Chapter 2 - The dental clinic
1367 Words
Chapter 2 - The dental clinicThe receptionist looked frightened as they arrived and she quickly picked up the phone, “Doctor, I need you out here right now,” said the receptionist who was also the dental clinic’s nurse. “You won’t believe what you see.”
“What’s going on Xenia?”
“The 9 o’clock patient and his dad are here.”
The doctor looked at this schedule to see who the 9 o’clock patient was and he was also frightened but feigned calmness.
“Have them come in Xenia.”
“Both of them?”
“Yes Xenia,” and then he added, but more to himself than anyone else, “It’s in God’s hands.”
“Good morning, the doctor says you can go in.”
Peter looked in the direction of the door with horror in his eyes.
“Let’s go dad,” Alexis said tugging on him.
Was he a coward? How could he be like that in front of his son?
The doctor came out to meet them and taking Alexis by the hand said, “Let’s go young man, we’ll be finished before you know it.” Turning to Peter he said, “Shall we?”
Peter hesitated, he felt sick. The doctor saw how Peter was growing paler by the minute. He was afraid he would faint or worse, vomit right then and there.
“Xenia, please show the gentleman where the bathroom is.”
But Peter did neither; he started breathing as if he was short of breath, gasping like a fish out of water.
“I’m all right now,” Peter said even though it was obvious he was lying.
“Sit down for a moment,” the doctor said taking him to a chair, “now breathe easy. Inhale, exhale…”
Peter inhaled and exhaled just as the doctor said while Alexis looked on astonished and after thinking for a couple of seconds sat down next to his father trying to imitate him.
“Xenia, will you please take the boy in and start getting things ready?” the doctor asked. “That’s it, very good. Inhale, exhale.”
“For how long doctor?” Peter asked between breaths.
“Until I tell you,” he replied. “If you feel better you can get up and we can go in. The next patient will be here soon.”
The door to the street opened giving way to a middle aged woman who, looking towards the doctor and Peter stopped to wait.
“Good morning ma’am. The nurse will be right out to take your information.”
The woman, who had one cheek more swollen than the other assented with a nod and waited while the doctor and his companion disappeared behind the door. Alexis was comfortably seated in the chair with the bib on and the nurse had just finished organizing the instruments.
“All right Alexis, let’s see that mouth. Does anything hurt?”
“No.”
“Good. Now open your mouth and I’ll check and see if everything’s okay.”
The dentist began examining Alexis’ mouth, beginning with the lower jaw, then moving on to the upper part until he finished the visual inspection.
“I see something,” he said between his teeth. “Are you sure this doesn’t hurt?” he asked while he tapped on one of the lower teeth.
“Sometimes, but it always hurts dad. He’s always complaining.”
“Me? I’m not a whiner!” yelled Peter.
“Dad, you shouldn’t lie.”
“What? I’m a liar? Is that what you think of me?”
“No dad but why don’t you tell the dentist which one is the tooth that bothers you every day?
“It’s nothing, it’s just a passing thing”
“Dad, you escaped from an ogre, you have lived with giants and you know a witch, you can’t be afraid of the dentist, are you?
“I haven’t explained it to you yet,” joked Peter trying to change the subject. “Alexis, why don’t you be quiet so the doctor can work?”
The doctor who had not missed a thing said, “We’re almost finished with you here Alexis, and after that I can take a look at you,” he said, addressing Peter.
“Finish with…? What are you going to do to my son? Murderer!” exclaimed Peter with his knuckles on his hips.
“Please sir, don’t scream. This is a prestigious clinic. The only thing I need to explain is that soon he’ll lose his baby teeth and the permanent ones will begin to emerge. Now please, have a seat here,” he said this in an authoritative way. Peter obeyed and sat on the chair with his back straight, tense.
“Please open your mouth.”
Peter barely parted his lips showing his teeth partially.
“No dad, like this,” said Alexis opening his mouth as wide as he could.
Peter now in imitation of his son opened his lips some more now showing his gums and part of his tongue. Doctor Scalpel placed the light so he could see the inside of Peter’s mouth well. He checked the teeth one by one blowing air with the compressor each time he saw something suspicious. The decayed tooth appeared. The doctor’s face reflected his surprise at the amount of pain Peter must be enduring. And even more so knowing who Peter was not just as a patient but from social settings as well.
“This will require lots of work,” he said to himself and then he looked at the clock on the wall. It was nine forty. “I’m going to numb the area so you won’t feel pain.”
“It won’t be necessary,” said Peter attempting to get up, “we have to go.”
“I would advise you not to go. We can still save that tooth, but if you leave it for later we’ll need to pull it for sure,” the doctor said. In seconds Peter saw himself being tortured by a sadistic dentist tearing out his tooth, but it was the presence of his son that made him stay seated in the chair.
“Do what you have to do,” he said with all the dignity he could muster.
The doctor needed help so he called Xenia who got everything ready for him to work on Peter’s tooth. The nurse placed the bent tube on the side of his mouth and sat down to wait for the doctor’s further instructions. The injection that the doctor had given him minutes before kept the left side numb. The doctor started the drill while he said, “If I hurt you raise your hand and I’ll stop.”
There was an unexpected sound like that of an explosion which startled them all and the doctor stopped drilling.
“Xenia, take the boy to the other room and give him something to draw with.”
The nurse went up to the doctor and whispered in his ear, “We need to go. It’s the signal.”
“You’re right,” he agreed while getting up. The doctor took off his lab coat while the nurse opened a door adjoining the office. All this was happening while Peter was still sitting in the chair with his mouth wide open.
“Dad, where did the doctor go?” asked Alexis.
Peter made some strange sounds. Alexis tried to understand what his dad was saying.
“Dad, I’m going to go look for him,” he said jumping from the chair and running in the direction of the door. Peter let him go while he closed his mouth thinking with some delay that since the dentist was no longer there he wouldn’t be able to tell him to keep his mouth open so he could just go ahead and close it without a problem.
Was he finished? He thought. It was too quick. I better rinse my mouth. He got up and filled the plastic cup with water and was about to drink when his tongue went into the hole the doctor had made in his tooth.
What? Peter wanted to know what had happened but was afraid of the answer. Alexis did not answer when his dad called him. The silence in the dental clinic was overwhelming; a silence broken only by the patient in the waiting room turning the pages of a heart magazine and a clock that chimed when it turned to ten o’clock in the morning. He went out of the room and up to the woman.
“Excuse me, have you seen a small child around here?”
“Well, to be honest with you I haven’t noticed. Have you lost him?”
“No. And what about the dentist, have you seen him?
“He hasn’t been by here. What’s going on? I had an appointment at nine thirty and it’s already past the time.”
Peter didn’t answer, he started opening doors and calling his son.
“Alexis! Alexis! Where the heck are you? I’m going to be angry if you don’t come out right now.
- Writer
