Four years ago today, I had the worst day of my life. I had been fired from my data entry job in Maryland after two years, and there was a big reason behind that. It all had something to do with the stupidest thing I’ve ever done in my life.

I had been seeing Sheryl Austin for the past year, and I was so deeply in love with her, I thought she would be the one that I would marry and spend the rest of my life with. To tell the truth, I was intimidated by Sheryl many times, especially when she would not let me anywhere near my other acquaintances, especially a certain guy named Dion who was still shaken up by his breakup with his former flame at the time, and was about to go back to Detroit to find a new love. Sheryl made it clear that she hated gay men, even though Dion had not yet revealed that he was, in fact, a homosexual, and his former flame was a woman, and not a man, as she had thought. (He married another woman in 2004, and now they’re divorcing when he finally told his wife that he was coming out of the closet.) She even cursed out another man on the phone, and had very mean words with his female friend at the same time. But, despite that, I was still very determined to marry Sheryl and become the happiest man on Earth. In fact, I had plans to bring her to my fifth-year high school reunion and make everyone jealous of me because I had landed the most beautiful girl in the world. (Sadly, the reunion never occurred, but I could still see my former classmates having that same jealous look on their faces.) However, I had some very hot competition in a couple of men: one who threatened to steal her away and make me cry, and another one who was more in love with her and took her out on a regular basis. I met him at his Fourth of July cookout in 2002, and we immediately hit it off. I even complimented his mother on the décor of her house, using lines like “I don‘t think we‘re in Baltimore anymore” (to which she answered, “Of course, you are in Baltimore”; that line was a play off of The Wizard of Oz, in which Dorothy tells Toto that they are not in Kansas anymore) and “I could never afford this” (to which her answer was, “Sure, you can”). Last time I heard, she was still seeing that man, and they were spending a lot of time together. I was even warned by her relatives that she already had a boyfriend, but that didn’t stop me from romancing her endlessly. Until the night that the relationship took a wrong turn.

Here’s where it all fell apart: On June 2, 2003, I got hit by a car and spent the night in the hospital with a big bump on the back of my head. It was so big that it required stitches. The impact knocked me into a short coma, and when I woke up, the first thing I saw was a police officer who held two old state-issued identification cards and a bottle of fingernail polish. When my parents were informed of the news, they rushed to my bedside, and they were very upset. As expected, I was forbidden from seeing Sheryl ever again, and I was to come straight home from now on. I missed three weeks of work, and with each passing day, I hated staying at home and not being able to go anywhere. I wished so much to go back to work, and on June 23, I finally got the news I had been waiting for: I was cleared to go back to work. For a moment, I was very happy just to return, but the celebration was short-lived.

June 25 proved to be my doomsday. At first, I returned to work, and my coworkers welcomed me back, telling me how much they missed me and wondering how I got hurt. I showed them the scar from the accident, and they knew that I had been hit by the car. Not two hours had passed before I was asked to see a cop who was investigating the situation. I explained the details in full, and I revealed to him that in August 2002, four months after I had met Sheryl, I had been pressured to get the ID’s in question for her to use, even though I knew it was wrong, and I would go to jail for it. Needless to say, she was aspiring to be a police officer herself, but that’s another story. As for the nail polish, I explained that that was just a gift for her. Then I was let go, prepared for the absolute worst. I had my lunch, hoping against hope that this would not be my last lunch break in the building. Then, shortly after I had returned from my lunch break, my supervisor called me into her office and told me that I was fired. I was upset that my employment had been terminated, but I had expected this to happen. That night, I broke news to my family of my firing, and they blamed Sheryl for it.

When I found my next job, working as a deliveryman at Sinai Hospital, I suddenly remembered that it was close to Sheryl’s home, since I passed by the hospital on my way to see her. But by then, I was beginning to forget about her, even though a small piece of me was still wishing that I could have her back. On my first day at Sinai, I was warned by my parents that if I ever went by Sheryl’s house again, they would have her arrested. That alone killed any feelings I may have had for her at the time.

Looking back, I now realize that just falling in love with Sheryl was the worst mistake I’ve ever made. I know I’ve made many, but this is the stupidest one so far. In the years to come, I developed a strong, intense hatred for Sheryl, which has grown even stronger since I relocated to North Carolina last year. At times, I even wish she were dead (the words “Sheryl must die!” come to mind), or some other terrible thing happened to her. I don’t know exactly where she is, but she’s already dead to me.

Meanwhile, I’ve met a lot of new people at CPCC, none of whom are anything like Sheryl, because they know better than to manipulate me the way she did. Someday, when I get married, it will be to a Carolina girl, not a Maryland girl like Sheryl, because all Maryland girls are stupid, and Carolina girls are very smart. That’s just the way it is.

In closing, I should just pass along one bit of advice to men who are looking for love: You have to be friends first with the girl, before you can even think about making the relationship more than that. And be sure that you do not end up with someone who will be pushy and manipulative to you. If she is, dump her immediately, and continue your search. Eventually, you will find the right one for you. And that’s exactly what I intend to do in Charlotte. I think I’ll call sometime tonight, or tomorrow, or whenever. Even though I still hate Sheryl now, I am thankful for one thing: If I hadn’t been forbidden from seeing her, I never would’ve met the best thing to ever happen to me, which would be my new friends. I’m emailing and calling them on a regular basis, and my life is much better because of them. Enough said.