𝒯hey led you into a small room, made you raise your arms, and a policewoman thoroughly examined each of your limbs, patting down your clothes to make sure you weren't carrying anything contraband or hidden. You couldn't even bring your cell phone. They left no corner unchecked. Not one. It was protocol; there was nothing you could do about it but lower your head. They asked you about your relationship to the prisoner. "His fiancée," you replied. They asked you a couple more questions and then opened a book in front of you, the visitors' book. You bent down and signed next to your name. You briefly saw the signatures of previous visitors: his lawyer, his sister Melisa, his mother Laura.

Afterward, the policeman led you down a hallway with gray walls and flickering, bright, cold light. "He's waiting for you inside," the man said, opening the door, which creaked open. The walls were gray, a lamp with the same cold light hung from the ceiling, and there was a table in the center with two chairs. He wasn't sitting down, he never was, he never stayed still.

He turned to look at you, a cigarette dangling from his mouth. He was wearing an orange suit with a V-neck that revealed a glimpse of the white undershirt beneath. A huge smile spread across his lips as he stubbed out the cigarette in the ashtray on the table.

— "Who’s this pretty lady?" — he asked with a grin, raising his eyebrows and looking you up and down playfully. He approached slowly as the door closed behind you.

It was no lie that Joe had missed you terribly. At night, he would stare at the bottom of the top bunk, where he had a picture of you taped up. He never tired of showing you off to the other prisoners, and if someone insulted him, it didn't matter until they messed with you. He had gotten into countless fights to defend your honor, and his own, but above all, yours.

He stopped in front of you and placed his hands on your shoulders, caressing your arms as he leaned down to kiss your forehead, pulling you close to his chest.

— "Missed you, babe..." — he murmured against your head, kissing it.