The rain poured heavily under the busy city of Davao, a woman wearing a long turquoise blue skirt and a white blouse stared emptily at the congested traffic in the noisy streets before the hospital while standing on the rooftop.

The city view is very clear even in this gloomy weather, it's as if the weather seems to understand her feeling of melancholy as she contemplates her thoughts.

She began to remember the words the doctor told her earlier about her son's condition, reverberating in her mind like a broken record that constantly plays from time to time.

'His situation is becoming more dire as we delay his surgery any longer. There are chances that the cancer cells might have already been spreading throughout his body.'

Where did everything go wrong?

She often asks herself that particular question. But unfortunately, she can't remember-- no, she chose not to remember. She was used to forgetting painful things to the point of being unable to remember fragments of her past.

She remembered the man whom she loved ever since she was still a child. The same man who caused her misery and gave her countless scars because of his never-ending abuse.

She was used to getting beaten up by the people around her, but the only thing she could not tolerate was when he almost killed his very own son when she came back home after buying groceries.

She laughed bitterly as she took a step closer to the edge of the hospital building.

Maybe if I just ended myself right here and now, will God ever forgive my actions?

Perhaps not, he might throw her to the burning flames of hell and let her suffer there with Satan and her fellow sinners who violated his commandments.

But isn't it more cruel to live and suffer even more than she already has?

When Elise is about to make up her mind and climb the hospital railings, a familiar voice stops her attempt to commit suicide.

"Wouldn't do that if I were you."

She looked back and she found a boy who was just about 12 years old. But the strange thing about this is that he strongly resembles her son, Jasper. When she recognized him, she was shocked.

"I-impossible, you're already dead." Those were the only words she uttered when she recognized the boy as her late husband, in his childhood form.

The boy's brows furrowed then he examined himself then he sighed. "It seemed that my body formed based on your biggest regret that happened in your life. My real body could not be easily seen by the eyes of mortals you see, and it seemed that I took the form of the person augmented from your mind. The child you longed to see."

"Who are you?" Elise then asked. "Why are you... you know, taking the form of my late husband when he was still a child."

"Late husband?" he pondered, then immediately snapped his fingers and a parchment suddenly popped out of nowhere and landed on the boy's hand. He skimmed through the contents and finally nodded. "Ahh, so you're the wife of James Gutierez. No wonder."

Then he snaps his fingers again and the parchment vanished into thin air.

"Forgive me for the late introduction. My name is Si Dapa, the god of life and death. And the action you're about to do violates the rules in the Book of Life. Therefore, I suggest you refrain from such acts and take a few steps backward."

Elise listened to the god's words and slumped on the floor, sobbing from the endless miserable memories that she had throughout her life.

Seeing this, Si Dapa opened his umbrella and walked towards Elise his eyes gleaming with sincere sympathy.

"Poor girl, the sins you committed in your past hindered you from living a happy and successful life. Do you wish to be given a second chance and correct your mistakes?" the boy asked.

Elise only nodded at his question.

An evil grin began to plaster the boy's face and he gave her a mask. "From now on, in exchange for the power to reverse your time, your soul will be mine and you'll become my grim reaper."

Elise glanced at the mask given to her by the death god, but she immediately shook her head when she remembered her son.

"C-can I think about it first? I can't leave my son behind. No one will take care of him while he is still suffering."

"Your son will die today." The god said darkly, "I received a letter stating that Jasper Klein Gutierrez will meet his demise at 7:30 pm, and that would be..."

Si Dapa checked his wristwatch and continued speaking "An hour left to live."

"N-no."

Elise became depressed and wept. Si Dapa gave Elise his umbrella and he looked up to meet her teary eyes.

"It's okay to cry and become sad over such things. But remember to learn from your mistakes and find ways so that the future will not happen again," he said. "Now come, spend the last moments with your son. I'll come to his room if it's already time."

Elise ran, not minding the stares and the people she bumped into as her mind was counting every second she must spend with him since this would be the last day she would see her son's smile.

When she opened the door of her son's hospital room, she saw her seventeen-year-old son eating a sliced apple while watching the news on the TV. When he noticed her presence, he turned off the TV and smiled at his mother.

Elise ran toward him and hugged him immediately then cried at his shoulder. She felt his frail hands, patting her back as she wept.

He worriedly asked, "Mom, what happened? You're soaking wet," as he examined her clothes, drenched from the rain earlier."Even your eyes are puffy—I can tell that you just cried."

Elise just laughed at her son. "Cried? No way, this mother of yours is strong you know?"

Jasper arched his left brow since he was not going to believe what his mother just said. "You're lying—did the doctor tell you that my cancer is getting worse again?"

"I-i--"

Jasper cut her off. "Mom, it's fine. A person's life can end someday, that's the rule of nature. I just have a weak body that's why I became a burden for both you and Dad."

Elise is shocked when she hears the things coming from her own son's mouth. "Who says that you're a burden?!" she can't help to raise her voice which made Jasper flinch.

"D-dad."

"Then don't listen to him. You're not a burden, and you never will," tears welled up from her face then she looked at her son straight in the eyes. "Before you get sick, you always get good grades and you study well. It's your blasted Father's fault that you became like this when you got older. All of his abuse made you prone to cancer. And I'll never forgive him for that."

"Mom."

Then Elise examined her son's frail figure. Jasper was once a normal boy when he was born but after many years of maltreatment from his abusive father, his height became unusually low for a seventeen-year-old teenager. His once beautiful silky charcoal black hair fell off and only a few are left because of his constant treatments against cancer.

'Let me... be with you in your last moments, my dear child.'

Their final reunion was short, but Elise tried her best to make her son happy. They played games and even watched their favorite drama together while eating fruits. But that happiness was cut short when Si Dapa opened the door of their room.

Elise paled when she saw the god standing with a emotionless expression on his face.

"It's time," he spoke. "Have you made up your mind yet?"

Jasper noticed his presence and glanced at the boy standing at the door. He squinted his eyes as he pondered the familiarity of the boy's image. 

"Your face sounds familiar," he said while examining the boy's face. "I think I saw that face when I cleaned the storage room two years ago."

"Hmm... It seems that this boy can see me. No, this is not good." he said.

"Please, give us more time." Elise pleaded and groveled in front of the god's presence.

"Mom!"

Jasper called helplessly, but she ignored him. She realized the importance of his presence during the times they spent together. "I can't lose this child. I can't bear to live my life without him."

"I'm sorry, but I can't do that. The cycle of life and death must be fulfilled and nobody is exempted during this process," he spoke and patted Elise's head."Therefore, he must die. Whether you like it or not."

Elise slowly fell into a state of unconsciousness. But before everything went black, she heard the last sentence the god spoke.

"Don't worry, it seems that I already know who is going to be your familiar."