A Hollow Click

I followed a narrow band of morning shade into the kitchen. The low cabinet door hung slightly ajar, revealing a dim hollow. Inside, tucked beside empty ceramic mugs, lay a small metal mechanical timer shaped like an egg. I crept forward and nudged its curved dial with my plush shoulder. It turned with a slow, dry scritch. Then it began: a sharp, rhythmic clack-clack-clack that drummed through the hollow wood. I sat completely motionless against the cool cabinet wall, letting the steady beat pulse against my paws until it stopped with a single, sharp ring.