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Love is Complicated
(Author's Note: This entire story is a work of fiction. There is no scholarship fund at Princeton University as described below. If there is, it is purely coincidental.)
-1-
Joseph Carter was a genius. His IQ was somewhere out there in the stratosphere. All his teachers were aware of his exceptional gift, but his parents were not. He was an only child, and his parents barely eked out a living for the three of them. They were both clerks in a downtown retail store. Glen and Ruby Carter never gave a thought to furthering Joseph's education. They just assumed it would end at his high school graduation, and then he would get a job, and help with the household finances.
Not so with his teachers, at least one teacher. Dante Gomez was well acquainted with the financial situation of the Carters, and he took it upon himself to apply for college scholarships for Joseph. Dante taught history at McDowell High School, and hands down, Joseph Carter was his favorite student. Not only was Dante overwhelmed by Joseph's brilliant mind, but he was also knocked out by Joseph's beauty. Dante was gay, and his attraction to Joseph was carnal as well as academic.
Dante would lay awake at night dreaming about making love to Joseph. He pictured that his cock was uncut and oversized. He could feel it entering his ass, and his longing would bring him to tears.
Much to Dante's delight, his efforts paid off. Joseph received a full scholarship to Princeton University. It was endowed by The Albert Einstein Scholarship Fund, and it was very generous. It paid for all his tuition, books, dorm room, and meals. A part time job would have provided him with some spending money, but unfortunately, as part of the scholarship requirements, he had to work a minimum of twenty hours a week for the university. There was little time for outside employment. He was assigned to work in the bookstore. He would be surrounded by books, and he considered himself to be very lucky that he didn't have kitchen duty in the cafeteria.
Joseph's parents objected vehemently to his leaving them, and not doing his duty in providing relief to their household expenses. However, they couldn't stop him. He had turned eighteen two weeks before his high school graduation.
For him to get all his belongings to the university, he would have to rent a van, which he could not afford to do. He had too much stuff to take on the bus with him. Not to worry. Mr. Gomez came to his rescue. He volunteered to drive Joseph to school in his SUV. Of course, he hoped he might be able to seduce his protégé along the way. It was a long ride from Erie, Pennsylvania to Princeton, NJ. They would have to spend at least one night on the road. Joseph may or may not have been a virgin, but Dante believed that he was straight. If that were true, his hopes would be difficult to realize.
Joseph worked all summer after graduation in a McDonald's. His parents demanded that he give them his wages for his room and board. Joseph had to obey them, but he wisely held back $10.00 a week. He hated to lie to them, but he needed the money as much as they did, if not more.
High school classes began a week before Princeton's classes began. The Friday before classes were to begin at the university, Dante showed up at The Carters after work. He and Joseph loaded the SUV. Joseph's parents would not help. They stood around sulking at their son. Joseph and Dante couldn't wait to get out of there. They started out late in the day. Dante had planned it that way. He took the longest route possible, in order to lengthen the trip. They drove for about two hours that first evening. Dante didn't rush. They only got as far as Buffalo, NY before they decided to call it a day. They had driven less than ninety miles, and a little out of the way, at that.
They entered The New York State Thruway which would take them to the New Jersey Turnpike, and they got off at the first exit. They checked into the motel closest to the highway. There was a Denny's Restaurant attached to the motel, and Carlos bought them dinner. Joseph was overwhelmed by Carlos's generosity. He would have been even more awe stricken if he was aware that Carlos intended to send him spending money. Carlos was hopelessly in love with Joseph.
Once back in their room, they watched TV for a while, and then the thirty-five-year-old Dante began the seduction of his eighteen-year-old protégé.
"Have you ever watched a porn film?" he asked Joseph.
Joseph looked sheepish. "Yeah," he said. "Just one time, at a party."
"Tell me the truth now, did you get aroused?"
Joseph was a genius, and he knew just where this conversation was headed, so he answered honestly, "I sure did. When I got home, I jacked off twice."
Joseph had suspected for a long time that Dante was gay. He believed that he himself was straight, but he was also eighteen and his hormones were raging. Dante was a very handsome Latino, and Joseph decided that if Dante wanted to do things to him, he would let him. Besides, he reasoned, he owed the man his life. He had no idea that he was busy self-rationalizing a possible homosexual encounter. Neither lust nor love entered his mind.
