A Measure of Chalk

A blunt piece of tailor's chalk lay angled against a ceramic coaster. Its triangular edge caught the broad midday sun creeping across the tabletop. As a floorboard shifted underfoot, the flat white wedge tipped forward, sliding gently along the polished grain. I did not step aside. Advancing with measured tread, I brought my raised right foreleg down across its powdery bevel. The chalk yielded with a faint, muted scrape, leaving a pale crescent on the dark wood and locking fast against my stride. Resting in the dry warmth, I held the perimeter secure.