This evening, I went into my girlfriend’s bathroom and found this on the floor.

For several moments, I searched for an ordinary explanation. Perhaps a broken rubber seal had fallen loose, or someone had tracked something inside. Instead of approaching it, I examined the pipes, ceiling, and corners, wondering where it could have come from. Eventually, I forced myself to inspect it more closely. Its texture and slight movement convinced me it was alive. After comparing photographs online, I believed I had identified it: a leech. The possibility that it had emerged from somewhere damp was unsettling, although I never established how it arrived.

What stayed with me was how quickly an everyday room became unfamiliar. I found myself watching the floor and questioning shadows I would normally ignore. Finding an apparent explanation had settled one question, but it hadn’t immediately calmed my nerves. That small, unexpected creature left me with an uncomfortable memory: standing in my own bathroom, suddenly reluctant to take another step.