Okay, I'm just going to get into it.

Warning: procedure in this chapter and the next. Blood in this chapter.

Chapter 9: Extractions, part one

(Wednesday, August 16, 2017)

"Sophia, c'mon. My mom's in the hospital. I'm dropping Ley off with you. Preston's going ...berserk, to say the least," and at Brooke's statement, Elena rolled her eyes and looked at her best friend's younger brother.

While Brooke was talking, Elena was putting her things in the trunk of Brooke's car. "I'm not going berserk," Preston said with a huff. He offered his hand to Elena. "I guess I'll see you another time? Maybe we can Skype?"

"That'd be cool and it probably won't be till after my surgery," Elena replied, giving the younger boy a hug.

Preston laughed slightly, knowing he should've seen that coming. "Guess Brookie's right about how you feel about me, but knowing your story, it makes sense," he said.

"Yeah," was all Elena said, thinking of her late brother.

"You'd think that the author would've had the story up already," Preston mused.

Elena nodded in agreement. "I don't mind riding in the back," she told him as he grinned wildly. Elena resisted a smirk, looking to see that Brooke hadn't disconnected. She and Preston got in, Elena sitting behind the boy for the time being.

Preston leaned over and lightly pressed the heel of his hand into the steering wheel. At this, Brooke jumped, said something that neither caught, but seemed a bit mad at what he did. Preston and Elena buckled, as did Brooke. Brooke was muttering under her breath about their little success.*

Elena and Preston exchanged a low five through laughs. "Was that necessary?" she asked. Preston found it funnier and Elena composed herself first.

"Yes. Yes it was," she said. Brooke scowled as she got into the driver's seat. Brooke's parents had been heading back from the coastal pat of the state. Elena and Brooke had been chatting about the upcoming fall semester and where they were going afterwards. Then Preston burst in looking frenzied and when calmed down, he revealed that their mom was being held in Charlotte. Luckily, Sophia's house wasn't too far away from Brooke's.

"Give your mom my best," Elena said to Brooke, duffel over her shoulder. She had left a few other things at Sophia's, but she made sure she left nothing with Brooke.

(Thursday, August 17, 2017. Evening)

"So, have you met the surgeon?" Elena asked Sophia. The reddish-brown-haired girl nodded.

Sophia had decided to take her hair down. Elena (with the advice from her uncle and grandparents) scheduled surgery for 9:15 so that she wouldn't have to go so long without food to the point of anger-induced paranoia. **

"Yeah. Dr. Klein is really nice. I don't know what they'll have me do, Ley," she said. Sophia placed a hand on Elena's shoulder, causing the latter to blush. "You're listening, right?"

Elena had her 3DS in hand and paused the game. "Yeah. Sorry. Just trying not to forget things for UltraSun and UltraMoon. ...I like both games, but I don't know if I'll get two copies of both games. You said that the surgeon's name is Dr. Klein and that you don't know what they'll have you do. ...but is Dr. Klein a man or a woman?" ***

"She's a woman, but her first name isn't coming to me right now," Sophia replied. "Get some shuteye. I'm surprised you're not going completely under."

Elena gave a wry smile. "I've got a high pain tolerance, but I take a while to recover from going under general anesthesia. I've had a few tests done under it, but let's not talk about them. If you get to stay in the room with me, try and stay professional if I grab your hand." Elena resumed playing.

Sophia just nodded at that and told her friend to save her game. Bring her phone with her tomorrow as well and leave the gaming console at home. "It's called a 3DS. A bit shorter to say, don't you think?"

Sophia shrugged and Elena sighed, closing the door slightly.

(Friday, August 18, 2017. 7am)

Sophia was taken off task of making breakfast for herself as the phone rang. "Clark residence, this is Sophia," she began and her eyes widened. She turned off the gas, thankful she hadn't started cooking. "I intended to wait for Dr. Klein's instructions. Uh-huh. Okay. Thanks," she said, hanging up the phone as she restarted breakfast. Elena had forewarned her friend not to make French toast. That was one of her favorite foods and she knew it was cooking after having it so many times. "The main recipe is the ingredients. The cinnamon sticks out the most," Elena had told her. It took her fifteen minutes to eat breakfast and clean up afterwards. She had heard water running and she ran the garbage disposal.