"I requested a room with a DVD player, and I brought a couple of discs," Dante said. "Let's shower and watch them together. We won't watch too long. Let's get up early and get a good start."
Now Joseph was certain that Dante was going to try to seduce him. He began to get an erection, which he had no intention of hiding from his former teacher, and current friend. He decided to help Dante along.
"Great idea," Joseph said. "Let's shower together and do each other's backs. Then we'll get into bed and watch the disc."
Dante could not believe what he had just heard. He was speechless, so he just nodded and began to undress. Joseph began to shed his clothes also. In fact, Joseph was naked before Dante. They studied their bodies and smiled. They were both uncut and they both had hard-ons which measured about seven inches. Dante was a little wider around than Joseph, but neither of them cared. Oh yes, and incidentally, they both had lean but muscular bodies.
They had intended on merely washing each other's backs, but there was only one bar of soap in the shower. Dante took it and started to soap Joseph all over. The young man began to purr. Precum appeared on his cock head. While Dante was soaping Joseph's back, he reached around and wrapped Joseph in his arms. He started to soap Joseph's chest while his cock probed at Joseph's ass. He went farther and farther downward and decided to go for broke. He wrapped his fist around his student's cock and began to stroke gently. His own cock continued to ram Joseph's butt. Joseph felt so good, that he questioned his sexual orientation for the first time in his life.
"Please," Joseph said, "I'm close to cumming. I'd rather we did this in bed."
Dante shut the taps and grabbed two towels. He threw one at Joseph, and they dried themselves. They were in such a hurry, that when they hopped into bed, they were both still damp.
Joseph began to laugh. "When you requested a DVD player, did you also request a double room with only one bed?"
"Of course," Dante said.
He began to laugh also, and he wrapped his arms around Joseph and brought the boy in for a kiss. Joseph was shocked. He hadn't expected that, but he made up his mind to give his teacher as much pleasure as possible, and he responded to Dante's kisses. Besides, as he kissed the lad, Dante began to fondle Joseph's cock again, and the young man liked how it felt.
Joseph was breathless, but he managed to whisper, "I'm a virgin, Mr. Gomez. "I've never made love to a girl either."
"I suspected as much, the older, more experienced man said. "But don't you think you should call me Dante, given these intimate circumstances?"
Joseph had no time to answer. He was beginning to cum, and he couldn't speak. Dante knew that Joseph was beyond the point of no return. He leaned over and gobbled Joseph's manhood into his mouth. One or two more swipes of his tongue, and Joseph gave out a scream that scared them both.
Dante had no idea what he was saying or doing. He was busy swallowing Joseph's cum, and weeping. "I love you, Joey," he wailed. "I've loved you since we met."
Joseph was at a loss as to what to do. He was not ready to tell a man that he loved him also. Besides, what he was feeling might just be gratitude. He put his arms around Dante and began to pretend to kiss him as passionately as Dante had kissed him. At the same time, he reached down and took Dante's cock into his fist. He began to stroke it.
After just a few strokes, Dante yelled, "I'm cumming."
Joseph leaned over Dante and gave him the same pleasure the older man had given him. When it was over, he didn't even realize that he had swallowed Dante's entire load.
When they calmed down, and were resting quietly, Dante said, "Let's watch one of the male porno discs for a while, and then I'll teach you how to fuck me."
"Aren't you going to fuck me too?" Joseph asked.
"I want to so much," Dante said, "but only if you let me."
"Of course, I will."
"I take it that you are enjoying yourself," Dante said.
"Yes, Dante, very much."
If we travel for about eight or nine more hours tomorrow, we should reach Princeton by nightfall. Let's not look for your dorm in the dark. We'll spend another night in a motel and find your dorm on Sunday morning. If I can't make it all the way back to Erie in time, I'll call in sick on Monday."
"Sounds good to me," Joseph smiled.
"When you come home for visits, do you think we might get together?" Dante asked.
"It would be a given, but I have to tell you that I don't intend to go home ever again. You'll have to visit me."
