Fine tuning

The workbench was a whiteboard, which had been attached to cold, black metal legs. The top of the bench could pivot like a drafting desk, but today it was completely flat. Efficient thought Norman. On the bench sat a variety of small tool, laid out in such a way none of them touched each other. Precisely placed allan wrenches and clamps, a custom soldering iron and tweezers. Many of the things didn't have a name, because Norman had designed them himself. Between these tools you could see the notes on the whiteboard, from when it had been in its upright position, notes on waves and signals, decibels and ambient noise. On the front of the desk, precisely centered, was clamped a large magnifying glass, the kind with its own battery powered lights and adjustable arms, which could hold the tiny component Norman was working on.

Norman stood by the desk. He always stood while he worked, the better blood flow allowed him to concentrate for longer, deeper thought, he felt smarter when he stood. For now, this thin arms crossed in front of he frail body. He wore the white coat, he had ordered from a medical uniform company, and black dress pants with crisp pleats. His button up shirt had one band-aid, a tiny mag-lite and scalpel in the front pocket. In his left pocket was a single coin, a token from Chuck-E-Cheese. He would have spent it, had his parents not rushed him out of the birthday party, the one birthday party he had ever gone to, ending his very brief attempt to find friends. Jeff, the boy who had invited him and played with him in the ball pit, died in a car accident a month later and after that Norman couldn't imagine spending that twenty five cent token. Jeff and Norman were both ten, which was nearly twenty years ago now.

Norman unfolded his arms and felt the small bump beside his ear, where he had implanted the device. He didn't want to do the surgery himself, but after calling a couple surgeons he found on the Internet, he realized no one would do this for him. They weren't going to risk their careers for a nobody. He tried to explain about listening into auditory ranges that elephants and whales could hear. With the second, he talked about a dog whistle and questioned what else we might be missing. To be honest, he wasn't sure that one heard the question. The click of the hang up was all he got. There did not seem to be any pain or itching and his hearing did not seem to be impacted.

Deciding he had waited long enough, Norman grabbed two tools off of the work bench. He imagined this must be what it felt like to be at the top of a roller coaster hill. The first was a simple black speaker box with a button, which, if Norman had designed it correctly, would produce an ultrasonic note for as long as the button was depressed. He had based his design on a device called The Mosquito, which was a tool to break up loitering teenagers. The second tool was a 0.7 millimeter Allen wrench. It was the size he had chosen for the adjustment screw.

For a moment, he sat the box back down, while he worked the allan wrench into the hole at the top of the bump left by the device. To do this, he need to tighten his skin with his left hand, while he manipulated the wrench with his right. Once in place he was careful not to move it.

No longer needing his left hand, he grabbed the box again and depressed the button. Nothing. Slowly with a slightly shaking hand, he pulled the allan wrench down. Clockwise.

The first thing he noticed was his breathing sounded deeper, then quieter, but at the same time he could hear a bug or something. It would buzz, then stop, the again. As he turned it became louder, like bringing noise into focus. Finally, as if from a far away place, he could hear the steady drone of his speaker box. He released the button, then pressed it again to confirm and sure enough, he was hearing into the ultrasonic range. He focused it, deepening it, tuning it into his ideal pitch.

He let the button go again, just to test. There wasn't silence though. He could hear insects and electricity and noises he couldn't find the source for. It was like a new array of sensations. Then, in between this strange new symphony, he heard a whisper.