The next morning Sebastian was leaving his dorm for classes when he almost tripped over a small white bag. When he picked it up he realized it contained a new toothbrush, mini toothpaste, floss, and a familiar business card with a note inscribed on the back.
{You get the ugly yellow toothbrush this time :( }
Sebastian huffed in annoyance and threw the bag in his room before continuing on with his day. But at lunch the Warbler's table received an uninvited guest. Hunter sat down at the end of the table as he casually ate an apple. One of the boys asked him why he was here.
"Ya know, just hangin out. Let me in on all the gossip." Hunter put his elbow on the table and rested his head in his hand, looking interested.
Some of the boys laughed. Hunter was generally liked among all of the students at Dalton, kind of like a cool teacher.
Hunter made direct eye contact with Sebastian as he took another bite of his apple, and the younger looked away awkwardly. He looked very uncomfortable at Hunter's presence. Hunter sat there for about 5 minutes chatting with some of the other Warblers before Blaine, the on campus doctor, walked in (presumably to get a snack or something). He gave Hunter a weird look from across the room, a silent "what the hell are you doing?".
"I guess the whole apple a day thing doesn't hold that much truth, huh? That's my cue to leave." At that Hunter scurried away, but not before slapping Sebastian gently on the back.
"Who are you harassing?" Blaine asked Hunter accusingly, catching him before he walked out.
"That's my business," is all Hunter said before walking out of the lunch room.
Later that day at Warblers' practice all of the boys were gathered around a box of chocolates. They looked at Sebastian when he walked in. "You've got a secret admirer," Thad smirked.
"Ooooooooohh," the other boys echoed.
"Shut up. Let me see that." Sebastian opened the box and naturally Hunter's business card was placed strategically on the inside. Sebastian huffed and crumbled up the card and put it in his pocket before anyone else could see.
Right after practice Sebastian stomped angrily to Hunter's office. He was so angry that he completely forgot appointments for students were going on. When he saw the receptionist his anger completely melted away and his chest got tight.
"Sorry, do you have an appointment? There aren't any appointments left for the day unless you have an emergency then I can–"
"I uh– no I don't. It's not an emergency. Just– sorry, forget it," he stumbled awkwardly, his face red. Sebastian turned to walk out.
Just on cue Hunter was seeing out another boy and smirked when he caught sight of Sebastian. "Oh Sebastian what a pleasant surprise. Marley you can close now. Sebastian and I are going to have a conversation in my personal office." Hunter stood there waiting.
Sebastian was shaking and flustered but he followed Hunter so they could talk in private. The second they were alone Sebastian near shouted, "are you shitting me?"
"In my defense I did warn you there would be repercussions if you walked out yesterday," Hunter said.
"I cannot have any of the Warblers know about this, Hunter. Your damn business card was right on the inside of that box of chocolate? How the hell would I explain that?"
"Everyone here knows I joke around, but maybe if you want your ego to stay intact you'll just suck it up and admit something is wrong. I mean if you don't want dental facts or something ridiculous showing up on your coffee. Listen, I'm good friends with one of the baristas and she will assist me in this helpful mischief. You can ask Blaine–"
"For god's sake Hunter this isn't a game."
"Oh my mistake. Your childish behavior led me to believe you'd appreciate a good game. But maybe something more along the lines of tag would suit your maturity level," Hunter said with a smirk. Unfortunately Sebastian seemed to be getting legitimately angry. "Okay, hey listen. This is just playful banter alright? Otherwise I might have taken offense to that colorful finger yesterday. So let's sit down and have a proper discussion. This is my serious face. I'll act like an adult now."
Sebastian took a deep breath and sat down across from Hunter despite himself. "Are you sure you know how to do that?"
"Oh Sebastian, you're one to talk. I don't think hiding behind blatant denial is getting you any closer to being an adult. Gotta face this stuff head on. So just tell me what's going on."
Sebastian crossed his arms. "Nothing. I only came here to tell you to stop harassing me. So could you do me a favor and, I don't know, find something better to do?"
"Mmmm... nope. Not until you're honest. Until then you're my new experiment. It's a 'how many licks does it take to get to the center of a tootsie pop' type thing except the center of the tootsie pop is your breaking point," Hunter said with a sarcastic smile. "Okay, jokes aside. I don't want to keep harassing you because honestly I'm starting to get low on ideas. So tell me, what on earth more could you want from me Sebastian? More time to let shit get worse?"
"I just want you to leave me alone," Sebastian groaned.
"Fine. I can do that. Just admit I'm right."
"No."
"No as in I'm not right or no as in you just won't admit I'm right? Because I'm going to assume the latter–"
"Dammit Hunter how can you expect me to take you seriously when you keep antagonizing me and pissing me off more? Maybe it's just that hard for you to turn off the smartass in you but I want you to know you're losing me here. Fucking just squash any hope that there's an adult I can come to for help! You're supposed to be the one that doesn't fuck up," Sebastian said, slamming his hands down on the table. He was shaking angrily and ready to give up again. Hunter was supposed to be different.
Those words hit Hunter hard and his face fell completely. "Sebastian I'm sorry. I really do have a sharp tongue that isn't always appropriate. I swear I'm turning it off now and you have my full sincerity. I want you to honestly believe I'm a person you can trust. I can come off as a jackass but I really do care and I love my job. I wholeheartedly try my best to do good and help people, and that's why I haven't given up on you regardless of how stubborn you are. So let's do this the right way. Will you talk to me about whatever's going on?"
Sebastian relaxed a little when Hunter got serious again. This was the person he needed right now. "You don't have to drop it completely, I don't want you to be serious all the time because then things start to feel too clinical. Just find a balance. You had me fuming there for a second and I would have walked out if not for the fact you've somewhat earned my trust."
"Somewhat? That's better than nothing. I'll take it. So Sebastian do tell me, what do you feel like divulging to the guy you somewhat trust?"
Sebastian looked like he didn't want to say it but he was starting to give in.
"It's okay Sebastian. Just tell me. I promise it's not a big deal and I won't get angry," Hunter pressed gently.
Sebastian's facade faltered and his face started to screw up a little like he was trying not to cry. "I didn't lie that time when I said nothing was wrong. Nothing was wrong then, and I swear I did everything in my power to avoid this and I don't know how it happened-" he started to fret.
"Relax Sebastian," Hunter said smoothly. "I'm not mad at you. I figured it would take something to make you finally realize the avoidance was an issue. If you weren't lying then that means this hasn't been an issue for that long, and the earlier we catch it the better. How bad is the pain right now?"
