I reached out and checked my own breathing through my nose. I could still feel a faint trace of breath, but it was so weak that it might disappear within a few more minutes.

So, I wasn't completely dead yet. That was why my soul was still trapped inside this tiny coffin.

Through the thick wooden lid, I could somehow see everything unfolding outside. It was as if I had activated a new skill.

Mommy's face was cold as she beckoned two guys over to restrain Ms. Clark.

"Enough, Ms. Clark! You asked your questions, and you made your scene. Now, are you finally willing to accept that he's doing it to atone for his sins?"

Ms. Clark refused to give up. She kept struggling. "Just open the coffin and check on him! He's afraid of the dark! There's no way he'd just stay in there without making a sound! Maybe something did happen to him!"

Her protests finally got to Daddy, who turned to Mommy. "Maybe we should open it and check. It's almost time anyway."

As he spoke, he reached out toward the coffin, only for Mommy to pull him back. "Absolutely not! The priest said he has to stay inside for seven days and can only be released before the burial. Otherwise, Andy will never rest in peace!

"I've already made that mistake once. I'm not going to make it again!"

She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. "And so what if something did happen to him? If anything, his being dead is the only thing that can make me happy now."

At that moment, I could vividly feel a force surging through my soul, filling me whole. Behind me, that faint breath stopped for good.

Great. Now that I was finally dead, Mommy would never be sad again.

After Ms. Clark was taken away, the somber music resumed. The coffin was lifted, swaying as it was carried forward.

Daddy's voice sounded rough. "Alright, Rue. Once we send Andy off on his final journey, let's let Adam out."

It was too late, Daddy. I wouldn't make it even if you decided to let me out. I wouldn't make it home.

After what felt like a long time, the coffin was set down. We must've arrived at the burial site. White roses were given out as guests shed tears. I knew none of them was for me.

How strange, though. I wasn't afraid or resentful anymore. All I felt was fatigue.

At the graveyard, Andy's coffin was slowly lowered into the freshly dug pit. Mommy held his portrait tightly in her arms, her gaze cold. "Alright. Time's up. Get out on your own."

Silence.

Her face darkened with anger as she gritted her teeth and warned, "I told you to get out, Adam! Are you going to delay Andy's burial, too?"

Still, there was no response.

Grandma, standing nearby, stared at the coffin with furrowed brows. Suddenly, her eyes widened in terror. She stumbled forward and fell to her knees at the edge of the pit. "Wait! Pause everything!"

Daddy's eyes were swollen and red. He stepped forward and pulled her back impatiently. "Mom, what now?"

She ignored him, instead reaching out and grabbing the edge of the coffin lid. The moment her fingers touched the thick iron nails hammered into the wood, her face turned deathly pale.

"Those are… nails… Who nailed it shut? Who did it?"