“That should do it,” Matt tightened the screws to lock the plate to the back of the TV once more and gratefully, Steve set it up right on its stand.

“It’s about damn time,” he grumbled. “I can barely feel my arms anymore.”

Matt laughed as he turned to put the screwdriver back in the open box of tools. “Aaaa, it’s good for you,” he teased as Steve attempted to rub the circulation back into his arms. “Builds those arm muscles. Besides,” he reminded, “just think how grateful those two miscreants will be to have their TV back,” he grinned as he thought of their rogue younger brothers. Their T.V. had been broken for the better part of a month and it had been at least that long that Matt had been promising to fix it for them. “Better yet, start thinking of all the ways we might possibly be able to exploit that gratitude.”

Steve laughed. “You have no scruples at all, do you?” he demanded.

“Nope,” Matt gleefully admitted. “Not a one.”

“Matt?” a more sober sounding voice caused both Matt and his little brother to look in the direction of the door from where the voice had come.

“Hey, Man,” Matt greeted. “Come on in, we’re just finishing up here.” Brad entered the room hesitantly and looked a little nervously at Steve. He had been hoping to find Matt alone. “What up?” Matt inquired, wiping his hands on a towel as he contemplated his best friend’s serious countenance. ‘Serious’ and ‘Brad’ were not two words that usually went together and Matt wondered uneasily what was going on.

“I need to talk to you . . . .” Brad hedged, looking once more at Steve.

“Ok,” Matt encouraged as he too glanced at Steve and then threw the towel back on top of the tool box.

“I’d rather have a private word if you don’t mind . . . .” Brad finally asserted. Steve and Matt exchanged glances. This definitely couldn’t be good.

“You know I tell Steve everything anyway, Man, so you might as well just spit it out,” Matt prodded.

“Yeah, I know you do,” Brad returned quietly, “and it’s not that he can’t know, but . . . well it concerns Danny and Ryan.” Steve moved closer to Matt now, all at once more personally interested in what Brad had to say.

“Well, Bro, now you have to tell us both,” Matt returned irritably. “Why don’t you shut the door and let us in on whatever it is that’s bugging you.”

“Ok,” Brad sighed and moved further into the room, closing the door behind him as Matt had suggested. Steve and Matt were both staring at him now with enough intensity to make him squirm, and he looked down at the white bottle he was carrying in his hands, toying nervously with it, in an effort to avoid the eyes of his friends. “Listen guys,” he started. “I like Danny and Ryan both. I know they are good kids, and I am not doing this with some kind of personal vendetta in mind. I know how Gregg can be and you know I usually do my best to stay out of these kinds of things.”

“We know that, Brad,” Matt replied softly. “Just tell us what’s going on.” Brad bit his lip as he continued to fidget.

“What’s that?” Steve questioned quietly, indicating the bottle. Finally, Brad looked up at them once more and with one last resigned sigh he handed the bottle to Matt.

“I found it in Ryan’s locker . . . .”

“What were you doing in his locker?” Steve inquired sharply, and Matt placed a hand on his shoulder, drawing him back against him.

“Relax,” he cautioned softly. Steve was glaring at Brad now, however; he was anything but relaxed, and Matt’s touch, for once, did nothing to calm him. Keeping his hand on Steve’s shoulder, Matt turned his attention to the item Brad had handed him. He set his jaw as he scrutinized the label, and the veins near his eyes became just a little more prominent.

“I know that Gregg gives as good as he gets,” Brad started, “and that a lot of times he’s asking for whatever comes his way in the name of pranks and jokes, but there is a line, Man, you know . . . ?”

“What is it?” Steve inquired anxiously, in response to Matt’s change of expression. Matt ignored him and met the eyes of his best friend, instead.

“Danny and Ryan did this?” Matt inquired incredulously.

Brad nodded (something about Brad‘s regret here). “I’m pretty sure,” he whispered. (Add something here). “You remember I was telling you about the problem Gregg’s been having?” Matt nodded. “Well, the poor kid’s been miserable. Thinks he has some kind of disease. He’s been calling every girl he knows, which again, I know you reap what you sow . . . but I couldn’t help feeling sorry for him. And then last night, I saw your brothers hovering in the hall while he was having one of these conversations and they were clearly amused you know: trading glances, smirking, shoving at one another. They straightened up as soon as they saw me, but I couldn’t help being suspicious, so I watched them closely today at practice; they, in turn, were watching Gregg, watching and simpering at every movement that revealed his discomfort. I’m sorry I went through their lockers, but I felt like I had no choice . . . .” He looked once more at Steve who was still staring intently at him, but he was unable to read the younger man’s expression. “I really am sorry,” he finished lamely. “I just thought you should know.”

Matt too was looking at Steve now and he had much greater success than his friend reading the face he’d come to know and love so well; the hazel eyes that had grown distinctly darker over the course of the last few minutes and the sullen countenance told him all he needed to know and he squeezed Steve’s shoulder firmly to keep him from commenting. “It’s all right, Brad,” he turned back to his friend. “You did the right thing. This is something we definitely needed to know about. I’ll take care of it. Does Gregg know yet that this was a prank?” Brad shook his head, his eyes still on Steve. “Well please assure him that Danny and Ryan will be down to apologize before the night is through and they will be doing all of his chores as well as their own for the next month or as long as it takes him to recuperate.” He felt Steve tense and he squeezed his partner’s shoulder again in warning. “Please also tell him, Brad, that while I do not plan to summon my younger brothers over this, the matter will be handled appropriately.”

“Matt . . . .” Steve protested under his breath.

“Later . . . .” Matt muttered, and Steve’s fists curled as he once again felt Matt’s fingers digging into his shoulder. “If,” Matt continued to address Brad, “Gregg has any additional concerns or questions about what has been done to address the situation after he has seen Danny and Ryan tonight, he may come and talk to me. You may want to remind him, before he does, however, that while I hold Danny and Ryan one hundred percent accountable in this instance, there have been other, shall we say ‘mishaps,’ of which I am aware where all parties were equally culpable or even where guilt lay more heavily on your little brother’s side; you are not the only one who has turned a blind eye in the past, Brad,” he finished gently.

“I know,” Brad replied quietly. “I have no doubt that the situation will be addressed fairly and I will be sure that Gregg understands it has been handled. You will not hear anything more on this issue from us, Man. I promise. Thanks for understanding, and Steve,” he looked once more at his best friend’s little brother, “for what it’s worth, I’m sorry.”

Steve just scowled and looked away. “You did what you had to do, Man,” Matt answered for his taciturn partner. “Thanks for filling us in. I guess it would be best now for you to go and let me get on with this.”

“Ok,” Brad responded as his eyes lingered regretfully on Steve. “I’ll go talk to Gregg, I guess.” He turned towards the door, and looked back once more as he opened it, “I’m sorry, guys,” he said again.

