Scottie was an ideal high school senior. Clean-cut, polite, adorably friendly, and cute in a way that girls would flirtatiously giggle as he passed by. Although Scottie wasn’t forthcoming about being gay, most of the students knew, but no one cared.
He lived in a small rural town where everyone knew each other and their business. His neighbors often referred to him as “raised right” as he was always eager to help anyone in need.
A self-proclaimed comic books nerd and horror fan, Scottie stayed mainly to himself and focused on his passion for movies and reading. In school, he was well-liked but not popular. The most popular boy in school was Brock Livingston. Brock was a swoon-worthy stud, tall, beefy, and beautiful. He was the all-American boy everyone wanted to be with.
Brock’s main interests seemed to be only sports, partying, and hanging out with his “bros.” He didn’t seem interested in one particular girl. It was known that he had the pick of the litter and was too much of a gentleman to kiss and tell who his conquests were.
Of all the townsfolk who admired Brock, no one was a bigger fan of his than Scottie. The two boys have been friendly acquaintances since grade school. Scottie always suspected Brock was secretly more of a nerd than the hunky jock-boy type he portrayed. He also knew that Brock was very aware of his own reputation, and he would most likely hang out with his “bros” on the sports teams he played with far more than a dorky gay student. For that reason, Scottie did not talk to him.
***
With graduation upon them and summer about to start, parades, prom, and parties were in full swing. Scottie knew that most parties came and went without him ever knowing about them. Most young people would be upset by not being included in school events, but Scottie didn’t mind. He had his hobbies to keep him company and believed that his time was best served by studying for the exams to ensure he got into a prestigious college.
One day, on his way home from class, Scotty overheard his class’s president, Pricilla, standing with a bunch of girls cackling about the church’s auction that upcoming Sunday. Pricilla was a dark-haired, imposing girl with a loud voice and dominating presence. She was also clever and funny and commanded an audience wherever she went.
Scottie smiled hello at the group as he walked by. He could hear her loud proclamation that it would be a “memorable weekend.” Pricilla boasted that there was a big fund-raiser coming up on Saturday at the local parish. Donations of gifts, services, and crafts were being accepted to raise money, but none of the items were as desirable as the auctioning of a “dream date” with several of the more popular students.
“Oh my god, could you imagine going on a date with Brock? I would die before he even picked me up!” One girl screamed, prompting a burst of laughter from Pricilla and her friends.
Scottie was intrigued. “What’s going on? Who is being auctioned when and where?” He pretended to be more interested in the event than in his opportunity to see Brock.
“This Sunday at St. William! They’re auctioning off the entire football team and the cheerleaders to raise money.” Without missing a beat, Pricilla sharply queried, “Which football player are you planning on bidding on, Scottie?”
The girls erupted into a burst of laughter, intending to embarrass Scottie.
Without flinching, he replied, “I’ll probably bid on the entire team. Why stop at one hot jock when I could date a dozen?” he sarcastically asserted.
The girls howled with laughter, “Oh my God, you’re right! No need to be selfish about it. Maybe we could join you?”
Scottie joined them in their laughter. “Fine,” he responded. “But I warn you; you’ll need to share my leftovers.”
Pricilla smirked at Scottie, seemingly to show approval of his statement. Scottie then continued along his way, proud he wasn’t intimidated by the girls.
****
Sunday morning came, and although Scottie rarely attended church, he would be sure to go today. He was excited to watch the auction and eager to get a glimpse of his dream man, Brock.
***
The whole town came out for the fund-raiser. The packed auditorium buzzed with the anticipation of bidding on an evening with some of the school’s most popular boys and girls. The excitement was palpable as everyone settled in for the show.
A hush fell over the crowd as the auctioneer stood up at the podium and invited the participants up on stage. Murmurs and whispers abound as the anticipation of who would be paired up with whom and how much money they would raise for the church.
The first student took their turn to be auctioned. It was Kaitlyn, the head cheerleader. She wore a cute, tight outfit that seemed racy for church. As the bidding began, the boys hooted and howled as they competed for a date with her. The event was good-natured fun, and the crowd enjoyed the spectacle.
