#39

People keep telling me that I'm overreacting, but I honestly think that I'm about to die. This cough is going to be end of me. It starts slowly, I open my mouth, about to say something, maybe to take a bite of food, or sip some water, and something goes terribly wrong. The real event begins when I inhale, something doesn't move quite right, something brushes over the trigger and I quickly close my mouth in an effort to stop the process, but then it's too late. My body starts to spasm in an effort to stifle the noise, my throat spasming uncontrollably, and I close my eyes and try to visualize what must be happening in my lungs. It's like a battle zone, my body is fighting itself and it's a battle to the death. I can't catch my breath, I clutch at my chest in an effort to demonstrate that the end is near. The people around me look at me with fear in their eyes, no one wants to watch someone die, but today they'll have to. Suddenly, with as much effort with which it began, the coughing stopped. I take a deep breath and sigh with relief. Everyone is asking me if I'm okay. Yes, I'm okay, I say, something just went down the wrong tube.