"It isn't that bad. Just enough to know something's wrong. It started with shocks of pain from sweet things and then it started to have this subtle ache. I'm just so mad at myself because this isn't a tooth that's already had a filling in it or anything. It was new and fine. I know teeth are supposed to finish growing in at like age 12 but there was this one that didn't want to show up for a while. I mean imagine teething for the final time at age 16, and you know once it finally broke through I thought I was in the clear and it wouldn't be uncomfortable anymore. But somewhere in between breaking through the surface and coming in fully it got fucked up. I can't even floss behind that tooth yet and it's fucked up. This feels like I neglected my child or something," Sebastian babbled nervously.
Hunter tried not to laugh at the neglecting a child metaphor because this was a serious situation and he didn't want Sebastian to think he was laughing at him. "Well, okay it makes me happy to know you care enough about your teeth to compare them to children. Anyway are you sure that's not your wisdom teeth coming in?"
"Its not. Everywhere else had 2 molars and I only had one on the bottom left side for a while but now there's two. Wisdom teeth are the 3rd ones right?"
Hunter smiled at Sebastian's tidbit of knowledge. "You're right. So it is a second molar. But if you said you still can't floss behind that tooth maybe this is pain from it trying to finish growing in? I mean the pain with sweet things usually does point towards a different… uh, issue. So don't think I'm trying to give you false hope but you shouldn't try to self-diagnose issues like that. Trust the professionals. But even if it is a cavity that's not a big deal because we caught it early. Tiny fillings are easy, you forget they're there and they might never need to be replaced with good care. Bigger fillings are the ones that cause issues and that's why we want to catch these things early. Do you follow?"
Sebastian nodded a little. "Yeah I got it. So you're really not mad?"
"Are you kidding? No way. First of all this is probably the best time in your life to get a cavity because the school covers everything. You don't have to face the adult problem of worrying about paying for it quite yet. Secondly, you clearly care about your face hole so this isn't neglect on your part. Besides I don't ever scold people, I politely educate and encourage them to do better," Hunter explained.
"Figures a fancy rich kid school covers this even though everyone here has money and can afford good insurance. This shit is assbackward."
"I know it is. But that means they pay me well and I can afford to help out people that aren't as lucky at my personal office off campus. It all comes back around. I know that doesn't usually happen in the real world but I do my part," Hunter said. "Anyway, not to cut the grandiose short but lets get back to why we're here. I'm gonna give you two really easy options. Do you want to start with X-rays or with an exam? Personally I prefer to start with an exam to avoid unnecessary X-rays, a thought that seems to not have occurred to every other dentist in America, but it would make sense to at least do one in the area where you mentioned pain."
But Sebastian was still in comfortable denial and not quite ready to face this. "Neither is good. Can I leave now?"
"I mean I'm not going to physically hold you here hostage or anything but I'm going to very strongly encourage you to pick one of the options. Let's do the one quick X-ray so we'll know, alright? Then we can look at it together," Hunter suggested. He threw an arm around Sebastian and gently forced the younger to walk with him. "Come on Sebby boy it's time to put on your big boy pants. This isn't anything you can't handle."
"But what if I don't want to know," Sebastian fretted as they walked back into an exam room. "Hunter I don't know about this. I mean is it really that important to know?"
"Yep. I'm not making your denial any easier. Big boy pants remember? Sit down and I'll grab the bitewing."
But Sebastian didn't sit down and was still standing there awkwardly when Hunter walked back in.
Hunter sighed a little. "Sebastian, you're safe. It's okay. It's just a chair, and I'm just going to stick a piece of plastic in your mouth for a few seconds, walk out, and then press a button. That's it. That's all this is. Don't think about what it means." He gently ushered Sebastian into the chair and put the heavy radiation apron on him before he could scurry away.
Sebastian felt so small in this moment but saying no to such a simple thing would be ridiculous. This was a different situation than his last experience and he trusted Hunter. His heart beat pounded hard but he allowed the situation to happen.
"See? You're not dead." Hunter slipped on gloves and grabbed the bitewing. "This is so easy Sebastian. I'm just going to put this in the back of your mouth and you're going to bite on it. Open your mouth a little for me now Seb so I can put it in there."
Sebastian started to sweat from the clinical situation but somehow found it in himself to just suck it up and open his mouth.
"Fantastic. You can close now." Hunter placed the X-ray machine piece up to Sebastian's face.
The taste of rubber gloves in his mouth even for a second made Sebastian's thoughts start to spiral but it was quickly over and all he had to do was sit there like an idiot while Hunter walked out and pressed the button.
"And you're done. First step down." Hunter took the plastic piece out of Sebastian's mouth and put in on a tray.
"And many more steps, panic attacks, and crying to go," Sebastian added bleakly.
"No," Hunter argued as he sat down on the swivel stool to pull up the X-rays on the computer. "This time won't be like that. Maybe a little bit of crying but no panic attacks. Not with me."
But Sebastian was doubtful. "What do the X-rays say?"
Hunter squinted his eyes a little at the screen and hummed. "It's hard to tell. Some cavities are too small to show up on X-rays yet. Depending on the angle or size they might only be able to be diagnosed visually. Specifically with occlusal."
"I don't know what that means but oh well. If it's not big enough to show up then it's not big enough to worry about."
"Occlusal means the biting surface, so it can be hiding among healthy tooth structure. The good news is if it is a cavity it's small and it's ideal that we catch it early..." Hunter trailed, wondering how he could get Sebastian to comply. "Less of you having to do what you're afraid of. Overall less seeing my face. Less having to be here. You know, a win-win."
"You make a compelling argument. But I know where you're going with this and my answer is no."
"You didn't even let me ask," Hunter pointed out.
"Listen, I'm just trying to save us an argument because you won't get me to agree to a visual exam. I know that's what you want," Sebastian said stubbornly.
"Okay. I can respect that but you have to at least tell me why you won't agree to it."
Sebastian shifted in the chair uncomfortably. "I let you take the X-ray. Can I go now?"
"Nope. No avoiding the question. That's not how this works. Just tell me, Seb. It's okay. That's part of this unspoken agreement. I'll only let you run if you're completely honest with me so I can work on helping you emotionally, even if you won't let me help in any other way. I need to understand," Hunter persuaded.
Hunter had a funny way of guilting Sebastian just enough to comply. Not in an uncomfortable way where he felt trapped, but more of a gentle push kind of way. Overall Sebastian respected and trusted Hunter enough to where it took some of his fight away. "Fuck. Why do you do this? Fucking how did I get here?"
