Part 1

Thursday Noon

Chapter 01/15 - The telephone call

"Yes, I'll hold." Ms. Maier covers the microphone of her cell phone with her hand: "She's fetching Dr. Mahlmann". The last sentence is addressed at her daughter Tanja, who is lying lazily on the couch a few meters away. It's definitely too warm now for more than that.

"I heard that even from HERE, mom". The assistant is an always-nice and ever-helpful woman, but she has a pretty loud voice. Regardless of whether you stand directly in front of her or talk to her over the phone; you'd always wish that she'd come equipped with a volume-knob. Of course, that's easier said than done.

"Hopefully it won't take too long, it's a long-distance call after all."

"It's not as expensive as it used to be," her father says with a smile. "I think, we can afford that. Especially when it comes to your health!"

"Haha, really dad... your jokes have been better..."

He is about to reply when something happens on the phone; his wife beckons him to be quiet.

"Dr. Mahlmann? Good morning, Maier here. It's about my daughter Tanja ... Yes ... Yes, exactly: Tanja Maier ... She bit off a bracket yesterday evening and you told us to call you if that happened... Yes, that's right ... I just wanted to check what we should do ... or whether we can do anything at all ... "

In stark contrast to his front desk assistant, the doctor speaks rather softly and deliberately. The girl on the couch doesn't hear his reply, as much as she pricks up her ears. The fact that the old couch creaks with every movement doesn't help either.

"...that's the problem. Unfortunately, we can't come by that easily, because we're not home at the moment ... We're on vacation ... In Italy, near Rome, to be more precise ... Yes, exactly." The mother laughs dutifully. "It's really very hot right now ... No, we only left recently ... Exactly, two more weeks ..."

Tanja would really like to know what her mother is discussing with the orthodontist. Or rather, what there IS to talk about to begin with! After all, what are they supposed to do? Just drive home "quickly" over a thousand kilometres one way, just so that the bracket is glued on again? Fat chance!

The doctor really can't say anything other than: "Come by when you are back home ..." And that takes so long?

"Yes, that went really stupidly", continues the mother, "If it is that important ..."

The girl shakes her head. No, it is NOT important enough for such a useless effort to be made. "I lost a bracket. I haven't knocked out a tooth or anything ..." she protests in a low voice but is ignored by her mother.

"My husband and I wondered whether it would be of any use if we went to a local orthodontist here ..."

Tanja rolls her eyes. It's so characteristic of her parents, who have the stupid habit of always taking things a step too far. They mean well, certainly, there can be no doubt about that. But that doesn't stop them from exaggerating on a regular basis. And now ... now they have once again outdone themselves with this crazy idea ... just keep your feet still, folks!

"Yes, exactly ... no, you're right ... Oh, aah ... no, I didn't know that ... Hmm, that complicates things of course ..."

"No, I guarantee you that DR. MAHLMANN isn't the one to complicate things," Tanja says quietly to herself. "YOU are the ones who always do that"

"That's right ... if you think it won't do any good ..."

The teenager raises her hand and points to the cell phone in her mother's hand, as if she wanted to suggest: "EXACTLY THAT I tell you all the time: It's POINTLESS... now don't make a mountain out of a molehill..." But her silent objection is simply brushed aside with a wave of her mother's hand.

"Yes, yes, I understand ... No, we would have to look for someone around here first ... Yes ... Yes, I understand ... Well, let's do it like that ... Exactly: If it doesn't work, it won't work ... Thank you for your time, Dr. Mahlmann. Have a nice day! "

"Really now, you are exaggerating! Tremendously!" The girl lets her displeasure run free as soon as the conversation is over. The fuss really gets on her nerves. Her parents are just behaving as if it were a medical emergency ... Don't they even notice anymore that they are exaggerating?

Only one minor mishap happened to her at dinner yesterday. She just didn't know that the olives her parents bought still had their stones ... otherwise she would have been more careful ...

The sofa creaks when Tanja sits up. "So what did he say?"

Chapter 03/15 - The assessment

A few minutes pass before the boy from earlier - the last patient of the day - is finished and the doctor finds time for them. A tall, sporty, suntanned middle-aged man with the looks and air of being a proficient surfboarder in his spare time.

Apparently he has already been informed by the assistant, because he immediately addresses them in English: "Good day! My name is Moretti. How can I help you?"

The parents voluntarily let Tanja handle the situation: "Yesterday I lost a bracket", she repeats, "and my pare ... we hope that you can help us and ... uh ..."

Bam, now she has fallen into the translation-trap herself and is searching for words: How do you say in English: "das Bracket ersetzen?" She just can't come up with the stupid word ... embarrassing ...

Fortunately, the doctor seems to understand what is wanted of him. However, he makes a thoughtful face ... "I think, I understand ... but why are you here?"

"Ummm ...?" The addressed girl looks at him in astonishment. She doesn't really know how to answer, after all it's obvious WHY they are here ...

Dr. Moretti feels compelled to explain: "What I mean is: I'm not sure if I can help you ... You should go and see your own ... ahh ... denti ... ahh ... orthodontist! "

It is strangely comforting to find that her family isn't the only one who doesn't find it easy to communicate in English. Dr. Moretti also has to look for certain words.

Tanja only knows that the English word for Kieferorthopäde is "orthodontist" because she looked up a few words on her cell phone on the way here to prepare herself for the conversation. Such words do not appear in normal school English after all. And she wanted to understand what her parents were discussing with the doctor. She had never thought that she would end up LEADING the conversation herself ... So she is all the happier that she had "prepared" a few uncommon words.

"He is in Germany, over thousand kilometres away ..." Tanja shakes her head. Even if she would like to say: "I totally agree with you, but my parents are too stupid ..."

