He woke up to a sharp pain in his mouth. He hated going to the dentist and tried to go about his normal routine. The pain was too much. Achy and stabbing.
Once calling and seeing if his dentist could squeeze him in (normally they wouldn’t take someone so last minute, but for a loyal customer like him, they could). So, he grabbed his keys and wallet as well as his current read, to deal with the inevitable boredom the waiting room would bring, and headed off.
Later, seated in the dental chair, tools picking and prodding, a wave of anxiety filled him. What if he had to get a cavity filled? Maybe his wisdom teeth were late bloomers and now they finally had to be removed. He definitely was going to need all his teeth taken out. It was the only explanation. No, No. It wouldn’t be that drastic. He was fine.
“Yup, you are definitely going to need a root canal,” the doctor said.
Phew, at least he gets to keep all his teeth. This was good news. Great news even. He could handle a standard root canal. People get root canals all the time. This was no big deal.
The doctor started to gather the tools needed to complete the routine procedure. Now reclined, the nurse stood over him and proceeded to give him the anesthesia to allow him to feel comfortably numb.
“You shouldn’t feel a thing,” the doctor explained as he began his work.
The room filled with loud and sharp drilling noises. Metal clanged in his mouth and the doctor had a concentrated look on his face. Did it look like he was struggling? Was something wrong? No, it’s ok, everything is ok.
“Alright, it looks like we may have found the root of the problem,” the doctor reassured.
Calm rushed over him. This was good news, this meant he should be all set soon.
He saw the doctor drop his tooth into the side metal bowl. That’s weird, they don’t usually do that for standard root canals, right? Maybe it was worse than he thought. It’s ok, if it needed to be out then he would understand.
Now the doctor and nurses were whispering in the corner. He began to feel a bit loopy. He reminded himself that it was probably just the anesthesia.
The doctor stood over him once more and with a look of hesitation, grabbed his tools and continued his work.
As he watched, he began to see his roots being pulled out. Long twisty fibers began to leave his mouth. They were strong brown roots, like ones you would find attached to an ancient tree. They didn’t seem to stop, no end in sight. Was he hallucinating? The deep thick browns and greens stored in this small socket of his eventually left his body.
“Alright, you are all set, pal. That was one stubborn root!” the doctor exclaimed as he cleaned up and left him in the chair.
Why were they acting so normal? Did no one else see what he saw?
He left the office feeling lighter. No longer dealing with the nagging pain that filled his head.
Maybe today he’ll finally call her.