Chapter Text
Skeppy had a problem.
You see, his wisdom teeth had been coming out for a while now, and they had started to bother his other teeth.
Enough that it’d hurt to eat sometimes.
He knew that he would have to deal with the problem at some point, but he kept putting it off, which only worsened the pain.
So, he finally scheduled an appointment with a dentist to discuss the removal of the teeth.
It was all going great until he heard that he wouldn’t be under any form of sedation during the surgery.
Which meant that he would be fully awake as the man ripped the teeth out of him.
…And that terrified him.
The surgery would happen in a couple of weeks, but he couldn't stop the dread from going away.
Shakily, he had asked his best friend if he could take him there (and take care of him after the surgery), which he gladly agreed to.
Which is what led them here:
“Bad, are you sure it’s gonna be fine? Like- what if something goes wrong?” Skeppy asked with a distressed voice, squirming in the co-pilot seat of the car.
“You’re going to be fine, Geppy,” Bad replied casually, keeping his eyes glued to the road, “The dentist knows what he’s doing. Besides, you know that I’ve gotten that surgery before and I was fine!”
“Well- Yeah! But- you were sedated and all loopy and stuff! I won’t- get that…” Skeppy grunted, crossing his arms and looking away. He played with the strings of his hoodie as he stared out the window.
Bad sighed, “I know, just- trust the process, alright?” He pulled into the building’s parking lot. “You will be fine, nothing bad will happen and I’m going to be right here, okay?”
Skeppy looked at him before nodding. He looked away before he uttered, “Sorry for getting mad, I’m just scared.”
A soft smile broke into Bad’s face. “It’s okay, I get it,” he replied as he parked the car. He grabbed a pair of black headphones from the backseat before adding, “Now let’s go.”
Skeppy’s heart started pounding in his chest as his shaky hands pulled the seatbelt off him. They both got out of the car and made their way towards the entrance of the building.
Bad pushed the door open, letting his younger friend and himself inside. The lobby was empty, only with a few chairs and a small table. The lady at the desk perked up.
“Do you guys have an appointment?” She asked politely. Bad nodded and softly nudged his friend to answer.
“Y-Yeah, I’m here to get my wisdom teeth removed…” Skeppy responded slowly, softly grabbing at one the strings of his hoodie. She looked through the computer monitor in front of her, the clicks of her mouse creating the only sound in the room.
“Zak Ahmed?” The woman asked, looking up. Skeppy nodded, awkwardly rocking back and forth with his feet, “Yup, that’s me…”
The lady typed something on the keyboard and then explained, “Alright, the dentist will call you in a bit. Feel free to sit down.” She motioned to the chairs. Bad smiled, “Thank you.” He motioned Skeppy to the reception chairs.
When they sat down, Skeppy began to play around with the fingers of his hands, visibly looking worried.
Bad frowned at this, placing a gentle hand on his friend’s shoulder. “You’re going to be fine, Skeppy.”
His nervous friend looked up at him, so he continued, “Remember, you’re not gonna feel any pain. You might feel stuff in your mouth and you might hear loud sounds, but that’s why we brought these.”
Bad pulled up his other hand which was holding a pair of bluetooth headphones. He handed them to Skeppy.
“C’mon, connect them to your phone.” Skeppy nodded, pulling out his phone with trembling hands. As he clicked around with the settings, he silently appreciated his friend’s help, who had found a way of keeping him busy.
“Alright, they’re connected…” Skeppy muttered, and Bad smiled. “Great, do you have a playlist downloaded?”
“Yeah, I actually-” Skeppy was quickly startled by loud footsteps from the hallway. Bad noticed how he clutched the headphones in his hands.
“Zak Ahmed?” The dentist asked aloud, his eyes landing on the two figures in the lobby.
Skeppy felt his heartbeat begin to race. He felt like a deer in the headlights, remaining silent. “...He’s here,” Bad replied for his friend, softly caressing his friend’s shoulder. It helped calm down Skeppy’s nerves a bit.
