The Limits of Reading Over Sound

B. says a young couple in their 20s – he thinks Korean – moved next door to him a few weeks ago. Every night between 11 and midnight, he hears them having extremely loud sex.

At first he thought it might be titillating. But it quickly became clear it was “FOB sex.”

“Ever seen Japanese porn?”

“Oh, you mean it’s like” – I emit a series of staccato, high-pitched, mewling cries.

“Yeah. Except really loud. It’s not hot. Sounds like she’s in pain or being raped. He’s completely silent but at the end he always makes this sound: ‘Uh. Uuuuugh.’”

“When I lived on Spring Street my neighbor had really loud sex with his girlfriend. She was really loud too: ‘UuuuuuuUUUuuuuggggghh.’”

It was the longest syllable in the world.