Chapter 3: Doctor’s Appointment

Peter stepped into the school office, note in hand. “Mr. Donaldsen sent for me,” he said to nobody. The school secretary looked up and said, “Your mom’s on her way. She asked us to get you out of class.”

“Did she say why?” Peter dropped into a chair to wait when the woman shook her head.

His mother bustled in a few minutes later, went directly to the counter, and signed him out. As they left the building, she said, “I called to make you a doctor’s appointment. They said they could fit you in this afternoon. We have to hurry.”

Peter almost had to run to keep up with his mother. “I’m not sick. Why am I going to the doctor?” Then he realized what this was about. “Oh, c’mon, Mom. It’s just big. There’s nothing wrong with me.”

His mother said nothing but just started the car. “I just want to get you checked out. You haven’t seen Dr. D’Salvo since you were twelve. It’s about time for a checkup.”

Peter groaned. “D’Salvo? He’s a pediatrician. Don’t you think I’m too old for a kiddie doctor? Molly and Miranda go to a different doctor now.”

The woman chuckled. “You want me to make you an appointment with the gynecologist, Peter?” She looked at her watch as she turned into the clinic parking lot. “Five minutes to spare. Let’s go.”

She got out and strode toward the clinic’s front door, not even checking to confirm that her son was following. Though it had been some time, the receptionist looked up and smiled. “Hello, Barbara. How’ve you been?”

Peter’s mother looked back, grinning. “Four girls, a boy, a house and a job. Same old, same old.” Both women laughed.

The receptionist gave the boy a warm smile. “Wow! You’ve gotten so big, Peter!”

Peter grimaced. He was the shortest, skinniest boy in his grade at not quite 5 feet and 85 pounds. The patient had clearly not “gotten big,” not the way the woman implied. “Ya gotta love irony,” he muttered as he dropped into a seat. He opened the textbook he’d brought from the car. He’d been here before and knew he might have a while to wait.

Barbara slid into a chair across from her son and tried not to stare. So much had changed for her only boy in the past week. She remembered watching her younger brother go through the same tribulations, reflecting that it had started for Pete at about the same age as for Peter. A senior when he was in ninth grade, she’d done what she could, but high school had been a nightmare for her brother. She was determined that wasn’t going to happen to her son. The key was keeping his giant genitalia under wraps as long as possible. First, though, she had questions she hoped the doctor would be able to answer. She also had hopes that he could help with one looming logistical problem.

Finally, the nurse, a younger woman Barbara didn’t know, stepped out and called Peter’s name. He gave his mother a look when she got up but said nothing. They stopped in the hallway. The nurse prompted Peter to remove his shoes and step on the scale, then announced, “Sixty inches and 85 pounds.”

Peter reddened, already knowing he was small for his age. He picked up his shoes and followed the nurse into the examination room. The nurse clipped a small sensor to the end of one of his fingers and then took his pulse and blood pressure on the other arm. While she recorded these numbers, she explained, “You don’t need to undress yet, Peter. The doctor will want to talk with you and your mom first. He’ll be with you shortly.” Then she stepped from the room.

Peter perched on the end of the examining table while his mother took the one chair in the room. Neither of them even considered sitting on the rolling stool, which they knew was reserved for the doctor.

Peter looked at his mother and said, “I don’t want you in here for the exam, Mom. I’m fourteen. Old enough to do this myself.”

She nodded as the doctor walked in the door. “Of course, Peter. I just want to talk with the doctor. Then I’ll leave the two of you alone.” She stood and looked at the older man, smiling. “Hello, Doctor D’Salvo. I’m sorry it’s been so long. Molly and Miranda are seeing my gynecologist, and Peter, Lillie, and Emma have been healthy, so...” She didn’t so much end the sentence as fade out.

The doctor stepped forward and clapped Peter on the shoulder. “It’s good to see you, young man.” Only then did he turn back to his mother. “That’s okay, Barbara. That’s about how it works for most families.” Still looking at her, he said, “What brings you in today?”

Peter giggled as he thought, The car, but kept the little joke to himself. Both adults looked at him quizzically, then back at one another. The doctor understood that Peter’s reaction indicated nervousness. He wondered why.

Barbara cleared her throat and held her handbag close as if hugging it. She’s nervous, too, the experienced pediatrician thought. What is up?

“Well, doctor. You know Peter had always been small for his age. He’ll be starting high school in the fall, and I just wanted to get him checked out to ensure he’s developing ... normally.”

The doctor noticed the hitch in the woman’s speech. He turned to Peter with a smile, then back to Barbara. “So you want a complete physical. That’s not a problem.” He turned back to the mother. “Okay, Barbara. Peter’s a teenager now. You can go back to the reception area. I’ll send for you when we’re done.” Turning back to Peter, he said, “I’m going to step out for a few minutes. Please undress for me. You can keep your underwear on for now.”

Barbara stopped the doctor in the hallway. “Peter will be much more comfortable if you don’t have a nurse in the room for his exam.”

“Sorry, Barbara. That’s an insurance regulation. I have to have a nurse present when I do an exam. No exceptions.” Barbara nodded and stepped back into the waiting room.

