The ceremony was a blur to Jace. He paced nervously in the Men's bathroom, water dripping down his nose and chin, as he attempted to clear his fuzzy vision from being high. He loved and despised the feeling all at once.
During the pledge ceremony, he had to grip his hands into balled up fists to keep from fidgeting with his suit. He bit his lips to refrain from smiling, laughing, or shouting anything unsuitable for such a serious moment. And he tried to stay as still as possible, so to not seem as if he were under the influence.
It commenced with the uttering of the words, "Be true." The Sigma Alpha Epsilon motto since 1856.
"Be true.", Jace repeated the words without giving it a second thought. The men shuffled out of the main hall and poured out onto the courtyard of their new home.
Jace rebelled. Instead, he broke away from the group of fifteen and found the nearest restroom.
He had been in there for five minutes, trying to recover from his high. His head lifted up when he heard someone coming.
"Ha! Found you.", said the intruder. It was Ross.
"What are you doing here?", Jace rubbed his eyes and watched the door close.
"I'm rescuing Jace Norman, my damsel in distress." He joked and kicked a bathroom stall open.
"Oh no. Did I look bad out there?", Jace furrowed his eyebrows and rubbed the back of his neck.
"No, you were fine! Actually, it was Thomas who fell asleep during the ceremony.", said Ross nonchalantly.
"Seriously?"
"Yup! Full on snoring. Zac took him out back for a walk to wake him up. He made him do a hundred push ups just to make sure he'd stay awake." Ross rolled his blue eyes and chuckled a bit.
"Who's Zac?", Jace asked, leaning against the bathroom counter.
"Oh, that's right. You haven't met Zac yet."
Jace shook his head no.
"Zac's our Fraternity Advisor. He's like the big brother to our brotherhood. Or in some instances like today, he's the House Dad. You'll get a chance to meet him.", Ross explained.
"Well, you don't look too bad. I mean- your eyes, they aren't as red as mine." Jace leaned over the sink to examine his face. He squeezed his cheeks and combed his hair back with his long, slender fingers.
"Nah, you're just paranoid. You look fine." Ross smiled and tousled Jace's blonde locks.
Jace sat on the countertop and looked at Ross.
"I still feel kind of woozy. How do you feel?"
"Light, and airy. I'm kind of used to it now."
"You smoke often?"
"More often, to be honest. Especially since Boss Butler supplies it."
"He probably scores the best hookups from his connections. Only God knows what kind of deals he's got."
"Do you regret it?"
"What? Smoking? No.."
"Do you regret this?"
"What-"
Ross stood between Jace's legs and gripped his shoulders, forcing a deep kiss onto his lips.
Jace quickly shoved him off.
"Dude! What the hell!"
Ross looked down, trying to avoid Jace's eye contact. He shifted his weight to the right and then again, standing tall once more. "Jace.."
Jace didn't answer. Instead, he climbed off the counter and pushed past Ross, knocking over the aloe vera plant in the hallway.
The SAE fraternity gathered outside the fraternity house to hear from the President.
"Over a century ago, Sigma Alpha Epsilon was started on this very ground. Generations of men stood before you. Noblemen, scientists, physicians, historians, orators, businessmen, entertainers, laywers, politicians, and the like have walked through these same doors. Their prominence and their legacies began at Sigma Alpha Epsilon. This building was once their home and now it is yours."
Now, I expect all of you to take care of it. I hold each and every one of you to a high esteem and after thorough evaluation, I am confident enough to say that I trust you with the Sigma Alpha Epsilon house and all its assets. It's a uniquely special place on campus. Treat it with value and respect. Treat your roommates, your brothers, with value and respect - and integrity, most of all. Come, follow me." , Austin spoke with full command of authority, but in a most pleasant voice.
The SAE President led his men through the doors of the gigantic house. The hallways were lit a warmly bright yellow to welcome the new inhabitants. A dangling chandelier amassed the the beauty of a thousand pieces of glowing white glass and hung high in the lavishly furnished room. Austin led them through each room, pointing out what was what. Jace followed quietly, not making eye contact with Ross. He dug his hands deep into his suit jacket pockets and took in the rustic beauty.
Some of the fraternity guys gathered around the fireplace, chatting to one another about the elegance of the house. A lone boy sat in the far end of the room, typing away on his phone, and a few others were walking around and taking in the many sights: the vintage kitchen, the library, the study hall, the patio with a distinct view of the city skyline and the Delta Gamma patio as well.
After a while, they began to circle around Austin once more and listen in.
"Hey, everyone. One last thing we need to do before our reception with the ladies is room assignments. Thomas and Ross are going to be handing out your room keys. Each of them have SAE on them, along with your room number. Feel free to go to your rooms and get settled in, but be down here in thirty, because we still need to setup for the party . It takes place in less than two hours and I encourage you all to represent SAE as gentleman and uphold our good reputation. Thank you.", Austin finished his speech and exited the room.
Jace thought he did a great job with welcoming them to their home. He was also torn. Half of him wanted to be excited, and full of nervous energy for the new experiences to come. The other half of Jace was feeling paranoid about his liplock with Ross. He didn't want that to be his first important memory when he moved into the fraternity house, but it was. He couldn't help thinking about it - and the more he did, the more anxious to drink he became.
"Jace!", shouted Thomas. He was swaggering over to Jace in a slow strut, however his voice was immediate. Jace whipped his head around and saw a snickering Thomas.
"What's wrong?", Jace asked, very confused.
"I get to show you to your room!", Thomas said casually and walked with Jace up the spiral staircase. "Our room - technically."
"Is this your way of saying that you're my roommate?", Jace responded and carried his large suitcase with one hand, wincing as it slammed into his leg as he would bounce with each step higher.
"Yeah, but you don't sound too enthused.", Thomas huffed.
"Oh.. no! I am, I am enthused. I just thought that you would be rooming with Ross or something, because you two are in leadership.", Jace replied. They had finally reached the top of the stairs and walked down the corridor to their bedroom.
"We were, but then our room assignments changed."
"Who changed them?"
"Austin."
His eyes widened when Thomas swung open their bedroom door and the rustic interior that he was getting accustomed to had evolved into a modern masterpiece that matched him so well. Centered lights sparkled on the ceiling. A fireplace's flames flitted about in a frenzy and bottles of Chardonnay, Champagne, and Grey Goose adorned the upscale wall storage.
Jace was happy.