It had been about 7 years since Rachel was last at the dentist. She had had a particularly horrible previous experience and the thought of going back terrified her. She had had some severe pain in her mouth for about a week or so and a friend urged her to make an appointment. She had moved to a new city since her last dental experience so had to choose a new practice to go to.
Rachel arrived early and the receptionist handed her some forms to fill out and sign. She sat down on the leather sofa and hastily completed the forms and handed them back to the receptionist before sitting back down on the sofa.
Much like the exterior, the decor of the practice was clean, modern and had a slight calming effect on Rachel who was now shaking with fear.
"It's very quiet in here." she said to a tall, young, dark-haired man sitting next to her.
"Yeah, all the treatment rooms are sound-proofed." he said, "It's so that patients in the waiting room don't get freaked out by the sound of the drill."
"Very high-tech" thought Rachel to herself. She hoped that such a modern practice would mean she'd get a young, attractive dentist.
"Rachel Jones?" a dental assistant called her name. He was young, and not ugly, but not exactly attractive either. He was cute in the way you think of a younger sibling or small child. He couldn't have been any older than about 20, 8 years younger than her. She followed him into the treatment room.
"Sit down and try to relax, Miss Jones. The dentist will be through in a minute." he said calmly.
"It's Mrs Jones, but thanks." she replied as she sat down on the chair and rested her head back on the headrest, both memory foam.
The dentist soon came in. He was anything other than young and attractive. He looked in his 50's, and had greying hair, tired eyes, and a very cold demeanour. He pressed the button to lower the chair back and Rachel gripped the armrests tightly.
"Open wide!" he instructed her in a monotone voice.
She opened her mouth slightly, her whole body shaking.
"Wider!" he said, sounding bored. He plunged his mirror and probe around inside her mouth, tapping periodically at her teeth, making her wince in pain.
"You're going to need some fillings, Rachel" he said, "You have quite a few cavities, pretty big ones too!"