An Almost Incident

My alma mater Appalachian State University in Boone, North Carolina was in the news yesterday. A mysterious man was seen walking near some college apartments with a handgun and wearing a ski mask. The campus was on lock down. The local police have no idea who he is or what he is up to. The man has not been found but the campus is still on alert. (Link to the full story here).

Now this reminds me of an incident that happened to me when I was a student at Appalachian State in 1994. One spring Saturday night I was hanging out with my friend Melissa and a couple of her roommates in their apartment. One of her roommates Christy was there with her boyfriend David. We all were just lounging around, having several beers and watching TV. Now I met David once before. My friend Melissa told me that he was in Boone by himself working and was not a student. He had some family problems in Pennsylvania and moved to Boone recently to get away. He seemed nice but oddly quiet. But, I didn’t know him well enough to judge him.

So as the evening progressed David went into the other room with Christy for a while. The rest of us paid no attention really. Then around 11pm we heard them arguing. I had no idea what they were fighting about but they were getting louder. They both came out of the bedroom and they were screaming at each other. Apparently this guy David was yelling at Christy for not paying attention to him. She is calling him crazy and possessive. Then Christy runs outside the apartment to the woods behind the dorm building. David chases after her. Obviously concerned, I then followed them. He wasn’t threatening her but we had this feeling something bad was going to happen. Melissa then called the campus police.

Outside the dorm I yelled to David to calm down and to leave her alone. We’ve been drinking a lot and you are not thinking rationally. This is where David shouts back at me ‘Vin, I suggest you go back inside as I have a gun’. I thought he was bullshit me at first. Then Christy told me that he was not. I turned white as a ghost. Yes I was worried that this guy was going to try to hurt her, but of course I didn’t want to get shot myself! My heart was beating faster than I’d ever experienced. But luckily somehow, Christy distracted him, and swiped the gun and holster from him. She came up to me with the gun in her hands hysterically crying. At that same moment, the campus police arrived. They calmed David down, put him in handcuffs and put him in the temporary jail over night. Christy explained to the police that he didn’t threaten her and that they both had too much to drink. She was not pressing charges. Lord knows why she didn’t. Hell, come to think of it why didn’t I press charges! At any rate, the gun was taken from him, he was set free but banned from our campus.

I spoke to Christy the next day and she explained to me that she felt bad for this guy David. Apparently he had no one else in his life. He was born into a strict Mennonites family in Pennsylvania. Christy told me he got some girl pregnant and they had an abortion. His family found out and ostracized him. They banished him and told him never to come back and he was no longer part of their family. Certainly a quite fantastic story. I am still not sure whether I believe it or not. Either way this guy David was really messed in the head. Later that week, Christy called me and said David wanted to apologize to me. I really wanted nothing to do with him. But for some reason, which still baffles me to this day, I agreed to meet with him. But I brought along Christy, Melissa and my roommate Ryan. We met one afternoon at an off campus in a public park. David was crying non stop begging me to forgive him for scaring me like he did. He partially told me about him problems back home. I just wanted this guy to go away so I said whatever dude, I accept your apology. I just suggested that he should stay away from me. I can feel bad about someone who has been dealt terrible cards in life, but not when my life is in danger.

I never did see him again. Christy, was smart enough and broke up with him soon after. I have no idea what happened to David. But I am lucky that this was just a passing incident and not a lot worse.

- The Mountain Cat