After Kaitlyn, it was one of the football player’s turn to step up to the stage; like with Kaitlyn, there was hollering and whistling as the girls got their turn to bid on the boy.
Each team member and cheer squad were eventually auctioned off—each raising a few hundred dollars for the church.
Soon the event would be over, but there was only one more student to bid on, and that was Brock. Scottie was intrigued to see who the lucky girl who got to go on a date with him would be and was curious how much Brock would raise.
Brock took his turn and stepped to the front of the stage. He was wearing tight jeans and Chuck Taylor sneakers. He wore his football jersey that accented his broad shoulders and hulking arms. A collective gasp from the audience confirmed that Scottie wasn’t the only one in the audience who approved of the sight before them.
The auctioneer started the auction, and a bid came in instantly for $100. It came from Karen Mullhoney, one of the most popular girls in school. It was no surprise that she would bid on Brock. The entire school knew how she felt about him. Everyone expected she would ultimately win the date.
The next bid was from Sandra, a no-nonsense goth girl. The crowd murmured in surprise. People wondered why Sandra would bid against Karen. Scottie guessed her offer was not intended to win a date with Brock but rather to spite Karen. The two girls had a discrete lifelong rivalry, and it was now becoming more evident to the town.
Bidding between the two girls quickly reached $500, and the crowd became eager to see who would win. Suddenly, and without warning, Pricilla did something that shocked everyone.
Without provocation, she announced loudly. “Scottie, we all know that you’d rather go on a date with Brock. Why don’t you bid on him?”
A hundred eyes instantly turned and focused on Scottie. He was in shock.
WHAT HAD JUST HAPPENED? How did he get brought into this? What should I do?
He thought quickly. He knew if he retreated now, it would make matters worse.
Own it. Be honest and make a joke out of it. That’s the best way to diffuse this awkward situation.
“I’d love to bid on Brock, but $500 bucks is a lot. Who has that kind of money?”
The audience erupted with laughter. Scottie felt instantly better. Maybe he just got away with this dreadfully tricky situation.
The auctioneer attempted to lock the last bid as he barked, “$500 once…. $500 twice….”
A voice called out above the crowd. “HOLD IT ONE MINUTE. Let the boy bid!”
Scottie was shocked again. Why would anyone say that? What was he going to do?
Suddenly, the sweet older gentleman seated next to him tapped him on the shoulder and handed him a fist full of money: tens, the twenties, and single dollar bills. A minute later, the woman to his left-handed him even more money.
What was going on? It baffled Scott.
Soon his friends and neighbors were all passing money through the crowd toward him to help him put in a bid for a date.
The money kept flowing towards him, as did the crowd’s reassuring nods, winks, and smiles.
The auctioneer was aware of what was happening, as were Sandra and Karen. Everyone sat quietly to support Scottie and eagerly awaited his next move.
Scottie took the handful of money and stood up. He called up to the auctioneer.
“I do not know how much money is here, but I could tell you it’s a lot. I’m going to bid it all for an evening with Brock!”
The auctioneer slammed his gavel and shouted, “SOLD, to the young man in the back for a boatload of cash!”
The auditorium applauded as Scottie chuckled at the ridiculousness of the situation. Brock stood on stage, confused about what had just happened. He did, however, know that he now had a date with Scottie on Saturday night.
***
Saturday night arrived. It was the evening of his date with Brock. Scottie couldn’t believe Brock was actually going through with tonight. He was impressed that Brock was a good sport about everything.
Scottie couldn’t help but be nervous as if this were an actual date. He did his best to primp and prepare. Even though it was just a silly formality, he wanted to look good when he met Brock.
Before Saturday, Brock texted him, confirming his prize. The text was simple and to the point. It read, “Congrats on winning the auction. You won a night with me, so wanna come to my place? I’ll order a pizza.”
Scottie assumed Brock was attempting to avoid being seen in public on a date with another boy, so he just replied, “Sure, pizza sounds great.”
