BOOK I - CHAPTER I: Family Close to Perfection

Happy with her life now that she's married, she always maintains a happy face... Her career is good... She has two lovely kids, a son, and a daughter. She has a loving husband who loves her no matter what... What else she could ever wish for? Added to that, she can now provide for her parents. She can bring food to the table and she can make her parents proud this time. 

Because of being busy every time, she always keeps a reminder that at least once a week, they will go out and have a date... Jette and her husband, Drew... The fire must be kept burning no matter how long they have been married. They are always happy seeing their kids happy. They always go out and have a date to keep the spark brighter. Then one day, Drew and Jette were walking in a mall, when a long-time friend of theirs approached them.

“Drew???”, the friend asked.

“Lia? Wow! It’s nice to see you again. This is Jette, my wife,” he introduced.

“Hello, Jette. I’ve been hearing a lot about you. Nice meeting you at last!” Lia added.

“Really? From whom are you hearing those things about me?” Jette asked.

“Nothing. Never mind,” Lia answered.

Puzzled by what she knew, Jette remained silent the whole time they were strolling around the mall.

*** At Home ***

“Mommy, what do you like for dinner?” asked Drew.

“Uhm… anything on the table, Dy,” answered Jette.

The silence continues until bedtime.

Everyone is asleep. Drew, the two kids, Jette’s parents, are already snoring. Jette started to overthink the statement said by Lia. “Hello, Jette. I’ve been hearing a lot about you. Nice meeting you at last!” echoes inside her head.

She cannot sleep.

Her mind starts to run uncontrollably… She went downstairs. Get a cup of hot water, like what she always does whenever she feels restless.

Then she opens a secret wooden box, and she found a book… she opens it, and starts reading…

*** Inside the Book ***

Heredity… Something that starts from the great-grandpa of the one whose name is “Bridgette Arden”… It will not perish… It always happens… At the end of every quarter, a girl or even a boy to whom this book visits, will turn into a white furry dog in the midnight of that day until the sun rises. He or she will continue to transform into a dog for three days. The curse will continue and anyone who will know about it will die… “Bridgette Arden”… This girl is the only person who can break this curse. And that is by burning this book… I hope you can… Because this is unburnable…

She immediately closed the book and ran quickly upstairs. She hugged her family… Her husband, Drew, and the two kids. She also opened the room’s door of her parents and cried. She doesn’t want to share it with anyone, because the curse says, “… anyone who will know about it will die…” 

She looked at the calendar, it is 3 days before the end of the 2nd quarter… She overthinks her dark secret, and started to remember what happened 10 years ago…

*** Flash Back ***

• The year 2009

Jette: Are you trying to avoid me, Drew?

Jette: I’ve been sending you a lot of messages, and I’ve not received any message from you.

Jette: Do you love me, Drew?

Jette: I guess, we’re not meeting halfway… Let’s break up.

Drew: Sh*t! Don’t you have anything to do aside from nagging me? I’ve been sleeping a while ago, and it pisses me off upon seeing all your stupid messages and baseless accusations. Okay, if you say so. Let us break up. You go your way, I’ll go mine.

Drew and Jette broke up.

Jette called her friends, and they had some drinking spree at her pad. They did not mind that tomorrow will be another recitation day in their law school. The room turned into a mini-disco, and they started screaming and drinking their problems out.

9:00 AM, she woke up. Her head is spinning. She puked. She calmed herself, and when the spinning stopped, she took a bath and drank a cup of coffee. Then she remembers that Drew and she are already apart. She tried to contact her, but Drew is not answering her calls anymore. She tried to contact all his friends and tried to ask for help but to no avail.

2 months before the end of the 4th quarter, she focused on her studies. Had exams passed, recitations nailed, and a sure guarantee that she’s going to graduate in March of the following year.

After 2 months, 12:00 in the midnight…

“Oh no, what is it that I’m feeling? It’s too hot… My tummy aches badly…”

“I have to call my Mom, I’m all alone in this place…”

A tail slowly sprouts on the upper part of her butt… Her arms start to be furry… She saw her clothes on the floor, and it seems that she has turned smaller… She runs towards the mirror, and she saw herself… a white furry dog…

Anxious about what is going on, she runs quickly outside… she doesn’t know where to go… She is helpless… Tears are flowing from her tears… In her mind, she thinks…

“Where is my Mom?”

“Where is Drew? I need to tell Drew about it”…

“Oh, I remember, we’re already done… Where is Mystique? I need to see my friend…”

“For sure, she will understand…”

A lot of thoughts are running in her mind as she continues to run to nowhere…

When she’s tired from running, she takes some rest outside a house… a dark house… she’s looking for water to quench her thirst. She saw that the door of the house is open… She entered, and she cannot see anything… It is so dark… She continues to look for water. She saw a faucet left open, and she drinks from it…

“Aha! Gotcha” She heard.

The guy carried her, and she was so afraid.

“Let go of me!!!!!!!!!!!!!” She barks… But the guy cannot understand her cries…

The guy starts running his fingers on her fur, and she feels a little comfort. She cannot see the face of the guy because it’s too dark to see anything. Then, the guy put her to bed, and they slept together. The guy starts talking to her…

“Hi, doggie. I will now call you, “Lyke”… You know I’ve been trying to look for a rope here… I was about to kill myself because of the wrong decisions I made… See? I have no family… I have no one to talk to… I’ve been outside, had some drinking spree with friends… But at the end of the day, I need to go home and sleep… This place is hell… I have no one here… Thanks, Lyke for visiting me… Are you staying for good?”

Without understanding anything the guy is whispering, Jette slowly fell asleep…

*The next day at 4:00 AM

“Oh, shocks… I need to look for a dress… or even a shirt and shorts… I need to go home…”

“Why am I here? I know this place… This is Drew’s apartment… and Oh My… I’ve slept with him???”

