Jay-Jay's POV
I was discharge from the hospital one day ago
The afternoon was quiet. The sun was slowly dipping behind the buildings, painting the room in soft orange light. I had just finished my shower, wrapped in a towel, and my hair was still damp, sticky against my neck. The smell of shampoo lingered in the air, and the warm comfort of the room made me relax for the first time in hours. I thought about dinner, what to cook, maybe something simple. Maybe just a sandwich or some pasta.
I settled on the couch, towel still loosely wrapped, and grabbed my phone to check messages. My fingers scrolled mindlessly through old chats, memes from friends, reminders for tomorrow, when suddenly a notification popped up. My fingers froze mid-swipe.
From: unknown
My life, how are you
I blinked. My heart skipped a beat. My mind immediately jumped to confusion. Who would send me a message like that? Was it a wrong number? Did someone mean to text someone else? I frowned, tilting my head, staring at the screen. My thumb hovered over the notification. The words—my life, how are you—felt oddly intimate, yet distant, like someone I should know but didn't.
I was about to ignore it when another notification arrived, almost instantly.
From: unknown
Jasper Jean Mariano I love
My eyes widened. My chest tightened. My fingers trembled slightly as I stared at the screen, unable to look away. My mind raced. Who was this? How did they know me? And why… why did it feel like they knew me, the real me, not the me I show everyone else?
I shook my head, trying to clear the sudden rush of thoughts, but my heart was already speeding, betraying my calm. Something inside me whispered a warning, a chill running down my spine. And yet… I couldn't stop looking. Couldn't stop feeling the pull, the strange warmth that threaded through my chest.
I quickly pressed Save Contact.
Saved as: Gagonbaliw
I blinked, my fingers still hovering above the screen. The name felt right. Wild. Crazy. Dangerous. Somehow… fitting. Whoever this person was, they had left their mark on me without even stepping into my life yet.
I leaned back on the couch, towel slipping slightly from my shoulder, and ran a hand through my damp hair. Dinner was waiting, but I couldn't focus. I thought about heating up pasta, but my mind kept drifting back to the messages. The couch felt too small, the room too silent. I walked to the kitchen, grabbed a plate, poured some pasta, but even the smell didn't comfort me.
I returned to the living room, plate in hand, and flicked on the TV. A random movie played. I tried to focus on the screen—the dialogue, the plot—but my eyes kept returning to the phone, to the name Gagonbaliw, to the words that were already etched into my chest: Jasper Jean Mariano I love…
I didn't know who he was. I didn't know what he wanted. I didn't know why the name he used for himself made my chest feel tight, like a warning and a promise at the same time.
I sighed, setting the plate down. The TV's bright colors reflected off the walls, but I didn't see them. I just stared at the phone, heart thumping faster and faster, a thousand questions spinning in my mind.
I didn't reply. I couldn't. I didn't know who he was. And maybe… maybe I didn't even want to know yet.
And somehow, just seeing that name, reading those words, knowing someone was thinking of me this way… made my heart betray me. Made me feel alive, and nervous, and terrified, all at once.
I didn't know what to do. I just stared. And the afternoon slowly faded into evening, but I couldn't move. I couldn't eat properly. I couldn't stop thinking about the unknown, about the man I named Gagonbaliw
Who is he?