Chapter 25: Fresh Meat

Friday April 10

Spring had arrived in our sleepy little town. Mom's tulips were in full bloom, and the trees were greening up. I was taking in the signs of change of season as I saw my first robin. It was predicted to be in the low 60s this weekend. I was looking forward to the warmer weather, because we had our baseball tournament.

Lincoln High lost their first game on Wednesday. Our record stood at 7 – 1. I had started three games and my record was 2 – 0 with a 1.37 ERA. Justin was also 2 – 0 with a 2.43 ERA. The surprise was Bryan; working as our closer, he was 2 – 1. Mike started one game with no decision. Bert and Brock were our middle relievers. Coach Herndon and Shiggy prepared us for tournament play. We had played several simulated games, to give our pitching staff more stamina than we had last year at this time.

Even Moose admitted that the Callahan twins were the difference. They'd had varsity experience pitching, when they played in New Jersey last year. With their addition, we were now able to feel like we had enough pitching to be competitive in a tournament, where you might play as many as four games in a day.

We had solid pitching, but our defense was winning us games. Working with the players and coaches at State made a big difference. We were just ahead of the other teams as far as preparation was concerned. As teams played together, they were catching up. We also steadily got better, as a group. I wasn't surprised we were made the number one seed for the upcoming tournament.

At lunch, Pam wanted to eat with me, alone. She needed to talk about something, and seemed nervous. We found a table at the back of the cafeteria so we could have some privacy. When people had a choice, they preferred to sit near the windows which overlooked the school grounds.

"What's wrong? Did something happen to Tracy?" I asked when we were settled.

"No, no, Tracy is fine. Actually, she is getting better. She told me they may let her out by the end of the week. She still will not be coming back to school, but she'll be home with her family," Pam shared.

"If I ever see Bill Rogers again, he might not survive the encounter."

Pam could tell I was serious. The young man really had done a number on Tracy. I was sure this was not the only reason Tracy was depressed, but his abuse was a major factor in how she was doing right now. Dr. Hebert was working to get Tracy's anti-depressant medication balanced before she was sent home. They had to be careful because it took a while for it to fully take effect. They wanted her in a controlled environment, while they were finding what worked for Tracy. They also wanted to help her recognize her depression for what it was, and give her the tools to handle it. No one wanted Tracy to try and hurt herself, again.

"I have other girl troubles," Pam said cryptically.

"That doesn't sound good. I sure hope the freshman cheerleaders haven't come up with some plan to corrupt me," I said as I smirked at her.

"No, these would be older girls."

"I can deal with Mona and her band of trouble makers," I said more confidently than I felt.

"No these girls would be even older girls," she said not looking at me.

I was stumped. If it was Beth, Cindy or Suzanne I would be fine. I would just explain to Harper Greg's free pass arrangement. I thought about it for two seconds and remembered Angie got an equal number of passes. Nope, Harper was not getting any free passes. She might just use them.

"Do I even want to know?" I asked.

"Cora," was Pam's one word answer.

Her sister was an older version of Pam. She was a knock-out, who was currently decimating the local fraternities. Cora was a sexual force to be reckoned with. She was a slut, but a picky slut, according to Pam. She only went after the best guys. Her problem was she got bored with them when they couldn't keep up.

"What about Cora? I hope she isn't expecting a repeat of the three of us being together," I worried.

Pam gave me a wicked smile.

"Quit your complaining. I was there, remember? You would do it again in a heartbeat," Pam challenged me to deny it.

I tried to act tough, but I knew she was right. I was sure Pam would have used her sister to get into my pants if she thought it would work. She still wasn't completely on board with Harper being my girlfriend, as it meant no random hook-ups. The girls had started calling Harper directly. Harper enjoyed the byplay. She had no intention to let me play with any of them, right now. I didn't complain. Harper was more than enough for me, even if I only saw her on weekends.

"I choose not to answer," I said to evade her. "What does Cora want?"

"You know she is pledging a sorority, right?"

I nodded.

