Date: Fri, 28 Nov 2014 01:15:28 +0700
From: Robert Glass <robxglass@gmail.com>
Subject: The Virgin Joseph part 30

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.

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PART 30


"It's not going to work, Joseph." The voice belonged to Amy. That voice
broke Joe's trance.

"What's not going to work?"

"This," Amy said. "Pretending that you're okay in front of Justin and Tom
and then sulk in the corner when they turn around."

"I'm not..."

"Shut it! You're transparent; they can see right through you."

Joe rolled his eyes, and turned slightly to face his other partner of the
night, Jake. What was he expecting from Jake? To have the man have his
back? Jake and Amy has always been on the same side. They already decided
that whatever Joe was doing is stupid.

Justin was having a soft launching of his new shop and every single one of
his, Norah's, and Joe's friends in Chicago was invited. The place was
surprisingly packed, considering that they just moved to town. How many
friends can you get a month after moving in to town? Joe has lived there
for a little more than a year and all he got was the guys from the office
and Henry.

Of course he invited Sam too even though he knew there was no point in
that.

They were actually at a corner of the room. Everyone else was already in
their usual groups. Tom was with Alice, Nick, and Jake's wife Erin. Paul,
Lucy, and her husband Mike was mingling together with other people on their
level; a group that Jake just managed to escape from. Henry took Diaz from
Justin and Norah and was now furiously hogging on his time. Diaz doesn't
mind the man taking him from his responsibility to talk to every guest and
manage the kitchen.

"I wonder why Henry doesn't just try to date women at this point."

"You like what you like. You should know it better than I do," Jake
replied.

"Yeah, but men are awful," Joe said.

"Women are awful," Amy jumped in. "And you're saying that just because you
hate Sam."

"I don't hate Sam." It was the truth. "I think I hate myself for treating
him like that."

Amy rolled his eyes while Jake reached across to pull Joe by his
shoulder. "You apologised, right?" he asked.

"Of course I did."

"Then you've got to let it go. What's done is done, you've learned your
lesson, you apologised. Now it's up to him to take your apology and forgive
you. Nothing else you can do."

"You're such a sage, Jake," Joe said, surprisingly not with any hint of
sarcasm.

"What? That's exactly what I've been saying to you all this time!" Amy
protested.

"Yeah, but he doesn't say it like an asshole that you are."

"You're an asshole!" Amy snapped back.

The corner was dead silence for one whole second before the three of them
burst into laughter. It would be audible across the room if the room wasn't
so loud already. People were indeed having a good time right now. Unlike
Justin's place back in Birmingham which was a coffee shop that served great
pastry, this was a pastry shop that serves great coffee. It's definitely
going to be their new favourite place to hang out in.

"I haven't hang out with the two of you for too long," Joe said. "I'm
dating again and Amy is busy now..."

"Yeah, you guys left me," Jake joked.

"Sorry about that."

Joe smiled. He felt really sorry for not maintaining the communication with
his own pack of friends.  Losing Sam made him realise about stuff he's been
taking for granted. This friendship with a show stopping introverted woman
and a man ten years older and a hundred years wiser was as important as his
relationship with Tom. As much as losing Sam hurt him, Joe was grateful
that he still has these two to confide to.

And Henry, too, the man who were approaching that growingly secluded
corner.

"So, spring wedding?" Joe asked Henry.

"Excuse me?" Yeah, Henry did not get that at all.

"You and Diaz. I thought you were talking about the wedding."

Henry turned red in an instant. His advances towards Diaz was obvious, even
to Joe. "What are you talking about? We were just talking."

"Yeah, for hours," Amy chimes in. Somehow, seeing Henry getting embarrassed
was an entertainment of its own to the three.

"You're so much like Tom," Joe commented.

"And he's so much like you." The reply from Henry was much quieter.

"And you've never had a crush on me? I feel insulted!" Joe joked.

"To be honest I used to have a crush on you because you're so cute," Henry
said in an attempt to embarrass Joe with a compliment. "Unfortunately you
were... preoccupied."

Joe shrugged, either unfazed or not getting it. Henry's trial fell flat. "I
guess I would've had a crush on you if I wasn't so preoccupied."

Regardless of the intention behind Joe's and Henry's words, what they were
saying was true. Diaz is basically Joe if you add height, heft, age, and
scruff. Everything else was the same. He was grouchy, he was sarcastic, and
borderline mean. He was awkward around new people which means he dreaded
the fact that Justin made him do all the chit chat with the
guests. Certainly he did not dread it so much anymore.

