-in or a robbery over his cat turning into a human. What was even more ridiculous was that he was starting to believe it.

Could he really be delusional?

If you looked at it from the perspective of a mentally ill person, then Maimai was undoubtedly still Maimai. It was just that Cheng Lin’s mental state was deteriorating, making him hallucinate that his cat had turned into a human.

Cheng Lin wiped his face thoughtfully. “Maimai.”

“I’m here,” Maimai replied, like a patient AI assistant always ready to respond. “What’s the matter?”

“Come here. Let me touch you.”

Maimai’s eyes lit up, and he immediately propped his hands on the sofa, leaning closer.

The couch dipped under his weight—definitely not the weight of a kitten. Despite meeting Maimai’s gaze and seeing a human before him, Cheng Lin gritted his teeth and reached out to touch Maimai’s chin.

The smooth texture under his fingers wasn’t fur but human skin.

Cheng Lin quickly pulled his hand back as if he’d been shocked.

After much struggle, Maimai was finally pardoned and allowed to get closer. Maimai, who loved being close to Cheng Lin, immediately tried to settle beside him.

“…Stay away from me,” Cheng Lin awkwardly pushed him back with his arm and shuffled to the right. “We’re both men, so keep some distance.”

Maimai felt a bit embarrassed. It was different from the time he had failed to jump onto the cat tree and Cheng Lin had laughed at him. Trying to change the subject, he said, “I’m thirsty.”

Without looking up, Cheng Lin pointed to the automatic cat water fountain on the floor, signaling for Maimai to help himself.

Maimai didn’t think twice and stood up naturally.

But when Cheng Lin imagined Maimai crouching on the floor to lap up water in his current form, he quickly grabbed him and led him to the kitchen. He dug out an unused white mug from a corner.

Maimai gazed longingly at the cat-patterned cup on the tea bar counter. “I want to use that one.”

“That one’s mine. You’re using this,” Cheng Lin denied. “Since you’re human now, you need to live like one.”

So next, Maimai got to experience drinking water from a mug, eating human food, and even taking a shower all by himself.

Before, he had always managed to stay clean and smell good. The only exception was one summer when he rolled in dust retrieving a toy from under the couch, forcing Cheng Lin to give him a bath.

Worried that the cat might be afraid of water or catch a cold, Cheng Lin had taken off his shirt and worked up a sweat washing him.

Maimai’s fur had flattened in the water, making his eyes look even rounder, resembling an orange seal. He gripped the edge of the plastic basin with his front paws, staring at Cheng Lin. “Meow.”

“Almost done,” Cheng Lin had said, wiping Maimai’s face with his fingertips. Seeing the trust in Maimai’s eyes, Cheng Lin couldn’t help but laugh.

Maimai mistakenly thought Cheng Lin was going to give him another bath and got a little excited.

Instead, Cheng Lin had merely shown him the shower gel and shampoo, set the water temperature, tossed him a pile of clothes, and left.

And then there was the matter of not being able to sleep with Cheng Lin anymore.

Maimai pleaded, “Why not?”

“You take up too much space now. There’s not enough room. I’ve already set up the bed in the room next door for you.” Cheng Lin didn’t tell him the real reason, fearing the cat wouldn’t understand—they were two grown men; how could they cuddle up and sleep together?

“I don’t want to,” Maimai began to panic, realizing that being bigger wasn’t as great as he’d thought. At least before, he had always slept with Cheng Lin.

But Cheng Lin was physically and mentally exhausted, wishing this farce would disappear by morning. He didn’t give Maimai any more time.

When it was time for bed, he simply closed the door.