Sami looked at the pile of white tissues soaked in blood in the dustbin and felt tears forming in his eyes. Despite the dentist’s warning, he found his tongue creeping towards the back of his mouth. The disobeying organ met a soft spot, the abyss — the old abode of his departed tooth. He promised himself he would not cry, but the reality of his situation forced him.

Two lost teeth, angry parents, no video games, no new bicycle! Did he deserve all of that? The truth was, he did.

Sami was a quick-witted nine-year-old, full of bubbly energy. But due to some odd reasons, he dedicated all his energy towards playing and mischief, ignoring his chores, homework and hygiene.

His parents used to constantly remind him to brush his teeth, change clothes, etc. But he found all of this boring, especially brushing his teeth! It was like a big trouble to him. He used to spend a few seconds speed-brushing and washing his face, but even that was too long for him.

So racking his mischievous brains, he cracked the code a few months before this horrible experience. Twice a day he would go in the washroom and quickly wet his toothbrush and face, not touching the toothpaste or soap or even brushing!

His parents, trusting him, fell for his deception and didn’t smell anything fishy. Sami followed this routine for more than six months and that caused him a big, big loss.

Sami loved eating all kinds of sweets. He would spend all his allowance on buying different sorts of candies, chocolates and cakes. Since he was always munching on one bubblegum or the other, his breath didn’t stink and so his parents were assured. His parents were unaware that whenever Sami went out with his friends, he only ate sweets!

One night, Sami woke up with a sharp pain in his mouth. He tried to ignore it, thinking it would go away. But the next morning, the pain was worse. He touched the sore spot and felt a small hole. He knew it was a cavity, but decided not to tell his parents. Days turned into weeks, and the pain became his constant companion. He couldn’t enjoy his sweets anymore, consuming anything mildly hot or cold caused him to wince, but he still didn’t say a word.

One day, at a family event, he was drinking a soft drink. The cold icy liquid attacked his enemy-stricken tooth and the pain was so sharp that he couldn’t suppress his cry. His mother observed this and when they were back home, inquired about it. He couldn’t ignore it anymore and confessed to his parents. With further ado, they rushed him to the dentist the next day.

The dentist examined Sami’s teeth and gave him a stern look.

“Seems like you haven’t touched the toothbrush in ages. And now you have a big, deep cavity, young man. This tooth is beyond saving and needs to be removed,” the dentist declared.

Sami’s heart sank. He looked at his parents with a miserable face, but their glare didn’t soften. They were disappointed. But apparently, the dentist was not done yet.

“And this one…,” he continued, pointing to the neighbouring tooth, “will need a root canal.”

The tooth extraction was painful and bloody, and the root canal was even worse. It was also an expensive procedure, and his parents were not happy. They scolded him for not taking care of his teeth and for not telling them about the pain sooner. They took away his video games and cancelled the plan to buy him a new bicycle.

Sami felt miserable. He sat in his room, thinking about how he got to this point. He realised that all the pain and punishment could have been avoided if he had just listened to his parents and taken care of his teeth. He promised himself he would never let this happen again. He would brush his teeth every day, no matter how boring it seemed. And he would go for regular dental check-ups.

From that day on, Sami became very particular about his dental hygiene. He brushed twice a day, avoided eating too many sweets and listened to his parents. It was a hard lesson learnt, but Sami was determined never to go through that pain again.

Published in Dawn, Young World, April 5th, 2025