Words Peter Doesn't Need to Hear:

"You were right."

He'd been telling me all week to go in and see my doctor. "But it's just a stupid upper respiratory thing," I'd claim. Besides, I knew that they would just say that it was viral and I'd be over it in a few days. "But you're fever is not consistent with a URI," he'd claim (what a medical student).

BLAH BLAH BLAH

Finally after I'd started an antibiotic for the upper respiratory thing-y-ma-bob and my fever still wasn't going down at all, even though I'd stopped coughing, I was willing to concede that there might be SOMETHING else going on. But Peter still wasn't "right".

"I think you have an abscess," he'd say. "But remember Caleb's abscess? It was all red and puffy. My incision looks perfect," I'd counter.

This went on for 3 days.

Until Sunday morning when I woke up with a red and puffy abdomen.

So instead of a nice and simple office visit, I ended up in the ER for 7 hours. I had to drink contrast, get a CT scan, and let the doctor slice me back open to squeeze out some junky stuff. And I have to pump and dump. Stupid CT scan.

And I still have to go back into the office to have it checked again.

But I'll still never say it. He doesn't need to hear it. He already knows.

And that's dangerous enough.