The Dentist
27 Jan 2021Today’s prompt: “Explain what dentists do for a cavity. Your audience: a six-year-old child with cavity-ridden teeth.”
“I don’t want to go to the dentist! Demi said they use a drill on your teeth.”
“They do, Kendra, but it’s not like a big drill,” you say. “And you probably won’t even feel it. They numb up your teeth first. Kind of like how when it’s cold out, you can’t feel your toes? They have stuff that’ll make it so you can’t feel your teeth. So it won’t be painful.”
“Why do they need to drill my teeth?” Kendra asks.
“Well, you know how sometimes food goes bad? Like bread gets moldy, or milk starts smelling bad?”
“Yeah.”
“That’s called rot. And unfortunately, if we don’t take good enough care of them, teeth can rot, too. But the good news is the dentist can fix that. They drill into your teeth so they can take out the rot, and then they fill in your tooth so it’s like a normal tooth and you can still chew your food and smile pretty.”
Kendra seems to understand, but suddenly frowns. “You said it wouldn’t be a big drill.”
“It won’t be. Dentists have to use small drills to be able to work on your teeth. Itty bitty drills.”
“That’s a big drill! I don’t want it on my teeth!”
“What’s a big drill? We’re nowhere near the dentist’s office.”
The distinct sound of power tools erupts behind you. You become the latest victim of the serial killer known in the media as The Drill Sergeant, a man who runs around in fatigues and uses a cordless drill to kill his victims.