The Guest

The next day, the merchant left the door to his small, quiet storeroom ajar. The market outside bustled with its usual rhythm, a symphony of commerce and conversation. But the open doorway was a small pocket of silence, an invitation to a different kind of commerce.

Late in the afternoon, a fellow trader, his face etched with the day’s negotiations, paused before the doorway. He hesitated for a moment, then, drawn by the stillness, he stepped inside. He found a simple wooden crate, and sat.

The merchant, from his stall, simply nodded. No words were exchanged; there was no need.