Almost Gone

Chapter three

A week passes and her mother is signing paperwork to get her released. She and the nurse are gathering all of her belongings from the room and making sure she isn't forgetting anything. The doctor walks in with her mother and tells her how to change the bandages as needed. Her mother grabs the duffle bag off the bed and starts to walk out the door not saying anything but a quiet 'thank you' to the doctor and nurse.
The ride home is silent and unpleasant. She gave up trying to start a conversation when all she got out of her mother were noises and not actually responses. She can tell that her mother is disappointed and doesn't know what to do. She wants to tell her mother how sorry she is but is reluctant out of fear of what her reaction might be.
She sighs in relief as they pull into the driveway. Getting out she grabs her bag and walks as fast as she can, without it hurting, to the front door. When she opens the front door she sees her father standing there waiting for her arrival with a smile on his face. As he takes her bag from her hand she gives him a hug and then they both start walking to her bedroom. Her mother goes into the kitchen to start dinner, but on her way she grabs a bottle of wine from the cabinet.
She is sitting on her bed talking with her dad where they hear her mother calling them for dinner. They get up and her father waits patiently for her to reach his speed. Smiling at one another the walk to the dinning room and sit down, joining her mother at the table. Dinner is silent, only the sound of forks hitting plates. Her mother doesn't want to talk about what has happened, but that's all she can think about. Her father doesn't want to upset anyone so he stays quiet as well. So, she is forced to eat in silence. Getting up she takes her plate to the sink and as she's rinsing it off her mother walks in behind her. She tries to walk past, but is stopped by an arm.
"Why, Alice? why would you do such a thing like that?" Her mother asks in an impatient voice. She seems angry with herself more than Alice.
"I... I don't know." She says, fighting the tears back. "I feel as if I don't deserve to live anymore. I don't want to live anymore. I'm not worth it." She sits in silence as her mother tried to grasp hold of the emotions that now fill the atmosphere.
"Oh my dearest, you are so worth it. To me and your father." Her mother says wrapping her arms around her arms around her daughter. She starts to cry and squeezes her tightly for a moment, letting go she kisses her forehead. She watches her mother walk to the sink and then slowly walks back to her bedroom thinking about what had just happened. After a while she went back into the living room and told her parents goodnight.