Getting Her Hearing Back
Amy was overjoyed when she finally got her hearing back. She deemed it as the happiest day of her life. It was a miracle and she had been convinced that she would never be able to hear again. But would have have gone through with it if she knew then what she knows now?
She knew who she was and what kind of man her husband was, at least, so she thought. She had no idea how delusional it all was. But now, sound had set her free.
Amy Hutchins
Amy Hutchins was diagnosed with deafness at birth. She didn’t know what her parents sounded like, or what her favorite song was, or the sound of her husband when he said: “I do”.
So, when she received a treatment that restored her hearing, it’s no surprise that she was about to make a bunch of discoveries, but she could’ve never imagined discovering something as shocking as this.
Complicated Relationships
Amy’s relationship with her parents was always strained. As their only daughter - and deaf daughter at that, Amy felt like her hearing impairment disappointed them and shattered their dream of having the ‘perfect daughter’.
No matter how hard she tried, she never felt good enough and they always reminded her of that by sending her to doctors to get ‘fixed’. But then something happened.
Love
She met a man who loved her for everything she was, he worked as an accountant and was a supportive partner, he didn’t care that she was deaf. In fact, Amy felt like he loved her even more for it. She wondered how she got so lucky.
But even while she found her happiness, her parents never stopped looking for a cure to ‘fix her’, until finally, they found one.
Another Doctor
Through utter persistence, her parents begged her to meet up with a new doctor they found who began conducting a new experimental restorative procedure. He warned them of the high probability of failure yet agreed to operate on Amy due to the insistence of her parents.
Thinking of her husband, Amy agreed. She wanted to be able to hear him. But little did she know, some things were best left unheard.
Life-Changing
Amy woke after a 3-hour of surgery to the sound of her doctor's voice, “How are you feeling Amy?”, he asked as his brows furrowed in gentle concern.
“I’m okay”, Amy replied. “There’s some pain in... ”. She stopped abruptly as her eyes widened. The doctor gave her an amused smile. “I… I can hear my voice”, Amy stammered. “Oh my god”. But soon, this dream would turn into a nightmare.
Identity Crisis
At first, there were so many new sounds to get used to and identify that she couldn’t even tell the difference between her accent and everyone else’s. She knew her mom was from Italy but she had no idea that her accent could rub off on her. It must have been because of the way she taught her to imitate speech.
Suddenly, she felt more Italian than American. It was the first discovery that shook her version of reality. But this was nothing compared to what was to come.
Trouble In Paradise
It wasn’t long before Amy’s new sense of hearing began to notice something strange about her husband too.
Amy always counted herself lucky to find someone like him. He never made her feel like she was less because of her condition. He was her greatest encourager. What they had just worked. It didn’t matter if she couldn’t hear or not - or did it…
Something’s Different
Amy had gotten used to sitting in mutual silence with her husband but now with her restored hearing, the silence felt uncomfortable. She wanted to talk but it seemed that every time she did, he had an excuse not to.
From a long work day and being too tired, to having a sore throat, he had all the excuses and something began to feel wrong.
Suspicions
Amy started to get worried that she refound hearing had changed the dynamic of their relationship. But when he started coming home late from work more frequently, that’s when she really started to worry. What accountant says back at work so late? Surely this wasn’t normal.
And then she heard it, something she wasn’t supposed to.
Caught Red Handed
He must’ve been so used to her not being able to hear that he forgot she could listen to him when he arrived home, tired again.
She followed the sound and stood outside the door in complete shock. He had no idea she was listening. And she had no idea who this man was that she married. How long had he been keeping this a secret and why?
Undetected
Quietly, Amy opened the door and tentatively entered their room as he changed out of his work clothes. She wanted to catch him off guard and listen for as long as she could.
She had never heard anything like this before. She remembered the feeling she had when she heard the sounds of birds for the first time or the laughter of children. They were beautiful, pleasant, but this was nothing like that.
The Secret
Amy walked in on her husband singing. When he finally realized she was there, he stopped. Embarrassed and taken off-guard that she could hear him.
His voice sounded like a dream to Amy. Like how walking on clouds must sound. She asked him to do that again as tears swelled in her eyes. But what he said next, made her realize just how much she didn’t know.
Hidden Talents
Her husband admitted to her that his real passion was singing. It was the reason he was late and tired and had a sore throat in the evenings. After work, he would perform as a resident singer in some hotels outside town.
He never told her as he didn’t want her to feel like she was missing out on something she could never experience. But why not tell her now?
Full Circle
Amy had told him in the past that she didn’t enjoy concerts or going to music-related events so he didn’t know how to bring it up. She thought she still felt the same, but she absolutely didn’t!
Amy was speechless but she wasn’t mad. Now, everything made sense and she was relieved that it wasn’t anything more serious.