This started about three months ago, and I think it's finally been laid completely to rest.

One thing that Empty Ellie has done ever since she got on FB years ago is post all sorts of idiotic videos and shit to my wall. Sometimes I delete it (especially if it's religious, which I am not, whereas she is one of those lovely vocal Christians who go to church twice a year, but daily post religious shit left, right and center. Other people can post religious things on their own walls all day and night, but my wall, my rules), mostly I leave it. Mainly because I go on FB maybe twice a month these days.

Anyways, a few months ago, she posted a video that was one of those "use these random household items to make cool and useful crafts!" videos to my wall. She also left a message "watch this very carefully, and tell me what you see". I didn't see it because I barely go on FB, but then she actually asked me if I'd watched it over the phone. That is actually unusual. We have (happily) gotten to the place in our relationship where she understands that I am not duty-bound to watch whatever random crap she's posted on my wall. If she asks if I've watched something, I'll check it out, because once we established the rules, I think she's asked me to watch something maybe three times.

So I watch the video and it's a surprisingly well-done video, and actually a little bit interesting, but I don't see anything particularly special about it. I tell her that I watched it and that it was pretty cool. She then asks me if I've seen anything interesting in it. I say "nothing in particular".

I'm going to paraphrase our conversation now, about this video.

EE: Did you see the part where they make a photo holder?

me: yeah, what about it?

EE: Did you look closely at the photo?

me: No, it looks like a rando stock photo.

EE: What is a stock photo?

me: It's when people randomly pose doing things and then the photos are used for ads and stuff. The photos that are already in a picture frame are stock photos

EE: No, this is definitely not something like that (note: it's totally a freaking stock photo), you need to look at it closely

me: Do you think you know someone in the photo?

EE: YOU know someone in the photo!

me: I don't think so...

EE: Isn't the man in the photo your Partner?

me: Um, no. Absolutely not.

EE: It totally is him! It looks like it's from 10 years ago, but it's definitely him! Who do you think that women and those children are? Do you think he used to have a family?

me: Mom, that's a stock photo. And it's not Partner. It's some rando people who posed for a stock photo. They're probably not even an actual family, but all photography models.

EE: I am really sure that it is Partner. You should talk to him about this. Maybe he has a whole family you don't know about.

me: I'm going now Mom, have a good one.

Now, the photo in question is clearly one of those "young attractive family having fun with their two attractive kids in the park" pictures, and the guy in the photo looks about as much like my partner as anybody of Roman heritage that inherited dark Roman looks and a Roman nose resemble each other. It's not my partner.

Nonetheless, Empty Ellie was fixated on this being my partner. She kept bringing it up, and every time she did, I either stopped texting with her or I hung up the phone, if we were talking.

After about a month, my aunt calls me. She's concerned because she's heard from Empty Ellie that my partner had a family when she was younger and he won't talk about it with me. My aunt is worried about me and my relationship.

I explain where this weird obsession developed from and there was this amazing awkward silence before she apologies for taking anything that Empty Ellie said seriously.

About a month after that (so early-mid December) when Empty Ellie is visiting me, she brings it up again, and I just...I don't lose it, but I am like "what the ever-loving fuck is wrong with you?". Now that we're face to face, she can see how totally irritated I am (and probably can see that going VLC or even NC for awhile is on the horizon) and she starts backpeddling. You see, she just thought it would be funny if it was partner, and what she'd be saying all along was that I should ask him if he took stock photos when he was younger. Yes, she actually said "stock photos", a term that she didn't know until I explained it to her several months prior.

I have no idea what goes on in what woman's head, but now that our little "misunderstanding" has cleared up, she seems to have gotten off of this weird obsession.