Allergic sneeze from co-worker

[Luisa39]

Today at work my co-worker (in her 30's, red hair, blue eyes, petite) began sniffling -- I'm assuming from allergies, as she didn't seem to have a cold.  I had never heard her sneeze before, and I began to wonder if she would.  Sure enough, she suddenly burst out with a sneeze that sounded sort of like "IH-choo!"  It was quite high-pitched, especially the first syllable, and it broke the silence of the room.  I offered a casual "bless you," and she thanked me in a tone of voice that suggested she was a little embarrassed by how high-pitched and sudden her sneeze had been.