Hunter knew that the frustration meant Sebastian was fighting with himself because he was about to comply. "You trust me Sebastian, and you're fighting it because it doesn't feel natural to you. You've been hurt and the only way to keep yourself safe is not to trust. You're angry because you don't want to resort back to that but it's like fighting instincts. It's okay. I understand and I'm not angry. One step at a time. Just tell me what you're afraid of."
Sebastian took a deep breath and tried to ignore how spot on that analysis was. "I don't want anyone in my mouth, alright? Period. It's uncomfortable and awkward and I'm just not ready for it. I haven't let anyone in a long time. I don't like the way it feels and I don't like being under anyone's scrutiny. Because I've never had a good appointment. Never had good news. Something is always wrong. It always makes me feel like shit. I don't wanna do it," he finally admitted with his head in his hands.
"You won't feel like shit. Because I'm not going to scold you and even if everything isn't perfect it's still progress and that alone is something to be proud of. No bad news. It isn't bad news. It's just finding out what I need to do to help you. Try to look at it as me just providing a service to help you. That's all. You don't go to the doctor and get yelled at for being sick, right? It's just their job and they do what they can to help. We're taking all of the shame and guilt out of this. As for physical triggers such as feelings or sounds, I can either talk you through everything one step at a time or I can let you listen to music and completely distract yourself for the situation. Pretend it's not happening and just trust me. Whatever you need to get through it." Hunter tried giving Sebastian options so he felt in control.
Hunter's doctor comparison helped. It took away a bit of the shame Sebastian was worried about. "Okay," is all he said at first. Sebastian thought for a second. "Which option would be better?"
"Hmm. Well I do think the exposure therapy thing would help you in the long run. Instead of blocking it out just take the situation as it is and let me tear down everything that makes it scary. I think talking you through it would help more. So I can warn you if I want to check something and you'll know what to expect."
Sebastian really didn't like this idea but he trusted Hunter. "Okay."
"Okay?" Hunter said hopefully. "That's great. You're doing so well Sebastian. Let's start out really slow, okay. I'm going to lean the chair back but I'm not turning on the light or anything yet. You're going to lay there for a minute and get used to it. Can I do that?"
Sebastian nodded wordlessly. He was already sitting in the chair from when they did the X-rays. So he'd gotten used to it a little. But then Hunter started to lean it back and it felt scary again.
Hunter noticed Sebastian's anxiety. "It's okay. It's just like laying in bed. No lighting or anything yet. You're just going to lay there and look up at the ceiling. Or close your eyes if that helps. Just imagine you're taking a nap. I totally used to nap in these when I was in school and in between patients. They're comfy. I mean they better be for how expensive these chairs are. Like an expensive nap."
Hunter's chattiness was helping Sebastian feel a little better. This didn't feel clinical. "Expensive nap huh? I guess that's one way to put it."
"Are you okay Sebastian?"
Sebastian looked up at the specs on the ceiling, and then to the TV. "Does the TV work?"
"No I just have TVs plastered to the ceiling for the hell of it. For decoration. So people can ask me if they work and I can tell them it's just a discussion piece," Hunter said with a smartass smile on his face. He grabbed the remote and turned on the TV. "What do you wanna watch?"
"I don't know."
Hunter handed him the remote. "Here. Netflix is on there. Relax and find something you wouldn't hate watching."
Sebastian rolled his eyes and skimmed through the options. Guardians of the Galaxy 2 was on there he turned that on.
Hunter smirked. "Baby Groot is a crowd pleaser. Instant happiness."
"Too bad he–"
"We don't talk about Infinity War. It didn't happen. We're just pretending it doesn't exist. Okay? Okay. Now moving on. You sit here and watch this and I'm going to wash my hands and get a few things. But I want you to focus on your breathing in the meantime. Long deep breathes." Hunter got up to scrub in and grab a tray.
Sebastian tried to relax but he couldn't help the rising panic in his chest. He was dreading the inevitable next step Hunter would ask him to do. It only took Hunter about 3 minutes to come back in with some things and to wash his hands. Sebastian truly tried to keep his breathing even but the anxiety when in situations like this was still strong.
Hunter sat down on the swivel stool and Sebastian instinctively started sweating.
"How are you feeling Sebastian?"
"Not great."
"That's just the anticipation. It's your brain making you feel afraid because you don't know what to expect. But I'm going to tell you right now and show you that it's okay. Bright light," Hunter warned before flipping on the light. He had it over Sebastian's chest for now. "It's just on so you can get used to it and it's less disorienting. This isn't too bad right?"
Guardians of the Galaxy slowly faded into background noise as Sebastian zoned into his anxiety more. "I guess not. I just don't like this. Can you tell me what you want to do?"
"Of course. I'm just going to take a tiny mirror and look around. I'm going to have the explorer too and that's just to tap on some areas I want to check, and I know enough not to hurt you while doing this. At all. No pain. If there are any obvious issues I won't touch it. I want to check the tooth you talked about and I might scrap at it a tiny bit but I promise if the cavity is tiny, which it would be if there is one because it didn't show up on the X-ray, the explorer will just get caught and make a little clink noise– if that makes sense. You'll feel it but it won't hurt you. If at any point it's too much or you need a break, anything, just raise your hand and I'll stop. No questioned asked," Hunter explained in detail.
"Okay," Sebastian said slowly. "That's it?"
"That's it. With your permission I might check a few filling too, by blowing air and stuff. Which might sting a tiny bit, but I'll warn you and it goes away quickly. You're in total control." Sebastian seemed okay for now so Hunter leaned the chair back a little more and then moved the light over his mouth.
Sebastian swore inwardly and turned away. "Can I have a minute? To get used to this?"
"That's fine. Just take your time." Hunter gave Sebastian a minute to relax before he spoke again. "Seb I think you're just working yourself up here. How about you let me start with just that one tooth? I won't even use the explorer yet. Just a mirror. So I can look."
Sebastian closed his eyes and took a deep breath. "Okay. Fine."
"You're doing so well Sebastian. Just look at the TV alright?" Hunter pulled the mask over his face and picked up the mirror.
Sebastian felt his stomach turn at the clink of the tools. He was dreading when Hunter asked him to open his mouth. He didn't want to hear the words. He didn't want to do this.
"Are you ready Seb?" is all Hunter said.
"I don't know," Sebastian replied in a small voice.
"You're safe. It's okay. Just a mirror. See?" Hunter showed Sebastian the mirror that was in his hand. "Do you want to hold it?"
"No that's stupid. I know what a mirror on a stick looks like."
"Okay. Just trying to help. Are you okay with that being in your mouth?" Hunter asked.
"It's your eyes I'm not okay with being in my mouth."
"Well... I do have to see what I'm doing. I don't think closing my eyes and just hoping for the best would be a plausible way to go about this."
