Late one night， as he lay staring at the ceiling， the man by the window began to cough. He was choking【使窒息】 on the fluid in his lungs. The other man watched in the dimly-lit room as the struggling man by the window groped【摸索】 for the button to call for help. Listening from across the room， he never moved， never pushed his own button which would have brought the nurse running. In less than five minutes， the coughing and choking stopped， along with the sound of breathing. Now， there was only silence deathly silence.
The following morning， the day nurse arrived to bring water for their baths. When she found the lifeless body of the man by the window， she was saddened and called the hospital attendant to take it away no words， no fuss【大驚小怪】. As soon as it seemed appropriate【合適的】， the man asked if he could be moved next to the window. The nurse was happy to make the switch and after making sure he was comfortable， she left him alone.
Slowly， painfully， he propped himself up on one elbow to take his first look. Finally， he would have the joy of seeing it all himself. He strained【拉緊】 to slowly turn to look out the window beside the bed. It faced a blank wall.
醫院的同一間病房裏住著兩個病重的男人。其中一個男人每天有一小時的時間能在床上坐起身子，以便排出肺髒裏的積水。他的病床緊靠著房間唯一的窗戶。而另一個男人則要一直平躺在床上。