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17
“What do you mean you were a dick to her?” his mother said with a non-approving look on her face.
Austin looked at his mother, his stomach in knots. “In all fairness, I didn’t remember we went to high school together until Chris told me this past week.”
“How could you have had no idea?” his mother asked.
Austin shrugged his shoulders. “I wasn’t friends with everyone in high school, Mom.”
“OK…” his mother replied. “So by the look on your face, why does there seem to be a huge missing piece to this puzzle?”
“Well, last night,” Austin answered quietly, looking back down at Jane’s photo in the yearbook. “She told me that she asked me out in high school.”
“She asked you out?” his mother asked in a surprised tone. “That’s something I didn’t expect to hear. But I thought you said you didn’t remember her.”
“Yeah, I didn’t,” Austin said seriously, “It’s complicated, but she only asked me out because my buddy Tim told her that I was into her.”
“And what? I’m guessing you weren’t?” she asked.
Austin felt his stomach continue to tighten, not wanting to tell his mother, but knowing he was in too deep at this point. “No, I wasn’t. I know it’s rude to say, but she wasn’t really my type.”
“Well, did you know her at all apart from chemistry class?” his mother asked.
“No,” Austin said, looking at his mother. “And truthfully, I didn’t know her well at all. From what I remember, she seemed quiet and kept to herself. But Tim said something to her about me liking her… I don’t know. He used to do stuff like that all the time with girls that he knew I would never date.”
“My God, Austin,” she said with her eyes opening wide. “That’s terrible. Why would he do something like that?”
“I don’t know,” he answered honestly.
“Well, he was a jerk for doing that to those poor girls, especially Jane,” she replied with contempt. “I hate to say it, but guys like him do these things to make themselves feel better, but it doesn’t always work out for them.” Olivia was upset, especially knowing Jane had been hurt so badly.
“I know, I agree,” Austin nodded, knowing his mom was speaking the truth.
“Please tell me you had nothing to do with any of that,” she stated, looking at him seriously. “That’s so horrible I barely have words to describe it.”
“No, I didn’t,” Austin said, shaking his head. “I would never purposely try to embarrass someone, not like that.”
“So what happened?” she asked.
“Jane told me the whole story last night about her asking me out in high school, but I didn’t remember a thing about it. I’m telling you, I couldn’t place what she looked like in high school until just seeing her photo now. But I could tell she wanted to get it off her chest by telling me. Seems to me it has really bothered her all these years.”
“What a jerk Tim is,” she said, shaking her head. “You’re not still friends with him are you?”
“Mom,” Austin said seriously, “Come on, you know I still see him from time to time—he’s no longer a close friend, but Barrington is a small place.”
“So, now that you've seen her photo, do you remember her asking you out?” his mother asked, anxious for Austin to answer.
“No, not specifically,” Austin answered. “And, before you say anything to me, yes… I do feel bad saying that I don’t remember her.”
“You’re sure?” she asked, as she grabbed the yearbook to look at Jane’s photo. “Having a cruel trick played on you is one thing, but imagine knowing you weren’t even remembered? This whole business needs to be made right, whether it was a long time ago, or not.”
“To be honest, I do not remember her,” Austin said, without a doubt, but feeling terrible all the same. “I’m sure. Tim used to do it all the time to me, and I should have shut it down.”
“I’ll tell you what,” his mother said, interrupting his thoughts as she looked down at the yearbook in front of her. “She was adorable. Look at how cute her hair was when it was this short. I mean, Austin. Take away the glasses and braces, it’s the same Jane Jones.”
He smiled as he looked back down at her picture because he did see the resemblance. If she cut her long hair right now and put on glasses, she would look like the Jane Jones from high school. But this Jane Jones had a smoking body, which was something he wasn’t going to share with his mother.
“I’m assuming you said no when she asked you out,” his mother stated without even looking up at him.