"I'm up, I'm up. Soph, you can shower. I just finished!" Elena hollered from the upstairs portion and Sophia sighed at that. Well, at least she didn't have to worry about waking her friend up.

Sophia didn't hesitate because she had to get dressed. She showered (and brushed her teeth as she showered so Elena wouldn't detect any remnants of breakfast and get hungry) and made quick movements. Sophia wore her one of her other sets of scrubs. This set was navy blue and had her name embroidered above the breast portion of the shirt. ***

It was 8:00. Sophia opted to braid a part of her hair and put it in a side ponytail as she saw Elena chilling out. Elena had joked the other day about wearing a Duke T-shirt (because that was where the Chicago native originally wanted to study and was originally going to study there as well) or her CCU pants. Elena was donning a pair of black, women's Mizuno shorts with tennis shoes. She also wore a red T-shirt that had what looked (from a distance) like two swords. As Sophia got closer to her friend, she saw some writing on the T-shirt.

It read, 'Surf City Fencers' Club' below the ... "what are those?"

"These are called foils. You can use either that, an épée or a sabre. I've been fencing since I was 11. I was recovering from a broken wrist due to dance. A friend of mine asked me if I had ever heard of fencing as a sport. If I had to rank it in ease of use, it's épée (easiest), then the sabre (middle difficulty) and lastly is the foil. I'm proficient in all 3 and was handed an épée for my first go round."

Sophia nodded as the duo got in the car. To get Elena's mind off it, Sophia asked her darker-haired friend to explain her background with fencing. Did anyone else fence? It turned out that Adana and both sets of grandparents had partaken in the sport at some point. Her father and uncle had as well. "Wow," was all Sophia said. Previously, Sophia had minimal knowledge of Elena's side activities. ****

"Yeah," Elena said. "Mostly my maternal grandparents were the competitive ones and went out and did tournaments. My dad's parents did it more for fun and leisure. I learned all I needed to from their old notes: dad's and Abuelo's. They wrote similar things, but there was one main difference."

They had reached the section of campus and had to walk. "Oh? What was that?" Sophia asked.

Elena shot a look that read, 'Shouldn't it be obvious?' before chuckling slightly. "The language. Abuelo's notes are in Spanish and Dad's are in English," she explained.

Once in the campus, both made a stop in the restroom and Elena gnawed her lip as Sophia led her down the hallway. "Don't do that. Look. I got a phone call. You'll speak with the nurse and the anesthetist before you come into the room with the surgeon. I've gotta go to a different room while you're doing that, but I promise, you're in good hands."

Elena nodded as a nurse took her vitals and the anesthetist began to ask her questions.

(With Sophia)

Sophia was in a small office. "Glad I could talk to you beforehand. It's nice to see you again, Miss Clark," Dr. Klein said warmly.

Sophia was slightly startled, but nodded as she shook the surgeon's hand. "Yeah. Likewise. I got a call from Dr. Williams. He said he couldn't make it and that you'd tell me the rest?" she said.

Dr. Klein nodded. "Right. Dr. Williams is at the hospital doing some dental work on a special needs patient. He asked me a question and I'm fine with it. Especially because Rose (my assistant) called in sick. Would you mind aiding me in your friend's surgery?"

Sophia had to keep her jaw from dropping. She felt as she should've seen this coming.

(Together)

Elena had been hooked up to a few monitors and the anesthetist began to get ready. Elena was sitting in a light beige/gray chair. It was long and was tilted back slightly and she had a pale blue drape being placed over her clothes as the door opened. "Soph, what's with the lab coat?" Elena asked.

"Ah, you know each other," the anesthetist remarked. Elena nodded, a look evident that she figured it out.

The nurse asked the surgeon about an intravenous muscle relaxer and Elena cringed. "That would be ideal. Elena Sangster, right?" Dr. Klein asked and Elena's heart skipped a beat.

