"I know saying I'm sorry doesn't fix it."
"No," the engineer replied. "It doesn't."
The former officer looked down.
"I treated you like you were lying before I even checked your identification."
"Yes."
"I assumed that watch couldn't belong to you."
"Yes."
"And when you challenged me, I got angry."
The engineer watched him closely.
The former officer continued.
"I used my authority to punish you for questioning me."
There was a long silence.
For the first time, the engineer heard the former officer describe his actions without hiding behind phrases such as miscommunication or officer discretion.
He waited.
The former officer glanced toward the prosthetic leg.
"I knew you were having trouble standing. I saw it."
The engineer felt his jaw tighten.
"And you shoved me anyway."
The former officer lowered his eyes.
"Yes."
The admission seemed to cost him more than anything else.
"I can't explain that in a way that makes it acceptable."
"Then don't."
The former officer nodded.
The engineer leaned forward slightly.
"There's something I want you to understand."
The former officer raised his head.
"When you stopped me, you knew almost nothing about me."
"I know."
"You didn't know where I worked. You didn't know why I had that watch. You didn't know how I lost part of my leg. You didn't know whether I had children waiting at home or a mother expecting me for dinner."
His voice remained steady.
"But you decided none of that mattered."
The former officer said nothing.
"You looked at me and decided I couldn't possibly own something valuable."
The engineer paused.
"Then you used my disability against me."
The room was silent.
The former officer's face reddened.
"I was wrong."
"Yes."
The engineer looked at the watch.
"But here's what I need you to understand. I shouldn't have needed an engineering title, a city-issued terminal, or a connection to municipal officials to make you treat me like a human being."
The former officer stared at the table.
"If I'd been an ordinary man working two jobs, with no credentials and nobody important to call, what would have happened?"
There was no answer.
The engineer waited.
Finally, the former officer whispered, "I don't know."
"That's the problem."
He leaned back.