Date: Sat, 8 Nov 2014 04:10:44 +0700 From: Robert Glass <robxglass@gmail.com> Subject: The Virgin Joseph part 28 All right reserved. Any unauthorized use is prohibited. This is a fiction. Any resemblance to people and/or events is coincidental. If reading this deemed illegal to you, I implore you to stop. If it offends you, please do not read on. Donate: http://donate.nifty.org/donate.html PART 28 They're all tired. Justin and Norah moved in the day before and that day, on Saturday, they finished their unpacking. Tom was the only one who still had the energy to jump around and do the little thing like putting all the plates in the cabinet or setting up the TV; and he was the one who carried and moved all the big and heavy furniture. Tom was the fittest of them after all. Now he was back to the living room with three bottles of beer and a glass of water. "Thank you," the rest said. It was most appreciated. "Where's Diaz?" Joe asked his brother. "He'll be here on Monday. He still have things to do at the old shop before leaving." "Who's Diaz?" Tom asked. "He's someone Justin tried to set up with Joe once," Norah said. "The thing is, Justin seemed to forget that you have to set up two guys with similar interests, not personalities." "I'm sorry, okay," Justin whined. Norah laughed at his fiancé's expense. Justin was the worst at matchmaking. "He's also the chef." "He prefers the term 'cook.' He's rather modest about his skills." "Much like Joe," Norah added. "He's also grumpy, like Joe. He's sarcastic, like Joe. He's reserved until you crack the shell open, like Joe. And Justin treats him like a little brother, even though he's his age." "And we didn't have anything else in common. I can't talk about gadget stuff or design stuff with him, and he can't talk about food or politics with me. It was a disaster," Joe said at his turn to rain Justin with evidences of his mistake. "Plus he was older and more mature while I was just a kid." "I said I'm sorry," Justin laughed. They talked about Diaz for a while after. How they wished it didn't happen and how Joe never really gotten that close to Diaz at all. Justin had the best intention, he saw the two was single and that they have similar ways of thinking. He thought it would be nice if his favourite brother would end up with his right-hand man. That was just a thought... thankfully. "From the looks of it, I don't think we can come to Amy's show," Joe said to Tom who were opening another bottle of beer. "We still have three hours until the show. It's enough to take a rest," Tom said. "It's not going to cut it. I need to die for three hours to recover from all this," Joe said. Justin smacked him on the head for that. From the looks of it, Justin didn't like his brother joking about anything related to Joe leaving again. "You can't die. We have to get you home and cleaned up for tonight," Tom said chuckling. Joe stretched his arm towards Tom, and in a damsel in distress voice he said, "Carry me, my prince!" Which brought another wave of laughter. "What? You want to leave now? I just opened this." Tom pointed at his beer. "Just chug it down, I'll drive," Joe said. "You can't drive anyway, you've been drinking nothing but beer all day." "Leaving so soon?" Justin asked. He massaged Joe's shoulder like he used to back in Birmingham. It confirmed the notion that Justin didn't want his brother to leave. It had been a year after all; all he wanted was to have his favourite brother around. "Yeah, I need a shower. Or a bath. Preferably a bath." "You can do it here." "I don't like getting naked in a foreign place and I don't have any change of clothes," Joe explained, short and curt. It sounded unfriendly, but the three in the room knew that Joe was only being himself; being clear and concise. "Stay here, then, for a while. Make this your home." "And how long do you think I would last?" Joe than glanced at Norah, too, indicating something; something that only the three of them knows. "Don't look at me," Norah protested. "He's the loud one." "You both are," Joe refuted. "Oh my god. I don't know how you guys can talk so freely about sex like this." Tom groaned on the side line, being made completely uncomfortable by the topic at hand. "And I thought you were a prude." "Who's talking about sex?" Joe asked. "They snore, like a couple of ogres." Tom's face reddened immediately. He misinterpret the whole thing. "Oh my god. I'm sorry." "I'm just messing with you. I was talking about sex," Joe added. Everyone laughed. "Joey!" Tom whined. "I'm sorry." That apology didn't seem too sincere when coupled with a hearty cackle. "It was too easy." "You're gonna pay for this." A smile crept into Tom's face, he could not help but to get amused as well. "To be fair, they snore too. Right guys?" "We do," the couple said simultaneously. There's no use in denying that. "Anyway, we have to go now. One of us will send you the map later," Joe said. Joe stood up, Norah and Justin too. Hugs everywhere. "Thanks for the help, guys. We're gonna need your hands again next week," Justin said. "I can't believe you're opening a new shop. Here. Next week." Joe smiled, proud of his brother's achievement and happy that he was to stay. "We got lucky." Luck was indeed the factor. It's near impossible to find an apartment and a shop, ones that had no utility problem, in the middle of Chicago, in just two months, and at decent