"Normally pledge activities are tame. I know you have probably read some Penthouse Letters or been on the internet and read stories about the wild things sororities get up to," she said.

I wasn't about to deny it. I think every boy my age had read something along those lines. I just shrugged.

"Well, get your dirty thoughts out of your head. Sororities are about sisterhood and making the most out of the college experience."

"We both know Cora is experiencing college. What does all this have to do with me?" I asked.

"Sorry, I guess I should just tell you. Cora has been a bad influence on her pledge class," Pam said and then looked up at me.

"And?" I encouraged her.

She tilted her head down and bit her lower lip and glanced around. I thought about getting up right then, but I was too curious to leave without knowing what Cora had cooked up.

"She wanted me to have you invite you and four of the guys from your baseball team to her sorority for a party Saturday night after your tournament," Pam said as she leaned forward and made sure I was the only one who could hear her.

"I'm sure the guys would enjoy it. I'm just concerned it's late notice. They might have plans for after the games."

"There's more," Pam said getting my full attention. "Cora told me the theme of the party is Fresh Meat. The pledges plan on hooking up with your guys for an anonymous one night stand. Cora assured the pledges she could find guys they wouldn't run into on campus."

I rocked back into my chair. Pam gave me a confused look when I got out my phone and sent a text. She was even more confused when Tim and Bill came over and joined us.

"We have a dilemma," I told the guys. "Pam's sister is in a sorority, and they want five guys from the team to come over Saturday night after the tournament to have sex with them."

Pam blushed and gave me a dirty look.

"Hey, it's what it boils down to," I defended myself.

"I guess, but it sounds bad the way you described it," Pam complained.

"David, are you bullshitting us?" Tim asked.

He had a point. This would make a heck of a joke. Was Cora pulling one over on us? I looked at Pam, because I could see where the sorority girls would think it would be fun to torment high school boys.

"What do you think? Is Cora just getting us there to punk us?" I asked Pam.

"No. My sister might do something like that, but she was too excited about the prospect of having no strings sex with the guys. Now, would the older girls play a trick on you guys and the pledge class? Maybe," she agreed.

"We could get into so much trouble," Bill worried.

Tim and I looked at each other and gave him a look. Bill slapped his forehead.

"I know, I'm such a pussy, but you both know Moose would never let us play baseball again if we got caught."

"Moose said we would get kicked off if we got caught drinking or doing drugs. He never said anything about getting laid," Tim reasoned.

"Would Cora make sure there was no booze or drugs at the party?" I asked.

Pam got up and called her sister. That gave us a chance to really talk.

"Part of me says this is a REALLY bad idea. The other part of me says I will regret it, if we don't do it. If I had to decide right now, I would say we go for it," I shared.

"What about Harper?" Tim said ruining my bravado.

Both Tim and Bill smiled at me. I pulled my phone out and called her.

"I was packing to come see you," Harper shared with me.

"What would you think about going with me to a sorority sex party Saturday night?" I asked.

Tim and Bill's eyes got very big.

Harper had a lot of questions and I didn't have answers. Pam came back to the table, so I handed the phone to her. She blushed when she found out it was my girlfriend on the line. She did the smart thing and gave her Cora's number.

"I thought you wore the pants in your relationship," Tim teased me.

"Dude, if I went behind her back, and went to a sex party without her, she wouldn't be my girlfriend come Sunday," I explained.

"Is this how you manage all your friends?" Bill asked.

"Sneaking around is the quickest way to screw up a relationship. If any of the guys we decide to join us are dating anyone, I would suggest they come clean before they do anything. They still might lose their girlfriend, but I will guarantee they will be in more trouble if they get caught cheating," I explained.

"David's right. He is always upfront with his friends, and they appreciate it," Pam said and then realized what she indirectly admitted to.

The guys looked at both of us and smiled.

"You two settle down. If I hear anything concerning Pam and me, I will have Cassidy come and find you," I threatened.

"All you had to do was ask. Making threats was not necessary," Tim said.

"I agree, we're good," Bill assured us.

My phone rang. It was Harper.