“Don’t worry about it,” Matt reassured quietly. Brad stepped out into the hallway and started to close the door, but Matt called him back. “Hey, Man, you don’t know where those two scoundrels are, do you?”

“Last I saw them they were down in the TV room, playing video games,” Brad replied.

“Fabulous,” Matt muttered. “Are there a lot of people down there?”

“Well,” Brad hesitated. “Yeah,” he admitted reluctantly after a minute. “When I was down there anyway, it was pretty packed. I was going to speak to Danny and Ryan first but all their cohorts were down there with them, so I changed my mind and brought it right to you.”

“Gee, thanks,” Matt replied, and Brad couldn’t help simpering a bit.

“Any time, Bro. Great to be the president, ain’t it?”

“Yeah, it’s a real hoot,” Matt returned. “If you’re hankerin’ to try it just let me know!”

“Why would I be when we’ve already got the best guy for the job?” Brad questioned sincerely.

“Thanks,” Matt responded. It was moments like this that he appreciated just how good a friend Brad was and thanked providence that a last minute turn of events during Gregg’s freshman year had won him Brad for a Big Brother. As difficult as life for both he and Brad could be sometimes because of it, their friendship was strong and the arrangement saved more headaches than it caused. “Let’s get a beer later, ok?” he suggested now.

“You bet, Man,” Brad responded.

“I have a feeling we’re both going to need one,” Matt asserted as he looked at his partner’s now obviously stormy face. Brad followed his gaze and sighed.

“I hear ya. I’ll be around. Just let me know.”

“Ok. I’ll see you later,” Matt replied and with that Brad stepped out into the hallway and closed the door behind him.

“How could you do that??” The door had barely closed when Steve turned on his partner.

“Do what?” Matt asked calmly.

“You practically told Brad what you were going to do to ‘handle’ the situation, and you authorized him to pass it along to that . . . that . . . .”

“Careful . . . .” Matt warned.

“To HIM!” Steve spat. “How could you??”

“I did no such thing,” Matt responded coolly.

“Yes you did!” Steve insisted. “Gregg’s a smart guy. He’s a fucking A-hole, but he’s a smart guy!” Matt raised his eyebrows at Steve’s choice of words but Steve was too angry to acknowledge him. “You think for one second that if Brad goes down there and tells Mcarthy that you are ‘not going to summon’ Danny and Ryan but the situation will nevertheless be ‘handled appropriately’ and then you send Danny and Ryan down there to apologize to him after you’ve ‘handled it,’ you think he’s not going to put two and two together and figure things out?? He’s not that much of a blockhead!”

“I was trying to be proactive, Steve! You don’t really think Mcarthy is going to just take for granted that the matter is being dealt with without some verbal reassurance to that affect, do you? I do not want him nosing around here, bugging me or you, and I do not want him going after Danny and Ryan! That was what I was trying to communicate to Brad and believe me, I’ve been friends long enough with him to know that he got it! I know it’s hard to understand, sweetheart, but I really am trying to do what’s best for Danny and Ryan here; I am trying to protect them!”

“Like hell you are!” Steve snapped.

“Well, would you prefer that I summon them, then?” Matt demanded.

“I don’t see why you have to punish them that way at all quite frankly!” Steve glowered at him.

“Because, Steve! They are in the wrong here! And anyone else in the house that had done what they’ve done would be looking at a summons for sure. Just think about how you would feel if the tables were turned! What if Gregg had done something like this to Ryan or Danny?”

“Done something like what??” Steve challenged. “I don’t even know what the fuck it is that they supposedly have done! You and Brad may as well have been speaking a whole ‘nother fucking language for all that I was following . . . .”

“Oh, there is no ‘supposedly’ about it!” Matt fired back. “They did it!” He handed Steve the bottle. “You heard Brad telling us about the ‘problems’ Gregg’s been having, right?” Steve bit his lip and dropped his eyes to the label; ‘Itching Powder,’ were the two words that immediately jumped out at him, and his stomach turned as he felt the blood drain from his face.

“Gregg’s been having some ongoing problems even before this,” Matt explained in a softer tone, affected by the obvious horror on his partner’s face. “I know how you feel about the kid, and quite frankly, I don’t blame you,” he continued gently, “but he’s been going through a lot, lately. He didn’t need this on top of it.” Steve gnawed his lip hard and his eyes filled as he continued to stare at the label. “How would you feel if Ryan or Danny had been on the receiving end of a joke like this?” Matt questioned softly once more, and Steve pressed his fingers to his eyes. “What would you want me to do, then?” Matt prodded as Steve turned away from him. “Would you be happy if I just gave Mcarthy a few extra chores to do and left it at that?”

“Well, why couldn’t you just do it then?” Steve choked. “Why couldn’t you do it without telling the whole God Damn world??”

Matt stepped up behind his partner and wrapped his arms around him, pulling him against him as Steve covered his face. “I didn’t tell anyone, Baby,” he murmured into Steve’s hair. “Not explicitly, anyway, and we can trust Brad’s discretion. He will be very careful in his handling of Gregg. He will make sure that he words things very carefully and that Gregg in his turn behaves himself. Brad is our friend, Love, and you know we can trust him. We are very lucky that he caught this situation where it was before it got blown up further. It really could have been much, much worse. We are very lucky to have him on our side . . . .”

“On our side!??” Steve wrenched away from Matt and spun around to face him. “On OUR side??” he demanded once again, incredulously. “What do you mean on OUR fucking side!?? He’s not on MY side! And he’s sure as HELL not on Danny and Ryan’s side! He went through their fucking lockers!”

“Well, he had more than enough probable cause!” Matt retorted. “What the hell did you expect him to do? He is Gregg’s Big Brother! And as hard as it may be for you to understand this, he is just as fond of that kid as you are of Danny and Ryan!” Steve’s face crumpled and he turned away again, burying his face in his arms. Matt almost never lost his temper with him. Matt bit his lip hard as he realized how sharp his tone was and he too pressed his fingers to his eyes, taking a moment to try and get himself together. When he looked up, Steve was lying face down on the bed, clutching the pillows to his chest, and Matt’s heart melted.

Tentatively, he sat on the edge next to his partner and placed his hand on the back of his head. As Steve felt Matt’s gentle touch, he began to sob. “They were just playing around!” he choked. “I’m sure of it!”

“Even, for the sake of argument, let’s say that was true, Baby,” Matt responded in the soothing tone Steve was accustomed to, “they missed the mark by a mile. What they did is not the least bit funny! It’s just mean and they have got to be taught the difference. They have to know where the line is.”

“Matt, please!” Steve sobbed. “Isn’t there something else? Anything else you could do?”

