Almost every child in American society believes in the tooth fairy. You grow up believing in all these fictional characters that bring you gifts in return for your baby teeth, or being a good girl even when Santa Claus isn’t watching. What American’s tend to forget is that there also comes a point in a child’s life when they realize that these legends are fake and their dreams and sense of reality are destroyed. The year Brittany found out about the nonexistent tooth fairy is one she will never forget. Brittany was young, about 9 years old. She was a late bloomer and had only been losing her baby teeth for two years now. Brittany had a hand sewn tooth fairy pillow decorated by her great-grandmother. When Brittany felt her tooth becoming loose, she would dig in the bottom of her wooden trunk and grab the pillow. After some prodding and pulling, the tooth would fall out. She immediately ran and put the tooth in the pocket on the pillow. The nights that Brittany had lost a tooth, were the nights she had the most trouble falling asleep. The anticipation was almost sickening. She was always trying to catch a glimpse of this so called fairy that flew into her room and without waking her up, removed the tooth from the pillow and then slipped a generous five dollar bill. On that particular night, after washing the tooth, she ran to show her mom. Her mother’s friend Michael was over having dinner with her family. Michael was a single guy, mid-thirties and a total bachelor. Michael wouldn’t have a clue what to do if a child fell into his lap. Michael seem just as excited as Brittany’s mother when she showed everyone at the table the new gap in her smile, and the tooth in her hand. Maybe it was the wine that Michael had been drinking with his meal, or maybe he could remember his own tooth-loss stories. Brittany’s mother told her it was time to get in the shower and get ready for bed. Before getting in the shower though, Brittany delicately placed the tooth in the pocket, and jumped in the shower. As any nine year old does, they take fast showers. It was a maximum of ten minutes from the time she got in the shower, until the time she got out. When she dried off, she changed into her pajamas, said goodnight to her family and went to bed. Right before she drifted into unconsciousness, Brittany placed her hand in the pillow just to get one last glance of the tooth. To her surprise the TOOTH WAS GONE! In its place was a four times-more-generous TWENTY DOLLAR BILL. Brittany knew this wasn’t adding up. Why would she receive four times the amount she normally does, and it wasn’t even a front tooth. Plus the most obvious factor is that it had only been ten minutes since she placed the tooth there, and it wasn’t even while anyone in the house was sleeping. Brittany brought the pillow out to her mother and explained what was happening in a manic way. Michael must’ve been the culprit because he pulled her mother aside and explained what he had done. Apparently he was feeling nostalgic about the tooth fairy and felt he could leave a little extra cash and Brittany wouldn’t notice. Boy was he wrong. Brittany learned the truth that night, that the tooth fairy wasn’t real and the excitement that she normally felt about losing a tooth, never came again.
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