"That's not what I meant," Sebastian groaned.
"I'm aware. You don't want me looking. But I kinda have to. You can do this Seb. It's really easy. Can you open for me? When you feel ready?"
Sebastian laid there in a silent panic. He couldn't find his voice to speak. He just shook his head.
Hunter calmly put down the mirror in his hand. "That's okay. You're not ready yet. Take some deep breaths. You're thinking about it too much. I really want to show you that you're over thinking it but I won't push you. We can stop if you really want to. But you've come so far already. How about I just look at the one tooth with my mirror for a quick second and then you can close your mouth? The first step is the hardest."
Sebastian swallowed hard and nodded again. He felt a little better. He could deal with a second. "Okay. Okay. I'm okay. Just a second? You'll let me close my mouth once you've looked at it?"
"I promise. Just a mirror there for a second."
The anxiety was making Sebastian dizzy and he wanted to run, but after all this he wasn't going to waste it and run away. He was determined at this point. "I'm tired of the fear always winning."
"It's not winning. You're in control. You're here and you're about to take the first step. You just have you open your mouth for a second. Just close your eyes and do it. First step done. Do you know what I mean? You're too in your head about this when it's so simple."
Sebastian shut his eyes and took another deep breath. He felt sick with anxiety and he was sweating like crazy but he couldn't let himself think about it. He just opened his mouth and kept his eyes squeezed shut to distance himself from the choice he just made.
"See how easy that was? Sebastian, you make yourself sick with worry over nothing. You're safe. Just give me a second."
Sebastian still kept his eyes shut. He could feel the presence of something in his mouth but that was it.
Hunter looked at #18 for a second but still couldn't see anything in detail, especially because he didn't have his loupes on. He was only looking with his eyes. "Sebastian you're doing so good. Can I check it really really gently with the explorer just for a second? If this is a cavity it's small and we caught it really early. That's good."
Sebastian just nodded to get it over with. He heard the clink of Hunter picking up a tool. Against his better judgement, he opened his eyes, feeling a little skittish now but still not closing his mouth. He saw two tools sticking out of his mouth and almost started to panic but it was over so fast. Hunter scrapped at his tooth just a little, and at first it didn't seem like the explorer was getting caught on anything and Sebastian started to flood with relief. Maybe this was in his head and nothing was wrong after all. But a second later he felt the familiar sensation of the explorer getting caught, and it made a soft clinking noise confirming his worries. Sebastian winched a little, not because it hurt but because he hated what the feeling stood for. Hunter didn't even have to tell him, he knew. He remembered the feeling. It didn't hurt and hardly felt uncomfortable but it was there and he felt it. It was real.
"Okay," is all Hunter said and then he took the tools out of Sebastian's mouth and let him close. "Are you okay? Did that hurt? You made a face."
Sebastian just shook his head. "It was fine. It didn't hurt. I just thought for a second that you weren't going to find anything," he said in a small voice. "I knew something was there."
"It's okay Sebastian. It's so so so small. I couldn't even see it at first but there was a little soft spot. Like I said earlier, no shame. It's not embarrassing." Hunter struggled to find another good comparison that would make Sebastian feel better. "Just like something that your body did and now it needs to be healed."
"But it won't heal. Teeth don't heal."
"Well... what I do is close enough. I just want you to think of it as something you didn't have any control over. It just happened. Let me tell you, that cavity is so tiny that I can fix it with air abrasion. No drills or anything. Just this tiny tool that blows the decay away and then I'll put some composite there that matches your tooth perfectly and you'll never even know it was there. That tooth has pretty much grown in completely now so it won't be hard to clean it from here on out. Everything will be fine," Hunter explained coolly. "Really this doesn't even have to count as a filling. If you can't tell it's there is it really there?" he smirked.
"Wait really? It can be that easy? No needles? That doesn't sound right. It's never they easy," Sebastian argued. "I can't be that lucky after all this time."
"No I'm telling the truth. Technology nowadays is so great. You guys now have it so much easier than I did growing up, and than our parents generation did. I could go on about it all day, but I promise I wouldn't lie to you about that," Hunter reassured.
"What does it feel like? Are you sure it doesn't sting or hurt?"
Hunter thought for a moment. "I've heard really good things. I know it can feel cold because it is just especially really compressed air so it just feels like air blowing on your tooth. I've heard it can be a little sensitive but the procedure itself is so fast the I've never heard any complaints. Your cavity is so small and far away from the nerve of the tooth that I don't think you'll have any issues. This would be a really good option for you. No needles no drills. Just air and then I'll put in some tooth-colored filling." Hunter searched Sebastian's face for any sign that this information was freaking him out. Aside from making a grimace at the word cavity Sebastian seemed calmed.
"You heard it can be sensitive? What does that mean?" Sebastian asked, furrowing his brows.
"I mean no two people are the same. Some people can bite into ice cream, some people think it hurts like hell so they don't. Neither of them necessarily have an issue. Teeth are just weird and everyone feels things differently. I've been utilizing this technology for as long as I've been practicing and I've never heard anyone say it hurts. When I blow the compressed air at your tooth it's cold and some people think that's a little uncomfortable or they might experience minor sensitivity for a few seconds. But that's with deeper fillings than this, like I said yours is really small. I'm confident you will be comfortable," Hunter explained thoroughly. But expectedly Sebastian was reluctant which Hunter saw coming.
"I feel like I'm missing something here. It can't be this easy. Drilling into teeth without numbing stuff hurts. I don't understand how this gets rid of whatever it needs to get rid of without causing pain."
"Sebastian," Hunter said sternly yet calmly, "accept the good news and stop looking for something bad to get hung up on. It really is that easy, there's no punchline." Hunter lowered his mask since the explanation was taking longer than expected. But he didn't want Sebastian to get up just yet since it took so much effort to get him here. Hunter continued on with his explanation. "This isn't the drill and that's why it can be done without anesthetic. It's a different tool. A high speed can rotate up to 500,000 revolutions per minute and that friction causes heat, uncomfortable vibrations, and micro-fractures in the tooth. Now with deep fillings, it has to be used and that's why dental anesthetic exists, okay? To make sure the patient is comfortable and experiences no pain. But like I said this tool just blows compressed air so there's none of that high-speed rotation. Unhealthy tooth structure is soft so with the compressed air it can essentially be blown away without harming the healthy tooth structure. This tool targets the soft stuff but isn't powerful enough to go through hard tooth structure that's healthy," Hunter explained in great detail. "Do you understand now Sebastian? It doesn't hurt because compressed air feels different than high-speed rotation."
