Basically, I have this really annoying little fucker in my life who everytime he spots me interacting with people, says this. I’ve interacted with him very few times, so he basically doesn’t even know me.
While I am a little introverted, no one likes this bs.
Some people honestly don’t have a sense of humor, and think their one joke is hilarious even when it’s beaten with a dead horse.
First, assume they’re not doing it to be malicious, and talk to them, say it was funny the first few times, it’s grown old and you’re tired of hearing it. It started off funny, but them saying it every time has switched to hurtful. Hopefully that’s enough to get them to stop.
If they don’t, then don’t blow up, but next time they drop it start saying “Yeah, you said that last time we were together too”, deflect the humor with neutrality. Jokes like that only work if people laugh, and if other people aren’t laughing then usually it stops.
Just don’t blow up. Blowing up sounds like a good idea, but will make you come off as “they can’t take a joke”
Also, if you do decide you need to escalate past this asking them to explain the joke can work really well. It works wonders for bigotry and other issues too, if they say “it’s just a joke” say “I don’t understand, can you please explain the joke?” This makes them articulate their explanation for why they find it funny and chances are they will sound like a complete dingus in front of you and others, heavily disincentivising this behaviour.
Okay, yeah, this is a lot nicer than what I was gonna suggest. OP, go with this.