For years, ever since I can remember, I wanted braces, well actually a retainer.
As far as I remeber I never saw anyone with fixed braces when I was in the early stages of school. Instead I started to see kids with a single wire around their teeth. What I now know to be a hawley retainer. They always called it a brace.
I sat next to a boy with a brace and it fascinated me. For a long time I didn't see him take it out, but then one day I saw him take it out before going into a PE class. I was really interested to see that it had a plastic plate which covered the roof of his mouth and I wondered what it felt like.
A few other friends got a "brace" and I got even more interested. Then my best friend told me that he had one and he just wore it at night. I asked questions about it but even then I made a point not to ask too much incase he thought I was weird.
One day he came to my house in the evening to play and he had his brace in. I could not stop thinking about it and what it would be like to have one, to have to wear it and to talk with it.
I started to try to make them with paper clips and gum and wore them whenever no one was watching, but I still had to have a real one one day...

Years later, the internet came along. I suddenly thought to do a search for "braces" and a whole new world opened up.
I found an ad for a company who would make braces and eventually I got brave and contacted them. They were totally cool about it and were happy to help.
I visited and they made an impression. I couldn't beleive it at last.
The wait seemed like forever, but eventually they asked me to go along for a fitting. I remember being told not to try to help insert the brace so I just let him carefully insert it into my mouth and push it up into place. It fitted perfectly and he pushed about a bit. I couldn't wait to see what it felt like. I closed my mouth and felt the smooth plastic and no other sensation in the top of my mouth. I felt the wire around my teeth with my tongue and it was the best thing ever.
As soon as it was in he asked me what it felt like and I had to answer. I spoke for the first time and it was so good that I could hardly say anything.
I stammered a few words and he asked if I wanted to keep it in. It was the moment I had been waiting for for years and I just managed to say yes and a few words of thanks before I left. I couldn't wait to see what it was really like and I drove straight off to the nearest store to buy an ice cream. I had to ask for it and the assistant made conversation. The wire band showed and it felt great. The sensation of eating an icecream with it in was the strangest thing ever. I have worn one 24/7 for 6 years now. It still feels good.