Give Me Back My Girlfriend - Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Sister Li’s pitying voice came through the phone.

“Go back to sleep. This is my fault. You’re not exactly the sharpest tool in the shed to begin with, and I still called you at six in the morning.”

Then she hung up.

Honestly, that was kind of thoughtful of her.

I was speechless.

For a moment, I had no idea how to respond to the mountain of messages.

Shen Qi’an and I were online dating.

The kind where we’d been together for half a year and had never seen each other’s faces.

Only once, in a photo he sent, had half his face been visible.

Handsome. And weirdly familiar.

My heart instantly leaped into my throat.

Then it settled right back down.

Handsome guys all kind of looked alike, didn’t they?

I had scored a young Shen Qi’an lookalike. What a steal!

So I happily accepted it and told him to send me something spicy.

Who could have imagined a top celebrity would personally be out here online dating?

Great. Just great.

Now the whole internet was guessing who Shen Qi’an’s girlfriend was.

I let out a breath.

No matter what, I should explain things to Shen Qi’an first.

I had just typed the word “You” when he sent a message first.

[Baby, I’m boarding the plane. Just wait for me. I’m coming to rescue you from the Black-hearted Show Crew right now.]

[Whether it’s Guy Number Two, Three, or Four, I’ll defeat them all one by one for you!]

Wait.

He was coming to the recording site?!

I hurriedly sent messages to stop him, but there was no response from his end.

Too late.

I sat frozen on the bed.

Normally, for a dating variety show, if Shen Qi’an wanted to come, then fine, he could come.

But among the variety show guests, there was someone else…

My brother.

The next second, there were two knocks at the door before it was pushed open.

Xie Sinian stood in the doorway, bristling with anger.

“Lu Yumian! That girlfriend the guy surnamed Shen was talking about-is it you?!”

My vision went dark.

It was over.

All over.

Chapter 4

I had kept my online relationship with Shen Qi’an a secret from my family.

When I was little, because of an accident, I was carried off by a stranger. I was only found and brought back by the Xie Family when I was six.

Because of that, my family was filled with guilt toward me and practically wanted to protect me like I was the apple of their eye.

At home, I had a nine o’clock curfew. At school, Xie Sinian circled around me like a dog all day long.

Any boy who showed even the slightest interest in me would get a warning from my brother until he gave up completely.

After graduation, I followed my brother into the entertainment industry.

Living under the spotlight twenty-four hours a day, with a line of paparazzi following me whenever I stepped outside, gave me even fewer chances to date.

Left with no other choice, I ended up dating online. I just never dared to confess it to Xie Sinian.

“Is there any chance that Shen Qi’an’s girlfriend is actually one of the other two female guests?”

I let out an awkward laugh, making one last desperate struggle.

Xie Sinian rolled his eyes.

“Who do you think you’re fooling? Last time at an awards ceremony, I accidentally sat next to that guy surnamed Shen, and he grabbed me and bragged for ages about how his girlfriend was a heavenly beauty, one of a kind in all the world.

“Long hair, peach-blossom eyes, and a tear mole. If it’s not you, who else could it be? I suspected it a long time ago. I thought I was overthinking it, but it really was you!”

Xie Sinian poked my forehead in exasperation.

“That hopeless lovesick brain of yours-I don’t even want to talk about it!”

My heart was dead.

Shen Qi’an, you really are something.

Why didn’t you just give him my ID number while you were at it?

Numbly, I let him poke me again and again.

“Fine, it’s me. But he’s actually-”

“Stop! Are you about to say he’s a really good person, he’s handsome and generous to you, you two are truly in love, and as your brother, I should learn to let go and give you my blessing?”

“No… Is that not allowed?”

“No! You’re still young. You don’t understand. One look at Shen Qi’an’s face and you can tell he’s a playboy. He’s only pretending to treat you well right now. Once the novelty wears off, he’ll show his true colors…”

Xie Sinian lectured me earnestly for ages.

Seeing that I still looked clueless, he sighed.

“Give me your phone. Let me see how he’s been manipulating you.”

I hesitantly handed over my phone.

“Do you really have to look?”

Without another word, Xie Sinian unlocked my phone.

After scrolling through our chat history for a long while, he fell silent.

Boyfriend: [Baby, I miss you so much.]

[I’m emo.]

[Do you know why I’m emo?]

[Because every moment without you, I’m E-motionally M-issing O-nly you.]

[Want to see a selfie?]

Me: [Send something spicy.]

Boyfriend: [Abs.jpg]

[I was looking in the mirror just now and thought of a question. Do you actually like me, or do you like my body?]

[It’s me, right?]

[Actually, my body is fine too.]

[But it’s still better if you like me as a person.]

[Baby, what exactly are we now?]

[Answer me.]

[I’m going to make a scene.]

Me: [Don’t.]

Boyfriend: [Hehe, I knew you liked me.]

“Did he manipulate me?” I asked meekly.

“He… Forget it. That’s not important.”

Xie Sinian coughed and stiffly changed the subject.

“Since that guy surnamed Shen is coming to the set, I’ll meet him myself. Your brother has seen all kinds of people. I’ll know at a glance whether he’s a scumbag.”

With that, he walked to the door, then turned back and added,

“And don’t you dare tell that brat ahead of time that I’m your brother!”