"I swear you are such a slut. I have no idea why I put up with you," she started.

"Because I'm your slut."

The guys mimed grinding again and I gave them a hard look.

"Would you be disappointed if we went, and you were not allowed to partake in any of the girls?" she asked.

"No," I answered without hesitation.

"What if I decided to go off with one of the guys, would you have a problem with it?" she asked.

"Yes."

"So if we go, you would be fine if we were exclusive?"

"Yes. I keep telling you, we are together," I assured her.

"In that case, we'll go. Put Pam back on the phone. I need to know what to wear," Harper ordered me.

I handed the phone to Pam, and turned to the guys and gave them the thumbs up.

"Seriously, you just talked your girlfriend into going with you to a sex party?" Bill asked in shock.

"We talked about our expectation and agreed to what we would and wouldn't allow for each of us to do. You might want to try talking to your partner, sometime. You might be surprised by what they will say, if you give them a chance."

The look they both gave me said they had never even considered doing something like I had just done. I was glad Greg trained me well, or I might have been in trouble with Harper, right now.

"So, are we doing this?" Tim asked.

"I say yes," I voted.

"I say no," Bill told us.

"I say yes. Will you have a problem if we do it?" Tim asked Bill.

"You both know my concerns, but we voted and I'll go to the party and make sure nothing gets too out of hand," Bill said.

"Fair enough, who should the other two be?" I asked.

"Why don't we let Bill decide? That way he will make sure they are okay with going and know to keep their damn mouths shut afterwards," Tim said giving me a hard look.

I mentally added a talk with Jeff on my to do list if he were picked. Pam handed me back my phone and we told her we would attend the party. She called her sister who was very excited, if what we heard through the speaker was any indication.

After practice we had a players' only team meeting. Tim and I let Bill run it.

"Tomorrow is a big day for the future of Lincoln baseball. We'll be laying the foundation for the rest of the year. I want to remind everyone that we need to show our class and sportsmanship. If there are any problems, let the coaches or your captains handle it."

"Like David handled Wolf getting beaned last year," Mike chirped.

Everyone chuckled. I had rushed the mound and dealt with it.

"I'm serious. If we need to take care of something, we will. If one of us is suspended for a few games, it is just us and not the whole team. If you get hit by a pitch, suck it up and be a man and take first base. Let David kill them," he said with a smile.

I shook my head.

"I need to talk to you about one more thing. Your captains will be picking the MVPs for the tournament. If you are selected, you will have to be free Saturday evening for your reward. It will be a Vegas like thing, where what happens Saturday night is never spoken of," Bill said as the room went dead silent.

"There is no way any of us are going cow tipping, right?" Jim asked.

"No cow-tipping. David arranged the outing," Tim blurted.

I gave him a dirty look. They didn't need to know that.

"Oh, never mind," Jim said, as if my arranging things explained everything.

I sat back and smiled as Tim and Bill fielded questions about what the MVPs could expect. When Tim and Bill were done, building the mystery, it sounded like a fun evening. Bill convinced the guys to make a pact. I think it had the same effect as when someone had you sign a waiver which said if you died doing something you couldn't hold them responsible. It just made everyone want to do it more. I let it slip that Tim and Bill were responsible for picking the MVPs. They suddenly had twenty new best friends. For some reason, they both flipped me off.

I came home to find Harper helping my mom and dad get dinner ready. We had started having dinner with them on Friday nights, so my mom could get to know Harper better. Mom was still trying to wrap her mind around Harper possibly replacing Tami for my affections.

"David, what are you up to?" my mom asked me.

I gave Harper a dirty look.

"Don't blame me, because your mom asked. Remember when you said we couldn't lie to parents?" she asked, and gave me a cheeky smile.

"I think we also agreed we weren't going to share things with the other's parents," I shot back.

"Leave her alone, and tell me about the party you are going to," my mom ordered.

"If it is a sex party, like Harper told us, I have some serious concerns if you are inviting teammates," Dad warned me.

"Riddle me this, Dad. If you were my age, and there was a sorority party where you could get laid by college girls, wouldn't you want your friends to invite you?" I asked.

