Vid_20200814_152347.mp4 -

The video starts mid-motion. The camera is shaky, held by someone jogging through a sun-drenched backyard. You can hear the rhythmic thud-thud of sneakers on dry grass and the aggressive drone of cicadas—that heavy, electric hum of a Tuesday in August where the heat feels like a physical weight. At the mark, the runner stops abruptly.

Elias looked down at his desk. His phone, sitting face-up, began to tap against the wood. Tap. Tap-tap. Tap. The rhythm matched the video perfectly. VID_20200814_152347.MP4

He glanced back at the screen and realized the video hadn't ended. There were five seconds of black, and then a new sound: a soft, metallic tapping. The video starts mid-motion