“Steven, it is the tradition of this fraternity that serious transgressions of The Code be handled with corporal punishment. Everyone else in the house has to live by those rules and consequences. The fact that, as freshmen, the presidents’ brothers are treated to the ritual of the Mandatory Meeting does take some pressure off in terms of The Summons. Nobody else has to endure that process, so about some things, it is easy to look the other way. Everybody gets that. It is not, however, carte blanche to do whatever you like just because you are the younger brothers of the president. Danny and Ryan had better learn that lesson now.”

“He shouldn’t have gone through their lockers!” Steve sobbed once more into the pillows.

“Well, my love, we can argue that point all day and it won’t change anything. The bottom line is that Danny and Ryan were in the wrong. They played a joke that was uncharacteristically cruel, and they need to be punished accordingly. I know this is hard on you,” Matt whispered, “and I’m sorry.” Steve clutched the pillows harder and sobs shook his shoulders as he started to really let go. Matt just sat with him, continuing to stroke his hair and back and shoulders. He knew his younger partner well and when he was this worked up there was nothing to do but let his emotions run their course. Matt, in fact, was feeling somewhat relieved that Steve was venting his feelings rather than trying to hold them in as he had the tendency sometimes to do. His partner was stubbornly fixated on the idea that expressing his emotions, even in private moments between the two of them, made him, somehow less of a man. They had been working hard on this issue for a long time and now it was starting to pay off. Not that Steve’s feelings had changed much on the matter, but he nevertheless seemed to be more comfortable in moments like these just letting himself go.

When at last Steve seemed to be calming some, Matt spoke again, continuing to caress Steve’s hair and choosing his words as carefully as possible. “I know this is hard,” he whispered again, “but the longer we wait the harder it’s going to get, don’t you think?” Steve shrugged, and did not look up. “Why don’t you go lie down, Baby, while I deal with this, ok? We’ll talk later.” And thus with those words, Matt unwittingly stepped on a land mine.

“NO! GOD! FUCK YOU!” Steve leapt off the bed as if it had just been lit on fire and hurled the pillow he’d been clutching at his astonished partner. “You think fucking naps are the way to solve the problems of the whole fucking world!” he screamed. “I’m not a fucking Baby, Matt! You can’t make all my freaking problems go away just by rocking me to sleep!”

“Steve that’s not what I’m . . . .”

“Yes it is!” Steve interjected. “That’s your fucking answer to everything! It’s a freaking God Damn miracle you don’t think world hunger can be solved by a collective fucking world nap! You do whatever the fuck you want! I can’t stop you obviously, but don’t tell me to go sleep it off! I’ll be in my fucking room doing any fucking thing but taking a God Damn fucking nap! So, when you are done ‘DEALING’ with Danny and Ryan and you are ready to ‘DEAL’ with me that is where you will fucking find me! In my room NOT taking a nap!” Steve turned for the door, intending to make good on his threat, but in his haste he tripped over his own feet and fell forward. Matt was there to catch him, and Steve clung to him, burying his face in his partner’s chest and sobbing. Matt sank onto the bed with him and propping the pillows behind him, sat back against the wall, pulling Steve against him as he did.

“Baby, you are getting way too worked up about this,” Matt soothed as Steve continued to cry. “What is it that you think I’m going to do to them that is so terrible?” he whispered, a note of hurt in his voice.

“Nothing!” Steve wept. “It’s not you! It’s just that it’s so embarrassing you know? And you wonder if anybody can hear! And you wonder what they would think! And you feel like some kind of a freaking God Damn Baby or something! And it hurts, Matt! It really, really hurts! I just don’t want them to have to go through it!”

“Are we talking about them, or are we talking about us, love?”

“I don’t know!” Steve sobbed. “Both I guess! I mean I know the agreement we have is my choice, Matt. And I do want it. At least, I know I need it. I know having the limits helps me, but sometimes it is sooo hard, you know? I feel like I should be able to handle the stuff on my own, but I can’t and I know that too. I know I need the punishments, Matt, but God they just hurt so much and even though I feel better afterwards, I dread them so much beforehand. I hate to think of Danny and Ryan going through that . . . they don’t have anyone to cuddle with after . . . .” Steve pressed his face into Matt’s chest and balled his fists in his shirt. He was crying too hard to continue now.

“Oh, sweetheart,” Matt gave a half exasperated laugh as he pulled Steve closer and dropped his chin to the top of his head. “I’ve spanked our younger brothers before and it hasn’t been this big of a problem for you. What makes this time so different, huh?”

“Because,” Steve sobbed. “Until now, it’s always been fairly little things. This is really bad! And I know you are going to be really hard on them. And they are down there in the TV room with all their friends . . . .”

“Hey, now,” Matt soothed as Steve continued to cling to him. “I’m not going to embarrass them, Baby. Is that what you’re worried about?” Still Steve didn’t answer. “Hey,” Matt gently cupped Steve’s face in his hands forcing his sobbing partner to look at him, “is it?” he asked seriously. Steve nodded through his tears and Matt wordlessly pulled him close once more. “Why would you think that’d I’d do that, Love?” Matt questioned softly as Steve snuggled into his chest once more. “Do I ever embarrass you?”

“No!” Steve responded emphatically, hearing the pain in his partner’s voice. “At least,” a tone of confusion slipped into his words now. “I know you don’t mean to,” he sobbed. “But it just is an embarrassing thing, Matt, and the environment we are in here makes it even harder. I get so afraid sometimes that people are going to find out!”

Matt did not know what to say at first to alleviate the stress and anxiety his partner was feeling. He tightened his arms and sat back against the pillows, contemplating Steve’s words and trying to sort out his own feelings as tears welled in his eyes. Several minutes had passed and Steve was finally starting to grow calmer when Matt took a deep breath and asked tentatively. “Do you still want to be with me, Baby?”

Quickly Steve looked up to see the tears still glistening in his partner’s eyes. “Of course I do!” he responded in horror. “Of course I want to be with you! You’re the best thing that’s ever happened to me! I would never want to lose you! That’s not what I meant! It’s just that sometimes . . . I don’t know . . . .” His voice trailed off and he snuggled once more against Matt as he realized that he really didn’t know how to explain what he was feeling. Another several moments of silence passed, but at last Matt spoke again.

“You’re having doubts about the discipline,” he asserted softly. Steve shrugged and cuddled closer; he really couldn’t deny it. Matt tightened his arm, but said nothing more; there really was nothing more at the moment to be said, and with his treasured younger partner curled safely there in his arms Matt settled back into the pillows and let his thoughts wander. With quiet instinct his hand moved up and down his partner’s back and shoulders. He watched Steve’s face and smiled to himself as the younger man’s eyelids began to droop. ‘What would his life be like without this handsome young man?’ he thought and his gut twisted inside him. God willing, he would never have to find out.

