The small truck passed by the North District cafeteria. Logan Bennett, crouched in the truck’s shadow, watched them and suddenly felt a bit melancholy, remembering his former self. Before inexplicably coming here, he too had been a junior in college.

When the small truck reached the fork near the North District cafeteria, Logan Bennett saw a young man in a white work uniform riding a rickety old 28-inch bicycle—everything rattled except the bell—as he headed toward the cafeteria. If you ignored the “Chuhua University North District Cafeteria” printed on the left chest of his uniform, people might have thought he’d just come out of a lab.

All around were the future elites of the nation, but this young man, riding his old bike in a cafeteria uniform, didn’t show much envy in his eyes, nor any inferiority. The wind made his work uniform billow like a high-end trench coat. Humming a tune, he faced the crimson sunset, still beaming brightly.

Leaving through the north gate of Chuhua University, the truck didn’t go near Central Department Store; you could only see the lights from afar. That area was full of familiar sights for Logan Bennett. The neon lights around Central Department Store were already lit, the giant screens flickering, showcasing the prosperity of the big city.

Logan Bennett watched everything outside the window recede, feeling like a misfit, an outsider. He saw a lot, but his mind was blank, in a constant daze.

The small truck drove from the city center to the third ring road, then to the suburbs. Night deepened, and the wind grew colder.

A sudden stop jolted the daydreaming Logan Bennett, making him bump his head against the truck’s sideboard with a “thud.”

Logan Bennett lifted his furry paw and patted the fur on his head.

Listening to the conversation outside, Logan Bennett realized the truck driver had arrived home. He stood up, shook the dust off his body, grabbed the bag of thumb biscuits in his mouth, and jumped out of the truck. Looking around, Logan Bennett decided to find a place to sleep first and wander around during the day. Even though he was a cat now, he still preferred strolling in the daylight.

While Logan Bennett was looking for a place to spend the night, the phone rang in a certain graduate dorm room at Chuhua University.

The person closest to the phone answered respectfully, said a couple of words, then said, “Please hold on, he should be done showering. I’ll go get him,” and placed the phone on the desk before heading to the bed diagonally across.

The person on the bed was sleeping soundly, grinding his teeth and smiling in his sleep. The other three roommates, after their initial shock, were now numb to it.

The one who answered the phone nudged the sleeping, teeth-grinding guy and whispered, “Ethan Hill, your boss is on the phone! I told him you were showering in the bathroom, so don’t slip up later.”

At the words “your boss,” the groggy sleeper instantly woke up, hurriedly climbed out of bed, ran to the bathroom to clear his throat. People just waking up tend to sound hoarse, and Ethan Hill didn’t want his advisor to know he was sleeping during the prime memory hours at night—wouldn’t that ruin his image in his boss’s eyes?

“Professor Carter, sorry, I was just showering. Is there something you need?” Ethan Hill picked up the phone, feeling he’d put on a good act.

The roommates playing games even stopped typing to help him out, pretending to discuss the academic merits of eating garlic with meat for nutrition.

On the other end, Mr. Carter paused and said, “Sorry to disturb your sleep.”

Ethan Hill: “……” Damn, what kind of ears does Boss Carter have! The resolution is insanely high!

But to Ethan Hill’s relief, Associate Professor Carter didn’t dwell on the topic and instead asked, “Do you have time right now?”

“Yes!” Ethan Hill quickly replied—even if he didn’t, he’d make time.

Twenty minutes later, Ethan Hill stood in the living room of The Carter Family, holding the key he’d found in Associate Professor Carter’s office drawer.

This was Ethan Hill’s second time at The Carter Family. The first was earlier this year when the results of the graduate entrance exam were announced. He was Associate Professor Carter’s first student, and since he was quite capable, Associate Professor Carter valued him highly and had invited him over for a meal.

Ethan Hill had never met Logan Bennett. When Logan Bennett went to the Life Sciences building, only the people at The Carter Family knew, so Ethan Hill had no idea that his advisor’s cat was a bit unusual.

After searching around and not seeing any sign of the cat, Ethan Hill went to the bedroom and used the phone there to call Associate Professor Carter back.

“Professor Carter, I didn’t see the cat. Did your cat run away from home?” As soon as he said it, Ethan Hill wanted to slap himself. Why couldn’t he keep his mouth shut!

“Did you unplug the air conditioner?” Mr. Carter asked on the phone.

“Unplugged! And I turned off the kitchen outlet switch too!” Ethan Hill quickly replied, describing the state of the house.

“Professor Carter, should I buy a bag of cat food and leave it here?” Ethan Hill asked.

“No need. As long as there are snacks on the sofa and the fridge is still full, that’s enough.”

Ethan Hill: “……” Is this really how you raise a cat?

“Just come by every day to check, and use my home phone to update me. As for your work summary, you don’t need to report it this week.”

Hearing he didn’t have to report his experiment progress, Ethan Hill breathed a sigh of relief. His experiments hadn’t been going well lately, so there wasn’t much to report anyway.

“Okay, don’t worry. I’ll come by at this time every day to check.”

On the train, after giving his instructions, Mr. Carter put his phone back in his pocket and gazed out at the night beyond the window.