Rubbing the Pen

Mojo claims his territory when I’m reading or writing. He walks on, turns around on, and settles on the papers in my lap, indiscriminately crumpling whatever they are.

This territorial claim seems most important when I’m writing. He rubs his face on the tip of my pen. I humor him because he’s so cute, in a passive-aggressive sort of way. I hold the pen steady as he starts with his nose and pushes his mouth onto the tip so that it parts his cat lips, exposing teeth and gums. Then he pushes the side of his face forward, rotating his head to include his ears in the massage. His sinuses (I guess cats have sinuses, don’t they?) start tickling and he yawns, his head opening like a snake. Not pretty.

Eventually I speak to him and he leaves. I’ve violated his terms: no talking, no reading, no watching TV, definitely no sneezing, and no changing position.