Chapter 2: The Sound Beneath the Wood
Chapter 2: The Sound Beneath the Wood
He stepped closer to the coffin.
The room felt farther away now.
Muted.
Like the world was underwater.
His hand hovered over the lid.
“Open it,” he said.
A collective breath shifted through the guests.
“No,” his stepmother said quickly.
Too quickly.
“Please don’t,” she added softer, but it only made it worse.
He turned sharply. “Why?”
Her lips parted.
Nothing came out.
And that silence…
That was the second mistake.
Because then he heard it.
A sound so faint he almost convinced himself it wasn’t real.
Breathing.
Slow.
Strained.
Inside the coffin.
His body locked.
“That’s not funny,” someone whispered behind him.
But he wasn’t listening anymore.
He dropped to his knees.
Pressed his ear against the wood.
The sound was unmistakable now.
A weak inhale.
A broken exhale.
Alive.
His hands slammed against the coffin lid. “Dad?! Dad, can you hear me?!”
The flowers shook.
A woman screamed.
May you like
Security rushed forward—
But it was already too late.