Sebastian blinked a few times. "That's a lot."
"Yes. Well I wanted you to understand. Do you feel any better about it now?" Hunter asked.
"I think so," Sebastian muttered. He'd been sitting in this chair for far too long though and was started to get antsy. "Can we wrap this up? I'm ready to go. I've had enough of your face for today. I can't believe you got me to do this much."
But Hunter wasn't satisfied just yet. "You let me look at one tooth," he pointed out.
"That's all you wanted!" Sebastian argued.
"That's all I wanted for a first step, which was great but this dynamic works so well because I'm not too easy on you," Hunter smirked. He pulled the mask back over his face and picked up two tools again. "Open up again for me Sebastian."
Sebastian's face screwed up. "What? No. The fuck do I look like. You said one tooth. I don't even know what you're trying to do."
Hunter had to bite back a laugh. Sebastian was mostly relaxed, he wasn't panicking, this was just stubbornness. "Started out with one tooth," Hunter said again. "Started. That's the important word. Besides I have a mirror and explorer in my hand, what do you think I'm gonna do? It's not like I would want to carry on with the exam I started or anything, no that would be absolutely barbaric," Hunter said slowly, narrowing his eyes at Sebastian. "Maybe I continue Sebastian?"
Sebastian glared at Hunter in annoyance before opening his mouth again. He moved the headphones to covered one ear again since he'd taken them off while they were talking. Hunter went in again with the tools are started looking around. Sebastian could feel him poking around but tried not to worry too much because he knew Hunter wouldn't hurt him.
"Sebastian you've clearly got really good hygiene. I guess a phobia will force you to do that huh? Are you flossing?"
Sebastian rolled his eyes and nodded.
"Truly though? You're not just busing my balls are you?" Hunter laughed at himself as he continued with the exam. "I kid. I can tell you do. Which is great. Literally none of your classmates do. Well maybe Wes but nobody else."
Hunter had been blowing air periodically throughout the exam to dry off surfaces he was checking so Sebastian was used to it by now. It felt a little uncomfortable but he was distracting himself with the TV and letting Hunter do his thing. The was until Hunter blew air on one filling in particular and Sebastian visibly cringed. He freaked out a little and started to raise his hand but before he could even do so fully Hunter was already retreating his tools.
"I'm sorry Sebastian. I didn't know that would hurt you. I was just trying to dry off the tooth so I could get a better look. Are you okay? If I knew it was sensitive I wouldn't have done that."
Sebastian nodded shallowly, his heart still pounding from the minor freak out. The tooth Hunter blew air on was still aching angrily.
"So that one was pretty sensitive?" Hunter inquired.
"No I just cringe because I had nothing better to do," Sebastian said with obvious sarcasm.
Hunter could sense that there's was a bitterness behind that statement. He scared Sebastian and he was deflecting it with anger again. "I'm really sorry Sebastian. I didn't mean to startle you," he said again. "Do you have a filling there? I didn't get a good look."
Sebastian nodded slowly.
"Okay. I'll be more careful now that I know. It is alright if I take a look at it?" Hunter asked gently.
But Sebastian was reluctant this time. "I want to leave."
"I know but you're almost done. Just let me finish this and I'll let you leave for the day. Please? I promise I won't make you do anything else," Hunter coaxed.
"Can you just use the mirror this time?" Sebastian asked. He was feeling apprehensive again. "No air, no hook on a stick."
"Hook on a stick," Hunter echoed in amusement. "But no that's fine. I can agree to that. I'm going to put on some magnification glasses so I can see a little better." Hunter grabbed his loupes out of a drawer and put them on.
Sebastian didn't like the way Hunter looked all geared up. It felt weird seeing someone he'd mostly grown to trust as a person in dentist mode. He shivered inwardly and started panicking a little as he took it all in. Something about Hunter barely looking like himself was a trigger.
"What's wrong Sebastian?" Hunter asked, noticing his breathing picked up.
Sebastian just shook his head and didn't say anything.
Hunter paused what he was doing. "No. No silent panicking. If you're freaking out about something you have to tell me why so I can avoid doing it."
Sebastian blinked a few times. "It's stupid."
"Don't care."
Sebastian sighed. "You look like a dentist and it's freaking me out."
"Well– okay. I understand. So here's what we're gonna do. I know you're nervous because of the air thing that happened but you have my word I'm just using my mirror now. I promise. So I want you to close your eyes and relax. I'm not like them. You can trust me. I know you probably want to watch me closely after what happened but that's freaking you out. So shut your eyes," Hunter reasoned coolly.
Sebastian nodded and closed his eyes. He kept reminding himself that he was safe.
"Good. You're okay. Can you open for me Seb?"
Sebastian opened a little bit but he was clearly more skittish this go around.
"Little wider Sebastian. It's okay, I'm just going in with my mirror. You're not going to feel me doing anything to your tooth."
Sebastian took another shallow breath and opened the rest of the way. He could feel Hunter hovering but he kept to his word and didn't touch anything.
Hunter took a good look at the tooth that was so sensitive to air. Under the magnification, he could actually see where the filling began and where real tooth started, though the color difference was subtle because it was a composite. The filling was pretty large and he couldn't tell without an X-ray how deep it was, but if his suspicions were correct it was pretty close to the nerve of the tooth. He was hoping to see a crack in the filling or something to explain the sensitivity but there was nothing he could see visually wrong with the filling. That meant the issue was underneath the filling which wasn't good, especially considering this level of sensitivity wasn't normal. He had a bad feeling about what this was going to lead to. He retracted the mirror. "Good Sebastian. I'm not going to mess with that one anymore."
"It still hurts," Sebastian said, opening his eyes to look at Hunter in worry. "You pissed it off."
Hunter hid his concerns with an amused smile. "Pissed it off? The tooth must have your attitude then. Does the pain usually linger when you irritate that tooth?"
"Yeah," Sebastian said. "I didn't think to mention it because it's always been kind of sensitive, since I got the filling. It can't be a cavity or anything because it's already been fixed," Sebastian reasoned.
Hunter was trying so hard not convey any worried facial expressions. "Alright. Well I won't mess with that one anymore. I have a few things I want to check but before I finish are there any other really sensitive areas like that I need to be careful around?"
"Not that I know of."
"Okay. Can I go back in with the explorer to wrap up the rest of the exam? If I promise not to touch that one filling. I'll be really careful."
"You already looked," Sebastian argued stubbornly.
"Yes but not at everything. I need to make sure there are no other issues, Seb. I want to do a thorough job so you get the best care possible. Is that okay with you?" Hunter asked sassily.
Sebastian huffed. "I can't stand you."
