This story involves explicit homosexual activity. If such offends you, or if you are underage, please read no further.
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TO BE A BROTHER
by Macout Mann
Chapter XX
A Special Convocation
Friday night dinner at the convocation was a bit more opulent than usual. The entrée was Lobster Thermidor. And many of the brothers were better dressed than usual. There were even a few ties. And the room was packed. More tables even had to be brought in.
"Good evening, gentlemen," Tom began his usual after dinner greeting. "Welcome.
"Welcome to the thirtieth Libra Convocation of the Brothers of Aries and Libra. Yes, in September in the Year of Our Lord—or as some of you would say, `the Common Era,'—2000, in this very room--although it wasn't quite as elegant in those days--Brother Malcolm Pirie welcomed ten youngish guys to the Brothers' first convocation. And Malcolm is here tonight, a fifty year old man."
Malcolm stood to a thunderous round of applause.
"Speak, oh eldest one," Tom said.
"Well...." Malcolm began. "That first time I would've never dreamed I'd be standing here tonight. Actually my only concern that night was to be brotherly.
There was riotous laughter, which as yet made no sense to the two prospectives in attendance.
"But," Malcolm continued, "despite that he was not all that comfortable with what I and my brother, Reg, and I were interested in, Craig Pirie, our father, funded the Brothers for many years. Without his support it would not exist today. He is here, dragged by the hair of his chinny-chiny-chin. He has refused to speak, but I hope he will acknowledge your thanks for his support."
After much applause and shouting Craig did stand and acknowledge the adulation that especially the old boys felt for him.
"Dad didn't always approve--Well, did he ever approve of anything his sons were into? That's the nature of parents, isn't it?--but he did let us....let us be us.
"So I became the first Elder of this group which we decided to call "the Brothers." Once we decided to meet on the weekends nearest the equinoxes, that's when we added 'Aries and Libra.' Showed we'd studied the classics."
Much laughter.
"My brother, Reg, became the second Elder. He's not here right now. Says he'll be here tomorrow with a surprise. God knows. Reg always does his very own thing. Doesn't give a damn what Dad or I think."
"Amen," came a voice from the audience.
"Ah Ha!" Malcolm shouted. "Dad can speak!"
Once again there was prolonged applause.
"And then you elected Tom Parrish as your Elder," Malcolm continued. "He remains so until this day. I wish I could say he didn't do as good a job as Reg and I did, but he's been even better. Of course, he's had the assistance of very competent counsellors, which Reg and I didn't need."
"All you had to do was rent the space. We had to run the damned hotel," Chester Burroughs piped up to much laughter.
"Ah yes, the hotel," Malcolm said. "That was another area in which Dad was helpful, wasn't it Tom?"
"Indeed that's within the memory of almost all of you. We almost lost our meeting place until the Piries lent us the money to buy the hotel. And that brings us to our most recent benefactor, Brother Spencer King, who is here this evening...."
"And who is not going to speak," Spencer shouted.
"Well, actions speak louder than words," Tom said. "Spencer made it possible to expand the hotel to what it is today, and by a remarkable coincidence, we had a brother who had an MBA and who was interested in running Olympia Plaza, Incorporated, Jim Sessions."
There was applause as Jim took Tom's place front and center.
"I am going to speak," he began, "and first say that I can't fathom how this place ever functioned without an MBA as president."
There was good natured laughter.
"Well at least one man helped," Jim continued. "He and Craig are the only persons here tonight who are not Brothers. I'd like to recognize the legendary, long-time manager of the Olympic and the Olympia Plaza, Preston Brownlee."
More applause.
"Preston taught me everything I know about running a hotel," Jim continued. "And it is running well enough that we have repaid the Pirie loan in full and are on track to repurchase all the Class B shares under the arrangement that we have with Brother Spencer. We project that that will be accomplished within the next eight years. That will leave the Olympia Plaza under the sole ownership of the Brothers who originally invested in the project.
"As you know our convocations are currently underwritten by contributions from many of the Brothers. But I am happy to tell you that at the last semi-annual stockholders meeting, they voted that once the Class B shares have been bought back, the Brothers of Aries and Libra will be able to hold their convocations at absolutely no charge."
A huge ovation showed the group's approval.
"I must say that I felt that we at least should have to pay for the liquor, but the Board felt that that was just my MBA talking.
"So speaking for the entire staff of the hotel, best wishes for a great thirtieth anniversary convocation."
The event ended when Tom announced that the morning seminar would be on the threat of new Japanese militarism to the Chinese economy.
As the crowd trooped back into the lounge, they were greeted not by nude bartenders, but they were almost so. Jim had scrounged every second hand clothing place in the Midwest for short cutoffs that had holes in the proper places. And he had succeeded.
The bartenders were in for good natured ribbing, and the prospectives were given a big free hint about what was going on. Percy's friend, Donovan Paxton, was the first to respond.
"Say, Perce," he chided, "you didn't tell me that all this fancy shit is to cover up a fucking sex club."
"No, I didn't," Percy responded. "And if this were a normal convocation, you still wouldn't have guessed."
"Can I have the one on the right?"
"Not either of them. But I'll let you talk to Tom after a while."
"What the hell?" Tom accosted Jim.
"You're the one that wanted them naked," Jim teased. "Tomorrow they'll be in cutoff tux pants with wing collars and black tie above bare chests.
"I'll still get to keep my liquor license."
It was after lunch the next day that Reg finally appeared with his surprise.
Only actives could bring guests, most often prospectives. As Malcolm had indicated, Reg was not one to follow the rules. Accompanying him was a stunning twenty-year-old, Toby Braswell.
"Hello there," Toby said, when introduced. "How kind of you to let me come." His British accent was unmistakable.
An old boy, who was a film buff, later said that Toby looked so much like a young Olivier, he could imagine him in Rebecca, saying, `That's not the Northern Lights, that's Manderley.'"
Reg, however, after asking Jim to introduce Toby around, sought out Peter and Tom.
Once the three of them were on the floor below, Tom asked, "Where in hell did you find that?"
"Doesn't matter," Reg replied. "I don't call him my boyfriend.' He could be my son. I just say he's my boy.'
"But he's mine. I love him. I plan to spend the rest of my life with him. I want him to be a brother. Maybe he could even become an Elder.
"I can't propose him, but Peter can. Would you?" he asked.
"Have you told him anything about....?" Tom interrupted.
"Oh, no," Reg answered. "And I'll rush him out immediately after the banquet tonight.
"You can tap him later, if you want, Peter. But he'll seek to be a Brother like any other prospective."
"O.K. with you, Peter?" Tom asks.
"Why not?"
So it came to pass...
Toby was to become the fourth Elder of the Brothers of Ares and Libra.
He presided over the fiftieth Libra Convocation atop America's finest hotel.
The Olympia Plaza still washed its coins in 2050. Nobody remembered that the St. Frances, San Francisco ever existed. Manhattan, including the Waldorf, was under water.
The Metropolitan Museum had been relocated to Northwestern Arkansas, merged with Crystal Bridges. The Metropolitan Opera was headquartered in St. Paul, Minnesota. The Cincinatti Symphony had always been pretty good. Now it was Number One. The movie capital was now San Antonio.
Sex did survive.
Strange how things happen.
THE END
Please let me hear your reaction to "To Be a Brother." Feedback is very important. Write me at macoutmann@yahoo.com. I will respond to each contact.
Coming to a computer near you:
DICK CUNNINGHAM'S FIRST TIME
And
SAM CALDWELL'S FURTHER ADVENTURES (a sequel)