This World Is Fake

“I’m back!” I pushed open the door and was just about to tell my boyfriend that I had won thirty million dollars from the lottery.

As soon as I opened the door, I realized my parents were home too.

My boyfriend, Albert Johnson, walked out too. This time, unlike before, he did not give me a warm hug or ask how I had been.

Instead, he looked at me with a bewildered expression. His eyes seemed to hold both wariness and confusion.

“What’s cooking in the pot?” I walked into the kitchen. Then, I picked up the soup ladle with practiced ease and took a sip. “Not bad, Mr. Chef. Your cooking skills have really improved!”

Just as I picked up a bowl to serve myself some soup, a gentle female voice came from outside the room.

“Honey, do we have guests over?”

As soon as she spoke, I set down the bowl and looked toward the kitchen entrance. A pregnant woman stood beside Albert.

Our eyes met.

Albert looked at the woman and scratched his head. “You don’t know her either? I thought she was a friend of yours!”

After saying that, he walked toward me. “Miss, did you get the wrong address? This is my house!”

“Your house?” I looked at him. Then, I looked at the woman. “You called him your ‘husband’?”

“She’s my wife!” Facing my questioning, Albert showed no sign of panic in his eyes—only composure. “I’m her husband. Who are you?”

A sense of absurdity welled up inside me. I looked up. My parents were both staring at me with confused expressions.

Fear struck me before anger could.

I ran trembling to the door, where the photo of Albert and me had been replaced by one of him and another woman.

I rushed back into the closet like a madwoman. My clothes, pants, and shoes were all gone!

They had been replaced by another woman’s clothes.

“What on earth are you doing?” Albert grabbed my hand. “Please, get out!”

“Why? Why?” I clutched my head. “It’s happening again. This time, the person who’s forgotten me is the one closest to me!”

I broke down in tears. Last time, it was my long-lost friend Jade who had vanished.

Last time, when I went back to my hometown for Thanksgiving, we passed by a run-down house.

I mentioned to Albert how we used to go to Jade’s house for free meals all the time, reminiscing about the happy times from our childhood.

At the time, Albert just looked at me blankly. “That house has been empty for over thirty years! Who is Jade?”

At the time, I thought he had simply forgotten, so I did not think much of it. Later, when I checked my social media, I noticed that Jade’s account had disappeared too.

Back then, I just assumed we had not been in touch for a long time, so she must have unfollowed me on her own. I did not give it a second thought.

Why today, though? My dad, my mom, and even my boyfriend no longer recognized me.

There was not a single trace of me in this room, even though I was clearly here just yesterday.

“You just cheated on me, didn’t you? If you did, just tell me. I can forgive you!” I looked at him.

In the past, I would never have forgiven him for cheating. However, at the moment, I would have preferred it if he had cheated and deliberately concocted this whole lie.

However, Albert’s frown only deepened. Finally, he dialed 911 and had the police take me away.

I was taken to the police station, where an officer said, “I just called your parents. They said they’ll be here to pick you up soon!”

“Who did you call?” As soon as I spoke, I heard an urgent call from behind me.

“Lorraine!”