"Uh huh, I'm the asshole for trying to do my job well. Can you open your mouth now sassy so I can continue to make an ass of myself?" Hunter asked, raising one brow in question.
Sebastian reluctantly opened his mouth again with an eyes roll. He was worried and he kept glancing at Hunter but nothing else eventful happened. Nothing else hurt.
Hunter didn't find anything else, thankfully for Sebastian's sake. "Sebastian everything else looks really good. You did so well. You're free," he said turning off the light and moving the chair back up. He convinced Sebastian to let him take a few more X-rays before he got out of the chair.
"Wait, Sebastian, before you go let's talk a little bit about your next appointment. I just need 5 more minutes. Do you want to go back to my personal office? To get out of the exam room you hate."
"No more talking. I'm fried and I really want to leave."
Hunter swore inwardly. "Fine. But Sebastian I really need you to email me with a date that works for you, for the next appointment. I just want to do a quick cleaning and maybe that tiny filling with the air abrasion since it's so quick and easy. That's all. It'll be really easy."
"I'll email you," Sebastian said, not wasting any time getting out of there.
"You better not stand me up, Sebastian!" Hunter warned as he left, but honestly at this point he expected nothing less. He had Sebastian's student email and just planned on telling him when to come in. Hunter cleaned up the exam room and sent the tools off to be sterilized. With that, he finished for the day and went home.
No shocker here but Sebastian didn't get back to him. Hunter waited a week but no email came. So Hunter sent an email to him.
'Subject: Appointment Reminder
Your appointment is set for Tuesday, September 18th at 4:30 pm. I checked and you don't have Warbler's practice that day so don't try to pull one over on me. Don't sit in your room with your thumbs up your ass either. You're close enough to being an adult, I shouldn't have to come retrieve you. Don't forget to bring your big boy pants and a smile.
PS. Actually if you just show up I'll be thrilled. Big boy pants and a smile are optional.
PSS. You should actually show up unless you want to explain to your roommate why you have the campus dentist dragging you out of your dorm by your ear.
Sincerely,
Your favorite stalker'
Hunter sent the email with high hopes it was just threatening enough to make Sebastian show up. But when he checked his email later that night he had a reply.
're: Appointment Reminder
Not coming.
Sincerely,
Eat shit'
Hunter sighed deeply. "So much for handling this like an adult."
On the day of Sebastian's appointment, Hunter had no choice but to go retrieve him for the sake of time. He banged on the door or his dorm a few times. "You know we would have saved a lot of time if you took my advice and put on your big boy pants," he shouted. "Come out Sebastian!"
"I'm already out Hunter, haven't you heard? I love dick!" he heard from behind the door.
Hunter huffed in annoyance. He didn't feel like wasting any more time. "That's fine. Don't take me seriously. I'll just raise my voice a little more and LET ALL YOUR NEIGHBORS KNOW YOU'RE AFRAID OF THE DE–" that got Sebastian to open the door faster than The Flash. Hunter smiled a cocky and self-satisfied smirk. "Yeah. That's what I thought. Can we leave now?"
Sebastian crossed his arms but Hunter could see the underlying anxiety behind the movement. "I have homework to do," he excused lamely.
"This appointment will take an hour and a half at most, you'll still have more than enough time to do your homework after."
Hunter noticed Sebastian start to tremble as tried to think of another excuse. "Yeah but after this fucks me up I won't be able to focus on anything, and I won't be able to get my homework done because I won't be able to think," the younger said frantically. He shoved his hands in his pocket. "Please, Hunter."
Hunter's brows furrowed in concern. "This isn't going to fuck you up emotionally or physically. You're going to be fine. I showed you last time Sebastian," Hunter reasoned. "Everything today is easy stuff. I promise."
Sebastian shook his head. "I don't want to."
"Tough luck," Hunter said before realizing that was probably a little too harsh considering Sebastian's current state. "Look, nobody likes doing this. You're not alone in that sense. But you've got nothing to be afraid of. This is just a mild inconvenience. However I would suggest coming with me before my looming presence in your doorway starts to raise some questions."
Sebastian swore inwardly. "I hate it when you make sense," he complained, stepping out and shutting the door.
"You should probably get used to it since I seem to be the only voice of reason you have when it comes to this stuff." They walked in silence to Hunter's office, Sebastian choosing to keep his distance. He seemed particularly edgy today.
"However will I comfort the poor angsty teenager I have under my care? Should I throw Cheetos at you until you feel better?"
Sebastian didn't reply to Hunter's stupid joke but followed him into the office nevertheless.
Hunter looked over Sebastian carefully. "Talk to me Seb. What's wrong?" he asked, holding open the door for him.
Sebastian walked into the office unhappily. "Well in case you haven't noticed I would rather be literally anywhere else."
Hunter rolled his eyes. "I would never have guessed." He gestured for Sebastian to follow him into the back office.
Sebastian started to get cold feet again once he caught sight of the chair. "Well fuck me," he swore, rubbing the back of his neck anxiously. "I feel dizzy."
"You're alright Sebastian. Go ahead and take a seat and I'll get you some water. Then we'll talk and you can ask me any questions you have. Sound good?"
"Sounds... tolerable."
"That's what we're aiming for."
Sebastian sat down carefully, quickly wrapping his arms around himself uneasily. He accepted the water Hunter handed him and drank some. "Well start talking teeth boy."
Hunter made a face of amusement at the nickname. "Well the hardest thing we're doing today, and I use the word hardest lightly because it really isn't, is the air abrasion. I told you what it's like last time. Just air and then I'll put some white filling in your tooth. Honestly I think you might find the cleaning more uncomfortable. I mean not that it's bad but I know you're skittish and you might not like it."
Sebastian frowned. "Oh great. Fuel my anxiety."
"I'm not trying to. I'll be gentle and you'll be fine. I just want you to be prepared for the fact you probably won't like it, but it's nothing you won't be able to handle."
"I think you're overestimating what I can handle," Sebastian said. He watched as Hunter washed his hands and started to scrub in. "I thought we were talking," he protested.
"We're still talking. You just talked, I'm replying. We've got a line of dialogue going here. What's the problem?"
"You're washing your hands because you wanna mess around with my face hole next," Sebastian reasoned.
"You don't know my life," Hunter retorted. "But you're right."
Sebastian grimaced. "I don't like this Hunter."
"You already don't like this and I haven't started yet?" Hunter asked with a raised brow.
"Correct."
Hunter sat down on the swivel stool while he slipped on gloves. "Sounds like we're off to a great start." He flipped on the TV for Sebastian like last time and resumed the movie. "Here. Distract your brain with this and stop paying attention to me."