The orthodontist nodded, “Follow me.” They both got up and began walking behind the dentist who was leading them to the dental treatment area. Bad moved his hand from Skeppy’s shoulder, instead wrapping his arm around his shoulders for comfort.
Bad felt Skeppy leaning closer to him as they walked.
They made it to the room which had counters and cabinets filled with equipment, alongside a dental chair with many lights and a side table. It had tubes that led to various little contraptions, nicely placed on designated holes on the moveable table. Skeppy gulped in dread.
“Please, have a seat,” the orthodontist stated as he began moving stuff around the room. Skeppy left the comfort of his friend and he hesitantly sat down, pulling up his legs to recline on the rest of the dental chair. He looked up at Bad, who smiled at him and gave him a thumbs up.
“S-So, how long is this gonna take?” Skeppy asked quietly as the dentist placed a tray of tools and needles on the table. He shrugged, adjusting the chair his patient was in and laying him back, “It varies from person to person, but probably around 2 to 3 hours…”
Skeppy felt his blood run cold.
What.
How was he supposed to last 3 hours like this?!
He looked at his best friend in distress, hoping there was something he could do about his situation. Bad could only frown at him in response.
The orthodontist grabbed a small bag and pulled out two blue gloves from it, sliding them on his hands with a nice stretch. “I’m going to begin the surgery,” he looked at his patient’s friend, “You should wait in the lobby for this.”
Bad’s face fell at this, but he nodded understandingly. He was about to wave good-bye until Skeppy cut him off. “WAIT!” He exclaimed, gaining both their attention. “C-Can’t he stay here? At least- for a bit? I-I’ll be very restless but I promise I’ll be more calm if he stays.” Bad’s heart silently melted as he stared at Skeppy with fondness in his eyes.
The dentist thought about it for a moment, then replied, “He can stay here until we begin the removal of your wisdom teeth, as there’s some procedures we have to follow before that. Is that okay?”
Skeppy had never nodded faster in his life. Bad smiled, walking over to the other side of the dental chair so as to not bother the dentist’s working space. He sat down on a chair that was already in place.
“Feel better, muffin?” Bad asked softly, ruffling his friend’s hair. Skeppy instinctively grinned at it. “Yeah, thank you.”
Bad grabbed Skeppy’s headphones and carefully placed them on his head, motioning the younger to start playing music for himself. He opened his playlist and clicked “Play”, his headphones beginning to play quiet music in his ears. Once his hands were freed, Bad hesitantly placed his hand on top of Skeppy’s, beginning to hold it gently.
To his surprise, Skeppy moved his hand to properly hold onto Bad’s. The older of the two smiled, giving his favorite muffin’s hand a small squeeze. “I’m going to be right here, alright?” Skeppy nodded, feeling a lot more comfortable about the situation.
The orthodontist sat down on his own chair, which looked identical to the one Bad was on. “Alright, I will now start with the procedure,” he started, turning on the chair’s head lights, “I will begin with the anesthesia, so I’ll need you to open your mouth as much as you can.”
Skeppy nodded, opening his mouth. The dentist sprayed a weird-tasting liquid in his mouth, and he instantly felt his tongue and walls of his mouth falling asleep. This seemed pretty okay in his opinion.
Then the dentist pulled up the first needle.
Skeppy felt Bad’s hand immediately tense up at the sight, though he wasn’t surprised by the action. Bad had shared with him his intense fear of needles, so he probably just felt scared for him.
“This will be the only time you might feel pain during the procedure, as it is applying the anesthesia further into your gums. I apologize if it hurts.”
As the needle got closer to Skeppy’s mouth, Bad couldn't help but instantly look away. He wouldn't be able to handle seeing needles being dug into the gums of his favorite person.
Skeppy yelped in pain at the new, unwelcoming feeling, squeezing his friend’s hand for any form of relief. Bad’s heart only crumbled at the sound.
He hated hearing Skeppy in pain.
He quickly squeezed his hand back, beginning to rub circles on his hand as he kept his eyes glued to the wall.
After a bit, the needle was removed. Skeppy breathed heavily, calming down, only for another yelp to escape him as it was placed elsewhere in his gums. Bad kept trying to comfort him as best he could, though it also felt like he was comforting himself.
