I’d been
trying to remove a painful piece of nut lodged between my upper right molar and
the one next to it when I began to suspect the tooth was moving as well. I
tested it, and it was loose alright.
I tore off
a piece of my rag shirt, the clean one, and dabbed at the area. That’s when I
saw the pus and blood. Without thinking, I pushed it as hard as I could
ignoring the pain. Back and forth, again and again ,until there was a crack.
I stuffed
a piece of the shirt rag in the hole and looked at the tooth. Tooth? Whatever it now was, I could only admire it. I
began laughing. Softly at first, the kind of polite chuckle you would have heard
at a dinner party or the library. But my laughter gradually grew - like it was
being pumped up inside me.
Soon, it
was like the unchecked giggles of a child. Gradually, it became
hysterical. Tears rolled down my beard mixing with gooey blood. Had someone heard me, they wouldn’t have known whether it was laughter or the bellowing of a beast. Had someone seen me, they would have thought me mad. Would have, if anyone were
left, that is.
END
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