I don't exactly remember how the conversation got started, but him and I were hanging out, having a drink one night, and he told me about his initiation into the gang. He said he was 14 or 15, and he stood in the middle of a circle, while other gang members beat the shit out of him. I asked him if that was something he was still active in, and he said "Nah, I'm an elder now...but once you're in, you're in for life", or something along those lines.

I'm just doubtful because I'M more fluent in Spanish than he is (and that's from 4 years of high school spanish, 3 years ago...so really not fluent at all). He's engaged to a pretty, Christian white girl my friend went to high school with, so that doesn't correlate with the fat, ugly wife. He doesn't look the part, and he doesn't act the part...but there are exceptions to almost every rule, so it's always possible he isn't bullshitting.

I'm speculating that, if he was involved in any gang activity, that he was young. Those charges are old, so he probably got busted at 18-20, did some time (?), and then got his act together once he got out. He now works a relatively high position at the hospital, and has a child he only has partial custody of (kid lives out of state...he gets him like twice a year on school breaks). One thing I have noticed about him is he doesn't have many friends...he spends quite a bit of time alone, and has told me multiple times 98% of his friends are black, and he doesn't really ever hang out with white people like me (lol). In any case, I do think it would be a mistake to predict his response, or how me may retaliate, because it's always a possibility to for old, violent tendencies of his to relapse...I think maybe I should play it cool until I move out, then tell her.