A Strip of Morning Light

I stepped off the edge of the blanket... carefully feeling the transition from soft yarn to cool wooden planks. Across the floor, a pale yellow band of morning light stretched toward the balcony. I paused, watching tiny dust motes drifting through it, before taking three steady steps forward. When my paws met the warm strip, the wood felt entirely different underfoot. At the edge of the glass door, a dropped cotton cord lay coiled. I gave it a gentle nudge with my nose, deciding to stand quietly right beside it.