Part 14.
As soon as Dr. Shaw got done fitting the braces and smoke colored ligatures on Jamie’s upper and lower arches, she asked her if she was ready for the moment of truth and handed her a mirror. Jamie stared into the mirror with a closed mouth. She then slowly smiled, bracing herself for what she saw. The first look was a shock to Jamie, but as she continued studying her reflection in the mirror, turning her head this was and that and pursing her lips to get a better look, she had to admit it wasn’t horrible. Dr. Shaw asked her what she thought, and Jamie said she would live. Dr. Shaw reassured her, and said she looked incredible. She then asked if she was ready to continue. Dr. Shaw fitted the twin block in Jamie’s mouth, making sure the fit was good. She asked her to open and close her mouth, and asked if anything felt like it was rubbing on her gums or she felt sharp pain. Jamie shook her head no but was almost unintelligible when she replied “buh ish sho beeg”. Dr. Shaw tried to reassure that it was, but that her speaking would get better and she would get more accustomed to it. Plus she told her to remember, she would only have to wear this at home. She then patted Jamie’s arm and asked her if she was ready for her headgear. Jamie reluctantly nodded yes. Dr. Shaw fit the facebow into the headgear tubes of the appliance, adjusted it several times with pliers till it was just right on Jamie’s face, then attached the high pull headgear strap and clipped off all the excess plastic until there was only one extra hole per side. Then Dr. Shaw looked down at Jamie and again asked her if she wanted to see herself as she held the mirror out to Jamie. She reluctantly took the mirror, and gasped “Oh ma gah, ish sho muh! Ahn sho peek!” Dr. Shaw squeezed Jamie’s shoulder and again reminded her it was only for home. Since they hadn’t discussed color, Dr. Shaw jokingly said, she went with pink so they could match. Plus she said, she really thought the pink strap accented the pink in her hair. Jamie rolled her eyes at Dr. Shaw. Dr. Shaw continued, but if you hate it, we can do another color, but really the pink does look good. Jamie said “gu, ha”.
Dr. Shaw then removed everything. She showed Jamie how to reinstall everything herself and made her repeat it several times until she felt she was comfortable with it. She then told Jamie she could take it all off. Dr. Shaw rinsed it off and placed the twin block in it’s own large plastic case and then it and the facebow went into a zippered pouch. Dr. Shaw placed this in the bag with all the rest of the goodies she was sending home with Jamie. She then went over care and cleaning and do’s and don’ts and break in schedule for the twin block and headgear, even though they had already discussed so much of it in bits in pieces already outside the office. Dr. Shaw concluded, and then asked Jamie if she had any concerns or questions. Jamie said she didn’t, it was now just a matter of becoming acclimated to wearing the braces 24/7 and figuring out how to sleep “with the rest of it” while at home. Her main concern she said was getting up there on stage Friday night and opening her mouth with braces for the first time. She asked Dr. Shaw if everyone was going to run out the door? Dr. Shaw assured her they would not, most people would not even notice she was wearing braces. She then told Jamie she would love to come see her show, she would love to be there to offer her moral support. Jamie said “wow that would great. I will add your name to the guest list”. Then, Dr. Shaw asked if she could also include Andrea on the list, she was going to make her come if she had to force her at gunpoint. Jamie said “Sure, I will put her down too. It will be easier for two of you to carry my body off when I die of embarrassment then you trying it alone”. Dr. Shaw again encouraged her and told her she would do great. She thanked Jamie again for agreeing to do this, then said they were done, but if she had any problems or questions to call or text her cell - anytime. As Jamie neared the door Dr. Shaw half shouted to her “you are going to do great” and then turned to head to back to her office.
That week had gone ok for Jamie. She had a few embarrassing moments at work when she had trouble spitting out certain words, and her mouth was sore. But it was manageable with ibuprofen. She had gotten her break in periods of headgear wear in without issue, though she had not tried to sleep with it in yet; and she found she could sleep ok with just the twin block in her mouth. She was very aware of it, and it wasn’t “fun”, but It was manageable and she was able to sleep. Maybe it had helped that she had already gotten used to having a smaller splint in there beforehand she thought. Her boyfriend Matt teased her some, and she was sure he wasn’t thrilled his girlfriend was wearing so much orthodontic gear, but overall he seemed ok with it. While she had told the guys in the band she was getting braces, she had the chance to show them first hand at a Wednesday night practice session. They had made fun of her a good bit, but it was good naturedly. And they promised they wouldn’t do it in public, much. Greg continued on the longest, after all he was a vocalist. She took it in stride, but after she had enough she shot back, “fair enough, but just know if you make me upset I might “accidently” knock your cowboy hat off on stage and point out that growing bald spot on your head. I’m sure it will really shine under the stage lights”. The teasing from Greg quit.
That Friday night they were scheduled to start playing around 9. They had gotten there relatively early and were done setting up by around 8:30. The boys were at the bar having a beer and Jamie was onstage, fiddling with cords to make sure she wouldn’t trip over one. She was bent over, with her ass facing towards the bar, when she heard a shrill whistle and a woman’s voice she thought sounded like Andi’s say “damn what a fine ass”. She turned around to find both Andi and Liv standing in front of the stage. They were each dressed stunningly, in tight jeans with cowboy boots and fitted button down western shirts, Andrea’s was seafoam green and Olivia’s was pink of course. Each of them was also wearing a large belt buckle and they each had cowboy hats on. Olivia’s was a faux snake skin, while Andrea’s was straw and had a silver and turquoise hat band on it. But what really made them stand out was the facebow protruding from each of their mouths.
