Beth slept deeply. As she slowly began to wake, she was aware only of a deep heaviness. She was warm, peaceful and happy. She heard noises nearby, but couldn't make sense of them. She found concentrating on them was hard enough that it wasn't worth the effort. She simply drifted, trying to stay in this wonderful warmth.<br/><br/>Despite her efforts, however, she began to wake. Slowly, she became aware that she was lying propped up on a soft surface, and felt the warmth of heavy blankets over her. She could hear strange puffs of air, and beeps near by.<br/><br/>Just as one of these puffs of air happened, she felt a horrid, cold rush of air forced into her lungs. Instinctively, she fought against it. She squirmed slightly and realized something was stuck to her face, and felt a horrible constriction in her throat. She tried to cough, to speak, to choke, but could manage nothing. Panic set in and she clawed at her face, hands retricted by the tubes taped to them.<br/><br/>The doctor, who had been in and out frequently, entered just in time to see her fit of panic. He was shocked to say the least. She had been on the life support because she wasn't breathing on her own, and now suddenly she was awake, and fighting against the tubes? It wasn't possible. He rushed forward to grab hold of her hands. Her eyes were wide, full of panic, unseeing. He pulled her hands free and spoke gently, hoping she would hear him.<br/><br/>"Easy now, Mrs. Jacobs... just relax. I'll pull the tubes out. Just calm down."<br/><br/>With that, he released her wrists and began to hurriedly pull the tape off the tubes in her nose and mouth. She was suffocating, he knew. Normally, the removal of this tube would be done far more gently, but she needed air. He braced her jaw to hold her still, then pulled the tube free.<br/><br/>At once, Beth drew in a deep, ragged gasp of air. She began coughing, gasping, and sobbing.