## That Morning on the Balcony: When the Wall Came Alive
That morning began like so many othersâquiet, automatic, almost forgettable. I stepped out onto the balcony half-awake, guided by habit rather than intention. The air was cool, the city still shaking off sleep. I opened the window to let in fresh air, hoping it would clear the fog from my mind and gently pull me into the day.
At first, I didnât understand what I was seeing. It was one of those moments when your brain lags behind reality, when your gaze *stumbles* instead of lands. Something was wrong. Something was⌠moving.
Slowly. Strangely.
The wallâsolid, familiar, inertâseemed to pulse. A shape shifted beneath the surface, as if the structure itself had come alive. My stomach tightened instantly. My first thought was that it was a shadow, maybe cast by something outside. I blinked. The movement continued.
My second thought was far worse.
*A snake.*
My heart dropped so hard it felt like it hit my feet. My palms went slick with sweat. My breathing turned shallow and uneven, each breath a conscious effort. I froze, rooted to the spot, afraid that even blinking might somehow make it worse.
The thing was moving inside the wall.
Not slitheringâno, that would have almost been comforting in its familiarity. This movement was wrong. Jerky. Uneven. Helpless. It looked like something struggling rather than hunting. Like something trapped.
âProbably something huge with a thin tail,â my mind offered unhelpfully.
Thatâs when the fear truly set in.
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