The talking in the backseat hit a lull as we got closer to the river. Glancing back, I could see two of the pledges exchanging nervous looks. I couldn’t blame them. In the pitch black of night, it was hard to imagine what they had coming. I caught the eyes of the third pledge. Unlike his comrades, he looked anything but nervous. His brown eyes sparkled with excitement and eagerness. He winked at me appraisingly and I shook my head. A fearless freshman. Very soon we would see if he still had his confidence.
Eventually, Melissa pulled off the road and drove down a path that was lined with mostly bare trees. In the darkness, everything looked spooky and had a sinister feel to it. Even the moon seemed to be teasing us by barely peeking out behind the clouds that were hanging low in the sky.
The dirt road was laced with ruts and protruding roots, making us bounce uncomfortably in our seats. We were relieved when the road finally ended abruptly near the water’s edge. Melissa parked next to a line of other cars that were facing the water with their headlights on. Climbing from the vehicle, I spotted a row of rafts that were already blown up and ready to go on the shore’s edge. Obviously, Sigma Pi was not taking any chances on this stunt going awry.
The pledges in our car piled out, following Melissa and me toward the rest of the group. The ground beneath our feet was damp, making our feet squish through the mud. I grimaced for my heels that would most likely be ruined. Mr. Brown-Eyed Flirt from the ride over chivalrously held on to my elbow, helping me walk.
“Thanks,” I said, indulgently smiling at his hopeful face. He was cute, with warm brown eyes and dimples in each cheek, but definitely not my type. Despite my original assessment, I could tell he was likely an all-around good guy.
“I’m David,” he said.
“Too young,” I replied.
“What?” He looked confused.
“I don’t date freshmen. Not even when I was a freshman.”
“So, you’re telling me you’re a freshman hater?”
“Not a hater. Just not a dater.”
“Ha, that’s funny. You don’t know what you’re missing, though,” he said, releasing my arm as we joined the others.
“I have a pretty good idea,” I answered, grinning. His persistence was cute, I’d give him that. “You better join your friends before you blow your chance,” I added before I could give in to his boyish charms.
“Maybe we can hang out after,” he persisted, winking at me again before jogging off to join the others.
I shook my head. Can’t blame him for trying, I guess.
The group was rowdy by the time I joined it. There was a lot of ribbing and pushing as they let off steam waiting for Steve’s instructions. Several of the guys bounced around trying to stay warm. As if the night wanted to punish them further, a cold gust of wind blew through the trees. The half-dressed crew seemed to shiver as one. I felt their pain. It was downright cold near the water. I was thankful for once that this was a prank I wouldn’t be taking part in. Melissa must have had the same sentiments since we both zipped up our jackets and stuffed our hands into our pockets at the same time.
“All right, asswipes. This last challenge is easy enough. When I blow the whistle, each of you w
ill grab a raft and an oar and head downriver. The takeout is about two miles away. The first five to make it will earn their places in the fraternity. Simple as that. Before you crybabies start whining, this rapid is not even a class-three rating. They take kids on this run.” His words seemed unnecessary judging by the roughhousing and taunts being thrown out.
It was obvious the pledges were raring to go. That is, until Steve lowered the final boom.
“One last thing. You’ll be competing in your birthday suits.”
Groans filled the air.
“You heard me. Drop your banana holders and shed those jackets.”
My eyes found David, who winked at me again. He held my stare as he hooked his fingers around the waistband of his Speedo, lowering it slightly to reveal more of the small trail of hair that ran down his abdomen.
His eyes remained locked on my face as he grinned confidently. Cocky was more like it.
Not one to back down, I watched as he gently slid his Speedo to his ankles before kicking it off. He stood before us in all his naked glory without an ounce of embarrassment. Not that he had anything to be embarrassed about, I discovered, as I looked him over appraisingly before turning away nonchalantly. He was built and had a six-pack that I wouldn’t mind exploring with my tongue, but I didn’t date freshmen. That rule was written in stone.
The other pledges weren’t nearly as daring as young David. They stared at Melissa and me like they were expecting us to turn around, but neither of us gave any indication of caring. They wouldn’t be showing us anything we hadn’t seen before.
After a few more grumbles, they finally conceded and stripped. I pulled out my phone, taking several pictures of the makeshift male revue, but had to crop them right above their junk. I didn’t want to get my Instagram account shut down for posting nudie pictures.
I had just finished posting and giving Melissa the full credit for one of the pictures when Steve blew the whistle. I snapped one last picture of their white asses as each of the pledges scrambled to grab a raft and an oar. There was a lot of pushing and shoving, along with hooting and hollering from the onlookers. It was as hilarious as I thought it would be.
Even with several headlights lighting the area, it was hard to see in the dark, but we knew when the first raft hit the water by the sound of the splash. Within seconds, several other splashes followed by a string of cursing rang through the night as the pledges got their first feel of the ice-cold water. They’d be lucky if their nuts didn’t freeze off. The fraternity brothers on shore seemed unconcerned about the temperatures. Judging by their laughter and congratulations to each other, they were satisfied with their well-executed prank.
Once the last raft hit the water, we all piled back into our vehicles so we could join everyone else at the finish line. The ride was short, and Melissa and I traded notes on who had the best body based on what we had seen. We were laughing about what the cold water would be doing to them when Melissa pulled into a lot that was nearly packed full with cars. It looked like most of the party had showed up.