Language is what eases the pain of living with other people, language is what makes the wounds come open again. - Anne Carson

Note that the word 'mute' is regarded by linguists as an onomatopoeic formation referring not to silence but to a certain fundamental opacity of human being, which likes to show the truth by allowing to be seen hiding.

...And tonight — Geryon? You okay?
Yes fine, I'm listening. Tonight — ?
Why do you have your jacket over your head?
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Can't hear you Geryon. The jacket shifted. Geryon peered out. I said sometimes
I need a little privacy.

I suppose you do love me, in your way,” I said to him one night close to dawn when we lay on the narrow bed. “And how else should I love you — in your way?” he asked. I am still thinking about that.