Another little while passed and Matt was reluctant to break up the peace of the moment, but finally he hugged his partner closer, dropping his chin to the top of his head. “It’s about time I get this over with for everyone’s sake, don’t you think, Baby?” Steve clung tighter and pressed his face hard into Matt’s chest. “I want you to do something for me,” Matt requested softly, “since taking a nap didn’t exactly suit your fancy,” he swatted his partner lightly on the butt and Steve looked up, tears streaking his cheeks, to see the barely concealed smirk on his partner’s face.

“What?” Steve asked guardedly as Matt used his thumb to wipe away the remaining tears; he had the distinct feeling all of a sudden that he should have settled for the nap.

“I’d like you to write an essay,” Matt started, and Steve groaned. “Or, more accurately, two essays,” Matt chuckled as Steve buried his face once more, “one telling me all the things you like about being in a DP and one telling me all the things you don’t like about it.”

“Oh, God!” Steve groaned once more as he heard the topic. “Do I have to?”

“Yes,” Matt replied, holding his partner close, and kissing his head. “We have to get to the bottom of some of this, Love. I think this whole situation with Danny and Ryan just hit some sensitive nerves neither of us was really aware of. We have to find out how deep these doubts of yours run.”

Steve sighed. “Can’t I just take a nap?” he pleaded as he looked imploringly once more at his partner.

“No,” Matt laughed. “I don’t think so. I think, now, that this will be a much more productive use of your time.”

“Oh, God!” Steve whined, nestling deeper. “I’m cursed!”

“Well, my love,” Matt whacked him twice more on the butt, half playfully, half not. “You are not feeling as cursed now as you are going to be feeling later, I’m afraid, after uttering such ‘curses’ at me.”

Steve looked up quickly, his face turning red. “I’m sorry!” he pleaded.

“I know you are,” Matt returned quietly, “but we are still going to have to talk about it, and about the lethal object you hurled at me.”

“Lethal object!” Steve protested. “It was a freaking pillow!”

Matt raised his eyebrows at him. “Yes, my love, I know. But it was thrown in anger, not fun. It seems you need a little reminder how we are meant to be talking to one another/treating one another.”

“Matt, please . . .,” Steve begged.

“You didn’t really think I’d let that go, now, did you?” Matt questioned softly, and Steve shrugged.

“I thought, maybe . . . .,” he looked down, his cheeks burning as he picked at the buttons on his partner’s shirt. “I mean, you know I didn’t mean it . . . .”

“Yes, Baby,” Matt assured, cuddling Steve close as his younger partner buried his face once more. “I know you didn’t mean it. You were agitated and upset; you were worried about Danny and Ryan, and you lost your temper. But,” he continued gently, “that is no excuse. In fact it is most important then, when you are feeling emotionally rattled, to think about what you are doing before you do it. It will be essential, my love, when you are president for you to be able to control your temper; it will most certainly be tried,” he sighed as he thought about the impending test of his own patience that would inevitably accompany the scolding his younger brothers had earned.

“I’m sorry,” Steve reiterated in a more contrite tone into his partner’s shirt. “It’s just,” he swallowed hard and his cheeks flushed once more as he thought about his previous behavior. “Sometimes, I don’t think,” he choked.

“I know,” Matt replied affectionately, planting a small kiss on his partner’s forehead. “It’s ok, sweetheart,” he assured. “We’ll work on it.” Steve tightened his arms and cuddled closer. “Why don’t you go start your essays, and let me deal with those two young villains we call our younger brothers. Then I will come find you and we will continue our talk, ok?”

Steve did not respond, but he nodded into his partner’s chest as tears started to streak his face once more. “Go on,” Matt encouraged gently.

“You’re not going to take their T.V. away are you?” Steve choked.

“Heavens, No! What kind of monster do you think I am?” Matt teased with a smirk, and even Steve had to laugh as he looked up at last to meet his partner’s eyes. Matt wiped once more at the brimming eyes that were now gazing up at him. “It will be all right,” he reassured. “Go on.”

“Ok,” Steve muttered reluctantly, and with a heavy sigh, he heaved himself off the bed and made his way dejectedly to the door. Matt’s adoring eyes followed him all the way.

“Hey,” he called as Steve’s hand touched the doorknob, and Steve looked back at him. “I love you,” he whispered, and Steve tried to smile.

“I love you too,” he returned and his eyes filled again despite his best efforts. With shoulders hunched, he turned and opened the door. Matt watched him wistfully as he stepped out into the hallway and closed the door.

“Shit!” Danny exclaimed as the strident beep from the T.V. announced that his game was finally over. “Fucking piece of crap remote! Two more points and I would have beaten myself!” He grinned cockily at his big brother as Ryan took the x-box control from his hand and squeezed down in the corner of the couch beside him.

“Ok, slick,” Ryan chided affectionately, “we all know how good you are! You don’t need to keep reminding us.”

“Just so all you peons know your place,” Danny smirked again as Ryan began to maneuver his guy around the realistic looking turf on the screen in front of them.

Andy was throwing darts with Patrick over in the corner next to the T.V. where the rest of their closest friends were gathered. He paused, mid-throw, at Danny’s comment and looked to the corner of the couch where Sean was perched. Sean met his eyes, but had to look quickly away, biting his lip to keep from laughing at the expression on his friend’s face. Inner circle or not, Andy always liked to be sure the sanctity of rank was preserved. “Want to try us on the real field there, Bud?” he inquired now.

“Bring it on, Man,” Danny quipped, smiling crookedly at him, “any time.”

“Is that, right?” Andy returned.

“I think THAT peon’s about to kick your ass, there, Bro,” Ryan grinned, keeping his eyes on the screen.

“I could take him,” Danny huffed indignantly.

Silence greeted this extraordinary announcement until finally it was broken by a derisive snort. “Yeah, Man, OK!” Jesse responded sardonically. He was sitting on the couch on Danny’s other side and now his best friend glared at him.

“What?” Danny responded irritably, pricked by the looks of incredulous amusement on the faces that surrounded him. “I could!”

“Do you have a death wish, or something, Man?” Pat smirked from across the room as his big brother put the darts down and began to stride in the direction of the sofa where his would be challenger still sat. Danny shrugged as he met his friend’s eyes.

“Come on, then, little man,” Andy challenged as he stopped in front of Danny. “Let’s do this.”

Danny looked up at him, seemingly unfazed. “What? Now?”

“No time like the present,” Andy informed him, assuming his football stance.

“Hey do you guys mind?” Ryan protested as Danny got to his feet. “I can’t see.” He was the only one whose curious eyes were not on the quarterback as he faced down the biggest defensive lineman on the team.

