It's Leila. Leila Williams, standing in front of me with a gun in her hand. I stand frozen before her as she looks over me, almost as if I'm an exotic creature she's never seen before in her life.

"I see why Master loves you", she whispers. "You're much prettier than me." Why would she think that? I look nothing like her. Although, as I gaze at her again, I suddenly realize what she means. Her dark eyes cast shadows, as if she hasn't slept in days, and her hair is almost the same shade of mine—although on closer inspection, it looks dirty and unclean. Her skin is pale, like she hasn't been outside in weeks, and her wrists still bear the dirty, bloody bandages I saw the last time I saw her. She looks sad and lost, as I'm her rival she feels compelled to defeat. Shaking, I take a deep breath and smile briefly in her wake.

"Hello, Leila. It's nice to meet you," I manage to address past the knot in my throat. Does she want to hurt me or is she here for Christian? She cocks her head to one side, almost as if she's surprised that I can talk.

"Master talks about me?", she asks, as if this revelation isn't something she was expecting.

"Yes," I choke before trying again. "He told me what happened. I'm so sorry, Leila," I reply compassionately. Her eyes well up with tears and her fingers grip the gun tighter, as if it's an anchor she needs to hold to survive. She looks down at the floor, sniffling silently as she does, before gazing at me again as tears fall down her cheeks.

"Don't lie to me, Anastasia. Master never wanted me," she chokes and I furrow my brows at her comment. Never wanted her?

"What do you mean?", I ask cautiously, silently praying that Christian stays away in case Leila wants to hurt him.

"Master never loved me. I loved him, but he always said no," she begins, her fingers tightening on the gun as I discreetly hold my breath.

"I'm sure that's not true. He was trying to find you."

"He never found me," she cries as she blinks briefly at the words. "We were under the contract. He treated me well and always took care of me. I told him I loved him. He never said it back. He only said it to you."

"Is that why you're upset? Because he didn't tell you the same?", I inquire, still praying that Christian steers clear.

"He never loved me. He never loved any of us. We always loved him, but he never loved us," she whispers, as if this was a dark secret she's never told anyone but me.

"I'm so sorry, Leila," I say quietly, hoping my voice is calming when I do.

"Tell me what you have that I don't," she blurts and it takes me a moment to process what she's said.

"What?", I ask, not knowing what she meant.

"You look like me. We're one in the same. Why does Master love you and not me?" Oh shit, what am I supposed to say to that?

"Leila, I have nothing to offer. Christian, Master, he'll get tired of me. I have nothing to give." Leila looks at me and I briefly see a hint of anger in her eyes. I think my heart has stopped beating entirely.

"Master never slept in our beds; we always slept with him. I saw him in your bed. He looked happy with you." What? She saw Christian and me in bed?

"Did you break into my apartment?", I inquire cautiously, trying hard to squeeze the words past the lump in my throat.

"I was never like this before. Master treated me well. Said I was a perfect submissive. I wanted to see if he treated you the same way. You're giving him everything I couldn't. He loves you more than me", she replies softly and her grip around the gun loosens as well, and I briefly wonder if she'll drop it to the floor.

"Leila", I respond quietly while still standing in place. "I'm so sorry Christian never loved you the way you wanted, but I know he cared about you as much as you cared about him. He wouldn't have come back if he didn't care for you at all." Why am I telling her this? She's holding me at gunpoint and I don't know her objective.

"He came back for you", she continues, her grip tightening once again. "You left him and you still came back." Has she been spying on me since we broke up? How come I never noticed her?

"Leila, I'm nothing special to Master and I know he still cares for you. He might not know it, but I know he still does. Please believe me." She then fires a shot at the back wall, making me jump, before pointing the gun at me with determination in her eyes.

"Stop lying to me! I don't like to be lied to," she shouts, and I can feel my heart pounding in my chest.

"You're not the one for him. You don't know him the way I do; the way all of us do," she retorts, still holding her gun firmly in her hand.

"What do you mean?", I whisper, trying hard to remain calm when I do.

