500 Words 2024/25: read a finalist's story from the 8-11 category

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This story was chosen as a top 50 finalist for 500 Words 2024/25.

Remember, spelling, punctuation and grammar are not taken into account for a 500 Words story, therefore all the top 50 stories have been published how they were submitted.

The Clockmaker's Secret by Huzaifa A.

In a small, cobbled village nestled between misty hills, there lived an old clockmaker named Elias. His shop was cluttered with wooden gears and pendulums of every size. No one knew how old Elias was, he seemed as ancient as the clocks he crafted. with silver hair, wrinkled hands, and eyes that sparkled with quite wisdom.

Elias was known far and wide not just for his craftmanship but for a curious claim: every clock he made was said to be connected to a persons life. ''When your time runs out,'' he would say, ''So does the clock.'' Most thought it was just an old man's whimsy, though there were whispers of customers who had passed away just as their clocks stop ticking.

One rainy evening, a boy named Peter entered the shop, dripping water onto the floorboards. He was no older than twelve, with a mop of dark hair and shows too big for his feet.'' Mister Elias,'' Peter began, ''Can you fix my fathers clock.''

He pulled out an old mantel clock wrapped in cloth; its glass face cracked. ''It stopped the night he fell ill,'' Peter whispered, looking down.

Elia's heart softened. He gently took the clock and placed it on his workbench. ''I'll do my best,'' he said, though something heavy was settled in his chest.

For days, Elias worked tirelessly, adjusting the gears and carefully replacing the cracked glass. But no matter how much he tinkered, the clock refused to tick. It was as if the very essence of time had left in it.

Peter returned each evening, his face dim with disappointment. Yet Elias couldn't bring himself to tell the boy what he feared, that the clock might never run again, just as somethings could never be fixed.

One night, after Peter had gone home, Elias stayed up late in his shop, troubled. He sat by the fire, gazing at the clock on his bench, his mind lost in thought. Could it be possible, he wondered, that some moments could be borrowed? Could time itself be shared?

An idea sparked in his mind, dangerous and delicate. Slowly, Elias rose and walked to the back of his shop, where an ancient clock-his own- stood ticking steadily. He knew the risk, but for Peter, he would try…

With trembling hands, Elias opened the back of his own clock and removed a tiny piece, a fragment of time itself. He fitted it into Peter's father's clock and wound it slowly. For one heartbeat, the shop was silent.

The clock sprang to life, its hands moving as if awakened from a long slumber. Elias let out a breath of relief, though he felt strangely light-headed.

The next day, Peter came running into the shop, his face alight with joy. '' My father woke up!'' he cried. ''He's getting better!''

Elias smiled, though his hands shook slightly. Behind him, his own clock ticked slower, each second dragging like a sigh.

And so the old man gave a boy's father more time.

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