One night, my family sat together watching the New Year’s Eve Live on television.

My little sister, Stella Larson, said she had to pee and hurried to the washroom.

Half an hour later, she still had not returned.

When I went to check on her, the washroom was empty.

“When did Stella leave the washroom?” I asked my parents.

Both of them were stunned for a moment before feeling my forehead and saying, “What are you talking about? You’re an only child. Who is Stella?”

They forcibly pulled me back to my seat.

My mind went blank.

Did the three of them just pull a prank on me?

After finishing his drink, my father clutched his stomach and rushed into the washroom.

I stared fixedly at the washroom door.

A long time passed, but no one came out.

My father had vanished, too.

My hand trembled as I pointed at the bathroom.

My mother stepped forward to go in.

“Don’t go in! Dad and Luna disappeared in there!”

My mother looked grief-stricken as she said, “Sweetie, it’s been just the two of us for the past twenty-plus years, remember?”

Her words hit me hard. I was in total disbelief.

I explained myself frantically, but the more I spoke, the more confused my mother became.

She finally shook me off and said, “Why are you doing this to me? I’ve raised you your whole life! Why do you have to ruin New Year’s Eve?”

She walked straight into the washroom, and the house soon fell into a dead silence.

Terrified, I called my best friend, Kathy Scott, who lived nearby. I rambled incoherently as I begged her for help.

But her words utterly crushed me.

“What family members? You’re an orphan.”

I hung up the phone, rushed out, and pounded frantically on the neighbors’ door.

My neighbor, Mrs. Wilson, opened the door.

I could hear laughter and celebration from inside her home.

She was stunned to see me.

I tried to hold back my tears and asked, “Mrs. Wilson, have you seen my parents and my little sister?”

I had hoped to hear the answer I was looking for from a neighbor I had known for over a decade.

Instead, Mrs. Wilson looked confused

“Luna? Haven’t you always lived on your own?”

She said it gently, but I instantly understood what she meant.

“Are you saying I’m an orphan?”

Mrs. Wilson’s face was filled with pity. She did not want to hurt me, but her expression said it all.

My legs went weak. I could barely stand.

Mrs. Wilson’s daughter wandered out, grabbed my hand, and gave me a handful of chips.

“Is she okay? Look, why don’t you join us for New Year’s?

“The more, the merrier! It’s no big deal, we’ve got plenty of room!”

Despite her warm invitation, a chill ran through my body.

I did not remember how, but I managed to decline them politely. I eventually made my way back home.

It was an old apartment in a building from the 90s; the unit was neither too big nor too small. It was ordinary yet cozy.

My family of four had lived there for over a decade.

I was supposed to graduate from university next year.

How could I be an orphan?

Evidence of my family was still everywhere in the house.

On the dining table, the four place settings from the New Year’s Eve dinner sat untouched. They had yet to be cleared away.

My parents’ and Stella’s bedrooms were filled with their personal belongings.

Even the spots where my parents had been sitting still held a lingering warmth.

I stared at the washroom directly across the room.

There, on the wall, was the record of my sister’s and my heights.

My mother had thoughtfully wrapped the door handle in decorative lace.

Nothing seemed out of the ordinary when I looked at it.

Unsure if I should step inside, I shuddered.

Just then, my phone vibrated frantically.

Messages from my best friend, Kathy Scott, started popping up one after another.

[Luna, what were you talking about just now? Did something happen?]

I did not reply to her.

I had panicked earlier and had completely forgotten that I had WhatsApp.

I quickly tapped on my mother’s WhatsApp profile and called her.

I called several times in a row, but no one answered.

My heart sank deeper.

I could not reach my father or Stella either.

What in the world was going on?

With trembling hands, I sent Kathy a quick message to let her know I was safe.

But I did not know how to even begin explaining this bizarre situation.

The very next second, someone frantically pounded on my front door.

Through the peephole, I saw it was my boyfriend, Jesse Field.

Outside the door, his forehead beaded with sweat as he looked at me worriedly.

“What are you doing here?”

I was stunned.

His family lived in the neighboring city. Driving here would take at least three or four hours.

That was why my first instinct had been to reach out to Kathy for help, not him.

“Luna, are you okay?

“I messaged you, but you never replied. I got worried that something might have happened to you,” Jesse asked as he waved his phone.

He had texted me over fifty messages.

His earliest message was sent right around the time I discovered Stella was missing.

Back then, I had been too frantic to check them.

Remembering my family’s strange disappearance, all my pent-up emotions came crashing down.

I hugged him and began to sob incoherently.

“What do I do? I can’t get through to my mom!

“They went into the washroom, and then they just vanished!”

Jesse glanced at my phone screen.

He looked like he wanted to say something, but hesitated.

“Isn’t this your secondary number?

“Why would you call your own number?”

“What secondary number?”

I was stunned.

I only had one number.

Jesse picked up the tablet from the table and handed it to me.

On WhatsApp, the account named “Humdrum” was clearly logged in.

I was its only contact.

The chat history showed only a few unanswered calls that I had made to it.

My legs completely gave out, and I collapsed to the floor.

Cold sweat broke out on my back.

Seeing me like this, Jesse quickly poured me a glass of warm water.

“Lulu, what’s wrong?”

Under his worried gaze, I recounted the strange events of the evening in detail.

The more he listened, the more he frowned.

I could not help but force a bitter smile.

“You’re not going to tell me I’m an orphan too, are you?”

To my surprise, he earnestly took my hand and shook his head.

“Of course not. You’ve always had a loving family.

“We literally just met each other’s parents last month to talk about our engagement, remember?

“I still have the photos from that day saved on my phone.”

He opened his photo album.

Sure enough, there was a group photo of our two families together. Everyone was there.