This time, he grabbed Skeppy’s hand with both of his hands and began caressing him softly, accepting the tight squeezes his friend was giving back.
Skeppy quickly realized he would have two injections per wisdom tooth, one of the left side of the tooth, and one on the right. He hated the feeling of the needle digging into his gums, but he really tried to not show his pain.
For Bad.
He didn’t want to show his pain for Bad.
His yelps got quieter and he altered to shutting his eyes when the needle stabbed him. However, he couldn’t prevent his tightening hold on Bad’s hands. He could still feel his hands caressing his own, which he was really grateful for, even if he wouldn’t admit it.
The last needle was finally removed, and Skeppy sighed in relief. He gently opened his eyes to see Bad looking at the wall in front of them. He gave him two quick squeezes, which caused his friend to finally look at him. He attempted to smile, but he couldn’t close his mouth yet. Bad giggled at his attempt.
“I’ll need to wait a minute for the anesthesia to start taking effect,” the dentist informed the two best friends, “But that’s when I’ll start the procedure.” Bad hummed in acknowledgment while Skeppy felt his dread crawling back.
To make himself feel better, he pulled his and Bad’s joined hands to the top of his head, freeing his hand and placing Bad’s on his hair, hoping he’d get the hint.
Bad gave him a confused glance, until he finally understood his friend’s request. He rolled his eyes with a smile, “You’re such a muffinhead.” He began running his hand through Skeppy’s hair, instantly putting both of them at ease.
Skeppy closed his eyes, focusing on Bad’s hand on his hair. He happily leaned into it, earning a smile from the taller. He could feel how his mouth began falling asleep. It wasn’t the worst feeling, but it definitely wasn’t comfortable.
Bad focused on his friend’s hair, whether it was untangling little knots that had formed or twirling around individual strands of hair. He always found a sense of peace in doing the tender action. It felt comforting in a way, knowing Skeppy allowed him to do it, even wanted it for his own comfort.
—
“Alright, I think that should be enough time…” The orthodontist stated, bursting Bad and Skeppy’s little bubble. The younger felt his friend’s hand freeze in place.
“Oh… Um- okay,” Bad replied slowly, letting his fingers slip from the strands of hair and standing up from his chair. Skeppy had to stop himself from whining at the loss of contact.
He felt his anxiety crawling back up, until he felt Bad getting ahold of his hand. The younger looked up instinctively.
“Don't worry, I’m still gonna be here, alright?” The taller reassured, giving his hand a small squeeze before letting go. Skeppy nodded, feeling just a little bit more brave.
Bad passed through the dental chair towards the exit of the room. He turned around and uttered a small, “Bye, Geppy,” with a quick wave before strolling through the hallway towards the reception area.
The receptionist looked up when she heard his footsteps.
“You’ll help the patient with his recovery after the surgery, correct?” She asked politely, and Bad nodded, moving towards the desk.
“Great, I have some papers with a few prescriptions of medications he’ll need to take. That and a list of precautions and foods he’s allowed to eat as the days go by,” she explained, holding out 2 pieces of paper.
“Okay, thank you,” he replied, taking the papers from her. “We have some of the medications he’ll need in here. I’ll go get them if you excuse me.”
Bad nodded, and she stood up and went through a staff only door behind the desk. Since he had time, he looked at the paper that had all the post-surgery instructions.
After a quick scan, he understood that for today, Skeppy wasn’t allowed to eat any warm foods, only cold beverages. He made a mental note to take him to get a smoothie after he was done.
He looked past the diet section and onto the precautions for the first couple of days. His friend had to maintain the best oral hygiene and had to apply cold packs in the swollen areas.
Not only that, but also sleep with 2 pillows and after 2 days, he had to switch to warm fomentation and massage the swollen area. He tried to keep all of that in mind.
Bad heard a door creak open, causing him to look up to see the receptionist come out with a small bag with medications inside.
A quick transaction later and he sat down in the reception area, placing the bag on the small side table.
Since he had time, he looked at the other paper with the prescriptions and looked through the medicines he already had.