"Ah ... I see, that is a problem ..." , the doctor smiles thinly. "That is a bit far ..." and then adds: "Still, why do you come to me? Why do you not wait? Is it really that urgent?"

Tanja has a little difficulty understanding the question, she is not familiar with the word "urgent". By the time she figured out what the doctor wanted from her, her mother had already begun to answer: "We ... uh ... talked to our doctor and he said ... uh ... that it is important, yes ... "

Maybe it's a good thing that Tanja hesitated before answering. Even so, she shoots her mother an annoyed look and is tempted to correct her: "No, Dr. Mahlmann didn't say THAT ...", but she thinks better of it. Even if the Italians definitely wouldn't understand her, she doesn't have to start an argument here and now ...

"OK, I can understand that." , Dr. Moretti nods slightly. "Still, there is another problem:"

"Every orthodontist has his ... ahh ... own system of braces, you see. These brackets have a different form ..." explains Dr. Moretti, unsure, whom of the family to address, "and I'm not sure, if the system your doctor uses, is ... ahh ... can be used with mine, you understand?"

Tanja nods. Yes, that part she understands again. Furthermore: Isn't that exactly the same point that her own orthodontist made when he spoke to her mother this morning:

"You see, Ms. Maier," he had explained, "there are several systems of fixed braces on the market and they are not compatible with one another. You cannot just take a part from one kit and use it with parts from another to combine it to actually working braces ... it's not that easy! "

And nobody could guarantee that a randomly selected doctor will use the same "kit" ... Dr. Mahlmann had said that he was using a widespread system, but that was no guarantee that help would be easy to find ...

She turns to her parents with an expression that clearly says: "I've already told you this several times, but you didn't want to listen to me ..."

Despite their better judgment, her parents decided to just go and see an orthodontist here locally. Now they should take care of the situation; after all, it's THEIR problem!

"You are sure, that it will not work?" , The mother tries dutifully, "Our ... uh ... doctor said, that ... that it is very important, that her braces are ... uh. .. repaired "

Tanja rolls her eyes. "Mom, this is embarrassing ..." she thinks to herself.



Besides, that's not entirely true; or at least exaggerated. Yes, OK, admittedly: Dr. Mahlmann HAD said on the phone that the bracket had actually come off at an untimely moment. Especially in this phase of the treatment, the teeth move a lot and it is therefore important that all teeth move as evenly as possible. Otherwise this would open up unnecessary gaps ...

On the other hand, he had also said that there was no need for them to stress themselves and go see another orthodontist. Especially if it couldn't be assessed whether this colleague could actually do something ... Different systems and so on ...

It would have to do for Tanja to come and see him as soon as she got back from vacation. That is far from ideal, but the "damage" would not so great that it would significantly disrupt the treatment plan ... and a bracket that has fallen off is nothing at all that couldn't be repaired later ...

So he said exactly the things Tanja had prophesied from the start: The only logical and meaningful answer the doctor could have given.

But her parents - and this is typical, absolutely typical - had only heard what they wanted to hear. And they had discarded the rest. Just like they always do. But that's not all: the adults not only ignore one half, they also misunderstand the other one!

Tanja does not want to admit that she is exaggerating herself and that she probably is a bit unfair toward her parents. After all, they obviously HAVE misunderstood something:

The way they behave, they must have - for whatever reason - interpreted the earlier telephone conversation in such a way that it would have STRONG negative consequences if the bracket was not reattached ASAP. Even if Dr. Mahlmann definitely NEVER said that.

That's why they grabbed their daughter and drove to the first orthodontist they could find on Google Maps. And that without prior notice to the doctor. Without clarifying beforehand whether they can help at all. In the late afternoon, just minutes before they are closing for the day ... Bravo. Really great ... That's so characteristic! Do SOMETHING stupid quickly and then think about it later ...



"... smile for me?" Tanja almost missed the doctor's request, she was so lost in thoughts. But then she complies. Her lips part and she puts on a forced, extra wide smile.

The cheeks are getting a little redder than they already are. Gosh! That is SOO embarrassing! Here she stands in the middle of the waiting room and bares her teeth. And around her are four adults looking at her... Fortunately, there are no other patients left...

Dr. Moretti weighs his head. "Well, it looks like my system ... it could work ... let's have a better look" Then he turns around and waves to the family to follow him. The path leads them into a small room in which there is a single treatment chair. It's hot and stuffy. The sun blazes through the window here too.

"Please sit down", he turns to Tanja. She obeys with little enthusiasm. When her skin touches the synthetic leather chair, she almost has the feeling of being fused to the plastic. The metal of the armrest is too hot for her to rest her arm there.

Then he turns to his assistant and says something in Italian that the members of the family of course cannot understand. The young woman disappears and shortly afterwards comes back with several boxes from which the doctor picks a bracket.

"Smile again", he tells his patient again. Shortly afterwards he nods, surprised and satisfied. "Well, you're in luck," is his answer. His system is - apparently - compatible with the other, so he can replace the lost bracket.

Out of the corner of her eye, she sees that her parents seem relieved. "Yes? Wonderful, please do it!" , she hears her mother say.

And what does Tanja think about it herself? "Yeah, yeah... wonderful my foot! But of course mom and dad won't leave it be, so: the faster we get it over and done with, the better!"

However, there is still one thing to be clarified beforehand, the orthodontist turns to the parents with a serious expression. Tanja doesn't understand much about what Dr. Moretti says next. Too many terms that she doesn't know. She just feels that it must have something to do with money ...

But this time her parents seem to understand better what it's about. Maybe because they expected this specific argument?

"Yes, that is OK," the father finally replies. He seems to have seen her daughter's puzzled face: "We have to pay for that ourselves, the health insurance will not cover the costs."

