Former athletes clustered together near the bar, and a handful of old friends occupied the center tables. People laughed about teachers, football games, and things that had probably seemed important when they were 18.
And strangely enough, nobody approached him. Not at first.
Ten years had passed, and still, some things hadn’t changed. Then someone finally approached him.
Evan remembered him immediately, not because Tyler had ever been especially cruel, but because he had always been one of the people who watched from the sidelines and said nothing.
“Wow,” Tyler said awkwardly.
“Evan.”
My son nodded.
Tyler laughed nervously. “Didn’t expect to see you here.”
“I noticed.” The answer wasn’t rude. But it wasn’t entirely friendly either.
Tyler shifted uncomfortably. “Listen, about the invitation thing…”
Here it comes, Evan thought. “I’m sure it was just some mistake.”
Evan almost laughed.
A mistake? Dozens of people received invitations. His email address remained the same. But somehow, he was the one person they accidentally forgot. Sure.
“A mistake,” Evan repeated.
Tyler nodded. “Yeah.”
Neither of them believed it.
