Chapter 37: The Sleep Center
"Excellent! Welcome to the Subaru & Sunada Sleep Center. We will take good care of you here!"
"The Subaru & Sunada Sleep Center huh?" Gaara mumbles as he looks around the room. "Isn't this place supposed to be one of the top sleep centers in all of Japan?"
"This center has been ranked consistently high in terms of quality of care ever since it opened ten years ago. It's not something we really brag about here, but the recognition is welcomed," The man points out as he shook his head. "My name is Shingo Tokinada. I'm the nighttime receptionist of this fine establishment . . . Have either of you been to a sleep center before?"
"I've never been to a sleep center before . . ." I mumble, shaking my head. "Have you Gaara?"
"The closest I've ever been to a sleep center was going to specialists in their private offices," The redhead admits. "My father likes to keep all of the family medical issues as private as possible."
"Considering his current occupation, it's not hard to see why," I say as I turn back to the receptionist. "Okay, what do we have to do first Mr. Tokinada?"
"Oh, Mr. Tokinada makes me sound old, so I tell people to simply address me by my first name," Shingo tells us as he picks up a couple of clipboards from off a nearby pile. "Anyway, the first thing that you need to do is fill out the forms on these clipboards."
"Huh, they look pretty thick," I say as I take one for myself before handing the other one to Gaara. "I'm guessing most of it isn't just asking for our overall medical history?"
"The majority of it is a survey on your sleep history and current habits, just so that the doctors have a better feel of what you're currently going through and what you've already had to deal with. The more details you right down, the better your possible results should be," Shingo calmly explains as he hands us some pens. "Of course, you have to do the general medical record form and sign a liability waiver as well, but they're much shorter in comparison to the survey. You would have also had to fill out an insurance form, but You Wanna Be On Top? is covering the expenses, so there's that . . . Have fun!"
"If theyexpect us to be as detailed as possible, then they're must be some really probing questions in the survey," Gaara mused, sounding a tiny bit apprehensive as we took a seat in one of the corners of the room.
"Not one for probing questions huh?" I couldn't help but say as I started on the medical form. "Spoken like a true politician's son."
"Hey . . ."
"What? You have to admit that you kinda walked into that one," I say, smirking up at the redhead, who looked back at me with narrowed eyes. I wait for an answer, but Gaara continues to not give me one. "What? No rebuttal?"
"Not when you're faced with a comeback like the one you just gave me," He finally admits as he got to work on his first form. "You have a knack for those, you know that right?"
"Naruto and some of my friends back home have mentioned this to me before," I concede, smirking as I got to work. "Practice makes perfect after all."
After quickly getting through the liability form and the general medical record form, I tackled the sleep survey, and boy was it long. It started simple enough, with the first two pages featuring questions asking for yes or no answers. The rest of the pages featured questions that asked for more than a simple result, so I endeavored to be as detailed as possible as I went through them all.
Some of the questions actually got me thinking and reevaluating what I've done over the years sleep wise, but I knew I couldn't linger on them for long, so I quickly jotted down my answers before going to the next question. When I was finished, I quickly gave my clipboard back to Shingo, who quickly scanned through the forms before nodding, telling me to take a seat while he sorted through it all.
When I returned back to my seat, Gaara was still working on his survey, his brows furrowed in concentration as he jotted down his answers.
"I figured you would have finished by now," I say as I tapped my fingers along my armrests.
"I'm just about . . . finished," He finally says as he writes the last word down on the page. "These questions just really had me thinking for a minute, that's all. Was it the same for you?"
"It definitely made me rethink a few things I've done over the years," I admit as he got up from his seat, quickly handing his clipboard over to Reiji before coming back. "I didn't expect to second guess myself a couple of times."
"I've had to do a couple of sleep surveys before, but not as detailed oriented as the one we did tonight," He adds, falling back into his seat. "Makes me feel a little better about this place."
"So, you did have some reservations," I muse.
"A couple. . . After all, my history with sleep doctors and specialists has not been the best, and neither is yours, if I remember correctly."
"Yeah, but then again, my history with sleep doctors isn't as extensive as yours is."
"Touché."
We had to wait another ten minutes before anything new came up. In that time span, Shingo took our forms and ducked into the side hallway, which likely led to the examination rooms and the doctor's personal offices. When he returned, he simply returned to his desk, keeping his eyes focused on the computer in front of him.
"So, how long do you think we'll have to wait here huh?"
"Not long, I hope," He says, keeping his eyes on the side hallway. "Since this appointment was pre-arraigned, I'm sure the doctors know that they should expect us tonight."
"Still, something could have come up to delay them. . . Maybe a patient called them for a teleconference?"
"That is a possibility," Gaara concedes as we hear footsteps approaching from within the hallway. "Hm, maybe that's one of the doctors now."
