Overheard — Oversized Tee

The sentence that gets you is, 'The chair is for the cat.' Until then, the conversation across the aisle had been none of your business in a completely ordinary way. Now it has developed a furnishing budget and a cast member whose taste you would like to understand.

You remain facing your book. The person by the window explains that the cat needs somewhere to look out. The other person says it already has everywhere to look out, including the table they are trying to eat at. There is a pause. You discover that you have read the same line enough times to begin disagreeing with it.

You are very fond of the private little performances that happen when people forget they have an audience. An eyebrow can give an entire review. The way someone says 'your cat' can suggest a household history longer than the journey. You would never interrupt. You are wearing the aubergine tee because you enjoy a strong picture and a little presence; this does not mean you wish to become a participant.

The proposed chair is red. This seems an excellent choice, although you have not been consulted. At the next stop the pair stand, gather their bags, and continue the argument onto the pavement. Through the window, you watch one of them open a picture on their phone. Both smile. You turn back to the book, where a perfectly respectable story is still waiting for its turn.

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