Social media influencer pretends to be dead twin to avoid hurting grandparents' feelings
Sometimes, people lie to others for the most noble of reasons.
A social media influencer, whose twin died five years ago, has pretended to be her to avoid hurting their grandparents' feelings. But she finally told the truth to some of her relatives.
On Dec. 14, Annie Niu shared a now-viral TikTok video of her crying with a text that read, "POV: You finally told your family that your twin sister pass[ed] away five years ago, and they took down every single family photo that had her in it."
The video also showed parts of her relatives' house. It has over 6.7 million views, 401,500 likes, 1,200 comments, and 12,000 saves.
Niu first talked about her difficult act in 2022, sharing that her twin died from meningitis.
According to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, it's an infection and swelling of the fluid and membranes around the brain and spinal cord called meninges. Infection can be bacterial, viral, and, sometimes, fungal and parasitic.
Bacterial meningitis can cause death within days without fast antibiotic treatment. Delayed treatment also increases the risk of long-term brain damage.
At the time, she explained that it's "really common in Asian culture" to protect older family members.
Niu noted that their grandparents "basically raised" her and her twin. So to avoid hurting them, she had to "call them every holiday pretending to be her."
In another Dec. 14 TikTok video, Niu explained her family's situation again after many users, especially those who weren't in the loop, were left confused.
"I didn't tell my grandparents and my extended family that my sister passed away," she said, adding that it was her father's decision to do so.
It was last July when Niu's grandmother learned about the truth on her deathbed.
"My dad told her that my sister passed away," she said, "and that she's waiting for her on the other side."
Niu, who is visibly shaking and holding back tears, said she thinks that her father didn't like to withhold the information, but didn't want to cause heartbreak, especially since her grandparent was 92 at the time.
"After he told my grandma, obviously, my aunts [and] uncles, they all knew but my grandpa, who's still alive, still doesn't know," she said.
To her surprise, Niu said her aunts decided to take down photos containing her late twin.
"Imagine my surprise when I took my kids to go visit my grandpa, and I looked at the photos and none of our photos are there," she said.
Users were divided on Niu's situation.
"This is so messed up, everyone deserves to know and she deserves to be remembered," one user said.
"Why and how could something so important be kept a secret?" another user said.
"Is this cultural thing that family doesn't tell some older member if somebody dies?" another user said.
Others were more sympathetic.
"My Abuela passed not knowing that her brother died a month earlier…he was still in Cuba. She knew he was ill though. But she never regained consciousness on her deathbed; we couldn’t tell her," one user said.
"I understand why you didn’t tell them, I have elderly grandparents too, and we’ve done the same thing. I’m sorry for your loss, I would love to hear some stories about her when you’re ready," another user said.
Niu has over 221,700 followers. Her content revolves around food, beauty, and travel.
