Page 98 of Ms Perfectly Fine
“It was rather troublesome. Initially, I hoped you would tell Sasaki about the gifts and he would dissuade you from playing entirely, but you were so stubborn. You refused to bring them up. No matter how much I pried after I’d made a delivery, you were so determined to be damnedMs Perfectly Fine.” The resentment flowed out of Nina so fiercely, Autumn didn’t know how she had contained it for so long.
“So you decided to escalate things? You went from once a year to once a month to frighten me?” she said, making sure her voice was clear for the recording.
“I couldn’t let you just come out of oblivion and take everything I’ve worked and sacrificed for.” Nina shook her head before a slick smile spread across her lips. “Then I found the photo of you and that dead girl in here. It didn’t take me long to figure out who Heather was. Kind of creepy to change your name just to be close to your dead sister’s friend, but her lie was a golden opportunity—the perfect scapegoat.”
“Don’t you dare speak about either of them that way,” Autumn hissed, taking a step closer, and then stopping short with a jolt of fear when Nina raised her hands. She retreated, then realised how Nina had got into the house. “You had a key and the alarm code, but you forgot to set it when you left. That’s how Elijah was able to move in without my noticing!”
“He nearly caught me too.” Nina smirked, walking back and forth in front of the door. “He came in just as I left the photo. Even broke the back door on my way out trying to get it open. Then he ruined my endgame by changing the locks. I was going to leave the bloodied roses in your kitchen for extra flare. I had to settle for the dressing room.” She laughed. “Surprisingly, it worked out even better for me, because you caught poor, shy Heather. I did tell you she was nothing to worry about—probably one of the only honest things I told you—but you always had a weird feeling about her, and it played beautifully into my hands. She was alwayssowilling to help you. After she picked you up that morning, she was so worried. She even told Sasaki about you taking painkillers. In fairness to her, she really didn’t mean you any harm, but with the doubts I’d been pouring into Sasaki’s ear all season, it was just so easy to get you sent home.” She turned a glare at Autumn. “But you’re like a damn weed, always springing back up.”
“You’re truly sick. So much effort just for a showcase,” Autumn said, nauseated by how far she had gone just to see her own name in bold instead of Autumn’s. Guilt washed over her as she thought of how she had wronged Heather.
“It’s not ‘just a showcase!’ The fact that you even had to consider whether or not to go on tour when Sasaki asked drove me crazy. No one who truly belongs on that stage should even have to question it.”
“How did you think you would get away with this?” Autumn asked. “Were you just going to torment me forever?”
“No. My plan was perfect. I figured with all the commotion, Sasaki would suspend you, and then you wouldn’t be able to go on tour. With only one show under your belt, you’d be forgotten before the next season,” Nina said, smiling at her own genius.
“But it wasn’t perfect, because he didn’t do what you wanted. I still got to play, and you left a print, which they now have. You’ll never play on a stage again.” Maybe if Nina realised how much trouble she was in, she would admit she had been wrong.
Nina pulled at her suit jacket. “That wasn’t my fault. I always wore gloves, but you came over after the auction and I was forced to hide the vase. I thought I’d wiped it clean. Why do you think I encouraged you to go home with him? Elijah was the perfect distraction, and it also meant I could make my delivery the next morning.”
Autumn sighed. “Brinkley never barked because you had met her.”
“Right on the money. Garrett even tried to break up with me because he found the photo and the receipts—he’s smarter than I gave him credit for. When he stormed out, I went straight over to yours because I thought he was going to tell you,” Nina said.
“Elijah saw you that night. That was you outside the house.” Autumn clenched her fists, wishing she had listened.
“Guilty. I had to make sure Garrett didn’t turn up after I left. Elijah really was a pain in my ass, always there, getting in my way. Thankfully, I managed to convince Garrett I was doing it for your own good. I thought he, of all people, would understand. Or at least Ithoughthe understood, but then when he wanted to go for dinner, I knew he was going to warn Elijah because I had already convinced him you would never side with him over me. You’re loyal to a fault.” Nina smirked. “I had to end it with him, though, because of course he feltsorryfor you after he spoke to Heather the other day. Threatened to go to the police, and in order to keep him quiet, I promised to stop. I told him I had to end it with him to get my head straight, and he believed my tears and blubbering. It’s not you, it’s me—a classic.”
Autumn used all her inner strength to stop herself from slapping the smug expression from the other woman’s face.
“I never wanted anyone’s pity,” she started, but Nina’s laughter cut her off.
“Who are you kidding? Everyone made allowances for you. Sasaki bent over backwards to accommodate you the way he never would for the rest of us, just because of your tragic backstory. But I have to say, you did an excellent job at selling tickets. Don’t think it was because of your talent, though. People just feel sorry for you.” Nina’s face was so distorted by rage, Autumn barely recognised her.
She took a breath, tired of being insulted. “Why shouldn’t there be allowances for those of us who will never get to be normal again, those of us who spend every day with pain so nagging it threatens to drive us insane? You want me to apologise because Sasaki brought me back when many others would have discarded me? Never. I won’t apologise for the kindness he has shown me!” Autumn trembled as years of frustration escaped her. “The world isn’t built for those of us with chronic issues. Do we get some sympathy? Yes, but once the novelty wears off, that’s it. We’re told that our suffering has happened for a reason, that we are so strong and an inspiration, but it’s all bullshit to make them feel better because soon, they get bored! They lose interest in people who can’t keep up, who cancel and spend most of their time worrying about whether tomorrow will be a bad or good day. As you said, we’re seen as a burden, something to be pitied, and sooner or later, we’re pushed aside. You want me to feel sorry for you because I dared to pull myself back from nothing and play through pain you could never even imagine? No! Sure, everyone has their issues, but try adding a body that fights you every step of the way and then you might have my sympathy.” She dared to step closer, forcing Nina to look her in the eye. “Until then, I think all that’s left to say is fuck you, Nina, you pathetic, jealous bitch.”
The words dripped from Autumn’s lips with venom she didn’t know she had within. It was the weight of everything she had ever wished to say to those who turned their backs on people who needed them the most.
And then Nina pulled a knife from behind her back.
“I think we’ve both said our piece,” she mused, “and I think the obvious conclusion is that there’s only enough room for one of us.” Her eyes were so wide, they chilled Autumn to her bones. “And since I don’t expect to get away with this and I probably won’t get to step on a stage again, I think I should finish what that stage started ten years ago. Who knows? You might even thank me for putting you out of your misery.” She pressed the tip of the blade to her fingertip.
“Give it your best shot. At least you aren’t hiding in the shadows any more like a coward,” Autumn spat.
A wicked grin on her lips, Nina lashed out with the knife and caught Autumn’s palm as she held her hand up in defence. She cried out, clutching her bleeding hand to her chest.
“Autumn?” Elijah called, and both Autumn and Nina whirled around.
Elijah!He’s here!It sounded like he was trying to break down the door.
“Nina, they have your prints on the vase. If you give up, they’ll go easy on you,” he pleaded, but Autumn knew it wouldn’t work. She glanced at the vase of white roses as Nina eyed the splintering door.I’ll never be a victim again. Not without a fucking fight.She backed up to the dresser and reached for the vase behind her back.
“Don’t worry, this will all be over soon,” Nina called out to Elijah as Autumn picked up the vase.
As Nina turned back to face her, she smashed it over her head.
Glass and roses littered the ground. A rivulet of blood trickled down Nina’s forehead before she dropped the knife and crumbled to the floor.