"Thank you," Dante repeated. "When you get your first job, and settle down somewhere, if you still feel the same way, I'll look for a teaching position wherever that will be."
"That's a long way off," Joseph said. "Let's see what happens." Being gay was too new to him. He was unable to commit himself to Dante, or to any other man for that matter.
Joseph learned a great deal from watching the male sex disc. All the while they were watching, they fondled each other, and Joseph kept asking Dante, "Can we do that, please?"
Before they finally fell asleep in each other's arms, they fucked each other, and had another go at oral sex.
As promised, they didn't rush the remainder of the trip, and at 7 PM the next evening, they checked into a motel just five miles outside of Princeton. Anticipating that they would be separated for a long time, but not forever, they made passionate love all night. Now Joseph had no doubt that he was gay, and he accepted the fact without shame. In fact, he was grateful to have found his true nature. Even so, he had no yardstick to know true love from lustful sex. He wasn't ready to believe that what he did with Dante was love. In his mind they had sex, nothing more. He had no way to know that his attitude was shortchanging Dante in the sex department.
The next morning Dante helped Joseph bring all his stuff into his dorm room. He left Joseph alone to organize his room, and then he hurried away. He wanted to get home before dark, so he could go to work the next day. This time he took the shortest route possible. It was much more direct. He left at 11 AM and reached his home at 8 PM.
-2-
When Dante and Joseph brought Joseph's belongings into his dorm room, it was obvious that Joseph's roommate had arrived, but he wasn't around. His bed was meticulously made up, his clothes were carefully hung, his dresser had a laptop and a few family pictures on it, and in short, it looked like the room had been made up by a maid. Joseph was neat and organized, but this was above and beyond. He feared that he would never match his roommate in keeping things so perfect. Well, he thought, better to room with a neatnick than a slob.
The first thing he did was to make up his bed. Then he unpacked and placed everything in his dresser drawers or hung everything in his closet. He stored his suitcases under his bed. He noticed that his roommate had done the same. Still, after all of that, his roommate had not arrived. He looked around and was satisfied that he matched his roommate for neatness. The only thing different was that there were no family pictures on his dresser, just a laptop. The laptop was a gift from Dante for his eighteenth birthday. Initially, Joseph had balked at accepting such an expensive gift, but now that they were lovers, he accepted it graciously.
He had no idea where his roommate was, so he decided to take an hour or so to explore the campus. He and Dante had indulged in a quickie that morning, and they had skipped breakfast. He was hungry and he found the cafeteria, where he had lunch.
In the dining room, the more outgoing students came over to introduce themselves, to shake his hand, and to find out where he was from. Joseph wondered if they would be as friendly if they knew that he was a pauper. They all seemed to exude wealth. He didn't know it, of course, but he was displaying a bit of paranoia.
After lunch, he went back to his room. He figured that his roommate had to show up sooner or later. When he got there, he called Dante. He wanted to find out how far he had gotten, and if he was still on schedule to arrive home this evening. Dante assured him that he was ahead of schedule. He was driving about five miles above the speed limit. He didn't know if it was true or not, but he remembered hearing that the state troopers would not stop you if you don't go more than five miles over the speed limit. Dante assured Joseph that he loved him, and they hung up.
About an hour later, Joseph got the shock of his life. His roommate barged in. He was dirty and disheveled, belying the neatness of the room. He was at least six feet, four inches tall, weighed at least two hundred pounds, and was a beautiful tan color. Joseph had not taken a good look at the family pictures on his roommate's desk, so he didn't realize that his roommate was a hunky, handsome Latino.
The young man could see the shock on Joseph's face. He stuck out his hand and said, "Hi, I'm Carlos Rico. Forgive my appearance. I just came from football practice, and I've got to shower and change quickly. I'm here on a football scholarship, and I've got to do time in the cafeteria this evening. I was told to get there by 3 PM. Please excuse my running like this, but let's get acquainted when I get back after dinner. What did you say your name was?"
That was diplomatic of Carlos. Joseph hadn't said what his name was. He had been too shocked at Carlos's appearance.
