The next morning, I couldn't get out of bed. I just lay there, staring at the ceiling for a long time. It never once crossed my mind that I would end up married to a soul.
I was startled when I heard a pot crash in the kitchen. I rushed out and found the ghost woman staring blankly at the overturned pot on the floor.
"What are you doing?" I asked irritably as I put it back.
"I was just touching it, but I thought I could hold it… and then it passed through my hand," she explained.
I grabbed my neck in frustration.
"You know you're already dead, right? Of course you can't touch things," I snapped.
"Stop messing with my stuff," I added.
She suddenly went quiet. When I looked at her, she was staring down, picking at her fingers until they were starting to bleed.
"Stop doing that—"
I froze when I suddenly touched her hand. She froze too.
"How—" I let go immediately. I couldn't believe I had actually been able to touch her, even though she was a spirit. She was just as shocked.
"You can touch me," she said after a few seconds of silence.
I cleared my throat.
"I'm taking a shower, and don't you dare follow me," I warned. She fell silent and didn't say another word as I walked past her.
I showered and got dressed. I had work, and I planned to eat at a small eatery instead of here. I was fixing my uniform in the mirror when she suddenly appeared behind me, making me jump.
"Can you not just pop up anywhere?" I snapped, grabbing my shoes and sitting on the bed to put them on. She didn't react.
"Where are you going?" she asked.
I glanced at her.
"I have work. Didn't I tell you I'm a police officer?" I said. I finished putting on my shoes, stood up, and grabbed my motorcycle keys.
"Can I come with you?" she asked. That made me pause. I thought about it. No one could see her anyway, so she probably wouldn't cause trouble. She just looked at me, waiting.
"Fine, but don't do anything there, got it?" I warned. She smiled and nodded. I didn't know why, but that smile made my chest feel strange. I quickly pushed the thought away.
"Let's go," I said.
We went downstairs and to my motorcycle. I got on, then stopped when I noticed she wasn't beside me anymore.
"Let's go!"
"Hey—!"
I jumped when her voice came from behind me. She was already sitting on the bike, smiling. I really had to get used to her suddenly appearing everywhere. I put the key in and glanced back at her.
"What are you waiting for?"
"Huh?"
"Hold on to me," I ordered. She was surprised but did as told. Her cold hands wrapped around my waist, making me freeze for a moment. Why did I suddenly feel nervous? I ignored it and started the engine.
We reached the police station, and I parked right away. As soon as I walked in, my friend Jam pulled my hair.
"Good morning, Carlos Santiago!" he said, patting me.
"Stop calling me by my full name," I muttered and sat down. He sat beside me, eating pandesal and sipping coffee.
"Santiago, have some coffee."
I looked at Jenna. She was my coworker and one of my closest friends. The three of us—Jam, Jenna, and I—always worked together whenever there was trouble, though their ranks were higher than mine.
I took the coffee she handed me.
"I heard you're being haunted," she said, pointing at Jam. "Vergo told me."
I immediately glanced at the ghost woman, who was now sitting on an empty chair nearby, watching us.
"Ah… no. I was probably just dreaming," I said with a forced laugh. They didn't look convinced, but they didn't press it.
"I told you," Jenna said before walking away.
"Tsk. Whatever. Drink your coffee," Jam added as he left too.
I shook my head and focused on my food, but I couldn't miss the sharp glare from our chief.
What's his problem now? He was always angry at me. I looked away. I knew he didn't like me. Ever since he replaced our old chief, he'd been watching everyone closely. Still, we just stayed quiet and followed orders.
The whole day was hell. The chief kept finding fault with everything I did. Even the smallest movement made him angry.
"Are we going home now?" the ghost suddenly appeared beside me.
"This place is so boring," she complained, which somehow made me even more irritated.
"Then you shouldn't have come," I snapped. She looked surprised but said nothing. I took a deep breath, put on my helmet, and got on my bike.
"Get on. Hurry," I ordered. When she climbed on, I sped off—but I didn't go straight home. I stopped by the sea, where a lighthouse glowed on a distant island. I got off and walked to the big rocks and sat there. This was where I went to cool off.
"Why aren't we going home?" she asked as she suddenly appeared beside me. I didn't answer. I closed my eyes and listened to the waves crashing against the rocks. It was calming.
"It's beautiful," she said.
"Do you come here often?" she asked, but I didn't reply.
"Why won't you talk to me?" she added.
I wasn't in the mood to talk. We sat in silence for a while, and thankfully she stopped asking. All I wanted was peace.
Peace.
Then it hit me. How could I ever have peace when a ghost kept following me? Manong Kanor said I had to talk to her and help her finish whatever she still had left in this world. I looked at her. She was facing the sea, eyes closed, smiling.
I cleared my throat so she would look at me.
"Elena… that's your name, right?" I began. She nodded.
"How did you die?" I asked.
She looked at me with a smile.
"Are you talking to me again?" she said brightly.
"Just answer the question," I muttered, looking away.
She thought for a while.
"I don't remember. When I woke up, I couldn't remember anything. Only my name," she said.
How could she remember nothing? Did people forget everything when they died?
"Even where you lived?" I asked. She shook her head.
"I don't remember that either."
I rubbed my temple in frustration.
Damn it. How was I supposed to help her if she remembered nothing?
"Your last name? Do you remember that?" I asked. She shook her head again.
"Then… what do you remember about yourself before you died?" I asked.
She went quiet.
"I don't remember anything except my name. And the place where you found me. And… the man."
"The man?"
"Yes. I always see him in my dreams."
"Wait, don't tell me even ghosts dream," I said with a weak laugh, but she looked serious, so I stopped.
"Do you know what he looks like?" I asked.
She shook her head.
"No. I forget as soon as I wake up. But he always calls me Elena. I feel like he's important to me," she said.
A man. Someone important. Probably her boyfriend. I needed to find him.