well. that wasn't how I expected my morning to go. as always, I messed around on the computer in the Tech computer lab, slept through Science class, and slept before English class - you know, your typical Wednesday routine. to mix things up a bit from sleeping in the library, and because I didn't want to go outside in the now-cold winter air, I stayed in Nestor Hall and went to the quieter lounge downstairs. I slept hard, because last night I fell asleep on the couch and that means my sleeping sucked. I woke up, 15 minutes before I leave for class, and the day changed drastically.
I'm just starting to pack up my bag when this heart-wrenching bellow comes from a man barely a dozen feet away from me. Everyone's head turned as one to see what was going on; I watched his black leather jacket with a red dragon emblazoned on the back, and the short dark hair on the back of his head, start shaking and twitching violently in his chair. Everyone waited and murmured worriedly for 5 seconds, at which point 6 or 7 guys strode on cue from their chairs over to this man. The rest of us watched in a kind of dumbfounded stupor, still trying to register is this really happening, and are we being cowards for not being one of those guys.
The man is still shaking, and one of the guys grab his shoulder. "Hey man, are you okay?"
"He might be having a seizure."
"Someone call 911!"
"I got it, I'll make the call."
"Should we move him?"
"Hey man, I've had seizures before - you don't move them if they're having a seizure. And don't put anything in his mouth, he'll bite it off and choke on it."
At this point, the man is slipping farther and farther in his chair, still shaking uncontrollably but not as badly as before, saliva spraying from a mouth he can't control. I sat there, numb, in mid-motion for my bag, wondering what the hell am I gonna do. Should I just go to class and leave the others to care for him? They don't want another rubbernecker heightening the helping guys' anxiety, and I'm not doing anything anyway. So what do I do? I slip my bag onto my shoulder, along with several other people, and go to my 11:00 class with one parting glance at this scene I was a part of over my shoulder.
Now I'm here, sitting at a computer and pouring all this out for the internet to see, still shaking a little bit from watching it all happen, and wishing I would have been one of the people going over to that man to try and help. It was weird, walking into the classroom, everyone laughing as chatting as usual, oblivious of what went on downstairs, but shook me up so much. And right now I can't tell if I'm more bothered watching that man suffer like that right before my eyes, or that I didn't do a single thing to help his suffering and left solving the problem to those around me.
I'm just starting to pack up my bag when this heart-wrenching bellow comes from a man barely a dozen feet away from me. Everyone's head turned as one to see what was going on; I watched his black leather jacket with a red dragon emblazoned on the back, and the short dark hair on the back of his head, start shaking and twitching violently in his chair. Everyone waited and murmured worriedly for 5 seconds, at which point 6 or 7 guys strode on cue from their chairs over to this man. The rest of us watched in a kind of dumbfounded stupor, still trying to register is this really happening, and are we being cowards for not being one of those guys.
The man is still shaking, and one of the guys grab his shoulder. "Hey man, are you okay?"
"He might be having a seizure."
"Someone call 911!"
"I got it, I'll make the call."
"Should we move him?"
"Hey man, I've had seizures before - you don't move them if they're having a seizure. And don't put anything in his mouth, he'll bite it off and choke on it."
At this point, the man is slipping farther and farther in his chair, still shaking uncontrollably but not as badly as before, saliva spraying from a mouth he can't control. I sat there, numb, in mid-motion for my bag, wondering what the hell am I gonna do. Should I just go to class and leave the others to care for him? They don't want another rubbernecker heightening the helping guys' anxiety, and I'm not doing anything anyway. So what do I do? I slip my bag onto my shoulder, along with several other people, and go to my 11:00 class with one parting glance at this scene I was a part of over my shoulder.
Now I'm here, sitting at a computer and pouring all this out for the internet to see, still shaking a little bit from watching it all happen, and wishing I would have been one of the people going over to that man to try and help. It was weird, walking into the classroom, everyone laughing as chatting as usual, oblivious of what went on downstairs, but shook me up so much. And right now I can't tell if I'm more bothered watching that man suffer like that right before my eyes, or that I didn't do a single thing to help his suffering and left solving the problem to those around me.
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