And Henry. Oh sweet Henry. No, really, he was very sweet, just like
Tom. Henry may be a taller, fitter, handsomer, and overall more attractive
version of Tom. Also a bit shyer. Still, Joe did not see Henry that way. He
was indeed too preoccupied by the feelings he had for Tom which he did not
acknowledge at all. Joe didn't even realize that he was still in love with
Tom when they, and Sam, was doing the deeds.

Just like that, his mind was back to Sam.

Joe shoved the thought away, choosing to concentrate on the ruckus that
corner was making. They talked about love and life. Jake was trying hard to
have a baby with his wife, and how their fertility problems threw a massive
wrench on that vision. Henry was obviously absent of love in his life,
hence Diaz. Amy was in the midst of writing a new song for her demo, to
accompany an old original song and a cover song that she already recorded.

It was weird how Joe was the content and stable one of the bunch.

Joe excused himself. All the talks made him want to be with Tom. He was
infinitely grateful that he was having such a wonderful life at the
moment. He had his family back, he was surrounded by amazing friends, and
he had Tom in his life.

He originally wanted to circle his arms around Tom's waist but Nick was
already taking his spot, laying his head on Tom's shoulder and cuddling Tom
in one of the two booths in the shop. So instead he took a seat next to
Nick and cuddle Nick instead. That was a strange new feeling. Joe was used
to cushions. Justin had extra padding around him and so did Tom and Sam,
despite the three of them being very fit.

Nick was on another level. He had none of that at all. He was ripped. His
body was strong and firm and hard. Landing his hand on Nick's stomach, Joe
could feel the ridges and protrusions of those abdominal muscles; all six
hundred of them. Well, of course. Joe had seen Nick sans shirt many, many,
many times before. He should have known.

"You're not very comfortable," Joe remarked.

"What?" Both Tom and Nick replied.

"Not you, Tom, it's Nick," Joe said. "You're too rigid for cuddling. I want
my boyfriend back."

"I don't want to give him away. He feels nice," Nick whined.

"Get your own boyfriend," Joe laughed.

Nick laughed, too, and so did Tom. "But he's everyone's boyfriend. He's my
boyfriend too, and Alice's and of course yours."

Joe gave up. Not that he did not to fight for what he deserves, but because
what was in front of him looked way too adorable. Perhaps it's the Tom
factor. He looked adorable, by himself or with anyone. He was adorable with
Alice, with Nick, with Sam, with his whole family; everyone, really. He did
radiate that cuddly aura, if there was one.

That is the privilege that Nick is denying Joe right now. Tom didn't even
try to defend Joe's right for the comfort of his arms. He was way too
relaxed. The atmosphere of the place certainly helped; no matter how loud
it was at the moment, it was still a cosy, cosy place. What's not cosy is
Nick's muscular chest.

"You know what, I should leave you two alone," Nick said, just when Joe was
getting used to the hardness of his body.

"Thank you," Joe smiled as he whispered those words.

"You're welcome," Nick mouthed. He then kissed Joe on the forehead. Nick
was weird like that.

Joe scooched in, taking what belongs to him all along: Tom's body. He
wrapped his arms around Tom's waist and rested his head on the firm yet
tender pillows of that pecs. It felt both ordinary and wonderful. It was
familiar and amazing. Tom was not bothered, he was still relaxing, lying
his head on the backrest. "You're growing your beard again," Joe commented
once he was done rubbing Tom's newly scruffy face.

"Hmm," Tom mumbled.

"For winter?"

"Hmm."

"You're drunk, aren't you?" Joe asked, observing how relaxed his boyfriend
was.

"Just having a good buzz," Tom answered softly between his smiles. "The
wine flows infinitely."

This was thankfully a mellow and calm facet of drunk Tom, which was
appropriate for the event.  "Nice."

"You're not coming home with me, are you?" Tom knew that Joe doesn't like
sleeping with him, in every sense of the word, when he got drunk.

"I better not."

"You better not," Tom repeated before planting a kiss on Joe's cheek.

"Besides, Justin's been telling me to stay at his place non-stop. I think
I'm going to do it tonight."

"Yeah, you should."

"Such a shame." Joe started to rub Tom's face again.

"Why?"

Joe leaned closer up, intending to whisper. "I want to know how it feels
like when you rim my ass with his face."

Tom laughed. They made out.

And then they went back to their previous position. Joe was not looking for
a conversation when he moved away from that private corner to find Tom. He
just wanted to be with Tom. It didn't even have to be cuddling. They could
just sit next to each other, checking their own phones and ignoring each
other; as long as Joe was with his boyfriend.

