C4 The Aftermath

Athena’s P.O.V.

Dad immediately gained back his strength just within one month of his confinement, while I was in a state of comatose for two months. But the most heartbreaking part was… Helena did not survive!

I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. My throat began to shrink as a pang of pain stabbed my chest. I could not help but shed a tear in my left eye while still reminiscing what happened…

I woke up only to find Daddy sleeping soundly beside me. He was sitting on a small chair and his not fully bandaged head was buried in my bed. There were still some little marks of blood on his bandage. I slowly touched his hand and he soon awakened.

“Helena, hija! Thank God, you’re alive!” He immediately reached out for my head and neck to check on me as the intensity of his concern was overwhelming. “Are you okay? Does anything hurt, princess? Wait, I’ll just call the doctor!” He was about to rush outside and leave when I grabbed his left wrist to stop him.

“Dad… I… I am… not H-Helena. I am A-Athena,” I managed to tell him even though it was really hard for me.

It was like I did not have any strength to even say those few words… not because I couldn’t, but because he already assumed that I was his favorite daughter… when I was clearly not.

I wanted to deny the feeling but that was what really hurts. It was hurting me more than the scars and fractures I had already endured.

But enough of me, where is she?

I did not know why, but the expression on his face seemed to change when he heard that I was Athena. “No, hija! You’re just hallucinating! It might be the effect of the accident but you’re Helena, okay? I’m sorry to tell you this, but Athena is dead.”

I thought, there was nothing new about how I would feel. I thought that I was already used to feeling the misery brought by his not equal treatment to us. I thought I was fine every time he would make me feel like Helena was his only princess… but what he just said gave too much mental and emotional suffering I didn’t know if I could still bear.

Why does it feel like it was just nothing for him to easily say the words, ‘Athena is dead?’ I could feel my heart stopped from beating. I tried to hold back my tears from falling but those already welled up my eyes. I would rather choose Dad to take a knife straight to my skin than speak those words so cold as ice.

But if he were telling me that I died, would that mean… Helena died?

“No, Dad! Listen to me, I am Athena—the black sheep of the family and your rebellious daughter. Yes, we were identical, but you knew right from the start that we were different when it comes to attitude. Dad, I am Athena, and I am not just hallucinating! I know who I am and I’m one hundred percent sure that I’m not Helena!”

I did not know where I got the audacity to deliver those words. I could no longer control my impulse anymore. I still tried to resist my tears from falling but it already streamed down my face. How I wished that everything was just a nightmare. It was ironic, but I was torn between fighting for my own identity and mourning over the loss of my twin.

Daddy was about to speak when the doctor came followed by the two nurses. The doctor started to check my heartbeats, then, my eyes. He removed my bandage to check what I thought was a head wound and instructed the female nurse to replace it. The male nurse, on the other hand, injected something into my veins to help me calm down.

After that, the doctor introduced himself as Dr. Kim. He asked for my name and if I could still remember all the details before the accident happened.

“I’m Athena Cari Delgado, Doc. I was seated at the front seat with our father while my twin sister, Helena Mari Delgado, was sleeping at the back—” but I wasn’t yet done with my statement when Daddy cut me off.

“No, Helena! Please stop this nonsense! Doc, please check my daughter again. I think she was having amnesia* or some kind of hallucination. I will pay for everything. I can even double your professional fee—name your price if you want! Just do everything to cure my daughter. Please make her remember that she was Helena.”

This was the first time I saw how Dad begged someone.

“Please relax, Mr. Delgado. We ran a series of tests with your daughter’s brain damage and fortunately, after two months of being comatose, she’s now free of any hemorrhage and blood clot. I didn’t see anything wrong with her. She’s completely fine and she’s also free of any psychological traumas. Actually, she doesn’t have amnesia. You see, she clearly remembers everything and she’s extraordinarily strong.”

Then, he paused for a while before he continued.

“Even though you lost the other, your daughter here was a fighter, and we can discharge her soon so she can continue her healing periods at home. Excuse us, we will leave you for now so you two can talk… but please do not pressure the patient, Mr. Delgado. Stress will only affect her condition,” the doctor gently explained before he got out of the private room accompanied by his two nurses.

Silence reigned the entire room before Daddy opened his mouth. “I still can’t believe this. So, you’re Athena, huh?” he bitterly muttered as he broke down into tears. “So, it was really Helena who died? Oh, God! My Helena? What did you do to her? My daughter died because of you!”

He said those harsh words in a low tone, but it was like a bomb that deafened both of my ears. He even pointed his finger at me as if I were a criminal being tried in court. It affected me so much that all I had to do was sob.

“And how about me, Dad? A-Am I, not your daughter? Dad, I am also your daughter! D-Don’t talk to me as if I was a different person outside our family, who just k-killed your beloved daughter. Helena is my twin sister, Dad. We used to live together and never in my entire life that I would want her d-dead. Don’t blame me for what happened because it was all an accident!” I could not stop myself from stuttering while sobbing. It felt like I was having a hard time breathing as my chest continued to constrict.

If I only knew that all this would happen, I would have never agreed to Helena's request to switch our seats. If only I knew that Daddy would blame me for her death, I would have asked God to get me instead.

I would rather die than live like this. It was ironic that I was not able to properly mourn over my twin sister’s death because of my father’s accusations, and it was slowly shattering me into pieces!

“Fix your things. We will leave now!” Those were the last words that I heard from him before he turned around, went outside the room, and slammed the door shut.

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Amnesia* is a form of memory loss. Some people with amnesia have difficulty forming new memories. Others cannot recall facts or past experiences. People with amnesia usually retain the knowledge of their own identity, as well as motor skills.