I didn’t think I’d see them.

Mom said it would just be “a quick visit.”

Just a look. Maybe a cleaning.

I believed her.

I sat where they told me, my feet not touching the ground, swinging a little before I tried to stop them. I didn’t want to look like a baby.

But the hallway—

It wasn’t like a normal doctor’s office.

The doors weren’t closed all the way.

And I could see inside.

⸻

At first I didn’t mean to look.

I just… did.

A girl was in one of the rooms. Older than me. Maybe grad school. Her mouth was open really wide, like way wider than I thought was possible, and there was this block thing holding it there.

She wasn’t moving.

At all.

Even when the dentist leaned in with the drill.

I heard the sound first.

It made my chest feel tight.

She flinched a little when it touched her tooth—just a tiny movement—but then she went completely still again.

Like she had to.

I looked away fast.

But then I heard it again.

From another room.

⸻

There was a lady further down.

She looked… normal.

Like she wasn’t scared.

But her hands—

They were gripping the chair really tight.

I could see her fingers pressing into it, like she didn’t even realize how hard she was holding on.

When the dentist touched something in her mouth, her eyes squeezed shut for a second.

Just a second.

Then she opened them again.

Like she didn’t want anyone to notice.

⸻

“Next.”

My name.

I stood too fast.

My legs felt weird.

Like they didn’t belong to me.

⸻

The room was bright.

Too bright.

The chair was bigger than it looked from outside.

I climbed up anyway, trying to act normal.

Trying not to think about what I saw.

“Sit back.”

I did.

The chair moved on its own, tilting me back before I was ready.

The light came right into my eyes.

I blinked.

“Open.”

I opened my mouth.

The mirror went in first.

Cold.

Then the metal tool.

It tapped my teeth.

At first it didn’t hurt.

I started to feel a little better.

See? It’s fine.

Then—

It stopped somewhere.

On the top.

Between two teeth.

The tool pressed harder.

Slid in deeper.

And—

It hurt.

Not a lot.

But enough to make me jump a little.

“Hold still.”

I tried.

He pressed again.

Same spot.

This time it was sharper.

I made a tiny noise before I could stop it.

“There’s decay,” he said.

I didn’t know what that meant exactly.

But I knew it wasn’t good.

“We’ll fix it now.”

Now?

I looked at him, but he was already turning away, reaching for something else.

“I—do I need—like a shot?” I asked.

My voice sounded smaller than I wanted.

“No.”

Just that.

“No.”

My stomach dropped.

The sound started.

That sound.

The same one I heard in the hallway.

But louder now.

Closer.

For me.

“Open wider.”

I tried.

My jaw already felt tight.

The mirror pushed my cheek aside.

Then—

The drill touched my tooth.

I jerked.

It was so weird.

Not just pain.

Like—

Pressure.

And sound inside my head.

“Stay open.”

I tried.

But my mouth kept wanting to close.

“Bite block.”

Something was pushed between my teeth on the other side.

It forced my mouth open again.

I couldn’t close it anymore.

At all.

My hands grabbed my sweater, twisting the fabric.

The drill came back.

This time it didn’t stop.

It stayed there.

The feeling got sharper.

Like a quick, poking pain over and over, every time it touched.

I made a noise.

I didn’t mean to.

“Through your nose.”

I tried.

My breathing got weird.

Fast.

Too fast.

The suction went in too, pulling water out of my mouth, making a loud slurping sound that mixed with the drill.

Everything felt loud.

Too loud.

The drill moved.

Different angles.

Each time it touched, it hurt a little.

Then stopped.

Then hurt again.

I didn’t know when it would happen next.

That was the worst part.

Waiting for it.

I kept my eyes open.

I didn’t want to close them.

I didn’t want to not know what was happening.

But the light was so bright.

It made everything else disappear.

Except the sound.

And the feeling.

I could feel my legs tensing.

My toes curling inside my shoes.

My fingers squeezing tighter and tighter around my sleeve.

I didn’t cry.

I really didn’t want to cry.

But my eyes felt hot.

Like they might anyway.

The drill stopped.

For a second.

Relief came too fast—

Then the metal tool came back.

Pressed into the same spot.

It hurt more this time.

“Not yet.”

And the drill came back again.

I wanted to say stop.

I wanted to ask for a break.

But I couldn’t.

My mouth was stuck open.

And nobody else was stopping.

So I didn’t either.

I just stayed.

As still as I could.

Even when it hurt.

Even when I wanted to move.

Because I remembered the girl in the hallway.

How she stopped moving.

And the lady.

How she held on.

And I realized—

This is what you’re supposed to do.

Stay still.

Even if you don’t want to.

Even if it hurts.

Even if you’re scared.

The drill kept going.

And I stayed.