Zack certainly was!

Zack Bishop stared at the walls of county holding, wondering what precisely his father’s response once he got home would be. He couldn’t imagine it’d be good, of course, but it was a matter of exactly HOW not good. Lecture? Grounded? One of his eyes? He couldn’t remember the last time he’d been in trouble with the co- that was a lie. When he was dating Lisa. That didn’t get him in trouble at HOME, but it didn’t put him on her dad’s list of favorite people even BEFORE they broke up. Getting a “talking to,” from a beat cop for fucking on the side of the road in a car was awkward, but nothing he’d been thrown in jail for.

‘So, it’s not really like still dating her would help me out,’ he reasoned silently, doing his best to break down each of the anxieties struggling for room in his head. He’d gotten pretty good at that over the years. That was sort of a do-or-die decision, though. The way he got lost in self-accusatory thoughts would have been a tad too crippling otherwise.

He glanced up as two other young men were brought into the cell, the first a blonde, green-eyed kid he swore he’d seen around school, the second a black guy Zack figured was a few years past college with very short hair and deep brown eyes, who he noted the officer shoved way harder than he needed to when he pushed him into the cell.

“We’ll get to you in the morning,” the cop said accusatorily to the man Zack didn’t recognize. The recipient of the comment didn’t make any gesture or expression at the cop, but rolled his eyes and groaned as soon as he departed.

“Tradition is asking what you’re in for, right?” Zack asked the other two guys. The man his age grinned while the other guy shrugged. “Zack, by the way. And B&E.” He left out the other details, trying to gauge if he should try to sound more tough or not. Neither of them looked like hardened criminals, though. The black man was wearing pajamas, which are … challenging to look intimidating in, while the other kid looked a little too … slick. Like he could get away with too much to be caught for something serious. It was hard to describe, but the vibe he put out read that way.

“Leon. I think we go to school together,” the kid said, leaning over and offering his hand. Zack shook it, noting that while strong, Leon wasn’t alpha-ing him or anything with his grip. That was a relief, at least. He wasn’t a slouch in athletics, but the handshake confirmed he was the least physically powerful person in the room considering their remaining cellmate had a few years and inches on Zack. “Public urination. And public drunkenness. They were GOING to fine me, but I talked them into a night in the tank.”

“How’d you pull that?” the other man asked, not even looking up from staring at the ceiling to ask.

“I can be charming when I need to be. Plus, it’s a lot less paperwork,” he answered with a grin. “You?”

“Gideon Leveau,” he told Leon and Zack, looking down this time. “Convenience store hold-up. That happened while I was at work. In a bank. On-camera. Officer Jim Crow over there decided I matched the description of the guy, though.”

“Black male?” Zack guessed at the probable vagueness.

“I mean, 18-35, too, but about the size of it,” Gideon said with defeat. “My boss isn’t picking up his phone, and that asshole doesn’t want to ‘cause a disturbance,’ so I’m stuck here until we open and they can see my whole black ass, 9-5, lunch break in the office, nowhere NEAR the store that got hit.”

“White people,” Leon followed, tone a combination of mockery and a little bit of personal shame. Zack nodded, which felt a lot better when Gideon did, too. He knew he was a pretty privileged guy, all things considered, and confronting the results of societal prejudice reminded him of all the reasons he was thinking about leaving town after college and heading down to the coast.

“I’m saying,” Gideon agreed, holding his hands up. “Where you break into, tough guy?”

“That obvious, huh?” Gideon grinned, then shrugged. “Yeah, no, you’re right, it was just a friend’s place. With a key. I just forgot about the alarm, no one was home to tell them I’m welcome there … I was just worried about him.”

“It’s the face,” Leon observed, leaning back and looking Zack over. “You’ve got serious ‘good boy,’ face. Too real to be fake.”

“You do kinda’ look like the sensitive guy-type in a boy band. By the way, since you two are doing me the favor of having short-ass names, people usually just call me Deon. Or G, but I’m gonna’ guess you two aren’t gonna’ feel comfortable calling a black man G right away.”

“Only because it sounds real bad out of context!” Zack said with a laugh. “But if it’s what you’d rather, man, your name.”