"Did Master ever tell you why he likes to punish us? Why he needs control? We're not the only ones that look like his mother." What is she talking about?

"Leila, why don't you give me the gun and I'll let you talk to Christian?"

"You can never be enough for him! You don't love him the way I do. Nothing we do will ever be enough", she shouts and I watch in horror as her finger moves slightly on the trigger but before she can fire, the door bursts open and we both look to see Christian and Taylor standing in the doorway, looking almost as scared as I feel. I breathe a sigh of relief as Christian looks from me to Leila and Leila stares at him as if she's staring at a ghost. Taylor starts to move toward her but Christian quickly stops him before gazing at me again and pointing to Leila, pointing at her gun. Leila stands frozen, not knowing what he wants, but he then points his finger to himself and Leila immediately turns her gun and points it at his chest.

"Christian," I yell but he quickly silences me as Leila holds her gaze and Christian holds hers. He walks slowly toward her, his eyes never leaving hers, and slowly reaches up before taking the gun from her hand and placing it in his pocket. I audibly hear Taylor sigh in relief, but Christian ignores him as he continues to stare at Leila, almost as if she's a stranger. He then slowly opens his arms for her, inviting her to walk into them, and she hesitates before stepping in his embrace as he holds her tight. I gasp softly at the sight as Leila cries into his overcoat, and Christian slowly strokes her hair, calming her as he does. He looks to Taylor, who them immediately steps in front of me before extending his hand for mine, silently coaxing me to leave. I continue to stand frozen as I watch Christian and Leila, almost like two lovers who were brought back together. Together. A lump forms in my throat as I picture them both together: her kneeling in the play room, Christian ordering her around, and her silent submission to every word he says. The perfect submissive. A chill runs down my spine as I see it as clearly as I see them.

"Ana, I want you to go to Escala with Taylor. I'll meet you there," Christian orders, and a small tear runs down my cheek. This is what he wants; a submissive like Leila who obeys his every command. Not me. Not a woman who defies him every chance she can. I can never be what he wants; the perfect submissive who obeys every command. That's Leila; not me.

"Ana, do as you're told. I don't want to say it again," Christian orders more sternly, almost forcing me to leave so he can be alone with Leila. I suddenly can't breathe.

"Ana, for once, just do as you're told," Christian repeats through gritted teeth, not hesitating to show his annoyance at me not doing as he wants.

Before I know it, Taylor suddenly takes me in his arms and drags me to the door before closing it behind me, with Christian still holding Leila as she continues to weep in his arms. I finally manage to pull my gaze away from them and try to follow Taylor outside, just as it starts to rain and the view almost blocks the view of the streets.

"Miss Steele," Taylor says as he holds my door for me, but my feet stay in place as I think about Leila and Christian alone in my apartment. The rain runs down my coat and onto the sidewalk, sending a quick shiver down my spine as the cold rain hits my skin. I gaze at Taylor, who's waiting patiently for me to enter, before turning on my heel and walking the other way.

"Miss Steele," Taylor calls out but I choose to ignore him.

"Ana," he calls but I continue to ignore him as I slip the hood of my coat over my head and walk briskly across the street. Leila's words keep racing through my head, sending my blood on fire as I try to process what she said.

"Master never slept in our beds; we always slept with him. I saw him in your bed. He looked happy with you."

"Did Master ever tell you why he likes to punish us? Why he needs control? We're not the only ones that look like his mother."

"He came back for you." "You left him and you still came back." Suddenly, I feel nauseous at her words. After everything she went through and all her time with Christian, it still hurt her inside because she wanted more.

Shit. I wanted more when I first met Christian, but it wasn't until we broke up when he decided he did, too. Why am I suddenly so different to him? He never wanted more, so why would he now? Leila gave him everything he wanted, yet there she was, sad and hurt because he never told her he loved her; because she wanted more.

I think back to when I first confessed to Christian that I loved him, and how horrified he was as if he didn't want it to be true. It was two weeks until I saw him again, and now, what are we supposed to do?

