Manananggal of Cebu

Transition

When I reached the office half an hour later I was still in a state of shock. I did not want to think of what had happened and wished it was just a dream. I was putting my headset on and booted up my tools.

"Hey! You look distracted." Arianne said.

Arianne is one of my colleagues and a very close friend. She was looking very inquisitive with her dark brown eyes staring at me while raising her left eyebrow. I just starred at her and didn't know what or how I should respond to her.

"Did you have sex?" She said smiling while flipping her long light brown hair.

"Is it that obvious?" I replied with a grin.

"Hahaha, you look too flustered though. Did something happen?" She asked with a big smile.

I hesitated for a moment to tell her what exactly happened that night but I couldn't wrap my head around on how that mysterious encounter or come up with an explanation for it so I told her everything.

"Wehh.." She said in disbelief.

"Maybe it was a dream or you're drunk or are you on drugs?" She said followed by her obnoxious laughter.

"Gaga!!" I replied instantly and smack her shoulder with my hand and I laughed with her.

"I'm not on drugs. Look at this dust marks on my pants. I know it was not a dream" I showed her the marks on my pants when I fell to the ground and my hand was still a bit red.

"Well if that is true she must have passed down to you whatever she had. You should have chased her and touched her hair back especially today the Moon is full and it's also Friday the 13th which is quite rare." she said with a stern look in her eyes.

It is a common superstitious belief in the Philippines that when a stranger touches you for no reason, you would need to touch them back so that whatever it may be that they have transferred to you with that single touch you can pass it back to them. It might be a curse, spell, misfortune or unknown power.

"Wehh.. I don't believe in things like that and how could I even chase her when she disappeared all of a sudden." I replied as i caressed my hair. I did not feel anything different with my body then. Just this inkling feeling that it might be possible but I brushed off the thought after a few seconds.

"Well... that's what they said when some stranger touches you..you should touch them back." she said with a flirtatious smile.

"That doesn't sound right coming from you" I said as I laughed with her.

Days went by fast and my daily routine as usual is taking in calls, listening to customer's complaints and trying to meet their expectations and after the shift a team meeting and listening to your supervisor coaching while you were not able to reach the metrics on your performance score card. After work we went straight back home.

Each night I kept on dreaming about that woman and each dream was different.

"Thank you"... She whispered.

I saw the young woman again. Standing near the lamp post. She smiled but then her hair began to spread like a spiders web and her eyes turned black as ink and her pupils were as red as blood. The veins on her face and body were visible with dark red blood that almost look like they were black. Her skin turned so white like a paper. Her back grew wings like a bat and she started flapping her wings. To my horror her waist grew so long that it separated her torso and left the other half of her body just standing there. I screamed so loud but then I woke up. I was relieved it was a dream. I got off my bed and went to the bathroom. I washed my face and looked at the mirror and my jaw dropped i can't believe what I saw.

My eyes were black and my pupils were red. I screamed with terror and I woke up again. It was another stupid dream. I immediately ran to the bathroom but I had second thoughts to look at myself in the mirror. I did not want to see that image again but I had to make sure. I closed my eyes while facing the mirror and slowly opened my eyes. To my relief I looked like a normal person again. I checked my eyes, my pupils. I ran my fingers through my face and my neck to check everything and I was fine.

"Thank God" I whispered to myself in relief. 

I was grasping my hands at the end of the bathroom sink. I noticed a dark red vein visible the corner of my left ring finger. It was a croked line between the knuckles to the bottom of my finger.