She discovered that the guy who was about to commit suicide and was interrupted by her as a furry dog is no other than Drew. She immediately wore the shorts and shirt of Drew which she found in the living room. She also stole some coins because she needs to go home, and she cannot do it without a single penny.

*12:00noon

“Lyke! Where are you?” Drew woke up without the dog beside him…

He got up and prepares his coffee, and is looking around the house for Lyke… When he found Lyke isn’t around anymore, he thinks that the dog just left him just before he wakes up.

On the other hand, while Jette is busy reading her book in preparation for the Special Examination (to know if she’s going to graduate with honors in March), her phone rings…

“Hello Mom?” she answered.

“Alright Mom, I need to go back home right after this reading because I’m going to take the Special Exams tomorrow at 8:00 AM. If I’ll not take said exams, I’m going to lose my chance to graduate as Cum Laude,” she explained further.

*5:00 PM

Jette has finally finished studying and is 100% ready to take the exams. She is also sure she’s going to be a Cum Laude graduate of Juris Doctor (Law Degree). She went outside and decided to treat herself to her favorite burger in the City. When she went down her car, she saw a familiar face. A man whose face is covered with beard, hair is long and wavy and is wearing a jersey and faded pants. He came near her, and tried to talk to her…

“Hi Jette, how are you?” he started.

“Hello, Drew. I’m good. Nice seeing you around, got to go… I am in a hurry. Bye.” She responded.

Jette decided to avoid him because she’s still hurt by what happened. Just when she finally decided to move on, the mysterious event that happened to her the night before continuously played in her mind. Weird it may seem but yes, she turned into a furry dog… and slept with Drew for a night… woke up nude, and just focused her mind studying for a very important exam the following day.

On the other hand, Drew felt hurt and insulted by what Jette did. He felt she avoided him because of how he looks. He continuously walks with an empty stomach, and friends avoid him too. He doesn’t have anyone to talk to except the dog he once met, whom he named “Lyke”.

*12:00 midnight

While driving her car going home, he passed by the apartment rented by Drew. Then just after seeing the gate of said apartment, she felt a sudden headache. She parked the car near the apartment of Drew. The next thing to happen is she turned into a furry white dog again.

She went down the car through the window. She got thirsty again and decided to come inside the apartment of Drew and looked for drinking water. This time, the faucet is turned off. The apartment is a bit lighted. Jette saw a pitcher and tried her best to drink from it. It fell to the ground and created a splashing sound, Drew went out of his room, and said…

“Wow, Lyke!!! You’re back!”

“Where did you go?”

“I’ve missed you all day.”

“You know what? I’ve been hungry all day… I am in water therapy for days already.”

Jette got surprised by what she heard. She immediately felt sadness. She went up and sat on Drew’s lap, and Drew felt relief.

“You know, Lyke. I have something to confess to you… I lost the one I love because she doesn’t trust me. Just because she isn’t getting a response from me, she immediately concluded that I have side chic, and isn’t loyal to her. I did a decision I’m regretting now. I broke up with her, and now she’s avoiding me… as if I have a communicable disease.” Drew opened up.

He also added, “The reason why I’m always angry is that I am depressed. As you can see, the very first night you came, I was about to commit suicide then, but you saved me. I am always sad, Lyke. I go out with no friends ever welcoming me into their homes. They are avoiding me starting the day I live alone in this apartment. My Mom is dead already, I didn’t get the chance to meet my Dad. My brothers and sisters are not here. They are living in different places. The only girl who loves me genuinely? I even lost her because I pushed her away.”

Then Drew started crying. Jette/Lyke played with him. And they started to create a bond no one can replace. Lyke ran towards her car and Drew followed her. She wants to give Drew all the groceries she bought but it’s inside her car. Drew will not open it because he isn’t the owner and he might get caught.

“Lyke, you know whose car is this? I know this car. It’s Jette’s…” said Drew.

Lyke was surprised. She just started barking towards the apartment and trying to distract Drew from thinking about Jette.

“Anyway, she might be visiting a friend nearby. Let’s go, Lyke. We’re going to sleep now.” Drew added.

At 4:00 AM, Jette woke up and immediately ran inside her car. She wore the same clothes she wore yesterday. Then she saw the groceries, she brought all the groceries out and placed them inside the apartment of Drew. She locked the door and drove towards their house.

*At 7:00 AM

“Oh My… These are too much. These may be enough for my 1-week consumption already. I need to tell Lyke about it…. Lyke! Where are you?” He started looking for the dog. He found nothing.

He saw outside the house and found out that the car of Jette is no longer there.

That cycle continues for days. On the third night, which is the end of the course for that quarter, Jette decided to say goodbye to Drew as Lyke because they will meet again after 3 months…

“Lyke, why are you so sweet tonight?” Drew asked.

“You’re always playing with me, and you’re always on my lap… I’m happy because you’re here. You turned my gloomy days into happy bright days now. I’ve already moved on with Jette, and am about to go out and look for a job…” Drew added.

When she heard it, Jette became so happy and jumped for joy. “It seems that you understand me beautiful little furry dog. Come on! Let’s eat. I still have Spam and Corned Beef here. It’s enough for the two of us.” Drew explained.

The day after, Drew started to wonder, he isn’t seeing Lyke during daylight. He started thinking if he’s already insane. If Lyke is just a product of his imagination. He started doubting himself.

On the other hand, Jette started to live normally. She also learns how to manage the transformation and since there is no transformation yet, she made thorough researches about curses, and how to fight it. She even approached a fortune-teller and found nothing but fear. If Drew will know about it just before she burns the book, he’s going to die.

The question that pops up in her mind is, how can she burn the book? How can she burn something she cannot find.