imagineyourotp - Imagine Person A is deaf, but has surgery and hears Person B's voice for the first time.
I met her in a coffee shop. Starbucks, to be precise. She had ordered a caramel macchiato by passing it over on a slip of paper with the correct change. I thought it odd, I had never encountered someone ordering coffee that way before. I got the order ready anyway, but as I called it out, nobody came to collect it. I double checked her slip of paper to make sure I had everything correct. Yup, I definitely called caramel macchiato for Beca. I called again, and nothing.
That's when the manager tapped me on the shoulder and informed me that she couldn't hear me as she was deaf. That explains it! I spotted her sitting over by the window, idly watching the world pass by. She's kinda cute, I thought to myself as I walked over to place her order on the table for her. She didn't notice at first, so I tapped her on the shoulder and pointed to her coffee mug. She smiled sweetly and mouthed a thank you at me. I returned the smiled and nodded before turning to get back to my shift. I watched her from behind the counter for the rest of my shift.
And so began what would soon blossom into a fast growing friendship between Beca and I. I started carrying around a small notebook and pen in my apron for whenever she would come in for coffee so we could communicate with each other. I learned that she lost her hearing in an accident at a young age, and that she had never tried to get her hearing back. Due to this, she was home schooled, and never really had any friends as a result. 'Nobody could be bothered learning sign language, so I sort of just gave up trying to make friends', she had written one day. So, with me being the optimist I am, started to learn sign language in my free time in order to surprise her.
And surprised she was. I remember the look of pure adoration on her face as she sat across from me as I signed out my message to her. 'I'm not like the others, Beca. I want to be there for you. I want to be your friend.' I watched as her face split into a joyous grin a tears escaped her eyes, so naturally, I leaned across the table to wipe them away. That's when I felt it; the spark. She must have felt it too, because her eyes, got slightly wider as we made eye contact, my hand frozen on her cheek. I reluctantly retracted my hand to scribble down something, not sure if I was pushing it. 'Would it be okay if I kiss you right now?' She simply nodded.
Fast forward three years, and that takes us to me sitting in the doctor's office, waiting for them to bring Beca in from her surgery. Oh, don't get the wrong idea, it wasn't anything serious. Just a small operation to put in implants to bring back her hearing. No biggie. No, definitely not... When she first came through the door, she looked positively petrified. I reached for my notepad and pen. 'How did it go?' She mouthed back an okay, followed by a small shrug. I scribbled down an 'I love you' before the doctor informed me that they were about to switch the devices on. I sent Beca an enthusiastic thumbs up and she smiled sheepishly at me. He nodded at me to confirm that they were switched on. Party time...
"Hey, baby." She immediately covered her mouth as tears overflowed from her eyes. I can't even imagine what she's going through. I reached up to brush the tears away and removed her hand from her mouth. "Hey. I love you."
"Oh my God, Chloe. That's music to my ears," she replied quietly as my eyes widened in surprise. I our three years together, I had never actually heard her speak, we communicated solely through sign language, written messages, text, and occasionally mouthing words to each other without actually saying anything. My eyes then filled with tears at the thought.
"What's the matter?" she asked, concerned that I was crying. I just laughed through my tears.
"This is a first both of us. I've never heard you speak before."
"Oh," she breathed through a small laugh. "I love you, Chloe. But there's only one thing that could possibly make me happier than hearing your voice."
I looked at her quizzically. "What's that?"
"Chloe Beale, will you marry me?"