Peter looked around the familiar room. He’d been here many times when he was younger. He’d been a very accident-prone kid and a bit sickly. Truth be told, after his father’s death, his mother had become a bit overprotective. He pulled his shirt over his head and tossed it onto the chair. Then he skinned out of his jeans and threw them at the shirt. They landed on the floor, but he made no move to pick them up. He sat again and peeled off and tossed his socks. Then he waited, carefully keeping his knees together and crossing his hands across his lap.

The doctor knocked once, then bustled in, accompanied by a nurse. “It’s good to see you again, Peter. We’ve certainly done this before, so I have to ask. Why do you seem anxious? Is there something you want to talk about? I’m your doctor. You can talk with me about anything. Except for child abuse or you wanting to hurt yourself, I won’t repeat anything you tell me to anyone. Not even your mom.”

Peter shook his head. “No. I’m okay. Nothing I need to talk about. I guess my mom just thought I needed to get checked out.” He dropped his eyes, not wanting to look at the doctor or the pretty young nurse.

The doctor listened to Peter’s chest and back and poked and prodded his various lymph nodes, organs, and joints. He used a hammer to test his reflexes. He noted that the fourteen-year-old’s body was still covered by a layer of baby fat. He had no visible body hair, including under his arms or on his upper lip. “Okay, Peter. Now, I need you to take off your underwear so I can finish the exam.”

Peter glanced at the nurse, then back at the doctor. He felt himself stiffening slightly.

“I know, Peter, but Tabitha has to stay. She’s a professional, and it’s nothing she hasn’t seen before.”

Peter laughed nervously. I doubt that he thought as he then lifted his butt from the table. He slid off his boxers and placed them on the table behind him where he could reach them quickly. His semi-erect penis unfolded and dangled between his legs. The gasp from the nurse caused it to start to stiffen.

The doctor ushered the young woman from the room, wishing Peter’s mother had been more specific about her concerns. He talked with the inexperienced nurse briefly. He stressed the importance of professionalism, patient confidentiality, and the potential consequences of any breaches. The nurse nodded and giggled. “Who’d believe me, anyway?”

The doctor frowned and returned to the exam room, firmly shutting the door. “Well, I can see why your mom wanted me to check you out, Peter.” His tone business-like and professional, he remarked, “I guess you know that your penis is unusually ... large ... for your age.”

Peter grinned. “My uncle tells me it’s huge for any age!”

“How long has it been this size? When did it start growing so big?”

Peter had just been thinking about this, so it was easy to answer. “It was about the size of a pencil stub on my twelfth birthday.” He didn’t explain that he and some friends had compared “junk” during a birthday sleep-over. He’d lost – by a lot. He gestured at his penis, which was about half erect, and said, “This has happened over the last two years – almost exactly.”

The doctor plucked a tape measure from a drawer. “I need to take some measurements,” then gently grasped the head of Peter’s penis and stretched it to its full length. He placed the end of the ruler in the very thin patch of lightly pigmented pubic hair at the base of the boy’s penis and then measured from base to tip. He let the organ drop from his fingers and murmured, “26 centimeters,” as he wrote in the chart.

“Peter? Could you lift your penis out of the way so I can get to your scrotum?” Peter didn’t know what a “scrotum” was but did as asked. He reached down and gripped his penis, bringing it up along his belly. The doctor swallowed hare when he saw that it came to his sternum. “Could you lie back on the table, Peter?

Peter was mortified. His sisters and uncle had examined him this closely, but they weren’t doctors. Well, he thought, I guess Uncle Pete is a doctor, but not this kind of doctor.

D’Salvo pulled up his stool and positioned himself between the boy’s knees. Holding a set of beads known as an orchidometer in one hand, he stretched out the skin of Peter’s scrotum. He palpated each of his testes with the other. He murmured, “Three centimeters - about four milliliters,” as he wrote in the chart.

“Peter? Please keep your penis where it is and lift your feet onto the table.” He waited and then said, “Yes, like that.” He needed to examine Peter’s anus but didn’t want to ask the boy to roll over into that particularly vulnerable position. He saw what he needed to see, including the absence of hair around the opening or on his inner thighs, and rolled his stool back.

The doctor shifted in his seat to readjust the position of his own hard-on in his pants. He wasn’t typically attracted to men or boys, but he was very aroused. He really wanted to know if this massive member actually worked. It’s so big. He might pass out if he gets a full erection, he thought silently.

“Okay, Peter. I need to know one more thing, and there’s only one way to find out. This’ll be between you and me.” Thinking that wasn’t strictly true, Peter could do it himself. He pulled a tube of K-Y jelly from a drawer, put on some gloves, and squeezed a generous amount into his palm. “Just lie back and enjoy this, Peter. I promise I won’t do anything to hurt you.” He began stroking the boy, moving his hand slowly from the base of his shaft all the way to the head. Ten-and-a-quarter inches, he thought. This is amazing! He used his other hand to massage the boy’s tiny testicles and his still-exposed anus.