"I'm out," my dad said, conceding he would want to go.

"I think we may have a talk later," my mom said menacingly.

Dad just shrugged. Mom turned her glare on me.

"Harper agreed to go," I said throwing her under the bus.

"David!" Harper complained.

"Don't even start. You got me into this mess," I warned her.

"Do I need to ground you two? Better yet, do I need to call Harper's parents?" Mom threatened.

"I love you, Mom," I said as I hugged her.

She pushed me away. I had to give it shot, because sometimes it worked. She was enjoying making Harper and me squirm, too much. I understood why she didn't make nice when Greg and his family came in the back door. She wanted to let Angie have some fun at our expense. I was ordered to catch them up with what I planned for tomorrow night.

"Oh, you are such a bad boy," Angie said and shook her head.

It didn't help when Greg high fived me. He was sent to help Dad finish dinner.

"So how should we punish him?" Angie offered.

Harper gave me a weak smile. It was then I realized she, Angie, and Mom were in on this tormenting together.

"Just put me out of my misery. What do you all want," I said in surrender.

I wasn't surprised when they each had a list to hand me. Mom wanted me to get the garden ready and several other outdoor tasks now that it was spring. Angie had a few very inappropriate suggestions. I handed her list to Greg and he smiled when he read it. He agreed to satisfy her needs. Harper wanted me to be her sex slave at some point in time. I went to hand her list to Greg, and she smacked me.

Saturday April 11

We had one of the first games, today, so Harper got up to help me get ready. Dad had reserved a pavilion next to the fields. Harper was making five gallons of Gatorade while I cut up oranges and apples for the guys. Greg and Angie were making breakfast.

When Harper was done. Greg helped me carry the Gatorade container to the Jeep. We were meeting at the high school to warm up and get our batting practice in before we headed to the park for our game.

"Did you work your way through the list Angie gave me?" I teased him.

"I think you might have to help me with some of it. She is wearing me out."

I knew he wasn't serious. He had confided in me, when she was pregnant the last time, her libido had gone up during a certain portion of her pregnancy. I just couldn't remember at what point. If it was now she really was wearing him out. I did remember him telling me right before Kyle was born things slowed down. It took a few months before they were back to normal after his birth.

"You know I'm there for you if you need me."

"If you ever did, Angie would be a happy girl. Nancy gave her a full report," he told me as I groaned.

I put him in a head lock and messed up his hair. We went back in to our women with smiles on our faces.

"This can't be good," Angie warned Harper.

I kissed Angie's cheek and then planted a serious kiss on Harper.

"What are you waiting for, dumbass?" I asked my brother.

Angie was tapping her foot until Greg figured out he needed to follow my lead. We had breakfast and then I left to get ready for the game. Harper was going to come with my parents. When I walked out, I saw her sneaking Duke pieces of bacon. She was going to spoil him.

Our first game was against Lang Academy. I wasn't surprised they were the bottom seed. I was surprised when I saw Harper's ex-boyfriend Ray. I had forgotten she told me he was sent there after he had been kicked out of his second boarding school. Harper would be happy to see him. He saw me walking over to their dugout and came out to talk to me.

We were catching up when Harper and my parents showed up. I pointed her out to Ray and he went into the stands to catch up with his best friend. I could see his teammates were checking her out.

"Careful boys, she's my girlfriend," I said just loud enough they could hear me.

We didn't need a repeat of what happened when they visited us during our first game. I would gladly kick their asses if they hit on Harper.

I went back and fielded some ground balls to finish getting ready for the game. I was getting to where I needed to be mentally. I was ready to kick some butt. I think Moose felt confident, because he had Bert pitch the first game. Last year we trotted Justin out because we didn't know if we would be playing more than one game. Most teams would play their best pitcher to assure they got to the second round.

It was soon time to get started. Everyone was focused and determined to win today. Bert had worked hard to perfect his two seam fastball. It was actually a good pitch, because it tended to tail away. Batters routinely topped the pitch and hit grounders. Bert wasn't overpowering, so if he could get them to hit grounders, and let us play defense, we had a good shot at winning.

