The cat sat across from the table, lapping up warm milk topped with a delicate white cream. She wasn't exactly a fan of sweets, but right now she was perfectly content.
She glanced periodically at Mr. Nobody, who seemed to be feeling rather awkward in Martha's company.
At the same time, the woman watched him eat his desserts with a certain warmth in her gaze. In some ways, it resembled the way she looked at her son.
Perhaps it was precisely because of that look that he felt uncomfortable?
"What was your mother like?" Martha asked.
He nearly choked.
"...What a sudden question."
"Oh, I'm sorry, it's just... from the outside, it seems like you loved her very much. You give that impression, so I got curious."
"...I see." He set aside a saucer with something resembling cheesecake. "Mom was..."
He tried to remember something, though it always came with great difficulty.
Fragments of a melody played in his mind. It seemed like the energetic strum of a guitar…
