There were two outcomes of the event that were continuing to affect my life. I’d had no further contact with Gene. And my position on social skills had changed. I had previously regarded them as unimportant, and still considered them overvalued, but I had to accept that in this case my ineptness had caused terrible damage. Gene and Lydia had generously invited me to celebrate an important moment in their lives. I had responded by destroying their relationship and preventing my best friend from making a new start.
