See the World (An Easy English Story): Part 7
Neil uses the lenses for two months, and he feels like a pro. The HIV of Neil’s first patient was cured in just five days. Because the surgery was so successful, Dr. Chen asked Neil to do twenty more surgeries. All twenty patients got better quickly.
Neil feels excited to look at the patients’ new healthy cells. Before the surgeries, their bodies look like Neil’s bedroom wall when Leila drew on it with crayons two years ago. After Neil spent an hour cleaning the wall with mayonnaise it was a smooth light blue again. Genome editing with the lenses is like mayonnaise for their too-colorful cells.
The diseases all look different with the lenses, and all of them are uncomfortably bright. Ebola is Neil’s least favorite. It looks like thousands of neon blue worms. These little worms seem to eat through the healthy cells, squirming in and out of them.
On the morning of Neil’s twenty-first surgery, Dr. Chen asks Neil to meet with her in her office to talk about the surgery. Neil already started getting ready for the surgery, so he is wearing the lenses.
Neil opens Dr. Chen’s office door and immediately feels sick. Bright green circles with red spikes float in the air around Dr. Chen. As she says, “Good morning,” the spikes fly towards Neil. He jumps to the left, but some of the green and red still hit his face. Neil wipes his face with his sleeve, and then he remembers: This is what a cold looks like.
“I see you’re wearing the lenses,” Dr. Chen says. She laughs at Neil’s reaction.
Neil tries to laugh, too. “I forgot that I put them in.”
Dr. Chen laughs louder and begins to cough. More frog-green circles fly towards Neil, and he holds his breath.
Fun for Fluency! 