The mysterious watch
In the bustling city of Karachi, life moved at a frenetic pace, and people often lost themselves in the daily grind. Among them was Amina, a hard-working software engineer who worked late nights, her only solace being her cozy apartment on the 12th floor of a modern high-rise.
One evening, after a particularly hard day at work, Amina returns home to find a small, unmarked package waiting for her on her doorstep. Curious but cautious, she brought it in and opened it. Inside was an old, intricately designed pocket watch and a handwritten note that read: “To keep time is to keep life.”
Amina shrugged it off as a funny joke and placed the watch on her bedside table. That night, she slept restlessly, her dreams filled with whispers and shadows.
The next day, he saw something strange. His neighbour, Mrs Rehman, who usually greeted him cheerfully every morning, was nowhere to be seen. In fact, several of his neighbors seemed to be missing. The hallways were eerily quiet, and a sense of unease hung over him.
By evening anxiety turned to fear. More neighbors had apparently disappeared, and the once lively atmosphere of the building had become deathly silent. That night, Amina lay in bed, her pocket watch ticking gently beside her. He tried to sleep, but the ticking seemed to grow louder, almost deafening.
Early in the morning, she woke up with a strange feeling. She was no longer in her bed but standing in the middle of her room, pocket watch clutched in her hand. The room was dark, and the only light came from the face of the clock, which shone with an unnatural, eerie light.
Panicked, he tried to turn on the lights but nothing happened. His phone had no signal, and the entire building seemed to be without power. As she frantically walked through her apartment, she heard distant whispers, faint as in her dreams. They seemed to be coming from the clock urging him to look out.
As she approached the window, her blood ran cold. The streets below were empty, devoid of normal traffic and pedestrians. The city was in complete darkness, except for the flickering of a few scattered street lights. The whispers grew louder, words she barely understood: “Time is slipping away.”
To understand what is going on, Amina decides to check on her neighbors. She left her apartment, pocket watch still in her hand. The hallways were deserted and the silence was oppressive. As he knocked on the door, he realized that each apartment was empty, as if the inhabitants had disappeared altogether.
In his growing terror he remembered the strange note that came with the watch. Determined to find answers, she returned to her apartment and examined the clock more closely. It was then that a small inscription appeared on his back: “Turn back to look forward.”
With trembling hands he turned the hands of the clock backwards. As he did, the whispers grew louder, and a cool breeze wafted through his apartment. The walls seemed to move, and for a brief moment, he saw shadowy figures moving in the corridors.
Suddenly, she wasn’t alone anymore. The apartment was filled with the ghosts of her missing neighbors, their eyes wide with fear. They seemed stuck in a loop, replaying their last moments before disappearing. Amina’s heart skipped a beat as she realized that the clock had somehow trapped her in a warped version of her own reality.
To avoid the same fate, Amina ran towards the door of the building. But no matter how fast she ran, the hallways stretched endlessly, and the exit always seemed out of reach. The whispers were deafening now, speaking directly into his mind: “To keep time is to keep life.”
In a last act of desperation, Amina smashes the clock against the wall. As it dissipated, the whispers ceased, and the building returned to its normal state. The lights flashed again, and the sound of distant traffic returned.
Breathing heavily, he looked around. His neighbors had returned, oblivious to what had happened. He was living his life as if nothing had happened. But Amina knew the truth. The clock was gone, but its curse lingered in the back of his mind, a haunting reminder of the fragile nature of time and reality.
Amina wrote about her harrowing experience, and the story of the mysterious pocket watch and the missing neighbors quickly spread. His story captured the imagination of readers, becoming a viral sensation that made everyone question the hidden mysteries of their everyday lives.