'Huh. Heart monitor,' Sophia thought as she knew that (typically), wisdom tooth extractions done under general anesthetic had a blood pressure cuff, pulse oximeter and the IV already inserted. *****

"Yeah," Elena said, breaking her younger friend out of her thoughts. The clock read 9:14.

Dr. Klein had dirty blonde hair with warm, green eyes. She wore a red blouse with an off-white skirt. Elena couldn't see anything past that, but she also wore a lab coat, which unlike Sophia's had the logo of her practice. "I want to run options by you. Cases like yours aren't rare, but they aren't common either. Do you know what I mean?" the surgeon asked. (1)

Elena nodded. "Yes I do. Please go on," she insisted.

The surgeon asked her if she had heard of a nerve block and Elena explained that her uncle and his father were both in the dental field and while the latter had retired some time ago, she still knew some things. "Instead of four shots, what we'll do is two nerve blocks. Not consecutively. Numb up the area with a topical, test it with a mirror and then we'll go from there. We'll numb your gums as you would a normal tooth and then we'll do the nerve block and test the right (or left) wisdom teeth before we proceed with the extraction. Does that sound doable?" Dr. Klein asked.

"I think I can handle that. Um, I really don't want to be knocked out. You don't use nitrous oxide here, do you?" Elena asked and Sophia looked at Elena's X-rays.

Dr. Klein nodded. "We can do that. Miss Clark, I want you to sterilize. Let's get that muscle relaxer in first and then we'll go from there." Sophia gave her friend's hand a slight squeeze before she washed up as the IV went in. She whispered something to the surgeon before she turned on the water. Elena had a pair of sunglasses placed over her eyes. These were designed to go atop the nitrous oxide mask. She could see her friend easily, although they were a bit darker.

Dr. Klein and the nurse took care of the topical anesthesia. Sophia caught them getting the vial for the nerve block needle. Sophia knew that the needles used in nerve blocks were larger than normal dental anesthetic needles, so she whispered a question before taking to her friend. "How're you holding up?" Sophia asked.

"Um, the right side of my mouth feels kinda tingly, but I think that's normal," and at that, Elena realized what Sophia was doing. Sophia mouthed that whatever you do, don't look at the needle. Easier than it sounded, but Elena pulled it off.

Dr. Klein was looking at her patient's mouth as she prepared to do the injection. "Okay. I'm going to count down and then give you the shot," she said and Elena gave a thumb's up. "Three. Two. One," the surgeon said before bringing the needle closer.

"A bit of a pinch at the max," Sophia assured her friend and cringed inwardly as she watched her friend just sitting there. The procedure was to begin soon and Sophia mentioned Elena's shirt. The chair was positioned so that the upper right molar could be extracted first. Sophia's tasks were minimal, but she was told (via a whisper from the anesthetist) that she would be aiding in getting the second nerve block done. [2]

"Now, if anything, you'll feel some pressure and maybe a little tugging," the surgeon explained and Elena gave a thumb's up. Sophia handed her the forceps and brought the light closer. The procedure itself began at 9:20. It took five minutes to do the following: extract the tooth, delicately remove any decay via rinsing, suctioning some of the blood and then stitching the hole shut.

By 9:35, the right side of Elena's mouth had been stitched up and the young woman was beginning to have trouble staying awake.

"You're halfway done. I must say I'm impressed, Ms. Sangster. Mostly at how you handle needles," Dr. Klein said.

Sophia wanted to smack her forehead with the heel of her hand, but opted not to and settled for a mental facepalm. "Well, she covers them up, but Elena has tattoos. ...More than 3. Her past is kinda tragic," "and another story altogether," Elena interrupted, slurring her words.

"Well, let's get the left side done so you can be in a better recovery position," Dr. Klein said.

I think that that's a good point to end this chapter. Well, you know the routine. Rundown before the end A/N.

(*) Leave it to a younger brother to do that. Honestly, Elena would've done the same. Part two: Brooke didn't shout at her brother [or friend] because she was in a state of shock.

