Extra Chapter — Insight into the Heart

"You gotta know I am the champion!"

"You gotta know, don't doubt your own abilities!"

The music came to an abrupt halt.

As the final beat dropped, the intense drum rhythm felt like a direct punch to the heart.

In the mirror, Cai Junhuang supported herself on the floor with one hand, her body taut as a drawn bow ready to fire. Sweat slid down her jawline, eventually dripping onto the floor.

Inside the dance studio, the air had grown scorching hot from the rigorous exercise, leaving only the sound of heavy, overlapping pants.

"My god, Caicaizi, is your waist equipped with an electric motor?"

A plump older woman, known as Sister Mian, walked around her in an exaggerated circle, her eyes sparkling. Her hands were already reaching out mischievously. "Come on, let me touch it and rub off some of that fairy dust."

Cai Junhuang swiftly flipped up onto her feet, dodging the wandering hands in the process, and casually grabbed a nearby towel to wipe off her sweat.

She gave Sister Mian a sidelong glance, a hint of teasing on her lips. "Sister Mian, any more touching and I'll have to start charging by the time."

Everyone burst into laughter.

"Stingy," Sister Mian pouted, though she wasn't actually annoyed.

Amidst the laughter and joking, Cai Junhuang unscrewed her water bottle, letting the warm liquid slide down her throat.

Drinking cold water after exercising is bad for the body, so Cai Junhuang only ever drank warm water.

Dancing was now an instinct carved into her bones, as well as her weapon for advancing toward her dreams.

Feeling the lingering soreness in her thigh muscles, she looked at herself in the mirror. Every inch of her muscle definition was sculpted by countless drops of sweat and strict self-discipline.

And, of course, hunger.

Just as she was about to go take a shower, the other women on break swarmed in, bringing with them a fresh scent of perfume.

Sister Lin, who was leading the group, spotted her immediately, her eyes lighting up.

"Caicaizi! Done practicing? Are you free this afternoon? We found a newly opened cat cafe, and the cats inside are super incredibly cute. Want to go together?"

These words suddenly reminded Cai Junhuang of the cat cafe she had gone to with Fang Jun last time. Cats truly were the most adorable animals in the world.

However, another image flashed through her mind.

The air had been filled with the lazy scent of coffee and cat fur. A clumsy orange tabby was struggling to climb up Fang Jun's body, its claws hooked into his clothes.

He wasn't impatient; he just looked down at the little creature and let out a low chuckle. That laughter seemed to still vibrate in her ears.

Then, he looked up. His gaze bypassed the fluffy cat and landed on her, the corners of his eyes crinkling with a gentle smile.

"Look at it. Just like you, smart and cute. It knew I had food here, so it climbed right over."

Cai Junhuang could not help but let a smile tug at the corners of her lips.

"Caicaizi? What are you smiling about?" Sister Lin waved a hand in front of her face.

She snapped back to reality, quickly masking the fleeting smile in her eyes, though in truth, everyone had seen it plain as day.

"Sure," she said, flashing a bright smile, her voice sounding as cheerful as usual. "Let's go together."

She really did like cats.

Yeah, it should just be that she liked cats, right?

--Still remember when the cherry blossoms were blooming, still didn't know how to confess my love to you--

Standing in front of the familiar cat cafe, Cai Junhuang froze for a moment.

So it was this place?

Actually, she couldn't be blamed for thinking it was a coincidence, because at this time, there weren't many cat cafes in Yangcheng.

So the chances of coming here were indeed quite high.

The five girls pushed the door open and entered.

Ding-ling.

"Welcome!"

The waitress over at the counter called out a greeting, then led them toward an empty table.

On the way there, Cai Junhuang noticed the waitress glancing at her several times.

Although a bit puzzled, Cai Junhuang didn't say anything.

After they sat down, quite a few cats gathered around.

Some cats, seeing there was no food, turned and walked away, while others stayed behind.

They had probably studied theories like protracted warfare and persistence brings victory.

"Oh my, these cats are so well-behaved. I want to stay here all day."

Sister Mian picked up a cat and started burying her face in its fur, sniffing it aggressively.

The others did the same.

Seeing this, the waitress didn't say anything; after all, many customers were like this.

Furthermore, such customers actually ended up spending more.

"Every combo meal comes with a complimentary bag of cat food and a wet food pouch, which you ladies can use to feed the cats."

Hearing this, everyone remembered they needed to order.

They basically ordered individually.

When it was Cai Junhuang's turn, she didn't take the menu to look at it, but instead said to the waitress:

"I'll have a mocha frappuccino and a matcha cheesecake."

"Alright, no problem."

At this moment, Sister Lin suddenly spoke up: "Hey, Caicaizi, how did you know what they had without looking at the menu? Do you come here often?"

Cai Junhuang shook her head. "I came here once with a classmate."

Upon hearing this, the older girls immediately put down the cats in their hands and leaned in eagerly.

"Oh?! A classmate? It's that guy, isn't it? The one who always waits for you downstairs."

"It's definitely him!"

With them chiming in one after another, Cai Junhuang didn't know what to say for a moment.

Amidst the teasing, Cai Junhuang could only say, "We're just classmates, don't overthink it."

The group didn't keep cornering her.

They quickly started chatting about other things, having noticed Cai Junhuang's embarrassment.

They were all experienced in these matters and didn't pry any further.

It was just that Cai Junhuang's heart was a bit in turmoil.

At this time, the waitress who came to deliver their food set the items down, and then, for some reason, said to Cai Junhuang, "Miss, please come over here to pick up the cat food."

Last time, they had brought it right to the table, but Cai Junhuang still got up and followed the waitress over.

When they reached the counter, the waitress finally spoke in a low voice.

"Actually, the guy who came with you last time... he had already been here that morning."

Cai Junhuang froze for a second before she reacted and asked:

"He came by himself?"

"Yeah. That morning, we had just finished mopping the floor and put up the open sign when he walked in and ordered all the cheesecakes in one go."

Cai Junhuang suddenly remembered that there had been a lot of little cat biscuits that day, which Fang Jun had claimed he had saved up from before.

In reality, it had been his second visit. One in the morning, one in the afternoon.

Then, suppressing certain thoughts in her heart, Cai Junhuang asked again, "Then why did he eat so much cake?"

The waitress looked at Cai Junhuang's pretty face and finally said, "It was definitely because of you. It couldn't have been to boost our boss's sales revenue."

Unexpectedly, Cai Junhuang's cheeks flushed involuntarily.

Fang Jun?

Why did you have to let me know about this.

Just then, an orange cat walked over and reached out a paw to bat at the hem of Cai Junhuang's pants.

"Meow~"

Cai Junhuang looked down, the scenes from that day flashing through her mind again.

"Heh."

Cai Junhuang couldn't help but let out a laugh. She picked up her phone and opened a chat window.

"What are you doing?"

"I'm ruthlessly interrogating Lao An, what's up?"

"Nothing, just asking. Are you free tonight?"

On the other end, Fang Jun paused for a moment.

"I am!"

"Then let's go watch a movie."