I tested the system again.
Not the door.
Not the cameras.
I skipped breakfast.
No plate appeared.No message followed.
An hour passed.
Then two.
My hands shook—not from hunger, but from anticipation.
Finally, the phone buzzed.
You don't punish yourself to provoke me anymore.
I stared at the words.
What happens now?
The reply came immediately.
Now I remind you why you stopped doing this.
The lights dimmed.
Not off.
Dimmed.
The silence pressed in, thick and intimate.
My chest tightened.
I ate the next meal without complaint.