Bad decided to take advantage of the time he had to get the medicines he was missing. He got up and walked out of the facility, pulling up his car keys and unlocking the car.
—
Skeppy was not okay.
He couldn't tell how much time had passed since the surgery started, but it felt like an eternity. He tried to distract himself with his music, but he couldn't even do that because the dentist kept asking him to move- look this way, look that way- it was annoying.
And sure, he couldn't feel any pain, but the aggressive tugs at his teeth and the cracks were enough to keep him uneasy for the whole time.
They had started with his bottom teeth, and he remembers how his first tooth took a while. Like maybe 50 or so minutes. He also remembers the strange feeling of a sharp… thing digging into his gums to feel the tip of a tooth he didn’t feel he had.
For the first 2 teeth, he felt sane enough to not move too much during the process, but by the end, he was restless.
He wanted to kick his legs so hard for being still for too long. The anesthesia for his bottom right tooth was wearing off, and it hurt.
Like a lot.
It didn’t help that the back of his head also hurt like hell because of the pressure the dentist was applying.
He couldn't wait for it to be over.
—
The dentist finally, finally finished with his last tooth as the little opening was closed shut with some wires. The dental gag was removed from him which made him realize he couldn’t… feel his lower lip. The man got two cotton gauzes and placed them in between the four holes in Skeppy’s mouth, asking him to bite down.
The younger obliged, though he really wanted to take them off.
The orthodontist clicked some buttons and his chair’s backrest was moving to make him sit up. He lifted his head in relief as the pressure was gone.
Before he could do anything else, the man used his fingers to firmly massage the sides of his face, the pressure adding more pain to the pain he was already feeling.
Ow.
He would’ve done something to make him stop, but it's not like he can talk at the moment. …Or at all. After a few seconds, he pulled away.
“The surgery is complete. I’ll go get your friend, alright?” The dentist informed, taking off his gloves and throwing them in a nearby trash can. Skeppy nodded slowly, realizing how exhausted he felt.
As the man left, he carefully grabbed his bottom lip to make his mouth properly close.
It felt weird.
He felt weird.
When he saw Bad walk in the room, he felt huge amounts of relief, but all he could do was stare at him with droopy eyes.
“Hi, Geppy,” Bad greeted slowly, his eyes quickly landing on his friend’s face. He was taken by surprise, but something deeply fond overtook his gaze. Skeppy’s cheeks were already getting swollen, and he couldn't stop thinking about how adorable it looked.
“C’mon, let’s go,” he continued gently, walking over to him to help him up. Skeppy sat up and moved his legs to make his feet touch the ground.
Bad grabbed him with the utmost care and carefully pulled him up to stand. Skeppy couldn't even stop himself from crashing into his friend’s arms without warning.
The older of the two was a bit surprised by the sudden action, but he accepted it quickly, wrapping his arms around his friend.
Skeppy felt gentle fingers running through his hair, causing him to shut his eyes. The pair stayed in the embrace for a good moment or two in a peaceful silence.
“How do you feel right now? Do you feel okay?” Bad asked softly, pulling away but keeping his hands on his friend’s shoulder.
“...Auh- Ha…eem, thihreff,” Skeppy croaked out, his voice muffled by the cotton gauzes. Bad blinked in utter confusion.
Skeppy deadpanned at him, pulling up his phone, unlocking it and opening the Notes app. He typed something down and turned the screen to Bad’s face.
im tierd
“Oh! Aw, you poor muffin. Let’s go,” Bad replied with sympathy, offering his hand for Skeppy. He took it immediately and they both walked out of the room and into the hallway, hand in hand.
They met up with the orthodontist who gave them a quick overview of the precautions and medical treatments. Bad thanked him and they bid their goodbyes. Soon enough, they were both in the car.
“So Skeppy, I was thinking we could go get you a smoothie since you can’t eat any food yet. Would you be okay with that or do you just wanna go home?” Bad asked, turning on the car and pulling off the parking space.
Skeppy nudged him, showing him his phone.
hmoe pls
“Alright, muffin. Home it is,” Bad replied with a smile, driving them back to their shared home.