Sighing, I rolled up my shirt and undid the three straps behind my back. Immediately, the scoliosis brace loosened and I was able to breathe without my chest getting pinched. You are probably wondering a lot of things like who I am, what is my name, what is a scoliosis brace or what is scoliosis? I will answer all of your questions, in about, let's say, right now:
I'm twelve years old and a seventh grader in a town that's in the middle of nowhere. Personally, I like living in the middle of nowhere, but that's just me. The town's name is Hillsborough, but I like to call it Norvelt, like in the book Dead End in Norvelt. Norvelt is a town in the middle of nowhere, except for the fact that a good chunk of the book takes place in that town. Besides, Hillsborough is a crappy name like, "Hi, we live in a town that is an administrative unit with lots of hills!" Anyways, to get back on topic, my name is Emily Pan. Some people call me Em for short, one of my old friends call me Emmy or Emmie (however you spell it).
As for the scoliosis, well it's something that our school checks for in fifth grade, seventh grade, and high school. Obviously, since it's just my luck, our school nurse said I had scoliosis when I got checked for it in fifth grade. Scoliosis is a disease where your spine is not straight. Scoliosis can lead to future backaches, constant tiring, and of course the abnormal looks you get when you reveal your back like wearing a bathing suit or walking around in your underwear. Now, for scoliosis, if you have it REALLY bad, then you have to get a serious surgery, like putting a metal rod in your spine. If it's, "eh," then you have to wear a scoliosis brace (which is my case). A scoliosis brace is sort of this really tight, plaster body armor that wraps around your body. Not to mention that it's super uncomfortable, you can't scratch your stomach when wearing it, and your body looks really lump when you are wearing it.
I'm really sorry for making you read those two paragraphs, they probably were boring, but trust me, it will get way more interesting. What was I talking about again? Oh yeah. So, I removed my brace, stuffed it in my humongous sports bag, changed my special "This-Undershirt-Will-Make-You-More-Comfortable-When-Wearing-The-Brace" undershirt to my regular bra and cami. I put my brace bag in my special little corner and I exited the exam room. It felt so good without my brace. I was able to walk without my pants threatening to drop down, scratch my stomach, walk at a much faster brace, and breathe without wincing.
I checked my watch. Shoot! I'm going to have like ten minutes of lunch left! I hurried down to my locker and grabbed my lunchbox then power walked to the cafeteria. My friends were already there, sitting, talking, and laughing. I didn't have the slightest twinge of jealousy, really! You don't believe me? Well, I guess you have your reasons. Let's clear things up a little. They weren't my friends as much as that fly buzzing around the room was. They were more like book buddies and even more like Can-You-Help-Me-On-This-Stinking-Algebra-Homework? kind of buddies. It doesn't matter because I liked being alone, this way, nobody can hurt me.
The rest of the day passed quickly. Teachers piled up more tests, homework, and projects. The next day, I did the same routine, or attempted to. I was in the nurse's office like usual. I was changing my undershirts so basically the top half of my body was completely naked. Then, one of the nurse's, Ms. Williams, yelled, "Emily I have to open the door and come in, there's a peanut allergy emergency!" I completely freaked out. I mean, I understand that it's probably a life or death, but I had to be in the Exam Room at this time and this person had to have an allergic reaction now. I tried to pull on my bra quickly, but before I had the chance to do it, the door opened.