You have been feeling that dull ache at the very back of your mouth for a while now. Sometimes it gets better. Sometimes it flares up and makes it hard to eat.
You lost a tooth. Maybe it broke while eating something hard. Maybe it had been bothering you for months and finally gave up.
You have been told you need a root canal. Now you are sitting there wondering how many times you have to go through this.
You look in the mirror and something feels different. Not in a dramatic way. Just a little softer here. A little looser there. The person looking back does not quite match how you feel inside.
She was three. Maybe four. And she was fine in the waiting room. Looking at the fish tank. Flipping through picture books.
So that tooth has finally started screaming at you. Not just a little twinge when you drink something cold.