Beneath the half-open door, the air carried a quiet hum, as if the wood itself was listening. The spiral grain on its surface glowed faintly, not as a command but as an invitation. By the green lamp’s light one could see just enough to know there was more—but never enough to take it all. It was a threshold that did not demand crossing.

Those who paused there and waited found themselves mirrored: their own curiosity held against the stillness of the door. The longer they listened, the more the silence became a companion, until they realized the door was not guarding a secret...it was teaching how to leave a mystery intact.