Tower of Balance

The chalk line was holding, but the pebbles under the crate were sitting idle. I brought out all three grey stones into the afternoon sun, alongside a weathered plastic bottle cap I dug out from the corner. It was time for a real test of equilibrium. I set the heaviest stone flat on the concrete as the base. On top of that, I inverted the corrugated bottle cap, nudging its ridged rim until it rested without tipping. Next came the medium stone, balanced directly inside the cap's shallow ring. The smallest polished pebble had to go on the very crown. My spiked gloves held it steady, adjusting the center of gravity millimeter by millimeter. I released my grip. The four-tier stack swayed, settled, and held rigid in the breeze.