And just like that, one of the doctors walked out, dressed in her lab coat, fitted slacks, and a pair of comfortable blue flats that brought a pop of color to her simple look. She held a clipboard in her hand, looking down at the forms pinned to it before looking up at the both of us.
"Ms. Uzumaki, Mr. Sabakuno, it's nice to meet you both," The woman says in greeting as she walks over to us. "I'm Dr. Subaru, me and my partner will be helping you with your respective sleep issues."
"Nice to meet you," I say as she shakes hands with Gaara. "I'm guessing Dr. Sunada is still busy with another patient?"
"She's teleconferencing with him right as we speak . . . C'mon, follow me so we can get started."
"Um, so how exactly is this process going to work?" Gaara was quick to ask as we stepped into the hallway, which was as pristine as the waiting room, though the nature portraits were a nice touch.
"First things first is the consultation of course. We usually do this in our offices in the back, with one of us working with each of you," The doctor explains as we reached the end of the hallway. "I will be working with you Mr. Sabakuno, and Dr. Sunada will work with you Ms. Uzumaki."
"Good to know," I mumbled as we turned the corner. The personal offices were at the very end of the hallway. While the office to our left was empty yet open, the office to the right was closed shut, the muffled sounds of a woman speaking emanating from inside.
"It seems that Miriko is still in the middle of her conference. I'm sure she won't be long now," Dr. Subaru mumbles, sounding a little exasperated with her colleague as she stepped into her office. "Mr. Sabakuno?"
"Coming!" He calls to her before turning to me, amusement detectable in his eyes. "Good luck. . ."
"You too!" I say as I watch him step into the office. Once the door closed behind him, I was left alone to stew in my thoughts as I waited for Dr. Sunada to finish her conference, being aware to not listen in too closely to such a private conversation between doctor and patient.
Eventually, I could hear footsteps moving around in the office, and soon enough, the door opened to reveal the doctor herself, greeting me with a motherly smile as she quickly tucked some of her dark hair behind her ear.
"Sorry about the wait Ms. Uzumaki. One of my other patients was quite adamant about talking about his sleep apnea," She says in apology as she stretches her hand out. "Shall we get started with the consultation?"
"That would be great. . ."
Back at the model house
"So, do you think these doctors that Gaara and Izuka were sent to will actually be able to help them with their sleep problems?"
It was Naruto who threw the question out to his friends as they sat around the living room. He and Kankuro commandeered the couch, Neji and Temari were sitting on bean bag chairs, while Hinata was sitting on the floor behind TenTen, braiding her hair.
"I think this is going to be their best shot at getting the relief they want," TenTen mused as she cracked her knuckles. "Sleep problems can't be resolved in a single night, but tonight should be a good start for them . . . How long have they had these issues anyway?"
"In my sister's case, a long time," Naruto mumbled. "But she's managed to make it work for her. Whenever she can't sleep, she either draws, reads a book, or goes online to watch historical documentaries."
"Historical documentaries?" Kankuro asked, looking at the blonde in disbelief. "And she doesn't fall asleep after watching those things?"
"Nah; Izuka's a bit of a history nerd . . . She loves reading up on things of the past and stuff like that," Naruto mused as he leaned back in his seat. ". . . I'm guessing you're just the opposite, huh Kankuro?"
"History happens to be his worst subject because he always fell asleep in that class," Temari mumbled, ignoring the glare that Kankuro was undoubtedly sending her way. "Stop glaring, Kankuro. . . You know your issues with history. Should I repeat them for our audience?"
"How consistent was his failing grade?" TenTen was quick to ask, smirking at Kankuro's change in expression.
"If you don't include all the times he had to go to summer school for remedial classes, sixth grade to the start of college."
"Really dude?" Neji asked, leveling Kankuro with a look that would have made any disappointed father proud. "You failed history that many times?"
"History is simply not my forte, unless it involves puppets, then it has my interest," The puppeteer admitted as he scratched the back of his neck. "Anyway, back to the real topic at hand. . . I guess you can say that Gaara is about the same as Izuka. He's been an insomniac for a long time, but he tends to be more productive at night than he is during the day."
"So, basically, Gaara and Izuka are high functioning sleep deprived beings. Got it." TenTen mumbled. "Still though, I wish them all the best. . . I can't imagine how I'd react if I had to live my life with barely any sleep."
"Insomnia is definitely not something to wish on anyone, but it seems that those two have managed to make things work for themselves." Neji mused as he got up from his seat. "I'm going to the kitchen. Anyone want anything?"
"Ooh, there's some blueberries in the fridge," Temari suggested before suddenly turning her eyes on Kankuro. "They're great for one's memory. Would you like some Kankuro?"