(**) Anger-induced paranoia. All I'm going to say that last year, I went under general anesthesia for a procedure [no, not my wisdom teeth. I feel like I've mentioned this here {in this story} and if I have, I'm sorry for repeating myself. I'm sorry if you've been told this and are seeing it again. Just cover it up with a piece of paper or something. Either way, I had my wisdom teeth removed 7 years ago] and the day was a fiasco, to say the least. PM me for full details.

(***) I've seen quite a few different French toast recipes and one of the regular ingredients [about 8 ½ times out of 10] is cinnamon. Part two: remove any perverted thoughts you may have. That's what the portion of the shirt is actually called. Have you ever seen a female doctor/dentist/specialist of any kind? On their labcoat or scrub top might be where they have their ID badge. At the breast on a labcoat is a little less weird looking, but if you haven't seen that, then I can't help you. Part three: Sophia has at least 4 different scrub outfits.

(****) Hidden fourth wall break …if you want to call it that. Part two: I don't know if there is a club for what's on Elena's T-shirt. Part three: yes, those are the correct accent placements on épée …for any crossword fans out there who may or may not be familiar with the word. Part four: while I've only done "stage-fencing" [basically, fencing in theater for fight scenes], I've used an épée before. I did the difficulty ranking in where you strike the lamé [a vest that is wired to register points in a fencing match] varies. Well, when using an épée, you can strike any portion of the body. Then the sabre has you limited to [basically] where your neck/the bottom portion of your mask down to about your crotch/groin [gender doesn't matter. Basically, the inner thigh area, but the hits are in the front]. The foil would be the most challenging because I think you're limited to about barely past your pelvis [where the lamé is] and the torso as to where you can strike.

(*****) I don't know if there usually is a heart monitor and I'll give you the short version. My mom used to be in the medical field and I've been in the ER enough times to know what these things are called.

(1) So, I've done my research and remembered what some of the dentists I've seen [the ones that weren't trying to scar me for life] have told me. When someone's wisdom teeth come in, it's a [from what I understand] 90-97% chance that there will be impaction with the wisdom teeth.

(2) I've been told that I was supposed to have nerve blocks [not necessarily all in my mouth], but there's something I know about needles they use in the medical field versus a needle when someone's getting inked. Smaller needles are the hemoglobin prick needles for when you give blood as well as the lancets, plus the needles for an IV …and those [first two examples] might be the same thing, I don't know. Then you've got the needles that they use to give you a shot at the doctor's office. They're about the length of a barely sharpened wooden pencil, give or take. Somewhere in between 5-7 inches, give or take. Add a few inches to that and you've got the size of a needle they use at the dentist's office. Among the larger and longer needles are as follows: the ones they use to collect platelets [if you're just giving platelets], the ones they use for hip coring [which I believe has something to do with bone marrow] and I think the ones they use to collect plasma. The only other two needles I know of [that I don't know where they fall. I want to say that they're on the longer end] are an epidural needle and a needle for a spinal tap. *shudders at the thought of the procedure I just mentioned*

End A/N: This story is almost over. I'm really proud of myself because I'm getting over my writer's block. Currently (as I'm typing these last words), it's 1:25 in the morning, Eastern Standard Time. I'm hoping that I'll have chapter 10 up later today. If it ends up being up on Saturday, I'm sorry. I'm going to try and avoid that. …but presuming I feel up to it, I'm going to be hanging out with one of my friends today and I hope that chapter 10 will be shorter. I hope to have chapter 11 up on Monday or Tuesday (Wednesday at the latest) of next week and in that same week, I plan on resuming what I've been doing, but if you're following "Eight Little Eevee", expect the next chapter (my biggest hope) by the end of the month.

Alright, that's all I have.

Read and review, fave and follow (if you want), vote, and ask. I'll talk to you later.

~Queen

PS As I'm typing the postscript (basically, it's just a little note), it's now 1:57am. I'm going to stop saying 'Ciao' in my ending comments.

Date and time of revision: 8/18/2017 at 10:25:22pm

What was revised: I realized I forgot to number the rundown.

Date and time of second revision: 8/23/2017 at 6:19:33pm

What was revised: I made it clear that the driver (Brooke) and her passengers (Elena and Preston) were buckled.