“WELCOME BACK, CLASS OF 2016!”
“Excuse me,” he said. “Are you with the event staff?”
I looked down at my dress, then back at him.
“Unless the hotel serves champagne in heels, no.”
His face flushed. “Sorry. I just don’t recognize you.”
“That’s okay,” I said. “Most people won’t.”
He pointed to the name tag table. “Grab yours before you go in.”
“Sorry. I just don’t recognize you.”
I found it right away.
I touched the sticker, then left it there.
Not yet.
Inside, people stood in circles, laughing too loudly and checking who’d aged well. Old classmates hugged like they hadn’t ignored each other for a decade.
I touched the sticker.
Men talked about jobs. Women compared rings, babies, houses, and vacations.
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A woman near the bar looked at me twice. “Sorry, were you in our class?”
“Yes, I was.”
She tilted her head. “I feel terrible. I don’t recognize you.”
“Don’t,” I said. “You’re not the only one.”
She laughed politely and walked away.
“Sorry, were you in our class?”
Nobody recognized me.
Not one person.
At first, it hurt. Then, when Ashley stopped in front of me with Brielle at her side, it became useful.
“I love your dress,” Ashley said.
“Thanks.”
Brielle smiled. “Are you someone’s plus-one? I swear I’d remember you.”
“I came alone.”
“I swear I’d remember you.”
Ashley lifted her eyebrows. “Brave.”
“Curious,” I said.
Brielle laughed. “Then come sit with us. Our table needs better energy and more younger-looking faces.”
I looked past them to their table. They all had the same smiles and the same sharp eyes, just with better makeup.
“I can sit for a few minutes.”
“Then come sit with us.”
Ashley pulled out a chair for me. “So, what do you do?”
“I manage a marketing team.”
“Of course you do,” Brielle said. “You look like you send emails people are scared to ignore.”
“Only when they deserve it.”
Ashley laughed. “I like her.”
That stung.
“I manage a marketing team.”
In school, Ashley had once asked if my face hurt from looking like “that.” Now she liked me because she didn’t know I was the same person.
Then Madison arrived, loud enough for three tables to turn.
“Please tell me you saved me a seat,” she said, dropping her clutch beside Ashley’s glass.
Ashley grinned. “Madison, meet our new friend.”
Madison looked me over. “Well, thank God. This table needed help.”
“Madison, meet our new friend.”
I smiled. “Rough night?”
“Reunions are always rough,” Madison said. “Too many people pretending they peaked after graduation.”
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“Happy to serve,” I said. “Most people did peak in high school, they’d just never admit it.”
For a few minutes, she sounded normal. She talked about traffic, work, and how weird it was seeing everyone older.
Then the organizer tapped the microphone.
“Everyone, don’t forget our ‘Where Are They Now?’ slideshow starts soon!”
“Rough night?”
Madison clapped. “Oh, this is going to be amazing.”
Ashley’s smile faded. “What did you send in?”
“The funniest clip.”
Brielle covered her mouth. “Please tell me it’s not sophomore year.”
Madison grinned. “The hallway video.”
My hand tightened around my glass.
“What did you send in?”
“The one with Evangeline?” Brielle asked.
“Yes!” Madison said. “I forgot how funny that was.”
Ashley shifted in her chair. “Madison…”
“What?” Madison said. “Come on. She was basically our class mascot for awkward.”
I set my glass down before I dropped it.
“What was she like?” I asked.
“I forgot how funny that was.”
Madison smiled like I’d handed her a gift.
“Oh, it was tragic. Braces, frizz, always red in the face. You barely had to say anything, and she’d panic.”
Ashley looked down. “We were awful.”
Madison rolled her eyes. “It was high school. Everybody got teased.”
“Not everybody went home crying,” I said.
The table went quiet.
Madison narrowed her eyes. “Did you know her?”
“We were awful.”
I smiled, but my chest ached.
“Better than you did. Excuse me. I need the bathroom before the show.”
They nodded and continued speaking to each other.
***
I made it to the restroom before my hands started shaking.
I called Mom from the sink.
“They don’t know it’s me,” I whispered.