"It's Joseph Carter," he answered, and he shook Carlos's hand. "Yeah, let's just spend the evening getting acquainted."
Carlos returned five minutes later. He had a large towel wrapped around his middle section. He threw the wet towel into a laundry bag, and Joseph got an eyeful. His roommate was uncut, and at least five inches flaccid. He was even heftier than either he or Dante. Now that he had admitted to himself that he was gay, Joseph's mouth watered at the sight before him, but he knew he could never come on to this giant.
As soon as Carlos left, Joseph pumped his fist and yelled, "Yes!" His roommate was another scholarship student, and not some rich, snotty kid. He admired how easily Carlos admitted that he was at the university on a scholarship. If Joseph hadn't had the obligation of working in the bookstore, he would have kept it a secret. He wondered if the university paired them because they were both on scholarships. Not so. As a matter of fact, they were paired randomly. Princeton did not make distinctions in the students who attended there.
Joseph didn't have to report to the bookstore until Monday afternoon. He was glad of that. It would give him and Carlos the opportunity to get acquainted this evening. When classes would begin on Monday, the bookstore would be bombarded with students buying all the books the professor's forced on them. The profs had usually written these texts, and every year they would make a few minor changes. Their books would then be published under a revised issue number, and the profs insisted that the students had to buy the latest edition. It was unusual for a student to be lucky enough to buy a used book. By sophomore year, the students caught on. They had no trouble buying used copies from other students, and fucking the professors.
Joseph finished dinner long before Carlos completed his job. He met some more people in the dining room and was pleased to note that they didn't seem like snobs at all. Of course, he rationalized, they didn't know how poor he was.
Dante and Joseph had stayed up making love most of the previous night. He was dog tired and could hardly keep his eyes open, but he resisted sleep until Carlos came home from his cafeteria gig. All Joseph was wearing were his jockey shorts. When Carlos saw him, he stripped down to his boxers.
Joseph was sitting at the edge of his bed. He expected Carlos to sit at the edge of his bed, but the giant sat down next to Joseph on Joseph's bed. Carlos could see that his roommate was at a loss for words, so he began to fill Joseph in on his life and background.
"Look," he said to Joseph, "I'm a poor boy from a very depressed Cuban neighborhood in Miami. My parents are first generation Americans. My grandparents came from Cuba on a raft, literally. I'm poor and I wouldn't be here if it wasn't for football. I figure you're rich, but I can see that you're not a snob. I hope we can be friends, and you won't judge me by my social stratus. I wanted to clear the air up front. If you want to change rooms, I'll understand."
"Don't be a jerk," Joseph said. "Even if I were as rich as Bill Gates, I couldn't want for a better roommate than you. Furthermore, If I was as poor as Jean Valjean when he stole that loaf of bread, I'd want you to be as tolerant of me."
"I may be poor," Carlos said, "but I saved up enough money from part time jobs to buy an old jalopy." He started to laugh. "You should see it on the parking lot among all the BMWs, Jags, and Mercedes."
Joseph laughed with him.
"At least we have wheels to get around," Carlos said with authority. Joseph wondered why he said, "we."
Carlos put his mammoth arm around Joseph's shoulder. "I've got more to tell you," he said. "You might still want to move out."
Joseph laughed. "Are you trying to get rid of me? Talk, I'm all ears."
"I know I'm big and brawny, and I'm a real jock. Besides football, I play a mean game of baseball and basketball. Keep it a secret, but I play tennis like a pro. I know I don't fit the mold, but I'm gay, Joey; always have been and always will be."
"You are a courageous son of a bitch," Joseph said facetiously. "I had intended on keeping my background a secret from all the rich guys here. Where did you get the courage to tell me all this?"
"What do you mean?" Carlos asked. There was confusion written all over his face.
"I'm here on a scholarship also. It's an academic scholarship. For your information and consideration, I'm as poor as you are, maybe poorer, and I'm gay also."
The arm that Carlos had around Joseph's shoulder, got tighter. "Do your parents know?" Carlos asked.
"My parents will never know. I don't speak to them, and not because I'm gay. They're fed up with me, and have written me out of their lives because I'm going to college. They expected me to get a job after high school graduation and contribute to the household finances.
