Gentle readers, as you have gathered, TIME is a character in this story - a major one. And when we began, dave was living with Dr. Gabe Landfeld, who had a successful practice in NY, while dave continued his grad studies. So, we're going to take a jump forward for a chapter, and talk about how dave and Gabe got back together.
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Grossfeder was finally retiring. COMPLETELY retiring. He had stopped teaching undergrads about 6 years before - dave had been in his last class, and Grossfeder had been the one who had turned him on to ancient history. dave would be finishing up his Master's in another year. Then , if his dissertation proposal were accepted, he'd take the next year doing research at the site in Italy he had worked on after he finished his bachelor's: the villa of Glaucus, where he had found the sheets of Urban's annals. But we're jumping around. Let's get back on point. It was a long tradition, out of Germany and brought to the United States, to have a "festshcrift" : an anthology by scholars to honor one of their own. In addition to the festschrift, the university had issued what was, essentially, a "command performance" invitation to all of Grossfeder's graduate students. Gillian was coming from England, and that delighted dave to no end. When she had face chatted with him, he couldn't hold back his tears. He had been SO lonely since Ahmad had left (and we'll get back to that too), and having her around, just for a few days, would be wonderful.
dave lived alone now. His graduate student stipend, together with what he made teaching the three boot camp classes, was more than adequate for a decent one bedroom apartment. He knew he'd have to cut back on the classes when the serious work of a dissertation began, but he'd deal with that. He had learned how to deal with things as they happened much better than he did when he was an undergrad. But by and large, he was the same dave: white button down shirts, jeans, loafers or sneakers. He had a few things that he'd wear at home: mostly henleys, and quilted sweat shirts that fit tight. They showed off his chest better, in case he decided that he'd date again. Losing Ahmad the way he did - to family obligations - had been hard, and it still stung, more than a bit. School was school though, and he needed to be present with his work.
Gabe Landsfeld, or as he was now being called, Dr. Landsfeld, had gotten the summons too. He had finished medical school and, much to his delight, when they did matches for residencies, he had matched with a NY hospital. Getting the schedule free would take a bit of juggling, but he could do it. He was doing well in the residency program, at least that was his sense. He was driven: his past with Fred, and then Tony, had put him off of dating of any kind, and he was always the one who volunteered for extra shifts, or to stay a few more hours, which got him admiration from his supervisors, and a little jealousy from his fellow students.
Medical school had been so intense, that he had forgotten just about everything. Gillian, he remembered. They had hung out often when they were both Grossfeder's students. She had contacted him to see if he was going to be there. He was glad she had done that: he knew he had received the "invitation," but he had just ignored it, the way he did so many other things. Seeing Gillian, being back at the old campus, well, that would be great.
"I think you'll have an additional surprise there too Gabe. I hope it's a pleasant one." "Oh, Gil, now you have to tell me." "Nope. You'll see ta ta" and she was off. He spoke to the people he needed to speak to, and made arrangements. He'd be there.
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
It seemed that Grossfeder had trained EVERYONE who was in the field, and he remembered everyone. The committee had rented a large space, and it was still crowded. His most recent graduate students were there, as was every student in the graduate program. Dave walked in about an hour into the program. Normally, he would have been there early, and would have left early, but he had taught an extra class and, rather than show up sweaty and unkempt, had gone back and , as Gillian would have said "did himself up. " He DID look good. He was still pumped from the class, and without thinking, he had put on one of his tighter fitting white shirts. He had gotten bigger, and wearing one button open was not an option. He had ONE pair of pants that were not jeans: grey flannels that Ahmad had bought him. "You need ONE pair, not ten , dave king" Ahmad had told him "Quality not quantity." He remembered that. That's why he didn't date. He had had quality: Ahmad. He wasn't going to settle for something less. Finally, he put on his one good blazer: a navy blue one (of course), also selected by Ahmad. He wanted dave to wear it to their farewell dinner, and dave could swear, he still smelled Ahmad's spicy scent from where he had put his head on dave's shoulder when they were dancing. WHY, oh WHY had Ahmad's father gotten sick? And WHY, oh WHY had Ahmad... well... best to try to forget that. "DAVE!!!!" he heard the plummy sound of Gillian's voice. "OH MY GOODNESS . YOU LOOK EVEN BETTER THAN YOU DID AS AN UNDERGRAD. COME TO MOMMA LUV" Gillian was all over him. "Tell me: how is it going? Or, better yet, let's have lunch. I'm going to be here for a week. You can fill me in on everything. How's Ahmad? She saw his face. "Oh, dave. I'm sorry. I didn't know. We'll talk about that during the week. Let's go get a drink now. " She grabbed his hand and took him over to the bar with her.
