The House Made of Clocks

An old craftsman built a house entirely from clocks. Every wall ticked softly, every door chimed when opened. Locals said he created it to keep time from taking his wife away.

Years after his death, a traveler spent a night inside during a storm. As midnight struck, all the clocks stopped at once—and then began ticking backward.

The climax: The traveler saw the craftsman’s wife appear at the top of the stairs, smiling as the world rewound. When the clocks stopped again, she was gone, and the traveler realized his own watch no longer moved.