Jon sat anxiously in the waiting room with her mom. The building was nice, extravagant even. Marble floors in soft beige colors. Tall glass windows with a high ceiling. A wide open waiting area with nice flatscreen TV's. The place had money. She tried to distract herself with the news on TV, but it was about as interesting as expected, a veritable Jerry Springer of pseudo political discourse rattled on about the latest president. She quickly tuned it out.
She was called back shortly there after, and her mom gave her shoulder a reassuring squeeze followed by a big smile. The actual patient room was just equally as nice, and featured a tall window facing outwards to a zen garden outside. None of that really changed the fact that the chair, overhead lights, and trey of orthodontic tools still looked like something out of a saw movie. An optimistic blond assistant in pink scrubs instructed her to brush her teeth and get comfortable in the chair, which Jon promptly did.
She slumped into the reclining beast, letting her baggy sweater bunch up around her comfortably. For a moment she imagined herself back at home waking up as her old self, but when she opened her eyes, rather than seeing a familiar room and familiar face, she saw a bright light beaming directly into her eyes and the warm smile of a surprisingly pleasant looking doctor.
They exchanged obligatory pleasantries, but it was clear he was here to work. He began giving her simple commands as he snapped a mask over his face and began to poke a mirror around her mouth.
"Alright... Go ahead and bite down for me, now open, now bite. Relax your tongue... is it relaxed?" This continued for a few minutes as the orthodontist coordinated with the nurse as who was holding a light and mirror in his mouth. He began rattling off all variety of Ortho-Jargon, and every word increased the tension in her gut.
"Protruding and Crowding in the maxillary anterior..." The Assistant nods. "Class II Division 1 malocclusion..." The assistant nods again and adjust the mirrors. He leans back and scratches his chin beneath his mask as the assistant glances his way.
"What do you think, doctor?"
"Do we know how long the wait is on that spring Distalizer?"
"They said over 6 months. It's so new they're still back logged."
He nods.
"Alright then..." He continues to murmur though the rest of it escapes Jon's ears. She's not sure if she'd rather hear or not, and nervously palms the rock in her sweater pocket. "I just wish I could leave..." she mutters softly, but resigns herself to the power of the wishing stone.
"Ok," He states a little louder. "Go ahead and let her mother know the plan, and we'll get started!" The assistant nods and disappears out of the door as the orthodontist scoots his rolling chair back to Jon.
"Alright sweetie," The Orthodontist begins, "hang tight and we'll get started as soon as Peggy get's back."
Jon just nods.
Finally the moment of truth comes as the man leans back over her to slip a device into her mouth to hold her lips wide open and the pair begins.