“Ready?” Andy asked as Danny squared off against him. “Get set. Go.”

“Danny rushed at him, and instead of being blocked as he had expected, Andy simply lowered his shoulder and scooped him up until he was dangling head first over his shoulder.

“Hey!” Danny kicked and squirmed as the room around him exploded in laughter. “Put me down, Andy! Hey! That wasn’t fair! I wasn’t ready!”

“You want to talk garbage, huh?” Andy demanded. “I know right where that kind of talk belongs.” He headed out the door of the T.V. room and turned right, going down the hallway towards the door that led outside to the dumpsters.

“No!” Danny began to struggle harder and his shirt rode up over his head. He could still hear the laughter in the room behind him. ‘Great!’ he fumed. ‘That’s just great!’ “Ok!” he conceded finally as Andy’s hand touched the doorknob. “Put me down!”

Andy paused. “Say the magic words,” he taunted.

“Fuck you!” Danny snapped.

“Uhh uhh uhh! Those weren’t them! I think it’s dumpster time,” Andy started to open the door.

“No! Ok! Ok! Please! I’m sorry!” Danny squirmed.

“How sorry?” Andy inquired teasingly.

“Andy! Come on, Man! Please! I’m sorry, ok?”

“Ok,” Andy laughed finally setting Danny on his feet and ruffling his hair affectionately. “Watch yourself, kid!” Danny scowled at him as he straightened his shirt, but he then followed a triumphant Andy meekly back down the hallway and into the T.V. room where Jesse was by now taking his turn on the x-box. Most everyone else in the room had already turned their attention to other things. In a fraternity the size of Phi Beta Capa, rough housing was not nearly uncommon enough to create any kind of prolonged diversion.

Ryan placed his arm around Danny as his little brother settled sourly beside him once more on the couch. “How was the dumpster?” he grinned.

“Shut up,” Danny pouted. It wasn’t long, all the same, before Ryan’s warm if somewhat amused empathy coaxed him out of the sullen sulk he had been so intent on enjoying.

“So did you guys all get a load of Mcarthy today at practice?” he ventured impishly at last as Andy went back to his dart game and the rest of the activity in the room settled completely. It was clear he was no longer being laughed at, but there was no harm in volunteering another target, just to be sure. “Did you see how red he was?” he snickered.

“You mean his face or his . . . you know?” Jesse giggled.

“Jesse . . .,” Sean reprimanded quietly.

“Oh come on, Sean,” Ryan grinned, “lighten up a bit.”

“Well, you guys are all just asking for trouble if you ask me,” Sean grumbled. “Someone’s going to hear you,” he glanced uneasily around the room.

“Naw,” Ryan countered, “we’re among friends. Steve and President Cranky are upstairs, and,” he smirked again, “you gotta admit it was pretty funny.”

“I don’t know,” Sean replied a bit anxiously. “I actually felt kind of sorry for the guy.”

“Sorry!” Ryan cried indignantly. “After what he did to Jesse and Danny last week? He deserved it, Sean!”

“Yeah, well, maybe,” Sean returned uncertainly.

“Come on, Man, you thought it was funny,” Ryan coaxed. “You know you did.” He started wiggling the lower half of his body in his best imitation of Gregg Mcarthy’s movements earlier that day. It was a very good imitation and Danny, Jesse, Patrick, and Andy all laughed. Finally, even Sean had to crack a smile as Ryan got to his feet and really started to perform.

The six comrades were all so absorbed that they did not see the figure hovering in the doorway. Nor did they hear the loud whispers of the nearby friends who were trying to warn them. It was Jesse who saw him first, and the blood drained from his face. Danny noticed the change in his friend’s demeanor at once and following his gaze, he too turned white. Sean, Pat, and Andy had also seen the fraternity president by that time and Ryan was all of a sudden alone in blissful ignorance.

“Ry . . .,” Danny muttered, but Ryan had his back to him now and didn’t hear him. “Ryan . . .,” Danny tried again a little more urgently. Still he had no success. “Ry!” he blurted, finally.

“What . . . ?” Ryan turned around, but he needed no explanation as he encountered the reproachful eyes of his oldest brother.

Matt raised his eyebrows. “You done?” he inquired from where he still stood in the doorway. Ryan’s face flushed and he swallowed hard. He tried to open his mouth, but nothing came out. “I’d like a word with you, out here,” Matt stood back from the door and indicated the hallway. “All of you,” he specified more clearly as he shifted his gaze to include his brothers’ four best friends. A rash of whispering broke out among the remaining occupants of the room as, with crimson faces, the six comrades made their way towards and then past the fraternity president.

“It wasn’t their fault,” Danny and Ryan started at once as they reached the hallway. “They didn’t know . . . .” Matt’s scolding eyes were on their friends now and the two brothers anxiously tried to regain his attention. “Matt . . . .”

“You two go upstairs,” Matt directed quietly. His eyes remained on Danny and Ryan’s four blushing sidekicks as he quietly offered Ryan the key to his room. Ryan’s stomach clenched and he snuck a look at Danny as his fingers closed tentatively around the cold hard metal of the proffered item. Danny’s eyes were riveted now on the key and the petrified expression on his little brother’s face made Ryan’s stomach tighten even more.

“Matt . . . .” Ryan tried again.

“UP Stairs!” Matt repeated more firmly.

“But if you would just listen! Can’t we talk . . .?”

“Oh we’re going to talk about it, Little Bro!” Matt snapped as he glared once more at Ryan. “Now you get your butt upstairs like I asked!” Ryan bit his lip and glanced tentatively at Sean. Sean met his eyes and the empathy Ryan found there emboldened him. “Go on!” Matt prompted once more.

“You’re not being fair,” Ryan mumbled.

“Ryan, do not push me!” Matt’s voice took on a warning note that his little brother knew better than to ignore. “I am not going to tell you again!”

“Fine!” Ryan spat obnoxiously, and before Matt could respond to the tone in his voice he took hold of Danny’s shoulder and, pushing his little brother in front of him, made a b-line for the stairs.

The four remaining allies squirmed as Matt, having followed his brothers’ progress up the stairs sufficiently enough to assure himself that they were not still hovering, turned his now smoldering eyes on them. “Is it true?” he demanded.

“Is what true?” Sean croaked. Jesse, Andy, and Patrick seemed to be, for the moment, completely incapable of speech.