"How can I not pay attention to you?" Sebastian squeaked. "You're all up in my business."
"Well... not yet technically." Hunter lowered the chair and Sebastian's started to tremble.
"This is shit. Hunter, I don't like this. I can't calm down. I'm starting to panic."
"Don't panic, no not yet," Hunter singsonged but then he put on a serious face. "Alright let's see what I can do to help you relax before we start. Do you want me to call in an assistant to hold your hand?"
"The fuck do I look like?" Sebastian dismissed. "I don't need someone to hold my hand."
"Well you probably don't want me to answer that question because from where I'm sitting you're not all that put together. Do you want drugs Sebastian? I can put you on a low level of happy gas to help you relax a little."
Sebastian felt stupid. It would be embarrassing to need something to get through something as simple as this. "No I don't need it."
Hunter hummed in thought. "How about you let me start and raise your hand if you need a break? Like I said, I'm really gentle. I'm not going to hurt you."
"What are you going to start with?" Sebastian worried.
Hunter pulled the mask over his face and uncovered the tray of tools. He had to think of a way to word this without scaring Sebastian. "I'm going to gently scrape the calculus off of your teeth. It going to take a little time and it might feel uncomfortable but that's what the TV mounted to the ceiling is for. You're going to pay attention to that and not what I'm doing."
Sebastian sighed shakily. He didn't like the way that sounded. "Are you sure we can't just like... skip that part?"
"Afraid not. Especially after being on the run for at least as long as you've been going to Dalton. It's not good for that stuff to sit there for a long time, I'll spare you the boring details but just trust me. This is the important part. What makes your teeth feel clean and look nice is getting the stained calculus off," Hunter explained like he would with any other patient.
Sebastian frowned. "Got it," he said reluctantly.
Hunter looked at Sebastian apologetically. "Soooo you think we can start?"
"There's no we in this. You're the one doing the work. I'm just laying here."
"Well it is your mouth involved. But you look like you're keeping it together pretty will Sebastian. You can do this. It's easy. Go ahead and open up for me," Hunter requested gently.
Sebastian hesitated for a second. "If I get scared and can't handle it you'll stop right?"
"Without a doubt. You're safe with me. Just raise your hand and I'll stop. But now can you try to do this for me?"
It was truly incredible how different Hunter was while working with a patient. His persona completely changed into this gentle and caring person that had a naturally calming aura. Sebastian was anxiety ridden but he knew but now Hunter was trustworthy. So he finally opened his mouth.
"Good Sebastian. Now just watch the TV while I work. This is easier than you think."
Turns out it wasn't all that easy. Maybe for a normal person, it would have just been a mild nuisance but it was harder to get through for Sebastian. His anxiety seemed to amplify every little move Hunter made with the tool and even though he was being ever so gentle this was considerably stressful for the teenager in his chair.
The whirling of the ultrasonic scaler was very unsettling and Sebastian silently wondered when they switched the old fashioned metal scaler for this scary vibrating hell device. It seemed to be getting that job done faster but the water was uncomfortably cold, almost painfully cold. Sebastian really was trying to power through this but he honestly couldn't understand how anyone could sit here and take this without getting freaked out.
After a while, Hunter noticed Sebastian steadily grow more restless. "Seb do you need a break?" Hunter paused and asked since Sebastian was starting to become especially jumpy.
"Yeah that would be good. I don't feel well," Sebastian chocked out. He felt like a giant baby for letting this get to him.
"Talk to me, what's wrong?"
"It's just not easy for me to be at the receiving end of this. There's no moment for me where I relax and realize it's not that bad because it all sucks. It's freaking me out and I swear I'm not trying to be difficult but I feel like I'm about to lose my shit."
"That's okay. That's why we're taking a break. You'll be okay. Do you want anything to calm your nerves? Because I've got the nitrous right here, I suspected you might need it. Honestly, this takes some time to get used to and your fear might be amplifying the discomfort. I can only help you calm down so much so if you want to try letting this stuff help you calm down then that might make this easier for the both of us," Hunter suggested. "But if not that's okay. I am willing to work with you and go about this however you feel comfortable."
Sebastian felt conflicted because he wanted to be able to do this himself but felt guilty for being such a difficult patient in his current state. "I take it leaving isn't an option huh?"
"I mean I won't stop you but I'll judge you really hard for it."
Sebastian signed deeply, realizing he would have to continue with this eventually. "It's not a cop-out?" he wondered aloud.
Hunter rolled his eyes at the question. "A cop-out? What me giving you some gas that's going to help you relax and stop fidgeting and sweating so much? Yeah definitely. Total cop-out."
"Okay, it was a stupid question. I guess if you think it'll make things easier then my answer is yes," Sebastian answered finally.
Hunter spoke as he readied the canister. "The notion that helping yourself relax is a cop out in honestly laughable to me. There's nothing shameful about needing a little extra help. People love this stuff. Free high."
"Free high," Sebastian echoed.
"Uh, yeeeaaah. You're a teenager, and this is better than any green stuff you may or may not chose to mess around with when you're older. But that's none of my business. Just understand, this will help." Hunter placed the mask over Sebastian's nose.
"You say that like you know what you're talking about," Sebastian joked.
Hunter raised a brow. "I might. But that wouldn't be any of your business now would it?"
"Just like what I do in my free time isn't any of yooouuuuurrs. Okay, I might be high. I think this stuff is working."
Hunter hummed. "I feel like the rest of this will proceed easily. How you feeling Sebastian?" he smirked.
"Interesting…"
"That's better than any answer you've ever given me." Hunter picked up his tools once again and readjusted the light. "Time to continue. Let's see those big boy pants, Sebastian."
Sebastian opened his mouth again without a sassy comeback or anything, and Hunter was almost disappointed. "This tickles me to death. Truly. Nitrous was not the anesthetic we wanted but it sure was the drug we needed. Did you know at first they tried to use that stuff you're inhaling in place of, well what's now, lidocaine? And it does help to dull pain, but it's not the same as anesthetic, obviously. Well maybe not obvious to you but obvious to me."
The young warbler wasn't as bothered by the ultrasonic scaler anymore. He was so tired and out of it that he just shut his eyes and ignored what Hunter was doing. There was a small hopeful thought that made its way to the surface, however: "Maybe this can be easy."
Hunter finished this part of the cleaning rather quickly and effetely now that Sebastian was so relaxed. "You're doing so good Sebastian. I'm done with this part, just got a little left get with the regular scaler."
"It's the happy gas for sure," Sebastian responded.
"Probably but you're still here and allowing me to do this, and it took me quite a few years to convince you. So I'd say this is progress for sure. Alright, open up again," Hunter requested.
