The Search

How Mia ended up chasing a sound that may not even be real through her house, she’ll never know. It was her day off from work and all she wanted was to enjoy it by reading a book or watching television. Yet, a high-pitched whine distracted her from doing just that. She had walked through the entire house looking for whatever was causing it. When she first noticed it, she was in the living room, happily reading an old childhood favorite of hers. Mia tried to ignore it at first, but after having to read the same page multiple times, she just couldn't let it be.

At first she thought it was in the living room with her, so she checked behind every piece of furniture, tossed all of the cushions, and even shook out the neatly folded blankets, yet she didn't find anything. Worse yet, the sound was somehow far louder than before.

"Where the absolute hell…" She muttered. Looking around, she hoped to find some idea of what could be making the sound. One idea told her to check the television. Maybe it was somehow left on auto-play due to her wife's love of watching people play games. Unfortunately, that idea was dead on arrival when she saw the television was clearly off, its screen dark enough to show her own face staring back at her. Then the sound got quieter, like it was going to fade away on its own, but it only came back louder.

Was it a bug? Maybe a fly? Mia quickly went to the kitchen and grabbed a flyswatter from their junk drawer, holding it up and ready to go after the pest she had no choice but to believe was there. It had to be as the sound had followed her into the kitchen, like a child dead set on annoying their mother. She squinted her eyes, using them to scan around the room to find that tell-tale speck zipping around. Staying still, Mia watched for minutes on end as the sound faded in and out constantly, but she couldn't see anything. At some point she had to relent and admit that it wasn't a bug. It couldn't have been. She was a pro at hunting them due to her wife refusing to enter a room if she knew something like a previously seen spider was lurking in there. If it was there, Mia would have found it. Though, that just meant that she no longer had a lead.

The frequency had quieted down again. If Mia strained her ears just enough, she could tell it was coming from a different room now. Not nearly as annoying as it had been when right next to her, but now she was fully set on stopping this auditory intruder from interrupting her time alone.

The next room was their spare bedroom, which mostly was used as a storage room for stuff that they really didn't need but would feel bad throwing away. Old books, gadgets, and even a spare television that they had replaced over a year ago. They figured it would be a nice backup if the new one broke like a lot of newer electronics tended to do. It never stopped her wife from buying new ones all the time, unfortunately. She had a burning curiosity for new electronics that bordered on obsession, but Mia had to admit that seeing her wife get excited over news articles and tech blogs was pretty adorable.

Then sound started to pound into her ear drums. “Where is it!?” Mia asked, frustration seeping into her very own bones. She started turning over box after box, looking for anything that might be  making the noise. Books were tossed, papers and old files strewn about the floor, and even dug deep into the closet to check behind all the boxes of electronics her wife still collected for some reason, but she came up empty handed. “All of my hate…” Mia said under her breath. In response, the frequency faded in and out quickly like it was mocking her. It even popped in and out of the room, urging her into another chase. Mia wasn’t very eager to take the bait, but what other choice did she have? The sooner she found it, the sooner she could end it and get back to her lazy day off. So she began following the sound, yet again.

It eventually led her to her and her wife’s bedroom. The place where they had spent many days in bed, refusing to leave its comfy embrace. Now it also contained the most annoying noise Mia ever had the displeasure of dealing with. As the sound screamed into her ears, Mia yanked the bed covers off, desperate to find anything to stop it. She found nothing, as she mostly expected at this point. Then she dropped and scanned under the bed. All that was there was dust that needed to be cleaned, but was probably going to be ignored for at least another month or so. Even the bedside tables weren’t exempt from having their drawers yanked open and rifled through. She still didn’t find anything.

Mia groaned and fell into the bed, grabbing a pillow in the process to cover her head and ears. Was she going insane? Was this her life now? If she wanted an annoying, screaming presence at all hours of the day, she would just have a kid. It had been nearly an hour since this ordeal started and Mia had reached her limit. What could it be? There was no way it was a bug at this point. It was far too malicious at this point. Almost like a prank…

Mia shot straight up and looked to her wife’s bedside table where a little coral colored puck sat unassumingly. She reached out and yanked at it, forcing the cord in the back of it to fall out and to the floor. The sound was gone. Blissful silence filled the room while a powder keg of anger filled Mia. She sprinted back to the living room where another little puck was waiting. They were little smart home devices meant to make things easier like controlling lights, setting timers or alarms, and even a handy little feature to play music or whatever sounds you happen to push through them.

Looking up into the corner of the room where one of their security cameras were, Mia shouted, “You’re dead, Alex!”

Miles away, a woman sitting in her office was laughing hysterically at her phone as an irate woman thrashed around their house. Eventually leading to the woman shouting at the screen. “Tonight isn’t going to be fun, but it was totally worth it,” she said as she wiped her eyes. Alex closed the video feed and opened the dedicated smart home app, activating the intercom feature. “How are you feeling, Love?” She asked, trying her hardest not to laugh.

“Screw you!” Her wife shouted into the mic.

“I’m grabbing food on the way home. Want anything?”

“Large rainbow rice or else I’m kicking out of the bedroom tonight!” Mia demanded.

Alex snorted at how easy it is to make amends with her wife. “Sure thing, Love. See you then.”