"There's someone here who I think you're going to be surprised to see." "Who, Gillian? I can't think of who I'd know." She laughed. "Oh, you'll see. I just hope it's the right thing for the two of you." From where they were, as they got glasses of wine, he saw someone in the corner, at the back of the room. He looked vaguely familiar. He could see his back, his hair, but not his face. Was that Gabe? "Have you seen him yet, luv?" Gillian asked. "I... I think so.. Is Gabe here?" "YES LUV! He is. And you know what? He's back in New York." "Is he? Is he a doctor here in NY now?" "Well, yes, sort of. He's a resident. That's sort of like a grubby grad student again. He'll probably have to work a 72 hour shift to have come here, but... that's the life he chose." "It IS the life he chose." dave sounded almost angry. "DAVE! Come on! It was - how long ago? Four years? Five years? Give it a chance: you liked each other once." dave sighed. "Yes, it HAD been a long time ago. And Gabe had..., well, if there hadn't been Gabe, there wouldn't have been Ahmad. And he was lonely. SO lonely." "Gabe... I wonder if you recognize this handsome man." Gillian spoke, and Gabe turned around. His smile turned to a bit of puzzlement, and then it got bigger. "OH BY ZEUS. IS THAT DAVE KING." "Yes sir, it is" dave held out his hand, but Gabe was having no part of that, as he threw his arms around him. As dave hugged back, he realized he was getting an erection. He felt Gabe's lips on his neck before he drew back. "Dave... dave... I'm... I owe you more than an apology. I just... OH SHIT, I don't know what to say. Look, Grossfeder is about to make his remarks. We'd best be quiet. As dave stood near Gillian and Gabe, he felt Gabe's hand move behind him and then onto his butt cheek. He didn't move. Rather. He put his hand on top of Gabe's, so he couldn't take it away.
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Grossfeder finished his remarks, which left several people, Gillian included, in tears. It took a while for the three of them to get close enough to Grossfeder to pay their respects and to congratulate him, but he remembered each one. "GILLIAN. OH MY LOVELY YOUNG LADY. HOW ARE YOU DOING IN ENGLAND? IS THERE ANY WAY WE COULD TALK YOU INTO COMING BACK?" Gillian actually seemed rather interested in that prospect. She had told dave how she and her partner had broken up, and while she loved being home, she missed New York. "Is there room for me here, Professor?" "Well, Gillian, there's always room for you here, but I KNOW that they are looking for a junior faculty member in ancient Greek history. You'd have to spend some time on the cross teaching great books classes, but yes... Please send my assistant an email. Tell her you spoke to me, and we'll get these wheels turning." He leaned in and kissed her. PROFESSOR GABE. MY MOST BRILLIANT TRAITOR! He shook Gabe's hand before embracing him. "So tell me, how is medicine. Did all your devious studies on how the Greeks managed to extract information from spies help in gross anatomy, young man? he laughed. Gabe laughed too. "Actually, they did Sir. More though, the way you taught me how to attack a problem.. that was invaluable. " "Now what are you specializing in?" "I think endocrine work professor. Glands. I like working with children too." "Hard to get away with torture there.." he laughed. "Oh, I just withhold a lollipop." "Ha ha. Well, they shouldn't be eating them anyway. Best of luck to you. I hear you're in NY now. Come and visit." Then he turned to dave. "And here is our newest generation. DAVE KING! The man who discovered the Urban manuscript." "The what?" Gabe asked "OH, that's right. You've been out of the field. Well, dave spent the summer before he began his studies, on a dig in Italy. They think it's the villa of the mysterious Glaucus, governor of Sicily. When he was digging, he found some papyri that were mentioned in medieval sources, but had never been seen. Not all of them, but enough. That's going to be Dave's thesis: a scholarly commentary on "The Urban manuscript," because the writer identifies himself "Urban or Ulrich." Gabe looked at dave: "You'll need to tell me all about this. Coffee?" "If it's decaf, ok. I really can't drink regular coffee this late. It keeps me awake." Gabe smiled. "I was thinking I might do that." Gillian smiled. She heard bits of this. "I'm going to be heading out. Dave, please let's speak tomorrow and make plans. I REALLY need to catch up with you, and... since I have a venue to Grossfeder's assistant..." He looked at her. "You're going to apply?" She smiled. "OH GIL. IF YOU ONLY KNEW. THAT'S THE BEST NEWS I'VE HEARD ALL DAY" In their embrace, she whispered "better than seeing Gabe again?" He replied back: Scores better. MUCH better. " She kissed him. "You be careful now my treasure." After she had kissed Gabe goodbye, he turned to dave. "So... shall we go somewhere and catch up?" "The diner? Just for coffee." "It's still there." "Still there. I visit at least once a week."
