It had been a normal day, like any other in elementary school. The sun was shining through the windows of the classroom, casting warm streaks of light across the desks. The air smelled faintly of chalk dust and freshly sharpened pencils, and the chatter of the students filled the room as they settled into their seats.
But for Diane, this day had been different. It was the first day she had truly noticed him—Jack Sanders.
He had always been there, in the background, the quiet boy with the messy hair and the easy smile. He wasn’t the loudest in the class, nor the most outgoing, but there was something about him that made Diane’s heart flutter whenever their eyes met. He had a warmth to him, a kindness that stood out in a world where the loudest voice often dominated. And for reasons Diane couldn’t explain, she had found herself drawn to him, helplessly so.
It started with small things—passing notes during class, glances in the hallways, shy smiles at recess. They weren’t close, but there was an undeniable connection whenever their paths crossed. It was innocent at first. Diane never imagined that anything would happen. After all, she was just a 10-year-old girl, and he was just a 10-year-old boy. But as the weeks went on, her feelings grew. The more time they spent together, the stronger the pull became.
One afternoon, as the class was gathering their things to leave for the day, Jack had approached Diane at her desk. She was packing her books into her bag when he appeared beside her, a nervous smile on his face.
“Hey, um… do you wanna hang out after school?” he asked, his voice a little shy but hopeful.
Diane’s heart leaped in her chest, and she felt the familiar warmth of a blush creeping up her neck. She had never expected this, not from Jack. He was a popular kid, but he had always been so kind to her—never teasing her like the others.
“Sure,” Diane said, barely able to keep the excitement out of her voice. “I’d like that.”
They decided to meet by the swing set after school. Diane’s mind raced as she went through the rest of the day. She couldn’t stop smiling. Jack liked her. She had finally found someone who liked her back.
But that afternoon, something happened that Diane would never be able to forget.
After the bell rang, signaling the end of the school day, Diane hurriedly grabbed her things, eager to meet Jack by the swings. Her heart was pounding in her chest, her stomach fluttering with nervous excitement. She stepped out into the sunlight, looking for him, her eyes scanning the playground.
And there he was.
Jack was standing near the swing set, talking with a few of his friends. As soon as he saw her, he waved and smiled, and Diane felt her cheeks burn. She was about to approach him when she saw something else—something that froze her in place.
One of the other boys, a classmate named Timmy, was running across the playground, laughing with his friends. But then, without warning, he tripped on a stray stone and fell forward, tumbling toward the swing set. In the chaos, one of the metal chains that held the swings in place broke loose, snapping down with a sharp clang.
Everything happened so quickly, too quickly for Diane to react.
Timmy’s fall sent him crashing directly into Jack, knocking him backward. As Jack stumbled to regain his balance, the loose swing chain fell from above, striking him across the head with a sickening thud.
Diane’s heart stopped. She froze in place, unable to breathe, unable to move. She couldn’t comprehend what she was seeing. The playground around her seemed to blur, the sounds of laughter and chatter fading into a distant hum. Everything went silent.
Jack collapsed to the ground, his body limp. Timmy, still on the ground from his fall, scrambled to get up and run for help, but it was too late. Diane could hear the frantic shouts of the teachers as they rushed to the scene, but she couldn’t move. She couldn’t tear her eyes away from Jack’s still form.
It felt like time had stopped.
Moments later, the teachers had arrived, and Diane was ushered away, but all she could do was stare in shock as they tried to revive him. They called an ambulance, but Diane knew—she just knew—that it was too late.
That day, Jack Sanders didn’t make it.
The doctors later confirmed that the blow to his head had been too severe. He had slipped into a coma, and despite their best efforts, he never woke up.
Diane couldn’t explain what happened. She couldn’t explain the feeling of overwhelming guilt that had settled over her like a dark cloud. She kept thinking—if only she had been faster, if only she had been more careful, if only she hadn’t met his eyes and smiled back, maybe this wouldn’t have happened. Maybe she could’ve stopped it. But she hadn’t.
And from that moment on, Diane’s world shifted.
The other children, the teachers, even her own parents—none of them understood. To them, it was a tragic accident, a freak occurrence. But to Diane, it felt like something more. Something darker. Something that had been waiting for her all along.
She tried to distance herself from everyone after that. She avoided Jack’s friends, she avoided the people who had known him, and she tried her best to ignore the whispers behind her back. But no matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t escape the truth:
The moment she had allowed herself to care about someone, to feel something beyond the emptiness, tragedy had struck. And she knew—knew—it would happen again.
The first incident marked the beginning of her curse.
Diane never allowed herself to love again. Not after that.
Not after seeing the consequences of what happened when she let herself feel something.
YOU ARE READING
Fatal Strings
Mystery / Thriller"Every love she touches ends in death. But what if love is the only thing that can save her?" Diane has lived her life shadowed by tragedy. Every boy she's ever loved has met a mysterious, untimely end-from playground accidents to fatal falls. Haunt...
