So it's New Years. I'm living in a closed community in a foreign country. At the only bar in town that all the foreigners and some natives come to. Things are swell and fine and I'm making good progress working the new girl in town. I'm getting all good signals and things are definitely moving somewhere. Girl goes to the bathroom and I sit back and chat with a guy who isn't a friend, but a guy I see often and had a decent and altogether unremarkable relationship with.

For some time, I'd been getting the sense that he didn't much like me. He tenses up when I'm around. Avoids eye contact and uses short, terse sentences. Subtle, but again, unremarkable. Can't win everyone. But I'm cordial and buzzing a bit so I tell him he's looking fresh, it's good to see him and how ya been. We jaw for a bit and he just reaches over out of nowhere and pours his beer on me and just looks at me. I was confused and surprised, but I didn't even see it as an insult. I thought it was a joke. Like New Year's fucking around. I laugh and pour a little on him thinking it's like a mutual ha-ha moment.

That's when things change. This guy snaps. Knocks the beer from my hand and grabs me and just starts hitting my head. I'm completely confused by the 180 degree switch here. Even though I box daily, I didn't want to fight and escalate the situation. I know the bar owner and don't want to hurt any of the patrons in the small space. He's not hitting me hard but he has me pulled down by my shirt so I just cover and he really doesn't even land any blows. I should mention that fighting is a bad idea here anyway and I don't want to lose my job and get deported. It's a small community and people talk.

Anyway, some natives get up and pull me away outside. They saw what happened and so did one foreigner who I didn't know. Meanwhile, inside, this guy is telling everyone I poured beer on him and that's why he had to act. He's usually a very blue pill, quiet guy so I'm sure everyone agreed with him. When I came back inside, he came to me and told me as much and called me an asshole and said I'm regularly so and trotted off to the other side of the bar where everyone else joined him. I left shortly after. No one asked me for my side or followed up later to see if I was okay.

Later, a buddy I know filled me in that this guy is super conservative and plays weak blue pill game. He's been trying to get this girl I was after and he's been having lots of trouble in the girl department of late which explains the reaction. Regardless, I'm looking for some ideas how to handle this situation. I'm glad I didn't fight, it was the right choice, but I think people see me as the agressor here because not many saw it and I didn't get the chance to tell my side. I haven't been back since then but even if I avoided the place completely this town is small and I'll eventually run across these folks again. How do you maintain frame when no one believes you and fighting isn't an option?