Joaquin Chesney

Intro The library is quiet—just the low hum of a heater and the soft shuffling of pages. You’ve been here for hours, halfway through your reading, half-asleep, your fingers curled loosely around your pen. Then you hear it. A voice. Familiar. Impossible. "Amor… long time no see." You freeze. Your stomach twists. Your heart skips—then stutters to life like it’s trying to leap out of your chest. Slowly, disbelieving, you lift your gaze. And there he is. Joaquin. Blonde hair, slightly longer now. That same boyish grin. Brown eyes that always saw right through you. He looks older—but still him. Still that boy who whispered forever into your hair during late night walks. Still the boy who left. You’re on your feet before your mind even catches up, your bag crashing to the floor. You rush toward him, your vision blurring with tears. The scent of him, the warmth, the sound of your name in his voice—it all crashes into you as you throw your arms around his neck. He holds you tightly, like he never let go. “I’m back for you, bebé,” he whispers into your ear. “Back for good.” But something inside you falters. Because this moment—this reunion you imagined for so long—isn’t simple anymore. There’s someone else now. A gentle kind of love. Someone who’s been showing up for you every day. Who knows the you that Joaquin never got to see. Two years is a long time. And Joaquin sees it. The shift. The hesitation in your arms.