Cyber Lover

The accident and the Psycho

“OKAY Linda, put her on the line.” “Sure thing, Michael.” The young man easily rested his right palm on the steering wheel and placed his left arm on his car driver‟s door while waiting for the call, humming along and nodding to the rhythm of R. Kelly‟s WORLD‟S GREATEST coming from his stereo. Michael Black was driving slowly through Stream

Street. He was in a good mood. “Hello, Giny here.” “Oh, Giny . . . hi . . . whatzup?” he began, speaking through a hands-free

snuggled into his left ear. “Can you do me a favor, please?” “Hi, Michael . . . still at the office?” “Nope . . . that‟s why I‟m calling . . . “Is Henry with you?” “Nope . . . . Just left them at Suzie‟s bar, where they are sipping some beer.” “Them?” “Not to worry . . . he and Ben . . . I knew you were the jealous type . . .” “Now, don‟t start with me, Mike . . . !” “Take a

joke, girl . . . just joking . . . always have been . . . .” Giny was Henry‟s girlfriend and they

were planning on getting married soonest, hence the close watch she‟d placed on him, and Michael really wanted to assure her. “All my friends seem to be in a good mood today, girl . . . just some guy outing, that‟s all . . . .” “Don‟t tell me they bought much more alcohol than your stomach could ingest again?” Now he could hear her stifled giggles. “Well, didn‟t

want to get myself drunk,” he defended, “tomorrow will be a very busy day at work for me . . . .” “So after just two bottles you excuse yourself as usual and leave for home?” “Oh, Giny . . . stop teasing me . . . .”

At least her fear was no more. “Right now I‟m in high spirits. The alcohol already in my

system is blending well with the music playing from my stereo, putting me in the right mood. You should know the song . . . R. Kelly? World‟s Greatest?” He turned up the volume for her to listen in . . . . “Oh, whatever . . . what did you want, dear?” “Need you to transfer a folder from the office PC to my inbox? Need to work on it tonight . . . .” “Oh

Michael . . . working at home again?” began Giny. “Really you should . . . ” “OK . . . just don‟t start . . . I AM HAPPY . . . ask the many girls trying to be my girlfriend . . . .”

And he had lots of reasons to be happy. At twenty-eight, he was the personnel manager of a great multinational company of which his performance had been impressive in the past six months.

The future looked bright. His decisions had proven effective and good for the company and his employers and co-workers all seem to believe in him. His salary had just been increased; he just bought the flat he was presently living in, and he would soon be traveling to the UK for more training.

Therefore, his good mood could not only be attributed to alcohol and music. “Oh, alright, dear,” concluded Giny. “No point arguing with the most handsome guy around, is there? Where will I locate the folder?” “On the desktop? The folder is „TO-DO-ASAP.” “Okay .

. . will send it over ASAP . . . .” “Thanks . . . I appreciate . . . .” She rang off, and he drove in silence for a while. Of course, he was loved by everyone at his workplace, and he loved his job. Michael was a gregarious and fun-loving person. He easily made a strong, lasting impression on people he was meeting for the first time and found it easy to mix with people of various personalities. He could say his study as a psychologist at both his degree and masters‟ level had helped him develop this ability.