Suffocation | Teen Ink

Suffocation

September 4, 2009
By DannBerr,. GOLD, Guilford, Indiana
DannBerr,. GOLD, Guilford, Indiana
11 articles 0 photos 9 comments

Sometimes I wonder why these things happen; you know the kind you can't control. It'll come when you least expect it, not caring about hurting your feelings or the others around you. It's there to make your day worse and that's what its going to do. Has that ever happened to you? See something bad take place? I have.

It all happened one weekend while I was one a shopping spree with my family. Lisa my new step mom took my sister's Ashley and Haley, along with Haley's friend Danielle and me to Indianapolis. She gave us each two hundred dollars and simply said to spend it wisely.

The circle Centre Mall was where every girl wanted to shop, being as there was every store imaginable, ranging form Abercrombie & Fitch, Hollister & Co., PacSun, and Banana Republic. But my story doesn't take place at any of those stores; it all starts out where we ate lunch, one of my favorite places to get a burger.

Johnny Rocket's was crammed with people; some waiting for tables, sitting down, and some just standing around taking up space. We were ushered to the only table that was unoccupied by a teenage boy, “your server will be right with you” he said it in a nice voice, but it didn't seem like he meant it. He was probably one of those people who hate their job for all purposes; only being there as long as what it comes with; their paycheck.

Ashley, Haley, and Danielle, were in high spirits, along with Lisa who was just exuberant to be out of the house. Everyone was happy about having some cash to spend, me, well I was just excited to be in the city, staying in a grand hotel. In a neat hotel room that had a spiral staircase that led up to the second floor. Shopping wasn't my greatest desire at the time.

Everyone was chatting happily as the waitress finally came over to take our orders. Each of us ordered a hamburger and a milkshake, getting an assortment so we all didn't have the same thing, being as we wanted to try each others. As the waitress left, they began were their conversation left off, talking about what they had already bought before lunch. I didn't join in, just listening intently for a gap so I could voice my opinion about Ashley's new lace shirt.

Finally, our food came. I dug in as soon as it was set down in front of me, feeling as hungry as ever. I'm usually the one who eats all their food, gets done before everyone else, and still has enough room to want more. So. I was surprised to find Ashley done before me, because she rarely eats all her food.

After we finished eating we all went our separate was, Haley and Danielle went up to the second floor to Wet Seal, while, Lisa, Ashley, and I headed down to Aeropostale.

As I was in the dressing room trying on a pair of tan cargo capris, Ashley yelled at me to hurry up, even though I wasn't in there very long. I changed back into what I came in, and stepped out of the dressing room. Ashley was on her knees by a shelf of shirts, clutching her purse and plastic bags that had her newly bought clothes in. Lisa had asked her what she was doing. Ashley simply answered that she was looking at a shirt was on the bottom shelf, and she then pulled out a pink and white stripped polo.

I felt bad for taking so long because after we left Aeropostale, Ashley seemed to be in some kind of pain, having an indescribable look on her face she told Lisa her stomach was hurting. We made our way to the bathrooms by the food court. But we didn't make it in time; Ashley was losing the strength to stand, and she began to wobble on her feet. Lisa found a bench and we sat down. Luckily; there was a woman who worked as a mall cop standing nearby, and we told her the situation.

She pulled out her walkie talkie and called 911 and told them we needed an ambulance. It was a good move on her part because at that time Ashley was leaning on Lisa's shoulder, eye's closed, not responding to anything Lisa had asked her. Lisa called Haley and Danielle on her cell phone; they arrived before the paramedics did. Ashley still wasn't responding when the paramedics finally came.

Watching them help my sister I started to feel woozy like there was some invisible person standing in my presence, I couldn't see him, but I knew he was there. I could just picture him in my head, standing there off to the side, out of the way, with his scrunched up, scarred face, with the glare of that of a malicious man. He was suffocating me , taking a big plastic bag, putting it over my head and sucking the air out of my lungs.

I think he had a good side along with his malicious one, because when he started taking my air away it's like he gave it to her, putting that plastic, bendy, air mask over her face, helping her onto the stretcher, and then laying the mew, cold pressurized, orange tank right beside her. But I came back to reality and saw that it was the paramedics who were helping her.

Seeing them made the scene seem real. It wasn't my imagination and I wasn't back in Mr. Walter's class staring out the window intently day-dreaming like every school day.

It didn't matter to me that I couldn't breathe. I wasn't hard to ignore the medieval dictator looking out of place in a crowd full of shoppers, with his old cloak, shiny crown; gems on every inch of his clothes. All I could think about was her pain. Was she in any? Was there anything I could do to help ease it, I wasn't too sure.

The paramedics were getting ready to push her away, away from me. I wanted to go with them, but Lisa said we had to go back to the hotel and wait for her to call. I didn't want to go back to the hotel and wait for a phone call. Following them to the hospital was what I wanted to do. Instead of Lisa it would have been better for me, being in there with her, being told to sit on that small pull down bench in the ambulance, that could be easily hidden if wanted to be. Holding her hand telling her over and over again that it would be okay, knowing all the while I didn't know.

Lisa said something to Haley and I, but I didn't care what she said at the moment of her rushed departure. Th only thing that was on my mind was Ashley. I couldn't see through my tear filler eyes as I watched them leave. I was crying? When did I start crying? Ashley was leaving, forever? No, I told myself, she'll be back, she'll get through this, and she's the strong one out of the two of us.

The hotel was connected to the mall by a walkway that was covered, so it wasn't hard to make our way back to where we would have to wait. Walking through that covered platform my tears came faster. I didn't know how that was possible seeing as how I drained myself, watching them load her up on that bed.

Our room number came into view. Haley, the only one who remembered to bring the plastic key; that reminded me of a credit card, let us in. I didn't stop to set my bags down, take off my shoes, or get anything from the mini fridge. I just wanted to climb the spiral stairs that led up to the bedroom on the second floor of our hotel room. That's were I wanted to wait for the phone call, where Haley wouldn't see me still crying.

That phone call finally came, after a couple hours of waiting. Lisa explained everything, how Ashley only had really bad indigestion, noting to horrible. I was relieved there wasn't going to be any permanent damage, because what I as thinking as way worse. And I never thought I could get so scared where I thought I couldn't find my air supply, but I guess anything is possible. Even fainting in the middle of the mall on a black iron bench, all because you ate a big, greasy burger at Johnny Rocket's , ate it too fast, that it was too much for your stomach to take, a simple Zantac would of helped at the time, making the pain go away.

I guess some people are just lucky, only to get a headache here and there or maybe find a way to get step throat. But others, well let's just use my sister as an example; other's et indigestion so sever that they practically faint while there at a mall shopping for school clothes.



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