Dating Myself - Chapter 17

Jian Yihu had an idea. She took out her phone and called Jian Yixi’s number.

Ring, ring, ring… The phone rang for a long time, but there was no sound from anywhere in the quiet house. When the call went to voicemail, she hung up and called again. Holding her phone, she went downstairs, turned off the lights, and searched the living room. She didn’t see any light or hear any sound.

That’s weird. She was sure that Jian Yixi’s pajama pockets were empty. Did she lose it? Or did she leave it at school?

No way!

Damn it!

Jian Yihu kicked the sofa, her frustration bubbling over. The longer this went on, the worse it would be for her. She had to clear things up quickly. She had already convinced Qin Yige to help her. All she needed now was to log into the forum account from Jian Yixi’s phone. But what could she do if she couldn’t find the phone?

Maybe…

The phone rang again! Jian Yihu was overjoyed. She grabbed her phone and quickly said, “Hello? Xixi? Come back. Mom just called and said she had to leave.”

“I’m not Jian Yixi.”

That voice…

An Mu?!

Jian Yihu quickly checked her screen. It was Jian Yixi’s number, so why was An Mu answering? “How do you have my sister’s phone?!”

“She lent it to me.”

“My sister needs it now. Give it back immediately!”

“Now?”

“Yes! Right now!”

“No.”

“How can you be so shameless?! That’s my sister’s phone!”

An Mu’s cold laugh came from the other side of the phone. “You know it’s your sister’s? She lent it to me. If she asks for it back, I’ll give it to her. What makes you think you have any right to tell me what to do?”

“By the way, don’t pretend to be your sister asking for her phone back. I can tell the difference between a person and a dog.”

What did she say?!

Jian Yihu was so furious that she was shaking. She wanted to crawl through the phone and strangle An Mu. If it weren’t for her, she wouldn’t be in this situation! She wanted to curse her out, but she couldn’t. She was afraid An Mu was recording the conversation. She had to swallow all her anger.

“I’m warning you, An Mu, you…”

Before she could finish, the phone went dead. The front door opened, and Jian Yixi walked in.

“Mom wasn’t at the gate. I waited for a long time.”

Jian Yihu was still fuming, but she quickly took a deep breath. She had to put on a show. She put her phone down and turned around, replacing her venomous expression with a weak smile.

“Xixi, you lent your phone to An Mu? Mom called me a moment ago and said she had to leave, so I called you, and An Mu answered.”

“Yes, I lent it to her.”

Jian Yixi had been standing outside in the cold night air. The cool September air had helped her calm down. She remembered An Mu’s fearlessness on the bleachers and felt ridiculous for being so timid.

My sister was the one who slandered me. What do I have to be afraid of? An Mu had the courage to stand up to the school, but I’m afraid of my own sister. How ironic.

Running away wouldn’t solve anything. She had to talk to her sister. Maybe it was all a big misunderstanding.

Jian Yixi took a deep breath and sat on the sofa. She patted the seat next to her. “Sister, sit down. We need to talk.”

“Good. I wanted to talk to you too.” Jian Yihu held her phone and sat down, facing Jian Yixi. “Xixi, you’ve heard all the rumors online, right?”

Jian Yihu lowered her head and pretended to wipe away a tear. She had just put on makeup to make her look sick, so it wasn’t hard to make her eyes look red. “You might not believe me, but I have to tell you, I didn’t post any of those comments. The IP address is from our house, but our Wi-Fi is strong enough that it reaches the bushes outside our gate. You know I’m pretty well-known, and a lot of people are jealous of me. The forum account is our student ID, and the password is my birthday, which is easy to guess. Someone must have been waiting outside to use our Wi-Fi and frame me!”

Jian Yihu took Jian Yixi’s hand, her eyes glistening. “I don’t care what people online say about me, Xixi. I’m just afraid that you’ll misunderstand. I just got you back, and I don’t want these rumors to ruin our relationship.”

Under the pale living room light, Jian Yihu’s face was ashen. The makeup had made her look like a beautiful, sick woman, and it was enough to fool Jian Yixi.

Jian Yixi breathed a sigh of relief. She held her sister’s hand and smiled. Her white skin, dimple, and cute smile made her look innocent. “I knew you wouldn’t write something like that. Don’t worry, sister. It won’t affect our relationship. But the person who framed you is disgusting!”

Jian Yixi’s eyes lit up. “Oh! We can ask the security guard to check the surveillance cameras! Then we’ll know who did it!”

Jian Yihu nodded, pretending to be concerned. “You’re right. We’ll ask Mom and Dad to help us tomorrow.” She then changed the subject. “Why did you lend your phone to An Mu?”

Jian Yixi remembered An Mu saying she hated her sister, and her good mood instantly vanished. An Mu didn’t seem like the type of person who would hate someone for no reason, and her sister wasn’t a bad person. So why did An Mu hate her so much? She would have to ask An Mu when she had the chance. Maybe it was just a misunderstanding.

