Looking into the mirror, Steve gave a deep sigh. Almost 30, he already had a rather prominent beer belly, and a 'nice' pair of man-tits. 'Oh joyous joy,' he thought to himself as he buttoned down his shirt, and started pulling on a pair of pants, getting ready for work. A 9-5 job didn't exactly appeal to him, but then again, neither did working as a professor at the local college, teaching shit-for-brains college students about the values of modern literature. He thought of his sister, who advanced her career by applying herself over and over again, until she finally got that BS in her media relations class, and was now working as an assistant in NBC or CBS… "Not that it matters anyway," he said out loud, and guiltily turned his head to make sure he didn't wake the sleeping woman.
The woman was still fast asleep, and Steve had a slight pang of guilt, knowing that he'd never call her again. But, as always, it quickly passed, when he assured himself that it wasn't a personality or good-looks thing- no, she, as had all the others, been after his wallet. He began looking around for a notepad, but then decided to cut it loose. After all, he did give her a fake name, and a fake phone number. Putting on his shoes, his thoughts went blearily to his work. He'll be punching numbers in all day again, if he's lucky. If he isn't, he'll have to sit at another boring-ass staff meeting about the morale of the workers. Well, he could always excuse himself if it gets too bad- those acting classes really did help in faking a sick stomach, he mused. Getting up, he went to put on his jacket, when the woman spoke up.
-Hey, where are you going? It's not even 7 yet.
Steve thought wildly, and said –Oh listen, the traffic here is insane. I don't want to be late… you know how it is.
-Well, you could've woken me up,- the woman replied. She stretched, and got up, wearing nothing but a shirt. –You know, I always thought that nerds working as accountants would be a sad case in bed.- She chuckled. –But it appears that I was wrong.
-I'm no nerd,- Steve grinned despite himself –and I don't like being called one.
-Oh you're such a kidder. Well, let me guess. You were gonna leave without leaving me a callback number, weren't you?
-Uh, no. I left you a number.
-Uh-huh. Is it a real number? I wasn't born yesterday, or the day before.- The frown was evident on her face, as was the disapproval in her brown eyes. 'What a cow,' thought Steve.
-Nah, of course not. Listen, Eve, I really gotta run, okay? Call me around 7, or 8, and I'll definitely be home by then, and we'll definitely make plans, all right? I really did have an awesome time, and we should totally do this again.
-Right. I've heard that line before.- replied the woman with a sigh.
-Listen, I'm not lying to you. Here, let me write down my e-mail, and we'll definitely get in touch.- He smiled at her, and her frown disappears.
-Thank God for the information age. Yeah, e-mail is actually better, I think. At least I'll know you'll read it,- she replied as she got up and bent over to pick up a piece of paper. He grinned, as he enjoyed the rather ample view. The woman straightened up, and asked him for a pen. Steve produced one, and she handed the paper over to him. He wrote down an e-mail address he hadn't used for quite some time now, and handed it back to her. She smiled, and gave him a kiss on the cheek.
-Well, I really do hope to see you again, -she said, sadly, in a way. –It's a pleasure to have met you, Andrew. A real pleasure,- as she gave a quick grin.
-Yeah, me too, Suze. I'll definitely see you, okay?- he replied, as he fumbled with the unfamiliar lock. –Can you get this for me?
-Sure,- she said opening the lock and holding the door for him.
-All right, thanks. See you later.- he threw across the shoulder as he headed towards the staircase. He walked hurriedly, actually not wanting to be late for work, despite all of his misgivings about it. He walked down the two flights and got out. It was a bit chilly this morning, but his car was right there, and he had the makings of a slight headache coming along. "Oh, that's just great," he said to himself, pressing the Unlock button on his keychain. He got into the car, and turned it on, waiting for it to heat up a little. Rolling the windows up, he drove out of the cute little parking lot that was surrounded by trees, shrubs, and various other greenery, until he was well out of it. The headache was intensifying slightly, so he reached into the glove compartment, and reached for a bottle of Advil, popped six of them, and washed them down with some water that he kept for cases just like this.
Driving down the street, he marveled at himself. One would think he was just what the woman described- a nerd, wearing glasses, tall, somewhat fat, and with no fashion sense. And yet, he was good with people. Girls, while not falling for him left and right would be more than willing to sleep with him after he'd pay for their drinks, and guys would appreciate his company, his somewhat good sense of humor. He nodded cheerfully to himself, and sped up as he approached the highway. His headache was almost gone, and he turned on his player, with his favorite CD already in it, Susan appreciating many of the same musicians that he did- it was how he met up with her after all.
As he was going up the turn, he suddenly saw another car coming his way. He slowed down, and the other car sped up. He let it pass, and then drove forward, looking into the front mirror, letting another car pass, finally reaching the highway proper. He looked in the mirror again, and suddenly panicked, as he was staring into the headlights of a huge truck! He tried swerving, knowing it was coming directly for him. He spun his wheel, but the truck was still in front of him! He spun the wheel again, and then suddenly his foot automatically pressed the accelerator and his car sped up right into the wall. He tried to throw up his hands, but instead, he pressed his hands against the dashboard, steadying himself. He braced for impact, suddenly knowing that something was wrong. The truck was in his mirror, but not in front of him! "What the fuck?!," he exclaimed, suddenly realizing that he was in no danger at all.
-You should've given me that number,- Susan's voice suddenly spoke up in his head, as his car sped towards the bend of the highway. And suddenly he felt terror, and he screamed and kept on screaming until his car crashed through the construction cones, and went sailing over the edge. He kept on screaming through the impact, and even when the ambulance arrived he was still making gurgling noises, until he expired, all while hearing Susan's voice in his head....