“Did you or did you not know about THIS??” Matt held up the white bottle he’d been dangling discretely by his side, and Jesse for reasons unknown even to himself was taken by a sudden impulse to laugh. He bit hard on his lip and looked down but could not contain the guttural sound that escaped from his throat. Matt’s hand shot out and gripped him firmly by the jaw, cutting off his laughter and forcing Danny’s friend to look at him. “You think this is funny?” he demanded as he stared into Jesse’s now pasty face. Jesse swallowed hard and came as close to shaking his head as he could with Matt’s hand clenched around his jaw. “Glad to hear it!” Matt snapped. He released his hold and Jesse brought his hand up, automatically to the place where Matt had grabbed him. “Danny and Ryan are in big trouble right now, and I did not appreciate in the slightest what I just walked in on! This kind of joke is not humorous at all, no matter who the target is! Jokes that are calculated to cause pain and suffering of any kind are not comical to me, nor are they acceptable! I have no reason to believe, at the moment, that the four of you knew about this before it occurred or that you were a part of planning it. If I should find out otherwise at any time, however, you will all be facing a summons! In the mean time whether you knew about it beforehand or not, it is clear that you all got a laugh from it after the fact. The four of you may, therefore, count on spending this weekend here in the house with me.”

“Aww, Man!” Pat and Jesse responded with unhappy grumbles as Jesse continued to rub at his jaw, but Matt ignored them.

“You will remain in your own rooms on Saturday morning until you have each completed an essay on the importance of compassion even for your enemies,” he anticipated Jesse’s protest and cut it off with his last words. “When you have completed your essays to my satisfaction, then and only then, you may be excused from your rooms. You may do what you like in the house and you may go to the Dining Hall at meal times once your essays have been completed, but you may go nowhere else.”

“What about practice?” Sean questioned tentatively.

“You may go to practice on Sunday, as long as your essays are done,” Matt replied quietly. “Any other questions?” The four companions shook their heads miserably. They knew arguing now would only make things worse. “All right then, see you this weekend,” Matt admonished and with that he headed for the stairs, leaving Danny and Ryan’s four thoroughly chastened compatriots to collect themselves as best as possible in his wake.

Matt cracked the door to his bedroom and peered inside, expecting to find his brothers waiting for him on the bed. They were not there, however, and feeling bewildered, Matt opened the door wider and stepped inside. ‘Where the hell are they?’ he thought as he looked around the indisputably empty room.

Still puzzled, he made his way over to his nightstand and opened the drawer. His heart ached a bit as his hand closed on the items he sought, and he tried not to dwell on their impending use as he closed the drawer once more. ‘Where are they?’ he wondered again irritably. It wasn’t like Danny and Ryan to run away from punishment. Delaying it would only make it worse as they well knew, and anyway, where would they go? ‘Unless . . . .’ The possibility struck Matt out of no where. ‘If they went to him, they’re dead!’ he thought.

It was no more like his younger brothers to beg for Steve’s intervention than it was for them to try and evade punishment at all, but then if they were not here in his room, where they had been told to go, where else could they possibly be? ‘They are so dead . . . !’ Matt thought again as he strode towards the door. He grew more and more confident of his assertion with each step he took, and his hand was on the doorknob before another more logical thought occurred to him ‘The door . . . the room had been unlocked . . . .’

He turned once more to scan the room and finally he saw it. His eyes fell on the small, almost imperceptible crack of the door just to the left of his bed, the door that led to the most dreaded room in the house, the room no one wanted to enter. Matt bit his lip, feeling a pang despite himself. Obviously, Danny and Ryan were acutely aware of the degree to which they were now in trouble; they had retreated to the one place where the sounds of their punishment could not be overheard.

‘What would make them do this?’ Matt thought in frustration as momentary empathy for his brothers prevailed. There were many ways in which Ryan and Danny could be a true pain in the ass, but they were not cruel hearted; they were not apt to pull a stunt like this without some sort of provocation. ‘Considering it’s Mcarthy,’ Matt continued to ponder, ‘there’s got to be something.’ Well, there was no point in dwelling on it. Matt sighed and attempted to steel himself as he approached the door and opened it. Endless speculation would do no good. There was only one way to get the answers to his questions, and whatever those answers were, two wrongs did not make a right. His younger brothers had an uncanny ability to charm, but Matt had never been susceptible to this particular power of theirs and he did not intend to be manipulated now; he was resolved.

It was a resolve he had to remind himself of as he pulled aside the black curtain separating the Correction Room from the Recovery Room. His two younger brothers were sitting side by side on the couch, but they were not looking at one another at all. Their heads were down and it was clear they were both fighting back tears. They did not look up as Matt entered, and he did not address them. He drew the curtain closed behind him and turned to face them, contemplating them quietly for a moment. Still without speaking, he moved to the center of the room and placed the paddle and timer along with the troublesome bottle of itching powder on the sturdy, if somewhat shabby looking, card table that stood there. He settled himself comfortably against the table, and a minute later, with a somewhat heavy heart, called Ryan to him. “Come here, Ry,” he commanded quietly.

Danny had been fighting desperately up to this point to maintain his composure, and now, as Ryan got to his feet, he placed his arms on the back of the couch and buried his face.

“How many times are we going to have to have this conversation, huh?” Matt began as Ryan came to a hesitant halt just outside his reach.

Ryan shrugged and looked away, his eyes welling. “You weren’t being fair,” he responded petulantly.

“Oh? And how’s that?” Matt replied.

“Because!” Ryan seethed. “They didn’t know anything, Matt! Danny and I did this on our own. Really it was my idea. Danny just went along with it and Sean, Jesse, Pat and Andy didn’t even know we were doing it . . . .”

“I know that,” Matt interjected quietly.

“You do??” Ryan looked back at him and swiped in frustration at the tears that were now rebelliously trickling down his cheeks. “Why are they in trouble then?” he choked.

“Because, Ry,” Matt’s tone was patient as he explained, “they were happy enough to laugh with you after the fact weren’t they?”

Ryan bit his lip and looked away once more. “Are you going to summon them?” he managed at last.

“No,” Matt replied softly. Immediately he could see some of the tension leave Ryan, and out of the corner of his eye he also saw Danny’s grip on the pillows relax a little. “Not unless, as I told them, I find out that they had more to do with this than I at present have reason to believe. But they are grounded this weekend and so are both of you.” This announcement received little to no reaction from Danny and Ryan. Nor had Matt expected much of one. The grounding, he knew, was far from unexpected and at the moment was likely to be the least of his younger brothers’ worries. As it was Friday evening already, they were probably wondering if after tonight they were even going to feel up to doing anything. Being grounded might very well seem like a kindness; it would give them a legitimate reason to hole up in their room and stay there. “Have you ever known me to be unfair?” Matt questioned quietly now. Ryan looked down, shifting his feet, uneasily. Danny just clutched the couch pillows tighter again. “Well have you?” Matt prompted after a minute when he had still received no answer. “If you think so, let’s talk about it.”

“No,” Ryan huffed at last, “I don’t think you’ve ever really been unfair.”

“And have I ever handed down consequences without checking the facts first?”

“No,” Ryan responded without hesitation.