Tanja shrugs her shoulders: "I do not feel sorry for you at all! After all, you dragged me here. So that's your problem!"

"We'll wait outside if you don't mind!", The father suddenly sounds a little annoyed. "The room is a bit small for five people ..."

This story was written before Corona was a thing ;-)

"OK," is Tanja's brief answer but secretly she thinks: "My goodness, dad! Just... just leave, will you ... It's embarrassing enough, you don't have to crowd me ... I'm not a little child anymore, I can do without your 'assistance'! "

The chair starts moving and brings her into a reclining position.

Chapter 05/15 - The discussion

Comment: This chapter is the main part of the original idea; that is, the story I wanted to write originally would have been little more than this one chapter. So, everything you have read so far and everything that comes after this chapter has gradually been added to flesh out the story.

Or in other words: If you stop reading after this chapter, you at least will have read the "inner core" of this story. That said, I hope of course to see to at the end of the story ;-)

A minute goes by, then another, and another. The father slowly manoeuvres the car out of the parking space and through a maze of narrow back-alleys back onto the main street and into the dense city traffic.

The air conditioning system hisses and puffs at the highest level in the vague hope of lowering the temperature in the car from "nuclear meltdown" to something more bearable.

They are waiting at a red light when Tanja suddenly asks: "Do ... do I REALLY have crooked teeth? I mean ... I knew that they weren't perfectly straight ... but ... are they really THAAAAAT crooked?" Each part of the sentence is a little quieter than the previous one. At the end Tanja can hardly be heard over the hissing of the ventilation.

"Where came that idea from?" The mother wants to know.

"Oh, just thinking ..." the daughter shakes her head. Her hands are playing with the seat belt, her eyes are directed out the side window.

"Pray do tell"

"No, it's okay ...", Tanja refuses. She already regrets even bringing up the subject.

"It doesn't work that way, young lady! Now out with it ...", demands her father with a smile. "Did Dr. Moretti say something?"

She shakes her head. Then, after a short pause, she nods.

"And what? Come on now, I don't want to have to extract each and every single word from you ..."

Tanja simply shrugs her shoulders without giving an answer.

Another minute goes by, then a second. Outside the houses slowly pass by; at an intersection a loud "chorus" of car horns can be heard; someone seems somehow in the way of some other people. Fortunately, it's not her father's fault.

"He ... he scolded me," she then starts to tell her story, "- well, not really 'scolded', more: asked why ... - I mean, he said that I ..." She shakes her head in annoyance and starts the sentence again:

"He meant that I ..." she licks her dry lips: "that ... that I should wear my ... my ... headgear more ..."

"Your what?"

"My HEADGEAR, dad!" she repeats, her cheeks flaming-red again. The small blemish on the nail polish of her left index finger has suddenly become extremely interesting and needs to be carefully inspected. "He wanted to know why I am not wearing it ..."

"But, honey ... I don't understand you. You don't have headgear ...", the mother joins the conversation.

"YES, I KNOW THAT!" The sentence slips out much louder than intended. "Damn it, mom, I know that as well," quieter.

"Now, dear, please do explain it in a little more detail... What happened? I still don't really understand. You don't have any 'headgear' ..." After a brief moment, the mother adds: "You mean that 'nightbrace' thing?"

"Yes, exactly, that," Tanja nods miserably. She sits so slumped down in her seat that one might think she's melted from the heat. "You're right, mom, I don't have a brace like that. But ..." again she licks her lips ... "but Dr. Moretti had said that I would need such a thing ..." She looks pathetic. "That sucks ..."

"Take it easy," says the father. "How did he even come to this conclusion?"

"How the hell should I know?", Tanja protests, "maybe because he's an ORTHODONTIST and knows that sort of stuff?"

The eyes point out of the window again, but hardly notice the "metal avalanche" of which they are a part. Finally she sighs loudly and says - addressed to no one in particular - with a resigned and dejected grin: "But I don't want something like that... that thing can go to blazes for all I care ... normal braces are enough for me ..."

"Honestly, darling, I don't really know why you're making such a fuss about it ...", the mother replies, "what Dr. Moretti says is not THAT important to you, after all.  He is not your orthodontist. .. I mean, one shouldn't ignore what he said, but you ... "

The father interrupts his wife: "Dr. Mahlmann is also an orthodontist and 'knows his stuff'. And he made no mention about you having to wear such a... brace, did he?"

She looks at her parents. Amazed and a little grateful. She had never thought of this simple fact before. "No, you're right, he didn't say that ..." A slight, relieved grin plays around her lips. "He REALLY didn't say anything about that ..."

"There you go!"



Tanja stares silently and thoughtfully out of the car window. To speak of "panic" would be an exaggeration. But the statements of Dr. Moretti had come so suddenly - and she unfortunately had been so impressed by them - that for a short time she had not really been able to think clearly.

It takes some time to get her thoughts back in order. As far as she can speak of "order" when her thoughts revolve around an unpleasant topic that she would have LIKED to ignore but CANNOT do so.

Her parents' statement helps a lot: "You are right, you are really right", Tanja finally realizes: "It doesn't matter what Dr. Moretti says. After all, I am not being treated by HIM ... And just because he MENTIONS 'that thing', that doesn't mean that I have to WEAR it ... "

She shakes her head in displeasure. She is annoyed with herself for overreacting so much. The father interprets her expression correctly:

"That's the heat," he reassures her, "that makes it harder for all of us ..." Tanja nods in relief: Making the heat responsible for her meltdown is an easy way out. She is grateful to her father for that.

Whether she would continue to be grateful if she knew what her father really thinks is uncertain: He observes his daughter through the rearview mirror: "Probably less the heat and more the fact that you are a little bit oversensitive when it comes to braces.", but of course he doesn't say that out loud.



