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One week before Jess' 20th Birthday...

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The sun has just risen at 6:00 AM in the morning.

Jess' eyes slowly opened...she stretched her body.

She reached for Adam's body on her side, her hand meets an empty space!

Jessy suddenly felt alarmed when she found out that Adam was no longer sleeping beside her...

Where did he go!?

She stood abruptly and went to the bathroom, it won't budge!

She knocked on the door. "Adam, are you there?"

"Yes, am here, Jess," he replied behind the closed door.

"Why are you locking the door? Open the door, Adam!" she demanded.

Finally, she heard the doorknob being turned from the inside.

She quickly pushed the door wide open.

What she just saw inside...shocked her! She was beyond stunned! Totally dumbfounded...with mouth wide open...she gasped.

...

...

She saw a different person! No! It's still Adam...but...but...but....he looked so different...like an old man.

His skin from his face down to his arms and legs were sagging and his hair was turning gray...

Adam was sitting down on the covered toilet bowl, cradling his face, he's obviously crying.

"Go away, Jess! You don't have to see me like this!" there is a lot of shame on his voice, and anger too, self-pity and a lot of negative emotions she can identify with. Her heart was already breaking down into a million pieces with his pitiful sight. He looked so downcast and so depressed, so totally consumed with despair.

Jessy knelt down in front of him. She holds back her tears from falling. More than ever she wanted to be brave for Adam and for herself as well.

With trembling hands, she pried open his hands away from his face. He doesn't even want to look at her in the eyes, he kept his face down.

She cupped his face lovingly and looked straight into his eyes. "I love you so much...Adam. Please don't push me away!" Then she kissed his lips to show him that she doesn't care if he looks different now, much worse than before. She wants him to know that in spite of his terrible appearance, she still love him with all her heart.

She hugged him tight to show her sympathy and affection.

Adam tears fall down freely this time. Immensely touched by his girlfriend's undying love and never-ending support, he bawled over like a lost child in her arms.

"I hate myself!" he said in a low voice.

"No! Please don't hate yourself. It's not your fault. You are cursed," she said, trying her best to soothe his anger. She hugged him tightly. "Let's go back to the bed now," she persuaded him gently.

She breathed in relief when he stood on his own and walk slowly towards his bed. Then he lay down...

He looked at her in the eyes. "If I will be given another chance to be reborn in another lifetime or in this lifetime, would you still love me? Would you follow me?" His question carved a huge painful hole in Jess' heart.

"Of course, I will love you only in this lifetime and in the next lifetime. My love is yours forever and ever," she pressed her mouth to his lips to show him the sincerity of her love. Then she lay her head down on his chest. She had to bite her lower lip to prevent herself from crying right in front of him.

"Jess, I look awful-right?" he finally had the courage to ask her.

She glanced at his face. "You don't look awful, you just look different..."

"Yeah right," he said with dry sarcasm in his voice.

He hugged her tight. "Thanks for loving me, even if I looked so bad right now, you still dared to kiss me in my lips. I can't even look at my self in the mirror for a long time. As if am looking into a complete stranger's face..."

The pain in his eyes matched the pain in his voice.

"You can go downstairs now and eat your breakfast. Don't worry about me. I will just lay down here in my bed and browse online to entertain my self." He gives her a faint smile to reassure her that he will be alright.

Jessy exited the room, disbelief still etched in her mind.

Adam's condition is getting worst...much worse than yesterday.

She hurriedly goes downstairs to find Nana...

She found her cleaning and sweeping the floor in the kitchen.

"Nana, it's Adam!" she bolted into her Nana's arms and sobbed hysterically on her chest.

The older woman tried to console Jess. "W-what's wrong with Adam this time?" she asked in a worried tone.

"You have to see him! He is turning into a different person!" she cried and cried. "He no longer resembled the Adam that I know," she gasped.

"Calm down, Jess. What does he look like now?" Nana Aida asked in alarmed.

"He was turning into an Old Man! He got sagging skin all over his body and gray hair," she said between sobs.

Instantly, Nana Aida dropped the dustpan and the broom on the floor, she wanted to see Adam for herself.

They hurriedly went upstairs into Adam's room...

When the older woman saw Adam lying on his bed with all the gray hair on his head and sagging skin everywhere on his body, her heart beats rapidly, she still can not believe what she just saw right now!

She walked closer to him, to inspect his appearance closely.

"A-Adam?" she still wants to make sure, he still the same person. The unbelievable transformation happens overnight. It's hard to believe! She touched his gray locks with trembling hands, it's real!

Adam looked at Nana, he saw the surprised and shocked on her face. "Do I look awful-Nana?" his voice flat.

Nana Aida kissed Adam's forehead. "Y-you look g-good in gray h-hair, my child," she chocked back on her words.

Adam closed his eyes. "Thanks for lying, Nana."

The sobs that the older woman is trying so hard to keep at bay, came out rushing from her throat and her eyes deluged with tears. Watching him turn to worse before her very eyes are too much to bear for her. She barely recognized the young Adam in his current worsening condition.

She weeps openly in front of Adam, grasping at his sagging hands. Her motherly instinct was shaken to the very core.

Jessy also weeps near the door...

Adam looked at them with a faint smile on his lips. "Girls, please stop crying! Am still alive! I still have one week to live," he grinned a little trying to cheer them up.

A few minutes later...the girls sobbing already lessened...

But Adam speaks again. "Girls...I want a black coffin when you bury me. Jess, you have to shower my coffin with your red roses. You know how much I love your roses, Okay?" he looked at Jess and give her a faint smile.

Jessy nodded, fresh tears emerged in her eyes.

Nana Aida kissed Adam again in the forehead and exited the room in silence, her heart ached so bad for Adam, it is suffocating to stay in his room. The stench of death is too much to bear.

Later that night...

Adam holds Jessy in his arms.

"Jess, if you find it strange to sleep with a stranger, you can go back to your room and sleep there. I understand," he said, his voice devoid of emotion.

She stared at his eyes. "Nah, it's okay. Your appearance may look different but you're still the same Adam inside. And if you think you can push me away, you are wrong. I will stay by your side 'till the end."

She picked up the blanket and covered it on their body. She hugged him from behind.

He turned around and face her, he gives her a smile full of gratitude. "I love you so much, Jess! And thank you so much for everything," he whispered.

"I love you more," she replied.

They sleep soundly through the night.

The calmness of the night camouflage the impending doom waiting to happen the next day...