Fluorine

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Fluorine

Tori walked into the kitchen of her Gainesville, Florida, apartment which she shared with her twin brother, Tom. Ignoring the stack of dirty dishes in the sink, she filled her thermos with water from the kitchen faucet and added ice. Drinking the cold water soothed her. Plus, it would keep her hydrated for the brutal bike ride to class—uphill, both ways, and in the humid, August heat.

“Sis, are you just going to ignore all of the dirty dishes in the sink?” Tom scolded, then opened the refrigerator and retrieved two water bottles.

“Chill, woman. I’ll get to it after my accounting test.” Tori was surprisingly calm before her first big test. All of her accounting-major friends were freaked out about today’s test. She knew they’d stayed up all night studying for it. But Tori knew the material. Debits and credits came easy to her. She opted for a good night’s sleep instead of a stressful night of cramming.

“Doesn’t it bother you? Just leaving the dirty dishes in the sink like that?” Tom asked.

“Nope. Doesn’t it bother you to waste money on bottled water when tap water is delicious and free. You know you could probably buy a six pack of beer for less than what that case of water costs.”

“There’s no way I’ll ever drink water from the tap. You know how easily someone could contaminate the city’s water supply? Plus, they add a bunch of crap to the water.”

“What? Like fluorine? It’s good for your teeth. Why are you so high strung? Do you need some new meds?” Tori asked.

“I don’t know why I’m so anxious all of the time. I guess it’s just the stress and pressure of college. I’m popping Xanax like candy while you’re handling the pressure just fine. I don’t understand,” Tom whined.

“Did you know that most anti-depressants and anti-anxiety medicines contain fluorine?”

"So what." He shrugged.

“Well, they add fluorine to the water, but not just for our oral health. I read a conspiracy theory that the real reason they add fluorine to city water was to ‘calm the masses.’ But with more people drinking bottled water, more people are anxious and depressed.”

“Is that why you’re so calm all the time, while I’m a freakin‘ basket case?”

Tori shrugged.

Tom retrieved a plastic Gator football cup from the cabinet, filled it with tap water, and drank it quickly.