The farther they drive, the wider the streets are gradually getting, and the fewer the houses and cars. Instead, more trees and dried up grass. The GPS guides them from the city core through the suburbs back to the campsite, a few kilometres outside the capital.

"Actually, I would have finished faster," she finally picks up the narrative again.

"Well, it didn't take THAT long," protests her father.

Now that the horror has subsided, she has no problem telling her "story". It's still embarrassing, but something almost urges her to tell her parents what happened while she was in the dental chair.

Perhaps it is the hope that she can afterwards finish with the topic and turn to more beautiful things?

"You're right dad: Dr. Moretti was really damn quick to replace the bracket." She smiles. "Well, they probably just wanted to call it a day ..."

Then she sighs. "As I said, they were done quickly. But just as I was about to get up, he held me back." Her expression darkens again as she remembers what happened a few minutes ago:

"I am not your doctor, but ... there is one other thing I want to say ..."

"'You really should wear your headgear, you know!' he said to me. At the beginning I didn't even know what he wanted from me ... " Tanja laughs a short, hard laugh. "I must have looked rather flabbergasted ..."

"Your headgear, you understand?" he then asked. And then to top it all off, he "drew" the outer bow on Tanjas cheeks with his fingers in case she didn't understand what he wanted from her. While Tanja tells her parents what had happened, her fingers involuntarily follow those of the orthodontist: her fingertips glide from the corners of her mouth, across the cheeks to just below her ears.

Completely perplexed, she had nodded, even if she did NOT understand what was happening.

Yes, she knows what "headgear" is; she knows that this is this terrible "bridle"-thing: A few months ago - shortly before the start of her treatment - she wanted to find out about braces on the Internet. She just wanted to know what braces are all about, simply to know what her orthodontist had in store for her. She shouldn't have done that however, because it was a stupid idea: she had stumbled upon pictures of people with these terribly treatment devices called "headgear":

Extremely conspicuous, certainly terribly uncomfortable and definitely absolutely embarrassing!

And they came with a 100% guarantee of not being able to hide them ... One could at least close the lips over the fixed braces, but try that with a metal bow strapped around your ENTIRE head ... NO chance in hell of keeping THAT secret ...

She had nodded because she knew WHAT a "headgear" is. But that was all. "I had no idea WHY he was suddenly talking about it. 'What does he want from me?', I thought ..."

"It is important that you wear it," said Dr. Moretti repeated. "It can only work, if you WEAR it, you understand?"

"Only now did it click for me: 'He really thinks that I have such a thing? He must have gone completely bonkers, I thought ..."

"I think I shook my head then", Tanja continues, "I don't know exactly anymore. I told him I didn't have headgear ..."

"And what did he say then?" The father wants to know when his daughter stops talking.

"I think he didn't understand me at first," she says, shrugging her shoulders. "Maybe I wasn't clear enough. I didn't get my words together... so I just told him: 'I don't have it' or something like that ..."

"And then?", This time the mother asked.

"Then? Then he said: 'Yes, I can SEE that you do not wear your headgear right now. But that is not good!'"

"Then he smiled. Really patronizing, completely condescending!", The girl is upset. "and said that he could understand that such a brace was a little embarrassing. And that he could understand that I didn't want to wear it ... Anyway, I think that he said that, my English isn't good enough to have understood everything ... "

"But your teeth won't move, if you do not wear ... ahh ... ALL of your braces. You really should try and wear your headgear as much as possible! Even if you do not like it ..." In one way or another, he had insisted again on knowing what to do with the girl in front of him on the chair.

She shakes her head, half out of anger, half out of resignation.

"And then he said something about 'motivation' and 'heat', but by then I had already switched off internally and didn't really understand what he was telling me ..."

"I then told him AGAIN that I DON'T HAVE headgear. Like, at all! And I think THEN he finally understood ..."

"Oh ... I'm sorry ... I thought that you have headgear ... You see, to me your teeth look like you ... ahh ... need headgear, you understand ... and so I thought that ... ahh ... again, I'm sorry! "

"And what happened after that?"

"Nothing," Tanja laughs dryly, "we all looked stupid. I think he was embarrassed, but - to be honest - I don't care. I was even more embarrassed ... Then I hopped out of the chair ... and you know the rest ... "

During her internet research several months ago, Tanja could not have imagined that a treatment could hold anything worse than having to wear headgear. And that opinion still holds true. More than ever.

Why?

"Really now?" Tanja doesn't know if she had ever heard such a stupid question: One look is enough! When you see how people who have to wear such a torture device look like... Then all questions as to the "why" are more than superfluous:

IT'S EMBARRASSING AS SHIT!!!

And now Dr. Moretti told her that she would have to wear something like this ... or at least he had indicated that he would probably have installed such a device on her if she had been treated by him ... Terrible! Absolutely awful!

Just the thought of it gives her massive goose bumps.

That probably explains quite well why she was so freaked out earlier: To find out so suddenly, "brutally and mercilessly" that she might have had to wear such a torture device is hard. Especially because the whole topic of "braces" is uncomfortable for Tanja, as she has to admit ...

Fortunately, a harmless solution had been found! Tanja starts to relax.



"We can ask Dr. Mahlmann what he has to say about it when we are back home," suggests the mother naively.

"Are you stupid? Don't do that!" Tanja straightens up in the car seat in shock, her eyes wide. "That's the last thing I need! In the end, he might get the idea that such a bridle would be a good idea after all ... Let it go! Just... don't do it"

For the remainder of the drive, she stares out the window thoughtfully. The fact that the air conditioning system has achieved partial success and that Tanja at least no longer feels like being broiled alive is only a small consolation.

