The Clock That Refused to Tick

There was a clock that never ticked.

It hung on the wall of a room no one entered.

Every morning the woman came, wound the key, and left.

The clock remained silent.

One day she forgot the key.

The clock, left unwound, began to tick ⁠— loudly, angrily, as if it had been holding its breath for years.

The sound filled the house. Neighbors knocked. The woman returned, terrified.

She wound it again. The clock stopped.

Silence returned.

From that day on she came every hour, just to listen to nothing.

And the clock, satisfied, kept its perfect time ⁠— without ever moving its hands.