Hey guys! I wrote this as a comission for one of my substack subscribers. Enjoy!
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GORDON
"Son! How the hell are ya?"
My dad hopped out of his Range Rover, his boots crunching in the gravel driveway. He was grinning from ear to ear, sporting his usual flannel, jeans, and baseball cap.
"I'm good, Dad," I said sheepishly as he engulfed me in a big bear hug. I cast a glance back at the fraternity house to make sure none of my new brothers could see my humiliation.
"I missed you, kid." Dad ruffled my hair, then put his arm around me. "Now come on--I wanna see what you all have done with the place since I left."
Dad was a member of Gamma Alpha Upsilon when he was my age, although that was over 20 years ago. He'd been pushing me to rush ever since I got to college, and he was over the moon when I got initiated. To be honest, I was surprised I even got in--sure, the fraternity caters to athletes, and although I've been playing lacrosse for years, I wouldn't exactly call myself a "frat bro". I'm quiet, kind of shy, and not exactly a man's man.
"Whoa, they got rid of that old piece of shit futon," Dad said as he walked inside the den, eying the place from top to bottom. He winked at me. "Lotta fun we had on that thing."
I must have made a face because he nudged me and said, "Oh, don't be such a prude. When I was your age, young people weren't so hung up sexually. We fucked who we wanted and there wasn't anything wrong with it."
I felt my cheeks turn red. Dad was much more brash than me, always confident and never afraid to talk about things like sex or whatever. The complete opposite of me, really. True, we had the same dirty blond hair, but his was short whereas mine was kind of long. And we were both in pretty decent shape, although he'd put on a bit more muscle over the years, whereas I was still pretty lean. But our personalities couldn't be more different: Dad was the life of the party, whereas I was content to be wallpaper.
"Oh, boy... Guess I came in at the wrong time."
I felt my blood run cold when I noticed my fraternity brother Aldis standing in the doorway with a smirk on his face.
Dad let out a bark of a laugh. "Sorry, just reminiscing about the good old days." He reached out his hand. "I'm Randy. Gordon's dad."
Aldis strode over and shook my dad's hand, a glimmer of a smile in his eye. "Aldis. I'm the President of Gamma Alpha Upsilon."
"Aldis, huh?" Dad smiled at me. "Gordon's told me a lot about you."
My face turned bright red at that one. "Dad," I hissed.
"Nice to meet you," Aldis said, thankfully not seeming to take anything more from that.
I was mortified nonetheless. Did he think I'd been blabbing about him to my Dad? He'd been extremely clear that he didn't want me telling anyone about what happened between us that one night during rush. And again during bidding, when he pulled me into the bathroom and bent me over the sink. And then a handful of times when I was pledging, although we'd both been drunk and technically sucking his dick made me gay, not him.
It's not like I could help it. Aldis was the kind of guy anyone would bend over for: a tall, muscular Tight End with rippling abs, deep black skin, strong hands... and that fucking cock...
"I hate to break you two apart, but we were actually just about to have a fraternity meeting." Aldis turned to me. "Got a big party we're putting together tonight and we need all hands on deck."
I nodded. "Yeah, Dad, why don't you go check into the hotel and I'll--"
"Nonsense." Dad waved me off. "Don't need to waste money on a hotel when I can just room with my son here. And I'd be happy to sit in on your meeting, offer some words of wisdom from an old geezer."
Aldis raised an eyebrow. "Sure, man. We'd be happy to have you."
I suppressed a groan. Having my dad around was the last thing I needed tonight. I couldn't believe I'd forgotten about this party when I told him it was a good weekend to visit. Although, to be fair, we partied pretty much every weekend. I'd just have to tone down on my drinking tonight and keep him as far away from Aldis as possible...
"All right, listen up, y'all."
Aldis paced around the living room, holding a notebook like he was a football coach going through a strategy session. The rest of us sprawled across the worn-out couches and chairs, half-listening.
"Party starts at nine. We need everything ready by eight." He flipped a page. "David, you're on booze duty. Alderman's at five."
David, the burly football player, stretched his thick arms over his head, his shirt riding up to reveal thick tufts of hair under his armpits. "Got it."
"Jesus, man, put that away," Ju-wan said, wrinkling his nose. The lean Korean swimmer was perched on the armrest, absently stretching his shoulder like he was still in the pool.
David grinned. "It's my Italian heritage, bro."
Aldis ignored them and moved on. "Nate, George--you two are in charge of setting up the beer pong tables."
The two wrestlers, both short and built like tanks, nodded in unison. George scratched his ginger beard. "Where do you want them?"
