Prompt: In a world where everyone has telepathy, you have the useful superpower of being telepathically deaf-mute.

The Element of Surprise

Henry sat at the counter quietly listening to all the conversations around him. Not everyone would want to be a barista but he enjoyed serving the community. He listened to what the people in line wanted as drinks when he noticed the person at the front of the line. They had an unusual outfit. At its core it was a black shirt and pants with patches of vibrant colored fabric that was bursting out. It was atypical of more harmonious clothing choices of the community.  

Somehow he had missed them completely. He focused in on them and realized they were Quiet. He couldn’t hear their thoughts. The café that Henry worked in was near the center of the community. It was astonishing that no one had noticed earlier. The moment he did notice the rest of community came ablaze.

There’s a Quiet in our community

How odd that is hasn’t been noticed

Especially with an outfit like that

We don’t get a lot of Quiets pacing by

We don’t get a lot of any strangers passing by

Are they a boy or a girl?

Likely non-binary

Who would want to leave their community?

We must be ensure that we welcome them appropriately

Make sure to ask about their levels of comfort and if there’s anything we can do to help

“How can I help you ____” he paused hoping a name would be given.

“Discord and my pronouns are they.” they said offering their hand. He shook it. “As for my order surprise me” Henry blinked a little bit at that suggestion. The concept of surprise did not have much practical meaning to a telepathic society. Obviously they understood what surprised was and like any human would get startled when an object dropped and made a loud clattering noise or when a dog barked suddenly but to surprise another human well usually that was a pointless endeavour. The community had many suggestions of how to surprise. Henry opted to trying a new recipe.

As Discord waited for their drink they couldn’t help but smile at little at how the entire café at had shifted when Henry noticed them. It had become a little game they like to play whenever they entered a community how long could they pass unnoticed. It was even funnier given the garrish nature of their outfit. No one ever really expected the unexpected and that was exactly what they were.

“What brings you to our community Discord?”

“I am an artist. I am putting on a show tonight in the public square. Tell everyone it’s going to be a blast.”

“I will keep that in mind. Anything else you need? Anything else we should know about you ie desired levels of physical contact, sensory preferences?”

“Nothing particularly notable vis-à-vis sensory preferences. I have been travelling for a while so I wouldn’t mind some human contact.” They smiled suggestively as they said this. Discord could never tell if a telepath would pick on subtle cues. The rest of society was used to just knowing the desires of other people that they could be pretty bad at guessing. However in this particular case they figured that the entire community was focused in on this interaction. They were sure someone would pick up the hint and inform the barista.  

They’re flirting with you. You should ask them out.

Why the hesitation. We all know you are interested.

If you don’t go for I will.

I might go for it regardless.

I wonder how different it is with a Quiet

As much as telepathic chatter was the norm for Henry he wasn’t quite as used to having everyone be focused on him. He took a deep breath and finished creating his new concoction that he promptly handed to Discord.  

They took a sip “oh this is absolutely lovely”. It was disconcerting to not hear the thoughts. He was so used to the immediate feedback where he immediately knew if the drink was a success. They had a genuine smile, despite being a Quiet they certainly emanated their own charisma. He decided to follow through with what the community was egging him on to do. “Well if you are up for something physical. There’s a space reserved for sex in the next building. Are you looking for one person or multi-person affair?”

“One person, shall we?”

***

As both of them began to disrobe themselves Henry hesitated. He was so used to just knowing exactly what his partners wanted. Here he had to ask explicitly. Usually Henry didn’t really talk much. There was no need. Talking was only really needed for communication through technology to keep in touch with other communities. Thankfully Discord seemed perfectly comfortable taking charge.

I have never been...

“With a quiet before?” They finished for him.

He was shocked “how did you complete my thought?”

They giggled “One doesn’t have to be a mind reader to be able to predict the end of that sentence.” Everyone who had been eavesdropping agreed with Discord.

“If can be so be bold. Would you mind tickling me?”

“Tickling?” Henry asked. No one else chipped in with a definition either.

Discord shocked their head. Tickling was an alien concept to a society where everyone was telepathic. You couldn’t tickle someone if they could anticipate your movements. Discord was always acutely aware of the limitations of being telepathically disabled. There was an entire dimension of society that was simply closed off to them. Something they would never know. There were definitely times where they felt that alienation but at the same time it was an experience that would never know. They can’t really miss something they have never had. Tickling was one of the few experiences that they got out of being Quiet that was fucking awesome. While it took a while to explain the idea once Henry understood. They were in ecstasy. Feeling satisfied. They turned to Henry and asked “Do you want to try?”