I love him, not

chapter ii

Nicolas' POV

I opened Instagram, heading to the search tab on the explore page and as usual, her account was at the top of the options. The account had three new posts that I had not seen. I opened the account, scrolling through the first three posts that appeared.

In the first post, she was standing on her balcony, her eyes fixed on something behind the camera with a smile on her face. Her hair was in a curly bob that had a fringe that covered her eyes a little bit. Her body was turned a little bit, so she could stand at the right angle. The sun hit her clear skin, making her appear lighter than she actually is - or was the last time I saw her. She had a white dress on. The dress made her curves visible as it hugged her body.

In the second post, she had the same white dress on, but this time she was seated on one of the stairs that led from the balcony, down to the garden underneath her. She had a smaller smile on her face than in the last picture, but she was still as beautiful as I had remembered her. Her hazel eyes shimmered in the sun as if she had put in a bling filter. The second slide was a picture of her looking down as she fiddled with her dress. That brought my attention down to her curves, which looked bigger now that she was seated.

The last of the three posts was a short video. I switched on the sound and watched the video play.

'Come here.' Someone said to her behind the camera.

She slowly walked over to the person behind the camera. She smiled. She seemed so much more mature in the video, like she had become a new person since I had left all those years ago. She stopped a few steps away from the person behind the camera and tugged a loose strand of her hair behind her ear.

'Closer.' The person said. I suddenly remembered who the voice belonged to and my nostrils flared. I was jealous. I shook my head, I had no right to be jealous. I left her.

She giggled and he pulled her in before she could take the steps she was already beginning to take. He kissed her and she kissed him back, before pulling away.

'I love you.' She said, softly.

'I love you too.' Daniel replied.

They kept on staring at each other, the biggest smiles on both their faces.

The video began replaying itself and it took all that I had not to throw my phone against the wall. Instead, I hurriedly closed the app and took a few deep breaths before carrying on with my day.

***

I got back in the house and dropped my bags onto the floor by the door. I barely had enough time to take my shoes off before my daughter came running towards me. I caught her right before she crashed into me, lifting her into an air spin. She giggled as she spun around, lifting her hands as if she were a bird.

I slowly stopped spinning and put her on the ground. I held onto her for a few seconds, making sure that she had regained her balance.

When I was certain she had gained her balance, I let go of her and walked further into the house. As I was passing, the smell from the kitchen hit my nose. I stopped and walked into the kitchen to see Aleja walking around, just finishing the food.

"What have you cooked?" I coldly asked.

"Your favourite." She replied, walking up to me to give me a kiss. I leaned back as her lips got closer. She looked at me and I walked back to the counter, wiping tears from her face in the process.