Lena leaned forward quickly with clear eagerness. “She only does this for attention because she cannot stand when events are not centered around her.”
I remembered the engagement party last month where a slice of cake left me sweating and shaking on the bathroom floor while trying not to make noise. Nobody believed me when I said the frosting made me sick that evening.
My father reached across the table and dropped a small portion of pasta onto my plate again. “Just try one bite,” he said with confident patience. “This picky eating habit has lasted long enough already.”
My heart began racing instantly. The smell alone made my throat feel smaller while pressure formed beneath my sternum. Years of disbelief had planted doubt deep inside my mind. Maybe anxiety caused the symptoms instead of food reactions. Maybe fear created the sensation of choking. Maybe my body had simply learned to panic around meals.