Jian Yixi explained why she lent An Mu her phone. Jian Yihu said, “It’s not that I’m being petty, but a phone is a very private thing. How could you lend it to a stranger? An Mu doesn’t look like a good person. She was arguing with me in the cafeteria, and she started this whole thing. I’m starting to think she’s the one who framed me.”

“She’s not like that,” Jian Yixi said instinctively.

“How do you know? You’ve only known her for a few days! Do you trust a stranger more than your own sister?”

“It’s not that I don’t trust you, it’s just…”

“Enough,” Jian Yihu said, looking at the clock. “I’m just afraid you’ll get used by someone. You’re my only sister. I don’t want you to become as miserable as I am.”

“No matter what, call her now and tell her to bring your phone back. If she doesn’t want to, we can go get it. I’ll go with you.”

Jian Yixi looked at her, troubled. “I don’t know… It’s almost midnight.”

“I’m doing this for your own good. What if she’s the one who framed me?”

“But she just came back from France. There’s no reason why…”

Jian Yixi stopped mid-sentence. An Mu had just returned from France. It would be impossible for her to know Jian Yihu unless she knew her from the internet. So An Mu is a hater?

Jian Yihu got up and put on her shoes. “Let’s go! Call her on the way. Don’t hesitate. The later we get there, the worse it will be!”

“But what? Let’s go! I’m doing this for you!”

“I already promised to lend it to her. I can’t just take it back in the middle of the night,” Jian Yixi said. “Besides, if she was going to do anything, she would have done it by now. It’s too late.”

“It’s not too late! At least you can see what she did! You can handle it!”

Jian Yixi thought of An Mu’s disappointed face under the streetlights and how she had honestly said she hated Jian Yihu. How could a straightforward person like that do something so disgusting? She shook her head. “I believe she wouldn’t.”

Jian Yihu stomped her foot in frustration. She took off her shoes and went back inside, grabbing Jian Yixi’s arm. “Even if she won’t do anything to you, what if she uses you to do something to me? I’m your biological sister! What’s wrong with breaking your promise just once for me? Can’t you do it so I can sleep soundly?” The last three words were spoken through gritted teeth.

Jian Yixi looked at her sister. Her usual smile was gone. “Sister, you’re hurting me.”

Jian Yihu was stunned. She looked at her hand, which was tightly gripping her sister’s arm. She took a deep breath, let go, and her angry expression returned to normal. “I… I’m just so worried.”

Jian Yihu knelt in front of Jian Yixi and rubbed her arm. This time, she was close to tears. “I’m so scared, sister. Just do this for me, okay?”

Just then, the door opened. Her mother, Wen Qiaoyun, walked in with her father, Jian Xiangwei. Their faces were grim. Her mother’s eyebrows were furrowed, and her lips were pursed in anger.

Seeing the two girls in the living room, Wen Qiaoyun said, “Yueyue, what’s all this about online? Several people called me this afternoon and said you were bullying your sister. Who posted those things?”

Jian Yihu was already crying. She threw herself into her mother’s arms and hugged her, sobbing. Wen Qiaoyun and Jian Xiangwei immediately started comforting her. Crying, Jian Yihu repeated the same story she had told Jian Yixi, emphasizing that An Mu was probably the one who framed her.

The couple, of course, believed their daughter. Even if she had killed someone in front of them, they would believe she was sleepwalking. Jian Yihu then mentioned that An Mu had borrowed Jian Yixi’s phone. As influential people, they didn’t want to go to a high school girl’s house to get a phone. They turned to Jian Yixi.

“Xixi, whether that girl did it or not, she’s still an outsider. You can’t just blindly trust her. Go get your phone back now. We’ll check the surveillance cameras tomorrow.”

“But I promised her… I…”

Before Jian Yixi could say anything else, Wen Qiaoyun took out her phone, dialed An Mu’s number, and put the phone to Jian Yixi’s ear.

“Hello? I’m sorry, I’m not the owner of this phone. Could you call back tomorrow?”

Jian Yixi sat on the sofa, looking at her family. She felt trapped. She wanted to refuse, but she remembered what her adoptive parents had told her. You have to listen to your parents. It wasn’t easy for them to find you after all these years.

Jian Yixi closed her eyes, swallowed her sadness, and said in a hoarse voice, “An Mu… I’m sorry… I need my phone for something. Could… could I come get it now?”

“Okay. I’ll text you my address.” An Mu didn’t question her or get mad. She just easily agreed, which made Jian Yixi feel even worse.

“I’m so sorry, An Mu…”

“It’s okay. Don’t worry about it. I was about to go to sleep. Come get it. I don’t live far from you.”

An Mu held Jian Yixi’s phone to her ear while her own phone was on a video call with a friend in France. Her friend was lying on the bed with a face mask on. She hummed a tune and then asked, “She just lent you her phone and now she wants it back? Your friend is so cheap.”

“She’s not cheap.”

“Then what is it?”

“She has no choice.”

“She’s probably more upset than anyone right now.”

“Huh? If you have your own phone, why did you borrow hers?”

“So that in the future… she won’t have to be upset anymore.”