It was a warm morning. The sun was shining early, and streets were slowly filling up with people doing their usual morning routines.
Some run. Some walk their pets. Some buy coffee. And some still sleep.
She smiled at herself when she heard the low snoring beside her. She turned to her side and saw Manuel is still sleeping.
'I would never grow tired of loving this man...', she thought pensively as her gaze strayed.
She stared down the alley and caught a glimpse of the mysterious figure again. She absentmindedly reached out for the hairbrush and combed her hair while staring down at it. It's been weeks since she first saw it, but up until now she still has no idea what it was.
She put her hairbrush down and sighed.
'What could it possibly be?', she pondered.
She continued staring down at it until she felt a cold hand touch her arm. She swiftly looked over her shoulder and sighed in relief when she saw it was just Manuel.
"What's the matter, honey? Is there anything that's bothering you?", he asked concernedly while caressing her arm.
She touched his hands and smiled up at him. "Nothing... I just saw that something."
"What? What something?", he asked curiously while smiling coyly at her.
"Nothing. It's not important—maybe I'm just hungry," she answered dismissively.
Manuel just chuckled and playfully messed up her hair. She protested and attempted to grab his hand.
"Stop it! I just combed my hair a while ago," she demanded while she swatted off his hands. He tried to escape from her grip, but eventually, due to her persistence, she caught his hand.
"Ow, ow, ow! Easy woman! Are you planning to break my hand?", he exclaimed. She let go of his hand, and he immediately lifted up his arms. "Ceasefire! Ceasefire! I concede, honey!", he said in between his chuckles.
"You're really crazy, Manuel! It's still early in the morning, and your making me blood boil."
"Now, now, don't get angry, honey; I'll make you a breakfast. I'm sure you're just grumpy because you're hungry," he said airily after he gave her a peck on the cheek.
Minutes later, the smell of fried bacon and freshly brewed coffee wafted all across their tiny apartment.
"Is it done now?", she asked while casually wrapping her arms around him and hugging him from behind.
"Almost," he answered quietly.
Her brow perked up when she sensed something different in his voice, but when she gazed closely at his face, any hint of his unusualness disappeared.
"Weirdo...", she muttered under her breath.
She unwound her arms around him and went to the dining table. She sat down and silently waited for him to finish.
"Sorry... I took time, honey...", he said gently as he put down the food on the table.
"You fool, why are you apologizing for?", she said while beaming at him. She forked down a strip of bacon and chewed it happily.
He gazed at her sadly and looked away. Baffled, she stopped eating and gazed up at him.
"What's the problem?", she asked.
"You need to let me go...", he said simply.
"What...?", she asked harshly.
"I don't belong here with you anymore... You need to let me go...", he said with his voice almost pleading.
Her lips were pressed into a thin line, and her forehead creased in confusion.
"I don't understand you... I don't understand what you are saying—"
"I'm already dead."
Silence reigned, but her laughter soon broke it.
"Damn! You almost got me there, Manuel... Please don't joke like that! That ain't funny, you know," she said in between her laughs.
But his face remained serious.
"I'm not joking, honey. Remember the day you think you're being followed? It's not some kind of hallucinations that you saw, it's your mother following you. The figures below were the people trying to bring you back. However your attachment here is so strong that you've been drifting between the realms of living and dead... You need to go back to them now," he explained as he held her hands.
"No... That can't be true!", she lashed out as she tried to get her hands from his hold.
"Please... go back to them, Maria. They need you, and you need to."
"No... No.. You can't be serious. That night didn't happened!", she cried as she buried her face on his neck.
"I loved you, Maria, but you need to live your life without me. As much as I want to, I don't want to be selfish and keep you to myself. You deserve better than this fake happiness... You deserve—"
"You fool! I don't want the world without you, Manuel!", she shouted as she squeezed his hands tightly.
He pulled her closer and whispered sadly, "As expected, you're really stubborn, Maria."
"You cheat... I thought you promised that I'll die first so you can remarry again?", she said, her voice hoarse from crying. He smiled at her and then laughed a little.
"Turns out, you outlived me...", he said while burying his face in her hair.
"I hate you...", she whispered.
"But not as much as I love you...", he whispered back.
"Liar..."
"I don't lie."
"Liar...."
"Don't worry, well see each other someday..."
"Will it be tomorrow?", she muttered weakly.
He chuckled and answered. "Of 'course not! But someday... we will."
"Promise...?"
"Promise."