Doomed Child in a Coffin of Sins

I parted my dry lips, trying to answer Ms. Clark, but all I could manage was a faint, broken sound.

I heard her voice outside. She was shouting and sobbing. "Do you know this is illegal? He's only ten! What did he do to deserve being treated like this?"

No, Ms. Clark. I killed Andy. I made Mommy and Daddy angry. I did wrong.

After a few seconds of silence, Mommy burst into a kind of laughter that was filled with suppressed tears.

"He was a mistake from the moment he was born! Isn't that enough of a reason? The only thing I regret not doing is getting rid of him when the priest read his fate at his first birthday party!

"If I had done that, Andy wouldn't have died such a horrible death…"

I slowly lifted my heavy eyelids. Through my blurred vision, I saw Ms. Clark's back. She spread her arms and stood protectively in front of the mini coffin, guarding it with everything she had.

"It was an accident! What you're doing to him now is abuse!"

Mommy glanced coldly in my direction and lifted her head, forcing back her tears. "I saw him standing by the window when it happened. Are you telling me he didn't do it? He's either a murderer or a cursed soul. There's no other possibility!

"This is our family matter, Ms. Clark. If you keep stirring trouble here, I can't guarantee you'll get to keep your job once you walk out of here."

Ms. Clark's back stiffened. Her hand slowly lowered. Still, she refused to leave.

Mommy came closer to the coffin. "If you don't believe me, ask him yourself. Ask him if he's staying inside because he's guilty."

She then lightly tapped on the coffin lid a few times. "If you want to come out, knock three times. But if you have even a shred of sensibility, you'll stay inside and repent for your sin."

Ms. Clark bent down and pressed closer to the coffin. She said softly, "Don't be afraid, Adam. It's me, Ms. Clark. I'm here to help you. If you're scared, just knock."

I lifted my hand and placed it against the coffin wall, gathering all the strength I thought I had, but there was no sound.

Cluelessly, I looked at my hands. They were trembling as I tried again. My palm passed straight through the coffin and into the endless darkness.

Was I dead?

Before I could even process what was happening, Ms. Clark anxiously shouted, "Adam, say something! Aren't you afraid of the dark? Why aren't you answering? Did something happen to you?"

I looked around in panic, only to see my own face when I turned. My eyes were closed peacefully, my fingers intertwined with Andy's. A smile, so happy and content, rested on my lips.