Friday afternoon

Chapter 07/15 - The reaction

OK, OK, it's the Spaniards who have "siesta". But the Italians probably have something similar, Tanja is sure as she lies lazily on the couch. This heat is unbearable any other way ... Her parents can absolutely forget about taking a stroll through Rome tomorrow in these temperatures ... A stroll down to the beach is the maximum that could be asked of her!

"What did you mean earlier about 'Dr. Mahlmann'?"

The addressed lays down her book. Suddenly Tanja has the feeling of impending doom, for her mother's expression is definitely guilty ... She terrible suspicion dawns on her:

"You ... you didn't REALLY ask him about what he thinks of headgear, did you?" One look is answer enough; Tanja's eyes widen.

"MOM! That's bull...! Why? That ... that really sucks... Oh man." She stares at her mother bitterly. "Why did you do that, I TOLD you not to tell him..."

But when the criticized woman starts to answer, Tanja waves it away: "I don't even want to know!" Angrily, she picks up her cell phone and ignores her mother's attempts to continue the conversation.

Typical! Just typical! Her parents always have to do such shit, always have to go one step too far ... That sucks! She explicitly forbade her mother to bring up THIS topic! But did the stupid cow listen? Of course not ... A few seconds of tense silence go by.

"I called him this morning, just to let him know that the repair of your braces was successful," the mother finally says. "I think that's appropriate."

"Fine... whatever! But you shouldn't have asked him about the ... that 'thing' ...", Tanja hisses.

"Oh honey ..." The mother speaks in a tone of voice that is half apologetic and half justifying. She knows well that her daughter doesn't like the subject of "braces" and would have preferred to keep quiet about it. And that she had acted against her daughter's wishes, so to speak.

On the other hand, she can't really understand why: Tanja has crooked teeth and there's no changing that. That's why she needs braces, it's that simple! Her daughter had understood that herself! Tanja is not enthusiastic about her treatment, but she accepted it without any major problems ...

And if something comes up that could be important for her further treatment, that thing should at least be addressed, shouldn't it? Even if that means that the daughter may have to deal with a topic that is a little uncomfortable to her! After all, it's only in Tanja's best interest.

Furthermore: There still is no way of telling whether her daughter actually needs such a device in the end ... She just had a simple discussion with the doctor, but the young lady is behaving again like a madman...

But what is it that is actually bothering her? After all... what's so bad about braces? More-or-less every child these days has braces ... Well, granted, not EVERY SINGLE child has headgear, but ... that's not something to be upset about, is it? Well, that dear daughter of hers sometimes is just a little bit over-sensitive ...



But Tanja is far more than that: She is pissed off, she is furious. She sits on the couch with clenched teeth and stares straight ahead. But a new feeling is making itself known. With the subtlety and restraint of a steam hammer: nervousness and fear.

So far, the topic has been just plain embarrassing. But what if there is more to it?

What if Dr. Mahlmann thinks the idea of headgear is "not that far-fetched" after all? If he says "Oh, Ms. Maier, that's actually a sensible suggestion ..." then what?

Then she's fucked ... BIG TIME! Her parents will no doubt take the doctor's side again and demand that she wears that terrible torture device ...

And that's only thanks to those stupid idiots over there who can't let a thing rest ONE SINGLE TIME. They always have to exaggerate. ALWAYS! Typical! So damn typical! Shit!

Tanja refuses to even notice her parents. She desperately stares at the display of her smartphone. But that doesn't last long. As she absolutely cannot concentrate on the game, she makes a lot of careless mistakes and loses one life after the other. With every passing second, she just gets more nervous:

She wants to know what the orthodontist had said to her mother. No, that's wrong: she definitely does NOT WANT to know. But she MUST know. She needs to know what to expect. She needs to know if her life has already been ruined or if she can still wriggle out of it.

Therefore, out of the corner of her eye she keeps looking over to her mother, who, however, has resumed reading her book and makes no move to continue talking. Finally, she can't take it anymore.

She's almost afraid of the answer, but she has to ask, she simply HAS TO... Her attempt to sound as casual as possible however fails catastrophically. "So... what did he say?"

The facial expression of the addressed does not bode well, for there is no "Dr. Mahlmann thinks, the idea is stupid" to be read in it. On the contrary:

"He wasn't surprised," explains the mother cautiously, and Tanja's heart sinks. That doesn't sound good at all ...

"What? What do you mean?"

"Well, he was surprised that Dr. Moretti had told you so directly that you should wear your braces more ... after all, you are not HIS patient ..."

"But ...", Tanja licks her dry lips, "but he wasn't surprised about the idea with the ... the 'thing' in itself?"

"No, not really", the mother has to admit: "He told me that he had already thought about whether he should bring up the subject with you."

"Nah, you're kidding, right?" Terrible! Tanja looks at her parents with big eyes. Exactly that, EXACTLY THAT she had NOT wanted to hear.

"But you're a borderline case, he then explained. In your case, this something-something ... what did he call it ... uhhh ... 'extra ... oral ... something' ... whatever ... In your case such a brace is not strictly necessarily. And because he understands fully well that such a brace is not a cause of joy to his patients, he decided against proposing it to you. Because it is - as he said - not absolutely necessary for you! "

"'Cause of joy' my ass!", Tanja rolls her eyes. She doesn't know whether to be alarmed or relieved. Maybe both:

Her teeth seem to be more crooked than she always imagined. FAR MORE crooked than she wanted to admit to herself. She always thought she had "normally crooked" teeth. Just "misaligned enough" that fixed braces are necessary. But not more. That the "truth" deviates significantly from her assumptions comes as a shock:

It appears that if she had had only minimally worse misaligned teeth, she would probably have been walking around with such a hideous bridle by now. With Dr. Moretti at any rate and apparently with Dr. Mahlmann too. Terrible thought!

