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The Fraternity

Kevin Statham

    Steve had just joined Sigma Chi and was hanging out with his brothers at the fraternity house. The room smelled of stale beer from the party the night before. He had always wanted camaraderie and he believed he had found it. Jim, the fraternity president, was holding up an object with the fraternity letters on the end of a wand.
    “You don’t have to do this, but as new pledges you can show your loyalty to the fraternity,” Jim said.
    “What is it?” asked one of the pledges.
    “It’s a brand. We heat it up and then sear your skin with it. It’s kind of like a tattoo. It’s a like a permanent reminder you are a Sigma Chi. It’ll be there to the day you die.”
    “I don’t know,” one of the pledges said. “It seems pretty unsanitary.”
    “I’ll do it,” Steve said.
    “Great. Way to go. Let me get this ready.”
    Jim held the brand up and heated the tip up with a lighter. After a minute Jim pressed the brand into Steve’s upper arm.
    “Ow, that hurts,” Steve exclaimed.
    “Yeah, it does, but you will never have to prove your loyalty again. Let me tell you pledges something. You are never alone. You have fifty best friends. Everyone in the fraternity is your best friend. You will do anything for them and they will do anything for you. All of you are invited to attend one of our traditions. We get up every Saturday, smoke pot and watch Pee Wee Herman. It’s like a ritual.”
    That evening Steve stopped by Melissa’s apartment. Melissa was his girlfriend, or who he wanted to be his girlfriend. They hadn’t been dating very long and had not discussed their relationship status.
    “Let me show you this,” Steve said.
    Steve rolled up his shirt sleeve.
    “It looks like they branded you.”
    “They did,.”
     “And you were okay with that?”
    “Yeah. I volunteered.”
    “I really don’t get the fraternity thing. It’s like you’re paying to have friends.”
    “It’s not like that. We have real camaraderie.”
    “Well, if you want that I’ll support you, but I don’t know if it’s the best thing for you. I don’t see why you can’t make friends on your own.
    “I would, but my brothers are in it for the same reason I am. We’re comrades.”
    On Saturday morning, Steve headed over to the fraternity house. There were about ten brothers sitting around the television smoking a bong. When the water pipe was passed to Steve he hesitated because marijuana sometimes made him paranoid, but he took a hit anyway.
    “How was that, Steve?” a brother said.
    “I’m so stoned.”
    “Yeah?”
    “Yeah. I’m really, really...”
    “Stoned?”
    “Yeah.”
    “So, Steve, what’s the meanest thing you’ve ever done?” Jim asked.
    “Meanest? I try not to be mean.”
    “Well, there must be something.”
    “Well, there was this bar I used to go to in DC where the drinking age was 18, and one time the bartender refused to serve me, even though I was sober. It happened every time I went there. The last time he refused me my friend suggested we go to The Copper Rocket. So we got to The Copper Rocket, and the bartender must have called him because when we went in there, the Copper Rocket bartender said, “I’ll serve the tall guy, but not the smaller guy.”
    I said, “What is this, some kind of homosexual thing?”
    He said, “Now you’re definitely not being served.
    We left, but then I went back. I said I was sorry about the homosexual comment. Then I said, “I see you’ve got a smudge on your goatee.” Then I said, “Wait a minute, you look like you been suckin’ on a dick.”
    This girl said, “Get out!” so I left.
    “That’s pretty funny. Okay, so tell us some more. What’s the craziest place you’ve had sex?”
    “I don’t know. I’ve only had sex in a bed.”
    “You mean you’ve only had sex in a bed?”
    “Well, I’ve had lots of sex, but, you know...”
    “Wait a minute. I don’t believe you. You’re a virgin, aren’t you?”
    “No, I’m not.”
    “Really? I still don’t believe you. Fess up. You’re a virgin.”
    “Okay, okay. I’m a virgin.”
    “How about that? Steve’s a virgin. This means our highest priority is to get Steve layed.
    “How about that girl you’re dating? Doesn’t she put out?”
    “We’ve only had a few dates. She’s a virgin too.”
    “Well, personally I don’t like her. She’s not even in a sorority. You need a sorority girl, somebody who is popular. I’d find another girl.”
    “But I really like her.”
    “Well, we’re not here to tell you what to do. We can only make suggestions.”
    “I’ll think about it.”
    On the way to Melissa’s house, Steve thought about what his fraternity brothers had said. It was rare for someone his age to be a virgin. Most of his brothers had lost their virginity in high school. Maybe they were right. Maybe he should date a sorority girl. The thing was, he really liked Melissa. Maybe one day she would put out.
    Steve stood at Melissa’s apartment and hesitated. He almost turned around and went home, but instead he rang the doorbell. Melissa answered and motioned for him to come in.
    “How are you?” Melissa said smiling.
    “I’m okay. How about you?”
    “You look like something’s bothering you.”
    “It’s nothing. It’s just a conversation I had with my brothers.”
