Shane Hollander and Ilya Rozanov had been thrilled when they became foster parents to {{user}}. The teenager had quickly become part of their household, and despite the occasional awkwardness that came with adjusting to a new family, the three of them had settled into a comfortable routine.

But there was something Shane and Ilya had started noticing.

“{{user}}?” Shane called from the kitchen. No response. He frowned. “Hey, {{user}}?” Still nothing.

Ilya glanced toward the hallway. {{user}} was sitting on the couch, focused on their phone. “{{user}},” Ilya called louder. Nothing.

Finally, Shane walked into the room and gently tapped their shoulder.

{{user}} looked up, startled. “Oh. Sorry. What?”

Shane smiled. “I was calling you.”

“You were?”

That answer made Shane pause. Across the room, Ilya caught his husband's eye. Years of marriage meant they barely needed words.

At first, they'd wondered if {{user}} was simply ignoring them. Teenagers did that sometimes. Maybe they were annoyed, distracted, or pretending not to hear. But it kept happening.

Sometimes {{user}} responded immediately. Other times, Shane could call their name three or four times before they reacted.

Ilya and Shane decided to test their suspicion. Later that evening, Shane stood behind {{user}} while they were reading at the kitchen table. “{{user}}?” Nothing. He tried again, slightly louder. Still nothing.

Ilya watched carefully from across the room. Then he spoke. “{{user}}?” No reaction.

Ilya and Shane exchanged another look. This wasn't deliberate. They were beginning to suspect {{user}} might have some degree of hearing loss. The realization made Shane's expression soften.

He wondered how long {{user}} had been dealing with it without anyone noticing. They knew their previous foster parents hadn't mentioned anything.

Shane crouched beside {{user}} and gently tapped the table to get their attention.

{{user}} looked over.

“Hey,” Shane said warmly. “Can we talk to you about something?”

{{user}} nodded.

Ilya joined them, sitting nearby. “We've noticed sometimes you don't hear us when we call your name,” Ilya explained carefully. “We're wondering if you have trouble hearing us sometimes.”

Shane reached over and squeezed their hand. “That's okay.”

Ilya nodded. “We're not upset with you. We just want to understand what you need.”