QUESTION: Can friendship, which is a social/emotional concept, be managed with logic?

The house is so… quiet.

Mimi wanders into the kitchen, tossing her bag at the foot of the stairs on the way. She’ll grab a snack, call her friends, maybe they’ll go out for lattes or something. It’s been a long day. A long week.

“Mimi?”

She whirls around. Ta and Ma are sitting at the kitchen table, empty coffee mugs in front of them.

“Oh! Hi! I didn’t realize you were there…”

Something’s off. What’s Ta doing at home now? Why are they sitting together so… so silently? Why does she get the feeling that they were waiting for something?

For her?

Ta gives her a wave. “Come sit, Mimi.”

The bad feeling curdles in her stomach.

“Um, I was just going to make a phone call…” She holds up the phone.

Ma gives a bright smile. “Can it wait a few minutes, sweetie? Because Ta and I really want to talk to you without anyone else around.”