001

“Cindy!!! Get up!!”

Ugh I hate this, waking up in the morning trying to keep the step-monster happy.

“Cindy!”
“Coming!!” I shrilled. Seriously waking me up so early in the morning, is she crazy?

“Cinderella! Come have breakfast with the rest of the family!” My stepmother yelled. I hate saying her name, even in my head I refer to her as the stepmonster or stepmother.

“Honestly doesn’t anyone have any decency in this house” I muttered. I jogged down the staircase, and took a quick glance at the old mahogany clock on the way down, 10:00. It is way too early to deal with all this stuff. I dragged my feet to my chair at the right hand side of my father and slumped into it.  

“Cinderella, you must sit up. You’re a child of a Lord of an estate. Therefore you must act like one.” My father droned. I don’t know, but something about people’s voices are annoying me these days. I nodded and dug into the gruel the maid served me. “Furthermore, today you are going to be meeting with a fine young gentleman from Lombard of the name, Charming.” Talk about conceited, a lord named Charming? That’s a no from the start.

“No,” I spoke flatly and put as much force as I could into the word. That seemed to falter my father for a second, but as I thought he was made of sterner stuff.

“Now Cindy-“

“Don’t Cindy- me! I’m too young to marry and you know it!” I huffed.

“Cindy, I’m not asking you to marry anyone…yet, I’m just asking you to see some nice presentable young men. Would it kill you to meet at least one man? I mean they’re nothing like those ruffians that you choose to associate with!” He was in full lion mode now, though it’s a bit useless to me. I knew that I would win this argument, I always win the argument, no matter who it is against.

I walked out of the estate in my now signature outing attire. A brown cowl over my head and a cotton dress underneath, I carried my little basket filled with goodies. And walked towards the town, head down and not making eye contact. I tried my best to look like a poor girl, which I had been getting good at doing, and walked my way down to the town. I was getting bored as I entered the town so I began humming to myself, and humming built up to a little singing. “You're  sounding good there Bluebell.” I started to the sound of my nickname. I turned to face my friend Cheshire, named for his gleaming grin. I smiled, out of the whole town this man was the one I liked most. You could say I had a crush on him. He tended to walk shirtless around town, letting his bare midriff show, wild hair like a mane around his head, grinning that grin he always used to capture the heart of girls all over town. “What goes Bluebell?” He grinned taking the basket from my arm, “Is the world well with you?”

I rolled my eyes and shrugged, “ Like death has come to chase me down and chew on my bones.”

“Don’t fret my Bella the sun shines, even through the night.” He always spoke with a grin in his voice, and his smile always caught me.

We walked through the forest, “Cheshire why must women be forced to marry?” I mused, Cheshire was the only man in the whole town who knew my true identity, though of course, he was my only friend.

“Well Bell, not all women are forced to marry you know,“

“I know but why?”

“Well if we’re talking about you, I’d say you have more freedom than you give yourself.”

“What do you mean?!”

“I mean, that you don’t understand the amount of freedom you hold.”

“No, I hold no freedom at all! The stepmonster forces me to clean the estate like a indentured servant and my step-sisters get everything! They always get new dresses, first picks on everything!”

“Your sisters are not even relevant, eighty percent of the time you get what you want! You only give things up because you're tired of hearing them ask!” he debated. Hearing this from him struck me like a blow across the cheek, he was always there for me, I couldn’t imagine him actually arguing with me. Him too? Its like everyone is trying to pick a fight with me today!

“Be quiet!”, I screamed, “You don’t understand me! You're nothing but a lowly street urchin! How could someone like you know anything about me!?” It was like something in him snapped right then and there, a strange fire lit up in his eyes.

“If your gonna ask for advice and go denying it then you should try using your mind sometime!” he roared, and with that he stalked off in a different direction.

I stopped, shocked, I just stood there. The clouds began greying and I knew a pour was coming, and yet I stood there, willing it all to happen, willing it all to rain. Then, when I was good and drenched, I walked home. I broke down as I began to walk through my homes door, crying I shuffled up my stairs looking at the clock, 9:30 at night already?! God, I was either crying too long or walking to slow… and crying still, I walked towards my room at the end of the large booming hall, a hall that cried ‘Oh we are a happy family and we are perfect!’ I wanted to burn the hall down. I slumped through the doorway and I walked to bed. I hate everything. I shut my eyes and fell to sleep.