But obviously her orthodontist can still solve her case without that metal bow... How did he call her? "Borderline case"? She seems to have scraped past this highly embarrassing instrument by a hair's breadth. That is definitely a cause for relief!

Part 3

Friday evening

Chapter 09/15 - Thoughts

In the evening, after the greatest heat has subsided, Tanja goes down to the beach more mechanically than enthusiastically. It's still rather crowded at the beach; no wonder in this weather. She doesn't really feel like bathing AGAIN today, but she has to be alone now. There is not really room for her in the small holiday home. She does have her own bedroom, but it's far too warm and stuffy there at the moment. She wouldn't have lasted long in there. And in the living room where her parents are ... thanks, no thanks!

Too much is going around in her head and she wants to think in peace. And the beach is ideal for this. Lots of people, but paradoxically, she's still alone with herself and the chaos in her head.



Earlier today, after the worst part of the quarrel had subsided, Tanja had asked her mother to explain in detail what she had learned in her conversation with Dr. Mahlmann. It had been hard for her to talk to the very person who got the whole thing rolling and who she was still pissed at. But she just HAD to know where she was standing.

It wasn't much what the doctor had said over the phone; her mother had practically nothing to report that had not already been mentioned during the dispute:

His young patient had a misalignment of the form that made him consider whether he should include headgear in her treatment plan ... But because Tanja is a borderline case and he knows that such devices are generally not well received and thus not worn by his patients, in the end he decided against it.

That's all the mother could tell. And that ... that's not a lot of information ... practically nothing! Neither one thing nor the other. Not here, not there... He did not explicitly say that she HAD to wear headgear, nor did he say that she did NOT have to wear it ... Tanja cannot do anything with THAT kind of vague information...

Perhaps that is the very reason why she was so restless in the last few hours; why she was constantly fluctuating between two extremes:

On the one hand, her orthodontist did NOT insist that she walk around with such an embarrassing bridle. And her parents had promised to let her decide. So she just has to decide not to wear that thing and the matter is dealt with... There would be no reason to be upset and Tanja was about to put the thought of headgear aside, relieved. But...

On the other hand, the doctor had EXPLICITLY stated that such a torture device would be beneficial for her. Not absolutely necessary, but useful. And can she really trust her parents - who never can let things rest - that they won't interfere in her decision? Of course she can NOT! So she HAS to expect that she might end up getting strapped into such a metal bow.

But ... but ... Dr. Mahlmann did NOT insist on ...

This went on-and-on for several hours on end. From one extreme to the other and back again. From the feeling that "not all is lost" to the blackest desperation of "her life being over". Back and forth, again and again ... Until she couldn't take it anymore, had to put on her swimsuit and march down to the beach ...

Too many different thoughts? Not that, no. There has only been ONE thing that is important to her for the last couple of hours. So no: not too many thoughts, rather too much confusion on the ONE topic. And that's not even overly complicated. It's actually quite simple:

"I don't want fucking headgear! At no cost in the world! I don't want to!"



Fortunately, there's one thing she actually is quite sure about now: She no longer believes that her parents would really FORCE her to wear such a thing. No - in all honesty - she never really believed in it. The parents aren't THAT bad. They act rashly and keep overshooting. But to positively urge her daughter against her will to wear headgear ... No, that goes a little too far. Even for them!

She had possibly exaggerated that a little earlier ... She had just let herself be too impressed by her aversion to the conspicuous instrument ... and - as embarrassing as it is having to admit it - as a consequence she went a bit too far herself ... just goes to show that she's her parents child...

But that doesn't mean that she'd have to apologize for her outburst, because - at least from the standpoint of the teenager - the adults may not FORCE her to wear headgear but they will SURELY at least swing the moral hammer if Tanja should decide AGAINST headgear.

And then with a high probability she would have to listen to sentences like these:

"If both orthodontists consider it necessary, then at least you too should consider earnestly, whether ... " Oh, by the way, her mother had already used this "gem", so there!

or

"Just think how much nicer your smile could be if ...",

or

"You already have braces anyway, then it doesn't make a big difference if ...",

or

"So far everything went smoothly in your treatment. You surely won't let it get in your way, if ..."

or her personal "favorite":

"It's not going to be as bad as you are now imagining it to be. My goodness, don't be so overly sensitive if ..."



She finds a place for her towel. Of course, she left all valuables with her parents in the holiday home. The fine sand crunches under her feet as she makes her way to the waterfront. After the heat of the day, it's almost too hot to stand on sand barefoot.

The worst part? The absolute worst?

"They are not even wrong with SOME of their stupid points!" Tanja has to admit with a heavy heart.

After the argument this afternoon, she had stormed into her room furiously, full of rage, blind anger and wet corners of her eyes. And it had taken some time before she had calmed down enough to stop cursing the adults. After all, they were well on their way to ruin their daughter's life, yes they were!

As said before, some time had passed until her anger had subsided enough to make her understand that nothing would be gained by her remaining in her absolute denial phase. Because this defiance mode does not solve problems; on the contrary, it reliably prevents her from arriving at a solution.

As long as she refuses to deal with the subject, everything will stay as it is now. As long as the headgear was nothing more than a creepy image she saw in the Internet, everything was fine. But today at noon things changed dramatically. A solution is needed NOW! Urgently!

Of course she doesn't WANT to deal with the uncomfortable subject. She would much rather lie lazily on the beach and let her mind wander to more pleasant things. But that is of no use at all, because the impending disaster on the horizon - in the form of a silver metal bow strapped around her face - will unfortunately not disappear just by ignoring it ...

Her parents WILL most certainly insist that she deal with the subject. So if she doesn't want to be "overhelmed" by braces in a few weeks, she must have thought about them beforehand.

As soon as she understood that, she really started to think. As her father had asked ... "Pah, dad can bugger off. Imagining that he knows better than myself what I need or want. Pah! He has no idea ..."

