I walked upstairs to get my breakfast, and my roommate stopped me as I passed his office door.

"Hey," he said, slowly. "Are you okay?"

I shrugged. "Yeah? Why?"

He laced his fingers in his lap. "You just seem...out of sorts lately."

I didn't know it was that obvious. Then again, we've been living together for years and years. He's pretty good at picking up the fine threads of my moods.

"Well," I said, "I *am* on my period--"

"Oh, crap! I didn't check the phase of the moon!"

(I think it's kind of funny that my roommate knows when I get my period by what cycle the moon is in.)

"--and I'm just not working much. Leaves too much time to think."

"Yeah, that's a bad habit," he said.

We looked at each other for another moment.

"Well, I just wanted to know if it was anything specific," he said.

"It's not," I assure him, and it isn't, really.

Breakfast was a weird smoothie of frozen berries, cocoa, sugar, soy protein powder, ground flax seed, plain yogurt, and milk.

Also, cheese crackers and caviar.

The caviar was too salty.

.

Rosie.

Before&After