Bert normally ran into trouble if his pitches started to get up in the zone. When he did that, it was like watching batting practice. I was happy to see the first three batters he faced all grounded out. We came into bat with smiles on our faces. Bert was going to have a good outing.

Our only problem was our bats deserted us. Come the bottom of the seventh inning, we were deadlocked at 0 – 0. Neither team was able to get a runner further than second base. It wasn't like their pitcher was very good. We should have been lighting him up.

I was leading off and had gone 0 – 3 so far today. I guess I wasn't surprised when Moose pinch-hit Brock Callahan for me. Brock had looked good in batting practice before the game. On the first pitch Brock hit a screaming line drive right at the third baseman. I groaned; knowing it was a sure out, but was surprised when the ball bounced off his chest. I was sure that would leave a mark.

Moose sent Bryan up next, taking the bat out of Wolf's hands. He stepped in and hit a hard shot right back at the pitcher. The ball brushed the pitchers hip, which caused it to change direction just enough so their shortstop was not able to field the ball cleanly. We now had runners on first and second.

Jim was sent in as the third straight pinch hitter. Their pitcher tried to get Jim to chase a fastball high in the zone. He showed good discipline and held up. The next pitch was a hanging curve. Jim parked it, giving us the win 3 – 0.

I guess I shouldn't have expected it when Moose benched Jeff, Wolf and me for the second game. The Callahan twins and Jim were inserted into the lineup. Mike pitched a good game, but the defense was not as strong without the two of us in the middle of the infield. The good news was our substitutes paid off at the plate. We ended up beating Lakeview 8 – 6.

I pitched the next game against Washington. We met them in the semi-finals last year. They had forfeited when they ran out of pitchers. I had a good game. I actually struck out Ty three times. My bat also came back to life as I hit two singles and a double. We cruised to a 6 – 1 victory.

We met St. Joe in the final. Justin shut them down. He wasn't flashy but still only allowed six hits. We won the tournament with a 12 – 3 win. Our record stood at 11 – 1, the best start Lincoln had had in over ten years.

The team gathered around to find out who the MVPs were. The three of us had talked during the day. It was decided the winners had to be single, and not freshmen. They also had to be guys who would not embarrass us or talk afterwards. Justin was eliminated for what he did to Piper. My buddy Jeff was also taken out of the pool of possible candidates, by Bill and Tim. I decided not to fight them on their decision, because he was dating Cassidy. The no dating rule took out a lot of the rest of the team.

"It was actually easy to name the MVPs of the tournament. Both guys came through with clutch hitting, and stepped in when we needed pitching. The winners are Brock and Bryan Callahan," Bill announced.

After the brothers had been congratulated, I saw Bill and Tim talking to them. They both had big smiles and were nodding as my fellow captains explained what was expected of them, tonight.

Harper was acting nervous when we pulled into the parking lot of the Alpha Chi Omega house. Cora had instructed us to park in the rear, and come in through the back door and down to the basement. We were sitting in my Jeep as she turned to me.

"Am I being a bitch by not letting you spend time with other girls?" she asked.

I almost laughed until I saw she was dead serious. I took a deep breath and looked at the back of the Alpha Chi Omega house. It was a monster of a sorority house which looked like it was built at the turn of the 1900's. You could have moved it to a plantation in the Deep South. I jerked my mind back from wandering and answered her question.

"Harper, you confuse the hell out of me. When I first met you I was attracted to your spunk and quick wit. I have an affinity for smart, self-assured women. It certainly didn't hurt you have a killer body. Then you go saying something like that. If I said it, you would look me in the eye and tell me to quit being a pussy and grow a pair. I don't understand why you think you need to change the way you think, just because we are dating?"

"Did you just call me a pussy?" Harper asked as she glared at me.

"No, I said you would call me a pussy," I clarified.

"No, I think you are just finding a clever way of calling me a pussy," she shot back.

