A priest has shown up at my first birthday party. He claims that I'm a cursed soul—that my presence will bring doom to those close to me, and my existence itself can snatch everyone's luck.

The only way to counter this is to give me up to an orphanage and let me live a life of poverty and suffering. Without a family, I'll be able to overcome my fate as a cursed soul.

Daddy has the priest cast out of our home immediately. Meanwhile, Mommy hugs me tightly.

"My son is the luckiest boy in the whole wide world!"

But everything has changed when my younger brother, Andy Lawson, has fallen off the 20th floor. His body is completely shattered from the fall.

I can only stand by the window uneasily. Fear is evident in my eyes as I wave my hands with all my might.

"It wasn't me! It really wasn't me!"

The wind that day is very strong, but it can never drown out Mommy's cries.

Daddy hoists me up and stuffs me into Andy's coffin. I keep latching onto the sides of the coffin to the point my fingers are all bloodied and trampled over. At the same time, I keep screaming for Mommy.

Mommy stares at me blankly at first. But her hollow gaze is soon filled with hatred.

"Why aren't you the one dead? That priest told us that you'll have to stay in the coffin for seven whole days and nights just to atone for your sins! Only then can Andy's soul rest in peace!

"This is your fate and your sin, Adam!"

The heavy lid slowly covers the coffin, soon sealing my hoarse cries and screams away.

A long time later, a few voices ring out amid the sorrowful melody played by the organ.

"Why is there a tiny gap in the coffin? Hurry up and nail it shut! We can't afford to have misfortune spread to us!"

When the final nail is bolted onto the lid, I close my eyes.

Mommy, Daddy, I'm no longer a cursed soul.

The air was getting thinner and thinner.

Andy Lawson's tiny body was pressed against mine, frigid. I struggled to lift my hand. My fingers barely touched the coffin lid before sliding back down in a powerless drop.

"Did you hear that?" a voice outside asked hesitantly.

Another person immediately snapped, "Hey, cut it out! You're scaring me!"

The man who had spoken first sounded terrified, his voice trembling. "I mean, this family's youngest son did just die an unjust death. The older son is supposedly cursed, the kind who brings bad luck wherever he goes.

"I heard his parents say it themselves. The older son was the one who caused his little brother's death. Doesn't that make him a vengeful spirit now? If I were his parents, I'd regret ever having the older son.

"Now, let's make sure the lid is sealed tight. Wouldn't want any stray cats or dogs to crawl inside."

The hurried footsteps slowly faded away, leaving behind a silence as dead as a grave.

I curled up inside the freezing coffin, my limbs already numb. I opened my mouth, wanting to scream for help, but an invisible hand squeezed my throat shut. I couldn't breathe.

I struggled to sit up and pushed against the coffin lid with all my strength. After what felt like forever, I managed to force it open just a tiny crack. Fresh air rushed into my lungs. I greedily gulped it down.

Mommy and Daddy were still waiting for me to come home. They said that as long as I behaved, listened to them, and stayed by Andy's side, they would forgive me.

But the air was running out. My body grew weaker and heavier.

In my dazed state, I thought I could smell the faint aroma of food. I then heard Mommy's voice. It came through the thick wooden lid, laced with resentment.

"Come out and eat. Once you're done, get back inside and stay there to atone for Andy."

I wanted to answer her, but I didn't have any strength left.

Somehow, my silence only made Mommy angrier. "Hey, what makes you think you can throw a tantrum? You deserve this, you know? Andy's gone. How do you still have the nerve to keep living?"

I only wanted to tell Mommy that I would be good, but I couldn't get out. I was going to suffocate.

With the last trace of strength in me, I weakly pounded against the coffin walls. Dull, muffled thuds echoed from inside.

"Hey, you little bastard! What are you making a fuss about?" Daddy chided angrily. "You won't let Andy rest in peace even after he's dead, will you?"

The pounding stopped. I leaned against the coffin wall, not daring to cry out loud.

They couldn't hear my plea for help. Or maybe they could—they just didn't want to help me.

I reached around in the darkness until I found Andy's cold hand. I held onto it tightly and pressed it against my face. "I'm sorry, Andy. It was all my fault. I did this to you."

Tears streamed down my face. For once, there was something hot in this freezing coffin. They fell onto Andy's stiff arm, then slowly lost their warmth.

Maybe it was time I accompanied Andy.

Night fell. The last sliver of light slipping through the crack was gone.

I was so thirsty that I could only lick the droplets of water that had gathered on the inside of the coffin to ease it. I learned to take tiny breaths, one after another, to force myself awake.

Late at night, I heard a few coughs outside. "Rue, Adam's too young to be locked inside. What if something happens to him?"

That was Grandma! Grandma loved me! She had to be here to save me!

I dug my fingers desperately against the coffin wall, making a faint scratching sound. Her hand seemed to be resting on the coffin lid.

"Hurry, Grandma! Hurry up and save me!" I screamed internally. "Tell them the coffin is nailed shut! Tell Mommy and Daddy that I wasn't throwing a tantrum! I was good!"

"Mom, do you have any idea what I felt when I picked up Andy?" Mom cried out pitifully. "His body was completely limp, and every bone in him was broken. He died such a horrible death. Who was there to save him?"

"Adam has never suffered since he was little," she continued. "If he's thirsty or hungry, he can crawl out and eat by himself. If he has even a little bit of guilt, he should stay inside and atone for his sins, praying that Andy's soul can finally rest in peace!"

She straightened herself. "And don't worry. He's not locked inside. I specifically told them not to nail the coffin shut yet. And he's not numb. If he feels suffocated, he'll push the lid open himself to get some air.

