Jessa's phone rang. She immediately pulled it out of her bag and answered the call, bringing it close to her ear.
"If you don't love me anymore, I'd rather kill myself!" were the words she heard before the line was cut.
Exactly 12 years have passed since that incident, yet she still remembers what happened back when she was in high school.
Romnick, her fifth boyfriend since her first heartbreak, was a smart classmate who was always in the top 10. He wasn't conventionally handsome, but he had a certain charm. He stood at 5'4" tall.
Jessa broke up with him after graduation. Their relationship lasted for five months, but for Jessa, it was just a game. For Romnick, it was a serious commitment, and he hoped they would be together forever.
Jessa wanted to know the reason for their breakup, but all Romnick said was that he no longer loved her and had someone else.
Jessa wondered why she was remembering Romnick now. Perhaps he was the first boyfriend who had taken his own life.
What puzzled Jessa was why her last two boyfriends had also committed suicide. After Jefferson, whom she left and betrayed just like she did with Romnick, the next man in her life was someone she took seriously. And now, the last man she loved unconditionally, Carl, had left her without any reason by taking his own life.
It had only been three days since Carl's burial—the last man who truly captured Jessa's heart.
Knock, knock! The sound of knocking on the door was the first thing Jessa heard that morning.
"Jessa! Don't sulk there; you'll neglect your work just because of your boyfriend's death," Crizelda, Jessa's mother, scolded her.
Jessa immediately got up, but she still felt out of sorts.
She was now a secondary school teacher. It was the only degree she could afford, given their financial situation. She was the only one among her siblings who remained unmarried.
At school, after teaching, she dozed off during the morning mass, and her thoughts wandered to the past.
She remembered the man who had once again made her heart beat faster, it's no other than
Bogart Beltran Bautista.
She recalled how he had told her about a ghost haunting him, and she had laughed it off.
But Carl had said the same thing to her.
"Ma'am, this is for you from Sir," a student said, handing her a white rose before quickly leaving without revealing their identity.
Jessa thought about what her previous boyfriends had told her—that they were haunted. Who was the ghost? Why were they being haunted?
Her fellow teacher friends arrived.
"Jessa, don't tell me you're still sulking at home?" Camille teased.
"Who's your new suitor? Maybe he'll follow suit and kill himself if you don't answer him," Kathy added.
"That's what I'm afraid of—even though I don't know him yet, I don't want him to get involved," Jessa replied.
"Come on, friend, I was just kidding. Maybe that person has other problems they're not telling you about," Kathy explained.
"Let's discuss those problems and the supposed stalker in the canteen," Camille suggested.
The three of them left the room, unaware of the chair moving forward as Jessa sat down.
In the canteen, Camille, Kathy, and Jessa continued their conversation about Jessa's troubles.
"But friend, I'm really puzzled by these events. Why do all your boyfriends end up killing themselves?" Camille began.
"Not all of them," Kathy corrected.
"Romnick was the first boyfriend who took his own life. We were in high school then. After that, my best friend Jefferson became my boyfriend in college" Then Kathy paused for a while thinking she might have said it wrong.
"Oh wait, after high school graduation," Kathy continued.
"Let me explain," Jessa said.
"I replaced Romnick with Jefferson. I admired his intelligence, especially in Mathematics and Science, but I didn't love him. I hadn't moved on from Alex, my first love. Our relationship lasted for two years, but it turned out he wasn't serious about me. After that, I didn't take anyone seriously.
It was only when I met Bogart that I felt love again. We were happy together until I heard that he had slit his wrists. Since then, I haven't had another boyfriend, even though many have courted me. I've given up, until I met the last man who truly touched my heart.
And then..." Jessa's voice broke, and she couldn't continue speaking.
"He left me, hu hu hu hu," she cried.
"We're here for you," Kathy and Camille said, hugging her tightly.
"Why did he have to hang himself? Hu hu hu," Jessa continued sobbing.
"There are still many people who love you," Kathy assured her.
"I don't want to be left alone again or hurt someone else," Jessa replied, wiping her tears.
Manang, the owner of the canteen, handed Jessa a white envelope. Someone had left it for her.
Jessa opened the envelope, revealing a slip of paper with a cellphone number written on it—a TM number.
"Let's find out who this stalker is!" Jessa said, passing the paper to Kathy.
Kathy dialed the number, but it was left unanswered.
At night, while Jessa was sound asleep, a soul appeared.
It approached Jessa and gently caressed her cheek.
"Why did you deceive me?
I don't want to see you in pain.
I don't want to witness your suffering.
You were the one who wanted this.
You should blame yourself for the deaths of your boyfriends, and for those who will become your boyfriends," the soul spoke.
Afterward, the spirit vanished.
Another soul emerged after the first one disappeared.
Its face was terrifying, and its decaying body emitted a foul odor.
The angry spirit lunged at Jessa, choking her.
"You should die too!" the soul shouted.
Jessa struggled and woke up.
The ghost released its grip.
Jessa thought it was just a bad dream.
She glanced at the clock. It was 3:26 AM as displayed on the digital alarm clock on her small table.
She closed her eyes again but couldn't fall back asleep.
Unbeknownst to her, the window in her room was now open.
It had been opened when Romnick dragged Jefferson, who was choking Jessa, out of the house. They passed by her window.
Outside the yard, two souls stood, both gazing at Jessa's room.
Jefferson spoke first, "I won't allow Jessa to be with you again! We are the better match!"
Romnick replied, "I'm here to watch over my beloved."
Before he could say more, Jefferson punched him. Romnick crashed through the house, from the living room to the kitchen. He managed to grab Jessa's hands and kicked Jefferson upward, through the roof.
Jessa's mother, Crizelda, woke up due to the noise of chairs in the kitchen.
"Those darn cats," she muttered, returning to her bedroom. She thought burglars had broken in.
What she didn't know was that they had other company in their home.