NASTY NATHAN (+ Polyphonic Prose)

No one ever calls him Eugene since that just makes him act extra mean. Nathan’s own mother even calls him Nasty, and for most all his life that’s what he has been. There were dark clouds on the day that Nasty was born. Outside the hospital was a terrible storm. Lightning, loud thunder, and baby Eugene, then even some of the nurses started to scream. Some babies, by degrees, aren't good to set free. They torment their sisters and brothers, and others their fathers and mothers. Nasty knew what to do. Before he was even four, Nasty would fuss and cry, then stomp and stamp on the floor, so his parents would buy him a toy from the store. As he grew older, Nathan grew bolder. They can no longer let him outside to play. The other kids on his street went all missing that way. There’s no proof and Nathan has an alibi, but everyone knows, you can see it in his eyes.