Goodbye You Never Loved Me novel (Martha and Stefan)
Chapter 857 She Would Rather Choose To Escape

Chapter 857 She Would Rather Choose to Escape

Anna and Mia had been waiting backstage, watching all the contestants' performances on the huge screen in front of them.

"Charlee did really well, her singing was great and her voice was so clean," Anna praised as she watched Charlee perform on the screen.

Mia shook her head. "You sing better than she does, and more importantly, your song choice today can definitely outshine everyone else's. I believe your voice can bring everyone an unprecedented shock." Encouraged by her best friend's words, Anna felt even more confident.

But when Mia noticed that Anna remained calm and showed no signs of discomfort despite drinking juice from Charlee earlier, she began to frown slightly. Could it be that her guess was wrong? Did Charlee simply give Anna a drink without any ulterior motives?

Impossible! Charlee had always been vocal about wanting to win first place in the talent show competition at all costs. How could she have kindly given a competitor like Anna some pear juice? "Cough..."

Anna felt uncomfortable in her throat and coughed lightly several times.

"What's wrong?" Mia asked with feigned concern but with a hint of excitement inside.

Anna coughed again but this time it only made things worse; there was now a burning sensation in her throat that grew stronger by the second.

"I'll get you some water," Mia said as she helped Anna sit down on the couch before quickly pouring a glass of ice-cold water for her.

Anna thought drinking cold water would make things better but instead, the burning sensation intensified even further until it became unbearable.

As soon as she realized that it might be difficult for herself to perform later due to this discomfort, an ominous feeling crept into her heart: Was it possible that Charlee tampered with the pear juice? The thought made Anna's face turn pale instantly.

As time passed closer towards when she would have to go onstage herself for performance, not only did this unpleasant feeling persist but also worsened significantly until eventually her voice was hoarse... "Why are you doing this to me, Charlee?" Hatred flashed through Anna's eyes while looking at herself in mirror backstage where tears started streaming down cheeks uncontrollably... "Mia," She whispered hoarsely after taking deep breaths trying hard not cry anymore while looking away from mirror avoiding eye contact with anyone around them backstage area.

"I may not be able to participate anymore... I'll just forfeit." With regretful expression mixed disappointment over losing chance winning 100 thousand prize money.

"You want to forfeit? How can you do that? Haven't you been looking forward to this reward all along?" Mia feigned surprise.

Joke, how could she quit at this point?

Her only goal was to make Anna lose face on stage, to let everyone see her embarrassed side.

"I cannot stand on stage right now. Instead of standing on stage and making a fool of myself, I'd rather choose to give up now," Anna said sadly, thinking about her careful preparation over the past few days. "Mia, I wish you success. I... I'll go first," Anna put her things in her bag and looked disappointed as she prepared to leave.

Mia quickly grabbed Anna who wanted to leave.

"Anna, you said every time standing on stage is your confident moment. You can't be a deserter at this time. Moreover, if you quit now, the company may not arrange for you to participate in any competition again in the future. This is a big blow for someone like you who needs prize money," Mia persuaded.

"But..." Anna sighed heavily.

"Although you may not necessarily achieve excellent results this time around but at least by participating today will keep your qualification for next time's competition. You cannot lose your chances just because of one failure," Mia added after seeing Anna's hesitation.

Do I really have to embarrass myself on stage?

Anna was struggling inside herself.

"I heard that there will be participation awards given out this time as an encouragement for us trainees. As long as you try your best, you are the ultimate winner! You cannot let everyone think that when faced with problems or difficulties that running away is what defines who are!" Mia encouraged further.

Anna hesitated for quite some time before deciding she would go ahead with performing.

This made Mia excited beyond words; she couldn't wait to witness Anna make a fool of herself on stage.

"I'll cheer for you backstage."

Mia gave Anna an encouraging hug and watched her walk towards the stage with a smile on her face.

Anna kept cheering herself but when she finally stood onstage looking down upon judges and audience members below, she still felt scared deep down inside.

Sitting in his judge seat, Jimmy unexpectedly had a sense of anticipation within him growing stronger by each passing moment...

He thought back to their childhood; Anna's clear, melodious voice that touched people's hearts made him eager to see the shining moment when Anna was on stage.

"Next up is contestant number ten, Anna, with her song," the emcee announced and pulled Anna out of her thoughts.

As the music started playing, Anna tried several times to open her mouth but hesitated. After all, her hoarse voice sounded like a broken gong and would surely scare everyone away if it came through the microphone - including the judges sitting in front of the stage.

"Jimmy, what's wrong with her? Is she nervous?" Bryce asked curiously as he sat next to Jimmy when he saw that despite the music starting up again, there was no sign of Anna singing anytime soon. Jimmy furrowed his eyebrows and stared intently at Anna with his deep dark eyes. He radiated encouragement towards her.

Anna could clearly hear whispers from below and see that Charlee had a smug smile on her face.

The emcee kept hinting at her to start singing.

As time ticked by second by second, whispers grew louder from below, making Anna feel increasingly uneasy.

The emcee quickly approached her. "Anna! What's going on? Why aren't you singing? Are you trying to get famous this way?"

"I..." Anna only managed one word before realizing how hoarse her throat felt.

The emcee didn't notice anything unusual about Anna and continued urging her forward. "If you don't sing now, I'll have no choice but to announce your withdrawal from this competition! You won't be able to participate in any future events held by our company either."

Anna took a deep breath and picked up the microphone. She couldn't imagine how she would manage singing an entire high-pitched song with such a hoarse voice right now...

Oh well... this was just fate for her; she had accepted defeat...

Thinking this way made it easier for her. She bowed deeply towards those seated below, turned around swiftly and headed backstage instead...

Rather than embarrass herself further onstage like this, running away seemed like an easier option right now...

"Stop," Jimmy's low commanding tone rang out behind Anna as she walked offstage.