A Phone Call To A Stranger

The Phone

It's 2:00 in the afternoon. I’ve been sitting in front of my computer for almost 3 hours now.   I feel like I spent more time staring at the screen rather than doing what I should be doing. 

I typed in a few lines then hit the backspace and started again, stared at the blinker and closed my eyes.  Deadline was tomorrow and all I’ve done was one crappy paragraph. I didn’t know it was this hard to write a short story.  I read what I have written and felt a lack of contentment.  There was something missing. I didn’t know what it was but I knew my story wasn’t good enough. I feel like it lacked a strong ending. 

I stood up and grabbed the phone.  Time to call for backup I said to myself.  I’d call my best friend and ask for help.  I dialed her number out of memory and waited for an answer.  Busy. I tried to call her at home but no one answered.  I dialed another friend’s number and got the same result.  Goddamn it! I badly need to talk to someone about this freakin’ story so I can get it over with.

Out of frustration I dialed whatever number I thought of.  I laughed at myself and was about to return the phone to its cradle when suddenly someone answered on the other line. 

I felt my heartbeat quicken as I slowly moved the phone back to my ears. 

It was a woman, asking who I was and how she could help me. 

I cleared my voice and said sorry because it was a mistake.  I just needed someone to talk to and dialed a random number I explained.  She said it was alright and kept asking how she could help me.

She sounded kind enough and I thought, what’s the harm in talking to this woman who seems nice? 

After all, I needed to talk to someone badly.