"Maybe everything that happened up to this point was a beautiful twist of fate," -C.T

I couldn't stop myself from replaying my interactions with Holly.

"Holly, where do you live?" I probably shouldn't have asked a strong and invasive question like that, but I was who I was. The little girl looked at me with a frown before averting her gaze. "I live in a foster home with a bunch of other boys and girls," She stated, allowing me to ask more personal questions. "Do you like it there?" She began to vehemently shake her head, biting her lip.

"I hate it," She mumbled quietly, looking as sad as she felt. "I miss my daddy," She whimpered as she shifted in the passenger seat of my Escalade. She had been so shocked to see a truck like this, so shocked that she wouldn't stop fawning over it. It had been the third time since I came to her school to converse with her in terms of wanting to get to know her, and I didn't like how she seemed as if she had nothing, when a child should want nothing less.

"I just hope that he's okay. He was very sad when Mommy died, but I haven't seen him in a long time," Holly was on the verge of tears as she looked at me, her eyes begging me to do something. "Would you believe me if I said I knew your daddy?" The way her eyes lit up was almost comical as she nearly leaped into my lap. 

"You do!? You do?!" The smile on her face was probably the biggest that I had seen in my life. "Yes, I do, but I want this to be a surprise to him," I put a finger up to my lips, watching her mimic me. She wasn't as bad and I was starting to like this little girl. "I understand, Chey Chey!" She saluted me, her wild curls flying all over her head as I took in her once ratted appearance. She was clean herself, but her clothes weren't. They looked like ripped hand-me-downs, and I had half of a mind to curse someone out. 

It just made me want to provide more for her. Jesus fuck, I was going soft and the kid didn't even know me from a hole in a wall. 

"Are you daddy's best friend?" She inquired and I shook my head. "No, that would be a guy called Tomas," I replied and her eyes lit up in recognition. "Mr. T!" She screeched, the sound almost killing my eardrums. Please, Holly, I'd still like to hear, thank you. 

"He's still here! I'm just so happy that he and daddy are still friends because," Holly tilted her head, her eyes glazing over with sadness. "Daddy was really sad when Mommy died. I miss Mommy too, but I want my daddy to be okay now," I leaned on the door of my truck, getting a vague understanding of what she was talking about. She was trying to be strong because she knew how bad Joaquin had it. She wanted to be strong for her father so then if and when they reunited, he could become whole again.

The second bell sounded, letting us know that recess was almost over and we both fell quiet, a lot on our minds. I was trying to figure out what to do and she was trying to figure out how to get her father back. Luckily for both of us, I was the solution. 

"Hey, Chey Chey," Her voice was hollow and shy as she twiddled with her fingers, avoiding eye contact. "What's that?" I hummed as she nervously sniffled. By the time she had gained the courage, I already had an answer. "Do you think that I could come to live with you? Nobody wants me," She sounded as if she was going to cry, the little whimper pulling at my heart. She gazed at me with so much anticipation and I sighed, patting her head.

"I think we both know the answer to that." 

I groaned on the video call, seeing Joaquin chuckle, his smile seemingly more white than usual. "I've been ready for the past 20 minutes. Joaquin, where the hell are you?" I hissed. 

"Patience is a virtue, you little impatient prince," I could hear the turn signal of his vehicle in the background. "But if you must know, I'm outside your studio," He replied casually and I rolled my eyes, grabbing my Vuitton bookbag before exiting the premises with an end to the call.

When I walked outside, my jaw dropped when I looked up, utter vile disgust riling up in my stomach. "Joaquin," I grimaced, having a feeling I was going to need tons of disinfectant. "What is this contraption?" I nearly gagged on sight when the beat-up death machine he called a vehicle came to a chugging stop in front of me. With a roll of the passenger window of the black trap, Joaquin waved at me.

"What's the matter? My '03 not good enough for you?" He teased as I scanned the black piece of metal he called a pickup truck, my arms itching all of a sudden. "Is it safe? You know I can always have Pierre drive us," I threw out, hoping that he would really take the offer. I would even drive us myself. I didn't think I had ever ridden in a car that was 2018 or older and I wasn't too keen on doing so either. 

"Yes, it is," Joaquin stressed with an exasperated sigh. "And no, I don't have cowhide leather seats, so you're good," He leaned over in his seat, that one strand of hair long enough to hang over his eye as he opened the door for me. "Hop in, you're wasting time," My knees were trembling as I took one step at a time, hoping that my soul was still intact.

I, with apprehension, slowly slid into the truck, afraid to touch anything. Joaquin grabbed me by the waist and hoisted me down onto cloth seats, reaching over to the shut the door for me. "Now, was that so hard?" He tilted his head with a mock and I gritted my teeth, looking away from him. "Yes," I blatantly muttered and he let out a laugh, beginning to drive his death trap. I had half of a mind to text Vivi to tell that if I died in a car accident, it was all Joaquin's fault.

I let out a breath that I was holding as I scanned his figure, a familiar glint on his wrist catching my eye.

He was wearing the watch that I gave him and it pleased my soul.

"Cheyenne, did you even go to college?" Joaquin asked out of the blue, his deep voice catching me off guard. "What? Oh yeah," I answered, wondering who he took me for. "Yes, I got my bachelor's of arts at UCLA two years ago. Don't even ask me how I managed to hide that from Sterling because I'm still not sure how I pulled it off," That had been a stressful time because Sterling was at his all-time prime of trying to get me to work for him, so lying became my forte.

"Hmph, maybe you're a little useful," He narrowed his eyes at me, lips quirked up in a grin so that I knew he was kidding. All this man seemed to do was make fun of me and grin in my presence and I had absolutely no clue why. 

