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About a month ago, I was up in our computer lab waiting for a class when this soft-spoken, nice looking old gentleman came in and asked if I was going to talk about how to use the library. I said I was and that he was welcome to sit in, if he wanted. Long story short, the class never showed up and I spent a nice hour with this guy, walking him through the catalog, ILL, some databases, etc. He asked some very intelligent questions and made an appointment to come back for further instruction. He didn't keep the appointment (which disappointed me) and I haven't seen him since.
Tonight is my night to work until the library closes at 10pm. Right before I went out to the desk at 5, my coworker came back to the office and joked about leaving me alone with a felon. He went on to describe how this guy had come up to the reference desk and asked for help finding the particulars of a legal case. The case was from 1996 and the defendant, who was a repeat offender, was charged with felonious assault (apparently, he beat the hell out of a senior citizen!). He was sentenced to 40 years in prison, but due to some mistake or technicality, was set free. There was a picture attached to the document and the defendant turned out to be the guy asking the question!
At 5, I went out to start my shift and my coworker pointed out the "felon." Yes, it was my kindly old gentleman friend. He brightened when he saw me and apologized profusely for missing our appointment. He also said that he would like to meet next Thursday night when I'm here. (I suggested another time during the day, but he said he works all day and has only the evenings free.) I took his phone number and said I would check my schedule and call him tomorrow to confirm. It's not uncommon for us to do one-on- one instruction back in the office even when we're here alone, but now I'm hesitating and I feel stupid for doing so. He's never been anything but polite and deferential to me and I know I should help him because that's my job, but I really don't want to be around him. Period.
Any thoughts?
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