Two Faced

A Grave Goodbye

The day finally arrived, it was Friday. The sky was filled with dark clouds and cold breeze.

The church was heavy with grief, the dim light from the candles casting flickering shadows on the high ceilings. The scent of fresh lilies mixed with melting wax, filling the air with an overwhelming sadness.

At the front, Jhane’s casket lay surrounded by white flowers, a large framed photo of her placed above it, her smile forever frozen.

Rows of classmates sat in black, their heads bowed, muffled sobs echoing softly. Some wiped their eyes with tissues, while others sat frozen, unable to cry, still in shock.

Standing at the back was Reign and Danrae.

“She was loved.” Reign calmly said.

Danrae nodded, holding back his tears.

He can’t stand and watch for too long, the emotions on his chest was overwhelming, he needed air.

Without a word, he slipped out and stood outside. Reign followed in an instant.

Danrae let out a breath, rubbing his face. “I felt like I was drowning in there.”

Reign nodded. “Me too.”

“It’s was too soon.” Danrae began to spoke. “I didn’t even got the time to tell her how I feel. Oh Jhane.”

They stood in silence, listening to the faint sound of the funeral continuing inside.

“Do you think she’s at peace?” Danrae asked suddenly.

Reign thought for a moment. “I don’t know. Not yet, at least.”

Danrae sighed, tilting his head back to look at the sky. “I just… I just want to know why. Why her? Why this way?”

Reign kicked at a loose pebble. “We’re gonna find out. One way or another.”

“You sound so sure,” Danrae muttered.

“I have to be.”

Just then, the sound of the bell echoed throughout the area, the mass ended.

The moment everyone had been dreading finally arrived—the time to say their last goodbye.

Six men, including Jhane’s father, stepped outside the church carrying her casket. Their hands trembled as they grasped the polished wood, their movements slow and careful, as if afraid that any sudden motion would wake her.

They followed the slow procession toward the cemetery, the only sounds being quiet sobs and the crunching of the pavements beneath hesitant footsteps.

Zoey walked alongside them, her expression unreadable, but her eyes held something deep—something shattered. “I didn’t even get to say goodbye properly…” she murmured.

“I wish I had told her how much she meant to me,” Danrae admitted, his voice breaking. “I wish I had been there more… Maybe if I had—”

Reign patted Danrae’s head firmly, his actions told Danrae that it wasn’t his fault.

Finally, they reached the graveyard. The freshly dug hole was waiting, dark and open, a void that seemed too cruel for someone like Jhane.

The priest murmured prayers, his voice steady but sorrowful. Jhane’s mother clutched her husband’s arm, her cries muffled against his shoulder.

Danrae couldn’t take it anymore. “She’s really gone…” he smiled, lifeless and shallow smile, his eyes are red and dead.

Her family, friends and peers took turns throwing flowers onto the casket, the sound of earth hitting wood echoing like the final heartbeat of someone who once lived, loved, and laughed.

While everyone was saying their final farewells, someone caught Reign’s attention. A person mysteriously stood from a distance, watching.

He calmly approached that person.

The officer.

The same one from the school. The one with the scar running from his earlobe down his chin. This time was dressed in all black, but there was no mistaking him.

Reign stood beside the officer, facing the crowd in silence.

“You here to investigate?” Reign asked.

“Partly yes, but I also knew the family of the deceased.” The officer replied.

“Yesterday, what happened? What causes that scream?”

“Oh, that,” he said, his tone tinged with embarrassment.

“Yeah, that,” Reign said, narrowing his eyes. “Was it another body?”

The officer shook his head. “No, no body. That was my rookie partner. She’s new to the force and, uh... let’s just say she’s not great with blood.”

Reign looked directly at the officer. “She screamed because of the blood?”

“No, she screamed because of the message on the rooftop,” the officer corrected. His lips twitched as though he were fighting back a laugh. “You know, the one you kids so helpfully illuminated for us?”

Reign frowned. “What’s so funny about that?”

“She thought the message—‘I’M WATCHING’—was directed at her,” the officer said, smirking now. “She started yelling, ‘Who’s watching me? Is it a ghost?’ and ran straight into the railing. Took me ten minutes to calm her down.”

They continued their conversation, until the last of the mourners had left. The cemetery was now quiet, except for the faint rustling of leaves and the distant hum of the wind.

But Danrae stayed.

He stood in front of Jhane’s freshly covered grave, his hands shoved into his pockets, his head bowed.

“Hey, Jhane…” His voice wavered, but he took a deep breath and continued.

“I… I don’t know what to say. I never thought I’d have to talk to you like this. You were supposed to be here, with me. You promised me we’ll graduate together, right? That we’ll keep making funny memories together? But now, all I have left are the old ones. I don’t need this stupid memories, what I need is, YOU!”

He chuckled bitterly, shaking his head. “Remember how you always made fun of me for not knowing how to properly read? But you still sat with me for hours, helping me with words I couldn’t even pronounce. You never got tired of me, even when I got tired of myself.”

His fingers tightened into fists.

“I was broken, but you still saw me as a whole. You were the only one who saw me for who I really was.” His voice cracked. “And now you’re gone, you’re the broken one now but I can’t even do anything to help you? It’s not fair, Jhane. Your'e not fair.”

A gust of wind blew past, rustling the trees, but Danrae stayed frozen in place.

“I keep thinking… if I had done something differently, would you still be here? If I had walked you home that night, would it have changed anything? If I had called, texted, something… would you still be here, smiling at me?”

Tears slipped down his face, but he didn’t bother wiping them away.

“I’d give anything to hear your voice once again. To see you roll your eyes at me when I say something dumb or mess around. To hear you scold me, To hear you laugh one more time.” He let out a shaky breath. “I can’t keep on living with just your memories, I need you”

He crouched down, placing his hand gently on the gravestone.

“I don’t know where you are right now, but if you can hear me… just know that I miss you. I miss you so much it hurts.” His voice softened, barely a whisper.

“I love you, and I will keep on loving you until I spent my last second living in this cruel place.” He kissed the gravestone.

“Goodbye, my love.”

With the last ounce of his strength, he cried his heart out.

He shouted in pain until his voice was gone.

And the sky showed it’s sympathy, because when he cried so are the clouds.