Guys Puking

Between the painful groans were burps, each getting deeper and wetter than the other. Swallowing felt like a mistake, and none of my burps seemed to make me feel any better. If anything, I felt fuller with each belch. I leaned over the toilet and spit. I know it's only a matter of time now. The usual dizzy feeling or cold tingle down the spine that signal the need to vomit weren't present in this moment, the only thing I could think about was how full I was. Taking a deep breath is hard, my breathing becomes shallow and I'm worried with each inhale which exhale will be the one that finally releases it. I burp a few more times, some mucus hacks its way up my throat and I spit that in the toilet. I pat my hand against my stomach, it's hard and unwavering. I dare to take a deep breath and I feel my stomach clench. I don't throw up, not immediately, but I get up on my knees and steady myself, ready for what is to come.

As I shift positions, so do the contents of my stomach. I burp, wet and long. For a moment I think this is it, but my stomach doesn't yet heave. I leaves me breathless and disappointed, impatient and uncomfortable. All I can think about is how full I am, and how desperate I am to feel better. It hurts; it's a solid, churning stone settling in my stomach. It makes every bit of me feel stiff, difficult to move. I wish I could move, but I know that being anywhere other than hovering over my toilet right now is a severe mistake.

I burp, and I retch but still nothing comes. I can feel the pressure growing, though. My meal is sitting at the back of my throat, it is only a matter of time. The gasses in my stomach are growing, I burp a few more times. Each time could be the moment I spew. I only burp once or twice before finally, I get some relief.

The first time I vomit it's mostly just liquid, the sips of drinks I'd taken trying to settle my stomach before making the mistake of setting it off with a coughing fit. I heave twice, right after the other, puking up probably about a glass of liquid between the two heaves. I feel the pressure in my stomach growing, I ground both of my hands on the floor. It's about to get bad.

The first heave was large. It started with a burp, but quickly turned chunks of meat and beans and tortilla into projectiles towards the porcelain of my toilet bowl: chunky, but still liquidy with my drinks. The heave was deep, and long. In the middle of the heave, I burp, creating a second, more powerful wave of vomit to follow. I feel a squirt of liquid between my legs as I heave; not enough to leak through my pants, but enough for me to notice. I try to catch my breath.

I manage a few deep breaths before my stomach tries to heave up my dinner once more. I retch once, coughing up spit. I burp, and up with it comes a thick stream of chunks. Some of the toilet water splashes up and hits my face as my barely digested dinner plops into the bowl. I burp again, and realize I still don't feel any less full from before. I know the next heave is coming, nothing but stomach acid and a cough. Another heave produces only mucus. I rub my stomach, irritated that it has yet to find relief.

Rubbing my stomach is relieving only in the sense that it jostled it enough to try and retch productively again. I burp, I sit up a bit more, I know my stomach isn't finished yet. My stomach is reeling and I'm exhausted, I know I'm not finished yet but I'm ready to be. This dinner was a mistake, I am suffering the consequences.

Again, I heave a few more times but my retches are hardly productive. I feel a bubble start deep in my gut, it makes its way up my throat. I burp, deep and long. For a second I think it will be just that, but at the last second my stomach heaves and I throw up a bit of liquid. I cough, and retch a small bit of liquid up once more. For the second time, my stomach betrays me and retches again as I'm getting sick, producing a more powerful wave of vomit directly after the first. I'm able to take one breath before I'm getting sick again. The power from the first few retches isn't there, but there's still quantity. It's thick, I can feel chunks of it still rub against my throat as it's expelled. My stomach is tense, I'm not allowed to swallow or breathe until I've managed to bring up liquid one more time.

I sit up a little bit, I rest my forehead against my arm. I have a moment to breathe. I still feel bloated and full, but not as sick as before. My stomach still rumbles though, I feel my mouth water and struggle to swallow. I burp again, spitting into the chunks below. I try to catch my breath. I heave, and struggle to bring up thick chunks of my meal. My stomach contracts again, forcing up even more food. I wonder if this batch even got to digest, it feels so thick I could chew it. I spit, and wonder if my stomach will release any more of its contents.

My stomach is still upset, but it's not heaving anymore. After several seconds I lean back against my wall. I burp several times. I'm sure that if I'd had water to drink in that moment, that I would have gotten sick again, maybe before I was able to reach the toilet. I didn't have water, though, and that's probably for the better. I still felt full, but I didn't feel sick anymore.