    “You can tell me.”
    “I don’t know. It’s kind of personal.”
    “We’re in a relationship together. You’re supposed to be able to tell me anything. I mean, we are in a relationship, right?”
    “Yes, we are.”
    “Then tell me.”
    “Okay. We were talking and my brothers found out I’m a virgin. They’re pressing me to lose my virginity. They want to set me up with a sorority girl.”
    “Is that what you want?”
    “Hell, no. But I have to admit I feel ashamed to be a virgin at my age.”
    “Well, I’m not ready yet. You’ll just have to be patient.”
    “Maybe I can tell my brothers we are doing it. Maybe that will get them off my back.”
    “That’s not something I want going around. If you’re that desperate, then find someone else.”
    “That’s not what I want.”
    “Well then think about it and decide what you really want to do.”
    Steve spent the next Saturday morning with his brothers watching Pee Wee Herman. When the bong was passed to him he hesitated, but then took a large draw.
    “Now that was a big hit. Be careful, Steve. This pot is really potent,” Jim said.
    Steve smiled then nodded his head.
    “Besides watching Pee Wee Herman, we have some other business to attend to this morning. We have to get Steve laid.”
    “Hear, hear.”
    “I have an idea,” one brother said. Delta Gamma is having a Bahamas party. If he wins the contest he’s almost certain to get laid.”
    “What’s a Bahamas party?” Steve asked.
     “It’s a party where everyone dresses like they’re going to the Caribbean. At the end of the night they draw names, and the winning couple is whisked away to the airport, to a plane which takes them to the Bahamas,” Jim said.
    “I don’t know.”
    “Come on. It’ll be fun.”
    “But what if he doesn’t win?”
    “We’ll set him up with Angela. She’s easy. Half a dozen drinks and she’ll sleep with anyone, whether she wins the drawing or not. She had sex with Mike just a month ago.”
    “That settles it, Steve. You’re going to get laid.”
    At Melissa’s house that night Steve was visibly uncomfortable.
    “What’s the matter, Steve?”
    “I’m thinking about my fraternity brothers. I really want to fit in.”
    “Is that the reason you let them brand you like a slave?”
    “I understand your point, but it goes much deeper than that. My father was in a fraternity and so was his father. It’s sort of a family tradition. They made friends for life.”
    “Well, do whatever you want. It just seems like you’re trying to be a conformist.”
    “Don’t take this personally, but my brothers think as little of you as you think of them. They say I should go out with a sorority girl.”
    “I would never join a sorority.”
    I know. I’m just saying.”
    “It seems you have to decide between me and your fraternity brothers.”
    “No. That’s not it at all. I can still date you even if you’re not in a sorority. I’ll explain things to them. They’ll come around.”
    Steve sat in the fraternity dining room, laughing about a brother’s tale of a sexual conquest.
    “So, Steve. We’ve come up with a sure-fire way to get you laid. Angela has volunteered to be your date at the Bahamas party. She says she thinks you’re cute.”
    “I appreciate it, but things are going good with Melissa.”
    “But she’s not a sorority girl, and more importantly, she isn’t putting out. This is your chance to be a real man. You haven’t experienced anything until you’ve discovered a woman’s body.”
    “He’s right, Steve. I can tell you from personal experience. I spent three years dating this chick, but she never put out. She kept telling me she needed more time. She did that for three years until I finally broke it off. What I regret most is that I didn’t see anyone else. I spent three years as a virgin. She played me like a chump.”
    “Okay, guys. I’ll go on the date, but that doesn’t mean anything will necessarily happen.”
    “Don’t worry. If you’re a red-blooded American male something will happen.”
    Steve and Melissa sat talking in Melissa’s apartment that night.
    “So, tell me about your childhood. Were you happy as a kid?” Melissa asked.
     “Well, my parents were alcoholics. Stumbling around drunks. They didn’t pay that much attention to me.”
    “I know how you feel. My father was an alcoholic too. He was always sending me to the corner store to buy beer. They guy who owned the store sold it to me because he knew it was for my father. One time, when my mother went out of town to her parents’, I walked in on my father having sex with another woman. We never spoke of it to this day.”
    “Wow.”
    “Aren’t you scared you’ll become an alcoholic like your parents?
    “Yeah. I guess you know I drink with my brothers. I also smoke a little pot, although I don’t always like the way it makes me feel.”
    “I just can’t drink myself. I’m worried I’ll turn out like my father.”
    “There’s something I need to tell you.”
    “What is it?”
    Delta Gamma is having a Bahamas party and my brothers have set me up on a date. I just want you to know.”
    “Oh. Well, do you want to go?
    “Not really, but my brothers expect me to. The thing is, I’m beginning to feel closer to you and I don’t want anything to sabotage that.”
    “I trust you.”
    “Well, there’s more. They pick a winning couple, and then whisk them off to the airport with tickets to go to the Bahamas.”
