83 Star of the Cafe ? (1/2)
Just as the girls thought that the LiHua cat was in for more manhandling, the cafe staff unexpectedly lowered him to the ground.
The cat pranced forward, a spring in each of his small steps. He stopped before Coco and purred demurely. He looked up at her with an innocent expression, raising his white paws as if to show off.
”Heh heh,” Matcha chuckled to himself, ”With my round face, snow-white paws and large eyes, these girls don't stand a chance!”
Unfortunately for Matcha, that was far from the reception he received.
”Oh my god, Leigh. This cat is trying way too hard,” Coco laughed.
She tightened her arms around Mango. ”My kitty is still the cutest.”
Matcha froze. He glared at Coco, thinking, ”Tasteless peasant.”
Leigh, who had been staring at the screen on her phone, looked up at Coco. She had been reading about Russian Blues after Baiquan told her that it was the breed Mango belonged to.
”Interesting,” she said, ”Turns out Russian Blues are, like, grey.”
Matcha now turned his efforts towards her. She was his new target. He put on his most irresistibly innocent face and stared at her, trying to catch her attention.
Leigh was not interested. To her, every one of these cats had a price tag floating above each of their heads. The tag above the beautiful Elizabeth was RMB 30,000. The one above Mango was RMB 3,000.
As for Matcha, Leigh deemed him to be a mere RMB 10.
She returned Matcha's hopeful look coolly.
”What an unexceptional cat,” she stated.
”Hey, Coco,” she continued, stretching her arms towards her, ”Let me hold your cat. Apparently, it's worth a few thousand dollars.”
Matcha could only stare, dumbfounded, as the girls ignored him and started taking selfies with Mango.
He was in complete disbelief. ”How is this possible? Why would they prefer that imbecile over me?”
Half an hour later, the girls' attention had shifted from Mango to another cat.
No, the cat was not Matcha. It was Elizabeth, who was being fussed over by all three girls. They were either hugging her or petting her or taking photos with her.
Elizabeth was undoubtedly the star of the cafe.
Mango did not mind at all. It was playing in the corner, happy to entertain itself.
Matcha, on the other hand, was grumpily sprawled across a platform on one of the kitty towers. He was staring daggers at Elizabeth.
The afternoon brought it new customers. Some left when they saw that the play area was filled with ordinary tabby cats. Only one couple and three high school girls stepped into the pen. There, they were relaxed by the Celestial Beats, which prompted them to stay.
Almost every girl crowded around Elizabeth, taking turns to run their hands down her back, tummy, and head.
Matcha, who had been watching glumly from a distance, grew increasingly jealous.
Despite Elizabeth's popularity, the cafe still only had eight customers at the end of the first day.
What they lacked in numbers, they made up for with duration. All the customers stayed throughout the afternoon and into the evening thanks to the Celestial Beats' soothing effects.
The high school girls only left when their parents started nagging them to come home. Coco Sun left for dinner but returned for a latte after that. She stayed until the cafe's closing hour.
”Hey, don't you think you guys close too early? It's only 6 pm,” she told Baiquan, who was busy cleaning up.
”Well, you can always come back tomorrow,” he smiled.
”I can't,” she lamented, ”Your prices are too high! I'll have to spend at least RMB 100 each time I'm here.”
Coco planted a sad kiss on Elizabeth, ”Guess I'll see you in a few days.”
”I've had enough of this woman,” the cat complained to Zhao Yao telepathically, ”My entire body is covered in her sweat and saliva.”
”Suck it up, Elizabeth,” he responded, ”Patience and tolerance are essential for good customer service.”
”You keep telling me that! Why don't we switch places? Let's see how long you can stand this nonsense.”
”Me?” Zhao Yao started, but was interrupted by a cackling Dust Ball.