The Russians are Coming!, 14 Months in the Life of the Town - стр. 4
«No!» Hannah angrily shouted at him. «You should take just one.»
The boy coughed, and candy fell from his mouth.
Feeling that something was amiss, the girls stared at Dylon. He choked, his face went purple, and he tumbled.
«Mommy!» the girls squealed at once, and ran to the adults.
The women rushed to their children. Nina Lapina quickly checked Larisa out, and sighed with relief, seeing she was fine. But Megan saw her son suffocating and convulsing, and she screamed with horror.
«Call an ambulance!» she yelled at her husband. Perplexed, David ran to his son, then back to the house.
Suddenly Marina flew to Dylon and grabbed his feet. Holding the boy upside down, she started to shake him, and Megan watched them with bewilderment.
«What is she doing?» Megan thought. «She’s killing my son!» But as in a nightmare, she could not move a limb.
Dylon coughed, a candy fell from his mouth, and he cried. It was the best music that his parents had ever heard. The voice of the boy rang loud and clear. He was all right now, and Marina passed him to his mother.
«Marina,» mumbled David. «You saved his life!»
He opened his arms to the girl. Marina came close and hugged him, pressing herself to him. She put her head on his shoulder, and he sensed her trembling.
Suddenly, he noticed that everybody was silent, staring at them. David saw the baffled gaze of his wife, and he felt embarrassed.
«Marina,» he said very carefully. «It’s over. Thank you. Thank you so much!»
The girl slowly raised her head, looked around, and her face went red.
«Excuse me,» she mumbled, and almost ran away.
Everybody exchanged glances. This episode ended well, but the picnic was irretrievably spoiled, and soon, one by one, all the guests left.
* * * * *
Late in the evening, when the VanSteins were in bed, Megan spoke to her husband with irritation in her voice. «When Marina hugged you, it looked as if you liked it.»
«I couldn’t push her away when she had just saved the life of our son, could I?» David tenderly retorted. «Don’t be jealous. She saved our Dylon. She saved him.»
Megan wept and hugged her husband. Soon she fell asleep, but David just lay there for a long time thinking about Marina. His wife was right, when he sensed her so close he felt excited.
«But it was just a natural male reaction,» he whispered, looking at the calm face of his sleeping wife. «Marina’s just a young, pretty girl…»
«Pretty, eh?» a mocking inner voice sounded so loudly in his mind that David got scared, and he carefully smoothed Megan’s messed locks, admiring his wife. But this revived his memories of Marina’s hair smelling like fresh grain and tickling his face when she put her face on his shoulder. Damn! The same shoulder upon which Megan’s head was reposed right now.
«It’s okay.» Shaken, David suddenly felt sick. «I just have to be more careful and colder when communicating with Marina.»
This thought calmed him, and he was able to sleep.
* * * * *
The next day Nina Lapina visited Marina. She came alone, and Marina wondered, «Where is your daughter?» as it was evening already.
«I left Larisa with Vera Grach,» Nina explained, looking around the apartment with curiosity.
It was a studio, and at first sight one was able to guess that here lived a single teacher or scientist. Papers were piled everywhere. A desk with a computer took the central position in the room. Some tables against the walls and a couch instead of a bed finished this picture.