Chapter 16: Five-Sevenths of the War

The clothes drying on the balcony swayed slightly in the evening breeze. My mother’s bright red cotton-linen shirt and my black T-shirt hung side by side, one red and one black, like two flags clashing. Someone was walking their dog downstairs; the dog barked twice, was stopped by its owner, and then fell silent.

The desk lamp was on, its light illuminating a small area of ​​the tabletop. My mother sat at the table, a math mock exam paper spread out in front of her. It wasn’t the common denominator problem I had given her; it was a first-year high…