Going Cellular

Desireé set her phone on vibrate, slipped it into her purse and tried to focus her attention to the biology lecture.

“Perception is computation,” the professor said.  “When we get messages, our brain decides what the reality is.”

Her purse began to vibrate. BZZZ   BZZZ.  It was taunting her. BZZZ BZZZ

The sound was distracting her like Edgar Allen Poe’s, “Tale Tell Heart.”

I hope it goes to my voice mail, she thought.

She peered into her purse. New Message.

It was him, she just knew it. 

Unable to stand the pressure, she grabbed her purse and ran in to the hall.

Who needs to understand perception, he’s calling me.

            Desireé listened to his message. He wanted her to call him, so she dialed his number.

            “Hello Clarise,” he laughed as he answered.   “Why don’t you ever call me?” he said.

“I did.  I called you Saturday night.”

“No you didn’t, Desireé.  I didn’t get a message.”

She knew he was lying, but she could control herself.

“I thought I’d come by Wednesday or Thursday,” he said.

“Which day?”

“I don’t know. Call me and let me know.”

“You call me,” she answered.

“No, if you want me to come by, call me.”

She agreed but as soon as she hung-up she called Marcella.

“Should I call him?”  She asked Marcella. 

“No, it’s a game,” said Marcella.

“But if I don’t call, he won’t come by. And, what if I call and he doesn’t answer? How will I know he got the message?  And, what if he’s calling me at the same time I’m calling him; does his call go to my voice mail?  What if I don’t get the message and I don’t call him back and he doesn’t think I called him, so he doesn’t call me, and I won’t know that, so I don’t call him.”

Marcella listened patiently to Desireé’s ramblings and it made her wonder.

Are cell phones distorting perceptions of reality?

“Desireé get a grip, the fact is that if he wants to talk to you, he will find you.”  

            She knew Marcella was right, that she would be awarded the tiara if she called. Cell phones are just the latest toys for men who like games.  They can say they called when they didn’t, they can say they didn’t get a message when they did.  It’s about the power over women.  It was her false perception of reality that kept her in the game.

            She dialed his number and to her horror, he did not answer.  So, she left a message.

“Hi, honey, just wanted to let you know I’ll be home Thursday if you want to come by.

He did not call her back so made one last call.  He answered, so Desireé took a deep breath.

“I just want you to know this is my last phone call to you.”

“I know,” he laughed. “I could tell by the way the phone rang.”

            “Are you coming by tonight?”

“No, I can’t make it tonight.”

“How about tomorrow?”

“That might work, I’ll call you.”

Don’t hold you breath, buster, she thought.

Desireé turned off her phone, dropped it into her purse and entered her biology class with a new perception of relationships.