Jane Actually

minutes late at the hotel restaurant for his lunchtime meeting with his roommates. He sat alone at a small table in a corner. He wished they could try another meeting place, but his friends said the hotel’s AfterNet hotspot gave them great access to the Internet. A side benefit of meeting in the same place was that the waitress now knew him and his invisible friends.
    “Ice tea with lime, right?” she asked.
    He confirmed this and then she asked, “Do you want the big table again?”
    “No,” he said, glancing at his terminal. “I don’t know how many of them will turn up, and I think I saw your manager wondering why I had the whole table to myself.”
    “It’s no big deal if you want it,” she said.
    “No, I’m wondering if I’m being stood up. I might as well order. Could I get the tuna fish sandwich and fries?”
    She nodded and left to get his iced tea.
    He sat patiently, wondering how many of his roommates would appear and whether he could insist on a different restaurant. He was chuffed 1 by his hope of a rapprochement with Mary and that led to a profound feeling of happiness, which was odd considering how he had grovelled at her feet for forgiveness.
    When Albert arrived, he found Stephen sitting with a contented smile on his face. Despite his own anguish, Albert couldn’t help but comment. “You look happy, Stephen.”
    “Who’s that?” Stephen looked at his terminal to find out who had arrived and smiled at the information. It figured that the only one he could rely on to meet him for lunch would be Albert.
    “Oh, Albert. Hi. Yeah, I guess I’m pretty happy.”
    “Does this have something to do with Miss Austen’s avatar?”
    “Mary, yes. I think she’s forgiven me.”
    “What did you do that required forgiveness?”
    “Well, I guess it’s debatable what exactly I did wrong, but you know with women, it’s best to accept blame and … I can’t really go into it.”
    “Perhaps I should also beg forgiveness, Stephen. I’m afraid I followed you into that meeting this morning.”
    He told Stephen what he’d observed and his conjectures as to what had transpired.
    “Yes, that’s the gist of it. I guess I should be mad at you for following me around, but now I’m relieved I’ve got someone to talk to about this. Mary’s pretty devoted to Jane, so I can’t say anything critical about her.”
    “Do you still doubt her identity?”
    “No, I never really did. It’s just Dr Davis … I think I have to start looking for another graduate advisor.”
    “Has it occurred to you that being a friend of Jane Austen might be a boon toward that goal? You may find other professors would be eager to be your advisor.”
    “Oh, I guess I hadn’t thought of that. But I’m still bummed about me and Dr Davis.”
    “Don’t give up on that relationship, Stephen. You obviously have great respect for her and she may yet come to her senses. And I think I have some sympathy about her complex attitudes toward Jane.”
    “What do you mean?”
    Albert debated how much to tell Stephen, but like his roommate, he appreciated having someone to talk to. And although Stephen’s sandwich had arrived, none of their other roommates had, so Albert decided to take advantage of the opportunity to tell of his revelation.
    “And then I saw her agent forward those photos to [email protected].”
    “Wait, that’s Jane’s address. I mean Jane Austen’s real address.”
    Albert was surprised to have this confirmation. “You know her address?”
    “Yes, she gave it to me, so I could ask questions about my thesis.” The statement surprised him. “I guess I do move in high circles. But more to the point, you’re dating Jane Austen!”
    “You might speak more quietly,” Albert suggested. He guessed from Stephen’s animated expression that he’d spoken loudly.
    Stephen also noticed another diner look his way, so he continued more quietly. “Sorry. It’s just hard to believe.”
    “Well, you’re dating her avatar.”
    “Point taken, but we’re not really dating. We’ve gone sightseeing and exchanged a lot of emails and texts. Wait, so you had no idea she was really Jane?” Stephen asked this while chewing, but Albert was able to comprehend.
    “No … not really. Jane, my Jane, always made so much fun of
the
Jane. And … she would encourage me to do the same. Oh Lord, some of the things she got me to say.”
    “Wow, I don’t know what to say … except congratulations? Must have come