‘Hey there, it’s Jessie! How ya doin’?’ asked a woman with a mild Southern-American accent.

‘Hello, it’s Charlie. I’ve been meaning to talk to you for a while’ there was a period of dead air on the other end of the line.

‘Well, Charlie, what’s this about?’

‘Well, I’ve been meaning to ask you, and just come clean about this, OK?’

‘What?’ he put the phone away and took a deep breath.

‘Have you been cheating on me?’ there was silence on the other end of the line.

‘Why the hell would you ask such a thing? Of course not!’

‘Well, some of my friends keep saying you have, so-’

‘Don’t listen to them, Char-lee! They’re all trying to ruin our relationship! It’s probably girls, too. They’re after your dick more than anything, ya know?’

‘|Ummm…’

‘Now listen, Char-lee. Stop asking stoopid questions. If I were with another guy, I’ll just tell you’ Charlie appeared to be frustrated.

‘I don’t believe you’

‘What?! What did you say, ya little bitch?! You don’t believe me?!’

‘No, Jessie’ he took a deep breath ‘I don’t’

‘You ass-hole! How could you say such a thing?!’

‘Listen, I’ve not even been able to see you in the last two months, our relationship is going nowhere’

‘Awww, that’s too bad. What ya goin’ do, then? Dump me? You know there ain’t no one better than me!’

‘I beg to differ’

‘What?! Are you dumping me?!’ Charlie took yet another deep breath.

‘Yes, Jessica. I don’t want to be with you any more’ there was a brief period of silence on the other end of the phone.

‘You son of a bitch! How could you do this to me?! And don’t you dare call me Jessica!’

‘I’ll dare. And I’m not your little puppet, either’ Jessica had hung up on him. Charlie put his phone down on his desk; a tear started rolling down his eye, which he simply wiped off with his hand.

‘Charlie, your dinner’s ready!’ his mother announced. He then walked out of his bedroom while going towards the dining table at a very limp pace. His meal was spaghetti with meatballs. ‘What’s wrong, Charlie?’

‘Oh god…’ he muttered

‘Tell me’

‘Mum, I…’ he sighed ‘I’ve… broken up with Jessica.

‘Oh? That’s…’

‘I’ve had a lousy day at work, too’ he started eating his spaghetti with meatballs ‘Another person has died because of the diet pills. Oh I’m sorry, “allegedly” died because of them, my bitch of a boss had a go at me for th’ his mother had a grumpy look on her face.

‘Charlie, it’s about time you quit working there, honestly! Every time I see you you look more and more miserable. I’ll tell you this: you only have one life, make the most of it!’

‘I agree, but then there’s… people I like there’

‘OK, fine. Forget I said anything’

‘Nah, it’s OK. I’m not going to lie, I’ve thought about quitting from time to time’ there was a brief period of silence ‘By the way, the customers I get are idiots, I had one who complained that a certain capsule type pill was making him sick, when what he was doing was removing the capsule’ his mother gasped.

‘You’re not supposed to do that!’

‘I know. That’s what I told him’ Charlie continued to eat his meal in silence until it was finished. He left the dining table without saying anything.

‘Did you like it?’

‘Yes. Delicious as always, Mum’

‘OK, thank you’ Charlie returned to his bedroom, where he went straight on his phone. He texted both Angelica and Lucia in order to tell them that he had broke up with Jessica, in the midst of doing so a doorbell rang - he ignored it and went onto his computer afterwards.