He had not been confrontational. No, he had been defensive. Defensive because, every time he had an opinion on anything, he was roundly attacked by one of the tribe. But she internalized their slander without question, never bothering to ask, even though it did not match what she had known. 

It had started with the blonde, the lobotomized trophy wife to an asshole of bigoted cop, a true ingrate who labeled himself a “patriot.” She had adopted the extremist paranoia of that ignorant sect and thought she smelled “socialism” in everything, although she had no idea what that was. From her, it had spread to the others - the obsessive consumer with the IQ of a guppy and the instigating new guy, who had every reason to mislead her about him, seeing a younger rival. The newcomer was often so condescending that he had fed the smugness back to him, but, of course, it was seen as his fault. 

And what would they say now? “Oh, you just think you’re smarter than everyone else,” and, “So everyone is wrong about it but you?” And there they would show their true stripes, as he had NEVER in his life experienced that kind of ostracism. At the connected buildings, he had never had that problem, and he did not have that problem whatsoever at his current job. It was them. It was their tribalism, their inability to be disagreed with in any way, and they made work a chore for him. 

But she had accepted their interpretation of events without ever second-guessing them, because she was one of them and just as self-righteous. And she played him hard, acting as if she was his friend, when she was just another slanderous little snake, who decided to take it even further. 

She deserved the heartache she was bound to reap, allowing herself to be pursued by men just like her. And, when it happened again, he would silently mock her, for she would have earned her just rewards for her duplicity.