As said, it had taken time for Tanja to realize that postponement would not work. And she hated that realization.

But she also understood one thing: her father was serious when he said she'd better think about the possibility of headgear. Because HE is guaranteed not to forget the topic.

If she doesn't talk with Dr. Mahlmann of her own accord, her father would do it for her. Tanja is sure of that. And if by then she still had refused to deal with the subject ... If she hadn't come up with a battle plan by then, she would find her stranded alone! And then...

Well, then there would only be ONE suffering: Herself. And that ... Tanja laughs hard: That doesn't need to be.

So she HAD been thinking. Earnestly. With a lot of reluctance, but still earnestly! Of course, the direction her thoughts took was predetermined: How and where could she find a way out of this mess? How can she get around headgear? What does she have to do in order not to become a total laughingstock?

What if she flat-out refuses to even look at that stupid metal bow? Her parents wouldn't force her ... But the atmosphere at home would certainly be tense for quite a while. Not a nice thought!

But if she can't find another way out, Tanja is tempted to simply risk having disgruntled parents for a while. Hopefully they will calm down at some point ... Nevertheless, if another, a "gentler" way would present itself, she would definitely prefer it!

What arguments do her parents have anyway? Why do they believe that they know better which braces their daughter should wear? Why do they follow the orthodontists lead so blindly?

THAT is an important question, she realizes. She HAS to think about it ... Perhaps it is not the most important of all questions, but it is important enough: Because how can she come up with a plan to pull her head out of the imaginary noose if she doesn't know what the "other side" has in store for her?

Chapter 11/15 - The reasoning

And she wasn't really happy with the results. Couldn't be! After all, she had to realize that her parents would INDEED have the better - FAR BETTER - arguments, should it come to a discussion later on:

Because - if she is completely honest with herself - all she could really bring forward to her defense, would be:

"I don't want to wear headgear because... it's embarrassing."

And THAT is not worth much. It is completely understandable and even somewhat reasonable, even Dr. Moretti had admitted that. Absolutely plausible, but unfortunately of minor importance. She must - and can - see that for herself.

Tanja doesn't like to think about it, especially when compared to the arguments that the "other side" has:

The corset was certainly embarrassing for Melissa too, and yet she had worn it almost slavishly ... And look at what has become of her: nearly straight back, hardly any problems, happy with the world ...

For BOTH orthodontists, headgear would be part of the treatment strategy. With Dr. Moretti it would be a matter of course, and with Dr. Mahlmann, it would at least be within the realm of possibility. If she's unlucky, by now it may even be in the realm of the probable ... So she has to - as shitty as it is - look the truth in the eye:

The position of her teeth MUST inevitably be a complete scramble. Such a torture device is not conjured up from thin air; no orthodontist would "expose" his patients to such a device just for grins and giggles.

So her teeth ARE significantly more crooked than expected! And if "crooked" isn't the right word, then it is just some other form of misalignment ... What exactly the reason is, does not matter, because the result is the same:

Her fixed braces alone may not be enough to cope with this situation and a headgear would at least make sense, be beneficial, during the treatment ... Unfortunately, there can be no more doubt about that ...



She wades slowly into the refreshingly cool water. Objectively speaking, the sea is now bathtub temperature, but compared to the air and the hot sand it is still pleasantly cool.

So Tanja has no choice but to deal with the unpleasant "reality". Because the cat is out of the bag:

"Because mom couldn't keep her mouth shut, Dr. Mahlmann now knows that I 'found out' about headgear through Dr. Moretti. Now he definitely will raise this topic next time ..."

And even if not: Her parents demand that she talk to the doctor about the hated subject ... And if she doesn’t seek the conversation herself, her father would do it ... One way or another, there is no way around that conversation.

The only question that still arises: "Will Dr. Mahlmann insist that I need such a thing or will he say: 'We can do without!'?"

On the phone, he had explained to her mother that his patient was a borderline case and that Tanja had just scraped by it.

But is that still true now? Or will he perhaps say: "The only reason I didn't bring up the topic was because I didn't feel like having a bad-tempered teenager sit on the chair ... But now that YOU have raised the topic of your own accord, we can finally start you with headgear ... Because now, Tanja, you have had enough time to prepare yourself mentally... "

The question that everything boils down to is probably: How borderline is her "borderline case?" Or to put it another way:

What exactly does "BENEFICIAL" mean? And how much "NECESSARY" is there in "beneficial"?

At her next appointment - in a few weeks - when she meets Dr. Mahlmann, what will he say then?

"I will manage to get your teeth in line. It will just take a little longer without headgear ..."

Or is it more a case of:

"Without this metal bow, absolutely nothing useful can come of it and I don't even know anymore why I didn't start you with headgear right from the beginning ..."



She just lets herself drift and float in the water. No serious attempts to actually swim are being made, it’s too warm for that. But it's just right for bathing, for splashing around. Every now and then she looks back to her towel. Is everything still there? As said, she left valuables at home. But it would be stupid if her towel and clothes suddenly got legs of their own ...

Hopefully, HOPEFULLY the verdict will be "beneficial, but not indispensable".

Anything else would be so shit ... Because if Dr. Mahlmann should insist that there is no viable alternative to headgear, she would have a damn hard time convincing her parents that she still doesn't want to wear the damn thing.

Oh sure, she wouldn't be FORCED to wear it. She had really exaggerated a bit there ... But she would at least have to be prepared for grueling and endless discussions about why she refuses to do the "right thing for her health".

YES, that's her parents. They have no idea when they overshoot the mark again and have no understanding that some people just don't like certain topics... and they have absolutely no sense of when to shut up ...

