MoboNovel Lite
Chapter 1
My roommate, Fei, told us she dreamed of a phone number last night, and when she woke up, she remembered it perfectly.
“What do you guys think? Should I add this guy on social media?” she asked.
Ann was all in: “Totally! This is straight out of a rom-com! You have to add him and see where it goes!”
I chimed in, “Yeah, go for it! Maybe it’s fate knocking on your door!”
But Holly, our other roommate, wasn’t having it. “Best not to add random numbers,” she said, her voice colder than usual, with that same lazy tone. “You never know what kind of creep might be on the other end.”
Holly was definitely the least popular in our dorm.
The moment she spoke, the lively vibe we had going just evaporated.
Everyone went quiet.
Fei even rolled her eyes behind Holly’s back and immediately sent a friend request to the mystery number.
Later that afternoon, classes were canceled, and Holly wasn’t in the dorm.
Out of nowhere, Fei jumped out of bed dramatically: “He accepted my friend request!”
“Let me see, let me see!” Ann rushed over, buzzing with excitement. “First, check if he has any pics on his profile!”
“OMG! He’s hot!”
“Even his profile picture is stunning. Can you imagine how good-looking he is in real life?”
“Fei, you’ve hit the jackpot!”
Hearing he was cute, I got curious too, hopping off my bed and asking, “How hot are we talking? Show me!”
Fei sent the photo to our four-person dorm group chat.
The guy in the photo was seriously gorgeous! Everything about him was perfect—those eyes! It was just a headshot, but it had that magnetic pull, like you couldn’t look away.
I was staring at it, mesmerized, when—
Ding—a group message popped up.
Holly: [Why are you sending a memorial pic to the group?]
That message froze the three of us in the dorm.
A memorial pic?
What was she talking about?
Fei was the first to react, her anger flaring up as she typed furiously: [Holly, what’s your problem? Why are you being such a jerk?]
Holly: [?]
[Just stating the facts.]
[It is a memorial pic.]
[This guy’s life is a dead end—he’s pale and sickly, practically a ghost.]
“Is she for real?!” Fei yelled, throwing her phone down in frustration.
Ann rushed to comfort her, pointing at her own head as if to say, “Just ignore her, she’s crazy.”
I thought Holly was being way too harsh too. How could she trash-talk such a good-looking guy like that?
Fei didn’t want to argue with Holly in the group. She deleted the photo, re-sent it to our three-person group (minus Holly), and typed angrily: [It’s so unlucky to share a dorm with Holly!]
Ann replied: [Just ignore her. She’s hardly ever here anyway. Out of sight, out of mind.]
Fei: [This is so unfair. I’m dying.jpg]
Fei: [Crying Dog Meme]
Chapter 2
The argument with Holly was just a minor hiccup. None of us took her wild “memorial photo” comment seriously. Fei kept chatting with her dream guy, who was now officially her online boyfriend. They were texting non-stop, late into every night.
One morning, Fei was yawning and getting ready for the day when Holly stared at her and asked, “You’re not actually dating a dead guy, are you?”
Fei, mid-yawn, thought she must have misheard. But Holly’s serious expression made her snap. “Holly! I’ve had enough! I’ve been trying to be nice because we’re roommates!” she shouted. “But this is too much! Every day it’s doom and gloom. First ‘memorial photo,’ now ‘dead guy.’ If you can’t say anything nice, don’t say anything at all! Why are you so mean? Do you think I’m a pushover?”
Holly stayed calm. “You have dark circles, your skin looks off, and there’s a weird vibe around you. It’s obvious you’re mixed up with something unnatural. I suggest you stop seeing this dead guy. If you get pulled into the spirit world, you won’t come back.”
Fei was furious. “You’re insane! You belong in a hospital, not here!”
“I’m not insane,” Holly shot back. “If your boyfriend is so normal, why does he only text? Why no calls or video chats?”
I froze. How did she know? Fei’s boyfriend never called or video chatted, only texted. Fei complained about it all the time, but never when Holly was around. And Holly was so distant, it seemed impossible she’d know anything about their communication habits.
Fei was stunned too. Seeing her speechless, Ann jumped in. “Fei’s boyfriend explained. His apartment is too dark and small for calls.”
Holly rolled her eyes. “He’s not lying. But haven’t you wondered what kind of place is both dark and small?”
Her tone was so casual, my first thought was: a coffin! A chill ran down my spine.
Holly continued, “Even if his place is small, he could still make a voice call. He doesn’t because his tongue is stiff and heavy. He can barely speak. If he did, the truth would come out.”
Chapter 3
Holly’s words caused a stir, but she just walked away like it was no big deal. Fei was fuming, ranting in the dorm, “I must’ve been cursed in a past life to end up with a roommate like Holly! She can’t stand seeing anyone happy. No friends, no boyfriend—so she’s taking it out on me!”
“Exactly!” Ann chimed in, clearly annoyed. “Jealous people are the worst—always twisted and playing mind games.”
The two of them, united against their common enemy, kept tearing into Holly. After listening for a while, I hesitantly raised my hand. “But… doesn’t what she said kinda make sense? Fei’s boyfriend really never calls her.”
“Xu Yi! What are you even saying?” Fei snapped, her eyes red with a mix of anger and hurt. “Are you seriously agreeing with that psycho Holly? That my boyfriend’s a ghost? That he’s dead?”
“No, no, no!” I quickly shook my head, backtracking. “That’s not what I meant. I just meant, didn’t Holly say your boyfriend doesn’t dare to call you? So, why not just call him and prove her wrong? Then she’ll have nothing to say.”
“That’s it!” Ann smacked her forehead. “Genius! Record the call and send it to the group chat. Let Holly hear it and eat her words!”
Fei’s eyes lit up, her sadness replaced by excitement. “Okay! I’ll talk to Jay later.”
Jay was Fei’s boyfriend.
Later that afternoon, while we were still in class, a message popped up in our three-person dorm group chat (Holly wasn’t included).
Fei: [My boyfriend agreed to a call!]
Attached was a screenshot of their conversation.
SweetPea (Fei): [Babe! I want to hear your voice!]
Babe (Jay): [Uh… it’s kinda hard for me to talk right now.]
SweetPea: [Why? I don’t care! Call me or we’re over!]
Babe: [Shocked.jpg]
Babe: [Don’t break up, please, Baby.]
SweetPea: [My roommate thinks I’m dating a dead guy because you won’t call! I can’t take the humiliation—I have to prove her wrong!]
Babe: [Mouth agape.jpg]
Babe: [Baby, your roommate is awful!]
Babe: [I don’t call you because… I have a bit of a speech impediment. I’m afraid you’ll make fun of me…]
SweetPea: [Don’t worry, I love you no matter what! I want to hear your voice.]
Babe: [Okay then, when you’re free, let’s chat!]