The Stepsisters

Chapter 3

"What are you doing in here?" I ask, trying to remain calm and respectful. I don't want to jump to any conclusions without allowing her to explain herself. Maybe she had to fix her dress, maybe she was looking for a hairbrush, or maybe she was just snooping through my things.

Her head turns quickly and she smiles at me. "The party was a bust, so I thought I'd try to learn more about my new sisters." My music box fiddles in her hands, and she drops it on the floor.

A wave of panic rushes through my spine, as I run towards my most delicate possession. My fingers reach around the base, and the little ballerina tumbles onto the floor. "You broke it!"

"I really am sorry, it was an accident. But it's not that big of a deal. My father can buy you a new one. It's not like it's worth much anyways." She rolls her eyes, as if my reaction was absolutely ridiculous.

"It meant a lot to me, it was from my father." I whisper as I try to hold back my tears. This was the last thing my father gave to me before he left. He told me he knew I was his daughter, and that him leaving had nothing to do with me. I think back to how happy my mother looked when she was walking down the stairs to meet her new husband. "But it's okay, don't worry about it." I add.

The wedding continues, and it is a beautiful ceremony in the backyard. Our cottage may be tiny and unimpressionable, but our backyard is filled with blooming flowers, aged cherry blossoms, and a tiny wooden birdhouse that hangs from a tree. It seems like mother spends all of her time in the garden.

The next day, Cinderella and Rupert move in to our tiny cottage, which began to feel smaller and smaller. I still don't understand why they moved into our house, when they were apparently very wealthy and probably could've afforded a new home. Drizella and I were forced to share a room, and Cinderella got my old room. I tried to resist from complaining, I just wanted everything to remain on good terms.

"How's the unpacking going?" I stood outside my old room, unable to recognize its original appearance.

Cinderella looked up from a pile of books she removed from a giant box on her new bed. "Look, I don't want to be here as much as you don't want me to be here. I say we skip pretending to be friends, and just stay out of each other's way as much as possible. I appreciate you being friendly, but my father should've never moved on from my mother. No one can ever replace her."

I carefully take a step into her room, and I approach the bed while scanning her impressive pile of books. "I am not pretending. I really do want to be friends, or should I say sisters. I know no one can replace your mother, just like no one can replace my father. But I just want my mother to be happy and your father does that."

A bird chirps outside the window, and lands on the windowsill while humming a sweet tune. It seems to watch our conversation, gawking its little eyes through my skull. "You will never be my sister. All you are to me is two lousy stepsisters and an annoying stepmother. So please just leave me alone."

I decide to give up and I walk back to my room, feeling like I have failed my mother. I preferred just me and Drizella, but I was still open to welcoming Cinderella into our family. I guess I understood where she was coming from. She must've still been really hurt and upset over her mother's death. My father left us too, but he didn't die. I began to wonder which was worse, but at least her mother didn't choose to leave her.

Drizella is sitting up tall at the mirror, powdering her face until she looks like a cake. "So, how did it go with Goldilocks?"

I throw my body onto the bed and slowly melt into the covers. "It's no use, she called us stepsisters. And it was the way she said it, it sounded like she was saying rats or something."

Drizella snorts. "Remind me why we're being nice to her again?"

I struggle to lift my head out of the slumped covers that's blocking my view of my sister. She is still powdering her face. "Because her dad makes mother happy. Drizella stop doing that, you don't need it you look fine."

She looks at me and shrugs. "How else am I supposed to keep up with Cinderella's perfect complexion?"

I roll my eyes and stare at the ceiling. "It's not a competition, she is no more beautiful than you are."

"Oh please, she's too beautiful." She replies.

I wait for Drizella to leave and I approach the mirror. My hair is flying everywhere, my eyes look droopy, and the freckles look like they keep growing and growing. My dull, brown eyes stare back at me.

"I guess I really am just an uglystepsister."