Jerry's stomach hurt. It was all he could do to keep from crying out. The pressure was too much. He felt it building up inside of him, pressing at his guts, his lungs. He felt as if he would explode. His elbows began to shake as his entire body clinched to stop it. If only the intruder had not come at this instant, a few minutes more and Jerry would have been better prepared.
Then, to his horror, a coin fell from Jerry's pocket. It was a penny, a damned penny! Jerry could see it rolling away, directly toward the feet of the intruder! The crash it made when it hit the floor echoed in Jerry's ears. The breath he had been holding suddenly gushed from his lips. Jerry clasped his hand over his mouth as he gulped and held a breath. Now he knows I'm in here, he thought, now what? If I go now, he?ll definitely notice! He could hear the slight shuffling of the intruder's feet. What was taking him so log? He listened intently to what sounded like a tiny cymbal-roll, playing on forever. Hurry up, Jerry yelled in his head!
So he waited, one hand clasping his mouth, the other gripping the leg of his slacks. He wasn't sure how much longer he could hold his breath. His gut hurt. He could feel the pressure building up in him like a bomb. There was no way he could be subtle now. He would explode. He had to wait out the intruder or let it all go; damn the risk! He decided to wait him out.
Jerry heard the slow rustle of fabric and zipping. He was done! He heard the intruder shuffle past him and then stop! What was he doing, he thought, stopping to fix his hair? He hated vain men, and the thought of the intruder standing in front of the mirror was too much. He almost let it all go and screamed out. But then he heard the sound of the intruder turning on the faucet in the little sink. Then, the water was turned off and he heard the familiar turbine of the automatic hand dryer kicking in. He relaxed for a moment under the cover of it's whirring and took a breath. He waited.
After a few seconds of noise the dryer stopped, winding slowly down to silence. Jerry heard the intruder's feet shuffling on the tiles on the way to the door. As soon as he heard the squeak of the hinge, Jerry relaxed. He shifted slightly on the seat and pushed. He could feel his face turning red, but at least it wasn't from embarrassment.
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