Chapter 5

                                    

                                          
I sat at my desk, absentmindedly staring at the photos on my phone I had taken of Sidney and I at his house. I was supposed to be editing photos and putting the final touches on the calendar so I could start getting them printed. But I just couldn't find it in me to focus. I kept thinking about Sidney and our day and nights spent together. I hadn't heard from him since he dropped me off at home before he went to work that morning, which bothered me. He usually called me.
                          
I didn't want to get up that morning. Once I heard his alarm go off, tears started to fill my eyes. I didn't want to let him go. Letting him go to work meant he had to put himself in danger. I worried more than anything that he would get hurt. When he drove me home, he sensed my sadness and tried to reassure me that he'd be done with work soon enough and we could be back together again. His words did little to ease my concern. He kissed me goodbye for as long as possible until he couldn't stay any longer. I knew it was hard for him to let go because it was just as hard for me to let him go. I felt like I was counting down the seconds before I'd see him again.
                          
I sighed, looking through the Facebook comments from the post I made, seeing quite a few from people I didn't know. I had a couple new friend requests from who I assumed were Sidney's friends or family. I felt strange about accepting them and decided to wait until I talked to Sidney about it. There was one comment that struck me as odd. It was from an Eliza, who I had to assume was his ex. Even though they had broken up, he was still friends with her on Facebook. Her comment was simple but telling. All she posted was, 'Wow!' I stared at that comment for quite some time, thinking on how she still had Sidney wrapped around her finger. He was never going to be free from her unless he did something about it. We were never going to be able to move forward unless she was gone from his life for good.
                          
I hated being the nosey girlfriend, but I wanted to know more about her. Thankfully she didn't have a private Facebook. I was able to see everything she posted. She seemed rather conceited, posting plenty of pictures of herself. She was beautiful at first sight, but knowing what I did about her, helped me see past her beauty. There were pictures of her on extravagant vacations with groups of friends as well as a guy who was prominent in her photos. I imagined that was probably the guy she cheated on Sidney with. She wrote posts about always being broke and not being able to pay her bills because it cost too much money to look as good as she did. She was rather ridiculous, and I had a hard time believing Sidney actually stayed with her for six years. He wasn't anything like her. He was shy and modest and cared more about people than anything else. They just didn't seem compatible at all.
                          
"Are you going to stalk his ex all day?" Clara asked from behind me.
                          
I quickly put my phone down and tried to focus on my computer screen instead. "I'm not stalking his ex."
                          
She laughed. "It sure looked like you were. That is his ex, right?"
                          
I nodded my head, turning around in my chair to look at her. "I'm just curious who she is."
                          
"You've barely done anything on those photos today. Aren't you supposed to have them done by now?"
                          
I shrugged. "I don't necessarily have a deadline. I wanted to have them done, but that was my own personal deadline."
                          
"Why do you seem so depressed?" she asked. "It's not like you to be sitting here and not be completely enthralled with some sort of photo edit."
                          
I sighed. "I guess I'm just missing Sidney. Yesterday was the most amazing day I've ever had, even though we didn't do much of anything. But now he's at work and he hasn't called me or texted me once. I'm just worried if he's alright."
                          
"Go see him," she suggested.
                          
"I can't go see him," I argued. "How pathetic would I be if I went to see him at work?"