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Once they had gotten seated, Gabe leaned out and took dave's hand. "So, I was a real bastard dave. I at least owed you a call." dave was trying to keep his composure. "You owed me at least a call over four years. Do you know how bad I hurt when you just disappeared?" Gabe squeezed his hand. "dave , I'm not sure I can articulate this. But please, let me try... I was so head over heels for you... I thought.. now that I have him, do I stay, or do I try to get him to come to St Louis? Neither choice seemed right." "I would've visited Gabe." He saw Gabe wince. "No, I'm not calling you Sir Gabe. You lost that right." "That's fair, dave. That's very fair. " He paused. "Did you find someone else?" "Now, Gabe, that's really none of your business. " Gabe smiled. "You did. There's no way that you weren't gonna get snapped up . Was he good to you?" dave blushed. "Very good to me. He was actually one of your students. Remember someone named Ahmad?" Gabe shook his head and smiled. "Ahmad... WOW. You know, all of us thought he was, and just about all of us thought: bottom material. " dave shook his head "uh uh. 200 percent topman." He smiled. "I shouldn't reminisce." Then his icy blue eyes focused on Gabe. "And what about you? I'm sure you didn't keep that charm bottled up." Gabe sighed. "Well, I don't know about charm, but... there were two. Frank. Oh, sweet Frank. I hurt him. " "You have a talent for that, you know." Gabe winced. This wasn't going QUITE as he planned. "I guess that's fair. No, I know it's fair. You're right. You're absolutely right dave." He started to stand up. "I was going to ask if we could maybe spend the night together but... you're right. I'm not good enough for you." He began to peel a few dollars from his wallet. "Take care." "SIT DOWN YOU SELF INDULGENT SHIT!" dave's voice was loud. He apologized to the restaurant when the stares started. He looked at Gabe. "First, understand. I'm trying to get over what you DID. I'll NEVER get over YOU. And I owe you my gratitude: if you hadn't opened me up the way you did - and I don't mean physically, Gabe, because Ahmad was WAY more hung than you - I never would've been ready for the four wonderful years I had with him. Four or five? I don't remember. " He took a deep breath. "I've always been an honest man, Gabe, and I'll be honest now. Did I get hard when I saw you tonight? Yes. Did I get harder when you put your hand on my ass? Yes. Am I hard now? Yes. And if I went home and jerked off thinking about you, I could live with that. " He paused. "But I want you to come home with me. And I don't want you to treat me the way you did. Not again. " "Can I speak now, dave?" "Yeah, I guess. I owe you that. And put your money away . I have a job at the gym. It pays me good money." "I don't know where I'm going to wind up , dave. I don't know what kind of time I'll have, I don't know what kind of person I'll become. This residency is... tough. I'm not going to gross you out with stories of kids with goiters, and swollen livers, and stuff like that, but it's taxing. I forget things. I ignore things. If Gillian hadn't called, I would've missed this party. " He stopped for a minute. "So I don't know how good a lover I would be, or could be. I don't even want to THINK about that now. But... dave..." another deep breath. "We've both been lonely a long time, and... GOD, you're so goddamn gorgeous and.... GOD, I want you so bad, and... yeah, my cock may not be as big as Ahmad's is, but ... I wish it were in your right now, hearing those moans you make when you're getting pounded." "you could lower your voice, you know," someone said at the adjacent table." dave laughed, and then Gabe did too. dave looked down. "did you learn anything new about keeping a man helpless with a touch?" Gabe smiled. "You'll just have to find out. " "My place, Sir? It's closer. And it's not medical school housing." "Let's go " As they walked back to dave's apartment, dave put his hands behind his back. "You remembered," Gabe smiled. "Yes sir. I did. You trained me well. " He put his hand on the back of dave's neck. "Hee hee. Your training hasn't even started yet, dave."