 "We drove out of the city of Palo Alto, and I let all inhibitions leave me as I leaned my elbow on the window, observing the scenery. The silence between was lucid and calming, a tranquil sense of peace illuminating my thoughts. It appeared that I was only ever able to relax and think freely in this poor boy's presence. 

I looked over my shoulder, watching him man the wheel. "Hey," I whispered softly, catching his attention. "Yea, Cheyenne?" I liked the way my name rolled off of his tongue like the sweetest honey ever made. 

"Tell me about your daughter," I threw out, watching his jaw clench. He held a lot of the burden inside of himself and I didn't think anyone had ever given him the chance to talk about his feelings. Tomas probably did, but I was coming to realize that Joaquin was someone who didn't even want to burden his own best friend with his problems. I knew it because even though he smiled, he never smiled, to the point where it was genuine and utter happiness was oozing out of his pores. If anything, he was forcing it. "Her name is Holly," He began and I hummed. 

I had thought that she was dead initially by the way he had described the story, but maybe she was gone in a different sense as I knew. "She's the perfect mixture of Alyssa and me, so kind, so sweet yet she was wild," We both let out a chuckle. "When Alyssa died, I didn't know how to cope. I drunk too much, got myself in bar fights, yelled at everyone and pushed them away," He himself probably didn't know why he was telling me this much but it was because we shared similar wounds.

"I stopped taking care of myself, stopped caring about everything and everyone else, including Holly," His voice was tight as he cleared his throat. "She tried so hard to help me, but I just wasn't myself," Judging by the look in his eyes, that was a time in he which he held powerful regret.  

"Because I wasn't the father that I needed to be, child services came and took her away from me," Joaquin's tone was empty and void as he stared ahead, not wanting to reveal just how much the experience had torn him apart. "I just wish that I would've done better for her because she didn't deserve what I gave her," His deep sigh, one shaded with resentment for himself slipped through my ears. 

"Do you think you're better now?" I questioned and he nodded wholeheartedly. "I'm not the same man that I was eight years ago," With a smooth swift turn of the wheel, he let his hand settle on his lap. "I'd do much more than I did Holly then. If I knew where she was, I'd fight tooth and nail to get her back," The sorrow that was slapping me in the face made me want to tell him that I knew where she was,  but I wasn't going to do it yet.

So instead, I changed the subject.

"Would you consider getting back into the dating game?" I questioned and he shrugged in reply. "Probably," He said and I pursed my lips in reply to that. "What kind of person would you date?" I asked once more and he sighed deeply, thinking about his answer. "I don't know. Probably someone who was grounded and had a deep sense of humility. I don't think that I'd date someone in your realm, someone who is rich and pretentious because that would go against everything that I stand for," I nodded on the outside but on the inside, for some strange reason, my chest was throbbing and there was an audible crack.

I stared at him, unable to say anything as I took in the freckles upon his cheeks. Up close with the sunlight beaming off of his face in such a way that would make photographers envious, I could see everything and by God, it wasn't plain at all. 

Joaquin turned to me, raising a brow in confusion. "Oh yeah, by the way," I coughed awkwardly to get rid of the weird tension that arose since I sat there in silence. "Where are you taking me?" 

"You're going to get a job," I nearly jolted in shock at the trash that came out of his mouth. "What are you talking about, Joaquin?!" I sputtered, trying to comprehend the absurdity of the situation as he snorted, leaning over to me with one hand on the wheel and his elbow on the console, the smell of mint crashing into my nose.

"I hope you don't think just because you have savings and all, that it's unnecessary for you to make a living for yourself," I folded my arms, trying to figure out who made him the boss of me. "The hell are you talking about? I have enough to last me a while," And I did. I sold lots of paintings when I went to college and my art career shot off once I was out, enticing me to make a couple of millions to my name. 

"Yes, that may be right," He scoffed as if he was dealing with some petulant child. "But you need to make what you have count. You need to able to do something for yourself, whether it may be working in retail or being an accountant," My stomach dropped at the thought of having to do manual labor. "Money like that will soon leave you quicker than you think, Cheyenne," I contemplated throwing myself out of his moving car, but I decided against it because the look in his eyes told me that I wasn't going to escape.

Wait, why was I even going along with it? I was my own boss and I did what I wanted. I just told myself that since it was him, I was going to play his little game and then once he realized that I wasn't cut out for it, he'd stop.

"You're gonna come with me tomorrow morning and we're going to go volunteer at the local shelter," He grinned cheerily and I felt my world crumble at the thought of stepping into an area filled with poor people. Oh my god. "Don't look so scared. You might not be as bad as you used to be," He rolled his eyes and I scowled, wondering what that meant. "But you could use a little life lesson," He gave me that look that dared me to challenge him and I gulped, crying internally.

"B-but tomorrow is Saturday," I whined. "I was supposed to go with Vivi to go shopping and then go get my weekly manicured," Joaquin shook his head, probably chastising me in his mind as he leaned over to poke my nose. 

"You're in my world now, rich boy. The least you could do is get a little educated on how we live," I rolled my eyes and he let out a belly laugh, the sight striking me to my core. There was a spark of vigor in those honey eyes as the dimples became more pronounced in his tan cheeks, his smile bright and white as if he didn't have a care in the world. The sun was radiating off of his skin, making him look more ethereal than he had ever before. 

What was this?

"Why are you smiling at me like that?" Joaquin snapped his fingers in my face, knocking me out of my stupor as I stared at him, realizing that I was really smiling. He raised a brow and the action caused my heart to start racing and my lips unconsciously drew up into a smile once again. "Are you okay?" He questioned and my eyes widened in horror, understanding why I was feeling so dizzy and I wasn't even moving. This wasn't what I thought it was, was it?

Aw shit.