"Do you have a boyfriend?" Carlos wanted to know.
"I do have a boyfriend, but we don't have a commitment, and neither of us ever promised each other to be monogamous. His name is Dante Gomez, and he's a Latino also. I never asked him what country his ancestors came from. He drove me here, and he's the one who got me my scholarship, so I haven't decided yet if it's love or gratitude. I do know that he loves me. He told me so. I don't want to hurt him, so I'll have to play it by ear."
Carlos did the most unexpected thing. He pulled Joseph to him and placed their lips together. "I love you, too. I fell for you, the minute I laid eyes on you. You're so freaking handsome, and now that I know that you're not a snobby rich kid, I love you even more. Do you think we might get something going together?"
"I don't have a single doubt," Joseph smiled, and kissed Carlos back, "but not tonight. I've been up for nearly twenty-four hours, and I can't keep my eyes open."
"It's okay if you want to go to sleep, but would you mind if I snuggled up next to you?" Carlos asked.
"I wouldn't mind at all, but no hanky panky."
That concept was fine in theory, but impossible for two healthy, teen-aged homosexuals to abide by. Fifteen minutes after they got into the same bed, they were giving each other oral sex. They performed passionately, and it was mind boggling. When they finally finished, they wrapped each other up in their arms, and slept soundly.
The next night, they fucked each other. Throughout their encounter, they both kept crying in pure joy. When they were lying quietly together, basking in the afterglow, Joseph had an epiphany. He and Carlos had participated in a pure act of love. His encounters with Dante lacked any passion, at least on his part. He realized that he had sex with Dante out of an obligation and gratitude. He had not made love to him. Somehow, he wanted Dante to know that.
Dante called or texted him continuously. The days were flying by quickly, and Joseph could not bear to tell Dante the truth. Joseph was even receiving spending money from Dante, and things were getting more complicated with each passing day. He and Carlos fell more in love every time they made love, and Dante loved Joseph more, as each day came and went.
When Joseph reported to the bookstore after classes on the first day of school, he was dismayed to learn that his duties were more like a detective than a salesclerk. He was assigned to walking around the store and keeping his eyes out for possible shoplifters. He didn't know what he would do if he did spot a thief. He was not a physical person, and he hated the thought of a possible physical confrontation.
Nevertheless, he put in his time without incident, and he ran back to his dorm and to Carlos. He hoped Carlos was finished with football practice. He didn't have to work in the cafeteria that day, and the two young men had agreed to have dinner together.
The university cafeteria was probably the most sociable place on campus, other than private clubs, fraternities and sororities. That first night when Joseph and Carlos ate together, their hands hurt from constantly meeting new friends, and shaking their hands. Everyone, especially the women, wanted to meet these two handsome men.
Finally, the inevitable happened. Dante texted Joseph that he was coming to visit him on Parents' Day. Dante would expect that they were going to have sex, but Joseph was too much in love with Carlos to think about it. For one second, he wondered if Carlos and Dante would consider a threesome, but he quickly erased the thought.
No. He was simply going to tell Dante the truth. He would explain that he loved him like a generous father, like the father he never had, but not like a lover. He would assure Dante that he would always be in his life. Nothing would ever change that.
-3-
While traveling to Princeton, Dante was so excited he called Joseph every hour to let him know where he was at. Joseph was more and more agitated. Of course, Carlos could see the state Joseph was in, and he asked. "What's the matter, honey? I can see that something is bothering you."
"Sit down, Carlos. I have something to tell you."
Joseph related the whole story of his miserable home life, and how Dante rescued him.
He's like a father to me, a generous father," Joseph said. "I had sex with him because I wanted to show him my gratitude. I may see him as a father figure, but he considers us to be lovers. I don't love him the same way I love you, Carlos. What can I do? I don't want to hurt him, but he loves me so much, he has been calling me once an hour."
When he gets here, we'll tell him together. I'll be your crutch. In fact, he'll only be here a couple of days. Let's make him happy ... together."
"You wouldn't mind?" Joseph asked. "I thought of that, but I would never have asked you. What if he's so hurt, he turns his back on me, on us?"
