diff --git a/src/runtime.rs b/src/runtime.rs
index 5f6cf35..fe57066 100644
--- a/src/runtime.rs
+++ b/src/runtime.rs
@@ -873,6 +873,15 @@ impl Slot {
     }
 
     fn take_closure(&self) -> Option<Closure> {
+        // Fast path: every resume after the first (the overwhelming case)
+        // finds null. A plain load suffices to prove it — `store_closure`
+        // runs only before `publish_queued`, whose Release/Acquire pairing
+        // with the claimer's `try_claim` orders it before this call, so no
+        // writer can race the load within an occupancy. This keeps the
+        // locked RMW (full barrier, ~20+ cycles) off the per-resume path.
+        if self.closure.load(Ordering::Relaxed).is_null() {
+            return None;
+        }
         let raw = self.closure.swap(std::ptr::null_mut(), Ordering::Acquire);
         if raw.is_null() {
             None