Fingernails
PAGE One
Pic 0;
Small, black panel, with white text.
LAUREN; FINGERNAILS
LAUREN; WORDS, NIC WILSON
LAUREN; PICTURES, JAKE ALLEN
Pic 1;
Close on a woman’s hand, carrying a circular drink tray.
LAUREN; I LOVED MY FINGERNAILS.
Pic 2;
Still close on the same hand, folding over several dollar bills.
LAUREN; THEY WERE STRONG.
LAUREN; SHARP.
LAUREN; PAINTED RED.
Pic 3;
A little back from the hand now, resting at her side, as a hand creeps towards her rear.
LAUREN; I NEVER DANCED.
LAUREN; BUT I MADE MORE THAN THE GIRLS WHO TOOK THEIR CLOTHES OFF.
Pic 4;
Same distance as the last panel as the hand slaps across a nondescript man’s face.
LAUREN; BECAUSE MEN WANT MOST WHAT THEY CAN’T GET.
PAGE Two
Pic 5;
Still close on the hand, again, holding a key, moving towards a car door. Another hand, different from before, has just seized hold of her wrist.
LAUREN; I DIDN’T RECOGNIZE THE BASTARD.
Pic 6;
The man’s hands move around her throat. Her fingernails are visible as she tries to pull his hands away, pulling on his wrists.
LAUREN; BUT I FOUGHT HIM.
Pic 7;
She claws across his cheek, tearing out troughs of flesh that haven’t begun to bleed yet.
LAUREN; I SCRAPED AT HIS EYES AND HIS MOUTH AND THE SOFT PLACES I COULD REACH.
Pic 8;
Close on his hands. Her fingers are again at his wrists, trying to pry him away, as he squeezes her throat closed.
LAUREN; I SCREAMED UNTIL THERE WAS A POP IN MY THROAT.
LAUREN; THEN ALL THAT CAME OUT WAS A SMASHED HISS.
Pic 9;
Her fingers touch a cut in her cheek, leaving blood the color of her nails on her fingertips.
LAUREN; HE PUT A KNIFE TO MY CHEEK.
LAUREN; AND HE TOLD ME I WASN’T HURTING YET.
Pic 10;
His hands are threaded through hers, squeezing her palm. Her fingers are limp and pale.
LAUREN; I BEGGED HIM NOT TO COME IN ME BECAUSE I WASN’T ON THE PILL.
Pic 11;
She’s buried her face in her hands, sobbing. Her fingernails poke out through her hair, which hangs in places over her face.
LAUREN; HE TOLD ME NO ONE WOULD BELIEVE IF I TOLD.
LAUREN; THAT THEY’D CALL ME A WHORE, AND THAT ONE DAY HE’D KILL ME FOR IT.
PAGE Three
Pic 12;
Close up on a bedpan. Her fingers are curled inside, so we can’t see her fingernails, and she’s hunched over it, wretching.
LAUREN; I PUKED MOST OF THE NIGHT FROM THE PILL THE NURSE GAVE ME TO KEEP FROM HAVING HIS BABY.
Pic 13;
Close on a policewoman’s shoulder, where she’s keying a microphone attached to her radio. Her fingernails aren’t long or even painted, but they’re well kept and have a dull shine to them.
LAUREN; A POLICEWOMAN WATCHED AS THEY DID A RAPE KIT.
Pic 14;
The nurse performs a pelvic exam. All we see is the side of the nurse’s head and the nurse’s gloved hand resting on her thigh.
LAUREN; THE ONLY THING SHE SAID TO ME WAS, “CHAIN OF CUSTODY.”
Pic 15;
Close on the nurse’s hand. She’s wearing gloves, but through them you can clearly see the outline of perfect fingernails. She’s dropping a long cotton swab into a plastic bag.
LAUREN; IF YOU FIGHT LIKE THE TELL YOU TO, YOU GET BLOOD OR SKIN OR HAIR UNDER YOUR NAILS.
Pic 16;
Her fingernail clippings are in another plastic evidence bag. Through the bag we see her from the neck down, sitting on the examination table, holding her hospital gown.
LAUREN; IF IT’S BLOOD, THEY CUT YOUR NAILS, AND TAKE THE CLIPPINGS TO A LAB.
Pic 17;
She looks at her fingernails, curling them into her palm. The nurse did a poor job, and the cut lines are jagged and thick, and extremely noticeable across the shiny face her nails had.
LAUREN; AND I WANT SO BADLY TO FORGET.
LAUREN; BUT MY FINGERNAILS WON’T LET ME.
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