Page 2 of The Sidekick

I wish I could go back to how things were instead of avoiding her calls like she’s the plague and I don’t own a mask. I miss our friendship so much, especially right now when I need someone there for me.

The new, not so chipper part is thankful when the screen goes black. One less stressor to deal with in this overwhelming crapstorm of a day. I’d be better off calling my oldest, real friend for help. South lives too far away to be here with me now though.

Guilt worms its way around my heart as that thought appears.

Andi is supposed to be my best friend. If anyone should know what’s going on right now, it would be her. If this was a couple of months ago, I wouldn’t hesitate to call her. Now, she probably wouldn’t come if I asked her to. Somehow, she wouldn’t be able to make it, or she’d be too busy. There’s always an excuse. Or maybe she’s finally calling to tell me she never wants to see me again.

Being a sidekick to Andi was awesome. I got to sit back on the sidelines while all the drama flowed around me, maneuvering things from the shadows, watching my bestie gain her love interest and then another and another while dealing with overt threats and death-defying odds. It was straight out of a movie. A hero movie this time.

I helped her a lot, lending her my skills at breaking and entering with a little hacking to get her information. There was always a risk to being a sidekick, but I think I did ok. I wasn’t kidnapped, tortured, or even noticed, for the most part. A silent partner.

When her mafia father sent in the bodyguards, I was all for them. Her dad loves her and wants her to be safe. They are walking proof. It took me weeks to convince her of it. Yeah, they don’t like me, and her boyfriends barely tolerate me, but I wasn’t there for them. I was there for Andi.

Andi lived under threat for seven months before the red herrings were removed through my interference, and the big evil was arrested. It’s been six months since everything wound down, and the Worm was put behind bars. Job well done, guys. Let’s get back to a normal life.

They didn’t change with the lack of stress, though. They seemed to get worse when they realized only a sliver of the things I had a hand in on Andi’s behalf. The boyfriends now can’t stand me, and the guards are still hanging around glaring and making rude comments. They even moved into Andi’s old house, setting up shop in town instead of flying back home to New York. No problem, besties prevail, right?

Wrong.

She’s been too busy with her romance times three to give me much time. No biggie, three guys is a handful, and I have no idea how she does it. Points to her, for real. If anyone could wrangle those three, it would be Andi.

My happy go-with-the-flow attitude began to stiffen up when the cancellations started or she didn’t show up when we made plans. I don’t like hanging out at Andi’s new house because I feel like a tenth wheel, and Andi is the only one who bothers to talk to me.

The rest of them have nothing nice to say. I tried to let it wash over me for her sake, convinced it would get better. It isn’t like they’re mean to Andi after all. If anything, they all worship the ground she walks on, even when she drives them crazy with her adventurous spirit.

Three months into the ‘stress-free’ life, the snide remarks and distrustful glares got old. I decided enough was enough. I wouldn’t be immature about it. I would face it head-on with some advice from my bestie. We could brainstorm together and come up with a solution that everyone would be happy with.

It took another month of failed meet ups before I tried to catch her at home when I didn’t think anyone else would be around. I wanted to talk about my issues in a calm and cool adult fashion without all the cutting words I constantly hear from the men around her.

She wasn’t alone when I used my key to silently let myself in.

Nope, she had her bodyguards in some kind of meeting in the kitchen. Like an idiot, I hung around in the hallway to listen, no stranger to keeping quiet when I broke into a home.

I overheard them telling her to ditch me. It didn’t sound like a new argument because Andi’s responses were mainly frustrated sighs instead of the harpy shriek she usually fights back with. I decided to wait and see what they had to say. Then, I would make a grand entrance, pointing out how wrong their assumptions are.

As long as Andi was with me, I couldn’t lose.

They told her I was the source of most of her problems and that my help could easily be replaced in a more legal fashion. The fact that I stole information to use against the bad guys wasn’t even admissible in court.

They’re right, of course.

And then they started the old Tera is using you for your money tirade, even though I’ve never asked her for anything. They pointed out that if you took away my one skill, the only thing I would be around for is the jokes that aren’t even funny. Andi is the only one of them who appreciates my humor.

Then, the final nail in the coffin got beaten in.

Andi agreed to stop talking to me for a while as if it wouldn’t be any problem for her to cut me out of her life. She didn’t yell or shriek like I’m used to. She sounded worn down and exhausted.

How long had this relentless campaign been going on that she wasn’t fighting back? And why wasn’t she fighting back? She knows me better than that. Did she agree with them now? I had felt so ashamed and hurt that I backed out without saying anything.

It took a week for me to psyche myself up and try calling instead of waiting for the ax to fall. Someone else always answered her phone, telling me she was too busy to talk, or I had to leave a message on her machine. I felt like some hybrid of a stalker and a telemarketer.

I didn’t try showing up at their place unannounced again, too scared I might overhear more spirit-crushing facts.

After an entire month of refused calls, I stopped trying. I finally began taking the not-so-subtle hint to give up, and she never called me. It’s been silence between us when we used to talk once a day, sometimes more.

I've gone back and forth, trying to see where I’m the problem, but I can’t figure it out. Most of their accusations aren’t true. Unless you count my arrest, they have zero proof to back up their theories.

I broke down and asked people at work if something was wrong with me. It was a giant mistake and very eye-opening. I got a unanimous yes across the board. When I probed deeper, trying to get a clue and maybe try to fix whatever the problem was, the responses were never-ending.

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