Joe was only looking to appreciate Tom's presence. He was thankful for Tom
and all the love he was pouring continuously towards him. Joe was thankful
for a lot of things lately. He learned that it was great to feel that sense
of gratitude, and there was a lot to be grateful about. Even the tiny space
that was Justin's shop in Chicago.

The warmth of it was perfectly Justin. It was authentic. Exposed bricks and
bare cement along with patchy white paint dominated the space, and people
can see this raw and real feature from outside through the large frameless
window. There were barely any decorations there, only two or three Balinese
tiny sculptures around the counter, and that was it. Even those items were
not some random stuff that was thrown around. Joe recognised them all;
Justin bought it when they were living together back in the days.

Rough around the edges? Sure. But it was also beautiful, and the beauty was
not fake. The pendant lights was there because those areas needed lighting,
not because the lights were pretty. The counter was made of black granite,
not because it looked luxurious but because it was the best material in
terms of durability and maintenance. The furniture was made of solid woods
they were durable and sturdy. That shop embodies Justin's philosophy: if it
is ordinary then it is wonderful.


***


"Why didn't you guys just drop me at my place?" Diaz whined and yawned as
he entered Justin and Norah's apartment.

"It's too far, and you're too tired," Justin said. He offered Diaz a drive
home because the chef seemed exhausted. Diaz fell asleep once he entered
the car; that's how exhausted Diaz was. "Also, you haven't entirely
unpacked."

"But I have functioning sleeping arrangement. You know, a bed, a blanket
and a couple of pillows."

"Oh, shut up. Just sleep in the guest room," Norah ordered, softly and
kindly, however it sounded like. She then turned to Joe. "Do you mind
sleeping on the sofa bed?"

"Not at all," Joe answered.

"So," Justin started, raising an issue he had been holding back. "That guy
you were talking to..."

Diaz turned, showing stink eye. He knew Justin would bring that up before
the night ended. "What?"  curtly he said.

"Nothing. It just seemed intense... your conversation with him, I mean."

"None of your business."

"Alright!" Justin laughed. He knew damn well that he hit a button. "Don't
need to get all cranky about it."

Joe chuckled. The moment Justin made the attempt to match him and Diaz up,
Norah started to point out how it would fail because they were too
similar. Joe began to notice how Justin and Diaz interact with each
other. It did seem familiar. Justin treated Diaz like a kid; no, like his
only son, to be exact. He saw Diaz as this precious person who was his sole
responsibility, much like the way he saw Joe. Diaz, on the other hand,
acted like Joe: snarky and resistant, but secretly loving the care.

"Henry, right?" Joe asked once his brother and future sister in law were
out of the living room.

"Yeah," Diaz answered.

"He's a great guy, I assure you. I know him quite well. He's very kind and
charming. He's also a bit shy, so he must really like you if he approached
you like that." Joe smiled. He was still trading more on the formal side
with Diaz. They were not too close, but they knew each other well.

"He is great." Diaz smiled to himself and the floor.

"So, did you introduce yourself as Damian, Diego, or Diaz?" Joe
joked. Yeah, he could still joke with Diaz; they did not alienate each
other, however un-close they were.

Diaz chuckled. He introduced himself to Joe as Damian when they were set up
on that ugly date. He does that to people he wasn't too attracted to. He
only let certain people to call him by his nickname, which was also his
surname. "I did Diaz," he answered.

"Nice!" Joe said. "So you really like him too."

"He's just so handsome..."

"Blindingly handsome!"

"Yeah. And to have him talking to me was kind of surprising." Diaz had the
same self-esteem problem as Joe.

"Well, now that you moved here, you can get married."

"We're not even dating yet!"

Joe laughed, finding the flustered man before him amusing. "And when is
that?"

"Next weekend." The man blushed even more.

"Good luck, not that you need any." Joe gave Diaz a genuine smile and two
taps on his chunky upper arm, sending the man to his rightful bed.

Joe retreated to his bedroom for the night. He took in everything in that
living room. The colour and the layout were different but the atmosphere
was the same. The wall behind the same old TV was painted in light grey
colour instead of exposed masonry, but it was as warm and homey. The
console was a clean, new, white piece, but the couch and the coffee table
was the one he was familiar with.  Justin's Balinese wooden urn and Norah's
smashed up first trumpet was on a desk to his side, not in a room that was
their office.

The apartment was a lot smaller than the house they owned in Birmingham.

Everything was just like it used to, although it was new. Even the way Joe
sat there waiting for either Justin or Norah to lend him a towel was
unchanged. This time it was Justin who brought it. "There's a pair for
underwear, those shorts you like, and..." Justin spread a piece of clothing
open and smiled, "A grey t-shirt."

