Teach me
she offered, holding the cigarette between her fingers, her breasts pressing against his back.
"I quit smoking."
"So many changes," she said.
He could have listed them all to her, but he needed to escape as soon as possible.
"Is it because of a woman?" she asked.
"Yes."
"She must be someone special."
"Definitely," he said, standing up. "It's my mother."
"You're leaving because of your mother?!"
"No, I quit smoking because of her." He didn't add that if she heard half the speeches about the dangers of tobacco, she would quit too. Long and deep conversations about his life were unnecessary and would delay his departure.