Time

I cover the clock with my hands so I can't see it's face. So I can't see the second hand continually tick, tick, ticking away.

"Excuse me!" A muffled voice reaches my ear.

In shock I hurriedly lift my hands from the clock face, looking down in surprise.

"Finally!" He(?) It(?) exclaims.

"What do you think your doing? You imbecile!" (I'll just stick with he until he says otherwise) he insults. "Don't you know its rude to go into someone else's personal space?!"

"Wha...?" How is this thing even speaking? "Am I being punked?" I ask, looking around my room. Nothing seems to be out of order.

"Punked? Punked! I am the one who woke up with your dirty hands in my face!" He snarls, well, snarls as much as a clock can snarl; which apparently sounds like a mix between ringing bells and the sounds of cats in heat.

I turn the clock around in my hands to look at the back and fiddle with the cover.

"Hey!" he squeals "How dare you! At least buy me dinner first! What are you doing!?"

"Trying to see where the mike or recorder or something is hiding." I answer. I popped the panel open but don't see anything that looked out of place. I look at the batteries and froze. Last night. Last night I had taken the batteries out. I turn it back around.

The clock is still ticking.

" How are you still working?" I hiss

"Time goes on whether I have batteries or not." He huffs. "Taking my batteries out will not stop time nor will it stop me from telling it. It's 11:43 by the way. The morning is already almost over and you haven't even got out of bed!" He scolds.

I threw the clock at the wall.

"Ow! That hurts you know!" He yells.

I watch with horror as the metal at the base of the cock starts to flex and move, turning the clock upright where it had fallen upside down. It turned to face me. I screamed and ran. I ran out the room, I ran out the apartment, I ran down the street. The clocks I pass seem to leer at me as I pass, mocking me. I keep my eyes down until I get to the café on the fifth floor, my safe space, and take a seat. I get a cup of coffee and wonder what I just experienced.

'Am I hallucinating?' I wonder. 'Have I finally cracked?'

I calm down a little and rationalize.

'A dream, it must have been a dream. I got a waking nightmare.'

I blow on my cup of coffee to further cool it and take a sip.

"Excuse me?" A voice asks. I turn around, it was a waiter at the café. "I was working last night and I saw you leave something. Wait here and I can get it for you." He says.

He turns back around and heads to the counter. He comes back towards me and I felt cold. The clock was back in his hand.

"You left it here last night? I remember this specifically because as long as I've worked here nobody has left such an old alarm clock. Why were you carrying this anyhow?"

It was the same clock from my apartment. I didn't bring that with me last night.

"Did you really think you can run?" It mocks.

I glare at it and grit my teeth. Taking the clock in hand, I strode towards the window.

"H-hey! What are you doing! Let go!" He stammers.

I open the window and hurl the clock as hard as I can on the ground 100 feet below. It shatters. Everything is still

....

Too still.

I turn back around, everyone is frozen. The waiter pouring a cup of coffee. The woman taking a bite of her pastry. The couple laughing in the corner. Even the steam rising from the coffee pot has stopped as if the whole world has been hit with a pause button. I sit back down at my seat and drink my coffee.

Too hot.

I scowl blowing on it some more and watch ripples freeze as soon as I stop blowing. Another sip.

Perfect.

Finally some peace, as I relax back into the seat.