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Fifteen minutes later, dave's hands were cuffed behind his back with one of the pair that Ahmad had left behind. He was on his knees, with Gabe in front of him, Gabe's pants down around his ankles. dave was making slurping sounds, because Gabe seemed to like them. "OH YES. My young man has become a fucking expert cocksucker. OH YES. FURTHER DOWN BOI." He pushed dave's head forward. dave had forgotten just how much he really truly loved cock. He moved quickly, then slowly, varying the speed on Gabe's cock. He changed the suction from his lips, the way Ahmad had trained him. Gabe pulled him off his cock. "I need to send Ahmad a note of thanks. Now get on that bed. On your back." "yes sir. Can I get a ..." He didn't finish. Gabe's lips were over his mouth, his tongue forcing its way down his throat. While they were kissing, dave embraced him. That's when Gabe slid a finger into the point just below dave's ribs which he knew would immobilize him. It did. "OH SHIT. I'm helpless." dave's hands fell away, as Gabe gently twisted his finger. dave felt all of his strength going. "You've got restraints on the bed. GOOD... This final push will keep you calm until I finish. Gabe gave him one hard jab to the spot, and while dave gathered his strength, Gabe tied him down, so that it was too late. Ahmad had designed the restraints with dave's superior strength in mind, and there was nothing he could do. Gabe unbuckled dave's pants. Then he opened his shirt. "Oh, I remember those tits. GOD do I remember them." He kissed them, and then he nibbled. He smiled. "I was told that that reminded someone of the mouse in Hansel und Gretel." "Please Sir. Don't talk about anyone else tonight. Just us. Please. Give your sub something." Gabe looked at dave, and kissed both of his eyes. "You're right. I'm sorry. " He smiled. "You have clamps?" "Yes sir. Several. Top drawer." Gabe pulled out a set. "Hmmmm. " He was about to say "you guys got quite advanced," but he just took out the set he knew were most severe, and attached them to dave's nipples. "FUCK. It's been a while. SHIT. MMMMPH. " Gabe covered his mouth with his hand. "They're staying on. I'll gag you if I have to. Clear?" dave shook his head. He was whimpering from the clamps. "Now for the good stuff." He had dave naked from the waist down, his cock pointing up in the air. Gabe spread his legs and began eating dave's ass- something Ahmad really didn't like to do. Gabe seemed to like it quite fine, and so did dave. "OH WOW. GOD. Did you do that the first time, Sir?" Gabe shook his head no, as he pushed his tongue further and further into dave. "You want me to leave them on?" "Yes sir. Please." Gabe smiled. "I was gonna anyway. Now... OH, I've been thinking about this all night. " He slid his cock into dave. dave winced. Yes, Ahmad was longer, but Gabe was thicker. MUCH thicker. He began to "do his magic," as he described it later, and dave was absolutely hypnotized. From what he could remember, Gabe had been a good lover, but it was so long ago. Sex with Gabe was different than sex with Ahmad. MUCH different. Gabe was rougher. He enjoyed himself, and dave enjoyed himself too, but there wasn't the connection he had with Ahmad. "It's only the second time, dave. Only the second time. Be patient. " In the middle of Gabe plowing him, dave shot. "I'M SORRY SIR I'M SORRY. SUBS DON'T SHOOT BEFORE THEIR TOPS." "No, they don't. And there WILL be consequences boi. But now...." Gabe grabbed the chain of the tit clamps as he shot into dave. (Later, dave would say he thought that Gabe's jizz was gonna come out of his nips that night.) dave was smiling when Gabe looked at him. He teased dave by twisting the clamps just a bit, before he released them. "Can I stay tonight, dave?" "I was assuming you would Sir. Welcome home." And yes, Gabe DID move in. Not right away, and we will get to that. Next time, gentle reader, we'll go back to the story of dave and Ahmad, because without that story, there's none of this. So stay tuned.