I felt so alone in a small city until I met him…(“Then He Kissed Me” by The Crystals begins to play). It was a Saturday night. I peered from the downtown-parking garage to a street full of restaurants and bars filled with self-denial and the denial towards others at its core. I had already figured this out being that I felt smothered by the artificial layers of happiness the small city had offered its citizens. The idea that family was the strongest bond was a joke. Women having affairs at home, while their men had affairs in public bathrooms. No real bond was between her or him or with their children, who were playing videos games to cope. The idea that this small city was a family was a joke. I wasn’t even accepted in my own family. I was gay and I didn’t want to hide who I was. I was lonely. He was constantly trying to show me he was there for me, but I was always lost in my head with rejection. I could barely enjoy the relationship. I was escaping reality for ...

The boy pledges anxiously struggled as their bodies were being placed somewhere. They couldn’t see. They couldn’t move. Their mouths covered by duct tape. They were used to the constant routine and torture by now. Thankfully, it was the last day, the last night. “Alright brothers!” Brad spoke from the sound room in the balcony of the auditorium. “You can take the fags’ blindfolds off and their lipstick!” Every year, fraternity presidents took pride in their initiations for their new members. The initiations weren’t usually as intense as this year, but with each new president came their memories of humiliation. Some past presidents were a bit more compassionate than others, but Brad was from Texas. “Fags, I assume you can hear me?” “Yes, oh-wonderful-handsome-god Brad,” the boys said in unison. A spotlight flicked on revealing Vince, Sid, and Dave standing on stage. Vince in his boxers, Sid in his briefs, and Dave in a jockstrap that he was sure wasn’...

Being a man has nothing to do with a penis, nor a weapon.  Frankly, it is hard to make constant good use of either. There are many penises and many weapons in the world and very few men control them. If I had to choose between a penis, a gun, or a brain; I choose the brain. The instant gratification is longer, you can control other two, and you’re never left with a blank shot.