A woman added her voice to the accusation. She’d seen it too, the furtive looks, the attempt at misdirection, the substitution. A classic con.
Chad’s protestations went unheard as a mob gathered around the accusers and the angry mass of people lurched towards him. Still clutching the bouquet, Chad clasped his hands behind his back and stared at his shoes which, although dress shoes, were rubber-soled and therefore had great traction. Rather than stand on his rights, he bolted. It was an unexpected move and, precisely as he had hoped, it left the mob gape-mouthed for several seconds before they recovered their presence of mind and tore after him. Chad ran the long way around to Stacy’s townhouse, hoping to lose the mob as he went. He’d never been to this neighbourhood before, but he’d looked it up on Google Street View and had a fair idea where he was going. He was grateful Stacy was quick to answer the door and to invite him inside. The mob was still far enough behind him that it was impossible to say which door had swallowed him up.
Stacy said how thoughtful it was to have brought flowers. She was effusive. Before they went to dinner, she just had to put the flowers in a vase. Chad watched from the alcove as Stacy stood by the kitchen sink, snipping each stem and dropping the flowers into a glass cylinder. Chad was pleased with what he saw and looked forward to a good metaphor after dinner. With flowers arranged and sitting on the kitchen table, Chad helped Stacy on with her coat and the pair stepped outside into the fading light. Stacy wanted to pass the memorial, but Chad said no, he had passed it on his way there and was still choked up; maybe when they came back.
Did you see how artfully he did that? How he included himself in the return to Stacy’s home after dinner? That little manoeuvre came straight from the seminar’s playbook.
The dinner went well enough. Stacy wasn’t a vegetarian or vegan, so there were no emasculating conversations about Chad’s carnivorous tendencies. She was allergic to garlic, but that was okay. Conversations about food allergies never get a person embroiled in arguments about political correctness or white male privilege. There were a few awkward silences during the meal, but Chad had memorized most of the openers from the playbook and was able to deploy them whenever things threatened to come to a crashing halt. As a result, the dinner date went more or less as planned. Chad got to walk Stacy home. They paused at the memorial to watch the candles flicker in the darkness. Chad did his best to strike a solemn pose, but it was difficult when he imagined what he’d be doing in just a few short minutes.