prices. It fits very well with Justin's emergency timeline if not late by only a week or two. Since Norah had to start working sooner, she had moved earlier where she stayed at a hotel for a couple of weeks. Justin tagged along to check out the listings he found online. Now they were moved in. The gay couple said their goodbyes to the straight couple where they shares a lot more hugs and good wishes. Hugging people wasn't strange to Tom at all, he was a hug monster. Seeing Joe being so much more affectionate than before was another thing. It shouldn't feel weird, Joe hugged Tom all the time so seeing Joe hug his family should look normal. Still, it's Joe, hugging people liberally. Tom smiled. He was staring at the man who stood next to him in the confined space of the elevator. It was heartening to see how far Joe came. Joe is happy now. Tom took Joe's hand in his and brought it to his lips. He kissed it with all the tenderness his loving heart could muster. "Taking things slow, are we?" Joe smirked. "We have sex almost every day. Kissing your hand is the least of our concern." "Do you think we should still taking it slow? It's been a month, and as you said, it hasn't been all that slow anyway." "In that case, I don't think we can go faster than this," Tom said, raising his eyebrows at his lover. "No, we can't." Joe smiled. "I love you, Tommy." "I love you too, Joey." And the elevator door opened. Joe was the faster walker and he pulled Tom with him on their still linked hands. It's a nice view from back there. The shorter man had his hair untamed, never mind the hair cut he just gotten the week before. His shoulder blades made a protrusion on the striped grey and blue long-sleeved t-shirt, those that Tom enjoyed kissing when he tops Joe. Which reminded Tom to glance down, at the plump ass hidden behind a pair of rather loose fitting jeans. Tom cursed at how easily he gets turned on. It was not the easiest thing to hide his excitement. Beside him Joe was still adjusting everything; seat position, steering wheel height, and mirror angle. Even the folds and creases on Joe's handsome concentrating face were things that aroused Tom. That's not all. Every smile every frown, every eye roll every grimace; everything turns him on. Tom wasn't too worried now, he could enjoy the view of Joe's sinewy forearm or how his shirt clings on his shapely although rather small chest, and not be afraid anyone would see his monstrous erection snaking along one leg. "If you were driving and it was legal, I'd blow you right now," Joe said, surprising Tom. "You noticed." Tom grinned. "It's hard to miss," Joe said. "It's hard." They both laughed. Joe reached across the centre console to Tom's crotch. There was no doubt that Tom had reached maximum hardness. Feeling a hand fondling his member, Tom couldn't help but moan as his dick gushed natural lubricant. "Do we have time before the show?" Joe asked. "Plenty, I hope." Joe smiled and it was yet another stimulation to Tom. He had to remove Joe's hand from his crotch himself. He followed it up by grabbing Joe's crotch. The man yelped, an effect Tom expected. The man's dick was rock hard too, which is good. Very good. "You know, Tommy, this is nice and all but I don't think I can concentrate driving when you do this." "You had no problem driving with your hand on my dick," Tom replied. "Besides, you started it." They both laughed in a sexually charged way. Thankfully, they also stopped doing what they were doing to each other. Who knew they had clear enough minds to delay whatever the fuck they did and save it for a better time and place. But when and where? Tom dreaded the fact that Alice, Nick, and Amy were in the apartment, rehearsing for the show. Amy was asked to fill in the Saturday night spot because the original singer was signed. Tom hoped that Amy will someday get the same luck and hit it big time. She deserved it; she earned it. She sacrificed a lot of things and she worked hard for her big break. She learned to read and write music, she learned guitar, she even learned audio editing and mastering. She also have that coveted golden voice, if that mattered at all. Speaking of which, Tom got a text saying that the three was going to leave earlier to the pub and they were going to need the car. Perfect! Now, if only there was a way to tame their cocks. "I haven't talked much with Sam lately," Joe said. There it was. There was the boner killer. "Yeah?" "Don't you have something to say about it?" "You're baiting me. What are you up to?" Tom countered. Joe sighed, he needs to let it out himself. He had no will power to pull the confession out of Tom. "I was wondering why he slept with me when he knew that you still want to get back together with me. I didn't think he was the kind of guy who would cock block you, or anyone, for that matter. So I talked to him, after you and I got back together. I asked him." Oh no, Tom thought, Joe knew. "What did he say?" "What do you think he said?" Joe asked back. "I asked him to, because I thought..." "You thought I was happier with him," Joe interrupted. "Yeah." "And now he's not talking to me." "Sorry about that," Tom said lowly. Then silence lingered. "Actually, no, don't be sorry," Joe said, breaking the calm. "I just can't believe I couldn't see it. I mean we can say it's normal for me to not see it. But Amy warned me and I refused to see it; now that's