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He smiles at me, a genuine smile that I thought a place like this would rid you of. “Nice to meet you, Theo.”
I return his smile. “Is it?” I ask, dropping my hand and cocking an eyebrow.
“Well, I suppose not under these circumstances, but I’ll take the chance to talk to a pretty girl over these assholes any day,” he replies, pointing a thumb at those who live behind the bars. I sit back down on my mattress as he takes a seat on the stool.
“That wasn’t in my cell,” I state, gesturing to the stool he’s perched on.
“It’s from mine,” he replies, nodding to the left. “I’m next door.”
“I came in as soon as the bars unlocked,” he admits.
I ponder what he’s said for a moment. “Why?” I question.
“Because I knew it would be a matter of minutes before one of these fuckers would come in and rape you.”
I wince slightly at his brutal honesty.
“I’ve been in here for nearly an hour or so. You didn’t stir once. It would have been too late for you to protect yourself, if you could, by the time one of them came for you and then way too late when their buddies joined in. I’m not a monster. I may be in here, but I respect women and I wouldn’t let the awful things they’d want to do to you happen,” he states matter-of-factly.
I’m stunned. I go over his words in my head for a few minutes. Thinking of the awful things that could have happened, I get angry with myself for not waking up to the noise or for not noticing there was someone in the cell with me. I focus on one part of his statement more than the others.
“If you’re not a monster, then why are you in here?” I ask curiously.
“Why are you?” he challenges.
I smile at his comeback. “I shot Carlo Rhivers in the head,” I say sweetly.
He narrows his eyes at me, trying to figure me out. I can tell he doesn’t know whether to believe me.
“Pinky swear,” I add with a smile, extending my arm and putting my pinky finger out for him to take like a child. Humouring me, he hooks his baby finger, which is the size of my index finger, with mine and laughs.
“Damn, maybe you can handle yourself!”
I laugh back. This situation is fucked up, but at least for now I feel safe with Puck.
“So, big man, why is everyone afraid of you in here?” I saw how the other cellmate responded to him instantly and he wouldn’t have put himself in my cell if he couldn’t protect me.
“Been here a long time. I earned the respect I got, protected myself and anyone who protected me back.”
“How long have you been in here?”
“I lost count after a few years. There’s no sense of time in this place. It just is what it is,” he said with a shrug.
My heart hurts a little for him. He seems too good a person to be in here, but then again so am I, right? A sharp whistle pierces the area, followed by a loud male voice.
“Shower time!”
My eyes widen as I panic again. The humiliation of walking to my cell naked in the early hours of this morning clouds my thoughts.
Puck stands up and holds his hand out to me.
“I got you. Pinky swear.” He smiles.
Well, if I have to trust anyone right now, I may as well trust Puck. He’s the best hope I have.
I place my hand in his, grab the towel from the dirty floor, and let him lead me out of the protection of the cell bars that are caging me in. He walks into his cell and grabs his towel off his mattress, never once letting go of my hand. His cell looks identical to mine, apart from marks and words scraped into the walls and the stool that he’s placed back in the corner.
He turns us back around and walks us towards the stairs. Men of all shapes and sizes in a sea of grey jumpsuits walk in all directions. Some behind, following us, and some leading.
