Pretending to Be Brave

The nurse called my name, and I walked into the room as if blood tests were the most ordinary thing in the world. Inside, though, my heart was racing. I have never been good with needles, but I was determined not to make a scene.

She asked me to roll up my sleeve and make a fist. I nodded calmly and stared at a poster about healthy eating on the wall, reading the same sentence again and again. 'You might feel a little pinch,' she warned. I said, 'No problem,' in a voice that sounded much braver than I felt.

It was over in less than a minute. She pressed a cotton pad on my arm and told me to hold it for a while. Only then did I realize I had been holding my breath the whole time. On my way out, she smiled and said, 'You did great.' I smiled back, but my knees were still shaking.