stupid! I can see it clearly now that he still had feeling for me when I did all that shenanigan. I lead him on... again. I feel like shit now. And I was about to blame you on that when you genuinely think that I should be with him. "Come to think about it, you always wanted me to scrap my 'schedule.' Oh god, you wanted to peter out, didn't you? You definitely wanted me to spend less time with you and more with Sam. Am I right?" "Well... Yeah." Tom was honestly stunned. Joe managed to connect the dots and he got it all right. It was not the fact that Joe managed to figure it all out, it was the fact that Tom's motive was figured. He didn't think it through. He didn't consider the chance that Joe want to get back together with him at all when he set the plot to pair Joe and Sam. He knew that Sam still liked Joe, and that was the reason he pushed the two to be together. Not once he thought the way things ended up as a possible outcome. "He never fell out of love and I never let him go." Joe sighed a long sigh. "Don't you ever feel something towards him?" Tom asked. "I don't know, Tom." Joe said weakly. "Maybe I have, maybe I haven't. I have never felt an outright crush like I had with you long ago. My relationship with him was easy and comfortable, like the one we had once I got over my crush on you. That's why it was easy for me to say yes to you, because I've felt different things in different level about you. It felt natural and good and it made me happy, however complicated the feeling itself is. With him, I could never be sure." "How about when you slept with him? Didn't it feel good?" "In terms of orgasm? Yes, he's good at what he does. The rest, I never really given much thought about it." Joe said before he left the space silenced itself again. Now that it was out of the bag, he recollected everything from every corner of his brain. He drove on for a mile before he opened his mouth again. "It felt normal. It felt like what it exactly was. It felt like two best friends who happen to have sex with each other. It felt right and good. To be fair sleeping with you also felt normal, that is until you told me that you still loved me. If you didn't trigger it, it wouldn't have resurfaced. I buried it deep, I guess." "I see," Tom replied. "How about when you found out that you... took his... virginity... in a way." "I was upset," Joe admitted. "He should've given it away to someone special, not me. And he should've told me before, so I wouldn't have to do that to him. He said he did it because he trusted me as a friend. He always told me that everything that we did was okay because we were friends. It was right, but he also knew I would panic if he told me there was something more. "Oh god. I was warned but I didn't listen," Joe continued. They arrived home, right where the car parked before they departed Tom's apartment. Joe turned off the engine and slumped into his seat. "He was vulnerable and opening up and I almost literally spat on his face." "Hey, don't beat yourself up about it." Tom said. Joe always had the tendency to do so. On another note, it had been a spectacular boner killer. Tom didn't expect to see Joe, whom Tom was proud of not half an hour ago when he was up in the air in happiness, went down to the gutter after the subject of their talks kicked him in the ass. "How am I going to apologise to Sam this time?" Joe thought out loud. Tom took Joe's hand and kissed it, like he did in the elevator of Justin and Norah's condo. Joe glanced and Tom gave him a warm smile. It was infectious. "It will be okay. Sam's a great guy, and he's your best friend. He'll understand." "I hope." "It will be okay," Tom repeated as he repeated the hand kissing. Of course it wouldn't convince Joe, being a worrier that he was. Tom could only hope that Joe wouldn't be too hard on himself. Tom determined that he would watch over Joe on that. It had been his task since the first moment he met Joe. Not that he minded; Tom was actually revel in that self- assigned responsibility. He loves taking care of people, especially Joe. His Joe. "I love you," Joe said when they were about to reach Tom's door. It came out of nowhere and it surprised Tom. "I love you too," Tom replied easily and gave Joe a smile. "I mean it," Joe said again. "I don't want you to think that all the confusing feeling about Sam affect how I feel about you. I love you." What an appropriate timing Joe had, right before they entered a room full of people who expected their immediate return. If it weren't heart-warming to hear, Tom would've shrugged it off. "And I love you too," Tom repeated. Joe smiled. Joe was in a better condition now and Tom could worry less. He pulled his key and moved to the door. Joe stopped him, pulled him, and kissed him. It was long, passionate and loving. It was the type where they mashed their lips together and slither their tongues into each other in the gentlest way possible. It was the kind that urged Joe to pull Tom's waist in and had Tom held the back of Joe's neck. It was a kiss that made them unaware that the door was being opened from the other side. Alice rolled her eyes. There were a quick and mild commotion afterwards; singing, humming, guitar strumming, and key stealing. In a moment Alice, Nick, and Amy evacuated the apartment and the couple had the apartment for themselves. "Well, I could've saved that speech," Joe said, staring