“Nah. Only my parents call me Gideon anymore, even at work. I answer to pretty much any syllable that sounds like it might be some kinda’ my name.” Both of the other guys were considerably more relaxed in their body language now, which helped Zack to do the same. If they were there all night, at least it was with people who were easy to talk to.

“How the hell did you get arrested in your pajamas?” Leon cut in, which wasn’t exactly a bad question.

“Walking my dog. My wife came and got him, so at least she’s fine.”

“You have a dog?” Zack started to ask another question, then stopped dead. “Was about to ask you for pictures. But none of us have our phones. Because we’re in jail.”

“You could draw a picture?” Leon said, his tone a little sarcastic, but absent cruelty. “Or charades, maybe that’d work.”

“She’s a boxer/pit mix, at least that’s what the shelter said,” Gideon responded with a smile, both from the joke and, well, the guy clearly loved his dog. “American pibble would be my guess.”

“Did you just say ‘pibble,’?” Leon asked.

“It’s what I call my baby, man, leave me alone,” he told him with a tilt of his head and brief dismissive expression. “Her name’s Nova, though. I was worried she was gonna’ get shot or something, but she’s a good girl. Stayed real quiet and let Lindsay take her in while I was getting cuffed. Friendly as hell unless you’re a cat or a squirrel. She’s got these tiny scars and the way she meets men is … way different than she is with the ladies. Still excited to get attention, but new guys need to keep their hands where she can see them and slow, and she still comes in tail-tucked and head low before the petting starts.”

“People fucking suck,” Zack added bitterly. He’d always been an animal person. While it sounded like Nova wouldn’t get along with his cat, Orion, he was glad all the same it sounded like she’d found a loving home after going through so much. “Shelter downtown?”

“Yeah, she was a rockstar there. Such a tough girl, so nice and open, even to men after some definite shit owners, and she’s got these eyes … man, it looks like she just did her wings, it’s so funny,” Gideon laughed, thinking about his home life clearly a good escape from the unpleasant reality the three of them were stuck in at the moment.

“Orion’s from the same place. Black cat, very sweet, drools way too much when he’s happy,” Zack elaborated. “He had a broken leg from SOMETHING when he got him, but you couldn’t tell now. Still hides from most people besides me and my sister, though. Parents included.”

“Not allowed to have pets,” Leon sighed. “Mom says she’d just end up taking care of it alone. Which she wouldn’t, but the move here’s been a whole ordeal, so I get the nerves.”

“You’re new?” Zack asked.

“Moved in end of May last schoolyear,” Leon explained. “Little weird to do senior year the first year in a school, but last place was … well, my dad’s not the kinda’ guy you want to hang around once you want him out of your life.”

“That sucks, man,” Gideon offered gently. “My grandma left Louisiana for the same kind of thing. We’ve been here ever since.”

“What about you?” Leon asked Zack, turning to him and holding a hand to the side. “Any roots?”

“I’m descended from the Bishops. They’re one of the founding families of the town. It’s a big deal to some people, but I don’t … really … get it? I mean, it was over a century ago, I can’t see how the hell it matters.”

“If people can use it to feel better about themselves over other people, they will,” Leon noted. Zack conceded the point. “Not that you are. Shit, that came out rude as hell.”

“No, no, it’s fine.” Zack waved his arms a bit as he spoke. “The town’s history is weird, not thinking great things about it … it’s probably smart.”

“Well, we’re going to be locked up for a bit. You want to regale us with the local legends?” Gideon was half-joking, and Zack thought briefly that he could, but decided against it. All of them were either boringly historical or GRIM. Capital “G.” The bad times with the natives. The first winter. Then duels, mob ****, the riot in the sixties, none of it felt like a relaxing conversation, and morose wasn’t the order of the day to pull focus from the oppressive atmosphere. Zack hoped Chloe and Madison were doing okay.

“They’re kind of … harrowing,” he told them, considering what might be more appropriate. “Oh! Okay. I’ve got something. Either you familiar with the works of Neil Breen?” Both other men shook their heads, then leaned in as Zack started to explain the utter insanity of his movies to help the night go by a bit faster.