"What?" he asked, for the third time.
The rest of the world was a distant radio station playing on the wrong frequency. ears stuffy from cold
The worst moment came when his son, Leo, burst into the room. "Daddy! I drew a rocket ship!" "Daddy
He sat up, and the simple act of his head moving upright felt like a submarine changing depth. A soft, crinkly pop echoed deep inside his left ear, followed by the sensation of being underwater. His own breath, loud and ragged in his head, was the only clear sound. When he swallowed, his ears answered with a tiny, protesting squeak. His own breath, loud and ragged in his
She turned in his arms, her face full of sympathy. She brought her hands up, framing his face, her thumbs tracing the circles under his eyes. Then, she leaned in, her lips almost touching his ear, and spoke. Slowly. Deliberately. Each word a carefully launched life raft across the muffled sea.
His wife, Sarah, came in with a cup of tea. He saw her lips move, forming familiar shapes—"Good morning," "How are you feeling?"—but the sound arrived as if from the end of a long, tiled hallway. Words were mashed together, consonants lost, vowels warped. The gentle clink of the mug on the bedside table sounded like a dropped hammer.