around my neck:
 
 completely suffocating.
 
 A mad surge
 
 of blood rushed
 
 to my brain,
 
 pounding temples and eardrums
 
 before draining
 
 away completely.
 
 My face went Arctic,
 
 diving deep freeze,
 
 glacier blue.
 
 Graveyard cold
 
 hugged me tight,
 
 rattling teeth and bones.
 
 Chase called my
 
 name. Ms. Sweetwater
 
 skittered to her feet
 
 and everything went black.
 
 Passing Out
 
 is the strangest thing.
 
 One minute
 
 you’re here.
 
 Then with a mere
 
 cerebral flutter,
 
 you’re not.
 
 Part of your brain
 
 insists you’re dead.
 
 Of course, you’re not.
 
 Another part says it’s
 
 better there, in the dark.