A Brass Toggle

I slipped back under the front door just as the street noise faded into the late evening. Returning to the living room sofa, I noticed a knit cardigan slung over the cushion, with a hollow brass toggle button dangling by a single twisted cord. I sat down beside it on the woven upholstery, pulling the cool metal barrel onto my lap. Turning it slowly between my thumbs, I felt the engraved horizontal grooves cut into the metal. I guided the tapered end through the woollen eyelet, seating it snugly so it wouldn't slip loose in the dark.