The Incident

Fast forward a few decades. Gary is a happily married man (though not to Heidi). As he does every so often, he checks Facebook for people he once knew, including Tom Lurie. So far, it doesn't appear that he's on Facebook. But there is a Facebook site for people that grew up in a certain area of the city. Gary's a member and so is Herb Snyder, another ex-frat brother that Gary knew back in high school. Herb and Gary connect, then trade phone numbers in the private message screen.

Gary calls him the next day, and less than a minute into the conversation, Herb brings up The Incident. "Remember when Tom Lawrence came in and then lined all of us up against the wall?"

"Tom LURIE, you mean?"

"Lurie, that's it. Something about a trick phone call you made. The guy was really pissed."

Gary feels embarrassed that Herb remembers. But now that he does, he stays on topic. "Yes, he was. So what do you remember from that night?"

"Neither of us, except you, we soon learned, knew what the hell was going on. Then Tom went on about this phone call you made and started yelling at you. I felt for sure you were going to belt him. You were bigger and stronger, and would have killed him, I imagine. Still lifting?"

"Yeah, but the weights have gotten a lot lighter. So what else?"

"What else? Let's see, I remember Tom calling you names, calling you a pussy. You of all people. I think you could have made mincemeat out of him."

"He called me a pussy because I didn't slug him. At least that's my theory."

"Sounds right. Another thing that comes to mind is your posing exhibition. Tom's idea. We all could tell that you didn't want to do it. You looked miserable standing up there strutting your stuff, even though you were built better than the rest of us."

Gary didn't hold back. "Herb, that night might have been the most humiliating and traumatizing experience of my whole life. Apparently, it affected you on some level also. I mean, you brought it up right away."

"Yeah, a night to remember for sure. I knew Tom Lurie before that. Not well, but he seemed like a decent guy. Or at least I thought so until that night. But I guess we can all turn nasty if we're pissed off enough."

The call soon ends. Gary wonders who else remembers that night, or even thinks about it. And if they do, what were their thoughts, especially their take on Gary's passivity, absorbing the slings and arrows of Tom's outrageous attack, while launching no counterattack save for a lame apology. That Marine, without knowing it, gave Gary his only saving grace by telling him that he had "incredible self-restraint." It sounded like a compliment. Well, in a back-handed sort of way.