I don’t usually accept clients without a referral, but my next client slipped in.
“Mr. Snake?”
“Yesss.”
“Please, this way.” I had never treated a snake before, but ethically, I couldn’t refuse. His presence probably made the other clients nervous.
“What brings you in today?”
“Doc, I’m depressssed.”
“Really? What’s been going on?”
“Well, as you can see, I’m a snake.”
I nodded.
“I’m just sso tired of people recoiling from me. I mean it’s not like I want to eat everything. Unhinging your jaw is no easy task.”
“How can I help you?”
“I need to know how to attract people who want to be with me. I need physical touch.”
“You want more human interaction?”
“Exactly! I need more than a dead rat in my cage. I need to be held.” He started crying.
Somehow, this struck a chord in me. I had never seen a snake cry. I really felt his pain. I grabbed a few tissues and brought them to him.
“Here you go.”
Suddenly, he shot forward and bit me.
“What the hell? Why’d you bite me?”
“I started with ’I’m a snake.’”