Once again Tanja cannot and does not want to see that she is unjust herself and that her parents are not the monsters she makes them out to be. Because they're not that bad ... nowhere near "monster-level"! But she doesn't want to see that at this moment.

If the orthodontist insisted on headgear, then ... then she would be fucked. Not only would she have the doctor against her, but also her parents ... Her life as she knew it would be over. OK, that was maybe a little TOO melodramatic, but:

Just thinking about what she would look like with a bridle, made her want to sink into the ground in shame. NEVER IN LIFE would she tell her friends about it. Much less would she want to present herself to them with it. That is something that she wants to prevent, MUST prevent. She would make a total laughingstock of herself ...

"Normal braces: Fine, if I have to. My friends have them too - OK, by this point in time most of them HAVE HAD braces - but still, that's OK. But headgear? Never! For no price in the world!"

Chapter 13/15 - The preliminary decision

There's the saying "When in Rome, do as the Romans do ..." She only recently learned that in school: One should adapt to local customs. All well and good, that's harmless enough. And often also useful. Would have helped them to blend in better at the orthodonist's yesterday...

But isn't it absolutely ironic that in her particular case the saying has a second, much more momentous meaning for Tanja?

Should she follow the treatment strategy that she was first introduced to by Dr. Moretti - the orthodontist from ROME?

Should she resign herself to wearing headgear or should she stick to her current treatment, where she would avoid such a device?

She might be able to convince Dr. Mahlmann to continue treatment without headgear. Even if not, her parents had promised her that she is allowed to decide for herself ...

A treatment WITH headgear on one side, a treatment WITHOUT one on the other ... Damn it, what should she do now?

This is exactly the chaos that is floating around in your head: Actually, the PROBLEM can be summarized fairly easily, even if the SOLUTION is all the more difficult.



That must be enough for today! Tanja leaves the water almost sadly. She almost feels as if the waves want to drag her back and the soft sand holds her tight. The waves lure around her legs. But that's really enough for today. She is exhausted, tired, and powered-out. The sun blocker has certainly already lost a large part of its effect. And dinner soon should be ready too ...

So it really is time to head back to the vacation home. Even if the mood there - for understandable reasons - is still a bit tense.

The massive hatred towards her parents has subsided and has instead given way to a subliminal anger. Why do their parents - especially the mother - always have to exaggerate? Why do they always have to insist on continuing in their set ways and thus often cause more damage?

If her mother had just shut up talking to the orthodontist, the whole subject would have passed her by. The argument would not have started this afternoon, the mood would have remained cheerful.

And she wouldn't have to deal with the ramifications of the phone call. She wouldn't have to think about whether she could accept a headgear in her treatment ... Everything would have remained so simple ...

She slowly makes her way around the towels of the other tourists back to her own spot.

But maybe ... maybe a little TOO simple?

She had said that there was only ONE reason she accepted: That the position of her teeth could be improved with extraoral forces. BUT: How long had she known that? Since when did she understand that her teeth are much more crooked than expected and that the "normal" braces she is wearing now will probably not be enough?

Since noon today!

OK, she has known about the crooked teeth since Dr. Moretti. So... since yesterday. But that doesn't make any difference. What she is getting at, is:

She has only known for a few HOURS that the problems with her teeth are bigger than imagined. Even though her treatment had started more than three MONTHS ago ... even six months since the first consultation! She had known only for a few hours!

In all this time, no one has thought it necessary to explain the facts to her ... She is mad at her parents and especially at Dr. Mahlmann that they did not explain everything clearly enough to her at the beginning of the treatment.

She would have wanted to know that what her fixed braces can achieve is not the best. She would have wanted to know - she HAD to know - that there were alternatives to her current treatment. Alternatives that can achieve a better result.

YES, admittedly, she wouldn't have liked the alternatives. She would certainly have turned down headgear three months ago as intensely as she did a few hours ago.

Presumably Dr. Mahlmann didn't even mention headgear for THAT reason ... "Perhaps he suspected that I am having problems when it comes to 'braces' and therefore thought that he would do me a favor if he omitted such unpleasant things... "

The she laughs bitterly: "Or maybe he knew that I surely would have given him a hard time should he even have hinted at adding headgear to the treatment-roster..."

Whatever! She would have wanted to know! She had a right to know! Because now all the time she had misconceptions about what was going on in her mouth. She had no idea that her teeth were so badly positioned that such complex treatment devices might be necessary ... She had thought that at the end of the treatment she would have the most beautiful and straightest smile in the world ... And no one told her the truth ...

And that's just not ... right. It is unfair to keep her in the dark about something like that! Yeah, it is!



In contrast to what she had thrown at her mother earlier, she DOES care how her teeth look at the end of treatment.

"I'm not dealing with that annoying silver smile, only to have a 'halfway passable' set of teeth in the end. If I have to wear braces, then I also want the 'optimum'. Or at least as close as possible. "

She was always jealous of the straight teeth of her friends when they finally got rid of their braces. That was THE reason why she finally agreed to start a treatment herself: Because she wanted to have straight and beautiful teeth like her friends. Yeah!

And if there is a way to achieve this goal, then she would have liked to have known earlier. Because then she would have had time to think about it at her own pace. Then she would surely have come to a result that she could have lived with.

Maybe with headgear, maybe without. Of course, NOW there's no saying how she would have decided BACK THEN. Especially if the matter would have been explained to her patiently and in detail at the time, instead of just throwing her in at the deep end now.

The conversation would certainly not have been easy - for all parties - but had "headgear" been made a topic at the time, it would at least have given her time to think about it and work her way through to a solution.

But no, it was only now - in the middle of her vacation - that she had to be confronted with it in such an excessive fashion. Now that she actually wanted to do a lot of other - nicer - things than to deal with the topic of braces and headgear, her thoughts revolve around nothing else ...