That was also the same; the way Justin pull some things out of his drawer
when Joe stayed over unplanned. "Thanks," Joe said.

"You should do this more often."

"At risk of listening to whatever comes out your bedroom at night? No,
thanks." They laughed.

"I miss you," Justin said.

"We miss you," Norah corrected from behind them. She was already in an
oversized t-shirt, one of Justin's old and unused piece. This raggedy look
was different from her prim and proper daytime appearance. Still, all
Norah. "You should move in with us," she added.

"Are you kidding me? I thanked God so furiously when I got out your
apartment and got my own place back then, I almost reconsidered
Christianity."

They can joke like that even though Justin was a Christian and both Joe and
Norah weren't. Justin was much, much, much more relaxed than the rest of
his family although he was almost as devout.  He took a different
philosophy, of course, believing that faith is personal. He understood if a
person's mind and soul was not in it, that person wouldn't believe
it. That's why he could understand if Joe was not too much into
Christianity or that the rest of his family wasn't a big fan of
science. Well, the latter irked him a lot, but still.

Somehow fatigue and the thought of sleeping got shoved away from Justin's
and Norah's bodies, and Joe's desire to cleanse himself was forgotten. They
were carried away by their umpteenth reunion in the past weeks. The word
enough was not in their vocabularies that night... or week, or month. They
talked and talked, muffling laughter as to not awaken Diaz. Speaking of...

"So, that guy... Diaz's guy," Justin started.

"That's Henry, Sam's ex," Joe said. "He's a good person. Amazing, even."

"Amazing huh?"

"Yeah. Amazing. I mean I screwed his chance to get back together with Sam
and he's still around."

"Come on, you didn't screw it up. If..."

"I did," Joe insisted.

"If," Justin said sternly to put an end to Joe's interruption, "If he still
wanted it, he wouldn't be okay with you doing that."

Joe sighed, "I suppose."

"That thing you did with Sam, it was reckless, you know," Norah said,
voicing something Justin didn't want to say. Justin was used to being
brutally honest with Joe. That time, however, he was afraid to tell it to
Joe's face. He was there when Joe lost a dear --homophobic but dear--
friend the first time and he knew how hard it was to Joe. Well, he wasn't
actually there, but he listened to Joe's endless parade of sighs and
not-quite-cries through Skype.

"I know. I should've known better."

"That's okay." Norah reached Joe's knee while Justin took hold of Joe's
upper body. "You apologised.  That's all you could've done."

"There should be something to mend this all," Joe wagered.

"Maybe one day, down the line. Just not now. Give him time," Justin said,
finally ending his silence.

"Yeah," Joe said after rearranging his thoughts. "I mean even if he
forgives me right now, there's no guarantee that he would want to hang out
with me. He said it; that he always falls in love with me whenever we get
closer. How do I get out of that? I guess I have to wait until I don't give
him that vibe anymore." Joe shrugged.

"I guess so," Justin shrugged along.

"I didn't even know I was such a catch." Joe laughed.

"I told you, you are," Justin said as he gave his brother a kiss on the
forehead. "I mean, Tom caught you."

"By the way, I can't help but notice that Tom is very similar to Justin,"
Norah quipped.

"No!" Justin said. "You always think that everyone is similar to everyone."

"I was right with Diaz and Joe, was I not?" She challenged.

"But you're wrong with this one," Justin said.

"Actually, she's right. He is similar to you. He's such a good older
brother. I guess that's why I'm so attracted to him," Joe said.

"It's a Freudian thing. Since you're gay, you want to end up with someone
like your dad. Justin's your dad, so..." Norah added.

"Oh, come on. That's just repulsive!" Justin said.

"Hey, I'm not the one saying it."

"Funny thing is," Joe interrupted, "Lately I get a feeling that Henry is
very similar to Tom. It's the way he's just... there, with you, when you
talk to him, you know? Like, he's so present and attentive, listening
intently. He would smile and laugh and frown with you, like he cares a
lot. And he's so relaxed. Just like Tom."

"IS that so?" Norah seemed... intrigued.

"Yeah." Joe shrugged. "Henry is like Tom. And Tom is like you, Justin. It's
true."

"So," Norah started. "That means, Henry is like Justin, to some extent."

"Norah, don't go there," Justin warned. Something was happening.

"That means, Diaz holds you on a special place."

"Norah."

"Which means, he has a crush on you and or he wants to sleep with you."

Laughter ensued.


___

Sorry for being late again. Thanksgiving chapter is coming out hopefully
next week.

Email: robxglass@gmail.com)
Blog: http://xglass.tumblr.com
Other story: http://www.nifty.org/nifty/gay/relationships/marc-and-luke/

Cheers!