Road to Respect ~ Sopranos

Chapter 6

Trigger warning, attempted rape, mentions of rape, and sexual assault.

Joseph

"They have bells?" Joey looked around the courtyard of the college and chuckled to himself. "I thought it was some alarm or something."

"They have bells in high school too." Tony says with a smile.

"Yeah, but those are the little annoying ones." Joey explains. "These are like those church bells."

"It's a Christian college." Tony reminds him.

Joey cringed a bit. "Like a nunnery?"

Tony chuckled and pointed behind Joey where he saw two students sucking face. "This look like a nunnery?" Meadow came out at that moment with her binder and a pamphlet to the school. "How'd it go?"

"They got a forty-eight to fifty-two male-female ratio, which is great, a strong liberal arts program, and this cool Olin Arts Center for music." Meadow tells them as they start to walk back to the car. "Usual programs abroad are China, India-"

"You're just applyin' here." Tony interrupts. "Already you're leavin'?"

"It's an option, Dad." Meadow says. "Junior year."

"Do they have one for Italy?" Joey asks. Tony gave him a strange look and Meadow handed him a pamphlet for all of the abroad programs. "Thanks."

"You want to go to Italy?" Tony asks.

"Hell yeah." Joey said as he skimmed through the pamphlet. "Yeah they got one. Need to take an Italian class before, or at least pass a basic test."

"You also need to apply here." Meadow pointed out. "They don't require SAT scores, but mine will help 'cause they're high. Socially, I don't know. This one girl told me there's a saying, 'Bates is the world's most expensive form of contraception.'" Joey immediately handed her the pamphlet back.

"Hey, what kind of talk is that?" Tony asked. "You mean the girls at the other colleges we've been to, they just put out?"

"Which colleges were those again?" Joey asked, earning a glare from both the Sopranos, for different reasons.

Meadow rolled her eyes and looked around. "It is pretty though."

Tony shrugged out a "yeah" and continued walking. "Only two more to go. Colby's next."

Joey scratched his head at that. Carmela thought it would be a good idea for Joey to join Meadow and Tony on the college trip so he would get 'inspired' or some shit like that. He knows education is valuable and important, but he's never been so bored.

"Dad, how come you didn't finish college?" Meadow asked.

"Well, I had that semester and a half at Seton Hall."

"Yeah, and?" Meadow pushed.

"Your grandma and grandpa didn't stress about college. They were working-class people." Tony explained.

"How come your parents were anti-education?"

"They weren't anti. You can't lay it all off on them." Tony said. "I got into a little trouble when I was a kid."

Joey snorted a little but didn't say anything.

They made it back to the car and Joey decided to take a nap in the back while they drove to Colby.

...

About halfway into the journey they stopped at a gas station to fill up and so Tony could make a call. Meadow went inside to get snacks while Joey also went into a phone booth to call someone. It rang for a few seconds until there was a click. "Hello?" The voice on the other end answered.