at the empty space before them. "Yeah." Then Tom snickered. "Well, now that we're alone..." "What?" With an easy glide, Tom lifted Joe so that their eyes are at the same level. Seeing Joe flustered by that move brought a smile on Tom's face, and that smiles influenced Joe to do the same thing. "You're so handsome," Tom said before he kissed his boyfriend. It wasn't a short one but it also wasn't a long one either. It gave each of them a taste of the other's lips. Both loved it. Smiles again when their mouths parted. Then kisses again. It had grown more passionate then, where the two traded blows with their tongues. It always amazed Tom how Joe loved to get dirty when they kiss. Joe liked sweet little pecks and long and tender kisses, but he loved getting his mouth wet inside and out. "And you're so strong. You just love to lift things," Joe said, probably also referring all the hard work he had during the day. "It's free work out," Tom said. "But lifting you... that's free sex, right?" "Correct." Joe sniggered. "And you're handsome too, by the way." They kissed again, so long that they found themselves in Tom's bedroom without realizing it. Joe was lying on the bed, feeling the partial weight the man on top of him. Joe didn't get wild and savage now. He let the kiss develop naturally, not forcing it to get wild and raunchy. Mostly it was because it felt so comfortable lying on the bed after a long day of labour. The warmth and protection his man gave him didn't hurt either. They stopped and Tom rolled to his side, mildly catching his breath. "I think you're the only man I can do this with," he said. "What? Am I just a fluke in your sexuality?" Joe teased. "That's not what I meant," Tom chuckled. "You know I like men like you like men." "So what then?" Tom laid a hand on Joe's chest and slowly rubbed it with gentle care. Perhaps the gentle caring touch was enough to burn Joe's libido because his nipples are hard and jutting behind the soft fabric. Tom couldn't help but getting back to those two. Looking at Joe's nervous lips made Tom smile. This was what he meant. "I don't think I can do this with anyone but you. Man or woman, actually. I can't imagine having this great of a feeling to anyone else. When I look at you..." Tom looked at Joe's eyes, "when I listen to you..." then his eyes moved to Joe's lips, "when I touch you..." the gaze found its way to the chest under his hand. "You have no idea how good it feels to me." "Yeah?" Joe's voice cracked. "Yeah," Tom said. "You know, when you first told me that you slept with Sam, I was so jealous... and angry to myself. I still loved you and I can't believe I ruined it. On the other side, you looked so happy with him, and seeing you happy makes me happy too. It was so strange, I was so jealous that I wanted to stop the two of you from being together, but I loved you with him that I had to make it happen." "I'm sorry about that," Joe said. "I know I'm stupid when it comes to feelings. I was stupid for not listening to anyone, too." "Don't be, babe. I'm sorry." "No, you're the one who has to stop doing that. Not everything is your fault. If I stopped shoving my feelings away, I would know that I still loved you too. Then I wouldn't have to fight you, or ignore you for weeks, or slept with Sam. I would've believed in you and we would've got back together in an instant." "You were angry, it was normal," Tom refuted. "Not that angry, no." "You found me and Sam naked in your bed. It was normal." "Tommy, stop," Joe insisted. "I can't keep doing that. I have been reckless. When I was angry with you and Sam. When I couldn't help myself with Sam the first time. Even when I left Birmingham. I know I'm not an emotional person, but when I am being emotional, I am reckless. Admit it." Tom had an intense look on his face. He was not used to that. He was used to taking all the responsibility and blame. That was how he grew up, that was what he knew. He felt like Joe knew that. In the past, Joe had been the one who comfort him when he was exhausted by the burden that he took. Now before him, Joe was doing exactly that. "Joey," he croaked. "Tommy," Joe said. "I'm sorry." "Joey," Tom repeated, this time with a tone that is so natural to him, a tone that said that Joe didn't have to apologise. "It's just that... Justin is back in my life again and now I see what I did to him. I thought I was doing him a service by leaving; I thought he didn't have to carry my weight if I left. I thought wrong. I know now that you carry the weight together with the people you love. You do that too, okay? I know you take it upon yourself with things like this. Sometimes I do too. Let's do that together from now on." There, Joe did it again. He had more wisdom and love in him than he gave himself credit for. "Okay," Tom said. "I love you." Joe's chin lifted a fraction and his lips shrunk a pixel to a slight pucker. "I love you too." Tom kissed him. With passion. His hands crept from Joe's chest to his neck. He could feel Joe's hand on his hips, dangerously close to his butt. "Now..." Joe said, a second of two after their blazing contact. "Is this the appropriate time to offer you that blowjob I promised?" ___ This took me quite a while to write. I missed Halloween episode :( Email: robxglass@gmail.com) Blog: http://xglass.tumblr.com Other story: http://www.nifty.org/nifty/gay/relationships/marc-and-luke/ Cheers!