Shockingly, it wasn't that bad. Sebastian hardly noticed the scrapping. He never thought it would be this easy. He was finally starting to realize this could be tolerable, and maybe all of this fight wasn't necessary. He trusted Hunter and that didn't take away all of the fear, but it gave Sebastian hope where there wasn't any before.
"Okay, I'm done with this part. There was a little bleeding in some areas but that's expected. I'm going to polish your teeth now, and it's going to sound like the drill because it's on the same device but it has a different head. So don't let that surprise you. But with how you're doing I don't think you care too much."
"Not really."
"That's fair. Open again." Hunter contained with the cleaning with no protests from Sebastian. "You're actually an ideal patient right now, ya know?" Hunter said when he finished.
"It's because I'm high."
"And I'll accept that. Okay the last thing before the air abrasion, I'm going to floss your teeth really quick to get the rest of the polish out." Hunter wrapped the floss around his fingers and got to work.
Sebastian again wasn't bothered, because he did this himself every night and sure it felt weird to have someone else doing it but it wasn't worth getting upset over.
"Oops, I lied there's one more thing I'm going to do. I'm going to sit you up a little, it's just a fluoride treatment I usually do. A tray is going to sit in your mouth for a minute while I grab the supplies I need." Hunter filled two trays up with fluoride and then asked Sebastian to open his mouth.
Sebastian made a face of dismay at the taste.
"Yeah I know. You'll live. I'll be back. Keep being clam while I'm gone."
Sebastian gave Hunter a sarcastic thumbs up as he left the room. He sat there staring at TV where Guardians Of the Galaxy 2 was still playing. Waiting there laying in the chair felt different than it ever had. He didn't have anything to worry about. This was a shallow filling with a device that wasn't the drill. Sebastian reminded himself it was just air like Hunter said. From there he officially settled any worries in his mind and just watched the movie.
Hunter came back in with what he needed a few minutes later. "Still not worried like the champ you are right Seb?"
"I'm highly intoxicated but I'm also not a toddler," Sebastian replied after the fluoride tray was taken out of his mouth and most of the fluoride was sucked out.
"Good to know you're still a sasshole, but for the record words of encouragement aren't me trying to treat you like a toddler. Praise isn't belittlement. Maybe you don't understand that because you didn't get in from any other adult in your life but you're just gonna have to deal with the fact I care about you," Hunter spoke as he readied the equipment he needed.
"That got a little too deep there buddy. For a second I almost felt bad for myself."
"No, but off the record, it's pretty fucking sad that I have to be the adult to tell you that. You're a good kid Sebastian. An ideal teenager. Your parents should be incredibly grateful to have you as their son."
Sebastian's heart sank a little. "But they aren't, and I've accepted the fact I don't get to have that."
Hunter had great parents that gave him every ounce of love and support he could ever ask for, and that statement comply broke his heart. "Well. I can't replace a parent and I know that. But if you should ever need patently support or advice, I'll give you the support my incredible parents gave me."
Sebastian ignored that Hunter's eyes were watery, but he was tearing up. "You already have," is all Sebastian said. "End of chick flick moment. Don't you have a tooth to fix or something?"
"Hell's frozen over."
"Well yeah, I'm in your chair aren't I?"
Hunter laughed to himself and readjusted the light and reclined the chair a little. "Is all of the fluoride out of your mouth or do you need to suck on this some more?" He held up the suction tool.
"I think its all out now but I don't see why you didn't just spray it off with water."
"That would defeat the purpose of a fluoride treatment because I would be spraying it off. This is why I'm the dentist and you aren't. Any other questions?"
"Just an invitation to go fuck yourself."
"Well, I can't do that because as you so kindly reminded me, I have a tooth to fix. Ready when you are, Sebby boy," Hunter said as he moved the mask to cover his face again.
"If you ever call me that again I'll bite one of your fingers off."
"Yeah and then who'd fix your face?"
"It's funny that you think I care."
"You're right. You don't have a track record of caring. Thankfully I'm here to give a shit about the condition of your face. Speaking of which, you can open now."
Sebastian rolled his eyes but opened his mouth.
Hunter stuck a cotton roll in Sebastian's cheek to isolate the tooth and readied the air abrasion tool. "This is going to be the easiest filling you've ever had Sebastian." He started to clear out the tiny bit of decay with the tool.
From Sebastian's perspective it truly just felt like Hunter was blowing air on his tooth. He was right, it didn't hurt. It was a little bit cold and almost uncomfortable, but nothing worse than the ultrasonic scaler from earlier. Sebastian kept waiting for it to hurt, but nothing happened. It just felt like cold air.
"And I'm done. Now I'm filling the tiny hole. What did I tell you?'
Sebastian couldn't respond for obvious reasons but Hunter was right. The filling was over so quickly and at no point was he scared.
"That was so easy. I probably didn't even need the gas for that part. So what's the punchline?" Sebastian said when they were finally done.
"I'm very proud of you Sebastian." Hunter flushed his system with oxygen and sat the chair up. "However I do need to talk to you about one more thing before you go."
"Why?" Sebastian asked coldly. "What else could there be to talk about? Hunter don't tell me there really is a punchline and I'm not done with this shit."
Hunter signed. "Sebastian you have to know that the sensitivity on that tooth with the big filling that bothered you last time isn't normal. Fillings shouldn't have that level of sensitivity, especially from just blowing air on it. I'm sure it bothers you when you eat anything hard or cold or hot. It's causing you pain and I know that."
"No. I already got that tooth fixed. I remember getting the filling and it's supposed to be fine. That's normal. I'm used to it," Sebastian said quickly.
"Please don't do that. It's okay. You were fine today and you'll be fine when I fix that tooth," Hunter reassured.
"You don't understand."
"Then make me understand. What's the issue? Why would this be different from?" Hunter asked.
Sebastian was starting to get red in the face and Hunter could see the anger rising in the younger. "Don't pretend I'm stupid. You know it's different. You can just make that one better with some air. It will involve needles and drills and I'm not fucking stupid! I'm not doing it again. I'll deal with the sensitivity. I'm leaving now."
Hunter signed deeply as Sebastian got up, "I don't think you're stupid Sebastian. Maybe I just had a little more hope that after today you'd have more trust in me."
Sebastian didn't say anything else as he walked out. This wasn't how Hunter wanted the appointment to end at all but he understood Sebastian's behavior at this point. He didn't take it personally. He accepted that he helped Sebastian how he could for now and the rest would fall into place.
A/N: Two posts in the same day? What can I say, I'm a machine You're all welcome.