“Then you had no cause to worry now, did you?” Matt asked gently.

Ryan bit his lip once again and his face flushed as he found himself trapped by his own honesty and his big brother’s straightforward line of questioning. “Sorry,” he mumbled. He took an involuntary step back as Matt stood up from the table, but he was not quick enough to evade his brother’s grasp. “No, Matt, please,” he tried to pull away as Matt took his arm firmly and drew him across the table. “Please,” he pleaded again as his older brother pinned his arm and lifted his t-shirt.

“Never, Little Man,” Matt scolded, “are you to ever talk to me the way you did down there just now. Do you hear me?”

“Ok!” Ryan groused, squirming under his big brother’s arm. “I’m sorry. Oww!” His face contorted as Matt’s big hand fell heavily against his bottom. At least a dozen more swift hard swats followed, all aimed directly at his sit spot and though Ryan wanted to take them quietly, he found it impossible to do so. Matt, after all, had the hands of a linebacker, and he was not playing around tonight.

Danny’s distress on his big brother’s behalf soon became audible, but even then Matt’s hand did not slow. It’s not that his heart was completely immune, but Ryan’s fresh mouth had already been a problem on more than one occasion, and Matt was determined to leave a lasting impression tonight. There were worse things than a hot bottom after all, and though Matt appreciated the fierce and protective loyalty Ryan displayed repeatedly on behalf of his brothers and friends, he was worried about the kid’s reactive tendencies. If he was unable to curb them now, they might one day get him in real trouble.

“Oww, Matt! Oww! Oww!” Ryan pressed his cheek hard against the table and gritted his teeth in an effort to hold back the tears.

“You do not talk back to me, Little Bro! Understand?” Matt finished with two extra hard swats to the backs of Ryan’s thighs.

“Ok!” Ryan blurted, standing up and grabbing his bottom as Matt released him.

“You want to try that again?” Matt prompted as his little brother looked mournfully at him.

“I’m sorry,” Ryan adjusted his tone as he rubbed the tender area.

“All right then, Bro, have a seat,” Matt indicated the couch where Danny was still sobbing into the pillows, “and let’s talk about this so called prank you boys played.”

“Can’t I just stand here?” Ryan griped. Matt raised his eyebrows and without repeating the direction, took hold of his little brother’s arm, hauling him forward. Ignoring the grimace on Ryan’s face, he gave him one more sound smack to the rear, and planted him firmly down next to Danny.

He then picked up the white bottle of itching powder and turned back to face his sniffling brothers. “All right boys,” he began, “you want to tell me what this was all about?” Danny still had his face hidden and would not look up, though, with his big brother beside him, his crying finally began to slow.

“What’d you do?” Ryan grumbled. “Go through our lockers?”

“No,” Matt returned quietly. “I did not go through your lockers.”

“So, somebody else went through them then,” Ryan accused, “and I know just who it was too. It was Brad wasn’t it? Is that how you found out about this? Brad went through our lockers?”

“It is not important how I found out,” Matt replied a little impatiently. “What is important is that THIS,” he brandished the bottle, “isn’t like you. You don’t do things like this for no reason, so why don’t you fill me in?” Ryan just scowled and looked away. “Come on guys,” Matt encouraged. He waited another moment but when he still got no reply he tried again. “Do you have any idea how mean this was . . . ?”

“You think we’re mean?” Ryan demanded, glowering once more at his oldest brother.

“I think what you did is a very uncharacteristically mean thing, yes,” Matt returned evenly, “but I do not think I’m getting the whole story. Tell me why you did this, Ry,” he coaxed.

Ryan looked away again, chewing hard on his lip. “What good would it do to tell you?” he inquired huskily. “You’re just going to punish us anyway.”

“Well, for one thing, if I know what’s going on I can hold Mcarthy accountable for his part,” Matt pointed out.

“Fat lot of good that’ll do,” Ryan muttered.

“And,” Matt chose to ignore him, “if I am sympathetic with your reasons I might see my way to taking a couple minutes off the sentence.” He picked up the timer and held it out so his little brothers could see. Danny turned his face just enough to look and then hid it on his arm again. Ryan swallowed hard and placed his arm around his little brother as Danny’s hand clenched in the soft thick material of the pillow. Five minutes. That would be the longest spanking either of them had ever gotten from their oldest brother.

“I can’t Matt,” Ryan whispered at last.

“Damn it, Ryan!” Matt exclaimed. “Why not? Why are you protecting him?”

“It’s not HIM I’m protecting!” Ryan countered, his eyes filling again as Danny curled against him.

“Well, I don’t want you to protect anybody, little bro!” Matt replied in exasperation. “Just tell me the truth about what’s going on, please!”

“What if it’s Steve?” Ryan asked softly, tightening his arm around Danny. Matt paused, his heart starting to beat faster as he looked into Ryan’s earnest face and contemplated the straightforward question. He pulled a wooden chair out from the table and sat heavily down, all the time looking his little brother in the eye. He leant forward on his knees, clasping his hands and pursing his lips as he tapped his thumbs together. “Is it Steve?” he asked at last.

“No,” Ryan replied tentatively.

“Ryan Justin Sanderson!” Matt exploded, knocking over his chair as he leapt out of it, and causing both his little brothers to shrink away from him. “You better stop playing games with me!” he warned as Danny pressed his face into Ryan’s shoulder. “You emptied a man’s medically prescribed and might I add very expensive powder and replaced it with itching powder! You did it on purpose, knowing what he used that powder for and you laughed about it with your friends afterwards. Now, you have brought Steve’s name into it. You better start talking and telling me what the hell this is all about or I promise you, both you and Danny are going to get a butt blistering tonight that you will not soon forget! Now what has Steve got to do with this?”

“Nothing,” Ryan croaked as he looked up at his older brother, his eyes swimming. “I was just asking hypothetically ok? Just forget it, Matt, please.”

“I will not ‘Just Forget It,’ Ryan!” Matt returned heatedly. “You know what Steve means to me!”

“It had nothing to do specifically with Steve, ok?” Ryan looked down, pinching the bridge of his nose.

“Oh,” Matt nodded in feigned comprehension. “I see. Now, it had nothing to do with Steve, huh? Well guess what, Bro, I don’t believe you.”

“It didn’t!” Ryan protested. “It really didn’t!” Matt looked thoughtfully at him and then shifted his gaze to his other sobbing brother. “Danny?” he prompted.

“It wasn’t about Steve,” Danny choked, nestling even closer to Ryan and refusing to look up.

“All right then, Ry,” Matt shifted his gaze once more. “Then what WAS it about? Specifically!”

“I can’t tell you, Matt, please!” Ryan pleaded. “I’m sorry I brought it up. Danny and I shouldn’t have done what we did, and I’m sorry. Please just let it go!”

