Blame It All on Me. Alternative Ending

Chapter 19. Home

"Arina!" a man's voice, full of concern and relief at the same time, exhaled. "Can you hear me? My dear!"

"Pa... pa..." the girl managed to squeeze out in syllables, her voice hoarse and unfamiliar, as she turned her head towards the voice and blinked her eyes open again. The initially blurry outline became clearer, and finally, she could see her father's face.

"Arina... thank God, finally..." The man, lifting himself up, leaned towards her, overcome with emotion, placing his slightly trembling hands on her forearms. He paused, as if unsure of what to do next. Then he sank heavily back into the chair and cupped her cheek gently.

"Papa..." Arina could only repeat before bursting into tears.

"Sweetheart, does something hurt?" Her father got alarmed.

Arina shook her head.

"There, there, it's alright... Mom will be there any minute, and Romka, and Nika..." he nodded towards the phone. "Everything's fine, there, there..."

Arina nodded, clutching her father's hand convulsively, but just kept weeping.

Home. She was home again.

Did she just dream it all? Was she merely unconscious all this time?

Within minutes, a hurricane-like force burst into the room – her mother. She almost pushed aside the nurses who had also just entered the room and, disregarding their warnings, embraced her daughter, sobbing uncontrollably. Behind her, Arina's younger brother and sister lingered, unusually quiet and serious.

She was home... What a relief!

☙ ❦ ❧

"So what about... Maxim?..." Arina almost spat out his name.

"They discharged him after a day. Minor injuries and mild hypothermia..." Her mother livened up a little: Arina had been avoiding any mentions of Maxim and the accident until now.

"I see," the girl muttered.

"He was here, those flowers are from him," the woman mentioned tentatively. "And he keeps calling. Are you sure you don't want to see him?"

"Need to get rid of that broom..." Arina grumbled. "And tell him to stay away."

"Don't be so hard on him, in extreme situations, people's reactions can be unpredictable, and self-preservation instinct sometimes takes over..." Her mother gently stroked Arina's head.

"What are you talking about?" Arina looked at her in confusion.

"Well... the fact that he managed to get out, while you didn't..."

Arina let out a muffled laugh. For some reason, she wasn't surprised by this turn of events.

"I wonder if you'd think the same way if I hadn't survived... but... if only it were just that... Did he not tell you why we ended up in such a situation in the first place?"

"He'd lost control of the car..."

"That's what it's called now?!" Arina ran her hands through her hair. "Great... what an ars..."

"Now there, Risha..." her mother scolded.

"It was all because of him!" Arina exclaimed.

"You mean...?"

"Yes, Mom, that's exactly what I mean! He deliberately drove into the oncoming traffic! And it was me who redirected the car from the bridge, otherwise we wouldn't even have left a wet spot behind!"

Arina suddenly felt slightly unwell from the disturbance and leaned back on the pillow, breathing heavily.

"Calm down, dear, you mustn't worry..." her mother pleaded. From the deep furrow between her brows, Arina understood that it was Maxim now who should be worrying.