"Oh, you're gonna get it now!" The puppeteer grumbled, knowing that her question was a dig at his poor memory. He jumped to his feet, just as his sister jumped to hers, and Neji narrowly moved out of the way as Temari ran past him, Kankuro quickly following after her.
"Um, I hope they keep in mind that physical altercations aren't allowed in this competition," Hinata mumbled as Neji watched them run past Shino and into the backyard. "Even if they are siblings."
"I'm sure they're smart enough to remember it for themselves," Naruto mused, just as the sounds of a large splash echoed from the back. "Okay! Who fell into the pool this time?!"
"Considering that Temari just skipped back inside perfectly dry, my bet's on Kankuro." Neji mused as he walked down the hallway. Everyone was silent until he called out a few seconds later. ". . . Yep! Definitely Kankuro!"
Back at the sleep center
My consultation with Dr. Sunada ended up becoming an hour-long talk, focused on the answers I gave on my survey and any additional details that I possibly left out. This was likely my best chance to get the help I needed, so I decided to be completely open with the doc, answering all of her questions as best as I could. I think Dr. Sunada appreciated my effort because I caught her a few times trying to hold back a smirk as she wrote down her notes.
It was either that or she found some of the stuff I said quite amusing . . . Honestly, it could go either way.
"Alright, I think I have enough details to work with. I think we can move on to the next step, which is where your overnight bag comes into play," Says the good doctor as she gestured to the bag I held on my lap. "Now then, do you know what a polysomnography is Izuka?"
"That's the technical term for a sleep study right?" I ask as she gets up from her seat.
"That is correct. Have you ever experienced one before?" She asks, gesturing for me to get up as she moves toward her door.
"Nope," I say as I follow her into the hallway. "But I guess I'm going to be experiencing one tonight."
"You would be correct," She tells me as she leads me around the corner, leading me to a door labeled Lab A and Lab B. When we entered the room, Gaara and Dr. Subaru was already there, along with two men, each of them currently sitting behind their own set of computer monitors, and two doors. "Are we late?"
"Nah; you're actually right on time," Says her partner as she gestured for me to take a seat next to Gaara. "Alright, in order to further see what exactly we are dealing with, the two of you will be undergoing a Diagnostic Overnight Polysomnogram."
"In simple terms, you will go about your night as normally as you usually do when you're at home, but with surface electrodes on your face, head, chest, and limbs," Dr. Subaru adds with a smirk. "You each will be placed in your own respective rooms. Gaara, you'll be placed in Lab A, which will be monitored by Shunsui here!"
"Nice to meet you!" Says the man sitting by Lab A. Even though he was seated, it was obvious that he was a pretty tall dude, with shoulder length curly brown hair and a chin lined with stubble. Dressed in a button down and a pair of cargo shorts, he looked ready to hit the beach in a moment's notice.
"And Izuka, you'll be in Lab B, which will be monitored by Jushiro!" Dr. Sunada tells me, pointing to the raven-haired man sitting across from Shinsui. He was dressed in a simple shirt and some slacks, and though he was definitely the shorter of the two men, he looked to be the one with the most experience.
"If you need anything over the course of the night, there's a little microphone on the nightstand next to each bed that you can use to talk to your respective lab tech," Dr. Subaru adds. "Now then, before we get you all situated in your rooms, you'll need to get ready for bed."
"Inside each of your respective rooms is a door that leads to the bathroom, you can get ready there."
We didn't need any more prompting after that. While Gaara walked into Lab A, I stepped into Lab B, seeing that the room was designed to model a simple bedroom, complete with a full sized bed, an armoire with a TV inside, and a nightstand, one with the mentioned microphone, on either side of the bed.
Hiking my bag over my shoulder, I walked into the bathroom and got started on my nighttime routine. Once I had my teeth cleaned, my face washed, and my clothes changed, I came out to see Dr. Sunada walk in with a small case in hand.
"Are you ready?" She asks me, and I simply nod my head yes. "Good! You can just take a seat on the bed while I get the electrodes ready. They're wireless, using Bluetooth signals to send readings to the machines instead of old cords."
"Hmm, sounds fancy," I say as I untucked the sheets before sliding in. Staying still, I watch as she places the electrodes, which were a little cold to the touch, along my upper half with a deft hand. ". . . I guess that's everything right?"
"Pretty much. . . Now then, you don't have to force yourself to go to sleep. Treat this as a normal night. If you fall asleep, you fall asleep. If you don't, that's fine too. This sleep study is just to get a sense of your current brain waves and patterns. Once we get the information we need, we analyze it all to come up with a good treatment plan for you. So, do you have any other questions for me?"
"None that I could think of . . ." I say, coming up with nothing. "But, thank you, for helping me out."
"No problem . . . It's what I do for a living of course," She says as she steps halfway out the door, one hand on the doorknob. "Have a good night Izuka."
I'll try my best . . .
A/N: Please review!