Matt frowned. This penitent admission of guilt was more disturbing to him rather than less. If he had thought his brothers were hiding something before, now he was sure. They were hiding something that involved Steve in some way. Of that, he was equally sure. He could see though that whatever it was they were determined to keep it to themselves at all costs. Matt knew how stubborn his little brothers were. If they had made up their minds, there was nothing he could do. But why? Why? That was the question that most disturbed him. Danny and Ryan were mischievous, but not deceitful. What was it they were hiding, and why were they so determined to keep it from him? There was more to this prank than he was going to find out right now, but he was the president and he had his ways. If Danny and Ryan wouldn’t tell him, there were others who would; he was sure. In the meantime, his younger brothers had worked themselves up far enough. There was no point in prolonging this any longer.

“I am very disappointed in both of you,” he began at last quietly. “Whatever is going on, and make no mistake, I will learn the truth sooner rather than later, you have made poor choices from beginning to end about how to handle it. It is clear to me that you both understand why you are in trouble, so I will only add that I do not want to see or hear of either of you behaving in such a lowly manner to Mcarthy or anyone else in this fraternity ever again. Such behavior is beneath you! Do I make myself clear?” Ryan and Danny both nodded, and Matt continued. “All right then, for the joke itself, you are both going to get a spanking. You will repay Mcarthy the money he spent for his prescription, and you will be doing all his chores for the next month in addition to yours; for the next two weekends you are grounded. For the bit of fun you had at Mcarthy’s expense after the fact, you are both also both also going to receive a paddling. I was going to give you 5 licks a piece, but seeing as you also feel it necessary to keep things from me you can both now count on eight.”

Matt turned to pick up the chair he had knocked over and Ryan swallowed hard as Danny burrowed deeper into his shoulder. It was a stiff sentence. Certainly the stiffest Danny had received since The Meeting,’ he thought as Matt set the chair upright again and sat down, placing the timer on the table where it was within reach and he could see it. ‘It was quite possibly the stiffest he had received as well since his own ritualistic punishment. Well, he didn’t care; that is, he wouldn’t care if he hadn’t gone and gotten his little brother involved. It was so hard to see Danny in trouble, and this had so not been Danny’s idea. It had been his all the way.’

“Come here, Danny,” Matt called softly, and Ryan tightened his arm again as Danny clung to him.

“Just get it over with, Bro,” he whispered. “Just close your eyes and get it over with.” He laid his cheek against the top of Danny’s head and squeezed his shoulder.

“Daniel Jordan let’s go!” Matt had little patience for the fussing and carrying on that only prolonged punishments and made them worse.

“Five minutes isn’t that long, Bud,” Ryan tried to assure as Danny, not daring to delay any longer, got shakily to his feet. “It’s ok,” he continued to comfort as his little brother turned wretchedly away from him, and approached their older brother. His throat tightened all the same, and he hung his head, pressing his face into his hands as his eyes burned. He was responsible for this. Five minutes might not be very long in real time, but in spanking time it would feel like forever.

“Take your pants down, Bro,” Matt directed gently as his youngest brother stopped in front of him and tried to pull himself together. Danny’s fingers went fumblingly to the top of his jeans and Ryan clutched his head, burying his face on his knees. “Take them all the way down,” Matt admonished as his little brother paused, his pants halfway down his legs. “We’re taking them all the way down today, Bud,” Matt repeated firmly as Danny looked at him beseechingly. The realization that he was in as much trouble as he could possibly be in, barring an official summons, brought on a fresh burst of involuntary sobs even as Danny obediently did as he was told and the sounds of his anguish were too much for the heart and conscience of his big brother behind him. Danny finished pulling his pants and underwear to his ankles as instructed. Then, as Matt pulled him down over his knees and positioned him to receive the maximum benefit of the scathing correction he was about to administer, Ryan pressed himself into the farthest corner of the couch and pulled the pillows tightly over his ears.

The next half hour was agonizing for the fraternity president’s little brothers. Matt registered every ounce of his serious disappointment in a, as promised, blistering hand spanking that left Danny and Ryan sniveling and dancing in their respective corners, wondering if they would ever be able to sit again. He followed that by bending them each in turn over the arm of the sofa for eight punishing blows of the paddle that caused them to howl in such a way that robbed them of whatever small shreds of dignity their corner time had helped them to recover. Of course, by then, neither of Matt’s brothers was thinking of such small things as dignity. Their minds were too preoccupied with the desperate wish for the agony to end.

No one, after all, was there to witness their degradation and the sound proof quality of the room would prevent anyone from hearing. As for one another, they were not ashamed to share their disgrace. Sharing punishments this way had made them closer, and as upset as their big brother might be with them, Matt, they knew, would never act in such a way that would compromise them to the fraternity as a whole. What happened here in this room tonight and any night would stay in this room. The punishment would clear the air between them and their oldest brother, and of the incident that led to it, nothing more would be said.

“All right guys, it’s over,” Matt’s voice was gentle as he looked down at his distraught and emotionally exhausted brothers. They were on their knees now, their faces buried in the cushions of the sofa as they both tried futilely to rub the fire from their crimson bottom cheeks and thighs. “Try to pull yourselves together a bit. I have to go talk to someone, but I will be back shortly. Do not leave. You will need to make your apologies to Gregg when I return and then you may go to your room. All right?” He got no response. “Hey . . . .” Matt called them softly as he slid the curtain back and finally they looked up at him. “You can both be a total pain in the ass,” Matt chided affectionately with a small smile, “and you damn well know that. But I hope you also know how happy I am, even on nights like tonight, that you are my little brothers. Do you know that?” Danny ran his sleeve across his eyes and nodded as he hid his face once more and Ryan also managed a little nod of acknowledgement before he too turned his face back into the crook of his arm.

Matt sighed and drew the curtain closed behind him as he turned towards the door of the Correction Room. He had meant what he said. He was not happy with Danny and Ryan at the moment. He did not appreciate being lied to, but whatever their reasons were he knew his little brothers felt they were good ones. In their minds, Matt suspected, they were protecting the people they cared about and as exasperating as that was, Matt understood it. He understood it and admired it. Their empathy and affection for others was a characteristic that separated Danny and Ryan from many of their classmates and had played a big part in getting them selected into the president’s line to begin with. In a fraternity of football players, it was too often the Gregg Mcarthy’s of the world who ruled. ‘Well, not on my watch,’ Matt thought determinedly.

Quietly he made his way from the room, his mind occupied now with the different ways he could possibly begin what he feared might be a very difficult conversation with the guy who had for four years been his very best friend in the world. Still in his distracted state, he stopped by the mini-fridge in his room before proceeding into the hallway. The best way to begin conversations such as this was always with an offering of beer.

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