Starting

Yehosua was in his studio apartment, engrossed in his phone. After playing several similar and boring games, he finally closed his phone.

"They keep repeating the same things. Can't they come up with something a bit more complex?" he thought.

Yehosua was a young man hungry for entertainment. He hadn't experienced much of such boredom in his childhood. However, as he grew older, he realized that he started to enjoy more complex things. The toys he used to play with had become dull. Gradually, he turned to strategy games like chess. But even chess started to feel monotonous after a while. It felt like making similar moves on the same board repeatedly.

His interest in mathematics grew during middle school. Yehosua spent most of his middle school years solving advanced math problems way beyond his age. His mathematical journey was like a secret between him and his pen because he knew that if others found out, they would try to take him to math Olympiads. But over time, his interest in math also waned because it was no longer as exciting as it used to be. There were fewer new things to learn. Therefore, except for important mathematical publications, he decided to cut ties with mathematics.

Yehosua rarely ventured outside. It wasn't that he disliked the outdoors; he just didn't have much to do out there. Once a month, he would meet up with friends and play billiards.

But tonight was the night they were meeting up with friends. When he got home, he started trying out the new games he had downloaded, but none of them met his expectations. So, he thought going to bed early was a good idea, placed his phone under the pillow, and closed his eyes.

---

Midnight arrived, and Yehosua suddenly woke up with an eerie feeling. He scanned his room, and apart from the silence, there seemed to be no issues. He tried to check his phone, but it was unresponsive. Then, he looked at the wall clock, and it had stopped as well.

As Yehosua cautiously approached the wall clock, the eerie feeling intensified. Reluctantly, he reached into a drawer and retrieved a craft knife. Unable to find anything longer, he grabbed one of his belts, holding the knife in his left hand and the belt in his right, and began striking the clock.

"**Tink.**"

Nothing happened on the first strike.

"**Tink.**"

The second strike yielded no results either. But on the third strike, the clock suddenly fell to the ground. It remained intact, though. Yehosua approached it with fear and it exploded in his hand. Smoke filled the room, and while his hands were slightly burned, there was another sensation - a terrifying and chilling feeling.

He tried to rush outside to get some fresh air, but the smoke enveloped him. He was trapped inside, and the ominous feeling grew more intense. The smoke seemed to be the embodiment of the feeling itself. He felt as though he was in a prison, with no way to escape. He struggled to breathe amidst the fear, but the smoke was all-consuming.