Precipice

The days follow the days and my routine followed suit, it was time to fetch two bucket loads of coal up two flights of stairs and on into the lounge - a task I had completed many times before - but this was going to change my life forever as I entered the lounge; struggling with the load I was forced to a sudden stop by an overwhelming sensation of heat burning my body, I dropped the coal and watched as it spilled over the carpet, clutching my chest as the heat overcame my ability to withstand it, I tore off my tie and shirt and collapsed as the heart attack took hold and I gasped in desperation for lungfuls of air that refused to come, the heat built to a crescendo and all I could do was panic, alone, as my body juddered and shook with the pain that I had never felt before, I blacked out as my oxygen levels plummeted.