***
Scottie arrived at Brock’s house at the arranged time. Brock answered the door looking like the sexy hunk that he was.
God, why does this man have to be so hot? This is going to make things so much more difficult for me, Scottie thought.
It surprised Scottie that Brock was the only one home. He explained, “My folks are at our lake house this weekend. I forgot we were going away when I agreed to the auction. Want a beer or wine or something. They have a full bar.”
Scottie thought to himself; I’ll have a quick slice and get out of here. Best to let this stud off the hook as quickly as possible.
“I’ll drink anything,” Scottie replied, attempting to be easy.
“Pizza is Italian food. You’re supposed to have wine with Italian, so let’s do that.”
Brock opened a bottle of wine and escorted Scottie to the dining room table. The table was set modestly but thoughtfully with linen napkins and silverware.
“I’ll pour the wine, and the pizza is in the kitchen. Let me grab it.” It impressed Scottie at how thoughtful Brock was being. He could have easily been weird about tonight, but he had a great sense of humor and was surprisingly eager and considerate.
Brock initialed the conversation as the two young men sat at the table. “That was some crazy shit at the church the other day.”
Scottie swallowed a bite of pepperoni pizza as he replied, “Yeah, that was nuts, right? I have to say; I’m grateful and impressed with how you handled that whole thing.”
Brock simply stated, “It flattered me that I could raise the most money for the church and now get to know you better. Can you believe we’ve known each other since kindergarten and never really hung out?”
“Well, your interests are a lot different from mine. It’s only natural,” Scottie humbly answered.
Brock didn’t miss a beat as he replied, “No offense, but you don’t know my interests. They may not be so different from yours after all.”
Brock looked at Scottie with an intense gaze that made Scottie oddly uncomfortable.
Finally, Brock spoke again, breaking the silence, “Dude, you’re so oblivious; I’m the one who told Priscilla to have you bid on me at the auction… it was my friends who started passing you the money so that you could pay to bid on me!”
IS THIS A JOKE? Scottie wondered.
Scottie was speechless. He sat silently until Brock again interrupted the quiet.
“I hope I didn’t overstep. It’s just that you’re impossible to get hold of in school. You always seem to slip away when I try to talk to you.”
Scottie knew he was right. He did head in the other direction when he saw Brock. But it wasn’t because he wasn’t interested in him. He was just afraid he’d embarrass himself by saying something silly.
Brock refilled the wine glasses and helped himself to another slice, and then he put one on Scottie’s plate.
Scottie looked at the pizza and then at Brock.
“You know, suddenly I’m not in the mood for any more pizza.”
Brock’s face was stunned. He instantly thought he ruined the evening by being too forward or revealing his crazy plan to get Scottie to go on a date with him.
Scottie pushed his plate away as he stood and inquired. “Would you mind if we skipped dinner and went straight to the desert? Suddenly I’m in the mood for something sweet.”
Brock wholeheartedly agreed and asked, “How’s this?” as he tenderly grasped Scottie’s hand and escorted him to the nearby couch.
“Alexa, play the band, Satin Martini,” Brock’s request for hip and melodic lounge music instantly set a romantic tone.
“Dude, I love that band!” Scottie commented enthusiastically.
“I told you we had more in common than you thought,” Brock teased as he friskily pinned Scottie down on the couch. Brock’s mammoth body rested on top of him while his mouth eagerly consumed Scottie’s hungry lips.
Brock’s powerful body felt amazing as he grinded against Scottie’s pelvis. This mountainous jock couldn’t be more powerful yet tender as he grasped Scottie by the back of the head and enthusiastically pulled him towards him, kissing him more passionately than before.
Soon after, they made their way to Brock’s bedroom, where they eagerly stripped off each other’s clothes and tumbled into the bed together.
The two young men’s tireless endless lovemaking session continued late into the evening.
The following morning, as Scottie lay quietly, peacefully laid in bed looking at Brock blissfully sleep, he couldn’t help but think to himself, —- I really need to go to the church’s functions more often.
