The morning light filtered through the sheer curtains, casting a soft glow over the living room. I was finishing the living room floors at dawn, my knees slightly aching from the repetitive motion.
The boy, as always, sat quietly in the large armchair by the window. His presence was a familiar part of the morning routine, an unmoving fixture in the expansive room.
I glanced over at him, noting the stillness that seemed to envelop him. The silence around him was profound, almost tangible.
Something caught my eye, a subtle glint in the early light. It was there, nestled in his ear, a tiny piece of plastic. Almost invisible.
I hesitated, unsure whether to trust my eyes. Was it a hearing aid? Something overlooked amidst the sea of specialists and expensive treatments?
“…”
The question hung in the air, unspoken.
The boy’s father, a millionaire constantly traveling in search of a cure, had always insisted his son was utterly deaf. The weight of this insistence blanketed the house, heavy and unquestioned.
I turned my attention back to my task, the cloth in my hand moving in a slow, methodical rhythm. But my thoughts lingered on the boy and the small discovery that seemed to shift the very air around us.
Life in the mansion was a dance of silence and routine. Breakfast was prepared quietly, the enormous house kept spotless, its grandeur maintained.