"He won't. Nobody in the world could turn his back on you." He gave Joseph a very slobbery kiss.
"What did I do to deserve you?" Joseph asked.
"You don't deserve me, but I'm giving myself to you anyway." Carlos couldn't stop laughing at his poor joke. "I haven't heard your phone ring for a while now," Carlos continued. "If he doesn't show up soon, let's go to dinner without him."
Suddenly, a light went off in Joseph's head. He checked the time on his cell phone. "Come to think of it, he hasn't called in about three hours. The last time that he called, he told me that he was just getting off I80 in Teaneck and getting on The New Jersey Turnpike. He figured to be here in an hour and a half at most. He told me to get spiffed up, and he'll take me to dinner. I told him that I had dinner plans with my roommate, and he said that you were also invited. Now I'm worried. He should have been here over an hour ago."
Joseph called Dante's cell, but he was directed to voice mail. Dante wouldn't have stopped to eat. They had a dinner date. If he stopped for gas, he would have been done hours ago. Something was wrong. Joseph could feel it in his bones.
Just then his cell phone rang. The caller ID read, New Jersey State Police. His whole body was shaking as he answered the phone. Now Carlos became alarmed when he saw how pale Joseph had become. Joseph listened intently to a state trooper on the other end of the line.
Dante disconnected his cell phone after speaking to Joseph, and drove onto the entrance ramp to the turnpike. He was feeling like a million bucks. In a little over an hour, he would hold Joseph in his arms again. His warm glow was growing warmer, but suddenly, he turned to ice. A car was coming straight at him. A drunken driver was exiting the turnpike from the on ramp. Dante had time and opportunity to pull around the delinquent car, but there were so many cars behind him, that he knew he had to stop it before an accident of epic proportions occurred. Without any thought to himself, he headed directly ahead, and plowed into the drunkard. He stopped him all right.
Joseph drew in a deep breath. "No officer," he said. "I'm not a relative. I'm just a friend. No, I don't know where his parents live. I don't even know if they're alive. I can tell you that he teaches at McDowell High School in Erie, Pennsylvania. If you call them, they must have his contact information."
"Thanks," the trooper said.
"How did you come to call me?" Joseph asked.
"We recovered his cell phone. The last call he made was to your number. There was also a message from you in his voice mail. In fact, your name and number was the only one on his contact list."
"Where is he now?" Officer.
"He's at Holy Name Medical Center, but if you want to see him, you'd better come right away. I don't think he's going to make it."
"Please officer," Joseph sobbed, "if you don't reach any of his family, call me back. I'll do what I can."
"Sure. That's good of you."
Joseph hung up. His body was racked with loud eerie sobs.
"What happened?" Carlos asked.
"You know the teacher I told you about, Dante Gomez? He was involved in a head on collision on the turnpike. The other driver died instantly. Dante is in the hospital."
"Geez," was all Carlos could say.
"What am I going to do? He was like a father to me. Now I'm all alone."
"You're not alone," Carlos reassured Joseph. "I'll be with you for the rest of our lives."
"Life isn't fair, it isn't fair," Joseph repeated over and over again.
"It isn't fair for you and me," Carlos said in anger. "I bet the rich pricks who surround us have never had a sad day in their lives."
Of course, he was wrong. Rich or poor, you cannot escape adversity. Carlos could not erase his prejudices about rich people even though he had made many friends among the student body, and they were for the most part, very friendly.
"Can you drive me to Teaneck?" Joseph pleaded.
"Of, course. First thing in the morning. Since we're not going out to dinner," Carlos said, "do you want to go to the cafeteria?" He had switched his shift with another student, anticipating that he and Joseph would go out to dinner with Dante that evening.
"I couldn't eat a thing," Joseph answered. I just want to stay in our room, and I want you to hold me tight. Never let me go."
"That can be arranged," Carlos said.
They arrived at the hospital with the aid of a navigation device. When he got to the ward where Dante was barely alive, Joseph and Carlos had a brief conversation with the nurse.
Finally, she said, "Oh, you're Joseph Carter. He's been asking for you."
She addressed Carlos. "Would you mind waiting outside?" she asked.