I started to say something clever and then stopped myself. Harper was a lot like her mom. She could smell bullshit from a mile away. I decided to man up, and grow a pair.

"I guess I did," I said.

"Oh. You know I'm going to kick your ass."

"Have at it tough girl," I said unable to hide my amusement.

"All right, I'll quit feeling sorry for you and make you watch as your teammates get laid."

"Fine with me," I said as I kissed her.

"I hate it when you kiss me just when I'm getting a good mad on," she huffed and we got out of the Jeep.

Harper found her way under my arm as she led me in. I knew she wasn't really mad. She was just feeling insecure. She would be back to normal as soon as she got a feel for what was going on. I found it funny that Harper made sure I was looking good tonight. I had planned to wear jeans and t-shirt with my letterman jacket. She had me try on several outfits before she was satisfied. I wasn't surprised when she picked out something causal from Dakora. I think she wanted to make the other girls jealous. I was a little surprised when she wore a skirt which barely covered her butt. I wasn't sure what the purpose of her attire was. If it was meant for me then okay, but I was worried she had dressed for the college guys who would be there.

When we got inside, we found we were the first ones there from my group. Cora saw me, and smiled. She was talking to several of her sisters, so we went and grabbed a couple of sodas. I was confused at the different clothes the girls were wearing. I asked Harper about it.

"The ones in the jerseys must be the pledges. The girls wearing normal clothes have to be the sorority sisters."

I noticed the ones wearing jerseys seemed to be just wearing jerseys. I checked out the pledges and they were all cute. Pam had told me Alpha Chi Omega was noted for having the best looking women on campus. While I hadn't seen the other twenty some sororities, I would take it on faith she was right. I sent a text to Tim and Bill, letting them know the ladies were waiting for them. They were in charge of getting Bryan and Brock here.

There were already several guys, here, and most looked to be college age. They were talking to each other. Harper and I were people watching as we waited for the rest of our group to show up. Five minutes later all the guys showed up wearing jeans and baseball jerseys. I guess I missed the memo.

"The poor dumbasses," I mumbled.

"What did you say?" Harper asked.

"Sorry, I was looking at the guys and they reminded me of my mom and dad when she made him wear a matching sweater."

"I know it is cliché, but does it surprise you a bunch of jocks would do something like that?"

"Hey, I resemble that remark."

"Just saying," she said as she squeezed my hand.

Cora came over.

"Are they all here?" she asked me.

"Yeah, this is all of them," I said.

She went back to the girls she was talking to and let them know. One of the older girls got everyone's attention. I was amused the guys were on one side of the room and girls on the other. It felt like a middle school dance.

"I would like to welcome the men from Lincoln. I hear they won a tournament today," she began.

The sorority sisters started chanting 'Fresh Meat! Fresh Meat!'

"Settle down, ladies. At the request of the Fresh Meat, there will be no alcohol served tonight. Normally we would let you have a few drinks and then have our way with you. Since we don't have alcohol to lower you inhibitions, we'll have to resort to other methods. The first is a get to know you. We will do a version of speed dating. Men please get into a circle and face the outside for me," our master of ceremonies directed us.

When the guys were in a circle, she then directed the pledges to make a circle facing in.

"Now, I have a stack of cards. I will read what the card says and then you follow the directions. The first card says Kiss the person in front of you."

This was going to be fun as we watched the wide range of reactions, which was fascinating. Some of the guys blushed and looked to want to bolt. Others got into it. I saw Cora didn't have a partner. She motioned for me to join the circle. Harper saw her also.

"I can't believe I am saying this. Go join your teammates."

"I'm good," I assured her.

"No. I want you to go have fun. Remember our rule. I have to be involved."

I don't think she expected me to pull her along with me. Cora gave us a funny look.

"Do you expect me to kiss both of you?"

"Oh, yeah," I said.

Before Harper could make a run for it, Cora leaned over and kissed her. When she was done, Harper was gasping for breath. I grabbed the back of Cora's neck and kissed her. I then kissed Harper. I thought it wouldn't be fair unless we all kissed each other.