"...

'Brother...'

...

'Brother...'

...

I don’t know when it started, but this voice began appearing in my dreams.

Faint and intermittent, drifting in and out.

A girl’s voice—clear and pure.

She called me 'Brother' with such warmth.

But I have no sister.

My parents passed away from illness long ago. I’m an only child. And I can say with absolute certainty my father never strayed.

'Brother...'

Gradually, I grew familiar with that voice. It often cut through my deepest sleep, shattering sweet dreams.

'Brother... can you hear me...'

'Brother, please say something. Xiao Yao is scared...'

...

Finally, one night, I mustered the courage to ask the voice: 'Who are you?'

'I’m Yi Yao.'

'A girl with the same name as me?'

'No. I’m your sister.'

'I don’t have a sister.'

'But I really am your sister.'

'Then how do you know I’m your brother?'

'The dream told me. It showed me a rabbit. That rabbit is talking to me now. So you must be my brother.'

I had no reply.

Dreams truly make no sense. When you relax, you can’t predict what’ll happen next. But if you realize you’re dreaming? You become the master of that world.

'Why are you in my dreams?'

At first, I refused to believe she was my sister. I simply thought she was a second personality born from exhaustion.

'Because... hehe, I don’t know either. Every night when I dream, I just wish I had a brother. And then I met you, Brother.'

'...'

And so, I met my 'sister' in dreams.

For many nights, we chatted in that hazy space between sleep and wakefulness.

My sister told stories about 'her world'—but to me, they were just painful memories from my own school days.

That only strengthened my belief: this 'sister' was my own fractured mind.

Still, having someone to talk to each night wasn’t bad. For someone like me, living alone while grinding to survive, having a confidante who called me 'brother' felt... wonderful. Her voice truly was beautiful. Though I knew it was likely just my brain simulating a girlfriend I craved too deeply.

Slowly, I grew used to talking with my sister every night before sleep.

...

'Brother! I got first place in class today!'

'Normal. When I was your age, I was always first too.'

'But Dad keeps calling me useless at home. I want to live at school. I don’t want to go back.'

'Try talking to him. Get him to drink less. And... he’ll leave you in five years. Cancer.'

'What? Dad’s so healthy! How could he get cancer? How much older are you, Brother?'

'Weren’t you the one who called me brother first? Don’t you know my age?'

'I don’t know...'

...

'Brother! Brother! We got a new homeroom teacher. They replaced the young handsome one with a middle-aged woman. I really don’t like her.'

'It’s fine. She’ll transfer out in two months. Though the new teacher will make things even harder for you.'

'I’m confused. Is studying really that important?'

'Not at all. Grades only decide where you’ll play League of Legends later in life.'

'So... I don’t have to study?'

'My dear sister, would you really want to play League of Legends at some remote mountain college with no food delivery?'

...

Everything my sister described matched my own student life perfectly.

It aligned with the rule: 'Dreamers can’t dream of things they’ve never known.'

*Still... this sister thing. Should I see a psychiatrist?*

...

My sister was just a fantasy.

I had a mild mental condition.

That’s what I always believed.

Until one day—

After work that day, I fell asleep as usual.

'Brother... for the past six months, Xiao Yao has been lying to you.'

That’s what she said this time.

I almost laughed. 'What? Heartbroken? Weren’t you supposed to have your first love in college?'

I always spoke to her like this. I thought I knew everything about her. She was just my shadow.

'Don’t joke, Brother. I’m serious.' For the first time, her voice carried sorrow. 'I never got first place. I was seventh from the bottom. The teacher called my parents. Dad slapped me in front of the whole class... and I ran away from school.'

...?

*Wait. When did that ever happen to me? A temporary fantasy from another personality?*

'Where did you go?'

'To... to my boyfriend’s place.'

'You have a boyfriend?'

'Yeah. I met him that first time I went to the internet café.'

'The first time?'

In the dream, I strained to remember...

My first time at an internet café was in eighth grade, around age thirteen. I missed the bus home because of traffic. Dad called, shouting, 'Do you even care about this family anymore?' Hot-headed, I hung up, got off the bus, and followed some delinquent classmates to the café. Dad dragged me back later.

'Yeah. I stayed there very late. Past 2 a.m. I was almost asleep when he came over and said: "Little sister, sleep over there. The AC’s too cold here. You don’t look like you belong in places like this. Fight with your family?" I followed him like a fool... and we got together.'

*Hold on!*

I pressed harder: 'What’s your boyfriend’s name?'

*Impossible. Something’s wrong. If she’s my other self, she should only know what I know. Why is she telling me things completely foreign to me...*

'My boyfriend? His name’s Long Fei. He’s a ninth grader at Shangjing City No. 2 Middle School. His family’s pretty rich, I think.'

Long Fei?

A cold sweat broke across my back.

