Hunger was always an issue for him and his family.
As mice go, he was pretty smart. However, right now he was trapped. He was stuck, cowering in the corner of the kitchen a long way from his hole. The lady of the house was scowling about something while preparing dinner for her family. He couldn’t move and he just prayed that she didn’t look his way.
Her mobile phone played a tune and she picked up.
“Hi. What’s up?”
Pause.
“Where is he now?”
Pause.
“At school? You were supposed to pick him up.”
Pause.
“What, now? I’m in the middle of getting dinner.”
Long pause.
“OK. OK. I’ll leave now, but don’t you complain to me when your dinner’s late!”
Brief pause.
“OK. Bye.”
“Damn him!” She shouts, and slams down the cheese grater, causing a large knob of cheese to bounce and roll off the end of the table.
His eyes went wide, but he didn’t’ move.
With more grumbling, she took off her apron and stormed out.
He waited until he heard the door go. The house fell silent. He approached the cheese. It was pretty big. He dug his claws in as deep as they would go and began walking backwards, dragging it behind him.
At the hole, he called out. She on the inside pulling and him now on the outside pushing, they just managed to get it through.
He really loved it when humans became bad tempered like that.
They get sloppy.