My Awkward Encounter

I don’t know if the encounter itself was awkward, or if it was just me making it awkward. Story of my life. Basically, on my way home from my part-time job the other day, I went to the local store to buy a bunch of products that I ran out of at the last minute.

You know, floss, deodorant, and other awesome hygiene products.

But that wasn’t the awkward part. Usually I go to the self-checkout because good-old-anti-social-me likes to avoid cashiers, but today I thought, “Meh, I’m too lazy to scan my own items.”

The second I got into one of the lines, I realized that I know the cashier. Actually, first thought was “Hey, that guy looks familiar” which quickly turned into a horrified “Oh God, I went to high school with him!”

Okay, maybe not that big a deal. But for someone who dreads any type of social encounter, this put me in panic mode. I mean, like I said before, I don’t even like making small-talk with cashiers! Recognizing someone in public is a whole other level. I glanced over to the other checkout and debated whether I could casually just switch lines, but at this point, there was no going back without looking suspicious.

So I stayed in line, hygiene products cradled in my arms, and hoped he wouldn’t recognize me. I mean, high school was a while ago, right? I was pretty quiet and invisible back then so I doubt anyone would remember me. Maybe if I just cover my face with my hair and avoid eye contact…

“Hey, Kana, right?”

Great. So much for not recognizing me.

At this point, you’re probably thinking that I’m making a big deal out of nothing. Aaaaand, of course, you’re right. There were people behind me, anyways, so we couldn’t really chit-chat for long. But during those brief few minutes, we caught up on what we’re doing in life.

And it was actually nice. Lesson of the day: stop thinking that every conversation will be awkward and cringeworthy. But also, it got me wondering about all those people from high school and what they’re up to now. Yes, yes, there’s Facebook, but people don’t share their entire lives on there.

Are they successful? Pursuing their dreams? Have they completely changed or are they still the same person from high school? Are they still hopeful for the future or has that innocence been replaced with the pessimism of reality?

A lot of questions that I will probably never know the answer to.

So this post has turned strangely philosophical. What about you? Ever wonder about what someone from your past is doing now?