"You can never be enough for him! You don't love him the way I do. Nothing we do will ever be enough", Leila's words ring loud and clear in my head. Christian needs control but every time I defy him, it takes it away and he doesn't know what to do. He says he likes it, but what about when he wants me to behave? And after we broke up, how can we ever look past that? I left him because he went too far, but what if he does it again? What will I do? How can I ever be everything he wants me to be? Maybe Leila was right. How could I ever be enough for Christian?

A few hours pass by and I'm suddenly standing outside Escala, as the rain pours harder leaving me soaked. Would Christian be here or is he still with Leila? What if he brought her here? What if he decides he doesn't want me anymore? No, I refuse to believe that for a second.

Taking a deep breath, I calmly enter Escala and ride the elevator to Christian's penthouse.

Please don't be here. Please don't be home.

The doors open as I step into the foyer, and I immediately hear a voice coming from nearby, and look to see Christian walking into the great room, talking on the phone.

"Forget it, she's here," he says before hanging up the phone and walking straight to me.

"Where the fuck have you been?", he barks but I ignore him and start to head for the stairs.

"Anastasia," he calls out, but I continue to ignore him.

"Ana", he calls out again and I reluctantly turn around to find him standing right behind me, with clear apprehension burning in his eyes.

"Where the fuck were you? I told you to come straight here and now it's twenty after ten," he scolds but I choose not to care.

"I'd figure you'd want to spend time with your girlfriend. Someone who doesn't defy you and does whatever you want," I reply curtly and his brows furrow in response.

"What are you talking about? Do you have any idea how many hours my people and I spent trying to find you?"

"I can take care of myself, Christian. But I'm sure it upsets you because you always need control."

"What's gotten into you? I've been worried sick about you, Ana! I told you to come straight here."Where's Leila? Is she upstairs waiting for you?" He frowns at my comment as if I've grown an extra head.
"Why would you think that? I sent her to Dr. Flynn's so she can get the help that she needs."

"Why isn't she here?"

"Why on earth would I bring her back here if it meant she was gonna hurt you?"

"And yet you had no problem holding her the way you did."

"She had a gun, Ana. I would've done anything to subdue her."

"Then why weren't you with her?"

"What are you talking about?"

"Christian, Leila told me that I could never be enough for you. She loved you the way you were but she still couldn't win your heart."

"Ana, I told you. I wasn't interested in more until the day I met you."

"But I'm not a perfect submissive, Christian. Once I get out of line, you always feel the need to punish me."

"Ana, we've talked about this. I need to have control because it's the way I am."

"Then what about your mother? Did you need control over her?"

"What? She abandoned me when I was four."

"And yet you punish women because we look like her," I blurt and Christian's eyes widen in response.

"Ana, it's not like that. You're nothing like she was."

"Then why do it, Christian? Why punish women who look exactly like your mother?" As I ask this, I can see the fear in his eyes, almost as if I've discovered a dark secret he doesn't want me to know.

"Christian, I'm too tired to talk about this, but maybe we should split up until you decide what you want."

"What?", he exclaims, almost as if I've slapped him. "You can't leave. You can't leave me again."

"Then why should I stay, Christian? You've been an enigma ever since I met you, and only Mrs. Robinson knew your secrets after she decided to seduce and abuse you."

"Ana, it wasn't like that. I've already told you more about myself than I've ever told her."

"And yet you're still hiding something from me without telling me what it is!", I shout, startling us both when I do. Christian opens his mouth to say something, but closes it again while trying to think of a response.

"Ana, please don't leave me. I was lost when you left and I never want it to happen again," he pleads and my eyes swell up when he does.

"Christian, please don't. I can never be what you want. I can't give you control if you don't tell me why you need it."

"Ana, I never wanted to hurt you."

"But you still did whenever I step out of line! How am I supposed to believe you won't do that to me again? What could you possibly say to prove I'm what you want?" As I say this, Christian's brow furrows before opening his eyes again but before I can respond, I suddenly see him sink to the floor, resting on his knees with his palms up and staring down at the floor. It takes me a moment to process what he's doing, until it suddenly dawns on me what he's doing right in front of me.

Oh my God...

It's Christian...Christian the submissive.