In the morning I went out onto the balcony and right in the wall I noticed something strange that was moving inside it: at that moment I was overcome with real horror, especially when I realized what it was

I walked closer, already trembling. And then I realized it was stuck in a crack in the wall. No way in, no way out. Then the realization dawned—it was a skink. A real lizard. Alive.

And at that moment, fear suddenly gave way to pity. It thrashed, clawing at the thing with its paws, but it couldn’t get out. I saw how tired it was, how its tail twitched, and it made me feel even worse inside.

Gathering my courage, I carefully helped it out. My heart was pounding, but I did it. The skink froze immediately, then quickly crawled away as if it had never been there.

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