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Austin immediately saw the shift in Jane. She looked upset, tears in her eyes, and he felt instantly bad. “Listen, I’m sorry Tim did that to you. He was a jerk. Please tell me I wasn’t a total dick to you.”
Jane bit her tongue, trying her best to stay calm and not show how hurtful it felt to hear that not only did he not remember her,but also that she was one of many. She took a second before answering, trying to distract herself by looking down at her handbag and pretending to fish for her keys. “Actually, you didn’t say anything to me when I asked you.”
“I didn’t say anything?” Austin asked, surprised by her response.
“Yeah,” she answered, staring back up at him. “You didn’t say one word. It was horrible,” she said honestly, being brave enough to share her truth.
Austin didn’t know what to say. He surely must have said something all those years ago, but he had zero recall of anything. He didn’t know what to say or do to make her feel better, and he obviously couldn’t go back and change things. “Jane. Listen, I’m sorry. I can tell the whole thing upset you, as it should. I truly don’t remember anything, but I’m glad you told me.” Austin continued to stare at her. “Did you think I was baiting you last night when I asked about high school?” Austin asked, finally connecting the dots.
“Yes,” Jane nodded, “I thought for sure you remembered, and that you were just waiting for me to say something.”
“I swear, I wasn’t. Chris mentioned you went to high school with us, so I thought I’d ask. If it makes you feel any better, Timmy’s divorced and back living with his parents,” Austin offered up with a wry smile, hoping that would give her a little peace of mind. “You can call it karma.”
Jane looked at Austin, shrugged her shoulders a little and cracked a small smile. “It does help… a little,” she said.
“He’s also bald, if that helps, too,” he winked, hoping she wouldn’t hold Tim’s stupid antics against him.
“I know it was a long time ago, but some things stay with you. High school wasn’t exactly easy for me when it came to dating, so this one stung. In all honesty, it kind of helps to know that you don’t remember anything about it.”
“I hope you know,” Austin went on, that “if I didn’t say anything to you, it was probably because I assumed Timmy was up to stupid shit like that,” he said, grabbing his drink to take another sip.
“Well, I guess we’ll never know,” Jane responded, grabbing her purse to head home, feeling completely and fully drained. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”
