Cyber Lover

Episode 7

Tall and well built with an assuring masculine  voice  that blended perfectly well with his easy- going  nature, Michael was undeniably handsome. But he was also celibate. Not even a girlfriend. This has always mystified his

friends and everybody around him, though he seemed  happy as a single man because he wasn't  doing anything about it. Whenever he was approached with the issue, he would listlessly reply that he was still searching for

the right girl. Michael‟s only problem was tha the was very selective with girls. He always

told his friends that his mind had already constructed  a mental image of the girl he would  love to date and marry. Her personality

and structure were already imprinted on his mind; hence, any girl coming across him without  exhibiting this mental picture he made sure  to put on a platonic platform. His friends always reminded him about the

impossibility of getting such a girl and how necessary  it was for him to adjust his expectations  and engage with the available

girls. And he always assured them that he knew  what he was doing and was sure of getting  the girl of his dreams, that all he

needed was patience. Sometime in the past, Michael had dated different girls, and experience had taught him to exercise self-

control and wait for his dream girl, but even now , the ladies won‟t let him be. He always

found a psychologically soothing way to tell them  off without hurting them. Although he

was enjoying his celibate state, he sometimes wished  to be in the arms of a woman he loved,

but till then, he wasn‟t going to relent in enjoying  every bit of his successful life. Now,as he slowly drove through Stream Street, he was  quick to notice a young girl of average height  walking as if she‟d been drugged.

He became curious and even slowed down as she continued to observe her. She was elegantly  dressed and he could guess that she

was a beautiful girl just by viewing her from

behind. Suddenly the girl missed her step and

fell to the ground. He was alarmed and

quickly pulled over beside her. Swiftly, he got

out of the car looking around for help as he

hurried towards the helpless girl. The street

was scanty; no other person seemed to have

noticed what was happening. As a

psychologist, Michael knew little about first

aid. A quick, closer observation revealed that

she had just fainted and needed immediate

medical attention. He checked her pulse. It

was normal, so without trying to revive her, he

quickly carried her to the car. She was heavy,

but with little difficultly, he was able to

successfully do this and make her comfortable

in the car. He quickly drove, praying that

nothing bad should happen to the poor girl. *

* *

The black SLK swerved into the hospital‟s

parking lot a few.

minutes after Michael had set off with the

unconscious girl. “Someone please help me!”

he found himself shouting as he banged shut

his driver‟s door and swiftly went round to

pick up the girl. Two nurses had already

rushed to the car with a stretcher. “Who is

she, sir?” one asked him, but he was too

flustered by the incident to hear her. “Who is

she, sir?” she repeated as she helped her mate

put Brenda on the stretcher. “Don‟t . . . dunno

. . . she . . . she just fainted . . . !” “Where . . .

how, sir?” “Priscilia, abeg . . . !” began the

second nurse as they both wheeled the

unconscious girl into the hospital. “You‟ll

know what you want to know after we have

saved her life!” Michael was closely following

them as they rolled into the hospital.

He was a very familiar figure to most of the

staff in Standard Hospital. It was the only

establishment he patronized whenever he was

ill and in Lupe. Moreover, one of the doctors,

Doctor Christopher, popularly called Dr. Chris,

was his very good friend. He halted when he

saw Dr. Chris coming towards him. The doctor

stopped the nurses carrying the patient on the

stretcher and did a brief professional

examination of the victim. “She will be okay.

Take her to Room 110; I will be with you in a

minute,” he announced after a few seconds,

then he turned his attention to Michael, who

was very eager to explain what had earlier

happened to him