“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!”

I rushed toward her.

My words tumbled out in a choked, tearful rush as I said, “Mom, I have no idea what’s happening right now!

“One minute you were gone after using the washroom, the next you’re here acting like you don’t even know me.”

My mother grabbed the necklace around my throat with brutal force.

Her gaze was hostile.

“So you really are a burglar! You had the nerve to steal this! It was my mother’s heirloom!

“I’m calling the police and having you arrested today!”

With that, she yanked the necklace away with all her strength.

It left a raw, bloody mark across my neck.

The searing pain and sudden suffocation stole my voice.

In all my life, my mother had never once laid a hand on me!

At that moment, I felt my heart shatter into pieces.

My home stood right there, yet I could not bring myself to walk in.

Just as we were locked in confrontation, the elevator chimed.

Kathy burst out and wrapped her arms around me.

“Luna, are you okay?”

I looked at her, then gripped her sleeve desperately.

“Kath, you know this is my house. You come over for dinner every Saturday.”

I stared at her mouth, praying that she would agree with me.

Instead, she seized me and pulled me close.

“That’s enough!

“Luna, it’s the New Year! Could you please not do this to me right now?”

Her jaw was clenched tight, and her eyes filled with anguish.

She abruptly yanked me behind her and apologized to my parents.

“Sir, Ma’am, I’m so sorry. Please, just let her go. She’s not mentally stable.”

My eyes widened as I stared at her in disbelief.

“Kath! These are my parents!”

“Shut up!”

“Face reality, will you? You’re an orphan!”

“That’s impossible! You just said this was a dare!”

Kathy lost her composure and broke down.

“I only said that to calm you down!”

She explained that after leaving the orphanage at sixteen years old, I had faced nothing but hardship.

My career had stalled, and I had been deceived by one awful man after another.

After several suicide attempts, my mental state had deteriorated.

She had kindly taken me out to clear my head, and we had happened to run into this family.

That was when I started deluding myself into believing I was part of their happy home.

“I can’t believe you actually broke into their house!”

Seeing the look of disappointment on Kathy’s face, I stood frozen in place.

Anticipating my disbelief, she pulled several documents from her bag and thrust them at me.

There was a psychiatric evaluation from a top-tier hospital, and proof of identity from the orphanage.

Kathy took my hand and said with a softer tone, “Alright, let’s go. Let’s not bother these people on New Year’s Day.”

I clenched the paper in my hand until my knuckles turned white.

No. This was not my life.

Jesse let out a cold snort.

He ushered my family inside and began to close the door.

An alarm bell went off in my head.

I lunged forward and grabbed the doorframe.

My hand got crushed in the process, but I did not care.

I ignored the searing pain and screamed, “Bring out everyone’s birth certificates! Bring them out!”

My family lost their patience.

“You’re so shameless. Are you stalking us now?

“We should’ve just called the police and let her rot in prison!”

I gritted my teeth, then said, “If my name is not in there, I’ll leave.”

My father stormed off in a huff.

He came back and slammed the documents in front of me.

“See for yourself!”

My hands trembled as I looked through them.

There it was! My name was in one of the documents!

For a moment, I was ecstatic.

I pointed at my name for everyone to see.

But strange expressions flickered across their faces.

Kathy even grabbed my arm and tried to pull me away.

“Alright, that’s enough. Let’s get out of here and stop making a scene.”

I looked at her with a confused expression and said, “Kathy, my name is right here!”

Stella lunged forward and snatched the documents from me.

“My sister is dead. What kind of sick game are you playing, pretending to be her?”

She pulled out a different document and hurled it at my face.

It was a death certificate, my death certificate.

It felt like a bucket of ice water had been dumped over me.

There it was, in black and white: [Luna Larson — Deceased.]