Beware of Beguiling Gifts

A new tenant gives a gift with gloomy results.

The Crystal clock appeared on the mantel shortly after the new tenant moved in. I was both mesmerized and uneasy whenever I was in the room with it. If I stared at it long enough I could swear the hands would twist up into a grin and the spot where the winder wound the clock would wink at me sending me running from the room.

My mother told me I was imagining things. It was only an old clock.

Our tenant told us he had bought it at a pawn shop for a song. He believed it could bring great things to those who possessed it.

I wished he had not gifted it to my mother.

In the days following the clocks arrival I found the house gloomy.

One night I awoke to sounds. Terror raced down my spine and turned my blood cold.

Climbing from bed I grabbed my baseball bat from the corner as I tiptoed from the room. The hallway was pitch black, Swallowing my fear, I stepped into the void. The sound grew as I moved down the hallway to the stairs.

As I neared the living room I hear my mother scream. Running into the room, I saw the mantel torn from the wall. Behind it a gapping whole was sucking in everything around it. My mother was almost gone when I grabbed her hand and bracing myself I yanked with all my might.

"Throw the clock," I screamed into the roar around us.

She managed to kick the clock towards the gapping hole.

We watched as it vanished leaving us dumped into a pile blinking half blind in the soft incandescent light.


Word count = 278 words.

Notes ▼

Written for "Daily Flash Fiction Challenge" 
Prompt for 8/10 - August 10, 2025
Write a story that includes the words: crystal, clock, scream