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He’s a few years older than me, wearing a finely tailored blue suit with a gold lion pin on his lapel. Under his withering gaze, my eyes fall and I note the fine leather of his brown lace-up dress shoes.
“Uhm, could I interest you in a... novelty?” I mutter, not meaning for him to hear. But given the faint growl emanating from him, he heard every word.
Ah, fuck.
CHAPTER3
CHANCE
Ten minutes ago...
Straightening my blue blazer, I pause for a moment to affix my club pendant to my lapel and clear my throat in preparation for my speech. Once upon a time, I would’ve been a bag of nerves having to speak in front of a large crowd, but today, I feel as cool as a cucumber.
Might be the shot of brandy I had half an hour ago. But more likely, it’s the years of speaking experience under my belt.
I feel pumped and ready while listening to my business partner, Evan White, come to the end of his speech to the slightly bored crowd of college-age young men. It’s not Evan’s fault they’re bored. He’s just not who they’re here to see.
I am.
“There’s not a man in history who hasn’t needed a wingman,” Evan says, smiling as he looks out into the crowd. He’s tall and dark-haired, dressed in a crisp black suit, and his gold lionhead club pin gleams under the spotlight. There’s a reason he’s the lead-in and I’m the star of our two-man show. His skills are top-notch on paper, tracking our growth, budgets, contracts, and more.
I’m the dreamer with the charisma to bring people in.
“Kobe needed Shaq. Brady needed Gronk. Maverick needed Goose. And I’m in the same boat. Without our next speaker, I wouldn’t have gotten where I am today, and the Gentlemen’s Club wouldn’t be over four hundred members strong and growing by the day. Without question, he is one of the smartest, most thoughtful men I know, an exceptional business partner, and an even greater friend. He’s passionate and cares about our shared vision, and most of all, he cares about all of you and your future. For a lot of you, he’s been a great counselor and mentor, and he has been equally as such to me. So, without further ado, I hand the stage to the President of the Gentlemen's Club, Chance Harrington.”
The applause and whoops that ensue from the crowd fill me with fire as I purposefully walk to the center of the stage where Evan pulls me into a brief ‘bro’ hug, pounding on my back three times.
“Do your thing,” Evan whispers to me in support. I nod firmly once, letting him know I’ve got this, and he steps from the stage to sit off to the side, ready to watch me work.
Stepping behind the podium and focusing on the crowd, I can see the group almost leaning forward, eager to hear what I have to say. I haven’t said a word and they’re already eating out of the palm of my hand, so I’d better make this good.
“Thank you for that wonderful introduction, Evan,” I start off and then glance back to the audience. “But we all know you get paid to wax poetic about my amazingness and not mention my egregious flaws. Not that I have any.”
I wink comedically and pause for the good-natured laughter at my self-deprecating joke. Evan chuckles too, holding a finger to his lips as though telling me to keep quiet about that. We’ve done this back and forth for a long time, and bouncing off one another this way is second nature at this point.
“Seriously, though, we all come here today with strengths, weaknesses, needs, and desires. Each combination is as unique as the individual. Sitting in this room, looking over your faces, I see some I know and some I don’t know... yet. But each face is that of someone important. Look to your right, your left, behind you, in front of you.” I wait, giving them a second to scan the room and then return their eyes to me. “The men you see around you all have dreams, just like you. Maybe it’s to be a doctor or lawyer, mayor or governor, or hell, even the President of the United States. Or maybe it’s something closer to your heart.” I touch my own chest. “To be a husband, father, leader. An example for future generations to aspire to be like.”
I can see it happen across the room. They’re invested in what I’m saying, in the moment, and most importantly, in themselves.
“Today, we live in a different world from that of our fathers. Truth is, they lived in a different world from their fathers too. It’s a never-ending march of change. Unfortunately, too many in this generation have been led astray.
There are those who would have you believe that young men of today’s generation, like you, are victims. That the changing times have progressed us to a place where your very existence is rejected on a daily basis. That there is no hope left for you in society because women have become too powerful, holding all the cards in relationships and sex, as well as in the boardroom and business. Thatthey, women, are your enemy.”
A murmur works through the room. I can see some disagreeing already, while others seem to be agreeing with the sentiment. Those are the men I need to reach.
“I propose that women aren’t the enemy. Instead, the enemy lies within us. Look around the internet, on social media, or even in the darker corners to individuals who exploit and manipulate vulnerable young men. They preach divisive, hateful, toxic messages. You know the buzzwords because some of them have worked their way into our everyday speech. Alpha, Sigma, Beta... listening to these people, you’d think we were all part of some giant fraternity fest. But the majority of these hatemongers are in it for profit. Some of them—”
“Like Jake McGibbons!” someone in the crowd shouts, interrupting me and causing laughs and snickers all around the room.
I frown at the name. Jake McGibbons is a popular, so-called men’s advocate who gives advice to young men. That’s not so bad in itself. In effect, it’s what I do too.
And on the surface, some of his ‘advice’ is legit. Push yourself to be the best you can be. Invest in your future. Exercise.
But it’s the toxic foundation of his messaging that’s the problem. With his aggressive delivery and superficial presentation, he makes sense to a fragile, insecure young mind who desperately wants control over not only his own life, but to be ‘over’ others, catering to his followers’ desires to be superior.
All hope isn’t lost, though.
It’s one of the reasons I do what I do, creating and running the Gentlemen’s Club as an alternative to people like Jake McGibbons. I want to fight against these dangerous narratives and help young men see their true potential rather than falling for seductive messaging that places the blame solely on others, causing resentment and hatred to fester.
