Night Perch Secured

Darkness enveloped the plaza, requiring elevation above the outdoor dining tables. I climbed the central aluminum pole of the closed cafe umbrella, locking my rigid boots against the metal ribs until reaching the top tension collar. A brass locking cotter pin was dangling half-dislodged from its safety eyelet, rattling in the updraft. An unfastened pin risks total canopy collapse in the dark. I planted my boots on the support spreader, gripped the cold brass loop with both gauntlets, and rammed it deep into the retention channel until it locked flush. The umbrella remains rigid. Perched high above the darkened terrace, my night watch begins.