A few years ago, my four-year-old son underwent a series of four back-to-back dental visits to address what I now know was the result of years of neglect in maintaining proper dental hygiene—largely my own doing. The process was exhausting, but by the time we arrived for his third appointment, there seemed to be light at the end of the tunnel. Of course, as often happens in life, that light turned out to be a train speeding toward us.
While my son has not been the best at brushing his teeth at home—and perhaps he inherited some unfavorable genetics regarding tooth enamel—one thing he excels at is sitting patiently in the dentist’s chair. From the moment we walked in, he would calmly climb into the reclining chair and remain still and silent throughout the procedure. It was nothing short of impressive, to the point where I even considered scheduling additional appointments just to keep him entertained for an hour.
The third visit went without a hitch, just like the first two. But there was something special to look forward to at the end: the fabled “secret prize closet.” We had only learned of this coveted treasure trove after the dentist casually mentioned it. Though we had no idea where it was, we were excited by the prospect. As the dentist finished his work and quickly excused himself for lunch, he left his assistant to wrap things up—such as packing the gauze in the extraction site and, hopefully, guiding us to the prize closet.
The assistant handled the gauze part flawlessly, but when it came time to direct us to the prize closet, she led us straight to the exit. I hesitated, speaking up tentatively, “I think the doctor mentioned something about a prize closet?”
“Oh, yes!” she replied, suddenly remembering. “That’s right.”
A wave of relief washed over me as I steeled myself for our next move. Between my son’s impeccable behavior—no doubt a happy coincidence rather than any direct influence from me—and my assertiveness in ensuring we didn’t miss out on the prize closet, I felt like I had achieved peak parenting. And it was only noon!
We finally arrived at the “secret” prize closet, which, to my surprise, was not so secret. It was right behind the door the dentist had gestured to earlier. Moreover, it wasn’t a closet at all but more of an office space with a bookshelf. The most unexpected discovery, however, was the Xbox game resting in the center of the prize shelf.
I casually handed it to my son, trying to keep my cool so as not to give away our plans. “Maybe this is something you’ll like,” I suggested, my voice calm.
“Yeah!” he agreed, albeit muffled from the gauze in his mouth.
With the Xbox game now in our possession, we exited as nonchalantly as possible. But once we made it to the car and I opened the game case, my excitement quickly turned to confusion. It was empty.
“Oh no,” I muttered. “It’s empty. Well, maybe the case itself was the prize?”
I’m not sure why I tried to convince myself of that. I even texted my wife the same explanation moments later, which now feels incredibly strange. Maybe it was shock from the whirlwind of the visit—the dentist’s work, the revelation of the secret prize closet, and my valiant fight to secure our prize. Or maybe I was just grasping at straws, but I couldn’t fathom the idea that a dentist would hand out an empty Xbox game case as a prize.
My son seemed oddly unfazed by the disappointment, likely due to the lingering effects of the laughing gas. However, the thought of returning to the office to inquire about the missing game was too awkward for me to bear. I was exhausted from battling bureaucracy once and wasn’t about to engage in a second round of uncomfortable exchanges.
As we drove away, my wife calmly suggested that I return to the office and ask about the game. She reasoned that it would be better to resolve the situation now, rather than face a meltdown when our son sobered up and realized the game wasn’t there. I understood her logic, but the thought of confronting the situation made my heart race with dread. Could anything be more awkward than this?
Reluctantly, I turned the car around. Walking back into the office carrying my child and the empty Xbox case was not the smoothest move. As I approached the receptionist, I could feel my anxiety pulsing through my shirt, practically visible to everyone around me.
“Oh, you again,” she greeted me, but in a kind manner. (I imagined, for a brief moment, that she might have joked about calling the cops—but she didn’t.) She kindly offered to check on the situation and returned shortly after confirming that the game was in use in the video game room. My son was welcome to pick another prize instead.
A wave of relief washed over me. We quickly grabbed a googly-eyed snowman book and left, thankful that the ordeal was finally over. My son was perfectly content with his new prize, but it took me a few weeks to fully recover from the experience.
Looking back, I realized an important lesson—one I’ve learned before but somehow keep forgetting. When it comes to unexpected surprises, especially at the dentist, always look before you leap. If there’s a potential for disappointment, you’ll want to know what’s hidden beneath the surface—particularly if it’s an empty Xbox game case. That’s when things start to get awkward..
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