That name was utterly unfamiliar. I’d never even heard it before.

'Brother?'

'Don’t go yet, Brother... Xiao Yao hasn’t finished...'

'Brother... wuwuwu... I’ll have to wait until tomorrow again...'

She kept speaking, but I couldn’t hear anymore.

I’d already jolted awake from sheer terror.

I lifted my head. The apartment I’d bought with ten years of hard work felt as empty as ever.

Dawn’s pale light crept through the window.

I sat frozen on the bed for three full minutes. Then I leaped up and powered on my computer.

The desktop loaded. A notification popped up in the corner:

*Deposit of ¥500,000.00 received to card ending in 1856. Balance: ¥3,500,189.00.

Message: Materials received. Pleasure doing business.*

Yes. By day, I’m a cybersecurity engineer for a major company in Shangjing City. Decent salary. Side gigs keep me self-sufficient.

By night? I’m a hacker.

Give me a name and city, and I can dig up everything about a person online—in under ten minutes.

Long Fei... Long Fei...

My fingers flew across the keyboard.

Since the Long surname was rare here, I found the file on this man my age in under five minutes.

*Chairman of the city’s largest tech company? That big?*

Wait—the public-facing chairman wasn’t named Long Fei... Never mind. Check his education first.

When I saw his former school, I froze.

There it was. For the only 'Long Fei' in Shangjing City:

*Middle School: Shangjing City No. 2 Middle School.*

Coincidence? Or had I seen him somewhere before?

Sometimes dreams resurrect long-forgotten memories. But back in middle school, I was buried in books. I barely knew all sixty classmates after two years. How could I possibly have noticed a student from No. 2 Middle School—over ten kilometers away?

Panic clawed at my throat.

...

The next night, I took leave from work. I bought sleeping pills and forced myself to sleep early.

'Brother? You’re early today.'

Her voice was as gentle as ever.

I choked down my racing heart. 'Are you really my sister?'

'Brother, what are you saying? We’ve known each other almost a year.'

Her tone turned hurt. 'Brother... I feel like I’m losing you. Or... you’re losing me.'

'Why?'

'No reason. The dream told me.'

'...'

'Brother, these past six months... Xiao Yao’s so tired. Dad yells at me all the time at home. The more I stay quiet, the worse he shouts. I feel like... I might not hold on much longer.'

'That’s life.'

'Mom’s illness is getting worse too. We owe so much money. Dad says if I don’t study hard, he’ll sell me.'

'He won’t.'

'He will! You don’t know how much Dad hates me...'

'Be good. Don’t overthink it. Dad always loved you...'

...

I became my sister’s confessional.

I didn’t know how to comfort a sister whose address I didn’t even know.

From her stories, I realized our paths split that afternoon stuck in traffic. Before that, our lives were nearly identical.

We both got yelled at by Dad. We both ran off in anger to an internet café we’d never visited. The difference? My father came to drag me home. Hers left her to fend for herself.

She became a delinquent. I became a model student.

Often, questions I’d prepared before sleep vanished the moment I saw her.

I felt my body weakening.

...

'Brother... Brother, are you there?'

...

'Brother, why do you talk so little lately?'

'I’m not.'

'You are! You’re my only lifeline now. Don’t ignore me.'

'Brother’s tired. Let him rest a while.'

'We’re already dreaming. How can you sleep more?'

...

In the end, I went to the hospital.

'Your mental state shows no issues. Brain scans are normal too.'

The doctor adjusted his reading glasses. Sunlight refracted into tiny rainbows on the lenses.

'But this... take a look.'

'It was found incidentally. Unfortunately, it’s already late-stage.'

"Your illness... there's no precedent for a cure in the country right now. We can only offer conservative treatment."

...

"Brother, I don't just want you to listen. Tell me about yourself too. What's the world like fifteen years from now? Has Mom’s illness been cured?"

"..."

"Does Brother have a girlfriend now? If not, how about Little Yao be your girlfriend? I don’t like Long Fei anymore."

"..."

"If you don’t talk, Brother, I won’t talk to you anymore."

"I’m sick."

"What illness?"

"An incurable one. The doctor said I only have three months left."

...

"Brother, I also want to die so much..."

"Don’t give up hope."

"I can’t do anything right... nothing at all. Studies, relationships—even my classmates dislike me. Dad always scolds me. Mom’s been hospitalized so long, and I haven’t dared to visit her."

"Brother, if even you disappear, Little Yao doesn’t want to live anymore."

...

...

"Doctor! The patient in room 29 has flatlined..."

...

"Brother, I’m ready now."

...

"We’ve done all we could. Yi Yao... does he have any relatives?"

"I think he has an uncle."

"Have Xiao Liu issue the death certificate."

...

"Brother, since Little Yao has no friends left in this world anyway, live on in my place."

...

"Good night, Brother. And... goodbye."