This choice: "It’s time for our annual checkup with the doctors." • Go Back... “The doctors are here for our annual checkup,” Rose announced to a chorus of groans.
“I don’t need to see a doctor, I feel fine,” Lily said. Everyone else around the table nodded in agreement. Even Rose looked like she agreed.
“I know it’s not the most exciting thing in the world, but it won’t take that long and then we can go do our own things,” Rose replied.
Mako wasn’t a big fan of the doctors’ visits. They weren’t mean and they didn’t poke him with big needles or anything, but they were so boring! He’d rather run around and climb things or play hide and seek.
Nobody wanted to be the first one to move. Rose looked at each girl, who quickly avoided making eye contact. “I get that no one wants to go, but we have to,” she said. “Mom and dad spend a lot of money for these doctors to check up on us, the least we could do is go when they’re here.”
Surprisingly, Heather was the first one to speak up. “I’ll go,” she announced as she stood on her seat. “But only if we do the Bouquet. ‘Cause I don’t wanna walk all the way there.” The Bouquet was a Lafleur family special, a sort of group hug where the larger sisters carried the smaller ones, and the whole group was then carried by Rose. Even as large as the girls were, it was always faster to let Rose do the walking, and she even preferred it because she didn’t have to worry about anyone running around her legs and tripping her.
“I call Daisy!” Iris shouted as she sprung up. Before the bookworm could protest, she was locked in a bear hug. The remaining girls started pairing up, and Mako made his way back to Camelia’s outstretched palm. With him secured, she turned to Violet, who picked up Camelia with one arm, the other one occupied by Sir Hopsalot. Violet made a circle with Iris, Lily, and Jasmine, who were carrying Daisy, Heather, and Zinnia, respectively.
“Okay, we’re ready!” Jasmine called up to Rose once the girls were in position. Rose took a moment to make sure that everyone was really ready. Then she crouched down and wrapped her arms around the Bouquet and lifted. This was Mako’s favorite part. The rush of being picked up by his other sisters was great, but nothing compared to the whooshing of air and the sense of speed that came from being lifted by Rose. He also loved the view that he got, and wondered if this is what it looked like for his sisters all the time. Everything looked so small and far away.
With Rose carrying the Bouquet, it was a short trip to the field station where the doctors had set up. She set them down a short distance away from the station, with the larger sisters in turn setting down the smaller ones. Camelia kept her hold on Mako until she made it to the station.
The doctors had a regular sized tent that worked as an office for Mako. Everything else was larger versions of regular medical equipment or repurposed industrial machinery. Inside the tent, Mako went through his checkup while the girls did the same outside. Mako felt lucky that he was allowed to have a chair, since his sisters all had to sit on the ground.
The checkup was boring like always. The doctor asked Mako if he had been sick or hurt since the last visit. He said no like always, then the doctor did a few checks on things like his heart rate or blood pressure. It didn’t take very long, but it felt like an eternity to Mako. After the longest 20 minutes of Mako’s life since the last doctor’s visit, he was finally freed to leave the tent and rejoin his sisters.
The girls had all finished their checkups and were now preparing for the only interesting part of these doctors’ visits: the height measurements. While it wasn’t a competition – no one had a chance of catching up to Rose, let alone passing her – everyone was always interested in finding out how tall each girl was and how much they’d grown since last time. Instead of using a tape measure, the doctors used a drone with an altimeter to measure the girls’ height.
They always measured oldest to youngest, which meant that Rose was up first. Everyone huddled around the computer station where the doctor was operating the drone, eager to hear the number. 299 feet and 11 inches was the announcement, the same height as last time.
Everyone oohed except for Rose, who frowned slightly. “Guess I really am done growing,” she sighed. “I was hoping I could get that last inch.”
“Oh no, now you’ll never get to be the tallest person ever,” Camelia joked as she and Rose switched places. “At least the drone didn’t get stuck in your hair.”
“Hey, that only happened once,” Rose protested.
“Still funny,” Camelia replied. “What am I up to, doc?” 46 feet and 3 inches was the answer. A gain of just 3 inches. “I just found a couple extra inches, maybe you can have one of them.”
“I thought you were supposed to be my big sister,” Heather giggled “I have pants that are longer than you”. Camelia just stuck her tongue out as Jasmine got into place.
Jasmine came in at 84 feet tall, a 1-foot increase. “Am I a big enough sister for you, Heather?” she asked.
“Not for long, I’m gonna catch up to you any day now,” the 12-year-old replied as Zinnia got ready for her turn.
Zinnia was measured at 69 feet even, a foot and a half taller than last time. “Haha, nice,” she said when she heard. Mako didn’t understand why Lily and the older girls thought that was so funny. He’d have to ask them later.
Either way, Lily bounced over to the platform. “I hope I have a big one, I’ve been practicing for this,” she said.
“How on earth do you practice for this?” Zinnia asked, wondering what could possibly be going through her little sister’s head.
“Oh, just stuff like thinking tall thoughts. Positive reinforcement, y’know?” she replied. Then she heard she was 99 feet and 9 inches, an increase of 6 feet. “That’s more than a full Mako,” she cheered. “Looks like my practice paid off.”
Next up was Daisy. She patiently stood while waiting for her results. 57 feet with an increase of 2 feet. “Maybe I need to start thinking taller thoughts,” she mumbled as she walked back to the group.
“Finally, I can show you how it’s done,” Heather said as she took her place. 71 feet, a gain of 5 feet. “Taller than Zinnia, that’s what I’m talking about! You better watch out Jasmine, I’ll be past you before you know it.”
“I’m sure you will, but I’ve still got time to prepare for it,” Jasmine replied.
Violet reached up to 95 feet tall, having grown 7 feet since the last measurement. “Now measure Sir Hopsalot, I need to make sure he’s not slacking on his guard duties.” The doctors sighed but did as she asked. Like always, he was exactly 50 feet tall.
“Violet, hurry up. I want my turn now,” Iris said, bouncing on her feet. She practically carried the 10-year-old off the platform to make space for herself. She just barely managed to keep herself still long enough for the doctors to make their measurement, which came in at 118 feet, an increase of a whopping 10 feet since last time. “Wow, that’s a lot. Do you think I can catch up to Rose?” she asked.
“I’m sure if you eat your vegetables you’ll have a chance,” Rose told her.
“Never mind, then. Veggies are gross.”
At last, it was Mako’s turn. Instead of using a drone, they used a standard tape measure. Mako was measured at 4 foot 8 inches, a gain of 3 inches since last year. “Great job, Mako!” Lily cheered. “Looks like you’ve been thinking tall thoughts, too.”
“I’m gonna have my growth spurt any day now,” he declared. “Then I’ll get to carry you around for a change.”
“I can’t wait. But until then, how about I carry you home,” she said as she held her palm out for him. He eagerly climbed on.
With the last of the tests complete, the doctors started packing up their things. The girls all said their thanks to them before preparing to leave the same way they came. A few short minutes later, Mako and his sisters were deposited in the plaza. Now that they were done with their doctor’s visit, the girls split up to do different activities.
Iris and Heather wanted to go exploring in the woods nearby. There were always new things to discover, and it was a great place to play hide and seek.
Meanwhile, Zinnia, Lily, and Violet wanted to go swimming. The land for the family’s complex included access to a private beach away from regular-sized visitors.
Rather than go anywhere, Rose, Camelia, Jasmine, and Daisy all decided to stay home for the day. They might do something together, or they might be doing their own thing, just near each other.
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