When this registered in Jamie’s brain, her mouth dropped wide opened and she stammered “huh? what the…” Andi said “don’t you worry, no one in here will notice your braces tonight”. Liv added “I have told you so often how wearing braces is not a big deal, I figured I would walk the walk right in front of you and prove it”.
Jamie hopped down off stage and gave each of them a hug and said “Thank you girls so much. But really, you don’t have to wear your headgear in here. Just you being here is enough”. Olivia said “nope, we have made up our minds. Plus, I think my headgear really accentuates my make up tonight” and laughed. Andrea said “we got here early so we could get a good table right up front, you better play extra good for us tonight. Now you get back to what you were doing”. With that Andi and Liv went and had a seat at a table front and center behind the dance floor. After they had claimed their table, Andi got up and headed to the bar to get them a drink. Jamie noticed that headgear or no headgear, a number of the guys in the bar were hungrily watching her make her way in front of them.
Right at 9, the band hit their first note. Jamie was still feeling butterflies in her stomach and looked at Andi and Liv as they each gave her big thumbs ups and mouthed around their facebows “you are doing great”. After a few songs sung by Greg, the energy in the place was great. As anyone who has ever played in front of others will tell you, performers feed off the energy of the crowd. Now it was Jamie’s turn at the mic. She was still terrified when she first opened her mouth. But despite her initial fear, she knocked it out of the park. The first ten songs they performed where all upbeat, a mix of southern rock and country. They always opened their shows this way, it got the crowd fired up and into it. After these first ten, Greg announced they were gonna slow it down for a few minutes if any couples in there wanted to slow dance and they started into a ballad. Jamie didn’t notice the tall cowboy go over and ask Liv to dance. They were about halfway through the song when Jamie noticed her, on the dance floor, dancing with a tall good looking cowboy. As they made eye contact, Jamie flashed Liv a huge smile, forgetting she even had braces. Liv smiled back at her, and layed her head, headgear and all, on the cowboy’s chest and continued dancing. Jamie thought to herself, maybe having braces isn’t going to be the end of the world after all.
Epilogue
The rest of the evening went great. They band played one of the best shows they’d ever put on. Liv and Andi both had a great time despite their headgear. While Liv had not gone home with the tall cowboy, she had given him her number. They actually ended up dating a little while before they realized they just weren’t really right for each. No one in the band realized it at the time, but there was a record producer sitting towards the back of the room that night that thought they were one of the best new young bands he had seen and heard in a while. Within two weeks, they were signed to a small independent label and in the studio cutting their first recordings. They also had a professional photo shoot done for promo shots. No, Jamie did not smile opened mouth exposing her braces. But the photos she did take were smoldering; the braces pushing out her lips just enough to give her the most seductive pout imaginable. They recorded their first record and had their first single released with moderate success, enough to secure them as the opening act for a major star’s next tour. I won’t say who but suffice it to say you have heard a number of his songs on the radio. Maybe even sung along to one or made love while one played in the background. While on their first tour, Jamie and her boyfriend Matt broke up. It was nothing that either had done, the relationship just could not stand the strain of the two wildly different lifestyles they led. Jamie was sad but forged on. As the tour continued however, Jamie realized that she and the headliner on tour seemed to have some chemistry together. By the end of the tour he and Jamie had become an item. After a few months they became engaged. When it came time for the wedding, Jamie chose Liv as her maid of honor with Andi next in line during the ceremony. After the bride and groom had kissed and turned to face the assembled crowd, all three girls beamed, each proudly showing off their sparkly smiles.
Now five years later everyone is still doing great. Even after she got married, Jamie continued to play regional shows with her band for several months, until she got pregnant. She left the band, though they are still on good terms and speak on occasion. They run into each other at the awards shows; and always promise they are all going to meet up and have a reunion; even if they know that life, family and work will get in the way. The band couldn’t find a suitable female replacement for Jamie, but they did find someone. And he was a good fit. In fact their success and exposure just continued to grow. They are still active and successful themselves, you would recognize them if I told you their name. Jamie is not a full time musician like she always thought she would be, but she is happier than she ever thought possible. She still plays and sings a little, and has even recorded a few songs with her husband. She joins her husband when he is on tour much of the time with their two young children. When she is on tour with him, he often brings her out to perform a number or two of her own, and there are several duets they perform that the crowd loves. One of those is his biggest hit to date.
Liv did successfully complete her internship and she did get her braces off before she started her own practice. She is happily married now, though she has put off having kids for now to focus on her practice. That practice, Nashvegas Orthodontics and TMJ, is thriving and growing every year. Andi is her lead assistant. They still banter back and forth like always. No, none of the girls still have their braces; instead they all each have beautiful healthy smiles. But Dr. Shaw does still rely on headgear as her preferred method of anchorage. So if you are ever out on Broad Street one Saturday night and see a sexy cowgirl wearing headgear, tip your hat to her, maybe offer to buy her a drink and strike up a conversation if she seems unattached, and say a silent thank you to Dr. Shaw.
The End