Carlos just nodded, as she led Joseph into the room.
Dante smiled at him. He tried to talk but it was too much of an effort, Joseph had to lean over him. He put his ear to Dante's lips.
"I waited for you," Dante whispered. "I didn't want to die without seeing you.
"Hush. You're not going to die. Eye witnesses say you drove into that car so the driver couldn't harm anyone else. You're being hailed as a hero, and heroes don't die."
"I'm dying, Joseph, and I needed to tell you that I want you to be happy. Promise me that you'll find a new love and be happy."
"I promise," Joseph sobbed.
Dante looked at his love. He was satisfied that he had accomplished his mission. He smiled and he passed away, never knowing that Joseph did not love him as strongly as he loved Joseph.
Joseph never heard from the State Trooper, so he had to believe that he had reached Dante's family, and they had made the final arrangements. He was angry at himself that he had been too disinterested to ever ask Dante about his family. He would have liked to have contacted them, but he didn't have enough information about them to start an expensive search, so he let go of his guilt.
Carlos's constant love making went a long way in helping him to forget. Carlos was an athlete. He had way more stamina than Joseph ever had. He constantly sucked and fucked Joseph, who could only reciprocate some of the time. Neither of them seemed to notice. They slept in each other's arms every night, and that was all that seemed to matter. In spite of letting go of his grief, not a day went by that Joseph didn't miss Dante.
Whenever they could, Carlos and Joseph shot hoops together in a nearby park. Carlos taught Joseph how to play tennis, and that was one sport they could enjoy together. They didn't have much free time, but they played tennis together as often as time allowed.
For every school break and summer vacation, Joseph went down to Miami with Carlos. This meant that Carlos had to reveal his relationship with Joseph. His parents were upset, but they loved their son, and welcomed Joseph to the family.
When the two students were in Miami, they both worked in a supermarket owned by a friend of the Rico family. In that way they were able to earn spending money. Joseph was especially grateful because he no longer received spending money from Dante.
As everyone knows, time marches inexorably on. Before they knew it, they were facing down the barrel of a gun ... their graduation. Each believed that they would be separated for some period of time. They were consoled by the fact that the separation would only be temporary. Once again, the adage "never assume" proved itself.
Joseph received a full scholarship to MIT to work on his doctorate in physics. He also taught undergraduate physics classes for which he was paid. Carlos was recruited by The New England Patriots. They didn't have to be separated at all, except when the team played out of town. They rationalized that it was common for couples to be separated for business reasons.
"You see," Carlos observed, "sometimes good things do happen to good people."
They could have afforded to rent or buy a luxury apartment on Carlos's salary alone. They could even afford an upscale house, but they were both too frugal to be ostentatious. They rented a modest, one-bedroom apartment in Brookline within easy commuting distance for both of them. Of course, they had to spring for an additional car. They both felt guilty about spending the money. They just couldn't get used to the idea that they weren't poor anymore.
When Joseph got his doctorate, he stayed on at MIT to teach. He didn't believe in God, but one day he went to a nearby Catholic church, and gave thanks to Dante and to God for his good fortune.
About the time Joseph got his doctorate, Carlos concluded that his football career wasn't going anywhere. He decided to be practical and give it up. Besides, he hated the frequent separations from Joseph, brief as they were. He had no trouble securing a position as a phys-ed teacher and football coach at a high school not far from their apartment.
They didn't give up their apartment with the intention of upgrading. It was comfortable; it satisfied all their needs; and it was in a good neighborhood. What they preferred to do with their money was to set up a modest scholarship fund for a needy, brilliant student at MIT. It didn't cover all the costs, but it went a long way in financing the education of someone who deserved it.
Joseph began to believe that his parents didn't give him life. It was Dante who did that. Every night when he and Carlos climbed into bed, he thanked Dante out loud, just as a child might say a bedtime prayer. There was method to his madness. He had no explanation for it, but whenever Carlos heard his prayer of thanks, he got so horny that his love making was extraordinary. In his maturity, Carlos learned to delay his orgasms. He could bring himself to the edge several times before shooting up Joseph's ass. The longer he stayed inside of his husband (they were married now) the happier Joseph was.