"I only wanted him to experience the helplessness and fear Andy felt when he died. I'm not trying to kill him."

But Mommy, the coffin had already been nailed shut. I was close to suffocating.

Grandma sighed. "If I'd known this would happen, I would've just left him at the orphanage to fend for himself. I mean, what kind of sin did the Lawsons commit to end up with a jinx like him?"

My raised hand froze, then dropped helplessly.

A jinx, a sin, an orphanage…

Why?

Why had everyone changed? Why did everybody want me dead? Was I really a jinx after all?

Grandma's hand moved away. The darkness grew deeper, and the air grew colder.

I couldn't tell if it was the third or fourth day. All I knew was that my body was getting weaker and lighter.

I had so many dreams. In one of them, Daddy carried me on his shoulders and ran around with me. Mommy tied a beautiful bow tie around my neck. They held my hands and walked me outside.

Grandma stood there holding a spatula, reminding me to come home after school and eat the lemon tarts she made.

Andy's soft little hand touched my face. With his babyish voice, he called me, "Adam…"

I was so happy in those dreams that I kept smiling. Then, I woke up.

A suffocating darkness loomed over, while Andy's stone-cold body lay beside me. Tears slid down my face. If I could, I would rather fall asleep and never wake up from that dream.

That day, many people seemed to attend the funeral. A blind priest showed up, and Mommy and Daddy seemed to treat him with great respect.

The priest walked around the coffin once, his mouth constantly muttering something I couldn't understand. Then, he suddenly stopped. My heart jumped into my throat.

I pressed myself tightly against the coffin wall and looked outside through the crack. A pair of terrifying eyes met mine. I blinked desperately, trying to get his attention.

"Help me…" I muttered weakly, using every bit of strength I had to force the rest of the words out. "I'm stuck…"

I looked at him with hope I had never felt before. Mommy and Daddy didn't know the coffin had been nailed shut. As long as the priest told them, I would be saved!

After staring at me for a few seconds, his eyes slowly moved away. The prayer resumed, this time louder and more urgent than before.

He knew. He must've known. Why wouldn't he save me?

"I told you that the child has a cursed soul. He brings misfortune to his own family and harms those closest to him. He can't be kept," he said.

"Now that things have come to this, the only thing you can do is leave him inside without showing any mercy. Otherwise, your son, Andy, will never be able to rest in peace. Your entire family will suffer a bloody disaster."

Mommy responded with a hollow laugh. "Why only seven days? If I could, I'd rather let him stay in there for the rest of his life."

Daddy chimed in. "Rue, don't say that. He's still our child at the end of the day. Once this is over, we'll listen to the priest and send him to the orphanage."

I stared wide-eyed at the pitch-black coffin lid. The last bit of strength I had left to call for help slowly slipped away.

So, this was it. Even if I behaved and listened to them, they would never love me again. In this world, no one wanted me alive.

Time passed slowly. My consciousness began to fade.

The air inside the coffin had become filthy and stale, filled with the smell of my own waste and the scent of death.

I no longer pressed myself against the crack in the coffin, desperately chasing that tiny bit of hope, nor did I waste the little strength I had left to call out whoever walked by, begging for some attention.

I simply lay there in silence, holding Andy's hand, because I knew I was going to die.

When I was little, I once asked Mommy what death meant while watching TV. She gently stroked my hair and answered softly, "Dying means saying goodbye forever."

I buried my face in her arms and mumbled like a spoiled child, "Then I never want to die. I don't want you to die either, Mommy."

But now, it was time for me to go. After all, no one in this world welcomed me anymore—not Daddy, not Mommy, and not Grandma. If my death could make them all happy, I would do it.

On the last day—the seventh day of the punishment—Andy was going to be buried. It was loud and lively outside. Organs played, people sobbed, and the whole place was filled with noise.

It sounded like everyone was mourning Andy's death and celebrating mine at the same time.

I heard Mommy weeping outside. "Rest in peace, Andy! In your next life, I'll still be your mommy!"

What about me, Mommy? When I died, would you be my mommy again?

It didn't take long before I got my answer from her own mouth. "As for that cursed soul, I hope I never have anything to do with him in this life or any life after! If I hadn't carried him for nine months, and if it wasn't for propriety, I really, really wish I could…"

Mommy never finished that sentence, but I already knew what she meant. She wished she could kill me with her own hands. Was that right, Mommy?

As my body slowly became weightless, a ray of light shone down on me amid the darkness. It felt oddly warm and gentle.

Mommy stood in the glow of the light, waving at me. "Come on, Adam. Hurry up, or we'll miss your favorite cartoon!"

Daddy crouched down and patted his shoulder. "Come here, Adam. Hop on! I'll give you a piggyback ride home!"

Grandma carried a basket of vegetables in one hand and held Andy in the other. He waved his little hands excitedly as he looked at me. In his baby voice, he kept mumbling, "Adam…"

I couldn't help reaching my hand toward the light. Then, I saw them moving farther away from me. I panicked and ran forward.

"Wait for me!" I screamed. "I'm almost there! I'm coming home!"

A hurried knocking sound interrupted my vision, pulling me back to the cold, dark reality. I struggled to open my eyes. The darkness and suffocating air drowned me, leaving me breathless.

It turned out that even death was a luxury I couldn't have.

Noisy voices filled the air, and countless footsteps surrounded me. Just when I had fallen into despair, a familiar voice shouted, "Adam, are you in there? Answer me!"

That was Ms. Clark, my teacher! Was she here to save me?