I just sat there staring at my phone, flipping it over and over.

I tried to smile, but I probably looked like I was grimacing.

My family members were real. Why did they vanish after entering the washroom?

“Maybe they just stepped out for something.

“Look, their house slippers are still by the door. They must’ve gone out.”

I followed his gaze toward the entryway.

Three pairs of slippers sat there neatly arranged. My heart finally settled.

I finally felt relieved.

“But Kat said...”

I opened Kathy’s chatbox again.

She had sent me two voice messages.

“Ha! Luna, did I freak you out with that phone call earlier?

“I was playing Truth or Dare!”

Jesse stood up.

“See? I told you so.

“Your neighbor had probably misunderstood it, too. Don’t worry.”

I finally managed a genuine smile through my tears.

But in the next second, Jesse headed straight for the washroom.

“I’ve been driving for hours. I need to use the washroom.”

His words made my nerves snap taut again.

I immediately blocked his path.

“No! You can’t go in there!”

Jesse was stunned for a moment, then he gave me a resigned yet gentle reassurance.

“Babe, I thought we just figured out it was a misunderstanding?

“I really have to go. How about you come check the washroom out with me?”

After hesitating for a few seconds, I nodded.

I genuinely wanted to know if something was wrong with that washroom.

When I opened the door, it was spotless.

Everything was brightly lit and totally unexceptional.

I tapped around all four walls. Even the window was barred up.

Jesse looked like he really needed to use it.

He said exaggeratedly, “For crying out loud, can I please use the washroom now?”

Before I could answer, he pushed me out and slammed the door shut.

My heart pounded wildly.

I paced back and forth anxiously as I called out to him every few seconds.

He patiently replied each time, never getting annoyed.

After calling his name dozens of times and hearing his voice every single time, I let out a long sigh of relief.

I was probably just overthinking things.

When my parents finally came back, I was definitely going to give them an earful for vanishing just like that.

When I heard Jesse flush the toilet, I stared at the door, waiting for him to come out.

Then, the sound of rushing water faded.

The light went out with a snap, plunging everything into darkness.

But no one came out.

I shouted Jesse’s name again, louder this time.

But the washroom was quieter than it had ever been before.

My blood ran cold.

I instinctively grabbed the handle and rushed inside.

Jesse was standing perfectly fine by the sink. He was drying his hands.

He was startled by my sudden entrance! His eyes went wide.

I drew in a sharp breath and complained, “Why’d you turn off the light to dry your hands? You know that scares me—”

Before I could finish, he asked, “Who are you? How did you get into my girlfriend’s house?”

When I noticed that he was looking at me as if I were a stranger, my heart dropped.

“This is my house! I’m your girlfriend!”

As I was still trying to figure out how to explain, Jesse’s expression darkened.

He grabbed my arm and pulled me toward the door.

“I don’t know who you are, but you need to get out now, or else I’m calling the police!”

I shook my head frantically, but he was already pulling out his phone to dial 911.

As we struggled, the sound of a key turning in the lock suddenly came from outside the door.

The next second, my parents and Stella walked in. They were carrying several shopping bags.

Tears welled up in my eyes as I got emotional.

Without hesitation, I shouted, “Where have you been? Why didn’t you tell me?”

They stopped in their tracks and exchanged bewildered glances.

Just like Jesse, they looked at me with utter unfamiliarity.

“Jesse, who is this? How did she get into our house?”

Jesse scrambled to explain himself.

“Mr. and Mrs. Larson, I swear I don’t know her!

“She just showed up after I got out of the washroom. Is she a burglar?”

When they heard his words, everyone’s faces twisted with disgust.

“On New Year, of all days! What terrible luck!

“Get out of here right now, or you’ll regret it!” my mother scolded me.

My father was already on the phone, yelling at the building security.

“Some random person just broke into my house. Are you even doing your jobs?!

“Get over here and throw her out!”

I completely fell apart when I saw my family yelling at me with disgust in their tone.

I tried to defend myself by pointing at my bedroom and saying, “If this isn’t my house, then why is my room here?”

My father just screamed back at me.

“You’re insane! What do you mean, your room? That’s our storage room!”

He flung the door open. Inside, it was completely bare except for some scattered clutter.

Refusing to believe it, I pointed to the family portrait on the wall.

At that moment, I noticed that it only showed my parents and Stella!

I was utterly dumbfounded.

I could not help but doubt my own memory.

How could this not be my home?

Then, I suddenly remembered the photos on Jesse’s phone.

“He has our engagement photo on his phone! Check it yourself if you don’t believe me!”

Jesse opened his phone hesitantly.

The moment he saw the photos, he became enraged.

He slapped me across the face and yelled, “How’d you hack into my phone?

“This photo is definitely photoshopped. You don’t look anything like my girlfriend!”

Stella’s expression turned cold as well.

“Why are you impersonating my sister? What do you want?”

I slumped to the floor in despair.

Just then, one of the staff from the management office arrived.

I latched onto him like he was my lifeline.

I had just paid my maintenance fees last week.

He even gave me a bag of potato chips.

“Liam, do you remember me?”

He frowned and pondered for a moment.

“I’m on patrol here every single day. I’ve never seen you before.”

I was utterly devastated.

Jesse’s face darkened.

“Well? What’s your excuse now?”

With that, he and Liam began shoving me and tried to force me out.

In a moment of desperation, I remembered the necklace my grandmother had left me.

I pointed to the necklace around my neck and said to my mother, “Mom, please! I’m Luna. Your daughter!

“If you don’t recognize me, at least you must recognize this necklace!”

My mother’s expression shifted instantly.

She stepped forward, blocking Liam.

“Let her go!”