The screen flickered. Not the usual Windows diagnostic flicker, but something softer, like an old cathode-ray tube TV warming up. The Photoshop CS6 splash screen appeared—that familiar blue gradient, the feather, the words “Adobe Photoshop CS6 Extended” —but something was wrong. The loading bar didn't move. Instead, text began to type itself into the status field.
“Pleasure doing business. See you in 364 days.”
The dialog box appeared: “Are you sure you want to delete ‘Curves 1’?”
“Welcome back, Leo. I’ve been counting the days.”
Leo stared at the screen. His reflection stared back, two ghosts in the glass. Then, with a slow, deliberate move, he opened the file. The rendering was beautiful—even unfinished. He found the Curves layer. He right-clicked. Delete Layer.
He sat up straight. His coffee, now cold, trembled in his hand.