The Unknown Call

Steve returned home from the office, feeling as exhausted as any other day. He had a mountain of work left to finish. He was completely engrossed in completing an important project assigned by his boss, staring intently at his laptop screen and working with deep focus. ​The clock struck 10:30 PM. ​Suddenly, his phone began to ring. When he glanced at the screen, it displayed an unknown number. Wondering who could be calling at this late hour, Steve lifted the call anyway. ​A girl's voice came from the other side. She sounded incredibly anxious, her voice trembling as if she were on the verge of tears. ​Her: "Hello, Peter... it's me, Sara. Please, don't cut my call. It was all my fault. Let's just stay together from now on... Please speak to me, Peter." ​Hearing those words, Steve was left utterly confused. ​Steve: "Hello ma'am, I am sorry... but I am not your husband Peter. My name is Steve. This is my new phone number, and I have only been using it for the last 15 days." ​As soon as Steve uttered those words, a sudden, dead silence enveloped the other end of the line. After a few agonizing seconds, Sara's voice shook with a noticeable tremor. ​Sara: "Oh... I am so sorry. I thought this was Peter's number and called. It has been so long since he was last online, and I just spoke out of sheer anxiety. Please forgive me." ​The pain embedded deep within her voice touched Steve's heart. No matter how busy he was with his urgent project, he couldn't bring himself to just hang up on that sorrowful voice. ​Steve: "It’s okay, don’t worry about it. You sound very disturbed. Is everything okay?" Sara: (Letting out a soft sigh) "It’s nothing. Thanks for being so polite. By the way... my name is Sara." Steve: "I am Steve. Anyway, good night, Sara." ​The call ended for the night. However, Steve could barely sleep a wink. 'Who is Peter? What happened between them?'—the relentless curiosity began to consume his mind.