"Same spot as last time."
Nate, arms crossed over his thick chest, smirked. "And who's making sure these punk-ass bitches don't spill beer everywhere?"
José, the Latino baseball player, shot him a look. "Man, just set up the damn tables." He cracked his knuckles, his muscular forearms flexing.
Aldis smirked. "José, you're on music. Make sure the playlist doesn't suck."
José gave a lazy salute. "I'll try to keep it under five Bad Bunny songs."
"Christian," Aldis continued, turning to the gymnast lounging upside down on the couch. "You're running door security."
Christian flipped upright in one fluid motion. "You want me to beat down anyone who doesn't pay cover?" He smirked, his thin brown mustache twitching like a caterpillar.
Aldis rolled his eyes. "Man, miss me with that bullshit. Just sit on the couch and take the money."
He turned to me. "New pledge, you're running the bar. Make sure the jungle juice is restocked, kegs are full, et cetera."
I gave a thumbs up. "You got it."
Aldis shut the notebook with a snap. "Alright, let's make this happen. And no one fucks this up, or you're on cleanup duty tomorrow morning."
"That's it?"
Everyone turned to look at my dad, who was sitting on the couch with his arms folded, his face unenthused. My stomach clenched in knots.
Aldis raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean? What else is there?"
Dad laughed. "What else is there? Uh, the party!" He stood, his palms spread like he was the only one talking any sense. "You're just gonna put on music, hand out booze, and expect people to show up? Back in my day, we actually threw parties people wanted to go to!"
Christian snickered. "When was that, the 80s?"
Dad turned to him, hands on his hips like a cowboy. "I've been fucking pussy since before you were born, son. I think I know a thing or two about throwing a party."
Christian went silent, his face turning red.
Aldis frowned. "So what's your idea, exactly?"
Dad grinned. "I'm glad you asked. See, we at Gamma Alpha Upsilon used to live by tradition. And the most sacred tradition was The Midnight Olympiad. Four rounds, each testing a different skill. First is the Keg Gauntlet, a relay race with kegs (and mandatory chugging stations). Then Strip Beer Pong, which is exactly how it sounds. Up next, we got Blindfolded Wrestling, then we end it all with the Midnight Swim, a skinny-dipping race in that pool you all got in the backyard."
He hooked his thumbs through his belt loops, bouncing back on his heels as his face curled in a shit-eating grin. I sat there mortified, but to my surprise, the rest of the guys seemed into it.
"It would be a great way to get chicks naked," said Nate.
"And drunk," added George.
The other guys all murmured in agreement. Dad turned to Aldis, palms upturned as if passing it over to him.
Aldis folded his arms. "All right. Change of plan. We try it your way. Boys, report to Gordon's dad, give him whatever help he needs to set things up."
"Please, call me Randy." Dad winked. "Now let's throw us a party."
The next few hours were a crazed dash of supply runs, cleaning, and setting up the space for Dad's Midnight Olympiad. I was surprised how quickly the guys took to him, asking him all about the old days of the frat and how wild things used to get.
I tried to get a moment alone with Aldis, desperate to convince him that I hadn't told my dad about our late-night rendezvous, but he was so busy I couldn't find the right time. I was hopeful that, with all the hubbub going on tonight, we might find time to slip away for some repeat action. I'd just have to shake my dad first.
By the time nine o'clock rolled around, the party was already in full swing. The backyard was packed--shirtless guys hoisting kegs like trophies, beer pong balls flying left and right, and half-drunk boys wrestling blindfolded on the lawn, laughing as they toppled onto the grass. Music blasted from the speakers, and a growing crowd gathered around the makeshift wrestling ring, cheering on Nate and José as they grappled.
Inside, the air was thick with sweat and alcohol. I crawled under the bar, grabbing a fresh keg to restock the chugging station. I caught sight of Aldis across the room, leaning against the kitchen counter, a red solo cup in his hand as he chatted with some blonde girl from Delta Pi. She was giggling at something he said, her painted nails clutching his thick forearm for support as she swayed slightly. My stomach twisted as anger rose in my chest.
A burst of laughter from the stairs caught my attention. I turned just in time to see my dad, his flannel shirt opened to show his ripped, hairy torso, upside down and chugging from a keg. The crowd was cheering him on, clapping as the foamy beer sprayed out of his mouth and onto his body. David held my dad's legs, whooping as my dad chugged. Suddenly, my dad's legs started to wobble, then he came crashing down onto David in a big pile on the floor.
