A Great Inconvenience

I'm completely abnormal according to society's norms. Plastic surgeons make insane bank off insecure and desperate souls who want to change their body to ensure they become "beautiful" on the outside. Society has created this façade of what each gender should appear and act like. Men must be strong and not show emotion while women must be dutiful wives who bare children. All a deep psychological programming we are fed at a young age with barbie dolls and G.I. Joe toys.

However, sitting in front of a plastic surgeon's office in Beverly Hills contemplating undergoing a surgery to fix all the wrong proves that I am wanting to conform with society's norms. I'm still indecisive with the surgery option. I stare at my reflection in the window of the office. My nose is slightly crooked that causes nosebleeds. A surgery would end that issue potentially and make my face prettier. No one wants to date a girl with a crooked nose.

Ugh! Why is this so hard? I scream in my head. A woman walking by wearing Gucci while holding a venti Starbucks looks at me with disgust and continues to walk. Fuck it.

I walk into the office, sign in with the receptionist, and go to sit down at the luxurious leather couch to wait for my name to be called. I hear shouting and screaming. A woman with her lips bleeding from a lip injection apparently gone wrong comes out.

"I will come back and sue you for malpractice!" The mad woman screeches. Great there goes my confidence of following through with this surgery.

I hear an ambulance and a couple of paramedics come to the woman to take her away to go to the Emergency Room. I feel even more uncertain of my choice. A man comes over to me and sits down beside me on the couch.

"That woman is insane. I thought my ex-girlfriend was insane, but that woman is unbearable! My head hurts from her screeching." He exclaims.

"Indeed, she does. I mean what happened to her was insane though. Her face is botched. I would react the same way." I reply.

"May I ask, what are you doing here for? You don't look like you need any surgery." He asks.

"Thanks for the comment, I guess. I suppose you are a diamond among rocks. My crooked nose causes nosebleeds. I want to ask the same for you." I reply.

"Thanks. You look like you needed the compliment. I'm here for Botox to help ease my migraines." He says smiling. I smile back.

"Astrid Parker." The surgeon doctor comes out and announces my name. My heart quickens and I must make up my mind. I have $12,000 in my wallet for the procedure. Given that there is a chance of this going horribly wrong scares the hell out of me.

"I've changed my mind doctor. I don't want to do this anymore." I reply.

I get up and leave the surgeon's office.

"Err. Me neither. Sorry for the trouble." I hear the man say to the doctor. I hear him trailing behind me.

"I don't normally do this, but would you want to have coffee sometime Astrid?" He asks me.

"Sure." I reply. I recite to him my phone number and my email. He does the same.

"Wait! What's your name?" I inquire. I want to know his name before he goes away.

"Rhett. Rhett Levine." He says and flashes a heart swooning smile.

"I'm sorry for holding you up. I bet you have somewhere to be." I point out to him.

"Don't worry and never say sorry. I have plenty of time between now and when my shift starts. I enjoyed meeting you Astrid." He declares.

"I enjoyed meeting you too, Rhett." I blush. He walks away.

I walk down Beverly Hills sidewalk away from the plastic surgeon's office. Meeting Rhett and watching the woman have a botched procedure showed me just what I needed to see. Sometimes in life surgeries aren't worth it at all. I'm pretty sure I can go somewhere else and solve my crooked nose problems. I hope that Rhett finds a solution for his migraines.