PART ONE:
In an alternate universe, Nate's charges weren't dropped. His lawyer advised him to stop fighting and take the plea.
In that alternate universe, Nate reported to prison to serve out his two-year term (carefully negotiated, the sentence was much lower than it could have been and his taking it avoided the risk of a jury proving him guilty and sending him away for decades).
In that alternate universe, Nate arrived at the jail with nothing but the clothes on his back. He was strip-searched and made to remove every single article of clothing that he had on.
It was humiliating. Depressing. Awful and unfair.
It was his birthday, but it didn't much feel like one.
But Nate was Nate. Hyperactive, excitable, energetic and always five steps ahead of the crowd.
He knew he'd get his birthday present. He just had to be patient.
The other inmates didn't understand his bemused smile and his air of calm acceptance as the guards escorted him to his new digs.
Life in jail is monotonous. That's the punishment: The tedium. But the boredom is preferable to the alternative, because that's the flip side of jail: the constant danger. Nate experienced both, his first day there.
His cell was tiny. The toilet was embarrassing. And there was absolutely, positively, nothing to do. He spent his first hours sitting on the tiny cot that was the only place in the world now that was somewhat his. He sat on that cot, staring at the wall, waiting for the hours to pass.
And yet. The other guys saw Nate and thought that he might be something to do. Lascivious glances, lewd comments, Nate found himself surrounded at the cafeteria table when he went to have his first ever dinner in jail.
"What's your name?" Asked an enormous black man who had decided to start caressing Nate's inner thigh.
"Nate."
"I'm Sam. Don't worry, baby. I'll take care of you in here." He winked at the crew-cut guy across the table, and crew-cut looked Nate up and down and nodded.
"Yeah, he'll do. Tonight? Airtight? We'll welcome you to prison, Nate."
All the guys at the table started laughing, and Nate just sat there, pretending he couldn't understand the innuendo, acting like Sam's hand hadn't just reached the top of his inner thigh to start cradling his balls. Nate did his best impression of a care-free guy who isn't supposed to be used as gang-bang fodder on his first night ever in prison.
"C'mon Nate, why so quiet? We'd think you wanted to thank us for our welcome, you goddamn son of a bitch."
The guy sitting on Nate's other side, a scrawny white guy who was completely bald, boxed Nate in the head when the guards weren't looking.
"Yeah Nate, thank us," insisted bald guy. His fingers started creeping where they weren't supposed to, too.
Before Nate could even respond, someone else had toppled him out of his chair onto the cafeteria floor. They were on top of him, hitting him, grabbing at him, pummeling him, and the guards were nowhere to be fucking found.
Nate kept his calm. Even with all their fucking toying with him, he just waited. But he wasn't gonna wait much longer. Before anyone could land a punch to his face, he spoke up for the first time since telling them his name.
"You fucking assholes, you better stop right now or you're gonna miss the night of your life."
The guys were so startled that they stopped, fists in mid-air, waiting.
The thing is, life is always a game of follow-the-leader. And when it came to gangbangs, Nate was your guy. The other ones were just fucking lemmings and they never knew what was coming.
Quietly, with all eyes on him, Nate said, "You stupid creeps have two options tonight. Yeah, you can pound me. I know I can't stand up to all you fuckers. But if you do that, you miss out on what will probably the best goddamn gang-bang you've ever had. Oh and one of you better smuggle a bowl out of here if you want to be able to have a good time."
And with that, he picked up his tray, returned the dishes and the utensils, and headed back to his cell. The other guys stood there, standing around, scratching their heads and wondering who the fuck this newbie was and what he meant.
PART TWO
Here's the thing. I had followed him to the jail. He didn't see me but I'm pretty sure he knew I would be coming. I saw his non-chalance in the face of doom and I like to think I had something to do with it.