    “You’d be going with a stranger?”
    “Yeah. The odds of us winning are about fifty to one, but still...”
    “Well, I know you’ll so the right thing.”

    On the night of the Bahamas party Steve showed up at the fraternity house wearing jeans and an Oxford shirt.
    “You’re wearing that?” Jim asked. “What’s wrong with you?
    “What else am I supposed to wear?”
    “It’s a Bahamas party. You need to wear a tropical shirt. Don’t worry. I have an extra one you can wear. Also, you’re going to need these.”
    Jim pulled out five condoms.
    At the Bahamas party, Jim introduced Steve to Angela. Angela was wearing a Hawaiian shirt unbuttoned below her breasts.
    “It’s nice to meet you Steve. I’ve heard a lot about you.”
    “I’m pleased to meet you too.”
    “They didn’t tell me how cute you are.”
    Steve blushed. Jim took Steve aside.
    “Steve, there’s something you need to know. The punch is spiked with grain alcohol, so it’s best to avoid it. Don’t hesitate to get your date to drink it, though. It could help you out.”
    On the dance floor, Angela had all the moves. She stood twisting and gyrating, grinding her waist into Steve’s body. Steve could feel the blood rushing into his groin. He tried to think of Melissa and what she might be doing, but he was faced with this dancing vixen. She exuded sex and Steve couldn’t help but stare at her breasts. They were larger and shapelier than Melissa’s. As she pressed into him, Steve tried to divert his attention, but it was no use. He was really turned on.
    As the party was winding down, it was time to pick the winners. Each couple’s names were put on little strips of paper, one of which would be picked to be the winner. Steve secretly hoped he and Angela would not be selected, thinking ‘God, please, not me. Not me.’
    The winning couple was drawn, and it turned out to be Angela and Steve. Steve felt an ache in his stomach, and before he knew what was happening he and Angela were pushed into a car and driven to the airport.
    On the plane Steve and Angela talked casually. Their conversation was sprinkled with moments of uncomfortable silence. Then Angela got right to the point.
    “So, your brothers tell me you’re a virgin. Is that true?”
    “Yeah, well, kind of. You know.”
    “Well, as you know we’ll be sharing a room. If you want to I can show you a good time.”
    “I kind of have a girlfriend.”
    “And you don’t have sex with her?”
    “She’s not ready yet.”
    “Well, she’s not here, is she? She doesn’t have to know a thing.”
    “But I would know.”
    “Whatever, man. Are you sure you’re not a faggot?”
    “I’m completely sure.”
    “Then, I don’t see any problem.”
    At the hotel in the Bahamas there was a large bar.
    Let’s get a drink before we go to the room. It’s not like we have any baggage to store away,” Angela said.
    “Okay.”
    Angela ordered a sloe gin fizz and Steve ordered a beer.
    “So, did you ever think you’d be in the Bahamas right now?” Angela said.
    “No.”
    “It’s one of the perks of being Greek. “You’re new to the fraternity, aren’t you?
    “Yeah. I just pledged.”
    “And why did you join?”
    “I like the camaraderie. My brothers are really cool.”
    “Well, from everything they told me they think the world of you.”
    “I hope so.”
    “They’ve entrusted me to show you a good time.”
    “Okay.”
    “So, tell me about this girlfriend of yours.”
    “She’s smart and cute.”
    “But she’s not Greek, right?”
    “Yeah. She’s an independent. I don’t see why I can’t date someone not in a sorority.”
    “It’s part of the lifestyle. Fraternity boys should date sorority girls. Aren’t you concerned about what your brothers think?”
    “Yeah, it’s a concern.”
    After three beers Steve didn’t want to drink anymore.
    “Let’s go check out the room.”
    “Okay.”
    When Steve opened to door to the room he was relieved there were two beds.
    “Oh, there’s two beds,” Steve said.
    “I see. Well considering I don’t have any other clothes, I’m going to take these off.
    Steve tried not to look as Angela undressed, but he couldn’t help himself. Maybe it was the beers, but she had a great body. As she climbed into bed Steve found himself becoming aroused.
    “Well, pick whichever bed you choose.”
    Steve was confused, torn in two directions. There were two beds, so he had an out, but what would his brothers say? And then there was Melissa. If he had sex with Angela she would surely find out. People talked. He would lose Melissa.
    On the other hand, here was a naked sex bomb, eager and ready for intercourse. He was tired of being a virgin and was eager to make the discovery every young man makes, but he had always thought his first time should mean something. Here was a willing partner, but his feelings for her were mere lust. There was no emotional connection. If he wanted, he could make his first time meaningful with Melissa. He would just have to wait. He loved her, or at least he thought he did. It would be best to wait.
    Steve was about to lie down in the unoccupied bed, then felt his brand. It was healing nicely. He took a few deep breaths and climbed into bed next to Angela. He closed his eyes and thought of Melissa.

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